Naterenfo1

yeah, but so will a compression test lol. You can do it either way! and both is better than one! :brows:

Generally, piston rings would be burning oil (burning smoke) so I would say no, not the piston rings

Ok, head gasket is bad. Compression looks just barely in spec. I would try and get the last compression reading. If you decide that you want to rip the head off, you can do it pretty easy with a basic set of hand tools. :wrench: When removing the head, don't mess with the valves. If you have push rods, when you pull those out find a nice flat surface on a table. Roll the pushrods on the table. If one, or any do not roll perfectly, replace them. Don't mess around with straightening them. Also, make sure that when you stack them up next to each other, stand them on end and be sure they are exactly the same distance (we are talking thousandths of an inch). When the head is removed, be sure to clean any and ALL passages on it. especially the passages on the top end (side with the rockers) it would be a good idea to keep a properly machined STRAIGHT EDGE with you, and a set of feeler gauges. This is a diagram to help you determine cylinder head warpage. Generally a good rule of thumb for warpage, is .001" per cylinder on the head. So, 4 cylinder engine, .004" maximum warpage allowed (single head). Don't just rip the head off and take it to a machinist. Here is a diagram, to show you which ways you should check for warpage. Now what good would checking the head do without checking the block? do the same exact test on the block, and hope to god that it specs out fine. With blocks, generally you can get a couple extra thousandths and squeak by, but if you plan on keeping the truck and/or beating the snot out of it, I suggest machining it. it might be a good idea to go with a thicker head gasket as well if either is slightly warped. choosing a place to get it machined? Don't you dare go to O'reilly, or auto zone, or napa or whatever. Take it to a legit actual machine shop. If you do decide to take it to a machine shop, take off all the valves, valve springs, valve seals, rockers etc, and be sure to number them so you know where to put them back. if they are machining it, may as well get your valves ground and your seats ground to. So be sure to bring in the valves with the head, not IN the head. anyway, thats about as much as I can help in one posting, and this is all if I am right about the head gasket, which I am pretty sure is the problem but hey, I could be wrong. Good luck! I will help as much as I can, be sure to check the drained oil for milky nasty un oil like qualities -Nate :cheers:

Blue smoke usually means you are burning oil. Are you sure the parts man gave you the right fuel filter? are you sure its connected all the way?

also your timing could be advanced/retarded. Maybe the timing chain hopped, or is worn out? I would check into that. Check compression and see how that all looks. Maybe you have a cylinder or two down. If all the cylinders are compressing low, or at least more than half, you could have that timing issue I talked about earlier. Start with the basics, engines need compression air and fuel to run properly. Check the spark of each cylinder, check plugs, wires etc. maybe a vacuum line rotted out and disconnected? Just ideas, Good luck! :cheers: -Nate

You could always do it up old school style, and weld on a strip of 1/4" cold rolled, then weld on a 1" section of 1" pipe on it for a handle! :D

Bad ground/Connection on fuel pump maybe? anything to do with bumps? Does it run rough on start?

Well! decided to spoil the surprise of the black powder coating on the custom bumper, so here's just a couple shots! I apologize in advance for the AMAZING */sarcasm resolution of my cell phone camera! here's a newbie shot of my stock bumper, getting ready to change the oil pan gasket! Right after initial fabrication! Holes, to allow mud, road slime, rocks etc to drip out, rather than hang on the inside of the bumper Ben's welding magic! Almost completed bumper! I was so happy to see it this way! makes it look much better than just a piece of M-Beam sticking in the front! Decided to pop in a Curt Manufacturing 2" receiver in front! Not really sure why, seeing as I know how to back up trucks, but hey! someday it could come in handy! used multiple gussets for strength and re-enforcement. So at least when the day comes, I will have some strength to back it up! Final product!!!!! What do you think?!? The tires/rims are off of my Ford Ranger, since the bolt pattern is the same, and the tires are meatier and more aggressive that were previously on the jeep, I swapped them to my Ranger for winter ;) Some of Minnesota's finest snow for years! Anyway, All of my thanks and appreciation goes to Neohic. He pretty much fabbed this whole thing himself. I just pointed which direction I wanted to go with it, and he took the lead and really really impressed me. Thanks again Ben! -Nate

I think you guys are right. Looks like I will be going for a 4.5" rough country kit, with adjustable track bars and control arms. Maybe even a 6" since I am getting the adjustable equipment anyway :D Thank you for all the input! And Ben! I called in to get the bumper powder coated- Even though I know the owner, and we are good friends, they still want close to $160 for the powder coating. So I might just end up doing the old rattle can method this spring. I would like to wait until I can get the powder coating though! Or at least a good quality tractor paint.

