Project bulletproof: 88 MJ short bed 4x4

Okay, I have been hanging around a while, and am just now getting my Jeep and my camera together. I am really enjoying the project,

though the Comanche is still exactly as I bought it save for the roll bar.

more pics to come as I start working on it...

*edit* changed Subject line

Whats your plan for the build?

mostly pavement, would love to do a 1-2 inch lift, put some 31's under it, I have a guy that is going to spray the entire truck with bedliner, I have new fenders, all the flares, and a new header panel for it. Going to put new seats in it, need to check the pan for rust still, and going to put a new fuse block in, and rewire the entire dash. Thinking about swapping to a 4.0HO with an Aisin 5sp and xfer case. Not sure what gears I have under it now, but since I don't off road really, don't see any sense in swapping it out. I have already done the radiator conversion, so I no longer have the closed coolant system. I am open to lots of ideas, and am going to see what I come up with when I am done, as long as it is a Comanche, I am happy.

I upgrade my gears for street driving, not offroading. :thumbsup:

Looks like a solid base for building on. :cheers:

I upgrade my gears for street driving, not offroading. :thumbsup:

 

Looks like a solid base for building on. :cheers:

Sorry about this... :hijack:

I was curious, I see you went to 4.10's for street driving. What did you have originally and how did it improve your street driving?

I'm curious too, what does the gear ratio actually affect? and what gears would be optimal for a mostly pavement MJ

Gear ratio affects the felt power at the tires. It's all about leverage. Think of it as a breakerbar on a lug nut. The longer the bar, the easier it is to turn the nut. The deeper the gears, the easier it is for the engine to turn the wheels and the more powerful your engine will feel, especially when starting from a stop. Now, there is a sweet spot in all this. On the other end of the spectrum, 5.86 gears on 27" street tires is way too much gear. Picture yourself at the end of a 10 foot breaker bar. It's easy to turn, but you have to walk a long way to do it. When my 88 was still a lowly 2wd doing DD duty, I went from puny 27" tires to 30" tires and my engine suddenly felt gutless. I would even stall sometimes if I wasn't paying attention at a green light. When the Dana 35 blew up on me, I took the opportunity to find a 3.55 geared axle and the truck came alive again. :D The bigger tires shrink your theoretical breaker bar and the deeper gears compensate for it.

As to what gears work best? That's a bit of science and a bit of opinion. A lot depends on the engine, trans, and tire size. I was very happy with 3.55s in my 4.0/stick on 30" tires in my 88. For the little bit of time I actually got to drive my 90, I was also happy with 3.55s in the same combo but with 31" tires. Asking around, you'll find that 4.10s also work great for 4.0 street trucks wearing 30-33" tires (I hesitate calling my 88 a "street truck" anymore). If you've got a 2.5L, then it all changes, as the 2.5 has less power and needs more leverage on those tires. In my opinion, 4.10s are the minimum for a 2.5 truck on any size tires. But I guess this really only applies to the 2.5L/4speed stick trucks that got screwed with 3.55 gearing. (A 4.10 upgrade in those trucks should really be matched with a 5spd upgrade (the AX-4 and 5 are identical externally and so swap directly) if the truck sees a lot of freeway travel.)

Whomever at Jeep that thought 3.07 gears behind the 4.0 or 3.55s behind the 2.5 was a good idea should have been shot. :fs1:

:needpics:

That being said, until I get the chip for my phone (another day or two) I can't post the pics of what I did this weekend.

I did get a hitch receiver put on, new header panel, grill inserts, and a new push bar. As soon as I put the fenders on (I know, should have done that while the header was off, oops) it will be ready for paint.

Gear ratio affects the felt power at the tires. It's all about leverage. Think of it as a breakerbar on a lug nut. The longer the bar, the easier it is to turn the nut. The deeper the gears, the easier it is for the engine to turn the wheels and the more powerful your engine will feel, especially when starting from a stop. Now, there is a sweet spot in all this. On the other end of the spectrum, 5.86 gears on 27" street tires is way too much gear. Picture yourself at the end of a 10 foot breaker bar. It's easy to turn, but you have to walk a long way to do it. When my 88 was still a lowly 2wd doing DD duty, I went from puny 27" tires to 30" tires and my engine suddenly felt gutless. I would even stall sometimes if I wasn't paying attention at a green light. When the Dana 35 blew up on me, I took the opportunity to find a 3.55 geared axle and the truck came alive again. :D The bigger tires shrink your theoretical breaker bar and the deeper gears compensate for it.

