'Da Chief . . . So it Begins again

[cu4whln]

Testing... Just trying out the new upgrades.

[cu4whln]

I have gotta get my seats down like that.. Your floorboards are less lumpy than the late-models (88 for mine), but I think I am going to have to get creative with cutting down the feet of the brackets I have. I just don't seem to be brave enough to cut a slice out of the trans tunnel..

Congrats on another great build! I am sure you will winterize everything before heading out of the driveway and pointing South.

JP- Thank You.

I hope your build is progressing!



Seats:

You just gotta attack it.

This was certainly not an easy task, but I did one seat at a time.

Each side had it's challenges, and the driver power side was "fun"

That said, it's worth the trip. Seats are very comfortable.

[JPSwapMohn]

I have gotta get my seats down like that.. Your floorboards are less lumpy than the late-models (88 for mine), but I think I am going to have to get creative with cutting down the feet of the brackets I have. I just don't seem to be brave enough to cut a slice out of the trans tunnel..

Congrats on another great build! I am sure you will winterize everything before heading out of the driveway and pointing South.

[cu4whln]

Slacker. When are you flying south for the winter?

That's me !

"MR Slacker" to you !!

( ie Takes one to know one . . . )

On a side note, it was 17 F this am..

I decided to go out to the garage after snow clearing duty.

Why? to see how this GM "LT" engine would cold start / move.

Result: Fired right up in a second, backed right up, no problem.

No fuss, no muss.

[bkilby]

Slacker. When are you flying south for the winter?

[cu4whln]

In Today's News . . .

UPDATE

Well, that's a "Wrap" for now most likely.

It has DUMPED snow here in Michigan, big time.



So no more test drives. Hell, it was literally 71 a week ago?

Today? High of 28.

No heat in the garage. So any work will be slow and cold.

Also - we are heading to Florida for the winter soon.

I am done with cold winters now that retirement has arrived.

Just wanted to update all who have been watching my thread.

[/IMG]

[letank]

Lug nuts?

I bought a new set from BJs Off Road.

[/IMG]

thank you for the pict, now I understand, I have different hub covers, that screw from the outside.



As for the gas gauge... even with a new sender -4 years old- I added a wire from the tank sending unit to the dash, going from the left inner quarter panel loom opening that feed to the right side lights, and wiggled the wire around the wheel well and under the carpet... Still poor gas gauge, too much resistance... probably need a new sending unit.

[cu4whln]

cu.... Your jeep is coming together nicely. For a one man band you have skills of many.
Your build is like a Jeep book we all wish we had on our shelves for reference and details that are not shown in regular books or manuals.

Thanks for the fine documentation!

Thanks!

It's just Me, Patience, Persistence, and my Wallet !!

[78 WIDETRAC]

cu.... Your jeep is coming together nicely. For a one man band you have skills of many.
Your build is like a Jeep book we all wish we had on our shelves for reference and details that are not shown in regular books or manuals.

Thanks for the fine documentation!

[cu4whln]

In Today's News . . .

Houston, we have a cluster - ( F*3k )

Today was a bunch of small things that needed to be done before installing the cluster.

First up, route the driver power seat wires and get it operational

So, next time, I might do this before I install the carpet.
Pulled it back as best I could, and fished under the seat until I found the wire.

Next, I soldered a circuit breaker into the hot lead.
Installed this in an inline fuse holder. This way, if the seat jams, it will stop working, but reset in a few seconds.

Then added a ground, which I put on the driver side squid launch cable mount.

Next up: Tried to clean up the rats nest of wiring .. not well I might add!

Dropped the column down, and laid a towel down to protect it.
Grab the cluster...

First up, get the heater cable mounted...
Well, that was not easy.
The engineers didn't leave enough length to work with. Much fidgeting in the tight area and I eventually got it.

Then hooked up the vacuum lines.
Note, I marked these with a paint pen when I took it apart.
I also added extra length to the lines to make this easier.

Next, in the now small available area, I tracked down all the wiring and connections.
Very glad I added labels to all the connections. Was still hard.


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All plugged in and hooked up . . .

[/IMG]

Ease it into position, trying to be careful to not scratch up the Dash as I go.

Mostly successful ... lol


[/IMG]

Screw the cluster in, bolt up the column, then put on the column trim.

[/IMG]

And it's in!

Now for a test, and drive...
All working, except the fuel gauge.
That is grounded out somewhere and not working.
I knew this, just haven't dealt with it yet.

[/IMG]

More to do yet, but that was enough for today.

Fun fact:
The cluster started to rack up miles as this is the first time it was hooked up and driven.
Need to calibrate the speedo as it reads about 10 mph fast right now.
BUT that's for another day.

[rang-a-stang]

But first, need to hook up the "Squid Launchers"!

BWAHHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! That is EXACTLY what the emblem looks like

[cu4whln]

In Today's News . . .

Cleaning up dash stuff so I can install the cluster...

But first, need to hook up the "Squid Launchers"!



The chrome is less than in good shape on these parts. See the black spots ? Missing chrome.

I have looked a bunch of them, none of them seem to have a decent finish any more?

So I got out my chrome plastic pen, and went to work.

Not a great pic, but the part on the left has not been done yet.
The right has, but it doesn't show clearly . . .

[/IMG]

This pic shows the surface a bit better...
You have to put a lot of the material on there, then let it dry for a couple of days. Do NOT touch it if possible...
The finish is in no way perfect, but MUCH improved!

Looking closely, you can actually see my reflection.

[/IMG]

Then I reinstalled the cables into the dash and routed them to the cowl vents.
Do NOT forget to run the cable through the plastic vent cover before attaching ( ask me how I know )
The cables are very stiff and hard to guide into the cowl door ( hard to see )
Hooking up the cable was a total pita btw.
Not sure how they did this at the factory.

Anyway, they are in.

After that, I tackled the parking brake reinstall.

Had to remember what went where since its been a year since taking it apart! Thank god I bagged all the hardware..
This also was not a lot of fun... I hate working under the dash...

Then hooking up the park brake cables was a challenge.
Got that on, then started to adjust the mech to work properly.

Yea, do not tighten the adjusting nut too much!

This led to a couple of short drives to test it.
At least that was fun !

[cu4whln]

very nice seats, and even a better idea about the locktite / thread locker with the goo for the hubs bolts, what do you have on the street side for the hub bolts?

Lug nuts?

I bought a new set from BJs Off Road.

[/IMG]

[letank]

very nice seats, and even a better idea about the locktite / thread locker with the goo for the hubs bolts, what do you have on the street side for the hub bolts?

[cu4whln]

BURNOUT VIDEO!!!!!! (or doughnuts )

I'm just kidding of course. After all the time and effort (and money in tire) Burn out videos can be expensive.

When you first started down the seat path, I thought they were going to look bulky and out of place. Seeing them in there now, against your dash and new carpet they look really natural there.

The color looks stunning every time I see it. It Doesn't get old at all... Amazing.

Thanks Rang!

The seats were a lot of work.. but very comfortable.

I also had some concerns on seat size, they are wide !

The biggest issue was the overall height of the seat and how you feel sitting in it.
I lowered the rear of the seat track to right on the carpet to get them as LOW as possible. ( Fronts of seat is higher for comfort angle )

These seats have a lot more foam/structure under and in the seat bottoms than the originals.

Now, back to work on all the dash details . . .