scguy

Lifetime payments is what I would be inclined to say, but a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. Which period had worse cars, late 70s or mid 90s?

I've heard they are similar, at least the 29 spline 8.25. However, I'm replacing a very worn Dana 35 with bad bearings.

Not counting other costs, like, gear oil, SOA conversion stuff, brake lines, etc I can buy a Chrysler 8.25 with 4.10s for $150 and a TJ low pinion D30 with 4.10s for the same, $150. That's $300 to go from 3.55s to 4.10s. Now, I could regear my D30, but ring, pinion, install kit, new carrier pushes it to ~$350-400, installing myself. Pick up a cheap 3.55 8.25 for $100, same deal, ring and pinion setup, install kit, $275. So, at the cheapest, $725-775 for 4.56s with a lot of labor. Decisions, decisions.

What are y'alls thoughts on 4.10s vs 4.56s and 32s? AW4, I'm going to be doing axles soon, 4.56s would cost a good bit more since I'd have to regear the C8.25 also.

Trying to stick to my "no LEDs" rule is getting hard. I might cave and get a small lightbar for a reverse/cargo light. Non LED lights can be so bulky.

These are on the way from@derf 4 should look good.

Stock height, I think SWBs look better, but lifted, LWBs all the way. A 7ft bed is nice, you can have a toolbox and still have more bed space than most sub 1/2 ton trucks.

Now flushing regularly for maintenance isn't a bad idea at all, but flushing a plugged heater core usually means a comeback within 1-2 months.

In my experience, if you backflush a heater core and get heat, that's a diagnostic step, not a fix. Pretty much every time, it will quit again, and heater core replacement will be required.

There's a white Roadmaster wagon that comes into our shop with 50k original miles. Gets a couple of hundred miles a year. White with the woodgrain. I'd love to have it, but they're not getting rid of it in this life.

For my money: Gearwrench. If someone else is buying: Snapon. Would you rather never be able to eat beef or pork again?

Pretty excited to have this almost done. Have lights on the way. I also ordered new spring perches from Barnes4WD for when I go SOA with a Chrysler 8.25. While I was at it, I ordered a new soldering station for work, but I'm sure it will get some MJ time as well.

My full HO cluster temp gauge never reads correctly, always high. If I unplug it, it sweeps all the way in one direction, ground it and it sweeps the other way. That should mean the gauge is fine. My problem is that it always reads high. Like reading 240F within 2 mins of a 40F cold start. Verified with an IR thermometer that it's reading much higher than the head. Simple fix, right? I installed a new temp sender (Standard brand). Same problem. I did use Teflon tape on the threads. Am I not supposed to seal the threads to allow it to ground better? I plan on grabbing an OE one next time I'm at a junkyard, but has anyone had this problem?

I have. There's very few within 3.5hr driving time and the one place that has the 8.25 isn't open on my days off.

Thought y'all might get a kick out of watching this:

Looking for a 97+ Chrysler 8.25 (29 spline) and a front D30 or TJ D44 with 4.10s, preferably in SC/NC/GA.

I prefer satin black in the engine bay, but either way, it'll look great.

Sounds like you got your work cut out for you. Bathroom work gets extensive quick.

As a mechanic be careful with the 11-13 3.6s. I've seen quite few of them require cylinder head replacements, even below 50k miles. Chrysler extended the warranty to 10yr/150k miles, it's a fairly common failure.

Always great to see another MJ being fixed. I, for one, wouldn't pull the wiring harness to change to MPI without swapping for a 4.0 at the same time. If you're doing that, go ahead and do a 4.0 HO swap. Find a donor XJ and just swap it all over.

Thanks y'all, ever since I got the truck, I've hoped it would be worthy of MJOTM eventually. 89MJ, you're welcome to come down and be a South Carolina MJ owner, there are literally several of us. Plus, no snow, minimal rust issues, just have to be able to handle the heat and the mosquitoes.

PM sent.

How's the project coming?

I've had a headache rack built for my MJ, and I want to put lights on top. The problem is, I can't decide what I want. Do I want more flood/wide lighting up top and then driving/spot on the bumper or vice versa? I think I'd prefer round lights on the bumper, (likely Hella 500s) and rectangular on the rack, but rectangular lights that are large enough are hard to find. I've been looking at the old KC lights, I love the yellow covers. The 6x9s seem too large. The 5x7s aren't easy to come by. Any suggestions? Edit- forgot to say this, I'm sticking with halogen only on my truck, no LEDs.

Just a note, your paint code PB3 is actually Spinnaker Blue Metallic, but must have been superceded by Intense Blue Pearl.