knever3

Well, it looks like I have my work cut out for me. I just got my new control arms in so they will be installed along with all new bushings for the upper control arms and sway bar. The new 3 inch coils and adjustable track bar will be put in too. :yes:

I don't know if it would help that much? I know the trans fluid gets way hot and the 200F water cools the trans fluid, and when the truck is cold the trans fluid helps heat the antifreeze to warm the truck faster. Myself I would use a trans cooler for around $35 and have Car Quest make some hoses up for me. Any machine shop or hydrolic hose place can make you hoses with good crimped on fittings. Do you have A/C? The extra electric fan in front of the trans/power steering cooler would be awesome!

I would try buying a rubber grommet for your antenna and drilling a hole in the rear of the cab facing the bed. Running the antenna wire up between the cab and bed and mounting the antenna to the box between the cab and your tool box if it fits. You will have to droop the cable so water doesn't run down into the cab just to be safe and silicone the grommet just for more added insurance. I would get the standing wave good before any of this permanent install. This pic is nice, the bracket would work great on the back of the bed too! http://jeepin.net/miscweb_album/images/DSC00567.jpg Find it here for $17.95 http://www.truckers-store.com/store-pro ... 55308.html And for antenna: http://www.amazon.com/FireStik-FS5-B-Tu ... 813&sr=1-7 Let us know what you come up with, based on budget I guess.

Whew, looks like a long road ahead. The turbo gauge is worth the rebuild, although it would be better with a nicer looking updated gauge cluster. A bigger turbo is a must if the engine can take the stress. More volume of air instead of more boost isn't hard on a motor, just creates more turbo lag. Thanks for the pics, haven't seen a diesel Comanche yet.

After swapping a Dana 35 from another Comanche I would do a Chryo 8.25 anyday. Yes you have to weld the perches on, but you get a way stronger axle. I had to have U-bolts custom made because no one carried 9/16" stock. It wasn't any cheaper, but it was a hassle. The 8.25 has a much larger axle tube and a stronger gear set. Plus the axles can be removed to do the wheel seals. The dana 35 you have to press the bearings off to change the seals meaning you have to buy all bearings races and seals. Not money well spent, I just cleaned mine up and are hoping for the best. If they leak I am changing my axle again and not putting a dime into it. Good luck on the build, I am jealous on the trans, I am still looking for another 5 speed donar to pull one off of.

Hilarious, well the thought of a belly mower comanche might be tempting, it is from my lawn tractor. My girlfriend helped me remove the mower deck and install the blade and chains for the winter since we had about 6 inches of snow in the driveway already. She is truely awesome. As for the mower I bought it and a ton of accessories of a lady that was in the middle of a divorce and wanted to sell all her husband's lawn equipment. :clapping: I got the mower, dozer blade, tire chains, wheel weights, lawn roller, dump box, and a 8 horse vacuum tow behind leaf catcher. I got a smokin deal and my friend helped me with his 27' car hauler and it was full from stem to stern! What a coincidence, the same trailer I borrowed to get my Comanche a year later! :cheers:

If you had stereo speakers in the doors it would be the coolest thing to mount two stereo talk back speakers in the OE locations behind the grills in the dash!!!!

It's good to hear that someone is still using CB's. I loved cb's when I was a little younger. I had a cheap radio shack but I had a linear amp and got around 50 miles with it in the car and at home. My friends had cobra's and uniden's and we loved to mess with them. I remember soldering in roger beep boards and echo boards, oh the days. I later had a uniden Grant XL with upper and lower channnels with the power turned down a bit and the modulation up, with the linear from time to time. One person had a Uniden President radio and wilson 1000 that I was so jealous of. Making only $60 per week I couldn't afford much but I could dream. Too bad Nextel's two way and cell phones in general wiped out the CB craze because I sure like it and would go back in a second!!!

Well, back at it again. I ordered new upper and lower control arms and all new bushings for the front end. I got a 64mm sway bar from a '93 Cherokee I am going to put in along with the axle. I repainted the Moog steering stabalizer because white isn't a good color for an undercarriage. Here are some pics of the paint job. The control arms should be here by the end of the week or first thing next week. Before the weekend would be great since I have it off. That covered thing is my truck, so hopefully I can unveil it soon, on four wheels though!

Nice job, keep up the great work!

It seemed like the Rusty's stuff was top notch but he was building an extreme truck with some off the shelf parts. This was his only time offroad so time will tell. I enjoy the show, but with all build shows you can see a entire car being built in 20 minutes. How it's made is my favorite, they showed how a VW deisel engine was made in about 10 minutes but they took 25 minutes to showcase how ski goggles were made. I wish these shows would wake up and actually do something about it. I like it when he says "I will take you step by step in detail how to put together a rear end with all the specialized tools" (In 10 minutes or less). The powerblock TV is one of the greatest things on tv, but what's with the stupid obnoxious guy on MuscleCar TV. Holy Crap Batmat is he anoying!

I just bought WJ arms for the lowers too. I bought the Dorman replacement ones because pressing the bushings in and out of the stamped steel control arms seemd like a lost cause. The WJ ones are stronger and have that built in bennefit of the tire clearance bend in them. I went ahead and ordered XJ uppers too.

