MD Juan Tub Kit 1969 CJ5 4CLY (7/2016)

'Got some great help from Mike Framer today relative to the rear fold-and-tumble rear seat installation. (I found one needing brackets and new fabric for $25 this past Sunday.) I couldn't understand from scant on-line photos how it's tub brackets made the seat secure.

Mike told me that when the seat-back is vertical, it engages the side tub brackets. (I found this photo online, we don't have side brackets yet.)



Then the seat's own latch (at the fold's outer edge) locks the seat back up, and therefore locks the whole seat secure and in place.

Got it!

Mike also offered us a set of side brackets and the loan of a floor pivot bracket to copy. That made Joe's day since he does so much of the bracket fab work. (Joe is the talented side of this pair).

"earlycj5.com" has to be THE top Jeep site for great people! Thanks, Mike!

 

P.S.

Does anyone know if the early Jeep emboss on the two cowl sides is painted a color different from the body (to make it stand out)?



Right now "JEEP" is the same color on our NAVY Jeep.

Does anyone happen to know it this was true for the CJ5 Jeeps used by the US NAVY?

Thanks

Tuesday edit: I just did a 20 minute Google search on Navy jeeps... plenty of examples... "JEEP" is always the same color as the body on all military/Navy Jeeps I found.

 

Wednesday update!

I forgot that on Monday Joe replaced the rocker arm cover gasket to fix an oil leak. Today he tightened a few oil plugs.

Also today I stopped at Home Depot to pick up a heating duct nozzle for my diy fresh air box cover for the heatet. Joe started working before I arrived and first shortened the lower hood support bracket to eliminate the hood crash problem. He painted everything and put it all back together... problem solved.

Then Joe mounted the spare tire carrier and tire. Later in the day he added the reflector. My original 1969 showed no signs of holes or wiring supporting side reflectors or side lights. But they were just being introduced so it could have had them. Today was the first time we noticed the stud hole, permitting the spare tire to be locked on with a padlock.




Next.... the dash! Finally!

We spent a bit of time punching out a 1-1/8" hole for the USB charger to make sure we didn't foul the dash surface, and it worked out 'ok'. We wired it in.



The SS grab handle color seems a bit 'off'... hmmmm. Paint would not stand up. Oh, well.

With the dash in, we finished mounting the four push/pull cables, the vent outlet mounting, the steering column and, of course, the wiring.

{editorial comment 11/2/2021: the heater's push/pull cables didn't hold up very well; one broke off 1" long.... I didn't know how to identify a quality brand and probably had a sub-par one... }



All the wires finally go somewhere... we'll find out Friday if it is the right somewhere! We'll hold off tying them down until we are sure that no changes are needed. They are much easier to trace if they aren't bundled too much.

And the vent outlets turned out ok, too.



This obviously is the right side. We will likely tuck it up just a bit more by bending the bracket slightly flatter. Nothing shows under the dash. Very clean.

Further up, in an earlier photo, you can see the left vent outlet hanging down, next to the E brake handle. We'll attach it again when wiring tests are complete.

Next we installed the steering drag link with all new internal parts. Oddly, we got two sets of indented bushing plates for the two balls to bear on, two "thin" and two "thick". But like all aftermarket parts these days... no instructions. The shop manual said nothing about two different thickness or using four bushing plates... just two bearing plates. By the way, the drag link is not properly represented in the manual... it shows one hole 180 degrees wrong.

On the rear side of the drag link I used one of the extra bushing plates on the grease fitting side (inside) of the ball opening so the forward side of the ball would bear on the indented bushing and not bear directly on the inside axial face of the drag link rod where the grease fitting feeds grease into the space. It all fit together, so I can only guess that I'm correct.

On the opposite (front) end of the drag link, we had to cut the cotter pin slots deeper on the screwed retaining end plug. Joe made a special tool. He cut off LARGE screw driver and forced it's shaft into a socket so we could apply the necessary 20 ft-lb to the screwed retaining end plugs.

Last thing today, we tried to slip on a new aftermarket steering wheel, so we could install the horn button and finish the horn wiring too... but no luck. The inner diameter of the steering wheel which should easily clear the steering shaft outer cover tube, didn't clear it. The shaft cover tube has a bearing retainer pressed into it which deforms the upper lip of the tube. That is enough to keep it from fitting. So Friday we'll have to skim an 1/8" off the inside diameter of our brand new steering wheel to enlarge it.

'Time to review what's left to do...
Let's see...

