MiRustyjeep

[Mike_H]

I paid little enough for my slightly used Bilstein 5100's, that I'll be able to replace them if necessary.

Is gonna be a lot of popcorn though, as this thing probably won't see the road until March.

 

[bobthetj03]

I paid little enough for my slightly used Bilstein 5100's, that I'll be able to replace them if necessary.

Is gonna be a lot of popcorn though, as this thing probably won't see the road until March.

This is why my build is "pacing myself". Things don't happen quickly for me, unlike our jet setter @JamesAndTheSahara .

 

[Mike_H]

I have to pace myself too. ..if I didn't, the thing would be torn alert in a million pieces, being "restored" I'd never drive it again!

 

[JMT]

3 inches is a lot more than people think.

Yep, $900 on lift, $25 on good sports bra. Sounds like a win, win!

 

[BendLarry]

I want to see sports bra related stuff...... just saying [emoji15]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Mike_H]

So...I know I said I was going to build my own bumper...but I found this on amazon a couple days ago...

It was 184 dollars, and free prime shipping. I can't say no to that. My time is worth something...and I'd have 150 into material for the bumper I designed. So, its now on its way...3/16" steel, and comes with D- rings. Unbelieveable. I bought it, half thinking that its a mistake. The E-autogrills one of the same design is 50 dollars more, and thinner steel.

 

[Mike_H]

Bumper came in today, pretty well packaged. I haven't entirely unpacked it yet. I came down with a pretty bad sinus infection on Jan 1, that has been kicking my ass. The last two days have been miserable. Stayed home from work, sleeping all day....yuck. Needless to say, I have a pile of parts waiting to be installed and I'm anxious to get started, but I gotta take care of me first. This SUCKS.

 

[Chris]

So...I know I said I was going to build my own bumper...but I found this on amazon a couple days ago...

View attachment 28913
It was 184 dollars, and free prime shipping. I can't say no to that. My time is worth something...and I'd have 150 into material for the bumper I designed. So, its now on its way...3/16" steel, and comes with D- rings. Unbelieveable. I bought it, half thinking that its a mistake. The E-autogrills one of the same design is 50 dollars more, and thinner steel.

I had that same bumper on my old TJ. It held up nicely and looked great too!

 

[Kathy]

Bumper came in today, pretty well packaged. I haven't entirely unpacked it yet. I came down with a pretty bad sinus infection on Jan 1, that has been kicking my ass. The last two days have been miserable. Stayed home from work, sleeping all day....yuck. Needless to say, I have a pile of parts waiting to be installed and I'm anxious to get started, but I gotta take care of me first. This SUCKS.

Get better soon . My friend reminded me that a humidifier helps in several ways. I seem to forget that but does help . Here’s her quick explanation

“FYI if it’s dry with all the cold leaves your respiratory system to a breeding ground for bacteria /viruses/ infections. We run three humidifiers. My Meds leave me with dry mouth-breading ground for bacteria-always needing to heal my gums from pesky infections. We run one humidifier all night in the bedroom. “

 

[Mike_H]

Get better soon . My friend reminded me that a humidifier helps in several ways. I seem to forget that but does help . Here’s her quick explanation

“FYI if it’s dry with all the cold leaves your respiratory system to a breeding ground for bacteria /viruses/ infections. We run three humidifiers. My Meds leave me with dry mouth-breading ground for bacteria-always needing to heal my gums from pesky infections. We run one humidifier all night in the bedroom. “

Thanks Kathy. We have a whole house humidifier on our furnance.

 

[Mike_H]

UPDATE: I finally felt like me again! Got out in the shop tonight and started tinkering on the ol girl. She's excited to be getting shiny new parts. First order of business was play around with that new bumper. I'm pretty impressed with the finish on it. It was damaged in shipping...the fairlead mount was bent. Not surprising, considering how its packed. They had that plastic wrapped spray foam on one side, and nothing on the other. The bumper itself was wrapped in plastic cushion wrap. Anyway, not big yank for me. I have already straightened the metal. You can see it in this picture.

I offered it up to the Jeep to see how it fit...and it fits OK. Not great. I'll have to open up a couple bolt holes a tad and the spacing is off. I'll have to put a spacer in to fill the gap on the bottom as shown below.

Overall, It looks pretty good on there. It appears hand welded and well reinforced. I'm pretty happy with it for the price. My expectations were honestly pretty low...and I think it exceeded them.

 

[Starrs]

Looks great!

 

[Mike_H]

After playing with the bumper, I started disassembling the front end. I figured while I have time, I'd pull the axle, control arms, and other stuff. That gives me good access to the frame to get a nice coat of paint on it, as well as being able to paint the axle. As I'm looking at the oil pan...It looks pretty flaky, so I will probably replace that as well. I REALLY don't want to have that rust through on me! Anyway, I got the steering linkages off, Trackbar out, Shock unmounted on the bottom, and the Springs out. It came apart better than I thought it would. Some Pics!

Before... Dirty, Greasy, Rusty...Looks like my lower Radiator tank is starting to weep a little...and there is that nasty oil pan.

And here's where I came in for the night. My wife isn't feeling well now...so Its movie time!

 

[Chris]

I've had that bumper on my previous TJ. I was happy with it as well and didn't have any issues.

 

[Mike_H]

Looks great!

Thanks!

 

[JMT]

Great start. Glad you’re feeling better. Nice to get back in the garage! Bumper looks nice and very functional as well. Sounds like you’ll be busy with some rust underneath. Gonna look great with all the new parts coming!

 

[bobthetj03]

Garage time is therapeutic.

 

[Mike_H]

Great start. Glad you’re feeling better. Nice to get back in the garage! Bumper looks nice and very functional as well. Sounds like you’ll be busy with some rust underneath. Gonna look great with all the new parts coming!

Thanks...The rust isn't as bad as the pictures make it look. I have some reddish clay stuck up there leftover from hunting season and my lighting is pretty yellow...but it does need a thorough cleaning and a squirt of paint.

 

[Mike_H]

So...What happened today. I got the axle free of the Jeep. Having a hard time with the control arm bolts on the axle side though. They don't want to come out. I'm thinking they are seized in the bushing...Not much fun for me. I haven't done too much to free them up yet. More stubborn bolts today. Had to cut the upper nuts off my shocks...so, that was fun. I started working on clean up. Got most of the big Gobs of grease and mud off and the axle housing is about half wire wheeled down. Its really not too rusty. The spring / shock brackets are by far the worst. I'm contemplating pulling the hubs, axles and Knuckles too, just to get it really cleaned up. Gotta be careful I don't go too crazy. I have a tendancy to get so deep into a project that I never finish. Some pics.

That Flippin axle is HEAVY! I once picked up a Dana 60 Rear (Double dog dare) and I think this stupid 44 front is heavier.

I also spent some more money on this project. I kept thinking about it, and I'd be pissed if I ended up blowing a hole in my rusty oil pan...that is WAY out in the open now. So, I bought that and a new rear main seal. Might as well take care of it now. I also ordered the ZJ Tie Rod pieces. My Drag link is in good shape and looks fairly new, so I just bought the ZJ tie rod pieces.

Fun Stuff! Tomorrow I should finish cleaning it up.

 

[bobthetj03]

Wow! You were busy today! It's in the air me thinks.