Another Scrambler Purchase/Road Trip - UPDATE- BODY ON FRAME AGAIN

[spankrjs]

Yesterday's update.

Since I already wiped it down, went ahead and hit the front axle/steering linkage with a light coat of Rustoleum. The front looked rough compared to the rear axle.



Finished up the rear suspension installation:



I thought both my rear shock lower studs were OK, they were not, both bent. I had spares on hand since this is a known problem. It's not that these parts are weak, they just mount down low so I tend to smash them into rocks/tree stumps/pedestrians/etc.



Installed new bushings in the front spring packs. Some long bolts/washers/nuts, a wrench and an impact made short work of this chore. The two ends of each spring use a different size sleeve so two different sized bolts were used.



And the front suspension installation complete:



And the pile of old parts/hardware:



That concludes this little project. I still need to snug up the main eye bolts/shackle bolts once the Scrambler is back on the ground, plus hit all the suspension zerks with the grease gun.

 

[spankrjs]

I also need to do some work to the rear disc brake set up. The last time I checked, the rear pads were a little thin.

I purchased new pads through Summit Racing for this SSBC brake kit. It was cheaper at Summit vs their own web site?. I might see if I can find another non-proprietary source for pads.



Old pad left, new pad on the right. Yep, a little thin after 70,000 miles.



Had to buy a new tool to work on these calipers:



I am used to the OEM front CJ style calipers where you use a C-clamp to recompress the piston. On these calipers, find the nibs on the tool that match up with the slots on the piston, screw the piston back into the bore.

The passenger side screwed back in pretty easily. The driver side did not. I had to use a hammer/punch to start the piston screwing back in. It was still tight. I ran the piston in and out twice, moving a bit easier. I will probably run it in and out a few more times. The inner pad on the driver side was really thin, I'm thinking the piston was extended all the way out, and this caused the initial "PIA to screw back in" situation??

That's it for now, Happy 4th of July

EDIT - I am wondering if the parking brake function of the rear calipers has something to do with the tightness of turning the piston. On the easy side, the big spring on top of the caliper is missing. On the hard side, big stiff spring is still on.

 

[spankrjs]

A few quick pictures/notes.

The caliper piston has these notches on the outer face, these notches are what the little knobs on the tool engage to twist the piston in/out.



It was easier to turn the piston once I worked it in and out a few times.

The pads have these little nibs that slide into the piston notches. You will have to kind of twist the piston so it's notches line up with the little nibs on the pads.



This was the thinnest rear pad, driver side inner, the pad that is next to the piston.



Pretty sure the piston was extended out all the way, this is why it was a major PIA to turn it back in.

Unfortunately, the caliper spring that SSBC sent me is for the driver side, I need the passenger side spring. It is the mirror opposite.



From some quick Google image research, these calipers look similar to Ford Taurus parts, pre 1993. Also, a bunch of export only Ford cars have similar looking springs. Hopefully SSBC will send me the correct spring, if not, junkyard time/eBay UK time.

I left the rear of the Scrambler on jack stands, hopefully I can get the correct spring installed and finalize all the rear end work. Both rear wheel hubs are spinning free, new brake pads, should be good to go back here.

I went back up front, pulled both calipers off to check front wheel hubs. Passenger side was good, driver side a hair loose. This is probably a result of my mad rush to get it all back together before the National trip a few weeks back.

Pulled the lock in hub out, removed the still tight outer jamb nut, pulled the "holy washer out", slightly tightened inner nut to remove the slight lateral play. Reinstalled the "holy nut" making sure that the tit on the inner nut fit into one of the "holy nut" holes:



Hard to see, but the "tit" is inside the hole at approximately 9 o'clock. Was also glad to not find any water contamination, especially after all my lake crossings in Texas a few weeks back!!!

Reassembled the front end, installed the front tires, and a problem. My JKS sway bar disconnects, made for a 4" lift, are too short for my current set up. The sway bar end links are resting against the tie rod.



