I Can't Wait To Take My Top Off!

Obviously there is no picture to attach to this post.  But I am posing a question to the group.  Has anyone built a crane to help lift a CJ8 1/2 Hard Top off the body?  I don't have a garage so that eliminates me buying the one's I have seen on www.4wd.com or www.jcwhitney.com or even www.quadratec.com.  I think I will try digging and setting a 4X4 post about 12 feet high set in concrete.  Attach a cheap crane system from www.harborfreight.com at the top, and see if this will work.  I may draw this one out on paper first to see if it makes sense and will support a 200 lbs top.  Anyway - please send comments if you have an idea!

Take Care Jeepers!

Only a Few Things/Months Left

With only a 3 months left till our first baby is born - I only have a little more spare time to do any other fixing and restoring of the jeep.  So I need to get in gear, but luckily there are only a handful of items left.  I got a paint job done last weekend, and ordered a rear bumper.  I still need to get my rear leaf spring shackles replaced.  Lastly I need to scrape off all the rust from under carriage and apply some POR-15, then seal and paint with rust inhibitor.  But these thing don't have to be done anytime soon.  I must say I had a blast doing this project and I learned a ton!  Not sure when my next post will be, but I will update everyone if I do anything else.  Anybody with will, time, and patience can accomplish anything.  I hope to give this Scrambler to my boy when he is old enough (and IF he deserves it!) 

Time for Some Music

Parrot Car Multimedia Receiver - ASTEROID (Google Affiliate Ad)

Of course you all have been reading every post, so you already know that when I bought this little puppy it had no radio installed.  I love this because I can create my own sound system from scratch.  This is what has been installed:  Parrott Asteriod head unit (andriod based radio), Versa-Pods attached to rear back of half hard top (quick disconnect clips for when removing top), Center Speaker System (2 mid's, 2 tweeters) and Infinity Basslink Subwoofer, and a new radio antenna.  There is also a killer alarm with proximity detection so don't get any funny ideas!  I also keep my pet rattle snake in there, so be warned!  In any case - the sound is great, and I can block out any of the road noise I was used to hearing.

Half Hard Top and Bulkhead Installed

Classic Accessories Jeep Wrangler Cover (Google Affiliate Ad)

So here is a glimpse of what the Jeep is starting to look like.  I think it looks pretty sick!!!  After scouring the Internet for more than a month, I found this rare fiberglass 1/2 hard top in VA Beach which is about 3.5 hours away from my house.  I also bought a brand new fiberglass bulkhead from this store: www.gr8tops.com.  After aquiring these 2 pieces, I thought I would figure out later how to install and attach these body parts.  I ripped off the old full length soft top and took off the frame as well.  I stored these nicely in a box in my shed - never know when I'll want to go back to it (doubt it.) Anway, the first step was to install the bulkhead.  I placed it behind both seats and formed the pick up truck bed.  I opt'd not to use regular sheet metal screws because with all the vibrations of the road, I figured that they would just come loose.  I bought a rivet tool, rivet nuts, bolts and rubber washers. If you don't know what a rivet tool/nuts are - go to amazon.com and search for Astro Rivet Hand Tools.  they are used for blind bolting (when you can't see what's on the otherside of the bolt.  Just drill a hole, insert the rivet nut using the tool, squeeze trigger and the rivet nut sets securely inside of hole.  Then you can bolt whatever you want to it, in my case the bulkhead and then the 1/2 hard top.  Next to the windshield, my Scrambler already had latches for a hard top - so I didn't have to do anything.  Somewhere in it's life it must have had a half hard top.  I guess I lucked out on that one.  The only thing that was a pain in butt was removing the seat belt bolts that go into the roll cage.  They were rusted, and it took about 4 hours to get them out.  Invest in an air-torque wrench if you can. 

New Dunlop Radial Mud Rovers

Dunlop SP Winter Sport 3D 235/40R18/XL 95W (Google Affiliate Ad)

From my post titled "CJ8 is Wandering All Over Road", I mentioned that when it hit 20mph, my jeep started bouncing up and down like it had hydraulics.  What I learned was about something call flat spots.  Before I got to my jeep, who knows how long it sat parked - maybe years!  When that happens, flat spots form on tires where it meets the ground.  Naturally when you try driving, and the tires make the revolution, each time it hits that flat spot, the tires go down, then back up.  No real fix for this besides to replace the tires.  I bought 32X11.5R-15 Dunlop Radial Mud Rovers and they look sweet!  No more flat spots (you have to keep driving your jeeps people).  I try and drive my jeep to work at least 1-2 times a week so I never get flat spots again!

