Supertrooper's CJ5 build

Today was productive but there isn't much to show. The engine and tranfer case oil pans were both leaking pretty good so i removed them, cleaned them in the parts washer and and put in fresh gaskets on them. Also changed the transmission fluid while i was at it. Since the transfer case oil was emptied, i installed the saturn overdrive unit. Still have to do the shifter though. I modified the steering ram axle bracket but unfortunately the tie rod clamp came with stainless bolts and two seized and broke. I couldn't get them out so i just ordered a new clamp and some steel allen bolts. I got the front bumper mounting brackets final welded and bumper painted. Lastly i made the Co2 tank mounts to clamp the tank to the roll cage.

 

Driver side fender tube work tacked in place. Also welded in the ram mount to the axle and welded up the tabs to the tie rod clamp. Lowering the ram 1" gave me a lot more vertical clearance (forgot to take pics before taking it apart for welding). I dont know why i alway put off the upgrades i want to do till the last minute before a big trip, but i guess its a tradition by now.

 

Where did you get the fender tube kits and did it come with the fender to body mounts you just have to weld it together and sheet it with some sheet metal.

 

Here is the link from where i got the tubing kit. Its sized for a cj7 so it will need trimming and fitting. It came with the 2 long bars with 90* bends and the 2 short tubes prebent and notched. I used 1 1/2"x 1/8" flat bar for the grill and firewall mounting points. And i have some 14 gauge sheet metal to skin the fenders. Nice kit for 120 bucks shipped. Still havent figured out the wheelwells yet. If i can easily use thd stock wheel wells ill do that but i kinda want to try making sheet metal wheel wells. Might have to wait till after the rubicon trip for those.

https://www.trailtubes.com/collecti...ront-non-flared-fenders-for-cj-yj-tj-lj-xj-zj

 

I started making tube fenders several years ago, I used 1” tube for the top portion and 1 1/2” x 1/8” flat bar for the grill and firewall. For the inner fenders I had some trashed fenders that could not be used so I cut the inner fenders out and attached to the flat bar and tubing. I have then out in the shed, I’ll try to get some pics for you if you want.
I copied cj6/442’s build.

 

" For the inner fenders I had some trashed fenders that could not be used so I cut the inner fenders out and attached to the flat bar and tubing. "

Thats basically what i have planned but time is an issue. My inner fenders are pretty beat up with lots of extra holes. I was thinking about making some out of aluminum sheet like the genright fenders. I only have early mornings when i get home from work at 4am and sundays to work on the jeep. Inner fenders are low on thd priority list untill after the rubicon

 

Here's a late update of last weekends progress. The hydro ram assist is done with the exception of bleeding the system. Drilling and tapping the gear box on the jeep was easier than i thought it would be. I installed a magnetic inline filter between the cooler and reservoir so hopefully if any metal chips made it into the system the filter will catch it. I still need to file the pitman arm double splines so i can reclock the arm to center it in the gear boxes travel then road test and center the steering wheel then the steering will be done. Thanks to Ryan and Kyle for their advice and help. I got a cargo basket from WFO on sale and attached it to my tire carrier for the lighter items im taking to free up some interior space inside the jeep. The last major thing to do this weekend is to get the OD shifter/linkage sorted and finish welding and painting the front fenders.

 

Looking good! Plenty of time 10 days!

 

Here is an update. I had 4th of July off from work and was going to take advantage of that ti finish the jeep for the Rubicon. Of course things didn't go as planned. I started off trying to install the OD shift linkage from Herm since it should be a quick bolt on and it was. Problem was that the bent flatbar "linkage" bent like a pretzel and wouldn't even shift the OD unit . So i spent the rest of the day making my own out of some new and old AA shifter kits. Then i just temporarily hacked a hole in the transmission cover. I also finished the ram assist steering and started bleeding the system with royal purple synthetic fluid. It got dark before i could toad test and center the steering. Unfortunately the jeep still wasn't ready so the plan on loading the trailer and leaving early morning got changed to work on it all day, get 2 or 3 hours of sleep then head out overnight to make south lake tahoe in the morning. I got most of the pretrip projects done by Saturday afternoon. All i had left was lowering the gas tank to tighten the leaking fuel level sender bolts and figure out a platform for the passenger seat for my dog, Shadow. My dog was almost 15 years old and although he had no problems jumping into the jeep on last years Epic Colorado trip, his back legs didn't have the strength anymore. I decided to cancel and stay home since i hadn't even test driven the jeep with the new steering mods and to not risk my dog getting injured jumping in and out of the jeep. This past Saturday night, july 20th, Shadow passed away.

 

I'm sorry to hear this.
I'm glad you chose to stay home with him.

 

Sorry to hear that.

 

Heartfelt condolences. It sounds like you gave Shadow a long and happy life.

 

Sorry to hear this, my condolences. We have been there, too.

 

Sorry for your loss.

 

Sorry to hear about Shadow, glad we got to meet last year. 15 years certainly a good run.

 

Sorry for your loss.
I had a black lab named Shadow as a kid...she was a good dog

 

So sad for your loss. It sounds like Shadow got to live a good life though, if that's any comfort

 

Sorry about your puppy

 

Thanks everyone for the kind words.

 

I am sorry for your loss Charles. I just got a new puppy after I lost my 14 yo Brittany.