Am I still going to need to re-gear even with the 4.10 ratio? So all taken into consideration, I'm looking at zj upcountry coils, 2" spacer, and an SOA with some flatter springs. Anyone have any ideas for a flatter leaf spring? or is that just something I should look at when I am at the junkyard and make some base measurements? Rumor also has it that certain f-150 coils will also net that 4" lift but are stiff for on road. So I may just go that route

This truck is not a DD, eventually I would like it to be road worthy though! it has every electrical issue known to man, there fore blinkers, headlights, tail lights, stop lights are non functional :( it has a custom front bumper (THANKS BEN!!), and a tow bar set up that I use to get it to my "offroad" destinations. The reason for the 235's? I swap the wheels back and forth from my ranger to my jeep. My ranger rims have summer tires, and my jeep rims now have BFG A/T KO's and since my ranger is 2wd, it gets the KO's for winter, and when summer comes the jeep will get the KO's for offroading. hahah well! looks like I will be skipping the SOA!

Thanks everyone for your advice and help! :cheers: I forgot to mention tires! I would like to run 33's but 31x10.50 should be plenty fine too. Right off of the line though, it will be run on 235/75/15's because I just bought them :P So! added to the list: -Extended brake lines (chevy k1500 rears) -Adjustable Lower Control arms -Adjustable track bar -SOA conversion, I will do more reading about it, but I'm assuming you get about 2" of lift just by doing that -Chevy drop shackles. will this get me the other 2"? Otherwise I suppose I can also block the rear when I do the SOA conversion to help. -Sway bar links (with disconnects!) And if it really comes down to it, I will just fire up the good old fashion Ebay machine, and pick up a set of aftermarket lift coils to get that 4" front ;) with the 2 in blue, I might just go with what mvusse said, and pick up a 4" lift pack if this seems like a better idea to everyone. Do I need to go bigger on my lift to get that magic spot where 33's work? I really like the look of Pete M's 88, so thats pretty much what I am shooting for. Although I don't really want to mess around with the axle swaps in his build page quite yet.... And fender trims are totally fine with me! the truck doesn't have any sentimental value to me..... YET! Thanks again! -Nate

Well, I guess this is a bundle of questions wrapped up into one basic check up list. :help: I wanted to make sure with the MJ community, that this sounds like a decent lift plan. Overall I am looking for a total of about 4" My plan is to make my MJ one that can survive moderate trail rides, and handle light mud (like 4-12" of mud.) I also want to be able to cross light streams/creeks (1-3'). I am also looking to be cost effective. Not necessarily "cheap" but at least budget conscience. I am basing my build off of this posting http://www.lunghd.com/Tech_Articles/Sus ... t_Lift.htm Here is my plan: -ZJ front coils v8 (preferably upcountry if I can find them) and the stock isolators -1.75" coil spacers -Dodge dakota rear leafs, with light modifications (similiar to internet site) -Rough Country MJ 4" lift shocks -Bumpstop modifications So..... Now my questions are as follows.... Does this sounds like it will give me the right amount of lift? do I need to do anything about my control arms, track bar, steering components? what about my slip yoke? and do I need to change the position of my T-case and transmission to get proper drive line angles? :dunno: Any and all help is greatly appreciated :D P.S. 86 comanche-4wd- 2.8L- 5 speed- Stock drivetrain- D30 front- D35 rear- 4.10 gears all around Thanks! -Nate

Definitely check floor boards- I considered that a minor fix when I bought my MJ, and it is WAY harder to fix than I thought.

Go with the BFG's. I just ran into the same dilemma several days ago, and holy crap they are wonderful. Also take a look at the General Grabber AT2's. they are 3 times as good as the standard grabber. and are snow and ice rated. They also look like BFG's, and have a 50k mile warranty. My friend put 65k on his set of 235/75/15's with heavy off road use. Your looking around 110 a tire for them. But BFG's I think are the way to go. Good luck! -Nate

Good choice, that's the best part about glass packs. Cheap as heck. I threw one on my 98 ranger and I love it. Its not too loud, it has a nice sound to it, and definitely removes alot of back pressure.

