I haven't "restored" it per-se but I've done quite a bit of work on my CJ-7 to maintain it as a very capable rock crawler that I daily drive in the summer when it isn't raining.
The best thread I ever read on a CJ restoration was on Jeep Forum and it was by Keith460. I just did a search for his build thread (and it was EXTREMELY detailed) but it appears he's taken it down somehow because I can't find it anymore.
@Chris near where I live, there is an old, beat up CJ just sitting in what seems to be a junkyard,!the perfect project Jeep. I want to offer whoever owns it $500 "take it or leave it"! However I need to research CJ's more before I consider it.
The only way I would do it is if there was no rust. There's nothing more I hate when it comes to cars than dealing with rust. It really, really, really sucks!
Ooooh nice! Do you love it?
Your CJ-7 looks so good, especially in red!
I'll bet that going from your CJ-7 to a TJ makes a huge difference off-road, mostly because of the coil springs versus shackles, am I wrong?
Ohh ok. So basically the shackle is just really really long, which yes allows for more spring travel.Check out the 1:20 portion of the video at
Watch the back driver leaf springs and you'll see the shackles in action at full droop and how the collapse when the Jeep sets back down on the axle. I was talked into them long before I had a clue at all about what I was doing and it was a cheap way to get additional articulation. Other than Teraflex, I'm not sure if anyone even makes them anymore - https://teraflex.com/shop_items/528ffa7fead962f416e72d17