- Location
- Torrance, CA
Well that's an old name.
You gonna have this thing together for Moab 2018? :cheers:
You gonna have this thing together for Moab 2018? :cheers:
-
Welcome to the new NAXJA Forum! If your password does not work, please use "Forgot your password?" link on the log-in page. Please feel free to reach out to [email protected] if we can provide any assistance.
Build Thread: 89 MJ aka "The Skorpyon"
- Thread starter Skorpyo
- Start date
Oh man, if it's not done by 2018 I officially suck! That being said I'm not building it for wheeling. After my back surgery I can't take the hammering and bouncing. Heck I'm sore for a while after just being a spotter at NACFest haha.
- Location
- Torrance, CA
Just sounds to me like you need better seats and shocks! You can justify the expense for health purposes, who wools argue with that? :cheers:
- Location
- NJ, U.S.A.
Just remembered, if you can get the AC lines off intact, you can probably get them replicated by a hydraulic shop.
So no photos with this update, but last night we got the new condenser installed. I ordered an 11x24" parallel flow condenser and we're going to run the vacuum on it and verify that we've not introduced any leaks before giving it a charge.
Meanwhile the new rear bumper is almost done. I picked up a used Nates 4x4 rear bumper with a 2" hitch and d-ring mounts so now I finally have a hitch for the MJ without having to deal with building my own, using some generic, or hunting down an elusive U-Haul unit.
Speedo and cable were replaced and man, you really need to grease the snot out of the cable for it to run smoothly. Took me two gears and 2 cables to get it right and the Speedo is still a little jumpy.
New floormats are in (thank you Keith!) and they look pretty sharp. Will be working on the truck tonight, might get the AC wrapped up and maybe, just maybe get the rear bumper painted black. It's primer red right now.
Bob and I are still unloading from NACFest and it's taking time to get the garage back into a semblance of order. With tonight, and possibly Monday working on the MJ we might actually get the 8.8 under the truck and the new M.O.R.E spring perches tacked into place for final welds by a local shop.
It'll be cool to get the tires on it since we'll need it to sit on them for proper pinion angles. Of course once I have the angles and pinion to t-case measurements I'll have to order the new SYE and driveshaft.
I've crested 8K in total investment in the truck, and my goal is to see if I can finish it for under 10K. Of course the $80 i just spent on original FSMs are worth it in my book, haha.
Tim
Meanwhile the new rear bumper is almost done. I picked up a used Nates 4x4 rear bumper with a 2" hitch and d-ring mounts so now I finally have a hitch for the MJ without having to deal with building my own, using some generic, or hunting down an elusive U-Haul unit.
Speedo and cable were replaced and man, you really need to grease the snot out of the cable for it to run smoothly. Took me two gears and 2 cables to get it right and the Speedo is still a little jumpy.
New floormats are in (thank you Keith!) and they look pretty sharp. Will be working on the truck tonight, might get the AC wrapped up and maybe, just maybe get the rear bumper painted black. It's primer red right now.
Bob and I are still unloading from NACFest and it's taking time to get the garage back into a semblance of order. With tonight, and possibly Monday working on the MJ we might actually get the 8.8 under the truck and the new M.O.R.E spring perches tacked into place for final welds by a local shop.
It'll be cool to get the tires on it since we'll need it to sit on them for proper pinion angles. Of course once I have the angles and pinion to t-case measurements I'll have to order the new SYE and driveshaft.
I've crested 8K in total investment in the truck, and my goal is to see if I can finish it for under 10K. Of course the $80 i just spent on original FSMs are worth it in my book, haha.
Tim
Finally got the 8.8 under the truck and it's back on all 4s. We're getting the measurements for the pinion angle, SYE and new drive shaft and perches for the rear. The truck definitely has a rake to it but honestly I like a bit of a rake. Hard to get a shot of it but here it is back on the ground.
Meanwhile the AC is all buttoned up and blowing a nice 42 degrees at the vent so that was a big victory. It's the first time the AC has worked in the MJ since I bought it almost 4 years ago.
We also finished painting and mounting the rear bumper too.
I've still got a laundry list of things to do but this is starting to look like a functional vehicle again!
Tim
Meanwhile the AC is all buttoned up and blowing a nice 42 degrees at the vent so that was a big victory. It's the first time the AC has worked in the MJ since I bought it almost 4 years ago.
We also finished painting and mounting the rear bumper too.
I've still got a laundry list of things to do but this is starting to look like a functional vehicle again!
Tim
- Location
- Torrance, CA
Keep the rake - Truck are supposed to ride high in the rear when empty. It's what makes them trucks instead of sedans :cheers:
Well I finally got to work on the MJ last night for the first time since mid July. It was only for a few hours, but I managed to get the brake lights working again, get the front driveshaft installed (which was a pain since we "misplaced" the bolts) and started putting the dash back together again.