Well, I know it has been a while since I have posted in my Tech/build page- I was wondering if an administrator could get this switched to the Builds thread? that would be pretty sweet. Anyway! there are big things happening to my MJ! aka "Chief" or as my diesel instructor likes to call it, and pardon my language " That @#$%ing Jeep Commander" Neohic (aka Ben) and myself have been quite busy working on a custom bumper for the front! which is nearly completed. I am waiting until it is all mounted and powder coated, so I can get the "shock" factor as Ben likes to call it. I also have been tearing the drive train apart and looking at components and ensuring they are alright for mudding/trail riding. I am also looking at purchasing a new set of tires within a month or so. Looking at BFGoodrich all terrain T/A KO 30x9.5R15 tires. We also have been doing clutches in school, so I tore out the transmission and checked the pressure plate, fly wheel, and clutch out and overall, it looks really good! which is nice! Anyway, I will keep you all in the loop and thanks for reading! -Nate

Good work! hard work and determination really pays off in the end! that stuff is a pain to get off of clothes BTW :mad: I am sure you found that out already! -Nate

How many points on that deer? :D

Definitely could be an exhaust issue. a plugged up catalytic converter could throw your engine off quite a bit. also: Air filter? make sure no rocks or anything ridiculous is in your intake. EGR issue? maybe something with the EGR is being held open, and releasing way to much exhaust back in. (is there an EGR in an 89? or is that pollution pump garbage in there?) good luck :waving: -Nate

Now that you've won comanche of the month, you know what that means? Time to bring it to the shop to show off! I still have to see it in person! I'm excited! Congratulations! :D :USAflag: :USAflag: :USAflag: -Nate

How did you go about doing that? I have the same problem :P nothing works -Nate

Well, back again today. Didn't get much work done during this MEA break on the comanche, I was busy with work and other shenanigans. Probably won't get much done for a while here, I will be fairly busy in the next week. Anyway, my progress from before just involved installing a Tow Bar I got off of Ebay. This will make it easy to bring to school to work on, even when critical engine components aren't working. Installation required drilling 4 holes, to mount 2 brackets. Simple enough? sure. but when proper measuring and spacing as well as having the brackets remain level, it can get a bit challenging. I will post pictures fairly soon. My project for my spare time now, will be installing an integrated trailer wiring kit. So when I use the blinkers/brakes on my tow vehicle, the rear lights from the comanche will turn on accordingly. I will try to take as many pics as possible, and probably even toss in a write up if all goes well. Stay tuned for more action! -Nate

True- I see you switched pics of the ol' eliminator in your sig! Did you bring her up to alec yet? Well, more progress today, I broke out the ol' tool set and motivated myself to start cracking on this damn oil pan gasket. Looks like the former owner used that fake make a gasket crap, and it blew out one of the edges. :mad: I spent a solid 2 hours working at the damn thing, still can't get it off. Ive removed the starter, and the exhaust to get this stupid thing to drop, and I am trying to pry it away with flathead screwdriver, and a scraper. Work is VERY slow. any suggestions to ease the removal? keep in mind its in a driveway with the front axle up on cinder blocks :headpop: ALSO: Made my own light bar from the junkyard, I will briefly describe it here, and then do a write up possibly? for those of you bold enough to drill a hole in your roof, its worth it! Basically I took a sport rack off of a 99 exploder, got it from the local junk yard for $5 bucks! I measured out a spot near the rear of the roof, lined it up, drilled a couple holes and bought some bolts and bolted it down! so easy! why didn't I think of that before? (I also used sealant around the edges, to prevent rain from damaging the interior!) I am currently in the process of installing my lights, and the electrical portion. SO... Basically nothing works at all electrical wise in my jeep. I am LOST. I cannot trace anything, and the mouse damage really didn't look too bad. several wires here and there were chewed, but not enough to expose wires. Can anyone send a picture of the grounding spot where the battery grounds to the frame? I am having a hard time getting a ground when I am wiring my own stuff, and now I am thinking this could be the culprit? oh BTW the Heater turns on, so I guess something works :P Thanks, -Nate

What if I were to do the hick redneck mud truck idea, and put the radiator in the truck bed? more engine bay room for sure