pizzaman09

Well that is cool! Congratulations

I've been doing maintenance on my rear drum brakes. Because I was there I decided to get new rear parking brake cables. How is one supposed to prevent the cables from running on the rear leaf springs? The truck has a Dana 44 if that matters.

Only one way to find out, install them. Mirrors are not too challenging of a job, do it and report back with pictures.

That's a nice one!

I'd certainly replace the clutch and pressure plate while you have it open. The flywheel is less of an issue as these trucks use a single mass flywheel, there really isn't much to go wrong. I don't have an opinion on the salve cylinder other than if it isn't leaking, don't touch it. The new internal salve cylinders are hit or miss on getting one that doesn't leak. The throw out bearing you have doesn't look great. I'd replace it but I don't remember if they are separate from the slave cylinder.

I always have fun hauling around the big trailer for the autocross club.

Absolutely awesome!

Absolutely awesome! I see you have Fox shocks, what model are they and how do you like them?

Wow this one has seen one heck of a transformation! Well done and thanks for investing in putting it back on the road.

The ones I used were super simple, some sheet metal straps that were tied back to spacer blocks put around the window. You can see it from this photo kind of.

I've helped fix worse. There's lots of satisfaction in welding up bad and replacing it with fresh metal.

I just built a house and went all out with windows. I went with imported German Rehau brand triple pane tilt turn windows. They are amazing as they actually seal well, unlike a double hung window. I got them through a company in Cleveland, OH called Seemray who imports the windows. As @watchamakalitstated, proper install is key to having a good working window and one that is drafty.

I recently did a highway drive towing a trailer with stock 3.08 gears on 225 75 R15 tires and an AX-15. I decided to leave it in 4th and set the cruise control. The fuel mileage was atrocious but at least I wasn't at full throttle forever. I eventually shifted up into 5th, but basically needed to run flat out most of the time to maintain 70mph. I can totally understand wanting steeper rear gears, really I want a gear splitter or an extra overdrive unit.

I just purchased a normal master cylinder from O'Reilly's (nice metal one) and found it extremely easy to install and bleed. I used the metal braided line that came with the Novak adapter kit. Probably had it blead perfectly in a minute.

Well, I think there are two different concepts here. I don't have the hard front skid plate but rather the rubber cover connects to the front bumper, sits above the sway bar and bolts to either sides frame rail. It is an odd piece that has three large holes near the front to let some air through I suppose. It kind of protects the leading edge of the engine.

It looks like you saved that MJ from most certain death by overheating. Nice build!

Quite clean! Now go out there and get it dirty putting some miles on it!

If you replace the harmonic balancer, it's technically an easy job, but do make sure you take the giant thick washer off when you remove the bolt. I fought trying to pull the balancer through the washer for about an hour before I realized that I had a washer stuck to the front of the engine due to years of grease and gunk.

I have all of the factory skid plates, rubber mats and such somehow still at 277k miles. I dare not remove the gas tank skid plate as one of my mounting studs is broken off and it's a bit loose. I don't want to risk breaking the other studs.

Thanks for writing this info down! Good find!

Another FC at a local car show.

If it sounds like ball bearings bouncing around you might want to check your valve train. Stuck / bent valve, collapsed lifter or loose rocker can all make noises like that. Bad bearings are more likely a deep knocking sound.

After cleaning the Comanche up from the two times I drove it this winter, it has finally received new front brake calipers. Hopefully this solves the sticking caliper issues it has. Also started to work on reducing the oil leak out of the valve cover breathers. I drilled out the restrictor fitting and used a much larger tube to the intake manifold. It now pulls much harder vacuum on the valve cover and still idles at 650-700 rpm like normal. We'll see if it has any rev hang but I kind of doubt it. I had plans on putting a catch can in however there is now so much vacuum that it actually pulls from the air filter rather than pushes to the air filter.

I'm going to start with an unknown question, does the engine actually run and does it sound bad? I'm looking at those oil pictures and all I see is relatively fresh oil that does not have many miles on it. You could send an oil sample to Blackstone labs and they'll let you know what's in it. The reason I ask is, if it's running fine, drive it! I replaced the rear main seal on my 270k mile 4.0L, and was surprised to find the big end main bearing looked basically new, and it was quite evident that my oil pan had never been off. If your engine actually needs bottom end bearings, that really isn't that terrible of a job, and can be done with the engine in the truck.

Not the biggest truck to compare against but it puts into perspective how low Comanches are.