86 CJ7 DUMPSTER BUILD

[thrillbilly85]

Hey folks.

So back in April this year, my buddy Robert invited me to go wheeling with him. He has an LQ9 powered buggy on 40s. It was the most fun I've had in a long time, and I was hooked.

Literally, within the next week, id found a good starting point to build my own rig.

An 86 CJ7 with a 383 stroker out of an 86 Corvette. Had the TPI EFI system. Th350, and the stock Dana300. Dana 60s (both ends) with a spooled rear, LockRite front, 7.17:1 gears, 37" pitbull rockers, and DIY beadlocks.

The thing was beat to shit, and that's fine. I grew up around body shops and have restored a few things in my day. (Jeepster commando, and a bunch of motorcycles)

ALSO, and this is important to note- I don't know Jack about building a rock crawler specifically, but and no stranger to any of what goes into it.

First thing was just to start the tear down, and assess what I wanted to keep, and what was gonna he scrapped.

The wiring was a nightmare. The original owner knew enough to make it work, and that's about it.

The TPI system had to go. There's maybe like 6 people on the planet with anything good to say about those, and I'm not one of them.

The front suspension and leaf springs were a nightmare. Shackle reversal, but they used 1" pipe through the frame rail. Tiny bushings with no inner sleeves. The leaf springs were also twisted to hell.

 

[thrillbilly85]

So the suspension in front was coming apart, new 1445 RE springs, and shackles/hangers.

The engine was getting an ACES Kill shot TBI fuel injection system, and ignition system. Their EFI system can control spark timing, which is cool. Set it at 15° btdc and forget it. Self learning, but tunable.

The following pictures are of these two steps.

 

[thrillbilly85]

Oooh. Barnes shackle hangers

Next was some half-ass body work. Nothing spectacular. Not even good. Just, meh. It's gonna get beat on, so....

One thing was you couldn't reach the shifter when you were strapped in. Plus, I wanted to twin stick the Dana 300, so a canter console was in order.

 

[thrillbilly85]

I'm leaving a bunch of details out. Some aren't all that important.

At this point, I hadn't even tried to start it yet, since I'd put the new EFI system on it. I still had some basic wiring to get wrapped up.

When the day came, it turns out the starter solenoid had a short, and fried the ECU the moment I pushed the button to start it. Sigh. Aces had a new one on its way, THAT DAY, free of charge. I just had to send my old one back. (Obviously) so they could repair it. Me and the tech support guy spent about half an hour on the phone narrowing down what the culprit could have been. Good people, and I'd recommend them to anyone wanting to simplify an LS system, or bring an SBC/BBC/SBF/BBF into the current century. Their tech support is awesome.

New ECU arrived, and I slapped it in. I was also waiting on a new radiator at this point. I just went with a cheap-o radiator off eBay, and I've had good luck with them on other projects.

New radiator showed up and I got it in, and decided it was time to take it on a little zip around the neighborhood. Doing so, the ECT quickly climbed up to 230°. No bueno.

The electric fans were just not enough. Also, it wasn't moving much coolant, from what I could tell.

I pulled the t-stat out, and that helped some, which told me flow needed to improve. I put a temp gauge on the return hose and saw that I was only getting a 15° drop in coolant temp across the radiator. Not good enough.

After consulting with my buddy Mark B, out California-way, I decided to get a 4000cfm Derale puller fans/shroud.

I had to chop up the grille and core support to move the radiator all the way up, to make room for the big fans. Bye-bye headlights. (That weren't getting used anyways.

New fans mounted.

And in place. There was barely enough room between the bars on the grille, and the radiator for the trans cooler, but I made it work

Room to spare--

All that air was going to need somewhere to go, plus, I'm trying to save some $ for back-halving, and 4-linking the rear, plus full hydro steering.

So in keeping with how this build has been going, we're using old street signs. Sorry Poison Spyder.... lol

 

[thrillbilly85]

For the next step, I wanted to address the fueling system. I did not have the 100m pre filter, or 10m post filter installed yet.

