'Mater - '77 Cherokee S 4-door

[bigwalton]

I vote tailgate 1.

And I like fender 2, but either center it under the Cherokee word horizontally or line the right edge of the decal with the right edge of the last e (pass side) & lefts on driver side. And of course, lined up vertically with the side marker.

keep in mind that the “Cherokee” is flipped on the other side, so trying to align it with one is likely going to be off on the other. I won’t be able to stand knowing they’re different, so have to pick something that works on both when identically spaced from the signal.

 

[AK-RWC]

I really like fender 3, but understand your reluctance to put it on the OEM decal. The lines work perfectly there though, and it doesn't detract from the rest of the OEM FSJ fender aesthetic. Short of that, fender 2 is your obvious choice for the reason posted: that's the approximate relative location used on the Javelin. This is also the reason why I put my 401 emblems on the hood; there's no other appropriately vertical surface on the CJ in that general location. And as for the tailgate, I vote for option 4. Or consider dropping it down, centered below the QuadraTrac, but at the very bottom of the tailgate; maybe aligned with the license plate for up/down. The ZJ has the V8 and 5.9L emblems in this location (and remember, the ZJ was still originally designed by AMC).

 

[Belizeit]

 

[designerRob]

keep in mind that the “Cherokee” is flipped on the other side, so trying to align it with one is likely going to be off on the other. I won’t be able to stand knowing they’re different, so have to pick something that works on both when identically spaced from the signal.

Ya, they are a little different. Dilemma, hmmm. Maybe split the difference.

 

[bigwalton]

I really like fender 3, but understand your reluctance to put it on the OEM decal. The lines work perfectly there though, and it doesn't detract from the rest of the OEM FSJ fender aesthetic. Short of that, fender 2 is your obvious choice for the reason posted: that's the approximate relative location used on the Javelin. This is also the reason why I put my 401 emblems on the hood; there's no other appropriately vertical surface on the CJ in that general location. And as for the tailgate, I vote for option 4. Or consider dropping it down, centered below the QuadraTrac, but at the very bottom of the tailgate; maybe aligned with the license plate for up/down. The ZJ has the V8 and 5.9L emblems in this location (and remember, the ZJ was still originally designed by AMC).

I really do like it in the stripe best but I just can’t put it there

I tried that spot on the tailgate but it would need the larger decal and I just thought it was TOO much

 

[Randyzzz]

I like behind the turn signal on the fender, but I’m not sure on the tailgate. Have you tried the bottom corner?

 

[bigwalton]

I like behind the turn signal on the fender, but I’m not sure on the tailgate. Have you tried the bottom corner?

I can show you. Too small and too far separated for my eye.

 

[Graveltravels]

Man, I like fender 3 option. It looks like it belongs in the original decal!! But since that's likely a wasted vote, Fender 1. And tailgate 2 is my favourite of the tailgate options.

 

[bigwalton]

Have you ever had a splinter in your finger that you just couldn’t get out and it festered and hurt and pissed you off every time you moved that finger a certain way?

Well, last fall this Jeep started the random miss again so I quit driving it for fear of it running the other cylinders too lean since it’s TBI and tried to track it down. Could not figure it out and finally had to ease it to the barn for winter storage.

Over the winter it dumped a ton of trans fluid on the floor of the barn, but the B&M pan I put on was clean so I knew something was wrong with the rear output seal (which is actually in the quadratrac.)

I hadn’t managed to touch this thing all damn year, I just kept the battery charged and left it with the hood up, mocking me every time I went into the garage. Between the Postal’s issues and getting the JKU, there just hadn’t been time to pull the tcase and hunt down the miss more.

a couple weeks ago I read something about the tach signal adapter on an aftermarket efi causing someone problems, and I realized I’d never really eliminated it as a source because the Jeep clearly ran fine aside from the miss. I called FAST and they agreed, these going bad is all or nothing, the vehicle dies and won’t run, they don’t intermittently fail, though “anything is possible”.

this is a little electronic box that “cleans” the tach signal up into a clean square wave that the efi uses to know when to fire. It plugs into the harness and the tach prong on the HEI and gets a ground. I had a really good, clean ground to the head with toothed washers, but I went ahead and added a new direct battery ground to that spot and I got a factory-style connector for the HEI cap connection (I’d used a crimped female spade).

