Sweet. Looking forward to another 3-4 year build. What happened to the 5.9? Did it finally give up?
Newp. Still daily driving it, 225k now. Nothing's majorly wrong, but I just want to be prepared in case something big takes a shit and I don't want to (or can't immediately) replace it. I still have the Dodge, albeit with over 300k on the original clutch (read: time bomb, betting on throwout or pressure plate most likely) but it sill drove great for the 150 miles today picking up the frame, and I also have the Saturn, for when it's not too salty or snowy out.
The SJ will be the eventual new daily driver, as I really don't want anything on the market now and I figure I can put the same amount (or less) money into 'modernizing' it and have a truck I actually want. It's not going to see the road ever with its current drivetrain though. I'll likely start with a takeout engine/trans/t-case from a late model F150 and build that later, though the interior will be all new carpet/seats/HVAC/stereo/gauges etc. The dash itself is in surprisingly good shape, no cracks or anything, so I'll probably try to keep that rather than build a custom one.
New frame acquired today:
Like I said, I don't see this being on the road until the end of the year...should be significantly less time than the last project though as a) it won't be as fabrication and engineering intensive and b) I already have the shop space and tools, which I did not have when beginning the last one. Just gonna have to decide how much paint and finish work I want to do in-house vs. sending it somewhere.
edit: I will add that it's fun being a part of the local FSJ facebook groups, sort of. Both the original picture of the truck I posted, and this one, had the same response from many people...oh, I saw that on CL or FB, that was a great deal, I was thinking about getting it, you're lucky for grabbing that, wish I coulda jumped on it but the guy never got back to me...and I'm just thinking no, I emailed the guy saying I'd give asking price along with a time I could pick it up, and I went and got it. Apparently this is a difficult concept to grasp.
