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bench out....buckets in (finally)


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Spent some quality MJ time this weekend. First, on Sunday, went up and met Sean (UNL1MTD) and tore apart his parts MJ…..got the tranny, TC, driveshafts, and some miscellaneous other stuff :cheers: Then yesterday, I got all inspired and mounted up the XJ buckets I pulled out of the junkyard last year. They’ve been sitting under the house all this time because I needed a driverside bench bracket. Mine’s trashed, and luckily Sean had a good one. Suffice to say, swapping brackets is a PITA, especially doing them in the driveway on a sunny 94 degree summer day. My weapon of choice was the angle grinder and punch to get the rivets out (almost set my lawn on fire, though….)

 

The XJ rocker buckets do indeed sit a couple inches higher, but they’re not so bad. I’m only 5’8” and still have plenty of headroom, but if you were taller I don’t think it would be comfortable. I got the rockers because they were in great shape, and black (you know how hard it is to find black interior parts???). If I decide I don’t like ‘em that high, I’m gonna cut and weld/bolt the front bracket to bring the ride height down some, but so far I like them the way they are. I just have to remember to duck my head a bit getting out (already found that out the hard way). Here’s a couple pics….I still need the bracket cover for the driver side, but you can see how the bench brackets bolt to the slider.

 

I also repainted the grill and headlight bezels, and mounted the front plate with a plastic bracket I got from Sean also.

 

Jeff

 

Driver side:

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passenger side:

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driver side bracket (missing the cover):

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passenger bracket:

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I love spraypaint:

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Yeah, I got that on, but it turns out I need the rear plastic clippy thing that the handle attaches to. Can you pull that off before you send the MJ away?

 

Jeff

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Yeah, I got that on, but it turns out I need the rear plastic clippy thing that the handle attaches to. Can you pull that off before you send the MJ away?

 

Jeff

 

Yea, you mean the part that is attached to the roof of the cab? I'll go pull it tonight.

 

I know its impossible, but I wish you had your buckets installed when you were up. I need to test sit before I pull the trigger on that project. I definitely want the feel of buckets, but I'm afraid I'll be too tall.

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I think they'd be too tall for you. The one minor thing I've noticed (other than thwacking my skull on the door frame getting out a couple times) is there's alot less space between the seat bottom and the bottom of the steering wheel (even with the seat rocked the whole way back). Not so much an issue now, because it's summer and I'm wearing shorts, but come wintertime, with long pants/long coat it may cause problems.

 

It sure is different sitting that high up inside the cab, though. Feels a bit "tipsy", even though nothing has changed but the seat height.

 

Oh, and I also had the flip the rearview mirror over so I could sight out the rear window. Wish I had put the CC sticker on the bottom of the window, not the top across the center. It's right in the sightline now.... :D

 

If I end up getting down to Pat's place anytime soon, maybe we can meet up somewhere and you can do a test-sit.

 

Jeff

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Hey Jeff, the seats look great! Sitting higher feels weird at first, but after you crease your skull a few times, you get used to it. :cheers: Sorry I couldn't find any regulation MJ bucket brackets for you, but I'll keep looking. Sooner or later a set will be available at my local yard. The seat height using these is just about the same as the bench. One question though, seeing how meticulous you have been in your past projects, how come you didn't prime and paint the brackets?

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I just stabbed them in in a fit of "git-'er-dun" emotion jamminz.gif . I got the bench bracket I needed from Sean (that was holding up the whole install), and decided to see how it all fit up.

 

Everything is coming back out, once I determine the final ride height, and getting sandblasted and repainted before it goes in for the final install.

 

I was just so giddy that I finally got 'em in that I had to post up some pics :D

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Nice work. Looks like they're in pretty straight. Although I'm not a fan of black (too hot in summer for me) they go well with your interior. Are you going to install a full center console too?

 

The driverside has a tiny lean to it toward the door, but I think I lost the little shims/washers for it when I pulled the bench out....I space it back up level on the final install.

 

The black vinyl bench absolutely sucked in the summertime, and I'm glad the seats are fabric. Hopefully the won't get as skin-burning hot.

 

Probably won't install the full center console, but I noticed driving it to work today that I need some kinda armrest in the center for longer trips. I might homebrew something or adapt something out of the junkyard for inbetween the seats. I kinda like seeing all that floor now....kinda like riding in a YJ...kinda....:)

 

Jeff

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on the issue of the seats leaning,

 

i didnt do my buckets swap i bought it that way but there's probly bout 4 washers on the outside of the drivers seat to make it sit level... i just remember to put htem back in the places the PO decided

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I noticed when I put my buckets and center console in, that if the seats were not exactly level, the side bolsters would rub either on the center console or the back pillar when they were all the way back. Only took a shim washer or two on one side to correct.

 

Interior.jpg

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Yes, it sounds like too far inboard. Using the regulation MJ bucket seat brackets, I get a clearance of about an inch on both sides of the seat. Also the seat back clears everything okay when tilting it forward.

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