Engine area:
Cooling hoses
Fresh air duct hose
Wiring test
Engine test

Cockpit:
Floor pans
3 Seat teardown / clean / repair / paint / assemble

Body:
Clean
Paint touch up
Stencil

Top:
Fit

Misc:
S/N tag
Insurance
Registration
Test drive

 

Looking good! I am wondering if your windshield cowl seal is on right or just different from what I am used to. There is a forward facing lip on the bottom front of the windshield frame, is there not a grove in the seal which this fits into? If there is you could probably pull down on the front of the seal to engage it without unscrewing the seal from the windshield.

 

Thanks, Mike.

We'll have to check it out Friday (our next "Jeep Day") unless Joe sees this, gets curious, and has time before then.

I'm repeatedly impressed with how much you guys pick up via a casual look at a photograph. Nice!

 

When i got my Jeep it had no wipers or wiper motor. And the wires were just cut off at the switch under the dash, so we had no example to follow.

'Just searching on line, it seems my MDJ windshield frame is missing a hole for the wiper wiring to loop down to the dash hole.

As you can see, we punctured the leftmost hole cover in the lower windshield frame, but the jeep photo I just saw on line shows an additional hole. ...oops.



Are the "original" holes really offset like this?

I'm kind of surprised Jeep engineers actually accepted a loose wire just looping out into space between the windshield frame and dash... does this seem just plain "dumb" to anyone else? I wonder how often it gets snagged moving in and out of the vehicle... just the kind of thing I would do.

Has anyone ever punched a hole into the bottom of the frame and aligned another hole into the top of the cowl so this wiper motor wire routing is hidden by the windshield seal joint? Really... how often does the windshield get cycled up and down anyway!?! 100 times? 200 times? Likely not enough to fatigue the wires. Probably less likely to be damaged in the frame/cowl seal joint than hanging out in space into the cockpit... I don't get it.

Oh well... I'm obviously not religious about authenticity (i.e. I'm using an MDJ tub, a younger back seat, etc), but I do try to get close enough to fool/convince the ignorant (i.e. people like me)... dang. Lets see what Joe thinks. We can use the old frame for dimensions /locations if we decide to move this wire.

As Joe likes to say...
"We have the technology."

To which I generally reply...
"We have the time."

 

Wow. Clean!

Nice!

Joe is going to make me move that wire penetration... my wife says he's my "Jeep conscience"

 

Thanks, Howard. I didn't know about the vacuum hose. So they simply followed the same practice as before since it had already been accepted.

Got it!

 

The intermediate jeeps have the wire running out the bottom of the window and into the top of the cowl. The gasket may already have the hole.

 

The engineer in me very badly wants to do exactly that, but the Jeep enthusiast in me (plus Joe) says "copy the original where ever you can". It's not a daily driver so snagging opportunities are low... so, I'm going to go "original".

Thanks!

Edit: after talking to Joe, we may do both... the real wire "inside" like intermediate Jeeps, and a "show" wire in the authentic position.

 

I couldn't live with the wire running out then back in the windshield frame on mine. I used a trailer plug on the wiper wiring so it could be disconnected to remove the windshield. Had to drill the cowl and windshield frame but no wires show. Keep up the good work.

 

or a hunk o vacuum hose...

 

Friday "Jeep Day" update:

Short day 9-3. Joe was working on the horn wiring when I arrived. So, we were able to launch right into the wiring tests. We had several issues with the right rear light and inconsistent performance from the light switch.

Joe was convinced we had a bad ground and tried tightening the lamp nuts... nada. Then he added a separate ground wire... nada. Then he disassembled the lamp and tested everything. He traced the bad ground to paint in the bulb recepticle... hmmmm.... I had painted the lamp... oops. A wire brush on a Dremel tool resolved that issue.

The second issue stemmed from a damaged light switch. It was fine when installed on the dash, but it is the first swirch on the extreme left side. It cleared the cowl flange by only 3/8" or so. We figured it was damaged during dash instsllation.

So, we pulled it apart without removing the wires. All we had to do was bend back some steel body tabs capturing the wiring insulation base. The body and all internals were taken to the bench for cleaning, rework, lubrication and reassembly.

When we reinstalled it, we swapped positions with the wiper control which has a smaller behind-the-dash footprint and is safer as an end switch. We had to redo a few wires, but all went smoothly.

That's it. Wiring testing finished before lunch (sans engine wiring).

Edit: Saturday... I just remembered that the turn signal and flasher indicator lamp (on the face of the column mounted signal box) did not flash when the body mounted lamps flashed. We repaired the switch wiring and replaced the bulb when we repaired the switch... We need to fix that, again. This time I suspect a grounding issue!

After lunch, Joe went to work on wire routing and on bundling wires with tie wraps and I did some small part painting and installed the floor pans in the cab.

