- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
It was intentional, but your change is fine
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Spankrjs 1986 "Ploy-Boy" CJ-7
- Thread starter spankrjs
- Start date
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Piddled around some more with this one last night.
Removed the last body mount bolt, grill bolt, since the plow is out of the way. It came out easy enough, tapped the threads, reinstalled it with some anti-seize.
Increased the value of the Jeep by $500 by installing this piece, just getting it pout of the garage, tired of moving it around:
More new stainless steel bolts/nuts/washers to replace rusted up original crap:
Working outside in the 117 degree heat, still feels better than inside the garage!!!
Had to remove this super heavy duty battery tray, had a good used OEM tray to install, the OEM jack would not clear this tray when bolted in the stock location. This is one hell of a beefy battery tray!!
The previous owner installed this tray to accommodate a huge battery he had installed.
Some surface rust down here, still solid, did not leak water inside the cab when I hosed all the crud out of the pinch seam. Definitely will require some attention in the near future. This is passenger side of firewall, where the heater core box drain tube exits and where the firewall AC line plate is mounted.
After removing all the snow plow stuff, and relocating the OEM components back to their original mounting locations, the inner fender is like swiss cheese from all of the added mounting holes.
At least 12 extra holes in the above picture. So, besides rust between the two lapped panels on the fender, all these extra holes kind of sealed the deal to swap on another set of fenders in the future.
Back to stock on the passenger side except for battery cables, still need to correctly route them behind the battery:
Still need to do the same on the driver side inner fender, and I am going to say at least 10 extra holes drilled through this side due to plow components/OEM component relocation:
The new vacuum canister allowed the Sol-Vac on the carburetor to function correctly, probably the Pulse-Air system, too.
More piddling ahead, that's it for now!!
Removed the last body mount bolt, grill bolt, since the plow is out of the way. It came out easy enough, tapped the threads, reinstalled it with some anti-seize.
Increased the value of the Jeep by $500 by installing this piece, just getting it pout of the garage, tired of moving it around:
More new stainless steel bolts/nuts/washers to replace rusted up original crap:
Working outside in the 117 degree heat, still feels better than inside the garage!!!
Had to remove this super heavy duty battery tray, had a good used OEM tray to install, the OEM jack would not clear this tray when bolted in the stock location. This is one hell of a beefy battery tray!!
The previous owner installed this tray to accommodate a huge battery he had installed.
Some surface rust down here, still solid, did not leak water inside the cab when I hosed all the crud out of the pinch seam. Definitely will require some attention in the near future. This is passenger side of firewall, where the heater core box drain tube exits and where the firewall AC line plate is mounted.
After removing all the snow plow stuff, and relocating the OEM components back to their original mounting locations, the inner fender is like swiss cheese from all of the added mounting holes.
At least 12 extra holes in the above picture. So, besides rust between the two lapped panels on the fender, all these extra holes kind of sealed the deal to swap on another set of fenders in the future.
Back to stock on the passenger side except for battery cables, still need to correctly route them behind the battery:
Still need to do the same on the driver side inner fender, and I am going to say at least 10 extra holes drilled through this side due to plow components/OEM component relocation:
The new vacuum canister allowed the Sol-Vac on the carburetor to function correctly, probably the Pulse-Air system, too.
More piddling ahead, that's it for now!!
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Piddled with this one some more yesterday. Basically, replacing old crusty hardware with new, installing more OEM appropriate components, and cleaning up all the old hydraulic oil/dirt/grime.
Like I mentioned before, both front fenders are rusty. There was also this odd coolant overflow bottle installed in place of the OEM type:
You can also see the engine block heater cord wrapped around the grill strut rod, probably not needed down here LOL.
A lot of surface rust, extra holes, and grime:
The vapor canister bracket is pretty crispy, too:
The WS squirter bottle did not have the "AMC" logo like OEM, looks, like it was replaced with a Mopar unit at some point in time. Close up of the stickers I found on the back side:
And the aftermarket coolant overflow bottle set up:
Excess coolant/pressure from the radiator entered the bottle through the lower hose connection, excess pressure/coolant would vent out of the upper hose, if necessary. It did seem to work, I could hear it burbling sometimes after shutting off the engine.
