mjeff87

MJ's not gonna be ready for the Crawl :cry: I can drag them up to grandma's when I'm in PA come June. They're just under the deck holding down the dirt at the moment. Jeff

You don't *have* to pull the cluster, but if you do you can get to the top of the switch somewhat better. I'm talking about just pulling the bezel around the cluster. If you take off the lower dash kickpanel thingy, you can get a good view of the switch, and be able to get your hand in behind/above it to pull the connector. Jeff

I gotta crapped out set of 2WD leafpacks sitting under my deck if you're interested in them (?) I was trying to get them up to Eagle, but that deal fizzled (had a friend going north who was gonna take them but never ended up going). Only problem is getting them to you. You coming up near VA anytime soon? Jeff

You need to unplug the connector from the top. If you pull the dash bezel off, you can sort of get to it from below the gauge cluster and/or thru the hole where the fog light rocker switch would be (or is, if you have factory fogs). In addition to the connector, there is a small pigtail ground wire hooked to the back of the switch you have to pull off. Jeff

I can get you one out of the 'yard down here for about $100, and get it to Steubenville, but I'm not coming up to PA until early June. If you can get by until then.....I'll swap you for your locker :D Jeff

ewwwww..... Got junkyard? :D Jeff edit: here, this will cheer you up: http://www.3dweb.no/galleri/stuestolbm/bilder/anim1.swf

A good set of brake spring pliers is invaluable when working on drum brakes. One of those tools you buy and use once every couple years, but you can manage the cable without one. Unhook the lower anchor spring, then hang the cable, run it around the cam guide and clip it into the lever. Then install the lever into the hole in the shoe and hold it there creatively (helps to have an extra set of hands for this), while you reinstall the lower spring. I use a huge pair of line pliers to grab the spring on the long flat part between the hook end and where it starts to coil and hook my thumb over one of the wheel studs for leverage, and pull the spring until I can get the hook into the lever. A bit dangerous, but it works (wear eye protection). Jeff

"rare"? hardly......my junkyard's full of them. Jeff

The trick to installing the e-brake cable to the lever is a pair of needle-nose vise grips. Get the nose between the spring end and the barrel and push the spring back, then clamp down on the cable. Pop it thru the slot in the end of the lever and release. Works slicker than frog snot :D (thank jerry a.k.a. tjbliley for that little trick :bowdown: ) Jeff

not gonna weld to the frame, just gonna replace what's on there with new tie-in's Jeff

X2 on that. I'm running Pong's old bumper on my MJ now, and Pat scratch-built it, reusing the factory bumper brackets....but his is (err, I mean "was") a longbed and mine's a shortbed. I found out real quick the difference (bolt holes are identical but that was it). Problem solved via the sawzall, by trimming off the ends of the framerails, chopping the splashpan and spare tire mount out, and notching Pat's bumper a tad on the tops of the brackets. I chose cutting the MJ down versus chopping Pat's bumper up ;) Jeff

This is the only pic of it I have....haven't seen it yet in the flesh. Looks like short sections drilled for the 3 bumper bracket bolts is all (but I snagged a copy of that tie-in you posted, and could have a set of those made and welded on in place :D ) Jeff http://new.photos.yahoo.com/onehighxj/a ... 96009355/6

Anyone run one of these? I've got the chance to pick one up for short cash once the wife and I get back from vacation next week (instead of building one). It's not a winch bumper :cry: , but does have a 2" receiver. I may have to trim the front fenders for it to fit, but I was planning to do that, eventually, anyhow :brows: Any comments welcomed.... thx, Jeff

yes, the driverside is a mirror image of the passenger side (the adjuster faces the rear). Like others have said, you have to have the primary brakes bled and adjusted before you adjust the parking brake, so you should spring for new wheel cylinders at this point and get that taken care of. Just be warned that you may end up twisting/snapping the hardlines that run along the axletube when trying to pull the lines out of the old cylinders, and have to replace those as well (it's a vicious circle working on old stuff....). I snapped the passenger side hardline on mine, but just cut it back to good line and used a short piece of pre-flared line (I hate flaring line) and spliced it in with a compression fitting. Been holding fine for going on 3 years now. Jeff