Turns out I shaved way too much off of the brake rod, it was almost .25" of aluminum I had to add to the sensor to get it to trigger properly. That was a solid hour of testing and sweating crammed under the dash.
I was also going to swap the radio for the nicer one I pulled from my donor XJ, BUT the darn PO cut the factory harness off and hard wired in the existing radio. I will say he did a nice job wiring it, but I unfortunately did not have the butt connectors to cut all of his off and install mine. So until next time for that.
I'm hoping to get in more time on Sunday during which we'll get the leaf spring perches tacked and the rear ready to go to the welder. The boostwerks shift adapter is going in on Sunday. I got it second hand, and it was meant for a 231 AW4 setup, but with an extension we can make it work for the AX15 setup.
Turns out I shaved way too much off of the brake rod, it was almost .25" of aluminum I had to add to the sensor to get it to trigger properly. That was a solid hour of testing and sweating crammed under the dash.
I was also going to swap the radio for the nicer one I pulled from my donor XJ, BUT the darn PO cut the factory harness off and hard wired in the existing radio. I will say he did a nice job wiring it, but I unfortunately did not have the butt connectors to cut all of his off and install mine. So until next time for that.
I'm hoping to get in more time on Sunday during which we'll get the leaf spring perches tacked and the rear ready to go to the welder. The boostwerks shift adapter is going in on Sunday. I got it second hand, and it was meant for a 231 AW4 setup, but with an extension we can make it work for the AX15 setup.
The 4x4 shift adapter is in after fabbing an extension for the shifter post and hacking down the length of the boostwerks kit. It was originally for the AW4+231 combo and was way too long for a manual setup. Lucky me the shifter was set to the perfect length on the first time and shifts were smooth and accurate.
Meanwhile we spent about 2 hours building a jig to place the spring perches on the axle. That took way longer than we expected, but now the perches are a perfect 42" on center and evenly spaces from the hubs.
We'll probably be welding them in on Thursday night so that'll finally get solid axles under the jeep. Meanwhile the project is actually starting to wind down, my list of stuff left to do mostly consists of grease, oil and brakes so we're in the home stretch once the 8.8 is in.
Meanwhile we spent about 2 hours building a jig to place the spring perches on the axle. That took way longer than we expected, but now the perches are a perfect 42" on center and evenly spaces from the hubs.
We'll probably be welding them in on Thursday night so that'll finally get solid axles under the jeep. Meanwhile the project is actually starting to wind down, my list of stuff left to do mostly consists of grease, oil and brakes so we're in the home stretch once the 8.8 is in.
Just ordered 8.8 heavy duty spring plates from IRO and thanks to the NACFest Gift Certificate they were free! I also ordered a panel with two 12v receptacles and two Carling switches from Prime4x4 and got it shipped for $17 thanks again to a NACFest Gift Certificate.
Looking forward to putting them in
. Thank you 
for contributing to my build!
Looking forward to putting them in
. Thank you for contributing to my build!The spring plate perches are now welded in and the 8.8 is ready to go under. Before doing so I test fitted a spare 255/75/17 under the bed and realized to make it fit, without pushing up against the exhaust, the load sensing valve would have to come out. It's been unhooked since I bought the truck so no loss there.
After running around for hours getting brake lines and fittings I finally got all the pieces I needed to re-run the line to the rear. Just in case anyone is googling, the fittings for an explorer 8.8 with discs are a 3/8-24 across the board. In eliminating the LSV I will also need a 1/2-20 to plug the line from the distribution block to the rear and cut out the old line.
Making inverted flares always seems to take forever and if you're like me I spent about 2 hours just getting two of them right. Of course putting on the wrong fittings and having to redo them wasn't in the plans.
I'm hoping on Thursday to finish the extension to the drop bracket for the rear axle hose and get the old rear line cut out and the block plugged. Once all of that is done the rear axle can go in finally. Once it's in the next job will be installing the brakes and lines on the axle. I'm using a rear brake hose from a '96 Dodge Dakota since it uses the same fittings as the 8.8 and is about 8" longer than the factory MJ hose. Only catch was the drop bracket on the frame had to be opened up to 11/16ths for it to be a fit there. Glad we had a drill press and a stepper bit that big.
Next wrenching will be on Thursday so heres to hoping all goes well and we finish the night with an 8.8 under the MJ, bolted in.
After running around for hours getting brake lines and fittings I finally got all the pieces I needed to re-run the line to the rear. Just in case anyone is googling, the fittings for an explorer 8.8 with discs are a 3/8-24 across the board. In eliminating the LSV I will also need a 1/2-20 to plug the line from the distribution block to the rear and cut out the old line.
Making inverted flares always seems to take forever and if you're like me I spent about 2 hours just getting two of them right. Of course putting on the wrong fittings and having to redo them wasn't in the plans.