Like I mentioned before, both front fenders are rusty. There was also this odd coolant overflow bottle installed in place of the OEM type:
You can also see the engine block heater cord wrapped around the grill strut rod, probably not needed down here LOL.
A lot of surface rust, extra holes, and grime:
The vapor canister bracket is pretty crispy, too:
The WS squirter bottle did not have the "AMC" logo like OEM, looks, like it was replaced with a Mopar unit at some point in time. Close up of the stickers I found on the back side:
And the aftermarket coolant overflow bottle set up:
Excess coolant/pressure from the radiator entered the bottle through the lower hose connection, excess pressure/coolant would vent out of the upper hose, if necessary. It did seem to work, I could hear it burbling sometimes after shutting off the engine.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Maybe the original Ignition Control Module from 1986???
You can also see how crusty the entire lower edge of the driver side inner fender is in the above picture.
Of course both the squirter pumps wires, power and ground, were fairly corroded, and both connectors snapped off the pump. Looks like a new squirter pump will have to be installed in the future.
I did not really feel to well yesterday, and should have left it alone, but I attempted to remove the rusted out charcoal canister bracket. I knew I should have just left it alone until I pulled the fender, but I just couldn't. And of course I snapped the upper stud off.
Nothing a drill and a through bolt can't fix later on.
Cleaned up and reassembled, not the most exciting thing, but some progress:
I keep piddling with all this small easy stuff now to make future disassembly easier. Fight all the rust and crappy hardware now.
That's it for now
You can also see how crusty the entire lower edge of the driver side inner fender is in the above picture.
Of course both the squirter pumps wires, power and ground, were fairly corroded, and both connectors snapped off the pump. Looks like a new squirter pump will have to be installed in the future.
I did not really feel to well yesterday, and should have left it alone, but I attempted to remove the rusted out charcoal canister bracket. I knew I should have just left it alone until I pulled the fender, but I just couldn't. And of course I snapped the upper stud off.
Nothing a drill and a through bolt can't fix later on.
Cleaned up and reassembled, not the most exciting thing, but some progress:
I keep piddling with all this small easy stuff now to make future disassembly easier. Fight all the rust and crappy hardware now.
That's it for now
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Wheeling in the yard, impressed the open front/Trac-Lock rear climbed the stump of doom!
Check out that flex!
A few more Scrambler maintenance issues, figure out some yard storage, then time to finally get down and dirty with this one!!
Check out that flex!
A few more Scrambler maintenance issues, figure out some yard storage, then time to finally get down and dirty with this one!!
- City
- W-S
- State
- NC
Moab ready!
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
I shifted gears to yard work, have not really touched this one.
I did finally run this one out of gas back in December, about 250 feet from my driveway. Well, either ran out of gas or maybe the pickup tube is rusted off and can't reach the bottom of the tank. Regardless, I only dumped maybe 1 gallon of fuel in the tank and it fired back up.
So, I will probably drain the tank and drop it next. Already have a bunch of parts for this project, but been busy doing yard work.
Went to start it the other day, no click or starter spin. Changed the solenoid out today, put the battery on a charger since I have not drove this one in awhile.
This was a new one for me, the "triple post" solenoid for the automatic transmission. I have only ever had manual transmission CJ's.
That's it for now!
I did finally run this one out of gas back in December, about 250 feet from my driveway. Well, either ran out of gas or maybe the pickup tube is rusted off and can't reach the bottom of the tank. Regardless, I only dumped maybe 1 gallon of fuel in the tank and it fired back up.
So, I will probably drain the tank and drop it next. Already have a bunch of parts for this project, but been busy doing yard work.
Went to start it the other day, no click or starter spin. Changed the solenoid out today, put the battery on a charger since I have not drove this one in awhile.
This was a new one for me, the "triple post" solenoid for the automatic transmission. I have only ever had manual transmission CJ's.
That's it for now!