Time to Tackle the Interior

Ihome Id9 Dock And Speaker (Google Affiliate Ad)

The inside of my Jeep Scrambler CJ8 looked gross!  Here are all the things wrong with it:  Fake Sheepskin car seat covers (again infested with dead stink bugs) broken center console, no radio, rusted dashboard, broken control knobs, broken glove compartment, ripped dashpad, ripped inner door skins, missing window cranks, and all the seats were ripped.  I basically gutted all of these items, nothing was worth saving or evening restoring or selling on eBay or Craigslist VA.  I replaced with new black bucket seats, new Jeep logo'd dash pad, new inner door grab handles, new paddle handles, new window cranks, a Tuffy Security Glove Box (that locks), and new inner door skins in black. But before I installed any of this new stuff, I again grinded out all areas that were rusted or bad from the dash board itself to the floor pan.  I actually had to replace the passenger side floor with sheet metal.  I can't wait to show you all the finished product!

Sand, Grind, Bondo Rear CJ8 Bed

Dynatron Bondo DYN354 Spreader (Google Affiliate Ad)

It was a warm day this December 2nd, so I thought it would a good idea to grind out all the rust and repair holes and damage in the back bed of the Scrambler.  After spending hours with my new angle grinder and many different grinding pads, I am happy to report rust and holes are down to the bare metal.  After cleaning all dust and debris, I then proceeded to use bondo to fill in any small holes, or fiberglass cloth then bondo to fill in any larger gaps.  After the bondo dried hard, I sanded these area down again.  I cleaned then painted the entire truck bed with Rhino Truck Bed Liner - take my word for it, it looks freakin AWESOME!  I also took the time to replace the tail gate cables since one was missing and the other looked terrible.

Misc. CJ8 Parts

Jeep Back Seat Baby-View Mirror (Google Affiliate Ad)

From my last post, I told you all that I was not a fan of chrome, so I bought some black side mirrors, black rear bumperettes, and a few other odds and ends (heater defroster hose, and newer floor heater duct).  Obviously the mirrors were a breeze to take off and replace.  The rear bumperettes looked really stupid after I installed them on the rear crossmember, so I returned them.  I had to get under the dashboard to replace hose and duct (meanwhile vaccumm up all the dead stink bugs that were sitting in the nooks and crannys.  Pretty gross! 

Replace Front Bumper

ShelterLogic 62680 10X20 Auto (Google Affiliate Ad)

You can tell by some of my earlier pics, that the previous owner had added a chrome bumper which was rusted in some parts and bent at the ends.  I'm not a fan of chrome, so I replaced it with a black powder coated Smittybilt SRC bumper with D-rings.  This was a simply, bolt off and bolt on project that took an hour at the most.  I try and replace bolts with galnvanized bolts whenever possible so that they won't rust in the future.  I must say I really like the way the new bumper looks.  I also removed the old back tow hitch and swing spare tire carrier because they were rusted and bent as well.

New Master Brake Cylinder

First let me say Happy Thanksgiving to you all!  Now if you look at this picture and see the master brake cylinder to the top right (where the spiral brake lines are going in) you can tell it's old.  On one of my many test run's, I noticed that if I was at a stoplight on a hill - I had to press my non-power brakes all the way down with all of my might just to keep it from rolling back.  I though I had air in my brake lines and while bleeding them - I found no issues.  So I said to myself - let me replace this master cylinder and have peace of mind.  After replacement - no more rolling on hills.  There is a kit that you can add between the firewall on master cylinder which is a booster, but I opt'd not to add this because you will have to reconfigure your brake lines to fit the additional length of entire unit.

New Shocks for Better Handling

Traxxas TRA4962 Shocks Big Bor (Google Affiliate Ad)

Sorry I know this is a dark picture and you really can't see the old, rusted, worn shocks under the Scrambler.  I'm sure you can see the little nest that some of those pesky muddoggers made.  Anyway trust me, the shocks needed to be replaced.  Everytime I would hit a bump in the road or pot hole - I felt like my jeep was actually a boat and I was going up and down on large waves of angry ocean.  This was a very simple fix and took about 2 hours at most.  I simply unbolted the old shocks and replaced with new ones.  Each shock and a bolt on bottom and top and thank goodness were not rusted shut.  After replacing the handling of Jeep is sooo much better now.

