TJ frame swap questions (need some input from those that have been there)

Excellent info on the PBlaster. I'm a LW fan personally, never used Kroil but I will try it for this job.

Regarding any bolts that change due to frame differences or damage/breaking, is there a specific grade of bolt that is used? Do I just source those from the stealership, or is there a recommended supplier?
 
Personally I will get OEM nuts and bolts if it's for a critical part such as a control arm because it will be a specific hardness, but for general assembly like bolting on skids or roll bars then I just use grade 8 (or grade 10.9 for metric bolts). Actually a good source of quality bolts is the local Caterpillar dealer, they seem to be a bit better made than the chinesium hardware store bolts.
 
glowell222 said:
Excellent info on the PBlaster. I'm a LW fan personally, never used Kroil but I will try it for this job.

Regarding any bolts that change due to frame differences or damage/breaking, is there a specific grade of bolt that is used? Do I just source those from the stealership, or is there a recommended supplier?
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There are several outlets available for replacement hardware such as Fastenal and Bolt Depot, try and recover as much hardware as possible because it get pricey when you start replacing bolts. Stopped in Fastenal yesterday and it was $65 out the door for a light bag of bolts and nuts. As stated above stick with Grade 8 or 10.9 for structural applications.

I was tempted to just buy new hardware but after seeing some of the prices it was hell no. I had to replace 2 M-10 metric flange bolts for the upper control arm and they were $10.

As I removed bolts they were kept together as an assembly and dropped into the Evapo Rust.
 
glowell222 said:
Excellent-thanks and i will check with the Cat dealer.
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Forgot to mention, try to have the length, diameter, and thread pitch written down for all the bolts you need if you go to Cat, they are usually very busy and have to look up what bin in the back each bolt is, they don't have open bins like a hardware store. And I agree, try to salvage as many good bolts and nuts as possible, hardware gets pricey real quick. Bag and label everything you take off.
 
These are excellent-I will take all of these into action. Regarding pulling the engine and trans off the frame-where is the best hoist/lift point on the engine?
 
glowell222 said:
These are excellent-I will take all of these into action. Regarding pulling the engine and trans off the frame-where is the best hoist/lift point on the engine?
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Because the engine is removed from an open frame the lift height is not a issue so I used a nylon choker and slinged it just in front of the bell housing and lifted as a unit without a problem. Once you have weight you can adjust the location to level the load.
 
The upper spring pad isolator just slips off the tube that the bump stop cup is bolted to, no need to remove the bumpstops/cups. But if you want to remove the bump stops and cups the bump stop cushions just pull/pry out of the cups to expose a bolt that holds the cup on, but be warned the cushions might disintegrate from age and the cup bolt will probably be seized.

Don't worry about asking too many ???, when in doubt it's better to ask than to screw something up.
 
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Here is the link to my detailed write-up of the swap, including a spreadsheet detailing the costs and with part numbers and links to suppliers I used. Unfortunately I was working alone most of the time and I didn't take many photos. There's a section about tips and what I would have done differently and it was pretty straight forward most of the time, though it took much longer and cost much more than I originally expected. Most difficult was just locating a decent frame and then getting it to my garage, as I was not interested in a project frame, and there are a lot of project frames out there. One thing I didn't note in the write-up was just how cold it was in my garage, and I eventually bought a heater. Still, there was an entire week where it was just too cold to be in the garage, and I suspect you already have a solution for this apart from base layers and whisky. Good luck and I hope you have time to take more pics and keep us up to date on how it's going.
 
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