- City
- Merton
- State
- WI
I always keep a wire with alligator clips in the glove box for this same reason.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Washed the pollen off the black one today, drove it around the yard and finally ran out of gas, again.
Didn't want to add gas to tank since I need to drop it and see what's up with sending unit etc., so I rednecked it!
Another reason carburetors are superior to fuel injection!!!
That's it for now.
Didn't want to add gas to tank since I need to drop it and see what's up with sending unit etc., so I rednecked it!
Another reason carburetors are superior to fuel injection!!!
That's it for now.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
It was nice weather yesterday so decided to work on this one. Decided to drop the fuel tank/draw bar/rear bumper things, since it is all interconnected.
The rear most shackle hanger bolts also secure the OEM hitch bar. Put the MAP torch on each one for about 5 minutes, used impact to work them in and out, got them out and did not spin the OEM weld nuts inside the frame. Which is a good sign for as scary as the rust looks.
Looking over top of driver side frame rail in rear wheel well. Kinked rubber hoses, hose clamps, copper lines, and odd location for fuel gauge sending unit ground wire.
Couldn't drop tank without removing draw bar and couldn't remove it with tank in way. Put rear tires on concrete blocks so when tank lowered it would clear tow bar.
More kinked hoses and hose clamps. OEM clamps on vent lines. Jeep ran perfect even with kinked hoses! Not sure where that washer nut thing came from LOL.
Rear bed floor over gas tank. Assume grey primer is OEM. Some surface crust but actually in really good shape.
Looking at the frame, scary. Most of this is some type of undercoat sprayed over OEM paint. It didn't adhere well and is flaking off. The metal underneath is surface rust, but not really pitted. Still solid, I keep beating on it with a hammer. The very back end of Jeep is the worst so if these areas are good odds are as I move forward it will be fine, too, fingers crossed. In the below picture you can see the body mount that is right at front corner of gas tank. You can see how undercoat/paint is all melted up from when I used MAP torch on body mount bolts.
Rear axle tube looks scary. Most of this brushed off easy enough. Tubes are not even pitted. Will dig more into this later on.
The rear most shackle hanger bolts also secure the OEM hitch bar. Put the MAP torch on each one for about 5 minutes, used impact to work them in and out, got them out and did not spin the OEM weld nuts inside the frame. Which is a good sign for as scary as the rust looks.
Looking over top of driver side frame rail in rear wheel well. Kinked rubber hoses, hose clamps, copper lines, and odd location for fuel gauge sending unit ground wire.
Couldn't drop tank without removing draw bar and couldn't remove it with tank in way. Put rear tires on concrete blocks so when tank lowered it would clear tow bar.
More kinked hoses and hose clamps. OEM clamps on vent lines. Jeep ran perfect even with kinked hoses! Not sure where that washer nut thing came from LOL.
Rear bed floor over gas tank. Assume grey primer is OEM. Some surface crust but actually in really good shape.
Looking at the frame, scary. Most of this is some type of undercoat sprayed over OEM paint. It didn't adhere well and is flaking off. The metal underneath is surface rust, but not really pitted. Still solid, I keep beating on it with a hammer. The very back end of Jeep is the worst so if these areas are good odds are as I move forward it will be fine, too, fingers crossed. In the below picture you can see the body mount that is right at front corner of gas tank. You can see how undercoat/paint is all melted up from when I used MAP torch on body mount bolts.
Rear axle tube looks scary. Most of this brushed off easy enough. Tubes are not even pitted. Will dig more into this later on.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Passenger side of gas tank skid plate, little wing thing bolted to side of skid. Note frame paint/undercoat that came down with it!
This is pictures of the below tail gate body support piece, looking up at the bottom of the sheet metal box beam from above the frame. Looks terrible bust scrapes off with screw driver. I MIGHT still need to replace this box beam and the driver side corner piece, not sure yet, will take more digging.
All 5 of the OEM rear gas tank studs AND thin lock rings were intact. Again, as scary as parts of this thing look, other things are surprisingly intact.
Inboard side of driver side rear shackle. Pretty scary looking.