I use a MAP gas torch. The yellow can with a auto electric trigger. It's cheap and it has lasted me a couple years now on one can, I also use it to start fires outside and in. It's not as hot as a real set of torches but it has worked for every nut and bolt so far. X2 on the WD-40, it is not a penetrant, use PB blaster or a mix of acetone and trans fluid 50/50. Work smarter not harder Scrooge McDuck always said!!

I am running 245/70/16 BFG all terrain tires which are a little small since I got the rear leafs installed. I plan on getting bigger tires but these are practically new. I will be using the bilstein shocks and I am going to see how the superlift 3" coils ride. If the coils are very stiff there won't be much compression so I guess I will have to get the front end installed and then flex it so see?

Ok, I just spent more time on the antenna. The design is poor at best, Metra used to be made here but the sticker is from, you guessed it, China. :mad: The plastic that the mast screws into is held onto the white metal base by the factory using a punch on each side to crimp the plastic. This does not work because mine pulled in and out of the base by 1/8" and wobbled side to side not to mention the stud is short. I managed to get it on the fender but I am not happy with it. I will take the one of my donar truck now I guess. Cheap junk I don't like, where's our pride America? :USAflag: I sure enjoy putting on a quality well thought out part and it's pieces like this that remind me of just that.

I think this is an excellent topic! I have been wondering the same thing. Personally I bought a kerosene torpedo heater from a friend at work for $25 with a gas can. You can't beat that! I have hot water radiant heat in the garage also so it stays 50 degrees year round. I just use the kerosene to get the chill out of the air. It does smell but it burns fuel very slow. I have natural gas and I wanted to pipe something in but the natural gas torpedos are so expensive, like $400 compared to $159 for a propane unit. They are crazy btu's too, like 150K, when I only need a small one. I don't want to put in a forced air because they take up so much space but the kerosene is stinky and very loud. If there was another option that was cost effective that would use natural gas I would think more about it, but the kerosene is cheap, fast, and portable since I have an outside shed I paint in. As they always say, choices, choices choices...

I have 3 inch new coils up front and hell creek 3 inch leafs in the rear. What bump stops should I use if any? Are they really necessary? Do they only protect the shocks? I will probably give in and buy the bilstein 5100 shocks and I don't want to ruin them if I decide to go over a curb or something. Would you buy the extended upper stops or the bolt in lower spring ones?

That's strange, I will take another look at it tomorrow, I'll let you know and yes I got the same one as in the pictures. If it doesn't fit I will take some photos. Thanks for all the replies!

So, what should I put in the hole in the fender then? It sounds like I am going to scam the antenna off the donar truck and hope the plastic mounting piece doesn't break.

Has anyone had any luck with a direct fit new antenna? I bought a Metra 44-cr72 from Crutchfield and the stud isn't nearly long enough. It's about 1/2" to short to install the top nut. I would like a new one but I haven't had any luck finding another. The plastic fender mount doesn't really line up either and the dealer says all their parts are discontinued. How can this be that a model was made from '84 to '96 and the parts are not available??? Thanks!

So he must have used the vin off the '97, I would think that the '88 would be cheaper to insure? Stick with the vin on the engine bay!!

I am looking for a good on road shock. I have a 4wd with 3 inches of lift. I am looking into the Bilsteins but at $320 for a set I am kind of leary. I just bought new Dorman WJ lower control arms, Dorman Upper control arms for a XJ, new poly sway bar bushings from Moog for my '93xj front axle. I will have the upper control arms welded so they are stronger and boxed in. I have an adjustable track bar and a Moog steering stabalizer that I will be installing too. So with all these new parts should I skimp on the shocks for a quality ride on road? I have been thinking of Sensa-tracs, but I don't know what part numbers to buy for the 3 inch lift. Has anyone ordered these before? What part numbers did you use? Are the bilstein 5100's a "off road" shock because they are high pressure nitrogen? I can get the sensa-tracs for a discounted price and I have used them in my previous Xj, but am I squabbling over pennies here? It would be easier to buy the sensa-tracs and return them if I don't like them unlike ordering bilsteins and sending them back and paying for shipping both ways. Thanks

This swap sounds like going fuel injection would be well worth it. That said you got the whole harness out of the firebird. If the motor is already pulled and you have to get another harness that would be a little difficult. Fuel injection is great, starts every time and runs great no matter what temp it is outside, rain or shine. I think you will be very happy about the swap and with all the support on this board you will get answers and pictures of any problem that you may run across. I would like to see some photos of the engine torn apart in a hotel though!! I am spoiled by having a 2 1/2 car heated attached garage...

I know this won't help your cause but I use Rain-X washer solvent on every car. With constant use I don't use my wipers much anymore. The water just goes away without the need of the wipers. I would clean the windshield good and use the regular rain-x before putting the washer solvent in the bottle. It just prepares the windshield better. I would agree with the ground. I have seen the wiper motors loose a ground because they have bushings. Just clip a wire onto the motor and ground it to the firewall and see if it helps. Sometimes the wiper motor board is bad but it's worth a shot.

Rust is the only factor in my book. Mechanicals can always be replaced but rust will never go away without major work. My MJ has only 39K on it but it sat outside for three years never driven. Much work later it would have been much easier and less costly to install a new motor. With that said all the work in the world won't keep me from getting mine on the road before spring!