Part of the issue has to do with my tie rod, it is flipped on top of the knuckle arm AND it has a bigger OD then the OEM tie rod. Also, I am sitting 2.5" taller then before, putting the sway bar at a comically inappropriate downward angle, pulling the end links forward.

I am going to temporarily remove the sway bar end links completely. I ordered some cheap Rough Country sway bar disconnects, they have an overall length that is adjustable from 10.5" - 12.5". My current JKS are only 8.5" center of eye to center of eye. Hopefully, once the new springs settle in, I can reinstall the JKS links.

I am definitely sitting much taller, I could probably cram 37" tires underneath the Scrambler if I wanted to right now!!!!! Will be interesting to see how it rides when I get it rolling, hopefully my rear driveshaft angle won't be too messed up. I had no vibrations before....

The springs being new have a lot to do with the current height. The extra leaf I added to each pack should not have too much to do with the excess height. It feels good and "springy", not hard/harsh. Some miles/seat time wil confirm. If need be, I can always remove the extra main leaves I added, have a little bit of time before Sand Blast....

That's it for now

 

[spankrjs]

No sway bar links or rear caliper spring today, but decided to reinstall the rear tires and put the Jeep back on the ground.

One pleasant surprise, the JKS sway bar clears.



I guess with the rear frame still on jack stands the front end was not compressing all the way. I am still going to install the longer sway bar end links, once they get here. And NO, not painting the sway bar end links, they usually take some hammer/pry bar persuasion!!

Rear pinion angle still looks good. I am running a CV rear shaft so pinion should be pretty close to in line with the shaft.



Jumped up and down on the four corners, took some after measurements:



Raised the rear 1-3/4", front 1-1/4". The magic bubble stick shows the back still being a hair lower than the front, but looks a bit better than before, even though the numbers show a rake both before and after.



Took it for a quick drive, very happy with the ride, the springs have some "spring" again. Feels great, it was worth all the work. The properly adjusted front wheel bearing took out the hair bit of slack I had in the steering.

The brakes are more meh. For the first 50 or so stops, very low pedal and the rear brakes did not even work. After a little bit the rears started working again. Even though I never broke loose a fluid connection, probably should have bled the brakes. I guess pushing the fluid forward when compressing the rear caliper pistons tripped something inside the proportioning valve?

So, brakes are working again, but the driver side pads are dragging a bit more than the passenger side. The driver side was the PIA piston. I am thinking I must not have gotten this piston screwed back down all the way. I will pull this caliper back off and see if I can turn this piston in a bit more.

That's it for now

 

[spankrjs]

Borrowed this fancy caliper tool from a shop down the street from me, much better than the little cube thing!!



With the fancy new tool, I ran the piston back and forth a few times, finally got it to compress all the way. One minor hiccup: I was twisting the piston out, and it will extend really far out, and I must have went out a hair too far. I believe the piston started to come out of the bore threads. Not a lot, just enough for brake fluid to leak out and start weeping out the bleed holes in the external boot. Piston twisted back in fine, so no worries. I think this helped me, it was some dark fluid that came out!! Regardless, no leaks now, caliper slid right over the pads and does not drag, firm pedal, good to go.

I believe the fluid that came out must have flushed out some crud because after this mishap, I was able to turn the piston in and out with the little cube thing with light steady pressure. So, next time I mess with calipers like this I am just going to drain/flush out the fluid and hopefully save bunch of drama!!! And, I need to buy one of those fancy caliper tools!!!!!

The Rough Country sway bar end links showed up today, so I installed them tonight, too:



There are two sets of holes at each end of the connector pipes, so three different lengths are possible. Next to the JKS disconnects, with the longest and shortest lengths shown:



And installed, I used the longest setting, put the sway bar close to stock orientation:



The instructions said to use the included hardware to attach the end links to the sway bar, but it is too small for a CJ sway bar. I reused whatever hardware I used at the top with the JKS end links. Pretty simple install.

