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The Taz

55K views 216 replies 37 participants last post by  JeepHeap 
#1 · (Edited)
9/4/18: New tub (post 75)

1/25/19: New drivetrain (Kingpin 60, 14b, 5.3l LS, 4l60e, Atlas II, and rear 4 link) (post 102)

Hi everyone, this is my first thread. I'm 13 and just got my first jeep!!

The jeep is a 1984 Jeep CJ7, disassembled inline 6 and 4 speed. The jeep is in pretty rough condition and needs a lot of work. Along with repairs, build plans include:

05+ Super Duty Dana 60
05+ Sterling 10.5
3 link front
XJ rear leaf springs
Chevy 350
SM465
NP205
Aluminum Super Duty wheels
37” Cooper STT Pros







All loaded up and ready to go home!!




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#101 ·
I decided that it would be best if the trackbar had a little bend in it. With some help from @Kyle M. we were able to put a bend in it and make it fit a lot better.



After putting the trackbar in, I rebuild the transfer case cross member and took out all the jack stands that were holding up the engine, tranny, and transfer case. After that, I was able to get the Jeep back on all fours for the first time since rebuilding the frame.



The steering column that came with the first jeep had all of the wires cut to a stub so they were completely useless. Other than that, everything else worked great. The steering column that came with the second jeep had all the wires but it collapsed in the accident and didn’t turn well. Tonight we spent some time rebuilding the new one with parts from the old ones and now it works great.



Does anyone know of a place where I can buy some steering shaft parts for a reasonable price?



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#102 ·
I guess it’s time for an update. After getting the trackbar bent, we rolled the Jeep outside to clean up a little. Of course I had to get some pictures.





After some thinking, my dad decided to part with his XJ. My dad made a deal with me that if I continue to get a 4.0 GPA he will hand down most of his parts!! The parts from his drivetrain that I will get are his shaved 14b and welded kingpin 60 both with 5.38 gears. I’ll also be getting his 5.3, built 4l60e, and Atlas II.

I talked him into giving me coilovers as a part of the deal so now the air shocks will be moved to the rear with a 4 link. Leafs are for trees.

His axles have the 8 on 6.5 lug pattern so I am getting his tires and H2 wheels also.

After taking his Jeep to the scrap yard, we moved some stuff around with the amazing space we gained.



This is a few steps backwards but it is most definitely worth it and may even speed up the project since we know everything works great.




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#104 ·
Not a whole ton of progress recently. Been spending all my Saturdays snowboarding up north. In the few days that we did work on the Jeep, we got a few things done.

We tore out the old drive train and began mocking up the new one



Went for the flat belly



Some sacrifices had to be made



Made some motor mounts





After we mounted it I just wasn’t happy with how far the motor sat forward. The next weekend was spent moving it back 3 inches. We were also able to get the front axle rolled under the Jeep.






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#105 ·
After getting the engine mounted, we moved the upper link to the passenger side and also frenched it into the frame to be able to have the bolt clear the transmission.





After that was done, we were able to bolt up the wheels with 37s for the first time. We also found ride height. It’s really low. Right now it will have about 4 or 5” of up travel but we could flip the tie rod and drag link to the underside of the knuckle to get at least 2 more.

Ride height (check out the flat drag link!):



Size reference. I’m 6’ 1”





I got a tube frame steering box mount from Gtxracer on pirate or @duKeengineeringsolutions on Instagram. It’s a very cool and does a great job keeping the steering box up and out of the rocks. We had to cut the bumper off to make the steering box location work. With the front stretch, we will have to put the box out in front of the grill but I don’t think it will stick out far enough to make a noticeable difference off-road.








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#106 ·
After getting the link mounts all in place, we put in the shocks and the front end shot up since they had the springs for a Cherokee still on them (120 over 250). So my dad called up Accutune and after some measurements they had it all figured out and some new springs were on their way to us. They ran the numbers 3 times because of how light my jeep is. They thought there was something wrong with the math. Spring rates ended up being 100 over 120. I spend a couple nights last week welding up links and all the axle side mounts so yesterday we were able to get the front axle in and nothing will be redone again, no matter what.

Full droop



After the front end was at ride height, we balanced out the rear to see how low it would be.

Ride height







Almost completely flat lower links




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#108 ·
We’ve been working with the 4 link calculator trying to get this rear to work. This is the best one we came up with so far. The only issue that we can see with this one is the upper link is not flat, how critical is that? Any other thoughts or comments on these numbers would be greatly appreciated.






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#109 ·
My only advice, don't worry too much about the numbers, I know I might get flamed for this, but I've read a lot about link numbers and setups, and look at many different combinations that all seem to contradict each other, and surprisingly they all seem to work just fine. I'd try to build it around what fits the best, keep your separations reasonable and you'll be happy.