Scraped it off with old screw driver, not that bad.
Another reason I work on this thing outside: you get covered in rust/dirt/flaking paint!!!
This is pictures of the below tail gate body support piece, looking up at the bottom of the sheet metal box beam from above the frame. Looks terrible bust scrapes off with screw driver. I MIGHT still need to replace this box beam and the driver side corner piece, not sure yet, will take more digging.
All 5 of the OEM rear gas tank studs AND thin lock rings were intact. Again, as scary as parts of this thing look, other things are surprisingly intact.
Inboard side of driver side rear shackle. Pretty scary looking.
Scraped it off with old screw driver, not that bad.
Another reason I work on this thing outside: you get covered in rust/dirt/flaking paint!!!
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Random picture of inside frame rail. Solid, just surface rust.
Little OEM line tab that holds the three lines over the forward gas tank cross member some how survived intact. Original owner swapped all fuel/vapor/brake lines to copper after I presume the OEM lines rotted out. Frame looks sketchy here but it is just surface rust.
Rear axle tube brushed off. No pits, will clean up nicely. Note copper brake line. Spring perches look sketchy but again I think they might actually be OK.
OEM Dana 44 ID tag still along for the ride!!
That little line clamp I was talking about earlier. Note OEM grey primer?
Was able to remove all four rear shackle hanger bolts without damaging the inner frame weld nuts. Very happy about this. The back of the frame has most crud, so if I was able to get these bolts out without damage and the frame was fine here it should be good up front and in the middle. Rear frame cross member is fine, too, but will be removed to gain access inside the frame tubes for cleaning and painting.
Little OEM line tab that holds the three lines over the forward gas tank cross member some how survived intact. Original owner swapped all fuel/vapor/brake lines to copper after I presume the OEM lines rotted out. Frame looks sketchy here but it is just surface rust.
Rear axle tube brushed off. No pits, will clean up nicely. Note copper brake line. Spring perches look sketchy but again I think they might actually be OK.
OEM Dana 44 ID tag still along for the ride!!
That little line clamp I was talking about earlier. Note OEM grey primer?
Was able to remove all four rear shackle hanger bolts without damaging the inner frame weld nuts. Very happy about this. The back of the frame has most crud, so if I was able to get these bolts out without damage and the frame was fine here it should be good up front and in the middle. Rear frame cross member is fine, too, but will be removed to gain access inside the frame tubes for cleaning and painting.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Lots of stuff removed without any damage, very happy about that.
Always happy to get the frame rail bolts that thread into the weld nuts out in one piece!!!
I was really surprised that the OEM fuel tank skid plate appears to be fine! I figured it was toast, was already looking at aftermarket options. It should clean up fine.
Only damage to tank skid plate: the little wing plate on passenger side, and it is still 85% there. Not sure what the purpose of this little wing is, make it harder to siphon gas???
Pretty happy with the disassembly progress. Always good to be able to remove parts/bolts intact. Pretty happy with what I am finding so far in regards to rust damage, but not out of the woods yet!!! Still formulating my plan for further work on this jewel, but it's coming together.
That's it for now!
Always happy to get the frame rail bolts that thread into the weld nuts out in one piece!!!
I was really surprised that the OEM fuel tank skid plate appears to be fine! I figured it was toast, was already looking at aftermarket options. It should clean up fine.
Only damage to tank skid plate: the little wing plate on passenger side, and it is still 85% there. Not sure what the purpose of this little wing is, make it harder to siphon gas???
Pretty happy with the disassembly progress. Always good to be able to remove parts/bolts intact. Pretty happy with what I am finding so far in regards to rust damage, but not out of the woods yet!!! Still formulating my plan for further work on this jewel, but it's coming together.
That's it for now!
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- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
So I was kind of happy with my findings the other day, then upset yesterday. Just a topsy turvy emotional roller coaster.