Still waiting on my parking brake spring thingy, and need to some modifications/maintenance to the rear tire carrier. I also might go junkyard shopping to see if I can find some spare rear caliper cores.


That's it for now

 

[helimd]

Brother, that is one hearty pedestrian to bend those shock studs. LMAO. Looks good, amigo.

 

[don87401]

"I guess with the rear frame still on jack stands the front end was not compressing all the way. I am still going to install the longer sway bar end links, once they get here. And NO, not painting the sway bar end links, they usually take some hammer/pry bar persuasion!!"

I found on my links if I redrilled the pin hole just a "hair" bigger the pin didn't bind up and was easier to remove.

 

[spankrjs]

I never received the correct rear disc brake caliper parking brake spring in the mail. So, after I finished putting the Dr mower back together this morning I decided to make a junk yard run. I changed the engine oil yesterday, and wanted to make an interstate shake down run before I leave for Michigan on Friday. The Scrambler drove fine on the 40 mile trip, 90% in a monsoon. Steering and suspension felt good, so should be ready for the dunes

Made it to the junkyard, it was sprinkling pretty steady already when I arrived. Made a mad dash to the Ford section, did not see any first generation Taurus or Mercury Sables. I saw one Mustang, from my notes a certain year Mustang was supposed to be a match. It was raining pretty steady at this point, ran to the Mustang, it had rear disc brakes, broke out the metric sockets and removed the bolt attaching both sides rear caliper springs. Ran out the junkyard in the pouring rain.

Got home, opened my tool box, pulled out the springs, success!!!!!!!



I need to install the passenger side spring. The calipers mounted different on the Mustang compared to how they mount on my Jeep, so I took both springs to make sure I got the correct spring. When I get back from Michigan I need to go back to the junkyard and pull off both calipers, preferably when it is not raining. If they match up with my current SSBC calipers I will turn the Mustang calipers in as cores on set of rebuilt calipers. I like to have spares of uncommon parts in the garage, in case I need them.

That's it for now

 

[spankrjs]

Success!!!



Used these Channel Locks, still a huge PIA:



Really needed a pair with a slightly wider jaw opening and longer fingers.

Going to adjust the parking brake cable and call this chore finished.

 

[spankrjs]

Greased the driveshafts yesterday, including dropping the rear in order to get to all three fittings on the CV end.

Installed my dune flag bracket on the front bumper, and wanted to work on the rear tire carrier.

Greased the bearings on the swing pivot, repaired the spring loaded lock pin that holds the carrier in the open position. I also replaced the big aluminum nut/bearing retainer, Rock Hard sent me a free replacement.

I wanted to add an upper bump stop to the tire carrier. Even though the instructions mentioned adding one, I never did. The carrier is really ridgid most of the time, it will get some movement on real rough washboard roads, or rough ruts out on the dunes. Since I waited until the last minute, did a quick and dirty bump stop.

Drilled a 1/2' hole in the tire carrier and installed a 5/16" nutsert. I then threaded a 5/16" stud into the nutsert. One end of the stud is threaded 5/16-18, the end sticking out is a course thread.



And a handful of stainless 5/16" fender washers and a big rubber snubber threaded on to the stud:



And an adjustable upper tire carrier snubber. It rests firmly against the tailgate but not enough to smash it in. The washers give me some tension adjustability. I would rather have a thicker rubber snubber and less washers........



I obtained the nutsert at O'Reilly's, it was a Dorman product. The rubber snubber, double ended stainless stud and washers came from Ace Hardware.

Time to start packing up tomorrow night, head up to Michigan on Friday. Plan on driving the Scrambler to work the next two days for a final shake down.

That's it for now

 

[spankrjs]

Have a real slight "miss/hick-up/surge" at cruising speed and hard acceleration. Not bad, barely noticeable, and very intermittent. Been present for awhile. Decided to clean the throttle body/IAC/TPS.

