What did you do to your TJ today?
- Thread starter LJRubiconGuy
- Start date
Chrisprice92
New Member
Back to @Hog 's lake house for another episode of " Adventures with Rivnuts" due to a spinner in his wife's nice LJ's skid plate we couldn't resolve Saturday.
First , as a note , my inspection camera showed this rivnut was never crushed - it may be the case these that tend spin aren't set properly at the factory.
We found a steel replacement Rivnut, but getting it to pull down tight without spinning proved to be the challenge since we couldn't reach in the frame and these had no flare for a serrated nut to grab like in Blaine's design , so we got creative and found a way to make one bite I felt was worth sharing -
We left the new rivnut hanging out of the frame 3/16-1/4" and sliced it vertically with a grinder cut off blade 3-4 times so that what was hanging down would be tabs that easily fold outward - then we lifted the skid up and inserted the bolt and tightened it steadily- what happened was the sliced end splayed out as we hoped and got sandwiched between the frame and skid plate - this worked excellent as the more we tightened the bolt the more it squeezed the rivnut tabs we created, preventing the rivnut from spinning and this allowed us to apply the torque needed to flare the rivnut inside the frame. Basically we created tension with the outer side of the rivnut, opposite of its intended design, in order to get the torque needed to set it properly.
There may be some drawbacks to this I'm not aware of at this point, but we fixed a loose skid in 15-20 minutes that was stumping us pretty bad.
The we centered the wheel, which was kind of funny, because the crew member in the cab was not aware of the baseline for off center needed to reference how far to move the wheel. And my asking them to dry test the steering as I waited on a socket threw that out the window if they did have it. If at first you don't succeed....
The real goal was to prove to our wives that our friendship is not about Jeeps - it's all about making their lives better, as we all know the pain and embarrassment a loose skid plate can cause.
Now I'm working on how a set of rear springs for my '03 would strengthen my marriage.
Also, I'm seriously considering making a replica Mopar Rock Crawler bumper ...it won't be an exact replica as the fairlead will be on the winch, but close enough to pay tribute to the look. Will keep you posted. There is something just really right about those bumpers on a TJ aesthetically .
I also added a tad more red to the rear of my RinoCon to accent the rocker stickers , by adding some 1" horizontal lines at the bottom edge of the tub behind the rear flares. I'd say it's become more than I expected and I'm satisfied where it is- solid, smooth, decent miles, drives great and has a unique look that at least looks professionally done. I'm not taking it a lot further, it just doesn't need it.
First , as a note , my inspection camera showed this rivnut was never crushed - it may be the case these that tend spin aren't set properly at the factory.
We found a steel replacement Rivnut, but getting it to pull down tight without spinning proved to be the challenge since we couldn't reach in the frame and these had no flare for a serrated nut to grab like in Blaine's design , so we got creative and found a way to make one bite I felt was worth sharing -
We left the new rivnut hanging out of the frame 3/16-1/4" and sliced it vertically with a grinder cut off blade 3-4 times so that what was hanging down would be tabs that easily fold outward - then we lifted the skid up and inserted the bolt and tightened it steadily- what happened was the sliced end splayed out as we hoped and got sandwiched between the frame and skid plate - this worked excellent as the more we tightened the bolt the more it squeezed the rivnut tabs we created, preventing the rivnut from spinning and this allowed us to apply the torque needed to flare the rivnut inside the frame. Basically we created tension with the outer side of the rivnut, opposite of its intended design, in order to get the torque needed to set it properly.
There may be some drawbacks to this I'm not aware of at this point, but we fixed a loose skid in 15-20 minutes that was stumping us pretty bad.
The we centered the wheel, which was kind of funny, because the crew member in the cab was not aware of the baseline for off center needed to reference how far to move the wheel. And my asking them to dry test the steering as I waited on a socket threw that out the window if they did have it. If at first you don't succeed....
The real goal was to prove to our wives that our friendship is not about Jeeps - it's all about making their lives better, as we all know the pain and embarrassment a loose skid plate can cause.
Now I'm working on how a set of rear springs for my '03 would strengthen my marriage.
Also, I'm seriously considering making a replica Mopar Rock Crawler bumper ...it won't be an exact replica as the fairlead will be on the winch, but close enough to pay tribute to the look. Will keep you posted. There is something just really right about those bumpers on a TJ aesthetically .
