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1972 CJ-5 Almost Restoration

Discussion in 'Builds and Fabricators Forum' started by pritchaj2000, Jul 16, 2010.

  1. Jun 6, 2013
    pritchaj2000

    pritchaj2000 Member

    Highlands, NJ
    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2007
    Messages:
    191
    Most progress has been with wiring, not a lot of cool pictures of that. Mostly because its a rats nest until I can work out where wires go and then clean it up. But a couple of things that may help others...

    I rewired by turn signal switch. It's an Everlast - not what I want as a permanent solution but it should work for a little wile. One of the things that I didn't like was the gauge of wire used in the switch. The switch used what I think is 22 gauge wire, but my harness used a combination of 14 and 18. The tail lights use 14 gauge and the forward turn signals and signal indicators use 18. This is the rewired switch

    Original Everlast wiring
    [​IMG]

    Rewired for the Rebel Wire harness
    [​IMG]

    Headlight Switch
    [​IMG]

    Hazard Switch
    [​IMG]

    And one of the Jeep, just because :)
    [​IMG]
     
    melvinm likes this.
  2. Jun 7, 2013
    58 willys

    58 willys Sponsor

    Millsboro, Delaware
    Joined:
    Jul 2, 2010
    Messages:
    946
    Looking real nice
     
  3. Jun 10, 2013
    pritchaj2000

    pritchaj2000 Member

    Highlands, NJ
    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2007
    Messages:
    191
    Thanks 58 Willys!
     
  4. Jun 10, 2013
    pritchaj2000

    pritchaj2000 Member

    Highlands, NJ
    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2007
    Messages:
    191
    More progress - getting closer and closer every weekend. This weekend was all about getting the fender flairs, steering wheel and horn button installed.


    Fender flairs went in with little difficulty. Although the material seems much stiffer than the original flairs. I suspect I'll need to keep them coated to prevent UV breakdown. Any one have suggestions?


    [​IMG]


    [​IMG]


    Steering wheel went in easier than I thought it would. But I would recommend having a friend around. Tightening the nut and keeping the wheel from turning with only two hands was a bit of a challenge.


    [​IMG]


    And a pleasant surprise. I thought the replacement wheels did not have the finger indentations on the back. But they do! Although they are not as pronounced as my original the lack of all the cracks makes up for that short coming.


    I did note a couple of things with the horn button replacement kit. For one, the plastic guide that sits on the spring was considerably shorter than my original. When I first installed the bras cup and guide the guide would over extend and fall out of the hole in the back of the bras cup. I swapped out the new guide for my old one and that rectified the problem.


    Old and New Guide - Old guide is longer
    [​IMG]


    Old guide inside of bras cup
    [​IMG]


    Another thing - my old button had the bras plate glued to the underside of the button. So when you pushed in the button the bras plate would snap concave to make the connection then snap back. The new one does not have the bras plate glued to the back of the button. And I'm noticing that sometimes it does not snap back to it's original position. Causing the circuit to stay connected. I'v some work to do working the bugs out of that. Any one have any experience getting these to work well?
     
  5. Jun 23, 2013
    pritchaj2000

    pritchaj2000 Member

    Highlands, NJ
    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2007
    Messages:
    191
    She left the workshop for the first time in 2 1/2 years yesterday. New exhaust system is being built and I should have he back mid day Monday.

    They are building us an almost stock system, 2 into 1 with just a little personality. The guy who is going to do the work is going to call me in the morning after he has a chance to see her up on the lift.
    [​IMG]

    Next - breath a little life into the engine. :)
     
  6. Jun 23, 2013
    rusty

    rusty Well-Known Member

    norfolk,va
    Joined:
    Dec 16, 2006
    Messages:
    1,652
    Looking great. Nice job.
     
  7. Jun 23, 2013
    pritchaj2000

    pritchaj2000 Member

    Highlands, NJ
    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2007
    Messages:
    191
    Thanks Rusty.
     
  8. Jun 23, 2013
    willy s. flatfender

    willy s. flatfender Member

    northwest Colorado
    Joined:
    Feb 24, 2012
    Messages:
    197
    "She left the workshop for the first time in 2 1/2 years yesterday."
    And the crowd goes wild !
    I see they even put flags out to honor the occasion!
    You have done great work so far, can hardly wait for the finish. :beer:
     
  9. Jun 24, 2013
    Posimoto

    Posimoto Hopeless JEEP Addict

    Minden, Nevada
    Joined:
    Aug 7, 2003
    Messages:
    4,538
    Awesome build!
     
  10. Jun 24, 2013
    tarry99

    tarry99 Member

    Northern California
    Joined:
    Oct 29, 2012
    Messages:
    3,784

    Nice
     
  11. Jun 25, 2013
    Long&Low

    Long&Low Active Member

    Geauga County, OH
    Joined:
    Dec 13, 2009
    Messages:
    1,212
    Very nice.
     
  12. Jun 25, 2013
    rejeep

    rejeep Well-Known Member 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Rochester, NY
    Joined:
    Nov 5, 2009
    Messages:
    1,691
    wow.. awesome...

    same color as my 5... gives me some inspiration..

    NICE JOB!!!
     
  13. Jun 26, 2013
    pritchaj2000

    pritchaj2000 Member

    Highlands, NJ
    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2007
    Messages:
    191
    Thanks everyone!

