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"Dirthead 509" TJ Project

178K views 1K replies 102 participants last post by  Mr. Beefy 
#1 · (Edited)
Build plan:
98TJ
3-link front, double triangulated 4 link rear
Hydro assist
79 Ford D60 front, 5.38's, undecided locker
14 B rear, 5.38's, undecided locker
Flipped D300, possibly 231-D300 doubler....if I can find the right parts:sonicjay:
4 cyl to 4.0L conversion since it was missing the 4 cyl :sonicjay:
Full cage
Highline tube fenders
Non comp cut cut
Fuel cell
I'm sure there's more.......


The story:
I picked this up on the coldest day last year....remember when it was 0 deg for a high with a -20 windchill in Jan 08, yea that day:teehee:

We bolted a front axle under it with wheel bearings and put tires on to roll it onto the trailer. Was a 4 cylinder.....minus the 4 cylinder, front axle, rear ring and pinion, airbags deployed.
Put the hood and stood the grill in place to access the damage once I got it home.

Picked up half doors and uppers this summer, color is fugly but they'll serve the purpose.
Bought a take out 4.0L and AX-15 with computer, wiring ect this summer. S.Hembree, Pwilson22000 and I set that in a couple weeks ago and started it. Tucking that up as far as I can. Folded the pinch seam up and out of the way on the firewall when I pulled the engine back out. Gained about an inch of clearance for wiring and such :thumb:


Then it came back out and S.Hembree and I cut the frame to straighten it back out. This heep was in a front collision, the frame was 1.5" taller on the drivers side, had to cut the frame to twist it back to about where it's supposed to be.

Frame gave right under the 4 cylinder motor mount. Had to cut 3 sides and 1/2 way up the fourth before it would move.

Frame tacked in place, onto front crossmember/bumper. I will be transfering my 8274 from my XJ to this one when done so I've been building the front so that it will accept that winch. Bumpmember mocked up:

Still need to put another 4" section of 1/4 across the front and brace it back. Will have to drill holes after that but I want to have the winch sitting in the bumper before putting holes in.
Relocated steering box up and hopefully out of harms way. 2/3rds done :teehee::


Still need to tap the steering box for hydro assist.
Went to LKQ last weekend and pulled a 99+ intake for $18, put that on saturday and replaced the powersteering fluid tank with one that didn't have the tab broke off the back.

Got my 14 bolt SOLID diff cover that I won at the Sundowners Rodeo this week. Also ordered disc brake brackets and D300 flip/clocking ring early this week but didn't get anything in time for this weekend. Pic of 79 D60 front and 14B rear:

Started on my flat belly kit this afternoon. Doing this one cheap for now. We'll see how it turns out. Ends cut off and sledge hammered flat :teehee:




Comments/criticism welcome, that's where the good idea's come from. Sorry for crappy pics, keep forgetting the camera.
 
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#242 · (Edited)
So last night I'm getting ready to build bump stop mounts decide to put the shocks in just to make sure everything is going to work out at full bump. So I get to full bump height and I'm not even close to bottoming the shocks out :confused:. I double check my 23.5" compressed thats written on my bumper, yeah not so much. It's 21.05" from SAW's website, 23.5" is for the shocks I sold off :fish:. So now I have to redo my shock mounts on my coilover hoops :( How I missed that, I haven't a clue. :confused:

So on the passenger side I can get 5.5-6" of uptravel, on the drivers side I can only get 4-4.5" of uptravel before running into my track bar bracket. I took it off and modified it once already to get another 1/2" of travel. Tonight I'm going to cut it another 1/4" which may get me to 5"(not 1:1 :sonicjay:). If I can't get there, is there any reason I shouldn't run my bump stops at different heights on the drivers side and passenger side? The only thing that holds me up on the drivers sides is steering hard to the drivers side. The tie rod contacts the bracket. If the wheels are straight it clears no issues. You can see what I'm dealing with here, this is with the wheel turned until contact, wheels straight, it clears:

From the passenger side:


1/2" of shock until bottoming out on the passenger side, shock brackets need to move a little, nothing major on that side:

Tucks up pretty well but the exhaust/front driveshaft is going to bring the suck:


Progress in the wrong direction :(
 
#243 ·
Tonight I moved the track bar mount up 3/8" and back 1/8". That allowed me to get to full lock to the drivers side at full stuff with 5 1/4" uptravel.


The track bar actually rubs on the diff cover now so I'll have grind a chamfer on the edge of the diff cover, not a big deal

The stock TJ pitman arm limits out just about perfect. The large lug of the ltb is not shown and tires aren't aired down. They might rub but it'll only be a touch if they do.

Redid my coilover tabs and tacked them back on both sides with the shocks actually at full compression this time.



I have to find an upper kingpin cap, the steering side cap is too tall and contacts the C/O spring when flexed. I knew this was going to be an issue so no surprise on that one.
Bumpstops are up next now that I have the shocks in the right spot.
 
#245 · (Edited)
I've been able to set the grill in with the rad attached without issues(other than the pitman arm wanting to hit the radiator, moving rad up to clear.) but I'm going to have to cut it down about an inch to get the hood to close straight. I straightened the front frame out so the lengths can be decieving when looking at the holes. Hope that kinda answers your question.



Edit: I'm not running the factory core support. Sorry, I read that wrong the first time.
 