I also added a tad more red to the rear of my RinoCon to accent the rocker stickers , by adding some 1" horizontal lines at the bottom edge of the tub behind the rear flares. I'd say it's become more than I expected and I'm satisfied where it is- solid, smooth, decent miles, drives great and has a unique look that at least looks professionally done. I'm not taking it a lot further, it just doesn't need it.
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I aired up from 12 PSI from my wheeling trip last May.
I welded and smoothed out the infamous brake pad divots. No more sticky calipers finally.
Drove it today for the first time in months farther than a few miles and finally got my recent bugs worked out.
Now on to the CJ tailgate and dash design project.
I welded and smoothed out the infamous brake pad divots. No more sticky calipers finally.
Drove it today for the first time in months farther than a few miles and finally got my recent bugs worked out.
Now on to the CJ tailgate and dash design project.
How hard was that? I’ve done several drum brakes for other vehicles and this forum got me spooked on Jeeps.
Rear drum brakes are all the same. Jeeps are no different. The first thing I do on all of my vehicles when I buy them is replace front and rear brakes (rotors, drums, etc) and all hardware.
Yes, I was indicating a serrated but won't grab a stock style insert with no flange, plus we didn't have one .. this is basically a hack but got it done.
The drum brakes on the TJs are no worse than any others. There are several videos out there on how to do them. It doesn't require any special tools (you can get one of those retainer clip tools if you want but they are not required) and usually takes about 45 min. a wheel, all told. I suggest getting a complete hardware kit along with the brake pads; that way, you can put all fresh parts and you won't have to worry about any bent or broken bits (clips, springs, etc.).
Be sure you get the shoes adjusted properly and, afterwards, check/adjust your e-brake.
Thank you Amazon for the cheaper than normal Morryde. Little bit of work with the Savvy tail lights but I think this looks better than cutting it out square to clear the light body.
A buddy owed me a favor so he cut it for me on his lunch break. I just traced it out for him. He used a small cut off wheel and finished up with a flap disc.
I don’t have a lot of space at my place or even a work bench. I was hoping I didn’t have to cut it myself here.
Lay some painters tape and trace the light with a sharpie.
I made a few driving comfort improvements last night.
Put seat spacers on the driver's seat. I like it! I'll go ahead with the passenger seat next.
And I put in this dead pedal. It's about even with the brake pedal, so my left leg is bent a little more than my right when I'm driving. Definitely better than nothing, but I wish it sat back a little bit further to be closer to the gas pedal depth. I might rig up a bracket to move it back.
Put seat spacers on the driver's seat. I like it! I'll go ahead with the passenger seat next.
And I put in this dead pedal. It's about even with the brake pedal, so my left leg is bent a little more than my right when I'm driving. Definitely better than nothing, but I wish it sat back a little bit further to be closer to the gas pedal depth. I might rig up a bracket to move it back.
Sued1
New Member
Finished installing the automatic door locks today. As I was doing it I set them up so that I can use both my half doors and full doors and have the locks work by installing a 2nd set in the half doors.
Used standard water resistant automotive plugs. While I was making the wiring harnesses for the full doors I also added in the wiring for if I ever decide to do power windows as I will have the controls in the center dash like on my JT so will only need the 2 wires running to each door. By doing it this way, it also allows me to use the same plug types for the half doors even though they won't have the harness for the windows.
For the receiver I mounted that under the dash and soldered on additional wire to the antenna and ran that up to the top of the dash right in front of the steering wheel so I didn't have any blockage on the signal. I'm able to unlock the doors from almost 100ft now.
Last thing to install will be some door straps for a JL/JT as they have the sleeve for the wiring harness integrated into them. Ordered them from my dealer and just waiting on them to arrive to replace the current door straps.
Used standard water resistant automotive plugs. While I was making the wiring harnesses for the full doors I also added in the wiring for if I ever decide to do power windows as I will have the controls in the center dash like on my JT so will only need the 2 wires running to each door. By doing it this way, it also allows me to use the same plug types for the half doors even though they won't have the harness for the windows.
For the receiver I mounted that under the dash and soldered on additional wire to the antenna and ran that up to the top of the dash right in front of the steering wheel so I didn't have any blockage on the signal. I'm able to unlock the doors from almost 100ft now.
Last thing to install will be some door straps for a JL/JT as they have the sleeve for the wiring harness integrated into them. Ordered them from my dealer and just waiting on them to arrive to replace the current door straps.
Krylon Fusion works great on plastic parts like the fender flares.
I like my windows too much to ever lock my doors. I never leave anything of value in my Jeep.
p.s. Nice job.