Plus, I hated how the fuel tank was positioned. Plus, I hated the shade tree fuel line setup, hodge-podge of different hard lines, fuel lines, back to ni-cop, AN, etc.
Plus, the tank cap didn't seat/latch properly

I got a new tank, the right filters, and about $150 worth of AN fittings, and nylon braided line.

Got it all mounted and plumbed.

Yes, I'm using 3/4" heater hose as an electrical conduit. Don't judge me. It was free, and it works. I meant "dumpster build" for a reason. Lol.

Next was the winch. It had an M12000 winch on it, in good working order.

I did away with the 4 solenoid setup, and went with a newer style relay.

You can kinda see what I did with the headlights. Air flow is good!

New switch.

As she sits today- it's been a goal to have it to this point by 10/14, as there's a ride I wanna go to with it. I'll post pics.

Oh, here's a better shot of the grille. I get a kick out of what I did with the headlights. Those are 8.5" cooling racks off Amazon. I used 3m panel bond to glue them into the factory rings.

FUTURE PLANS.

Somewhat in order, I think.

Redo the brake system. It has 4 wheel disc brakes, and the pedal feels spongey. Like there's air in the lines maybe. The master cylinder is not meant for 4 wheel disc brakes. It's a disc/drum MC, so it may be a resivor capacity thing.

Either way, new hard lines. New master cylinder and booster. We'll go from there. Some of you may have noticed the vacuum pump for the brakes. I like the idea of having power brakes, even if the engine dies. This thing doesn't make much vacuum at idle anyways, due to the stupid cam shaft that's in it. It makes some damn power though. 10(ish):1 compression, AFR heads, big cam, roller rockers, eagle forged/balanced spinny things in the short block, free float pistons/wrist pins, and the EFI system. "We're talkin' some fuckin' muscle, man...." (McConaughey voice)

After that is full hydro steering. There's a reason for this. The shaft interferes with where I wanna place the new front shock towers. Plus, just the overall packaging. The Saginaw box has the bracket to move it forward, as the tie rod and drag link met (hard) in a previous life. There's still probably some clearance issues, just by looking at it. The tie rod is bent some, too. Single shear setup with the two heim joints stacked on the passenger side. Looks sketchy.

New shock towers and smooth body reservoir shocks up front.

After that, I REALLY want to back-half, stretch and 4 link it. Well see how the funds look after Xmas. It'll require a tubing bender, and notcher, and (as you can probably tell) an expensive learning curve. Lol.

Somewhere in there will be the LoMax 4:1 kit for the 300.

All it takes is money. And time. And skill. And perseverance. And dedication.

I've got like 3:5 of those covered.

(SPOILER ALERT--- Things did NOT go the way I laid out in the aforementioned plans. The back-halfing, and rear 4 link, DID happen, after I repaired all the rust holes in the tub. ALSO- it took an entire fucking year)

 

[Penetrode Offroad]

Cool, man!

 

[SHARPMACHINE]

Looking good so far!!

 

[thrillbilly85]

So, I took it out wheeling this last weekend to a local park. It's more of a mud park, but it's close to the house, and there's two different "mountains" (prominent hills) that have some pretty good trails. It was event weekend, and some type of fundraiser for breast cancer. It was estimated that around 15,000 people were there, nearly all on ATVs and SXS.

They're there for the mud, and the partying, while I was there for the trails..... And the partying.

The jeep made it about 9 hours before I noticed my system voltage dropping. Not as quick as when an alternator goes OUT out, but enough to cause concern. I've got a brand new 140a alternator on it, wired to actually correctly read system voltage at the fuse panel.

Anyways, it turns out the regulator experienced a soft failure, and when it got down to 11.9v I hauled ass to the truck, and immediately loaded it up. Night ended around 10:30, and I just went home, after breaking down my little campsite.

I got home around midnight and realized I left my spare that had been laying next to the trailer out there. That was a problem for future-me.

Next morning, I got the jeep jumped off, and back into the shop.

I went back out to the park, fighting the current of everyone leaving, and sure enough, found my spare right where I left it. Guess SXS guys have no use for a 150lb pittbull rocker tire. Good thing.