#246 · (Edited)
Last night I made up my bump stop mounts and put them into place. I was able to get to 5" of uptravel at ride height so I'm pretty happy about that. I just started using a different welding helmet.......The HF model is officially retired to upside down or dirty duty. Unbelieveable how much more I can see through a decent helmet :thumb:.



I ground the weld out from around my fishplate from the beginning of this project and rewelded it. I feel alot better about it taking a load now vs. before.

FINALLY, pictures of the heep sitting on all 4's without assistance :woot: :rock:




I put the grill/rad/winch and stacked some other weight on the front to get a corner weight for the front. I went from 13.75" to 12" on 350lb springs which puts me at 612lbs per corner in the front. I can call and get upper springs on the way now. Feels good to finally see some progress..........

IR retarded, 14" springs are 12" tall with weight on the springs, 700lb/corner in the front :fish:
 
#255 ·
Little update: My final day of work at my former employer was Friday. I no longer make parts for Jeeps :(. I recieved a call monday with a job offer for the position I interviewed for 3 times in the prior 3 weeks. I accepted that offer and will start working again monday. I'm happy to find an opportunity in today's job market. I was officially unemployed for 4hrs and 30 minutes :sonicjay: The build will continue now that I have the important bills covered. :woot:

Last weekend I worked on fixing my mistakes on the rear suspension. Turns out I hit my gas tank crossmember about 1" before full stuff in the rear with the standard 14B diff cover. That sucks because I have a ruffstuff cover that has to go on there. I pulled the suspension down and shortened the arms up about 1/2" and I took the grinder to the crossmember. It clears for now but I have to move my spring perches to be on center again at full bump for the bumpstops. I had to turn down my chevy bumpstops and modify my stock TJ front springs so that the bumpstops will fit in the springs and allow them to "sag out" when crossed up in the rear. I'm going to have to run a limit strap in the center to keep the driveshaft from binding when the rear unloads on both sides. I hope to get the rear bumpstops and springs back in today and have the rear suspension complete. I think I'm done going backwards for now. Hopefully I can make some headway today and thursday/friday.
 
#256 · (Edited)
Ceiling is done in the shop, I'm going to work on pulling the rear axle out tomorrow to finish the spring perches. I have to weld the shock mounts to the frame and the rear suspension should be ready to go. Not looking forward to the smell from the 14B.......I think it's been sitting for 10+ years :whiz:

Ordered my radiator today from Summit. Griffin 1-25201-X. It's only 24 wide and 16 tall.
I also had S.Hembree order the fittings needed to plumb my fuel cell in. I'm going to try to get the TJ pump situated in the cell and ready for hookup tomorrow as well. Not much, but it's progress.
 
#264 ·
I have to pay someone to do tube work, you wouldn't happen to know of anyone would you? :teehee:

The list(I'm sure I'm forgetting things too)
-Mount radiator and source hoses
-Make mounts for hydro assist
-Remove AC compressor and make mount for 2nd alternator
-Tear axles down, buy gears and lockers, reassemble with disc brake kit
-Notch tub to make room for front driveshaft
-Twin stick D300 and make shifters
-Pull drivetrain, modify holes in Ax-15 for D300, finalize tranny mount.
-Run brake lines and modify master cylinder if needed.
-Run exhaust
-Solder 4 wires for fuel pump, run evap hose from rollover valve.
-Flat skid
-Source and modify driveshafts
-Cut and install rear corner guards

And then I still need to pay someone or buy a bender and do the tubework for the front end and cage.
It's a shorter list but still a ton of work to be done.

Weekend progress included getting tabs welded onto my radiator, finishing rear bumpstops, modifying rear fuel cell cover and filler area and welded in my rear shock mounts.

Front bump cans cut off, shortened, and welded in place in the rear with my turned down chevy bumpstops to allow the springs to move.


Modified fuel cell cover to allow fuel fill from the wheel well. If it doesn't work out, I'll run a hose to the actual fender and install the stock filler into the corner guard.


Saved $45 by not buying the 45 deg RCI fuel filler, they're mild steel anyway.......cut, weld, paint.



So yeah, little by little still.:beer:
 
#265 ·
yea, i guess youve got a little ways to go - at least you have well defined line items (ie. the list is "actual size" ) :thumb:

pm me on the tube work if you want to talk - otherwise maybe you should get Paul and S.Hembree to chip in on a bender - the way they go at it - they really need cages :sonicjay:



.
 
#266 ·
I have the radiator mounted to the grill. What a mess. The grill is warped and twisted from the accident so I had to use the bfm to beat a couple things back into place :sonicjay:


Looking for a way to secure the Taurus fan to the radiator still. Not much but it's progress.

Need to look into pulling the AC compressor and adding another alternator.
 
#271 ·
Got back to it over the weekend. I picked up a tubing bender. Needs a little work and I have to order a die set but it'll work :thumb:

I worked on modifying the cab to allow the front driveshaft to spin freely. I hate the undercoating they put on vehicles, it pulled up into my puddle and made welding a pain in the a$$.

Shift rails are under the front output, shifters are going to suck!



New years day I decided to keep it simple for obvious reasons, made it 6 hrs into 2010 before throwing up :sonicjay: :beer:

I pulled the 14B out and got that sitting for gears and teardown. I also cleaned up a bit the 1st.
Worked on hydro assist mount today. Not much room to say the least. CTB2's hobbled ass came over to check things out today, damn he's old :teehee:
Made mounts:


Had to make room for the ram to go through at full bump:





As it sits now.
 
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