I will state that if I would have known the true condition of this body I would have never bought this Jeep. I am also going to state that I am not going to spend a lot of money to have this tub repaired and repainted by someone else. It might look good for a little while, but it has some issues. I am not exactly right in the head so i am going to try to salvage it myself. And I would never resell it to someone else and pretend that it is just all hunky dory. It is not, probably never will be. But, I'll give it a whirl, unless my findings go completely down hill once I really dig into it.
So, the rear "box beam", the part that the very rear body mounts rest under that spans across the rear/under the tail gate opening, pretty F'd on the driver side, passenger not better. I was going to try to repair it with some heavy gauge sheet metal, but:
This is the driver side back corner. It rests against this structural piece. Hard to see in the picture, but you should see slight indentations from the OEM spot welds. I have bulges, meaning that the back side of this corner piece is rusting.
This is the driver side, from under the Jeep, forward side of this "box beam":
So, game plan here: grind off the paint, drill out all the spot welds, install a new "box beam". Classic Enterprises sells this part, I believe they call it a "tailgate end support". I will either re-spot weld it and/or use structural panel adhesive here.
Most of the rest of the underbody looks like this:
Solid metal covered in surface rust with a layer of OEM paint/undercoat/thin metal layer peeling off. Salvageable.
All of the other major floor pan structural pieces are still solid, just look like crap due to surface rust/peeling paint/peeling undercoat.
The thing that concerns me, and there really is no way to repair it: some of the seams where say the floorboard flange is pressed up against say the rocker panel. There is some corrosion at these joints.
This is IIRC passenger side rocker panel to passenger side outer floor board flange joint:
So, I can grind it, wire brush it, beat on it, vibrate it, and get some/most of the rust out. Then try to brush in some really oily/creepy rusty metal primer. That is all I can do short of replacing every body panel/floor board. Now, as bad as this look, I said "F" it yesterday, grabbed both lower rocker panels and tried to rip them off this flange. There was a little deflection, but the original weld joints are still strong and I did not crease the metal.
On the outer rocker panel, this is passenger side, you can see where some rust is starting to bubble the paint out at this joint.
Pretty sure there was body filler work here, too, at some point in time. I plan on grinding all the paint off at these flange/rocker seams and see how bad it is. Still feels solid, but I need to try to slow down/stop this rust. Probably pee-peeing against the wind but what the hell.
This is the passenger side toe support/floorboard/bulkhead area, where the front fender bolts on. Solid, just looks like shit:
Running my fingers along the inside bottom edge of the passenger side rocker panel, note debris left on top of step!!
Passenger side rocker where floorboard angles upward above the cubby hole picture I showed two pictures up:
Hard to see, but just OEM spot weld marks following this joint.
So, I plan on doing a bunch of work to this tub and it might all be for not. Might as well give it a try before I do a tub swap.
One other note: as bad as this looks, amazingly this Jeep feels really solid. No rattles, groans, creeks, other odd body noises/issues.
Figure I'll at least try to preserve what I have for as long as possible. If I was trying to make a super nice show Jeep or this was my only Jeep or trying to build this thing once, I would just shit can this body. And I might still have to do this, won't really know until i get into it.
I will state that if I would have known the true condition of this body I would have never bought this Jeep. I am also going to state that I am not going to spend a lot of money to have this tub repaired and repainted by someone else. It might look good for a little while, but it has some issues. I am not exactly right in the head so i am going to try to salvage it myself. And I would never resell it to someone else and pretend that it is just all hunky dory. It is not, probably never will be. But, I'll give it a whirl, unless my findings go completely down hill once I really dig into it.
So, the rear "box beam", the part that the very rear body mounts rest under that spans across the rear/under the tail gate opening, pretty F'd on the driver side, passenger not better. I was going to try to repair it with some heavy gauge sheet metal, but:
This is the driver side back corner. It rests against this structural piece. Hard to see in the picture, but you should see slight indentations from the OEM spot welds. I have bulges, meaning that the back side of this corner piece is rusting.
This is the driver side, from under the Jeep, forward side of this "box beam":
So, game plan here: grind off the paint, drill out all the spot welds, install a new "box beam". Classic Enterprises sells this part, I believe they call it a "tailgate end support". I will either re-spot weld it and/or use structural panel adhesive here.