Anyways, here's some pics. The jeep did awesome. I was so impressed, but truthfully, it's my second time ever wheeling a full-sized rig (I've had a few SXSs).

It went up a bunch of things the SXS guys won't even try, and never broke a sweat.

So now, the roll cage is out, and I'm replacing a few sections of flooring. I'll also be properly tying the cage into the frame.

New brake lines, and rear suspension are next. OME XJ leaf springs and motobilt rear stretch kit. I may fab up my own. Idk.

(SPOIKER ALERT--- This too happened differently. It got an entire new cage, then a 4link rear.....
Brake lines were literally the LAST thing I did, in this phase)

 

[thrillbilly85]

Some more cancer awareness pics

 

[RTH]

You've taken this one a ways since where you started. This is a fun to build or RE build to follow. Thanks for posting! Keep the updates coming

 

[thrillbilly85]

You've taken this one a ways since where you started. This is a fun to build or RE build to follow. Thanks for posting! Keep the updates coming

Thanks bud! I've got an appointment with my angle grinder this afternoon. We'll make some more progress on the floors. I kind of want to rethink my pre filter and fuel pump setup. Obviously the best time to do that is approaching. I'm imagining a compartment under the floor for all of that. While I was out this last weekend, my jack came loose and slip around, and now the fuel pump has a small leak at the suction side.

Ohh also, I've done raptor line on a bunch of stuff in the past. Roof for my Yamaha Rmax, Ranger, inside an enclosed trailer, the inside of the tub for a Jeepster commando I built. That's probably what's going to get applied in here. Lots of paint removal and prep ahead of me, but luckily I get boxes of flap discs from my neighbor.

Here's the jack I built. It's just a #3500 HF drop leg trailer jack. It'll go from 22" to over 50"

 

[thrillbilly85]

Okay, got some sheet metal removed. Also rebuilt the body mount rib thing. Whatever it's called. The old one was rusted to shit. Didn't spend too much time out there after work. It was a long day that started at 5 am.

From this----

To this----

 

[thrillbilly85]

Got one side done, and will do the other tomorrow.

I went over everything with Bondo glass but only to hide some of my ugly ass welds. I've got a cheap welder that's pretty unstable at low amperage. Lol. It'll make me look like I know what I'm doing on thicker stuff, but not thin sheet metal.

All of the metal I cut out got replaced with 14ga. Should last a while.

 

[Grendel]

Did the same:

 

[thrillbilly85]

Got the other side done today. For whatever reason, it went a little more smoothly than the other side.

Side note, I HATE sanding Bondo. Especially the stuff I'm using with short strand fiberglass in it.

Also, I got the new alternator in. Fired right up, and the system saw 14.3v even with the fans on. So that's exciting.

Here's all the metal I cut out.

And here's my dog. Doing her favorite trick. Anyone else got a GSP? they think they always have to be up on stuff.

 

[thrillbilly85]

Quick, vague update. Kinda.

More fun times making sparks. I've got a really REALLY busy month at work. I'm an air traffic controller, (when I'm not fucking stuff up in my shop) and all but me, and one other guy have some type of vacation time scheduled in November. So I got some overtime coming my way....

Which is great for jeep parts. Or Christmas. Or jeep parts. ;-)

Anyways, I started cutting the quarters for the rear stretch. I wanted to 4link it but idk if that's gonna happen. Either way, I'm gonna hit that 100" WB, whether it's in leaf springs, or coils.

 

[Pickuptrucker]

Nice

 

[thrillbilly85]

Oooh, I had some time before work to go work on my shitbox some. Got the passengers side all cut, and extended the fender flares, thatll probably get crushed against a rock or tree anyways.

I just used the leftover section from what I cut out to extend it back

It needed something to terminate it into the quarter panel... You know, because this thing has a level of aesthetic that must be maintained. Lol

The end will follow the contour of the edge a little better, and it'll end up looking pretty cool, IF what I've got bouncing around between my ears comes to fruition.

That's it for now. I'll be back at it later this week.