It has been many miles since I have performed this maintenance so the TB was dirty. The oil around the outside of the TB is from where I wipe the inner lip of the air intake tube with motor oil to keep it from sticking to the TB neck, not blow by.



Regardless, pretty nasty. The inner portion of the TB not too bad.



The IAC housing was not too bad so I did not pull it off the TB housing:





The IAC pintle was not too dirty.



Blasted out the TPS bore and TPS, wasn't too dirty, what the heck:



Inside of the intake manifold was clean:



So, dirty TB/IAC/TPS, also found 3 or 4 intake manifold bolts a hair loose so snugged them up.



Quick test drive, good to go. Pre-packed up all my camping/tools/spare parts for the Michigan trip. Just need to pack up clothes and head out.

That's it for now.

 

[spankrjs]

Packed up, fueled up, ready to hit the road first thing in the morning for the long drive up to Silver Lake, Michigan!!!



If things go well tomorrow on the drive up I hope to stop somewhere between Indianapolis and South Bend for the night. That will make for a short drive on Saturday



Very hot outside down here so will try to take it a bit easier on the Scrambler. I always say that and end up going hammer down the whole way....

Will update tomorrow

 

[Belizeit]

At 75 mph and a red CJ on the road I’m thinking more like afterburner on a fighter jet.

 

[mhinchliffe]

Safe travels! Keep the shiny side up Spanks!

 

[spankrjs]

Stopped in Peru, Indiana for the night. Been running 70-75mph at 2,400-2,500 RPM all day. One fuel stop in Tuscaloosa, AL, one stop a bit south of Nashville, TN, and last fuel stop was in Scottsburg, Indiana. Averaging 15-15.5mpg. Me and Jeep are good, should easily complete the trip up tomorrow

 

[Jeep Addict]

Put a 392 in it!

 

[spankrjs]

Forgot to update this yesterday. Made it to Sandy Shores, one problem.

When I was driving through Grand Haven, MI, a kid in a Ford Focus decided to cut a u-turn right in front of me, in the rain. I was heading north, he was originally heading south and just whipped in front of me, at a light. I guess he thought he had enough space, he did not. I hit the back of him at about 5mph. No one hurt, my Scrambler is fine, his car not so much. And in Michigan, no matter what happens, if you rear end someone your automatically at fault, even if a dumb kid pulls in front of you and comes to a stop. Oh well.

I'm sure the rest of the week will be

 

[ag4ever]

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0931YZ82P/?coliid=I1M2KN8SGY5FDS&colid=2HH5LEIW92H7J&psc=1&ref_=mlv_ys_lv_dp_it

Good for documenting trail rides & street incidents.

 

[Belizeit]

Glad no real damage.

 

[rustang71]

I have never had the hubs "pop" or "skip", but the pair of new rear hubs I installed with the kit did develop some "lash" after around 30-35k miles. I mainly noticed it coasting into a corner (manual transmission, Ox Locker unlocked). I could feel the "lash".

Since I never unlocked the hubs anyway, I ended up installing RCV 30 spline Dana 44 drive flanges. The drive slugs remove all the slack that wore in lock in hubs will exhibit. The drive slugs are one piece, the hubs are multiple little parts/teeth/springs/etc. Lot's of places for "lash" to develop.

I have been very happy with the RCV drive slugs. I keep the original, worn Warn hubs in the trail spare parts box, just in case.

Post #1443 in this thread has some pictures of the drive flanges. Two corrections needed in that post:

1) the OEM rear center caps will clear the RCV flanges

2) the covers leaked a little bit due to the rear axle vent cap being blocked with dried up mud

Thanks for getting back to me on this issue. I have a spare set of the ff axle shafts, so I pulled the original right side out and installed the spare (which is about 1/4 inch longer) and tried the decent again. It held longer before popping and seemed to pop fewer times, but I still haven't found the cause. The slugs may be my next step. Could it be back at the r&p or the side gears? It's still an open diff at this point.