Pete M

What about drilling new holes through the frame for new bolts? Maybe tying into the big shackle bolt?

I think this is what he's referring to: http://www.jeepforum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=323809

Chickens ok?

I don't remember ever seeing any confirming papers. :dunno:

And those searches would show? Probably not much more than you see in the ad, but my memory isn't the greatest. :dunno:

Yup, that's a shortbed. I do believe if you search hard enough, you'll find some posts about that particular truck on here or on the yahoo-group site.

When I cut it into 3 individual strips, the side channel wouldn't stay up in the frame when I rolled the window down. When I only snipped the sides of the channel (so I could bend it 90*) and kept it all in one piece, it stayed up fine. It's also important to overlap the corner flaps in the right way or the window will bind the upper channel as it pushes up that last 1/2". I'll see if I can get a picture of what I mean.

How rotted do the bushings look?

Hard to say. There's evidence that both varieties were available at the same time during the transition years of about 90-91. Your best bet is to try and snag the trans and t-case together. Then they are a guaranteed match. :thumbsup: Any MJ/XJ/TJ/YJ after later 89 can donate its AX-15, though the YJ/TJ may need a bit of extra work.

Been there. Done that. :( Maybe I should add that to my sig.

3 down, 1 to go. :D

Why would you plan on adding spacers to a kit? Kits are designed around the coils they come with. That extra 1.5" could max out the shocks, the track bar, the sway bar links or the brake lines and your controls arms are now too short for the height. Just buy the kit you need. :thumbsup:

The vacuum leak could be almost anywhere. One common failure point is at the vacuum reservoir located behind the front bumper on the passenger side. The lines running into it can get very brittle and crack.

I think so. :hmm: I printed one off of the internet (can't believe I didn't think of that sooner :doh: ) and got 8* (or 172*) but that was on the long bed pic above.

Bigger tires won't necessarily equate to better traction. A locker on the other hand would do wonders. :D Add that to some 31" mud terrains and I think you'll be quite pleased. :thumbsup: Have you tried car-part.com yet for axles?

I've got the JCW channel and it works pretty good. Just be sure to notch the corners so that you're installing a single piece in the door (as opposed to 3 separate pieces).

You can strap a bit of weight in the back in the meantime. Make sure it's secure.

Yeah, the heat coming from that steel on a sunny day is not trivial. :ack: I used a "high-temp" glue to adhere some 1" thick automotive foam directly to the steel and the glue didn't hold up all that well. Eventually went with household black silicone and that seems to work fine. I've since covered the foam in speaker box carpet.

So a cheese emergency took out your U-joint? :teehee: That's a new one for sure. :clapping:

I made mine from a product called Uni-strut. Got it free from the trash at work back in the day. It was one of the earliest mods I did (since the bed liner covered up the factory stuff). I installed it using a 2x4 as a backing to pinch the bed seam. It's so strong I swear you could almost pick up the truck from it. :D A benefit is that there are a multitude of attachments for uni-strut. Here you see them holding my co2 tank and fire extinguisher. And I used some smaller brackets under the truck to hold my spare axle shafts.

Have someone rock the wheel back and forth while you poke your head underneath. My track baar was loose but the onbly way I found it was to have someone turnt he wheel. Otherwise it all felt nice and secure to me. :dunno:

2wd MJ leafs if you can find a decent set. 2wd MJs sit about an inch lower than 4wd MJs. :thumbsup: Do not just pull leafs from your current pack. The spring wrap will get worse.

The housing and the gears on the 8.25 are better than the Dana 35, but the 27 spline shafts of the early 8.25s are nothing spectacular. What I'm saying is that I wouldn't pay for a 3.55 8.25 if I already had a perfectly healthy 3.55 Dana 35. I'd rather sink that money into a 44 or 8.8 or an axle with better gearing. But if I needed a complete axle, and there was a C-clip Dana 35 and an early 8.25 sitting there in the junkyard, I personally would go for the 8.25 in a heartbeat (and then be on the lookout for the 29 spline shafts/spiders).

Are the early 8.25s an upgrade? Sure, I guess. But not enough to justify the effort of swapping axles. The 27 spline shafts aren't much stronger than a Dana 35's and they are C-clip. If you're going to put forth the money and effort to throw another axle under your Jeep, go with the 29 spline 8.25 or Dana 44 or Explorer 8.8 (which might be what you're thinking of since the earlier drummed axles used to be confused with other vehicles' 28 spline 8.8s, but it turns out they too have the 31 spline shafts).