Also .. no. The likelihood of me being able to replicate this exactly on the other side is low. But I made some templates along the way, so who TF knows.

 

[thrillbilly85]

Hell froze over and I got it so close, on the other side, that I can't find a difference. Which honestly, boggles my mind. I thought for sure I'd find some creative way to fuck it up, but instead, I took my time and used maximum attention to detail.

Anyways, here's some pictures. I'm actually kinda proud of how I terminated the trailer fenders into the quarter.

Yeah, I know, not exactly durable, and will crush easily against a rock/tree, but we'll cross that bridge when we get there.

I kinda changed the radius the pass side follows.

And today, I stared the other side. It's got 3/16 plate on the tub sides. Surprisingly, it only took 3 cutoff wheels to get all the cutting done.

Yeah, it got a little wipe of Bondo. Sue me. I said earlier, I grew up around body shops. Lol.

As you can see, I've gotta figure out the exhaust too, for the stretch.

 

[thrillbilly85]

Still have a bunch of cutting to do on the cross member. Actually it's going to come all the way out, and (I think) the motobilt rear stretch/XJ spring conversion will go back in.

Additionally, I've been thinking a lot about how I'm going to tie the cage to the frame. I THINK I've got it figured out, but I'll save all that hoopla for it's own post when I set the cage back in.

I've got a DC 1350 drive shaft I can use for the rear stretch. I'll probably have to shorten it some, and that's fine. If that's the case then it'll get a 7" spline stub in the process. I'm gonna plan to do that myself, so the end cut needs to be really square. I think I can do that with an angle grinder, but will likely take it to the welding shop up the road and have him cut it on his bandsaw.

Christmas is REALLY getting in the way of this. I want to have it "done" in by April. The money part is the biggest thing that slows it down.

 

[Steve300xcw]

just wrap some tape around it and follow the edge with your cut

 

[thrillbilly85]

just wrap some tape around it and follow the edge with your cut

Yeah, I saw a trick where you use like a full sheet of paper, to ensure the lines are perfectly concentric.

 

[Steve300xcw]

duct tape or whatever you got, hell even a hose clamp would work. I would be more concerned with getting it all straight before its welded than I would be a perfect cut.

 

[thrillbilly85]

duct tape or whatever you got, hell even a hose clamp would work. I would be more concerned with getting it all straight before its welded than I would be a perfect cut.

I'll build a stand to check the runout on the stub shaft after I get it tacked. ;-)

 

[thrillbilly85]

Well.....


Change of plans. Lol.

 

[thrillbilly85]

Got some hardware today!!!!!

 

[SoylentGreen]

Seems like the more work you do, the less likely you are to get tetanus from it.

Good work. Nice to see so much progress.

 

[thrillbilly85]

Seems like the more work you do, the less likely you are to get tetanus from it.

Good work. Nice to see so much progress.

Ha! I just got my tetanus shot actually!

I was draining my air compressor tank, and the plug shot out, and rusty water sprayed on the ground and subsequently into my left eye. I called a doctor friend and explained what happened, and he suggested I got to Walgreens and get a booster.

I've got a buddy of mines son coming over to help on the jeep. He just got his first jeep and wants to learn. Big update tonight! Lots of cutting.

I need to go get some cutoff wheels, come to think of it. And some .030 er70

 

[thrillbilly85]

So let's talk about shop safety. A lot of mistakes can be avoided by following simple procedures. For example, when using an angle grinder, you cut with the side that's pulling the tool away from your body.

If not, you could just be making a small cut, and boom, the grinder flies out of your hand, or jumps into your lap and cuts all sorts of things.

That's what happened to me, today. I was making a small cut, on a tab inside the wheel-well and boom, before you know it, the grinder has cut out over 40 lbs of old sheet metal, and all the leaf springs.

Be safe out there, fellas.

 

[SoylentGreen]

That's what happened to me, today. I was making a small cut, on a tab inside the wheel-well and boom, before you know it, the grinder has cut out over 40 lbs of old sheet metal, and all the leaf springs.

That tool just sorta got away from ya, huh?