New Carburetor

So in my previous post I mentioned that every time I stopped at a stop sign or a red light, my engine would stall.  I tried cleaning the carb with carb cleaner, but that didn't work.  Then I ran across an article on the web that instructed me in cleaning out the Ventri Tubes within the carb.  Although I did this, and wasted 1/2 day trying to figure it out, that was a fail as well.  Lastly, I thought - let me just suck it up and buy a new one.  Carburetors range in all kinds of types.  So I opted in getting a lower grade version from Advanced Auto Parts instead of a high dollar one.  I did this because later down the road, I plan on replacing carburetor with a fuel injection kit...but not till way, way down the road.  The new United Remanufactured Car was $299, but I got a $50 discount from ordering online.  So it was really only $250.  I took a picture of all the hoses and connections before I took off old carb (i'm learning!) so I can put back correctly.  After spending several hours on this, it was finally done.  I pressed the gas pedal a few times and it started right up.  I did a little test drive to see if I would stall at a stop sign - and WOW!!!  No more stalling issues.

CJ8 Wandering All Over Road

So I have been fixing things on the Scrambler, taking it for 1-2 mile test drives, fixing some more things, and again only driving 1-2 miles.  Today I drove to work which is about 19 miles away, and found more issues that need to be corrected.  The first being, every time I stop at a stop sign or red light the engine will stall.  The second was, at about 20 mph, my whole Jeep would start bouncing up and down, and then at about 40 mph it would wander from one side of the road to the other.  After consulting my manual and the Internet, I thought it was time to replace the steering stabilizer, tie rod, connecting rod, sway bar and tie rod ends.  Again rusted bolts were the issue but i was able to get all bolts and connections off after spending 6 hours working them with a new ratched and socket set.  Tools are key!  If you don't have them, buy them!  It will be cheaper anyway than going to the shop and getting it done by a mechanic.  Interesting enough a good tie rod end/pitman arm puller is very necessary when tackling this type of project.  In any case, after the install was done - I noticed a lot better steering, but still seems to want to wander after 45 mph (just not as much as before).

New Exhaust

You can tell by the picture that there is a considerable amount of rust.  When I was driving the Scrambler - I smelled an awful smell like a skunk ate a bunch of rotten eggs and died under my car.  Using the Internet again, I found the symptoms of a bad catalytic converter.  So I decided I would replace the entire exhaust.  If you have done this before on old cars then you know a 1-2 hour job can take 8-10 hours because all of the bolts are rusted shut.  I sprayed some WD-40 and Bolt Off on as many areas as I could before even attempting to remove the old exhaust system.  I was able to get most off, but the section before the converter I ultimately had to cut off.  Also I came across an awesome product called JB Weld.  This is a compound you mix together that can be as strong as welding! I used this to attach some exhaust hangers to frame as I was positiong the exhaust piping.  I replaced the entire system with a BWD Manifold Air Tube (attaches to converter) a Pulse Air Injection Valve, a flexible exhaust repair tube (attach area I cut out), a Thrush Turbo muffler, and a Magna Flow catalytic converter.  After tightening all the bolts and connections, I gave the engine a turn to get used to the new exhaust system and it liked it.  A very deep, low hum emerged from the tail pipe.  Incidently I also replace the Oxygen Sensor at the same time (I read it was recommended to do so).

Random Things I Fixed Today

No long story here, I just wanted to update everyone very quickly on some random things I replaced on Scrambler today:
1) Coolant Temperature Sensor
2) Air Cleaner Inlet Hose
3) Pre-Heater Hose (it was missing)
4) PCV Valve
5) Breather Filter

These were all quick 5 minute fixes, either because the part was missing of the jeep, it was just old and not functioning correctly, or rusted and looked bad.

What the Heck is an EGR Valve?

This gold looking gizmo at the bottom right is an EGR valve.  Sometimes with age and use, and considering this CJ8 is 28 years old, grime and gunk get in the EGR valve which causes the diaphram stick and not open and close like it should.  I took the EGR valve off, and placed it in a container filled with carb cleaner.  Carb cleaner can be your best friend!  After soaking the EGR valve for an hour, I pushed on the diaphram a few times and no more sticking!  I bolted back on Jeep and re-connected the hose.  Not sure if this helped anything, but I now know it works!

