Retitled: 83 Scrambler resto-mod finally gaining momentum

[Bushmaster6]

there's ALWAYS one

the 4.0 motor mounts have one odd-sized bolt.. steps up from a 9/16 driven to a 5/8 driven in the lower right bolt on the DS.. of course the shortest sized bolt in Grade 8 that fits from Lowes was about 1/4 inch too long so, more new tools to the rescue

 

[Bushmaster6]

before I rolled the chassis out

I took a look at my torque settings on the bare chassis.. and used a marker to indicate which bolts I'd set.. came to find out that there are a ton of bolts on the chassis that are not easily referenced for torque settings...

so I'll have to do some more digging...

bottom line is, i'll have to re-torque everything once I (a) get some weight on the chassis again and (b) get it on the road for a shake-down

 

[Bushmaster6]

for the first time in MONTHS

my chassis sees direct sunlight

for as big of a job as it sounds, setting the motor by myself with a cherry picker was actually pretty easy...

and back in the garage she rolled.. (re) installed my water pump (the 4.0 has a heater core outlet pipe that must be installed before the pump is mounted, which I hadn't done, so had to pull it off, clean, and re-gasket it GRRRR.. you can see it running parallel to the valve cover, which is what prevents you from screwing it back in when the pump is mounted) and my thermostat/water outlet

things have been slower for me lately and it does get me down a bit on the project.. getting the motor mounted today was a big motivator.. it's really a simple task at this stage but had a big visual impact, as well as cleaning up my workspace in the garage.. I think what dawned on me today was: I need to get hot on finding a source for my body/paint project so they can work it at the same time I'm finishing the rest of the drivetrain (which is a non-rebuild.. just a clean up and reinstall, so it SHOULD not take long)..

wish he was JUST a bit older for this part!

 

[spankrjs]

Looking good

It is amazing how much shop space you regain as more and more parts get bolted back on the chassis

 

[Bushmaster6]

where does the time go...

... the arrival of baby #2 has put a serious damper on my activity, along with a bit of an up-tick in activity at work so, I've been chosing sleep (when I can get it) over progress..

what I'm (re)learning is that I'm much less effective on just about anything when I lose momentum... for example, getting my drive train reassembled has run into a couple of frustrating nights of "where did I put that bolt?"... whereas I've been detail oriented 'til now, I seem to more frequently lose things, forget to order things, order the wrong things, etc..

so.. things that I HAVE accomplished...

finally found a body shop that would accept restoration work (same guy that Raymond/Spankrjs used), which was a 2 hour drive away..

stopped by last week to check on progress and drop off a few pieces, snaped a few (too few) pics, so here's a sneak peak of progress

 

[Bushmaster6]

chassis is still at home

and I've been (slowly) getting the drivetrain cleaned, prepped and (partially) re-installed

I've got the motor pretty much reassembled.. including my home baked tool to try and pre-prime the oil with an old screwdriver and a drill

lesson learned: if you're intake manifold takes alot of torque to get bolted on.. something is wrong: I broke off one of the alignment tabs reinstalling it:

JB weld solution has worked:

 

[Bushmaster6]

trying to get the full drivetrain mounted before I get the tub back (next week).. really struggling to get this moving..

bought the Advanced adapters pilot bushing, and then re-used a (basically new) CJ flywheel, clutch, and pressure plate that came off my 4.2 (going on the refreshed 4.0)

 

[Bushmaster6]

here's where the time goes...

I was trying to explain this to my wife today.. why everything seems to take so long.. and other than the paint job I've farmed out, every SINGLE bolt, fixture, accessory, requires cleaning, prepping, painting, reassembly, replacement.. whatever.. and I've taken off EVERY bolt on the CJ8..

as an example.. putting the fan/fan clutch bac on today.. can't put one back on that looks like this so..

disassemble, wire brush, prime, paint, wait for it to dry, reinstall... so just something simple like the cooling fan takes 1.5 hours or so of labor..

 

[Randyzzz]

so just something simple like the cooling fan takes 1.5 hours or so of labor..

Or more....

 

[aclaugh1]

Great Documentation

Thanks for the detailed documentation, especially of the engine swap. I'm about to do the same thing on a Scrambler I'll be picking up tomorrow. As it will be my first engine swap, your posts have been very helpful in my decision to take this on.

 

[Bushmaster6]

back from paint

tough to get an appreciation for it in some of these pics, but you get the idea...

took me about a solid hour (with the assistance of about six guys from the body shop) to shoehorn an entire disassembled jeep into my trailer and landcruiser in such a fashion not to damage it on the (long) ride home..

pretty happy with the quality of the paint and the decision to go back to the factory off-white color

had the underside done in black bedliner, and the tub lined in a (nearly) color matched bedliner

happy with the color and look of it, but less than thrilled with the masking job they did on the edges.. you only see it if you're looking for it, but it's a little sloppy

had what hinges/accessories I have on hand that were in good enough shape to paint done as well

and the wheels.. this is the second area where I'm not totally satisfied with the work.. they look pretty good but could've used better prep/priming.. I"m alreayd getting some peel on the edges.. inevitable at some point, and I did get a take-away bottle of touch up paint, as I'm sure things will get dinged up during reassembly

tires mounted and center caps polished

 

[Bushmaster6]

have a few things left to assemble to the chassis before I drop the body on it.. cleaned/painted my driveshafts yesterday, need to do new u-joints and mount them..

and I need to mount/plumb my external fuel pump/lines..

 

[jims chop shop]

 

[hefavitzen]

WOW!!! it is going to look amazing!!

Are you sticking with that size tire for a particular reason? My old CJ7 had the same wheels (by the look of it) but had Firestone Firehawk 31x11.5 on them. I believe there was an add-a-leaf, but I bought it that way.

Looks wonderful. My hands would be shaking with excitement at every turn of the wrench.

Sent from my MB860

 

[Polarfire]

Awesome!

Are you leaving it all white or adding a stripe kit?

 

[Randyzzz]

VERY nice!!! Keep the pics coming!

 

[Bushmaster6]

thanks guys.. I am more excited now about getting it bolted back together..

Awesome!

Are you leaving it all white or adding a stripe kit?

long term, yes, I plan to go back to the original stripe package..

and yes, the 31x10.5r15 tire size choice was deliberate.. thought about going with a 32 or 33 but I've only got 3.31 gears so, for daily (non hardcore wheeling) driving I wanted the size mostly for looks to offset the lift..

 

[bigwalton]

I always get so freaking jealous when people do it right and paint the body off the frame like this

So awesome and for the reassembly!!

 

[Bushmaster6]

I always get so freaking jealous when I see people driving their Scramblers and not taking six years to finally get one assembled!!

fixed it for you

 

[Bushmaster6]

managed to destroy one of my new u-joints (must have dislodged two needle bearings and subsequently broke them under pressure.. tried to swap in two older needlbe bearings from the old u-joint.. not a size match and gave me some noticeable friction just hand-turning it.. grrrr

the other u-joint installed but then felt like it was binding hard? I pulled it back out and may re-try it tomorrow, or go get two new ones... it's the simple sh-t that drives me nuts..