Talk to Blaine? We are taking out the OEM subwoofer in my orange jeep and putting an aftermarket one .. if there is something to repurpose from the one that comes out it's yours.
Sab-a-dab-a-doo! The back-country LJ build has officially started
- Thread starter sab
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Talk to Blaine? We are taking out the OEM subwoofer in my orange jeep and putting an aftermarket one .. if there is something to repurpose from the one that comes out it's yours.
Wow! That's generous, and much appreciated, Sri! I'll get with Blaine - all I need is the 12-pin connector with pigtails from the subwoofer.
I'm sure Blaine will have you covered, but if not, my factory sub-side wiring is still intact and available if needed.
Actually, PRNDL, Mr. Blaine is still working through the audio wiring for psrivats' build, and I'm actually advocating for him keeping that connector and using it the same way I intend to use it. I'm definitely interested in getting yours and will DM you. Much appreciated!
If it doesn’t work out with anyone here, I saw one on marketplace today…
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/158kdifYJ5/?
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/158kdifYJ5/?
Fellers, I wanna publicly thank PRNDL for sending me his subwoofer connector. The generosity and comradery of this forum seems to know no bounds. Thanks, @PRNDL!
Now I have to figure out how to fit the Kenwood subwoofer somewhere in the Jeep. I was hoping to fit it inside the console, but I'm afraid the only way to do that is to render the console useless for storage. I'm thinking it'll have to go below one of the seats (if it fits with the fold and tumble bases). That will have to wait a bit, though. I need to get the cutting brake lever assemblies installed before I can reinstall the seats.
And I actually made a little build progress today! Over the last couple weekends, life got in the way of my build, and little progress was made. Today, I got home from the office at a reasonable time, so I got a few minor things done on the cutting brake levers (the parts from SendCutSend arrived over a week ago). First, I pressed the bronze bushings into the levers. After doing so, since they are very thin-walled, the IDs closed up too tight from the press-fit, so I reamed them with an oversized 5/16" reamer:
After that, I used the shoulder bolts I got to replace the fully-thread pivot bolts and did a test-fit of the levers:
I knew the levers would be too close together because the original levers had bends in them to splay them away from each other. I'll have to put some bends in them to move them apart, but that'll have to wait for the weekend because it will take patience to bend them to match, and working in the evenings, I have trouble maintaining patience. Stay tuned!
Now I have to figure out how to fit the Kenwood subwoofer somewhere in the Jeep. I was hoping to fit it inside the console, but I'm afraid the only way to do that is to render the console useless for storage. I'm thinking it'll have to go below one of the seats (if it fits with the fold and tumble bases). That will have to wait a bit, though. I need to get the cutting brake lever assemblies installed before I can reinstall the seats.
And I actually made a little build progress today! Over the last couple weekends, life got in the way of my build, and little progress was made. Today, I got home from the office at a reasonable time, so I got a few minor things done on the cutting brake levers (the parts from SendCutSend arrived over a week ago). First, I pressed the bronze bushings into the levers. After doing so, since they are very thin-walled, the IDs closed up too tight from the press-fit, so I reamed them with an oversized 5/16" reamer:
After that, I used the shoulder bolts I got to replace the fully-thread pivot bolts and did a test-fit of the levers:
I knew the levers would be too close together because the original levers had bends in them to splay them away from each other. I'll have to put some bends in them to move them apart, but that'll have to wait for the weekend because it will take patience to bend them to match, and working in the evenings, I have trouble maintaining patience. Stay tuned!
Well, I'm embarrassed that my build thread is rapidly approaching the third page on the Builds Forum. 