 

As to what gears work best? That's a bit of science and a bit of opinion. A lot depends on the engine, trans, and tire size. I was very happy with 3.55s in my 4.0/stick on 30" tires in my 88. For the little bit of time I actually got to drive my 90, I was also happy with 3.55s in the same combo but with 31" tires. Asking around, you'll find that 4.10s also work great for 4.0 street trucks wearing 30-33" tires (I hesitate calling my 88 a "street truck" anymore). If you've got a 2.5L, then it all changes, as the 2.5 has less power and needs more leverage on those tires. In my opinion, 4.10s are the minimum for a 2.5 truck on any size tires. But I guess this really only applies to the 2.5L/4speed stick trucks that got screwed with 3.55 gearing. (A 4.10 upgrade in those trucks should really be matched with a 5spd upgrade (the AX-4 and 5 are identical externally and so swap directly) if the truck sees a lot of freeway travel.)

 

Whomever at Jeep that thought 3.07 gears behind the 4.0 or 3.55s behind the 2.5 was a good idea should have been shot. :fs1:

oh hell I'm putting a 307 geared rear end behind and 5 speed ( i don't know what one ) and with a 2.5 on p 205 tiers for now ..... I'm gunna have no power .,.....

did some modifying to the front, I like the way it looks, still needs paint, and as soon as I get a shop, I can start tearing down the inside.

Interesting hood ornament ya got there. :D

yeah, I do like the realistic hood ornaments... lol

nice to see another member in washington

We really need to have a meet and greet or organize a wheeling trip. There are a ton of members in this area.

I would definitely be open to a meet n greet, that could be really cool...

Okay, it's been a while since I posted, and I have nothing new to report yet, except that I have a shop, I'm making a dump run this weekend, have to get a bunch of lumber next weekend, and then the teardown begins. I am really excited that I am finally going to get some work done on my truck...

Well, just after the dump run on Saturday, I went and put an exhaust pipe on the Jeep. The exhaust is not just a glasspack under the passenger seat now... world of difference...

in world of difference what do you mean?

power wise,

noise wise?

in world of difference what do you mean?

power wise,

noise wise?

Wife is quieter??

noise wise, power is about the same, and it is still as loud, but not as loud in the cab, the noise is now back toward the rear bumper where it belongs.

Update on the project, almost have the ex's crap out of my garage, a few things left to go to charity (no sense wasting the stuff) and then move the stuff I don't need to the upstairs storage. This should be done this weekend, then I will have a garage to put the MJ in, and start the tear down, I doubt I have any rust to worry about, I live in the NW, it never dries out long enough here to rust... lol... but we will see what happens. I have everything I need to complete her except the diamond plate sheets ($350 on ebay for three sheets of 4'x8'x1/32") the paint, and some new vinyl for the dash and other random interior pieces. I do still need to get a lift (prolly just 1.5") and I want to get some 31x10.50 BFG AT's.

I know what you mean about the NW. i pulled my carpet up the other day expecting rust, and it was all original shiny paint under the carpet. woot!

mostly pavement, would love to do a 1-2 inch lift, put some 31's under it, I have a guy that is going to spray the entire truck with bedliner, I have new fenders, all the flares, and a new header panel for it. Going to put new seats in it, need to check the pan for rust still, and going to put a new fuse block in, and rewire the entire dash. Thinking about swapping to a 4.0HO with an Aisin 5sp and xfer case. Not sure what gears I have under it now, but since I don't off road really, don't see any sense in swapping it out. I have already done the radiator conversion, so I no longer have the closed coolant system. I am open to lots of ideas, and am going to see what I come up with when I am done, as long as it is a Comanche, I am happy.

how do you replace the fuse block?

is this an easy job? any instructions or advice?

sorry, i'm new to this

okay, lots of pics, pulled most of the front clip off to replace fenders, and start paint, also stripped the interior, I need to take a wire wheel to the floor boards, but all I've got under there is some surface rust. I'll let the pics speak for themselves

lookin' good. :thumbsup:

why are the photos fuzzy? :hmm: