What did you do to your TJ today?

Went to a Jeep wreckers yard today (didn’t even know we had one) lol turns out this guy does it as a sort of hobby.
I just needed a couple bolts as imperial size is very difficult to get here in NZ. This guy carries a whole lot of Jeep vehicles only a couple TJ’s but he did have this trailer he was willing to sell me … but for 3grand !!!! ( no axle.. No hitch... no electronics... and no rust )
Two issues I have one was the weight of it plus the price 😂
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Mikee024 said:
I’m over trying to remember the location of 100 random fasteners many months later. Learned my lesson after tearing a race quad engine down and removing every part to have a frame powder coated.

It’s much easier to throw the fasteners to each assembly in an ziplock and write a brief note for details that won’t otherwise be remembered. Doesn’t need to be pretty just needs to jog the memory for reinstall.

Two engine tear downs and countless tasks over the last 15 years went much smoother using this simple method, especially when trying to reinstall things many months later.

On that note, I need to write the torque specs down more often when I look them up. I’m inconsistent on that sometimes I write them down and other times I find myself looking them up two or three times. By the third time I feel really stupid for not having a better process to match my limitations.
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I have a couple magnetic trays for bolts and a couple gallon ice cream pails lol almost everything is there. Thankfully I have three engines so I can always borrow bolts when I need to lol I didn’t plan on the rebuild taking this long but I’ll get er done soon.
 
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Zorba said:
Not necessarily. You learned how to make the thing - that can't be all bad!
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No, it truly was a waste of time. I knew how to turn this part already (been using lathes since my college days in the 80s). Two hours of driving for 10 minutes of machining, and by the time I got back, the day was over. Of course, the time wasting was my fault for losing the original washer in the first place. 🤬
 
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sab said:
No, it truly was a waste of time. I knew how to turn this part already (been using lathes since my college days in the 80s). Two hours of driving for 10 minutes of machining, and by the time I got back, the day was over. Of course, the time wasting was my fault for losing the original washer in the first place. 🤬
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But you got to visit with your buddy!
 
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sab said:
No, it truly was a waste of time. I knew how to turn this part already (been using lathes since my college days in the 80s). Two hours of driving for 10 minutes of machining, and by the time I got back, the day was over. Of course, the time wasting was my fault for losing the original washer in the first place. 🤬
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Just remember, practice makes perfect! ;)
 
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Farmergreg said:
But you got to visit with your buddy!
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That is true! We used to live close to each other, but we both wanted some land. He found his north of town, and I found ours south of town.

The funny thing about his shop - he has two lathes and a mill. All good, American-made iron, decades old, but in great shape. His brother, who lives 1,000 miles away, set his shop up for him. He's very much a beginning machinist, but he has no one to show him, so a decade after setting it up, his shop is still not used very much. It's always a fun visit because I get to tease him about that! Yesterday, I said, "I forgot my mag base and dial indicator, do you have one?" He said, "I know the dial indicator is the round thingy with the rod sticking out, but what is the mag base again?"

I do usually show him everything I'm doing when I make stuff there to pay him back for the use of his shop, though.
 
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voodooridr said:
Fought with the Bartact seat covers I picked up from @LJ in 80 degree heat. I finally won but now I need a nap
I am apparently not as bendy as I was in my youth
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I had the same struggle putting mine on 😂 but they are most definitely worth it
 
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Bought the rig some gifts for my arrival next month.

- Stack boost controller (a-pilar) that I was able to find 50% off retail by scouring the internet.
- Aeroforce OBD2 guage w/ trans temp sensor (a-pilar)
- EGT gauge (center console)

Also have an afr500v2 wideband that needs to be installed. Looking forward to dialing everything in and seeing how healthy things are running.

I’ve been very happy with the blue dash lights and needles painted orange but they won’t match the new gauges. I may experiment with white LEDs in the Speedo again and might paint the needles red. I didn’t like red lights very much the first time with the stock orange needles in the Speedo or with the HVAC controls. I’ll just do normal white and deal with the indigo dash/console if I’m not happy with the results.
 
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sab said:
I made one of the top-hat washers that go on the ball ends at both ends of the Savvy transfer case cable:

View attachment 420702

Last weekend, I installed the Savvy body and motor lift mounts and started on the cable installation. I was trying to install it without removing the dreaded Rubicon Express long-arm skid plate, which was a mistake. By the end of the day, my arthritis was bad in my hands, and I dropped one of the washers when trying to get it on the shift lever tab. I couldn't figure out where it went, so today, I pulled the skid plate off (had to weld nuts on 6 of the 17 bolts to remove them). I then removed both driveshafts, lowered the transfer case, and searched high and low for that darn washer. It's not in the LJ, so it must have hit the floor and rolled into the spot all my 10mm sockets are sitting... :)

I ended up driving an hour to a buddy's shop to use his lathe and make a replacement (I made a spare, too). What a waste of an afternoon!
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So, as is usually the case, that darned spacer showed itself as I was finishing the Savvy transfer case shift cable installation. When I picked up the Rubicon Express skid plate to re-install it, the spacer fell out onto the floor! The only thing I can think is that it got stuck inside the raised platform that the transmission mount sits on. I did shake it when I removed it, and there wasn't a sound, but when I went to re-install - tink, tink, tink. I swear gravity gets finky when it comes to small parts and 10mm sockets!

One other odd thing. When attempting to put the rear driveshaft back, I couldn't get the straps on the diff yolk to pull the u-joint caps in tight. After messing with it for a bit, I realized that the PO had the wrong size u-joint installed (I didn't even look when I took it apart.) The yolk takes a 1-1/16" diameter cap, and the caps on the u-joint are 1-1/8". I can't believe this thing hasn't already grenaded on me! The PO was trying to do the right thing, so I can't fault him. I flew to SC to see the LJ after several phone conversations with him and make the purchase. He knew I was driving it back solo, so he had it looked over by a shop to make sure it was ready for the trip. They told him it needed a u-joint, so he paid them to fix it - badly.

Stock 05 LJ Rubicon takes a 5-1310X at the diff end of the rear driveshaft - correct?
 
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sab said:
So, as is usually the case, that darned spacer showed itself as I was finishing the Savvy transfer case shift cable installation. When I picked up the Rubicon Express skid plate to re-install it, the spacer fell out onto the floor! The only thing I can think is that it got stuck inside the raised platform that the transmission mount sits on. I did shake it when I removed it, and there wasn't a sound, but when I went to re-install - tink, tink, tink. I swear gravity gets finky when it comes to small parts and 10mm sockets!

One other odd thing. When attempting to put the rear driveshaft back, I couldn't get the straps on the diff yolk to pull the u-joint caps in tight. After messing with it for a bit, I realized that the PO had the wrong size u-joint installed (I didn't even look when I took it apart.) The yolk takes a 1-1/16" diameter cap, and the caps on the u-joint are 1-1/8". I can't believe this thing hasn't already grenaded on me! The PO was trying to do the right thing, so I can't fault him. I flew to SC to see the LJ after several phone conversations with him and make the purchase. He knew I was driving it back solo, so he had it looked over by a shop to make sure it was ready for the trip. They told him it needed a u-joint, so he paid them to fix it - badly.

Stock 05 LJ Rubicon takes a 5-1310X at the diff end of the rear driveshaft - correct?
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Now you have two spares :)

Glad you found the u-joint mismatch before it found you!
 
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Mikee024 said:
I’m over trying to remember the location of 100 random fasteners many months later. Learned my lesson after tearing a race quad engine down and removing every part to have a frame powder coated.

It’s much easier to throw the fasteners to each assembly in an ziplock and write a brief note for details that won’t otherwise be remembered. Doesn’t need to be pretty just needs to jog the memory for reinstall.

Two engine tear downs and countless tasks over the last 15 years went much smoother using this simple method, especially when trying to reinstall things many months later.

On that note, I need to write the torque specs down more often when I look them up. I’m inconsistent on that sometimes I write them down and other times I find myself looking them up two or three times. By the third time I feel really stupid for not having a better process to match my limitations.
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Yes! That's the only way to do it. I used the ziplock bag approach when I did my engine replacement and now that I've working on the suspension and fenders, it's the same approach.

Divide a work product by a name ("Front left fender", "Ft TB", Front Control Arms", etc). What ever makes sense as a grouping in your mind. At least you can start from there there on re-install. I'm going back to re-install after teardown 2 years ago. I'm expecting not 'terrible' headaches finding bolts (or finding where that 'extra bolt' in the bag lives...)
 
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Finished installing a new sound system, backup camera, and a 4pin trailer harness. Curious how hot this amp will get mounted in the center console, thinking about adding a small fan in there potentially. Anyone ever utilize this space before? The amplifier was about an inch too long to mount under the seats.

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Oh, and I swapped the seats again from the yellow LJ back to the red one. Neighbor made me an offer I couldn't refuse.

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sab said:
Stock 05 LJ Rubicon takes a 5-1310X at the diff end of the rear driveshaft - correct?
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I found the driveshaft thread in the Resources section, and answered my own question. It's a 5-1330X, not the 5-1310X as I speculated above. The one that was installed appears to be a Ford version of the 1330 series, which has one pair of 1-1/16" caps and one pair of 1-1/8" caps!
 
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nathanaelward said:
Finished installing a new sound system, backup camera, and a 4pin trailer harness. Curious how hot this amp will get mounted in the center console, thinking about adding a small fan in there potentially. Anyone ever utilize this space before? The amplifier was about an inch too long to mount under the seats.



View attachment 421052

Oh, and I swapped the seats again from the yellow LJ back to the red one. Neighbor made me an offer I couldn't refuse.
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I have a XD600/1v2 sub amp installed there on a steel bracket bolted to the floor with nutserts.

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