I'm hoping on Thursday to finish the extension to the drop bracket for the rear axle hose and get the old rear line cut out and the block plugged. Once all of that is done the rear axle can go in finally. Once it's in the next job will be installing the brakes and lines on the axle. I'm using a rear brake hose from a '96 Dodge Dakota since it uses the same fittings as the 8.8 and is about 8" longer than the factory MJ hose. Only catch was the drop bracket on the frame had to be opened up to 11/16ths for it to be a fit there. Glad we had a drill press and a stepper bit that big.
Next wrenching will be on Thursday so heres to hoping all goes well and we finish the night with an 8.8 under the MJ, bolted in.
The brake lines to the rear are now all cleaned up and I finished putting the dash back together. I drilled and tapped the rear bumper and installed LED mounting bolts and tested the wiring so now I have a state required, lighted license plate.
The 8.8 will need a bit more welding before I can run the brake lines. I'm going to have to weld in tabs to mount the caliper hoses to the axle and a mounting bolt for the junction hose.
In the near future I plan to replace the distribution block with a Wilwood proportioning valve since the work I did on the brakes essentially removed all proportioning. We debated putting the 8.8 under the truck, but frankly we were both beat and tired and that darn thing is heavy.
Should be back wrenching on Saturday so here's to hoping it ends with an 8.8 under the truck with the welding done and maybe brake lines installed.
The 8.8 will need a bit more welding before I can run the brake lines. I'm going to have to weld in tabs to mount the caliper hoses to the axle and a mounting bolt for the junction hose.
In the near future I plan to replace the distribution block with a Wilwood proportioning valve since the work I did on the brakes essentially removed all proportioning. We debated putting the 8.8 under the truck, but frankly we were both beat and tired and that darn thing is heavy.
Should be back wrenching on Saturday so here's to hoping it ends with an 8.8 under the truck with the welding done and maybe brake lines installed.
So the 8.8 is now under the truck and the shock mounts are in and hooked up. The caliper lines for the brakes are next on my list. I had fanned up some mounting tabs for them before we ended for the day so next will be to weld those in and then run the hard lines. I also need to weld in a mounting bolt for the main line down to the axle for the junction. Everything else should then be done for brakes for now. Here it is before the shocks went in:
The LED mounting bolts for the rear license plate are now properly wired and tested.
I’m really on the fence about running the Jeep on the current setup before swapping in a Wilwood proportioning valve. I’ll have to do some more research on the fittings they use since it’ll probably be hours of building unions and bending lines.
Outside of the brakes and a rear driveshaft ($450 from Tom Woods with and SYE) the rest of the Jeep is nearly done. I need to grease the front end, put oil and grease in about everything and finish the 97+ mirror install to get her out of the garage. With my schedule and budget I’m guessing that’ll be somewhere around Halloween.
The LED mounting bolts for the rear license plate are now properly wired and tested.
I’m really on the fence about running the Jeep on the current setup before swapping in a Wilwood proportioning valve. I’ll have to do some more research on the fittings they use since it’ll probably be hours of building unions and bending lines.
Outside of the brakes and a rear driveshaft ($450 from Tom Woods with and SYE) the rest of the Jeep is nearly done. I need to grease the front end, put oil and grease in about everything and finish the 97+ mirror install to get her out of the garage. With my schedule and budget I’m guessing that’ll be somewhere around Halloween.
Well the 8.8 is back out, after double checking the shock mounts one of them was not where it was supposed to be. I guess laying on your back and welding under a truck is not the best way to ensure you stay on your marks. So we pulled the 8.8 back out and the shock mount is now removed. Unfortunately it was not salvageable to be reused so I've ordered a new set, which might be here this weekend. Once that is in I'll get the new mount put on, the tabs for the caliper hoses and finish running the brake lines.
Meanwhile I finished installing the 97+ mirror on the passenger side along with the new window seal. It was a short session so I didn't get a chance to start on the driver side yet, but that is next on the list. Not much else new, just whittling away at this thing...
Meanwhile I finished installing the 97+ mirror on the passenger side along with the new window seal. It was a short session so I didn't get a chance to start on the driver side yet, but that is next on the list. Not much else new, just whittling away at this thing...
Long day of wrenching this weekend and it's getting closer. The 8.8 sat untouched since my new shock mounts did not arrive, despite paying for second day air, they shipped them ground so I've got a nasty phone call to make today.
The window seals are now in, the 97+ mirrors are in, the swaybar links have been extended 5" and now re-installed. The clutch has been bled, the tranny and front diff have been oiled-up and are ready to go. Despite a lot of hours wrenching it doesn't feel like I made that much progress, of course getting 3.5 quarts into the tranny was a tricky job. Should've done that while it was out.
Thursday might see the 8.8 finished and brake lines started. Still not very happy with the caliper hose setup and tabs, but it'll have to do since I haven't got any better ideas.