It appears I've lost a bit of momentum with my build, but mainly because I "saw a squirrel." Here's that squirrel that's had my attention the last couple weekends:
I have also been working on the build here and there. No pics, but I've gotten some reinforcement pieces for the Savvy mid-arm frame brackets from Mr. Blaine, and I prepped and primered them. Welding them on is on today's agenda, so stay tuned! (no, I won't be using the new used spoolgun - it's too bulky for that)
It appears I've lost a bit of momentum with my build, but mainly because I "saw a squirrel." Here's that squirrel that's had my attention the last couple weekends:
I just finished up adding a spoolgun to my MIG machine. I bought a new Millermatic 250MP about 30 years ago, and at the time, it was by far the most expensive tool purchase I'd ever made. It really tapped out my discretionary funds, so I didn't have any money left to buy a spoolgun. Over the years, the spoolgun was always on my list, but never made it to the top of that list. A few years back, I decided to get one, but I was disappointed to discover that this module, needed to run it on my 250MP, was no longer available:
The module fits to the right of the controls on the...
The module fits to the right of the controls on the...
I have also been working on the build here and there. No pics, but I've gotten some reinforcement pieces for the Savvy mid-arm frame brackets from Mr. Blaine, and I prepped and primered them. Welding them on is on today's agenda, so stay tuned! (no, I won't be using the new used spoolgun - it's too bulky for that)
The reinforcement pieces are like oddly-shaped weld washers and nut washers that get welded on either side of the frame-side lower control arm mounts to prevent them from folding over if the rig comes down on a rock. The uppers also get a conventional round nut washer to make assembly easier. Here they are after I primed them:
To clamp them, Mr. Blaine told me that double-nutting works pretty well using a longer mounting bolt with a spacer and the second nut to clamp the nut plates, so last weekend I made four of these spacers:
To install them, I first put the weld washer side on, with a JJ in place:
Then I tightened the nut on the other side, taking care to line it up so that the nut washer for the other side is oriented correctly:
Next, I put the spacer in place and tightened the second nut down to hold it in place:
And now it's lunch time! After lunch, I'll take a wire wheel and remove the zinc primer in the weld area, since, as Jeff pointed out some time back, it's best to not actually weld through the weld-through primer. Then I'll weld those up, along with the upper nut washers. Stay tuned!
To clamp them, Mr. Blaine told me that double-nutting works pretty well using a longer mounting bolt with a spacer and the second nut to clamp the nut plates, so last weekend I made four of these spacers:
To install them, I first put the weld washer side on, with a JJ in place:
Then I tightened the nut on the other side, taking care to line it up so that the nut washer for the other side is oriented correctly:
Next, I put the spacer in place and tightened the second nut down to hold it in place:
And now it's lunch time! After lunch, I'll take a wire wheel and remove the zinc primer in the weld area, since, as Jeff pointed out some time back, it's best to not actually weld through the weld-through primer. Then I'll weld those up, along with the upper nut washers. Stay tuned!
Oo that looks convenient how it holds the nut like that. Love it
Yup - one of those famous wizard details!
And here are a few after-welding pics:
Tomorrow, I'll paint these, and then it's back to the cutting brake project. I gotta make some progress on those to stay ahead of NashvilleTJ...
Stay tuned!
Tomorrow, I'll paint these, and then it's back to the cutting brake project. I gotta make some progress on those to stay ahead of NashvilleTJ...
Stay tuned!
This morning I painted the mid-arm brackets (again), and after lunch, I started back on the cutting brakes. I had to put a dog-leg bend in the new aluminum levers I had SendCutSend make for me in order to give my hands room to get in between the levers. I had figured out the room I needed and that meant that the dog-leg had to be about 9/16". I knew that the 7075-T6 wouldn't take to bending very well due to it's hardened state, so I cautiously decided to use two 15° bends, and to get the 9/16" dog-leg, that meant the bends would be 2.1" apart. I marked up both bend locations and started in on the first bend. All was going swimmingly until something startled me: 
Crap - not cautious enough. I was pretty close to 15° when it broke, so I guess that's the limit for this piece. I usually order extra parts when I get them from SendCutSend because their pricing structure is quantity based. Two parts cost far less than twice the single price. For some reason, I decided not to buy extra levers. Guess what I'll be ordering this afternoon...
