neohic

I don’t hate the doors. The can said “sunshine red” so I figured it must be in the same family as “sun faded red”.

Been picking at steps when I can. I’m averaging about one step per hour. Maybe 3/4 down the hill? There’ll be a bit more structure to build for the bottom landing. Aiming for coming down next to the rocks at the end of the retaining wall.

It’s hanging in there pretty good. There’s an even layer of dirt on it again that hides most of its brilliance. Picked up a small fuel tank that I can rework some to put under the driver seat like older model CJs. Price was right… not sure I need another project though.

Well… it’s getting to be that time of year again. It was 34° outside this morning and I needed to move some parts around. The top was wide open to get to so I reluctantly put it all back together. Made a good run though! Now… about those door bottoms…

H3RESQ’s old truck? Forever a personal favorite of mine.

Is this still a 4x4 or has it gone back to its roots as a 2wd? A NP242 could be rad in a street truck!

I dig it.

I love the interiors on those early Chargers. Kinda like a factory produced show car with the full length consoles and backlit gauges. Very nice!

That came out great!

I’ve been dreading this for years. The retaining wall behind the house has never been awesome. A while back when I moved the shed in, the plan was to replace the wall with a new one out of 6x6 timbers so it could sit on something more solid than the cinder blocks I “temporarily” put under it. It’s been a long weekend of digging. … and then I started on steps down to the shop. I’ve got a ways to go yet.

Went for a drive to fetch my new… older?… transmission today. My Bronco buddy arranged transportation to his place which is way closer to me than Denver where it started. He’s definitely a Ford guy and it’s easy to see that walking around his place. There’s the ‘69 highboy, ‘66 Mercury 2wd, his ‘74 Bronco, and a slew of parts stashed away everywhere. I was very excited to see the Bronco! It’s been a while, but this was one of the first bigger fabrication projects I had while working at a local 4x4 shop. Tons of tube work, a bunch of aluminum, and it’s all hidden under a patchwork quilt style body. This thing is very solid and after quarter panels and rockers it just might get painted… maybe… someday. Anyhow… the NP435. I got it home and had a closer look at it. Judging by the crazy shifter, it was clearly swapped into the early Bronco it came out of. The date on the case is 10/31/68. Overall, I’m happy with it. Still no clear direction as to when this is happening or what transfer case, but this is an awesome transmission that I’ll be able to swap over my bellhousing, clutch assembly, and even the pilot bushing should work. Right now I’m leaning towards keeping my current Dana 20 in lieu of its 2.03:1 low range. This trans will jump me from 25:1 to 57:1. Not sure how much more important 70 or 75:1 is to me for a bunch more added cost. We’ll see what other deals might come along, I guess.

I had my assumptions when I saw the XJ shackles.

Things were looking pretty great in the shop! … but this is still very terrible paint. It’s just shiny terrible paint now! It photographs well but the amount of runs and garbage that I never noticed really made itself known. We’ll see how things hold up.

I would think so. I also highly doubt it’ll get anything further. This thing still lives outside all day, everyday. Surely it’s leaps forward being better off than what it was.

The Poppy’s Patina gloss clear kit came in late last week. It’s pretty straight forward but the real allure to me was the idea of a wipe on clear coat out of the lack of overspray and the huge mess over my whole shop that goes along with that. Things went… okay. The finish is great but the supplied applicator was a bit frustrating to use. There are spraying instructions and, should I use this stuff in the future, I’d probably go that route. There’s really no turning back if you miss anything once you start. Their tag line could be, “Didn’t notice that ancient run under those two layers of paint? YOU’LL SEE IT NOW!!!” I did two coats over the course of a couple days. Lights, hood hinges and latches, badges, and the mirror where all pulled off. Sanding got a little away from me in a few spots but I think the CJ wears the “faux-tina” well. I’ll get it all put back together in the morning.

Thanks, Mike! We all know these things are never "finished" though. That's pretty much whenever the for sale sign goes back in the yard.

Picked at the little shed over the past few days. Feels huge inside for its size. Planter boxes next… eventually.

Honeymoon stage is over. This sad paint is duller than dull! Gloss clear kit has been ordered.

I was thinking something a little more subtle and just break up all the red.

Today was Comet day again! This thing is filthy. After the first “wash” the oxidation and dirt lifted really quick. All the fine lines show up immediately to show where to put more effort. Can’t stress enough that this is absolutely NOT something you want to do on a vehicle with even okay-ish paint. I got about half way through when nature decided it was a good time to give everything a good rinse. After getting back to it, the results where great! … then a trip to the car wash to get all the Comet out of the nooks and crannies. More signs of one of its past lives started showing through also. Once it all dried it’s very evident how dull the paint is. I mean… why wouldn’t it be after two Comet washes with a Scotch Brite pad? The plan this time is to order up a Poppy’s Patina wipe on clear kit for some UV protectant. Stay tuned on that. I’ve heard some really good things about their products. I’m also considering… something? Renegade like hood stripes? Maybe just painting the raised Jeep letters?

I swear I’ve seen this episode before.

Nope. Today was for today's projects. I'm in zero hurry to get on tearing into this thing again especially when I know that I'm too cheap to pay full price for new parts.

Well… I guess $100 was the right number. Not a huge fan of someday projects but here we are.

Trying to plan out some more projects on this thing. I threw a little more timing at the fuel injection kit since the 4.0s have more compression than the 4.2s and that really woke things up. Now I’m thinking suspension, transmission, and body. Thinking out loud here… I picked up a fresh can of Comet and Scotch Brite pads so I can freshen up the paint again. Thinking of doing a Comet wash and then seal it up with Poppy’s Patina wipe on clear coat. Stay tuned. Suspension… jury is way out on that. I’m hoping something falls in my lap in terms of a used set of YJ springs. Also stay tuned. Then there’s the transmission. I’ve got a line on a known good shifting Ford NP435 for cheap. These are a four speed with a 6.68 first gear that would take my crawl ratio from 25:1 to 57:1. The little bit of toodling around the woods lately already gets me yearning for lower gears. My T150 bellhousing is a bolt on affair that I could reuse my new clutch, linkage, and pilot bushing. I’d need to figure either changing transfer cases and finding an adapter or keeping what I’ve got even though the Dana 20s only have a 2:1 low. Novak offers NP435 to Dana 20 adapters that I could also swap to a Scout Texas pattern Dana 300 with the 2.62:1 low should I ever come across one of those. Or, I find a Jeep Dana 300 and matching adapter. Then there’s the overall length… After the bellhousing, my current T150 is roughly 9.375” long and the Dana 20 is about 10.5”. The NP435 with a Novak adapter totals out to 14.2” which would change my driveshafts around 5”. The rear would definitely need a double cardan at that point but total rear driveshaft length is still very doable. I haven’t nailed down a price for sure on the NP435 but I think I’m in the ballpark at $150. It just came out of a Bronco that had it swapped in 25 years ago. Obviously I’d have a look in it at bare minimum, but I trust the guy that it shifts fine. Anyhow… I think I’m looking for votes or advice here. Should I pick up the trans and leave it for a someday project? Should I live with the T150 since it’s fine for 85% of the driving it sees? If I go for the trans what transfer case should I pursue? … and I’m very sorry for a long post with only one picture.

That looks killer! Any recommendations on using the product or overall review? I've been considering something like this on my CJ after another Scotch Brite and Comet wash.