We must have gotten the body raised up a hair after our original fit-up because the second shift lever and the gas peddle now scrape the bottom of their cut outs in the floor pans.

I had forgotten that a few covers might need to be fabricated. Fortunately, an electrical J box cover works well on for the opening immediately to the right of the main shift stick (shown primered in the photo); the original cover for the brake fluid reservoir access is close (see below)... maybe we can live with it.



You can also see (just), the heating ducts are in, right and left... 'tried to keep them hidden, but glove box limits upward placement on right.

Oh, yea... while Joe bundled wires, I drilled a new hole in the windshield frame face and relocated the wiper motor wires. We were not prepared to knock over the windshield today, so we didn't go the intermediate route, with the real wire routed all inside. Maybe "someday" but we decided to live with it before we condemn it further.




So, that's the week.







Oops... I moved.

Next week we'll get the engine running again... i.e. cooling system hose routing with the new heater... test engine wiring...test the fuel sender. Then we'll install pedals... improve pedal/shift clearance... do the front end alignment (toe in)... strip seats off frames... paint seat frames... fabricate rear seat floor brackets (thank you, Mike!!)...

Joe was right... we will finish by mid March!!

 

Monday update (short day):

I worked on floor pan clearances and gaskets for them, plus I cut a new brake cylinder reservoir access cover, drilled it, primered and painted it.

I also cleaned up the rear seat side brackets and primered them. And we confirmed the seat I have has three foot holes along the front edge.

Joe worked on coolant hose routing so the engine wiring can be tested and finished.

I made the decision to prepare for PA state inspection. If I title it as an "Antique" in PA, no inspection is needed... but then it could only be driven 2000 mi/yr, only to events (except 1 time/week), and only when the sun is up... 'not sure I want to drive with those restrictions... So I might get a standard plate... undecided.

And then Joe worked on rear floor brackets.



As you can see, Joe had a heavy piece of angle iron which he parted with a metal saw and then notched with a Sawsall. Here he has selected a long bolt. He'll cut off the head and threads, retain the shaft, and drill it for a retaining pin. He plans on cutting a second piece of angle to form the back side of the "T" shape of the original bracket. It all gets welded together, wire brushed, primered and painted.

Wednesday, I'll add a photo of the finished pieces.

 

Wednesday update:

Joe finished fabricating the fold and tumble seat floor mounting brackets, sandblasted them, and painted them. We installed them at the end of the day. (Black touch-up paint Friday). We should have made the left bracket bolt longer than the right so one person could install these more easily. It's tough to start both floor brackets at the same time...



We selected an extreme rear position that keeps the back edge of the seat within the inside plane of the tailgate. We wanted any passenger to have as much legroom as possible.



Other accomplishments today...

Joe finished taping and securing all the wiring...



... while I worked on adding wire grounds to the fuel level sensor and to the turn signal switch (whose signal indicating pilot light was not working). That addition was strongly recommended elsewhere in earlycj5.com.

I also moved the flasher relay power from auxiliary to battery so the 4-way flashers could be operated without the ignition key (per PA vehicle code). I guess that explains why my jeep originally had a separate 4-way flasher switch.

And the cheap-o imported washer pushbutton had disintegrated ...seemingly spontaneously... so it was replaced today.

I also removed all the floor panels and glued rubber gaskets around their underside at the perimeters. And we both finished the two remaining access covers (not completed earlier). I thought to leave the floor pan bolt heads black, but Joe suggested we try grey first. We both like it grey, so it will stay grey.



Finally, we cut and installed springs and rubber pads on the brake and cluch pedal shafts under the floor to press the pads against the pedal's floor cutouts to seal them; (the accelerator boot is on order).

And Joe was unhappy with the side movement of the brake pedal, so he disassembled the linkage and added a large thick washer to take out the slop and to bear on the side of the pedal arm. It worked great!

Oh, yea... and we put fuel in the fuel tank to check for fuel line leaks... no leaks!

Friday we'll get to test the speedometer's new fuel gage for the first time, and we'll run the engine up to temperature to check the new coolant temperature gage.

Also...
The fresh air supply box needs to be completed and duct installed.
The front end toe in needs to be adjusted.
Brake pedal return spring needs to be attached.
The seats need to be "worked".
Footman loops and door hardware need to be attached... snaps or buckles?... hmmmm.
The (special, custom) soft top base bracket needs to be fabricated.
The decals need to be painted on.
The s/n tag needs to be attached.
...

That was our Wednesday Jeep Day!

