ghetdjc320

I don’t at the moment but I’ll get one in the next few days. For the quick draw bellhousing, I suggested to Chad that they clearance it a bit for the firewall. On my LS6 it fits with the motor mounts in the middle position but I’ll be moving it to the full forward position to raise the transmission a bit more. Chad said they’d change the casting on the next run though.

If anyone is interested, here is a way to build a much more stout tailgate. The weight gain was negligible but the strength and panel flex is so much better than stock. Inside of the panels will be POR15’d before reassembly. Probably going to use 3m panel bond aside from a few strategic welds to prevent rust forming in the pinch seams, an issue that just plagues these Jeeps.

Inside tailgate panel straightened.

Hammer and dolly work on the tailgate for about 3 hours yielded very good results. Here is a before and after

Second coat finished and masking removed. It’s very important to remove your masking before the liner cures

First coat of Raptor is on

This is the pump I ended up grafting onto the sending unit.

Tailgate has been disassembled. Very tricky to straighten this one but I’ll take the time to get it done right. Added some pics of disassembly so you know what is needed if you decide to do it yourself. The entire underside of the bed has now been POR15’d with 3 coats plus 5 coats in the wheel wells. Rhino lining will be next. Will let that cure fully before flipping the bed over to do the rest. All the patch panels in the wheel wells and bed have been seam sealed with 3m heavy bodied 2 part sealer.

Finalizing some details on the underside of the bed before lining. Had to straighten many seams and dents from years of abuse. Wire brushed the whole underside and use a red scuff pad as far as I could into the wheel well areas then water blasted it all. Por15’d all the problem areas and will let that cure overnight before lining the underside. Once that cures it will be flipped over and the top side will be worked on. Also started disassembling the tailgate and separating the shell. This one is in seriously rough shape but I’ll see what I can do.

To me, the bed corners are a problem point for off-roading much more than the bedsides. Proper installation will avoid any rust in that area. After all, almost every single pinch seam on these rigs is an unfinished, water trapping rust point.

Yeah, that’s a good old D35. If the knuckles on the front axle are pre 90’ I’d grab those. Lots of good parts still there from what I can see

Body work has started. Doors have been stripped of absolutely all hardware down to the factory shell. Going to be running full size windows in these to delete the factory stationary vent window and give me a full size window for once. Also doing electric locks and windows. Managed to strip off the old bedliner paint that someone had shot over the eliminator graphics. That stuff is nasty to remove. Here is also a small sample of what to expect for the hood. And yes, those are original 98 5.9 ZJ louvers. Going to play around with fitment as the ones I’ve seen installed seemed too far forward. Further back is a bit more agressive. Seems like they were trying to avoid the hood support structure but I don’t mind modifying that to get just the right look. By the way, if anyone needs a set of manual window regulators that work I have two to get rid of.

I’d just recommend steering clear of the mass backing from acc. Mine turned to crumb in about 3 years and was an absolute mess.

Getting all sealed up

Had to pause to build a paint booth. Should be complete in a day or so.

I used dynamat followed by 3/4” dynaliner. Looks to me like that’s going to do the trick and work great

Also curious. I like the idea of that corner armor as well

I was thinking of something similar. With a good front and rear trace out, I could trim it from a generic mud flap

I’ve done a few

Bed cleaned up. Lots more body work left but the major pieces are all in.

If the top of the shackle points forward to the TC 10* as they’re suggesting that would be great. As it is, it’s pointing approx -25* if their statement is to have any logic.

That’s like saying there is still gold to be found. If you know where they are please let me know

True but royalties to bare the logo are a tiny percentage of the cost and relatively easy to apply for.

Bump

I haven’t heard any updates for some time but was wondering if anyone has this project on their radar. We could really use some and it doesn’t seem like it would be that difficult to reproduce. I do recall there was a member making the brackets for the rear splash guards. This post is somewhat self serving as I need some myself