Pete M

made mine from 3/4" plywood and covered it with automotive carpet. now I can attach things to it like my fire extinguisher and first aid kit. :D

gears, gears, gears. especially if you have 3.55 gears (which came with the 4spd manuals)

pull out the resistor pack and take a look at it. they have a habit of rusting horribly.

yup. pair of aussies will help get you up your drive. :thumbsup: if I remember right they are under 300 each and install pretty easy.

on second thought, i think I'd do the lockers first.

I would get a SYE and a stronger rear driveshaft. (and if I was cracking open the t-case, I'd look into the 6 planetary gear set and wide chain conversions you can do from junkyard parts. not because it's absolutely necessary, but because it's immensely cool and does make the t-case stronger. :D ) then I'd get a locker for the both axles and armor for the undercarriage. having the grip of lockers means less wild tire spinning and more control.

how much budget do you have for this?

you're are correct. I must have been remembering an article on flipping a rear axle to make it a high pinion rear axle. :thumbsup:

maybe we could all work out a share program where we mail it back and forth across the country to whomever needs it :thumbsup:

yup, a very common failure point. they tend to rust out pretty bad.

well, we have this: http://comancheclub.com/topic/12163-acronyms/ but i'm guessing you're referring to the company names. most of them can be searched for by using their acronyms. :thumbsup:

that bites :(

does this mean you've got a story to go with it?

if I remember right from reading past questions about this, flipping a rear axle over to make a front axle leads to oiling issues and burned up bearings. though it might work if you never go faster than 10 mph or farther than 1/4 mile at a time (ala what incommando said).

staying spring under with some 4.5" leaf packs would probably work better if you tow a lot.

depending on how big they are now, you can go up in tire size a bit without any hassle. up to 30" fits great (you'll have to do math to find the tire's diameter in inches since pretty much all 16" tires will come in the metric numbers). some 31s fit too.

yeah, cleaning mud outta your frame and drums just plain sucks. :(

normally I say 'welcome to the addiction', but it would appear you've already got MJ/XJs in your blood. :D

welcome! :waving: how much do you like to do body work? what is the end goal for the truck?

if it worked fine before and is smooth with no scorch marks on it, the flywheel should be just fine. :thumbsup:

there are some minor differences earlier on, depending on what you want to do. the biggest is the change in the radiator area from 86 to 87+ the rad supports and hood latches changed. these (plus the firewall got a bit of a bump in it) were done to clear the new 4.0 engine going in. oh, and in 91 they changed up some of the front fascia/grill pieces and how they went together. there are some differences in the rear frame between shortbeds and long beds. that's all I can think of with respect to the body. these trucks are like lego. you can get a solid body and make it into the trim level you want if you can find the right pieces.

he had to drop his. it was the only way to fit in his tiny garage. :rotf: and hide that he could only afford half a front wheel :yes:

I'd love to build a fully linked rig :D but how many ZJ/WJs came with manual windows, manual trans and vinyl seats? one of his key requirements is simplicity.

I like the tire carrier designs on these 2. I think having dual pivot points and four points of contact will make for a much stronger design

still trying to find a way out there. :( the last plan fell apart, but the new plan is that I buy a late model XJ (for my uncles project ) from CO and use that as an excuse to fly out and visit. :D