Replaced Fuel Pump As Well

Although i replaced the fuel filter yesterday, more research on the Internet has me thinking I need to replace the fuel pump and gasket.  Depending on discount coupons, etc. I try and shop locally at Auto Zone or Advanced Auto Parts.  Advanced Auto Parts had a fuel pump with gasket, so I purchased.  You need to have a cup under the fuel pump to catch the gasoline that will drip out of fuel line when removing.  This was a very simply bolt off and bolt on project.  Again, you prime the engine by stepping on the gas a few times and I turned the engine on and again it sounds better, but wasn't the fix!

The Internet Is My Friend

So I'm looking on the Internet as to why my Scrambler is riding sluggish.  There are many great sites to visit if you are looking for advice.  Here are a few that I rely on heavily to help point me in the right direction: 

http://www.jeep-cj.com/forums/ 

http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/f8/other-jeep-cj-forums-357337/ 

http://www.cj-8.com/forum/

and my personal favorite: http://home.sprynet.com/~dale02/

After researching and reading, my next step was to replace the fuel filter which is under the hood.  I did this with no issues, but again be careful when dealing with gasoline.  It is very flammable and can ruin your day if it some how get's ignited.  Also you have to ensure that the position of the fuel filter is at 12 and 6' clock otherwise it will not perform at 100%.  I had to prime the filter a bit (meaning step on the gas pedal a few times to make sure gas got to the carberator.  As I turned the engine on and, and ran it for awhile, it seem to sound and run better, but it wasn't the fix.  More research on the web was necessary.

What Do I Fix First?

I am so excited to get started, but I don't know where to begin.  I started the Scrambler, let it run for a few minutes, and then did a little driving around.  It seemed a bit sluggish and slow.  From my previous (and limited) experience in fixing cars, I thought - well maybe I'll start with a quick tune up.  So I went to Auto Zone and bought the following: 6 spark plugs, distributor rotor, distributor cap, and ignition wires.  Very simple to install, and had no issues.  But let me remind you all that having a manual for your specific vehicle is key.  I pulled all the ignition wires without thinking I should have labeled each one.  Luckily the manual had the correct firing order so I knew had to replace the wires.  If you have the wrong firing order your engine will not work correctly.  After I installed all of the items, I took for another test drive. It still seemed sluggish.  Although I read the "troubleshooting" area of the manual - I was lost.  This is when I turned to the Internet for more research.

Titled, Registered and Insured

Ok so this is the boring but necessary part.  Scrambler is now registered, titled, and insured.  I opt'd to go for the antique license plates and before you say anything - I know, I know. An '85 is hardly an antique, however it saves on having to have a safety inspection test done every year and an emissions test done every other year.  This way I can take my time in restoring this vehicle with out the pressure of the law on me.  In any case, I'm good to go!  There are some stipulations to driving an antique car in Virginia.  You can't drive it daily to work, you can only drive it 250 miles away from your house, or on your way to a car show or to test it's operation.  Well - I plan on testing it's operation ALOT!

Found the Scrambler I Was Looking For!

After months and weeks of searching eBay Motors, Craigslist, The Washington Post, local dealers I finally found the Scrambler I was looking for.  1985 Jeep CJ8 (Scrambler) with a new Jasper Engine - 258 I6 (Inline 6 Cylinder) 4.2L.  Although it was located about an hour from my house, it was well worth the drive.  See, if your not familiar with eBay, then you know it's a risky deal.  You make pay $5K-$20K for a "restored Scrambler" pay another $1-2K in shipping, and you never know what your getting into.  Well - I called the owner and said I was very interested in coming to see it.  As I drove into the foothills of the Shenandoah Mountains, my GPS said I was close.  As I turned into the neighborhood of the owner I noticed every other house had a confederate flag...um if your my ethnicity, you could feel a tad uncomfortable.  Nevertheless, I braved through to the end of the street and found the owners house (with no flag)! He was the nicest gentleman.  We took the CJ8 for a test drive and it drove like a champ although the inside was trashed.  As we hit a pot hole a collection of dead stink bugs flew up in the air and all over us.  Anyway, he had a small garage with mechanical lifts so after our test drive was over we lift the CJ8 up so I could inspect underneath.  I literally had to use a long stick to pry away all the muddogger nests that had formed over the axles, frame, differentials, and other various places.  Although there was apparent rust, the frame looked solid.  We talked for awhile and then I made an offer.  He took another $500 off the price because he knew I was going to have to replace the carburetor ASAP.  After we agreed on the price he offered to put it on his trailer and haul it to my house - again, the nicest guy ever!  Now I am ready to start the project!