Here’s a couple shots of the brake assemblies (taken when Jerry, Chuck and I swapped rear axles). Jeff Image Not Found Image Not Found

I swapped mine out a couple weeks ago by myself. The trick to the CA bolts is to leave the arms connected to the frame, and leave the trackbar attached to the frame bracket. To get them reinstalled, hang the axle by the LCA's first. The pinion will be pointing more or less straight upward at that point. Rotate it backward and use a floor jack under the diff to raise the driverside up and pop in the UCA bolt, then reposition the jack on the axletube beside the diff and raise again. The other UCA bolthole will align then. Once the CA are rebolted, put the jack back under the diff and jockey the axle around some until the axle end of the TB lines up and thread the bolt in. Once that's done, use a bottlejack to install the springs, reconnect the steering, shocks, calipers, sway bar, and stabilizer. Jeff

yup, what Joe said. I got a 242 going into my MJ behind an AX5....soon. Good to hear yours is behaving well behind your AX15 Joe, there's not too many running one behind a manual. Jeff

90% of all the Ford's ever made are still on the road today! The other 10% actually made it where they were going :D Jeff

Yeah, I have a '94. The only thing it's missing is the ghey-pride sticker on the bumper, but you can't beat it for the mileage. I daily drive it and use the gas money I save to buy stuff for the MJ :D It's at 176K right now, the auto tranny has a few issues and I need to replace the front struts. The only major issue with the 1.9L is a batch of them came out with poorly staked valve seats in the (aluminum) head. If you overheat them, one or more seats can dislodge and drop into the cylinder. Happened to mine around 160K, and thanks to Nate's prodding :chillin: , I ended up fixing it with a junkyard head for about $250 total. http://comancheclub.com/forums/viewtopi ... ght=escort Mine's a hatchback, and I use it more as a pickup truck than a car. It's hauled every part I've put or will be putting on the MJ, including trannies/TC's, front and rear axles, and even a complete 2.5L I picked up on an 1100 mile roadtrip (hey....it was free, what can I say). Buy it, and have fun! Jeff p.s. Nate, where's your ricebox-thingy you bought??? on the road yet?

you passed right past me, I'm right off I95 just south of Richmond. Gotta love snow in April :nuts: Jeff

PM-ing you my cell # in case you have any problems. Be safe, and have fun! I-81 is beee-u-tiful country, just watch out for all the truck traffic. Jeff

SAE 75-90W, GL-3 (NOT GL-5) rated, and it takes a bit over 2 quarts. Not knowing the history of it, I'd probably buy some cheap Costal stuff initially and run it for a few miles, then drain it and refill it with Mobil 1 or similar. Easiest way I found to refill it is to pop off the shifter and fill it via the top from inside the cab. Leave the factory fill plug out of the side of the tranny and put a drip pan under it. When you see/hear it start to dribble out, it's full.... I'd love to give you a hand this weekend, but I hafta work Saturday then make a quick trip to the junkyard, and Sunday is Easter....anything Jeep is off-limits to me says the boss... :cry:

Pat....and anyone else in the greater VA area for that matter....the guy I got the D30 and 242 from last weekend has a ton of Jeep stuff he's trying to unload. Included in the mess are at LEAST 3 4.0's, and 4 or 5 AW4's, plus a ton of sheetmetal parts (hoods, fenders, etc.) Just in case anyone needs parts. He's about 20 miles the other side of Fredricksburg (Rhoadesville). If anyone wants, I can put you in touch with him. He goes by "non-stick" on NAXJA (his name is Rich). He also has a comletely stripped XJ shell sitting on a flatbed, that he's planning on selling to the scrapyard. Jeff

wow I'm as lost reading this post as my wife is when I talk Jeep stuff to her. I gotta $20 Kmart cassette player with burned out backlights. I gotta use a flashlight to tune it when it gets dark out :cry: Jeff (rabid AM radio listener :D)

Try calling Safelite (if you haven't already). I got a huge chip in my MJ glass two winters ago, and they quoted me somewhere around $150 IIRC. I didn't get it replaced, though, because I was worried about getting a new piece of glass to seal on a 20 year old truck.....I opted to have them repair it, for around $30 (and a lifetime guarantee that if it ever cracked, they would do a full replacement at no cost). Jeff