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Thread: Mod For The Day

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Well...I ordered the wrong tool to complete my knuckle stud project in a timely manner, and its also taking a while to get the right kingpin bearings etc...in other words, supply chain for old jeep parts is pretty limited right now as companies like Timken and Dana/Spicer are putting all their production effort into catching back up with new vehicle manufacturing production...anyway, what that means is that the cj is just sitting in the garage for over a week with nothing happening and not driveable, so I decided to embark on the rear corner panel I smashed up in Moab back in the spring.
    The little mishap in Moab back in April left the rear looking like this:


    My initial attempt immediately after it happened to 'make it better' probably only made it worse...but this is how I left it for a few months:


    and I moved the fuel filler from the side to the rear which I really like:


    So started the sheetmetal repair...just getting the stuff cut out, and the inner top of fender panel somewhat back to where its supposed to be:


    Don't know if this was really needed, but since it probably won't look all that pretty no matter what I do, I at least want it to be solid....the top of the fenderwell was so smashed in that I couldn't get it reshaped and stretched back in place enough that it would sit against the corner panel - its supposed to contour along the inside of the corner panel and is spot welded to it. I added a small strip of metal that I welded to the end of the fenderwell top, and while was still too uneven and damaged in the area to make smooth contact, some flap disk and body hammer and dollie made it much better and it did at least allow for a few spots of contact that I could spot weld to the corner panel...


    I also cut out the outer section of the tail light panel that joins to the corner panel along the vertical seam (its already had some of my repair work done, especially down at the body mount from when I first got the jeep - most all that stuff ripped back apart from the this incident). I made the long narrow strip for the tailight panel and the 90 edge for the seam and spot welded to the corner panel 90 edge....I am really trying to keep the visible vertical rear seam so it doesn't look too weird (or lets say it will look more OEM and match the driver side as well) - although it would certainly have been easier to weld that seem from the outside and ground flat....no matter how I do it, its probably going to be a bit rough...
    Then it was cut the corner panel to fit etc....starting to look a little better...still quite a bit of welding to go and a lot of grinding....I did the spot welds to the fenderwell top from the outside as its really hard to get up behind there, and the OEM spare tire support piece is there....I figure a bit of grinding and smoothing on the outside of the panel won't be the biggest issue...


    Nothing about this panel was perfect to begin with, even before I smashed it. It had been damaged from the OEM side mount spare tire and had some sort of patch that I think was a lead job, then lots of bondo before the PO repaint...it looked ok on the outside, but then I crunched it....so even if my repair is not perfect, seems like I am headed in the right direction. And if all this doesn't turn out looking that good...some corner protection armor can cover it all up.
    ___________
    James Orofino
    1970 CJ5
    1958 Willys Wagon

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    speedkills (August 24th, 2021)

  3. #1542
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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Don’t sell yourself short. It looks awefully good to me so far.
    ___________
    Tom
    -.- . ----- .-- - -.-.

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    FINOCJ (August 24th, 2021)

  5. #1543
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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    That's great progress!

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    FINOCJ (August 24th, 2021)

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Didn't seem to get much done today...had trouble with the wire feed on the hobart welder, had trouble with welding on the zinc weld-thru primer (never had an issue with that before), it seemed HOT and gritty in the garage today...but I did finish up welding the panel seams, and got the body mount welded on and in position:

    did a bunch of grinding on the seam welds - its slow and tedious so as not to overheat anything too much (although i did notice the outside seam is bowing out just a bit - no big deal from my POV). Then when I hit the frustration point, I just felt like the entire garage needed some cleaning and organization...its got the 58 project going, the front knuckle stud project on the cj as well as the body panel work....The sbc machine shop work finished up today, so I have to go pick that up and want to have a good, clean work space to assemble it. I am actually going to leave it at the shop for a few more days (mostly due to travel), but its also easier to keep it there in their clean space while I finish up cj projects....off to CA for some hiking and backpacking...
    ___________
    James Orofino
    1970 CJ5
    1958 Willys Wagon

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Enjoy a nice trip!

    By the time you get back you'll be looking to have some metal in your hands.

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    FINOCJ (August 25th, 2021)

  10. #1546
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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Jim previously posted:
    "Enjoy a nice trip!

    By the time you get back you'll be looking to have some metal in your hands."

    Yup...its going to get busy with jeep projects...the initial push will be to finish both cj projects - the body panel and then the front axle/knuckle repair, which all the parts and tools should be here by then. Hopefully, that will only take a week or so, but heading to Moab in Oct so definitely want it running nicely for that. Plus, the sooner the cj is back on the trail, the sooner I can focus on the 58. Still holding out some small hope that it might get on the road before I head to Montana this winter, but feels like its falling behind schedule.
    ___________
    James Orofino
    1970 CJ5
    1958 Willys Wagon

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    well, I wouldn't call it a 'mod' but my simple brake pad job turned into a "find an auto parts store with a hard brake line that is open past 8pm" job.

    front caliper slipped off my knee when I was putting in the new pads and the hard brake line twisted enough to start squirting. luckily, the Advance in Golden had 1 of the brake lines I needed!

    now I get to have my wife help me bleed the caliper tomorrow...

    J.
    ___________
    05 4Runner Sport - 3" lift, 35s & v8 POWA!

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    After finishing the knuckle rebuild, its back to the rear corner replacement...My welded in panel is a little rough around the edges so some filler is needed to smooth it out - and the previous repaint by the PO also had a pretty thick section of filler so it needs to blend in to that as well (one day its all going to get pulled apart and some more rust repair etc, and then a basic repaint with minimal bondo). Jen is pretty good with this kind of thing, although she has never worked on auto body before - mostly artistic stuff and of course wall and ceiling repair, plaster and whatnot. She is nervous she is going to screw it up, but when compared to the alternative (me), I told her that no matter how bad she thought she did, it would still be way better than me. I think its going to be great!
    ___________
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    1970 CJ5
    1958 Willys Wagon

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  14. #1549
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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Curious to see how it turns out! Did my first-ever bondo job on a rusted out part of the front passenger fender. Turned out pretty shoddy fortunately most of it is covered by the fender flare. Oh well!
          
    ___________
    Steven
    2004 Wrangler Rubicon

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    FINOCJ (September 9th, 2021)

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Did you weld in any metal patch, or just use bondo? I've used it on the cj before but always over good metal and just to smooth out welded joints and whatnot...never used it to just fill space. I've also only used it on flat panels without any complex surfaces or curved surfaces - that's why I got Jen involved, she has good feel and touch for shaping the top edge and corner shape.

    My experience is a bit of sanding can really help, but a bit too much and you are starting over again.
    ___________
    James Orofino
    1970 CJ5
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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    No welding. After grinding/sanding out as much rust as I could, I hit it with 2 coats of a rust encapsulator. There's different schools of thought on applying bondo over a primer like that. Anyway I used a metal mesh patch and applied the bondo with strands of fiberglass in it. Pretty easy to apply even in a large vertical area like this. Sand, regular bondo, sand, glaze, sand, primer, paint, clearcoat.

    Anyway the area is low down and mostly covered by the fender flare. Figured it was as good an area as any to experiment on. I can always just replace the whole fender if need be
    ___________
    Steven
    2004 Wrangler Rubicon

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Well...I really have to thank Jen for all the sanding and putty work she did on this....we spent two days working on just the filler and glaze, and then when we primed it, we weren't happy, so we spent another 3 days - and its still not going to be mistaken for professional grade, but given what the rest of my jeep looks like from a paint and body standpoint, its plenty acceptable....the jeep is ready to run again:
    from this:


    to this (the angle and light exposure kind of makes it look better than it really its in terms of color match):


    A couple more so when you see it in person, you wont' be surprised that it isn't perfect:

    ___________
    James Orofino
    1970 CJ5
    1958 Willys Wagon

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    speedkills (September 15th, 2021)

  20. #1553
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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    A beautiful improvement !

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    FINOCJ (September 15th, 2021)

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Looks damn good to me James!
    ___________
    Tom
    -.- . ----- .-- - -.-.

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    FINOCJ (September 15th, 2021)

  24. #1555
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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Added a little more rear diff protection....


    I've beat mine up just bit, and after watching a couple different people punch into or through their rear diff cover when backing up or sliding back down off a steep obstacle, I decided it would be nice to have a bit more protection. The OEM rear diff cover isn't total thin stamped junk, but its definitely not as beefy as the older jeeps and military era. I was planning on just buying a simple, heavy duty, thick aftermarket one, but found the above protector on CL while surfing for other axle parts. The posting was from just down the street, so I went and got it for cheap. Install was trivially easy - one of its selling points to me. It bolts on over the cover - so you don't have to remove to old cover and deal with draining and refilling fluid or scraping old gasket/RTV off and prepping for new gasket etc. I think it looks a bit stupid (or at least not appropriate on an old cj), but if it works I'll take it for now. Next time I change fluids (and hopefully go with a lubelocker re-usable gasket), I might still replace the OEM cover with a heavy duty one and pass this along to someone else...we'll see.

    I do have a early production, thick OEM front D27 cover that will eventually get put on. They make diff protectors like this one for the D25/27/30, but no way would I have enough clearance to fit it behind the the steering linkages. I will hoping to install the cover and a used, vintage Dana Powerloc LSD I recently acquired when doing the front knuckles, but I just didn't have time to mess with it, and I wanted to make sure the cj is ready for Moab in a week. And the 58 also needs a lot of attention - as always. So the rest of the front axle and T18 4speed are to come one day in the future.
    ___________
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    1970 CJ5
    1958 Willys Wagon

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Changed the front springs on the jeep the past day or so.

    The springs are a direct replacement for what was on the jeep but I'm adding greaseable shackle bolts kit. I hope they will give a bit smoother ride - time will tell.