Closing in on the homestretch...
The window seals are now in, the 97+ mirrors are in, the swaybar links have been extended 5" and now re-installed. The clutch has been bled, the tranny and front diff have been oiled-up and are ready to go. Despite a lot of hours wrenching it doesn't feel like I made that much progress, of course getting 3.5 quarts into the tranny was a tricky job. Should've done that while it was out.
Thursday might see the 8.8 finished and brake lines started. Still not very happy with the caliper hose setup and tabs, but it'll have to do since I haven't got any better ideas.
Closing in on the homestretch...
So Thursdays are my wrenching night after work. I typically get about 3 hours in and last night we made some pretty good progress. With a replacement shock mount in hand we started in on finishing the 8.8 only to realize the new mount was slightly different. It had been cut for an XJ and as such was angled.
After 20 mins of grinding it was straight ended out and then measured up into place. Along with the tabs for the caliper hoses and a bolt for the drop brake line it was welded in. That wrapped up the work on the 8.8 so we cleaned it up, primed and painted it to go in.
As we waited for paint etc to dry I bled the clutch correctly this time. I wasn't able to get any more air out of it after the procedure and the clutch pedal definitely has way more pressure but I'm still not convinced it's 100% right. Maybe the BA-10 just had a deeper throw cause the AX-15 seems like a softer and deeper throw. Seemed like the pedal only had pressure after about a 1/3rd in.
We ran out of time on the evening but now the 8.8 is ready for brake lines and to go back under the truck. We put in 2 quarts of grease but I'll need to pick up some more as the 8.8 takes a little over 3 quarts. What a hog. Next wrenching session will probably be on Sunday.
After 20 mins of grinding it was straight ended out and then measured up into place. Along with the tabs for the caliper hoses and a bolt for the drop brake line it was welded in. That wrapped up the work on the 8.8 so we cleaned it up, primed and painted it to go in.
As we waited for paint etc to dry I bled the clutch correctly this time. I wasn't able to get any more air out of it after the procedure and the clutch pedal definitely has way more pressure but I'm still not convinced it's 100% right. Maybe the BA-10 just had a deeper throw cause the AX-15 seems like a softer and deeper throw. Seemed like the pedal only had pressure after about a 1/3rd in.
We ran out of time on the evening but now the 8.8 is ready for brake lines and to go back under the truck. We put in 2 quarts of grease but I'll need to pick up some more as the 8.8 takes a little over 3 quarts. What a hog. Next wrenching session will probably be on Sunday.
Sunday was productive, the 8.8 is in, with brake lines fully installed, the steering dampener went in, the D30 is complete and I fabbed a plug for the brake distribution block after eliminating the load sensing valve. At this point I'm ready to order the rear driveshaft and SYE and finalize the brakes by getting the e-brakes hooked up to the 8.8.
I still have a laundry list of little things to get done to finish the project, but i'm focused in on those needed to get her back on the road for now.
I still have a laundry list of little things to get done to finish the project, but i'm focused in on those needed to get her back on the road for now.
Emergency brake cables are hooked up. I had to cross them over to take up the excess length and cut off about 2" of spring on each side. The driverside seems to engage more than the passenger but with adjustments we should be able to get them right on.
I started the process of bleeding the brakes using a vacuum pump which really cut down on the time. Had to tighten one connection and it was above the damn tire of course so the spare had to come out to fix it.
A bleeder on the D30 caliper was stuck and got stripped but after some work we got it out and lucky for me working at Bobs garage is like being at Napa, he had a spare! We ran out of time on the evening, but we're gonna pressure bleed them next using the tried and true pumping of the brakes method.
Meanwhile my AA SYE and custom driveshaft are making their way across the country and should be here on Tuesday. I'm hoping tomorrow to split the T-case and prep it for a quick install next week. We might hold off on that though to do some drive testing since we can put it in 4HI and at least inspect the brakes, suspension etc around the neighborhood. It's closing in on completion, hopefully by this time next week it'll be ready to go home.
I started the process of bleeding the brakes using a vacuum pump which really cut down on the time. Had to tighten one connection and it was above the damn tire of course so the spare had to come out to fix it.
A bleeder on the D30 caliper was stuck and got stripped but after some work we got it out and lucky for me working at Bobs garage is like being at Napa, he had a spare! We ran out of time on the evening, but we're gonna pressure bleed them next using the tried and true pumping of the brakes method.
Meanwhile my AA SYE and custom driveshaft are making their way across the country and should be here on Tuesday. I'm hoping tomorrow to split the T-case and prep it for a quick install next week. We might hold off on that though to do some drive testing since we can put it in 4HI and at least inspect the brakes, suspension etc around the neighborhood. It's closing in on completion, hopefully by this time next week it'll be ready to go home.