I pulled and redid the two seals on the front of the Quadratrac and reinstalled it while servicing and painting the rear driveshaft.



Took it for a drive yesterday and it seems to be cured. Running like a beast again and no signs of any miss. Only drips under the Jeep (I really needed to do the rear tcase output too, but had no interest getting in that far). Next year I may rebuild the original quadratrac I still have and swap it on.

So all of this left me feeling like I FINALLY got that nasty splinter out and I plan to drive the wheels off this thing between now and storage time.

 

[bigwalton]

View attachment 96851

Only drips under the Jeep (I really needed to do the rear tcase output too, but had no interest getting in that far). Next year I may rebuild the original quadratrac I still have and swap it on.

Going to buy a lottery ticket tonight. I realized that the leak at the back end of the quadratrac was actually from the speedometer cable/gear adapter. Turns out the seal for the speedo gear shaft is inside the adapter and is an oddball part that’s hard to find a direct replacement for.

Pulled the one from the quadratrac I had in here previously and realized I had another spare quadratrac on the shelf. Yanked it too and found that the seal on the shelf spare actually felt the best.



Also found the gear in my old case was 16 tooth where the current one was 14. I had noticed that the speedo was off since hooking up the new cable, now that’s hopefully sorted and it’s sealed up

With the parts for the swap, I got one of the new fuel filler neck/tubes that BJ’s started to offer for this era Cherokee. Got that in today to replaced the cracked, taped mess that I had in there previously. I can’t wait to try to get gas now. It’s been a slow and painful process with lots of backspash with the old setup.

I can’t stop smiling while driving this thing

 

[bigwalton]

Wow. I haven’t posted anything here since ‘21?? It doesn’t even seem possible that the 401 has been in that long…


Drinking bourbon to celebrate one of the greatest days of the year…

Still hibernating…


Awake! The 401 literally fired on the first turn of the key after hooking up the battery. Stabil in the tank every fall and disconnecting the yellow top… all I have to do is check under the hood, fluid levels, connect the battery, turn the key on to prime the fuel system and fire it up. It’s INSANE to me how easily it fires and idles with the FAST EFI.


I baby it home and give it a more thorough once over. I just love looking at the 401.


Reunited.


This was a free yellow top I got for the magazine years ago, it’s made in Mexico but it’s always done perfectly for me every winter. I usually charge it fully before storage but I didn’t last year. I just drove it into the barn and pulled the negative clamp. This is similar to where it is every year after I get it back home. Pretty impressive to me


Fluids checked, cleaned up a bit.


Aaaaand that celebratory bourbon. Here’s to another great Mater season.

 

[bigwalton]

It's my birthday! Well, it's not, but it feels like it... maybe like Christmas.

Got the Cherokee out of the barn for the year with the help of @yodabob yesterday. Always fun when the RV that he usually lets park in the middle of the barn (blocking all the vehicles in) is still there. I was the first out this year, which shocked me given the nice weather we've had paired with the rain that's washed off the roads.

Fired right up like it was driven yesterday, didn't see any issues. Somewhat sad when I checked the oil and saw that it looked absolutely pristine... which means that I didn't drive it enough last year to even tinge it slightly dark.

Picked up the mouse repellent packets and gave the windows a wipe while the RV owner was getting her's running, we helped move the barn dragon out of the way of the RV so it could back out (yes, literally), pulled Mater out and then helped with the dragon again as she put the RV back in.

Made the way home fine and I just couldn't help myself but romp on it once to listen to the 401 with the windows down. Brad drove my XJ home. Threw the charger on the optima and cleaned the windows, dusted the dash and the exterior. Quick clean on the hood and wheels (they desperately need polished properly this year.) and gave the engine bay/fluids a more thorough once over.

Was hoping to drive it to dinner with Brad, but it started raining

@yodabob/Brad in the background...



My new year's resolution was to make a point of getting out of the house during the workweek and drive this thing properly, so the new oil (I'll change it regardless of the condition this week) WILL get used. Here's to more Mater 2026.

 

[bigwalton]

Tried to post the video of the romp...

(It's pretty tame for a "romp" but I usually baby it home, so this is a romp relative to what I normally do.)