Most of the rest of the underbody looks like this:
Solid metal covered in surface rust with a layer of OEM paint/undercoat/thin metal layer peeling off. Salvageable.
All of the other major floor pan structural pieces are still solid, just look like crap due to surface rust/peeling paint/peeling undercoat.
The thing that concerns me, and there really is no way to repair it: some of the seams where say the floorboard flange is pressed up against say the rocker panel. There is some corrosion at these joints.
This is IIRC passenger side rocker panel to passenger side outer floor board flange joint:
So, I can grind it, wire brush it, beat on it, vibrate it, and get some/most of the rust out. Then try to brush in some really oily/creepy rusty metal primer. That is all I can do short of replacing every body panel/floor board. Now, as bad as this look, I said "F" it yesterday, grabbed both lower rocker panels and tried to rip them off this flange. There was a little deflection, but the original weld joints are still strong and I did not crease the metal.
On the outer rocker panel, this is passenger side, you can see where some rust is starting to bubble the paint out at this joint.
Pretty sure there was body filler work here, too, at some point in time. I plan on grinding all the paint off at these flange/rocker seams and see how bad it is. Still feels solid, but I need to try to slow down/stop this rust. Probably pee-peeing against the wind but what the hell.
This is the passenger side toe support/floorboard/bulkhead area, where the front fender bolts on. Solid, just looks like shit:
Running my fingers along the inside bottom edge of the passenger side rocker panel, note debris left on top of step!!
Passenger side rocker where floorboard angles upward above the cubby hole picture I showed two pictures up:
Hard to see, but just OEM spot weld marks following this joint.
So, I plan on doing a bunch of work to this tub and it might all be for not. Might as well give it a try before I do a tub swap.
One other note: as bad as this looks, amazingly this Jeep feels really solid. No rattles, groans, creeks, other odd body noises/issues.
Figure I'll at least try to preserve what I have for as long as possible. If I was trying to make a super nice show Jeep or this was my only Jeep or trying to build this thing once, I would just shit can this body. And I might still have to do this, won't really know until i get into it.
SKT
Legacy Registered User
- City
- APO
- State
- AE
I enjoy following along and sincerely appreciate you taking time to thoroughly document your builds, but every time you share pics of the rust on this CJ, I immediately think how much it would benefit from a healthy soaking of Fluid Film.
Also surprised you would mess w/ one this rusty, as there are so many others out there in much better condition.
Also surprised you would mess w/ one this rusty, as there are so many others out there in much better condition.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
Front passenger side shackle bolts out:
Drivers side shackle/steering box mounting bolts out:
MAP torch, impact, about one hour. Ran a tap through all the holes and anti-sieze on the new temporary bolts.
Still going to pull/replace: sway bar mounting bolts, all four bump stop bolts, and the skid plate mounting bolts.
As bad as this thing looks in pictures, and it definitely ain't no super model, some things surprise me. I've actually had better luck taking this Jeep apart compared to when I took my now red Scrambler apart!
More slow/tedious work ahead, but it will make future work much easier.
That's it for now
Drivers side shackle/steering box mounting bolts out:
MAP torch, impact, about one hour. Ran a tap through all the holes and anti-sieze on the new temporary bolts.
Still going to pull/replace: sway bar mounting bolts, all four bump stop bolts, and the skid plate mounting bolts.
As bad as this thing looks in pictures, and it definitely ain't no super model, some things surprise me. I've actually had better luck taking this Jeep apart compared to when I took my now red Scrambler apart!
More slow/tedious work ahead, but it will make future work much easier.
That's it for now
- City
- Richmond
- State
- TX
6) Park it in someone else’s warehouse until they deal with it.Appreciate it
I'm kind of stuck with it so not many choices:
1) scrap it
2) part it out
3) leave it to rot in the back yard
4) sell it to someone else
5) try to make the best out of a bad situation
There, opened up your options some.
- City
- Biloxi
- State
- MS
No way he will take this one back, this one is mine, unfortunately
