1963 Us Navy Dj-3a

Still thinking about the color to paint this thing. I've been leaning towards a patina empire blue like Old Blue (that I sold to Duffer) has:


Partially because it's close to the interior color of the Jeep that the Navy painted it at some point, and partially because I loved the look of Old Blue.

However, I also like darker blues and one of the Van Sickle tractor paints is really close to the Blue Angels blue. Painting it like a Blue Angel would keep the Navy theme in a color I like. It's all going to be rattle canned over the existing paint with maybe a little fake patina here and there, but it could look someting like this quick photoshop:


Thoughts?

 

I like the darker blue with the yellow stripe.
It needs black wheels…

 

It's been done, I like the color.


Note the WHITE wheels.

 

Ooooh, I like that.

....expect the white wheels

 

Empire blue is probably one of the best colors on an early 5, there is just something about it that catches everyone's attention. It looks good fresh out of the paint booth or original paint with patina.

 

leave Ted alone

 

Hah! I get the sentiment, but the current white paint job is not one of its unique DJ-3A features.

 

I have a fondness for that color too...

 

That's the perfect pic right there.
Empire blue CJ5 and a white German Shepard!

 

X2, that is a great photo.

 

I like the darker blue theme, very cool, and it would be pretty unique

 

I've been busy working on the Jeep but haven't had time to post updates. Right now I'm out of town until Thursday, so I have some time to catch up.

New steering shaft and U-joints showed up. I think I need to trim about 1" off the shaft and is should all go in easily:


I'm pausing on the exhaust for the moment for two reasons:

1). I can't find the right doughnut for the rear sump manifold. The ones all the catalogs list for 70's 3.8 Skylarks, Regals, Apollos, and the like are too big like they are for a bigger V-8 manifold. The auto parts stores don't stock doughnuts anymore and have been completely unhelpful. I ended up going through the Mahle and Walker Exhasut catalogs and ordered 4 possibilities based on measurements. Hopefully one of them will work:


2) The second reason I'm pausing on exhaust is that I strong armed ITLKSEZ to come help me build the system in a couple weeks. By "strong armed", I mean asking politely if he would help and offering to feed him and partner a good meal. He said "You bet!"

Hopefully I can find a doughnut that works. I also need to use the press and a trailer hitch ball to prep to pipe flanges to attach to the manifolds. I want to be ready to rip when ITLKSEZ comes down.

 

Given the pause in the exhaust work, I moved to the radiator.

The aluminum radiator that came in the Jeep is intended for a CJ-5 and is too tall for a low-hood. To mount it so it cleared the hood, the bottom of it was only a few inches from the front pumpkin. The PO even extended the bump stop to keep them from hitting:


The new radiator is a small block Chevy conversion radiator specifically for flatfenders. It has less core area, but has a thicker core, so hopefully it cools well. It's a good 4" shorter in the passenger side:


The fun you find when digging into things. Luckily, I have several spares:


Of course, the nrew radiator is not a "bolt-in" The original mounts on the grill have been modified, and with it bumped up against the already notched battery box, the fan was too close to the lower outlet:


But, with some trimming, I can get it closer to the battery. I also didn't like how close the battery is to the alternator fan:


This is the first time I've done battery mods:




Much tighter fit to the headlight bucket. I was going to trim the bucket, but it measured out to really need all the depth:


I also trimmed the lip off the bottom on one side. It's a much tighter fit to the fender now:




That's a start.

 

Is there room for the battery on the passenger side firewall? The '76-up CJ battery box is a nice part and widely available.
https://www.amazon.com/Crown-Automotive-5764665K-Black-Battery/dp/B00B8X3EHO

 

Think I used this donut

 

Trimming the battery tray so I can embed the radiator into it:


The fancy previous owner installed mounts for the old radiator soon to be cut off:




Bending up some new mounts. It's 16 gauge and I don't have a brake so I lightly scored the bend line with a cutoff wheel before using the vice and a hammer. That worked well:


Tacked in place for fitting:


Other side:


After about 20 more rounds of putting it in the Jeep for fitting, and pulling it out to trim/adjust things, it was ready for final welding:




The final positioning:


Good even gap to the shroud and front crossframe. I'll make some rubber seals to bridge these gaps:


Good fan clearance to the lower outlet (and also the upper outlet):


It should also clear the factory-style 7 blade fan I have. It's only 1/2" bigger in diameter:


Just enough clearance to the battery:


About 3/8" clearance to the hood:


Lots of room to the front diff now so I can remove the bump stop spacer:


I'll start working on a shroud when I get back home on Thursday.

 

Thanks! I ordered on of those too.

 

No real room on the cowl. While working on this thing, I've been kind of surprised how much less room is under the hood compared to a CJ-5. Not only is the hood a lot lower, the width of the cowl is good foot narrower. It's a really tight fit with a V-type engine installed:


The best solution is to move the battery out from under the hood into the cowl like and M38 or under the seats. It may happen in the future, but that's beyond the current scope of this project.

 

You need a heat riser for that manifold. I fixed the butterfly open.