 

I showed my front and back seats to my brother Dan (pro auto upholstery guy) today..
he said there was no way he'd let me put my current seats in our Jeep until they get new upholstery. I thought he'd say that.

He told me how to disassemble them to make a sewing pattern:

Take pictures of finished seat from all sides and additional pictures of all details.

(1) remove them from the seat without opening any sewn seams.
(2) on the back side, mark the centerline of the seat.
(3) begin at a centerline, and name and mark each seam uniquely "A", "B", "C"... etc.
(4) provide numbered match marks across all the seams, with more at each transition and about every 2-3 inches otherwise. Complicated forms require more match marks.
(5) take pictures of the completed fabric assembly with all seam names and marks visible in at least one photo. Capture design features like tucks etc
(6) open the seams, separating the assembly into individual major pieces. Do not open those seams creating the detailing (like ribs).
(8) transfer pattern to back of new fabric.
(9) prepare new fabric for assembly (add detail)
(10) sew assembly together.

I'll take pictures of the steps above, as I do them. ...But if my brother Dan happens to volunteer to sew the new pieces together, I am not going to get in the way! Although I hope I get to at least watch.

 

Friday JEEP DAY! update:

Hmmm... mixed bag today. We ran the engine to finally check out all the engine wiring.

The oil pressure light in the speedometer only goes out at relatively high RPM. I'm guessing I bought a new switch with a trip (close on fall) setpoint that's too high. I'll need to research the setpoint for my F134, check the switch I bought, and buy a replacement if I'm off.

The new fuel gage I added to the speedometer isn't indicating any fuel in the tank. We only put a gallon or so in there, but I expected to see some indication. We'll likely research troubleshooting the fuel level sensor and do whatever checks we can... after we try putting more fuel in the tank first.

The locking gas cap vents fuel fumes like a Molotov cocktail and will need to be quickly replaced.

The radiator was dripping coolant from a leak we haven't located yet.

And, the biggie... the red electrical fault light in the speedometer would not go out at any RPM...grrrrrr. We did the SM test we could with the equipment we have and confirmed that the generator is producing electrical power, so we must have a voltage regulator issue. Is it the regulator or something else... I'm having a bit of trouble identifying all the components inside the regulator... I like to understand how things work (or why they don't work) before I replace them...





Could someone please identify the name (or function) of the three relays, say, left to right?

We noticed that depressing the one on the left turns off the red "fault" light in the speedometer.

We also adjusted the toe-in today. We created two "slides" to tie two metal yardsticks together and marked the front and back separation of the two front wheel inside rim edges and rotated the tie rod arms(?) until we got into spec (per the SM).



And we got a moment so we installed the S/N plate. I know it was earlier than I said, but it was fun to do, so we did it.



We worked a bit on the fresh air box; we added the nozzle, sealed that joint, cut the sides for the coolant hoses, and painted it. We'll install it Monday and order a hi temp duct to reach to the side of the grill. (No photo, sorry.)

And then we worked on tearing down the seats. Here are the "before" photos:



This is the seat my brother said "NO WAY ARE YOU PUTTING THAT INTO A JEEP YOU JUST WORKED A YEAR RESTORING!!!" Yikes! ...ok...



So we tore it down. The covering stripped off easily once we cut the hog rings off. The white stripes on the back seat were pulled tightly against the foam with Velcro... The back seat covering didn't budge until the Velcro was separated from the foam, then it came right off.



Each front seat had three layers of upholstery! The far left (newest) seems closest to what the Navy used. The far right was the oldest of the three.

When stripped the front seat looked like this:




I used a razor blade knife to split the underside or back of the foam and expose the metal support:





Right about here I re-discovered the source of the mildew smell... These seats have been inside my dry and above freezing garage for a year... And we're still damp in spots. 'Not real sure how I'll deal with that long term... Heated seats?



The foam came off relatively easily. I used a sharpened putty knife to separate the foam from the metal frame. The toughest part was the spring attachment into the seat frame... 'not sure how they will go back in... Hmmmm... Dan will help.

Here is the back seat:



I used various knives to split the foam and free the support frame. I left the springs in the foam, and released the spring ends from tabs built into the frame rails.









The rear seat was wet, too, but I understand it spent the last two years in an outdoor shed after living in an off-road Jeep. They were filthy with mud; packed into every fabric crease and frame joint, and crevice. The fun part of this is the complete transformation into something attractive and fully functional.

We'll wire brush the frames (most too big for our sand blaster), and paint them.

As I mark the pieces required to transfer to a pattern, and then disassemble them, I'll take more pictures.

And that was the day.

 

I didn't tell Jim that I had already put the 5 gallons of fuel in the gas tank. No reading. It was a good day.