    The project was fairly straight forward except for these call-outs:

    Driver's side spring, rear mount to the frame - the bolt would not punch out. I tried using a 'puller' to press on the bolt only to see the other side of the spring mount bending outward. Don't want that! I went to the skill-saw to try and cut the bolt between the spring and frame mount but the skill-saw didn't have enough reach. Time to add a tool to the workshop - sawzall. Trip to the store today for a sawzall and pack of blades. It made decently quick work of the bolt and the spring fell free (shackle / front end was already disassembled).

    Cutting the rear (main spring eye) bolt had me quickly trying to source replacement bolts. Online (available and possible with next day shipping), FoCo Jeep (10 day wait - I need the jeep up for family visiting this weekend), 9/16-12 x 4.5" bolt. Hardware store has Grade 8 in close dimensions - but 1/2 inch short - 4" is their longest. Up to bat - Fastenall. Stop out to the FoCo store - odd hours - closed. Call Loveland - they have what I need - and reasonably priced (5 bolts & 6 steel lock nuts ~$38). I now have the parts to get the job done.

    The springs are military wrap with the front / shackle end having the full military wrap cut off. Mark the new spring from the old spring and the cut-off disc on the angle grinder made easy work of the task.

    Rear main spring eye in (Driver's side spring being tended first). Start popping bushings for the shackle - DOH! The bushings are too large to fit the forward frame hole. DRAT. But this is something I can fix - it's a material removal task. Caliper to measure hole ID and bring a bushing to the bench grinder. Mount it on an old bolt and spacer and bring it to the grinding wheel. With a mix of pressure against the wheel to get it to spin (for even material removal) and downward pressure on the tool rest )to keep it from free spinning so that material is scrubbed off) it didn't take long for the bushing to be sized down to fit. Easy enough.

    Now, the greaseable bolts are 9/16 diameter and the old bolts are 1/2" - I need to enlarge the holes in the shackle plates. Off to the hardware store for a 9/16" bit ($20). Holes enlarged easily enough - done - driver's side shackle installed with greasable fittings.

    Center the axle on the spring and install U-Bolts. All fasteners torqued (60Ft-Lbs for rear spring eye and U-bolt nuts and 30Ft-Lbs for shackle nuts).

    Off to the passenger side - now I know what to expect. I removed the shackle bolts - they pounded out easily - front of spring on the ground. I went straight to cutting the rear bolt figuring it'd be rusted like the driver's side. Nope. I cut one side and the bolt fell out the other side. No worries - it's done.

    Trim the military wrap for the front of the spring. Enlarge the holes in the shackle plate. Turn down the bushings for the frame mount - close to mounting things. Except that the bolt does not fit in the spacer for the spring eye. The spacer is for a 1/2" bolt. Well, I have a 9/16" drill bit - I'll drill out the center so I can use it. A 20 minute setback but nothing I didn't have tools for.

    In short order the passenger side was mounted and torqued. Wheels on and remove jack stands and clean up.

    I'm quite happy the jack stands did what I needed (didn't collapse on me). I paid attention to not have body parts in dangerous pinch points though several tasks had some risk.

    Some day before too long I'll get around to installing the longer rear shackle plates.

    Here are some pix...

    ps: Yes, I see the brake line rub on the shock. I'll either re-route or will add some wear material to the brake line.
              

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Too bad you had to trim the military wrap....it's a great failsafe for getting you off the trail if you break the main leaf or eye. Mine got me through 2 days on the Rubicon with broken main leaf eye. Without the wrap, it's easily an on trail disaster with no easy trail fix.

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    The back loop is full wrap. The front is compromised though it does wrap up a bit.

    For the break you experienced, would my front being cut down cause complete fail or do you think it'd limp along?

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    Jim previously posted:
    "The back loop is full wrap. The front is compromised though it does wrap up a bit.

    For the break you experienced, would my front being cut down cause complete fail or do you think it'd limp along?"

    From what I can see in the pics, You've removed enough of the wrap that it won't help at all if you break the main leaf in the front...you could cut the remainder of it off at this point with no further change. I assume you cut it to create clearance with the shackle cross-bar. If you are at all concerned about the remaining front wrap contacting the shackle you could keep trimming...but from what I can see, doesn't look like you should have any issues with clearance no matter how much the system flexes...or really in your case, it would be at full droop that you need the ensure no interference.
    Fwiw...I'd like a bit more lift on my cj to clear the 33s at full flex, and my current shackles barely clear the military wrap - they've sort of self clearanced themselves over the years. But thinking new shackles that are a smidge longer are going to happen, and it will also reduce the rubbing/binding of wrap inside the shackle. The old shackles will get moved to the 58.
    ___________
    James Orofino
    1970 CJ5
    1958 Willys Wagon

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    Default Re: Mod For The Day



    For my rear brake lines I ended up copying a technique I saw on Ty's J10, put a hardware store spring on it to pull it the direction I wanted without needing to clamp it down or change routing.

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