Need CJ5 Mechanic

Let me state at the beginning I drive them but I do not (can't) fix them! For about 30 years I have owned a 1974 232 cui 4-speed CJ-5. The only upgrade to it was a front disc brake conversion about 15 years ago. About 20 years ago I parked it in the garage and only drove it occasionally around town. A couple of months ago I decided I want to take it on one last 4-wheel trip before I handed it over to my son. On the recommendation of a friend, who has his CJ-7 work on by this guy, I took it to a mechanic and told him to start at the front bumper and end at the rear bumper and inspect/test drive/what ever the CJ-5 and if you find anything wrong let us take care of it. Well, he found a vibration in the rear drive train. To his credit he has been trying to fix the vibration but today he called and said he is out of ideas. He recommended I not drive the Jeep because the vibration may shake something loose or break something and he recommended I take to a well know 4X4 shop here in the Springs and see if they can fix it. Sorry for the long story but to the points does anyone know of a mechanic/shop in the Colorado Springs area that are experts when it come to these "ancient (1974)" CJ-5's? Thank you in advance.

 

Try Moving the rear tires to the front......get them balanced.............they may be flat on the bottom after setting for so long.
Drive-line loose , worn out universals or could have a dent in the tube. pinion bearing?
Bent axle tube , Rear springs loose to axle U-bolts , worn out spring bushings, worn out shocks.
rear axle out of alignment , Transmission mount is junk, or perhaps even motor mounts.

Ask your mechanic if he checked all that is mentioned.

 

Sorry, I know of no shops in that area, I just know of some up in this area and to tell you the truth I have never had a Jeep into a shop. You may start a conversation with Doug, Colorado jeep guy. Pretty much has to be rear drive line related issues. Ujoints, slip joint, bent shaft or pinion bearing.

 

I am with Tarry99 on the tires. If the tires really are 20 years old they could have all kinds of issues that could show up as vibration. It may sound like cart before the horse, but I would replace them first, then look for other problems. A catastrophic tire failure could lead to a wreck that could wipe out the rest of the Jeep anyway.

 

I used to work at Mile high Jeep Rebuilders and learned a lot. Probably why I don't take my Jeeps in for work.

The only two guys I would trust is Rob Schleppy at 4X4 off road & used parts or his brother Ray at Bullhide.
But both of them are in Ft. Collins, a bit of a trip for you. I hope your mechanic is good enough to do simple things like just trying to shake things to check for play and knows how to check for a bent drive shaft and knows how to check to be sure the ujoints are in phase.

 

I have spent many hours talking to both of them and we have traded information and thats why I said that I would trust them.
Ray handed me a hydro vac unit and handed the boy a Gleeson Thorson unit. (free).I have been over to Robs shop to get a rear hub for the Commando and they gave me three of them for $10.00. I suppose I remember running around Robs yard with a can of wasp spray for about twenty minutes trying to protect my self. One of the employees spent a fair amount of time crawling under my 3B. About the only other person I knew that knew more about Jeeps was Big Don at Mile High Jeep. He could tell you the part number and where the exact place it was on a shelf.
I suppose the reason I know much about old Jeeps is that I had a good teacher.

 

Carb cleaner knocks them right out of the sky and leaves no residue. Caution: The little buggers only take about 1/2 a second to figure out when you run dry and then they are really ticked.