    She is still at the shop. Seems they had to go on the hunt for a gasket to mate the manifold to the collector. Should be complete today or tomorrow, and I get to pick her up on Saturday.

    I feel like a kid on Xmas eve. Saturday can't come fast enuff.
     
  14. Jul 1, 2013
    pritchaj2000

    pritchaj2000 Member

    Highlands, NJ
    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2007
    Messages:
    191
    Lots to report.


    Picked her up on Saturday from the muffler shop. I'm not supper happy, but I could be a lot unhappier. So I'll learn to live with what I have :)


    They did an amazing job of being aware of the suspension flex, routing the passenger side down tube around and under the front drive shaft. Looks very clean and kept well up and out of the way. Joining up with the drivers side down tube, the weld is not the nicest looking thing. From the look of it they had to weld the "Y" pipe in place - guess I should have told them they could remove the skid plate if they needed to. It's not pretty but I suspect it will hold. The other welds look very well done, so over all I'm very happy.


    Passenger Down Tube
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Drivers Down Tube
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Exit
    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    Ironically they spent a lot of time thinking about the suspension on the front end, but not as much on the back. They ran the pipe almost at the highest point of the frame arch for the rear axel - directly under the bump stop mount. :-/ Seeing as I'm not planning a lot of extreme offroding I'll look to relocate the bump stop and see if I can leave well enough alone. The exit behind the rear tire came out well, the picture makes it look like it sticks out further than it does. Not quite extending outside the tire. Should do a good job of clearing the fumes.

    Speaking of fumes. I also managed to start the engine this weekend! Started off by making a priming tool from a cheap HEI dizzy. And connected a manual oil pressure gauge. (A side note, if you need a temporary gauge you can use the whip hose from a grease gun with a female to female connector at the gauge side. The thread will match to the adapter where the oil sending unit goes.) A little less than 1/2 speed on the drill netted me a constant 60lb. And oil moved through each rod journal.

    [​IMG]

    Start up was a simple manner of filling the tank, about 5 gal, and squirting a little gas into the carb. A quick turn of the key and she started right up and ran for about 2 seconds. One more squirt in the carb and a turn of the key woke her from her long sleep and set her at idle.

    I hadn't set a timing light on her at this point, but she was running smooth at a fast idle and pushing out about 64lb of pressure cold. Let her run in at a slightly lower idle for 20 minute. The thermostat kicked on when the engine got to temperature, and everything seems in good order. Did 2 20 minute idle to full cool down cycles for the cam. The only potential problems are a very slight weeping from the forward freeze plug on the drivers side.

    [​IMG]



    Want to see it Run?

    Click for Video!

    [video]www.flickr.com/apps/video/stewart.swf?v=109786[/video]

    More next week at we set the timing and start tuning the carb
     
  15. Jul 2, 2013
    Stout

    Stout Member

    Quakertown, PA
    Joined:
    Nov 1, 2010
    Messages:
    958
    Beautiful job my man, very well done.
     
  16. Jul 3, 2013
    pritchaj2000

    pritchaj2000 Member

    Highlands, NJ
    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2007
    Messages:
    191
    Thanks Stout. I'm looking forward to spending some quality time with the timing light and vacuum gauge over the long weekend.
     
  17. Jul 7, 2013
    pritchaj2000

    pritchaj2000 Member

    Highlands, NJ
    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2007
    Messages:
    191
    Still have massive amounts of work to do. But I can tackle them between drives! She left the workshop on her own power today! :beer:

    Took her for a little drive around the farm, photos do a far better job of this than me typing, so...

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]
     
  18. Jul 7, 2013
    58 willys

    58 willys Sponsor

    Millsboro, Delaware
    Joined:
    Jul 2, 2010
    Messages:
    946
  19. Jul 7, 2013
    rusty

    rusty Well-Known Member

    norfolk,va
    Joined:
    Dec 16, 2006
    Messages:
    1,652
    Congrats on having it running and driving. Nice work. :stout:
     
  20. May 29, 2020
    pritchaj2000

    pritchaj2000 Member

    Highlands, NJ
    Joined:
    Jun 10, 2007
    Messages:
    191
    Been a while since I posted. It's been 7 years on from completion, and she is running strong!
    [​IMG]

    But all engines need maintenance. So I thought I'd post about my water pump replacement. First off, I want to say to that 7 years of service with limited starting in the winter. I don't expect a water pump to late forever.

    So way back when, I installed a Flowkooler water pump. And at the time they make pumps for the 1972 304. Flash forward to 2020, and they don't. They do sell a water pump for a 1973 and newer. The reason is, the 1972 and earlier 304 used a short water pump. And the 1973 and later use a long water pump. From what I understand they went to the longer pump for better bearing longevity.

    I found this out the hard way. After install...
    [​IMG]

    But all is not lost, you just need to find a pulley from a 1973 or newer AMC. And be prepared, the heater hose is larger, and the bypass hose is at a slightly different angle. Nothing insurmountable.

    Back in 2012/2013
    [​IMG]

    1972 on the left, 1973 on the right
    [​IMG]

    Height difference
    [​IMG]

    And another thing, they upgraded the internals.
    [​IMG]
     
    Buildflycrash and Fireball like this.
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