With the failure on the first piece, I decided to try two 7.5° bends 4.2" apart instead on the second lever, and that worked. And that wraps up my work in the shop today. Hopefully SendCutSend will get me a new lever by Friday so that I can get it bent next weekend.
Stay tuned...
Crap - not cautious enough. I was pretty close to 15° when it broke, so I guess that's the limit for this piece. I usually order extra parts when I get them from SendCutSend because their pricing structure is quantity based. Two parts cost far less than twice the single price. For some reason, I decided not to buy extra levers. Guess what I'll be ordering this afternoon...
With the failure on the first piece, I decided to try two 7.5° bends 4.2" apart instead on the second lever, and that worked. And that wraps up my work in the shop today. Hopefully SendCutSend will get me a new lever by Friday so that I can get it bent next weekend.
Stay tuned...
No. I can fit the master cylinder inside the console with the levers poking through slots in the front, but I’ll lose the factory subwoofer. I need to figure out the best location for an aftermarket powered subwoofer.
I made some progress on the cutting brake levers today. The replacement lever from SendCutSend arrived on Thursday. Today, I bent it to match the other one. To get precise angles, I use two digital angle finders - one on each side of the press brake (the other one is obstructed by the die):
I had to also account for spring-back. In this case, I was adding the two numbers while pumping the press jack to get close to 11° total, which gave me a 7.5° bend after spring-back. Here are the two levers installed after putting the dog-leg bends in them:
The last thing I did was make some short handles I can use to determine the best location for the cylinders on the floor inside the console:
The tops of the levers are right at the height where I want to go through the front wall on the console, so I'll place the cylinders inside the console, mark the hole locations for the cylinders and mark the slot location for the console. I'm hoping to get that done tomorrow. Stay tuned!
Notes for Jeff (@NashvilleTJ), and anyone else using the Jamar levers/master cylinder:
I had to also account for spring-back. In this case, I was adding the two numbers while pumping the press jack to get close to 11° total, which gave me a 7.5° bend after spring-back. Here are the two levers installed after putting the dog-leg bends in them:
The last thing I did was make some short handles I can use to determine the best location for the cylinders on the floor inside the console:
The tops of the levers are right at the height where I want to go through the front wall on the console, so I'll place the cylinders inside the console, mark the hole locations for the cylinders and mark the slot location for the console. I'm hoping to get that done tomorrow. Stay tuned!
Notes for Jeff (@NashvilleTJ), and anyone else using the Jamar levers/master cylinder:
- The handles on my levers came attached with flat-head cap screws (FHCS) that are too short - only about one thread holds them into the aluminum. I used a 1/4-20 bottoming tap to cut the threads as deep as possible, and the correct length FHCS is 3/4" long (I'll need to buy some). You might want to check yours, too.
- If you want to replace the button-head cap screws at the pivot point with proper shoulder bolts, these are what I used, and they fit perfectly: McMaster-Carr 90807A123. If you end up making your own levers out of aluminum and want to put a bronze bushing in, here's what I used: McMaster-Carr 6381K425 pressed into a .370" diameter hole. I used an over-sized 5/16" reamer (.3135" DIA), after pressing them in, to get the right clearance for the shoulder bolt.
I made a little bit of progress on the build today. I painted the cutting brake levers OD green and the handles coyote tan. I also painted the brake line mounting brackets OD green. I'll post pictures during installation. I also started thinking about anti-roll bars. I already have a SwayLOC for the front, and I've been planning on a custom Anti-rock for the rear. I created a spreadsheet to evaluate the stiffness of the SwayLOC compared to the OEM sway bar for the front. It turns out that the SwayLOC in the locked position is considerably stiffer than the stock anti-roll bar:
I mainly created this spreadsheet for putting a solution together for the rear anti-roll bar - when I get to that point. Stay tuned!
I mainly created this spreadsheet for putting a solution together for the rear anti-roll bar - when I get to that point. Stay tuned!
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