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#111 ·
I always appreciate seeing someone who obviously knows how it's done saying this. While I have never done one from scratch (only modified my junk), I have talked to a lot of people who have. They all say the same thing you did. Keep the basics clean and then worry about packaging....
 
#112 ·
Interesting story.... this past March we took 7 rigs to Utah. All different wheelbases and tire sizes. Everyone did fine. I tried this extreme V notch being spotted by Rich Klein. (founder of WEROCK). Extreme being that it was so narrow and steep that you could literally stand upright under my Jeep. I couldn't get my right rear tire to climb the side wall and ended up backing out. When I asked Rich his opinion, he said "you have too much understeer" and he explained the geometry issue. This made me sorta sad and feeling like my rig was sub par. That night I crawled under all the other rigs and couldn't see anything that was much different than my setup so I asked him about it the next day and what made mine different? His answer; "all of your rigs have under steer, you were just the only one to try that obstacle".

So what is under steer in a nutshell? Anyone with single triangulated rear suspension will have under steer. It requires a double triangulated suspension to correct it. After 11 years of wheeling my suspension, this was the only time that my "not by the numbers" suspension became an issue.

Take Kyle's advice. :thumb:
 
#115 ·
Thank you all for your input. Wednesday night we got to working on it and got all the mounts in and then Thursday we spent the morning getting all the links cut and assembled.

Once assembled, it was evident that the truss was going to limit up travel, so, the rear frame had to go. In its place is a tube section which is capable of 8 1/2” of up travel before the axle makes contact so it should be perfect for 7” of up travel.







The new rear frame rails will be into the body about 3.5”; however, the floor will be entirely custom so it won’t be a problem.


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#116 ·
We got some good work done tonight. Started by welding in the rear frame rails and cutting the rear floor pan out so the body could be set down on the frame.



After doing that, we propped up the frame so that it would get close to ride height. It ended up being around 1.5” below ride height and got the front close to the same. After that, we rolled it out on all fours.

Belly is at 17.5” and the bottom of the tub is at 22.5”. In comparison, my dads CJ7 on 33s has the bottom of the tub at 25”...







And of course I had to sit in it holding my steering wheel.






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#119 ·
After getting the Jeep to the roller state, I added a front and rear cross member to strengthen up the frame.



I’m pretty proud of the welds that I put down on the cross members.



Once the cross members were in I began cutting out the floors in preparation for building the floors.



Then, on Friday my dad and I moved the tub off the frame and cleaned up around the edges of where I cut out the floors.







Then, today we mounted the rocker guards and began working on the skeleton for the floor. We started by putting in a spreader bar marking the floor so we could make sure that everything was square. And yes, the spreader bar is crooked so don’t let that confuse you, the body is squared up.





After getting everything set up, we made the first sections of the skeleton.



Then before we ran out of time to work, we got one of the hoops that go over the transfer case in place and cut the metal for 2 more.




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#123 ·
As of last weekend, marching band is officially done, meaning this project is back on track.

At some point in September we were able to get a few hours out in the barn and we cut out the rear wheel wells. We cut too far towards the back but it won’t be a problem since it will be covered by armor.



This past week we picked up a harbor freight 36” metal brake and a band saw with the Swag vertical table mount in preparation for making the floors.



After a few hours of beefing the brake up, it was ready to make some floors.



So far this week I have been able to get a good start on the floors.







More to come tomorrow


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#124 ·
Since we didn’t have enough steel to do the tranny tunnel or the floor pans the way we want to, we moved on to the rear fender wells and the step up to the bed.



The top half of the fender wells are not welded in yet so that is why they do not look even at the top.






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#125 ·
Without having sheet metal to work on the floors, we decided to start on the engine cage. We put the hood on and tried to put the grill into place to know where the boundaries are.

In one of the previous renditions of the front frame, we notched the sides of the grill so it would fit between the frame rails at the correct height. With the final front frame design, the frame rails are higher, causing the grill not to fit. I was never thrilled on the notched grill and I had seen a very cool grill mod I was interested in trying.

We laid the grill on the table and marked out the cuts. If we hadn’t done the notches on the bottom this would have been simpler but it still wasn’t too hard.



Cut 3 5/8” of it out, welded it up, and smoothed out the welds.





It still needs to be cleaned up a little more but I’m very happy with how it turned out. As of right now I believe I am going to get some small 2” or 3” amber lights and fill in the existing hole but nothing is set in stone yet.


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#126 ·
After a few weekends of work, the floors are mostly done. We are leaving the tunnel and bed pieces off to make work easier on exhaust and more bracing.

Overall, I am very happy with the outcome and am very glad that it is done. It wasn’t terrible work but it was very time consuming.








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