Limeyjeeper Posted June 25, 2019 Share Posted June 25, 2019 It is great to see how far you have come on a limited budget. Great build! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted June 25, 2019 Author Share Posted June 25, 2019 51 minutes ago, Limeyjeeper said: It is great to see how far you have come on a limited budget. Great build! Thank you! I really appreciate the kind words. It’s come a long way from when I got it for sure Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted June 30, 2019 Author Share Posted June 30, 2019 I went under my truck the other day to change the spark plugs and collector gaskets and discovered that the starter had cracked in half. Luckily it had a lifetime warranty so I got it changed today. I’ve still been fighting spark knock issues and an issue with the carb so now I’m strongly considering adding fitech efi. It’ll make it get better gas mileage and run better than with the carb I just need to justify the cost to myself Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted July 25, 2019 Author Share Posted July 25, 2019 This past weekend I started mocking up the new front accessories that I got for my truck so I can run ac at some point. The old ones hit the hood so I got the accessories from a 1995 Chevy pickup and they fit much better. I cleaned up the brackets using the wash box at work and painted them. They are now mocked up and I just need to install the new alternator, idler pulley and ac delete. I’ve also fixed some of my running issues by dialing back the timing a little so it runs much better. I’m hoping to be able to bring it to school with me when I go back in a couple weeks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete M Posted July 25, 2019 Share Posted July 25, 2019 I love the swap-ability of chevy stuff. is that coolant hose as kinked as it looks in the pic? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted July 25, 2019 Author Share Posted July 25, 2019 1 hour ago, Pete M said: I love the swap-ability of chevy stuff. is that coolant hose as kinked as it looks in the pic? I do like how easy it is to swap stuff around for sure. It has a slight kink to it but I’m more than likely going to try another hose. I just tried that one to see how well it would fit and it clears everything but has a slight kink Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kansashogan Posted July 25, 2019 Share Posted July 25, 2019 I put a Holley Sniper on my 350 and seen around a 2mpg increase. It still sucks but is better. Have you tried just setting your total timing? I also have Vortec heads and I set my total timing at 34 degrees. That seems to be a consensus among the sbc gurus on the web. Don't even worry about the initial timing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted July 29, 2019 Author Share Posted July 29, 2019 On 7/25/2019 at 4:16 PM, kansashogan said: I put a Holley Sniper on my 350 and seen around a 2mpg increase. It still sucks but is better. Have you tried just setting your total timing? I also have Vortec heads and I set my total timing at 34 degrees. That seems to be a consensus among the sbc gurus on the web. Don't even worry about the initial timing. My total timing is now set at 34 degrees which helped a lot. The shop I brought it to had set it a little higher which was causing the pinging. Mine has been getting around 10-12 mpg around town which isn’t great but it could be worse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted July 29, 2019 Author Share Posted July 29, 2019 I got a new radio installed in my truck yesterday and it is a lot nicer than the one that it replaced Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kansashogan Posted July 29, 2019 Share Posted July 29, 2019 I don't feel so bad now. I was getting around 13 pretty consistently and I was sure I should be getting more. You would think we should get more since they are so light weight. I have gotten as high as 16mpg one time with the Sniper. For what it's worth you won't recoup your money in gas savings but it is nice to go out and fire it up and take off right away when it is cold out. By the way, good job with your truck, I am glad young guys are still interested in modifying vehicles and having fun and learning new things. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted July 29, 2019 Author Share Posted July 29, 2019 9 hours ago, kansashogan said: I don't feel so bad now. I was getting around 13 pretty consistently and I was sure I should be getting more. You would think we should get more since they are so light weight. I have gotten as high as 16mpg one time with the Sniper. For what it's worth you won't recoup your money in gas savings but it is nice to go out and fire it up and take off right away when it is cold out. By the way, good job with your truck, I am glad young guys are still interested in modifying vehicles and having fun and learning new things. I was hoping for better mpg out of mine too but oh well, it was meant to be a fun vehicle. I do want to do efi one day but I think I’m going to hold off for right now. Thank you for the kind words, it’s been a lot of fun and I’ve learned a lot from it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMO413 Posted August 3, 2019 Share Posted August 3, 2019 On 7/28/2019 at 7:33 PM, 88mjsally said: I got a new radio installed in my truck yesterday and it is a lot nicer than the one that it replaced I have almost the same head unit and really like it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted August 24, 2019 Author Share Posted August 24, 2019 After 3 long years of building I finally got my truck to make the four hour drive to clemson. It honestly did much better than I expected and didn’t give me any real mechanical issues. It’s still having turn signal and wiper issues related to the steering column switch being messed up but that’ll get fixed eventually. I got a headlight harness installed in it and I’ve ordered a new transmission pan to replace my warped one that leaks everywhere. I’d like to start work on installing ac in it as well once I figure out how to make the gm compressor work with the factory Jeep ac box Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete M Posted August 24, 2019 Share Posted August 24, 2019 that's a huge milestone. not sure either of my MJs would make a 4 hour trip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted January 23, 2020 Author Share Posted January 23, 2020 Its been a long time since I've posted on here but I have been working on the truck and working through some of its issues. These are some of them and what I did to fix them: -The alternator wasn't charging the battery at an idle and my first thought was to change out the cheap alternator for a better one but after changing it out in the school parking lot, I still had the same problem. So I pulled the new and old alternator as well as the battery and got them all tested. They all tested good so I spent more time troubleshooting and replaced the old charge wire with a bigger one and traced a bunch of wires which still didn't fix my issue. I finally called a mechanic that I worked with over the summer and he told me to run a ground wire to the alternator and try that which fixed the issue. -Speedometer bouncing caused by a bad cable. This was much easier to fix although I had to order a couple different cables before I finally got one that worked well. Luckily I can use a stock MJ 2wd speedo cable since the TH350 speedo cable has the same thread on the transmission. -The transmission pan wouldn't stop leaking so I ordered a new cast aluminum pan hoping that would fix my issue but it still leaked when I used a rubber gasket. I took it back off and used some trans pan sealant which slowed the leak down a lot but it still seems to be leaking a little bit. -The turn signal issues that I was having from the bad switch in the column I was able to fix by swapping in a new column. I found a black tilt column in a junkyard that had less miles and was in better shape than the one that I had. The signals finally work, I just want to swap out the black wheel that came on the column out for the grey one from my old column. -Oil pressure issues- I was having issues with the gauge reading no oil pressure but after checking with a manual gauge I discovered that I had a bad sending unit and a bad gauge so I swapped in a new cluster and sending unit. I am planning on painting the truck this summer so my dad has started to prep a new tailgate for me since the one on my truck now is really beat up. I also am looking into swapping my TH350 trans out for a 700r4 so I can have overdrive and less ATF everywhere. Ill try to update this thread more this year and ill post up some pictures soon as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted January 24, 2020 Author Share Posted January 24, 2020 Here’s a few pictures of my truck currently including the new column and cluster as well as the grey wheel I need to put back in the truck. I cleaned the wheel up today and it looks almost new other than being smooth from use since it’s the trucks original wheel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete M Posted January 31, 2020 Share Posted January 31, 2020 what color are you looking to paint? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted January 31, 2020 Author Share Posted January 31, 2020 1 hour ago, Pete M said: what color are you looking to paint? More than likely I will either stick with the factory color or some other shade of grey, I don't really want to do a full color change on it right now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pete M Posted January 31, 2020 Share Posted January 31, 2020 the factory gray will certainly make things look more uniform and finished since then all your door jams and engine bay and the like will match. plus it's a good color. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted January 31, 2020 Author Share Posted January 31, 2020 6 minutes ago, Pete M said: the factory gray will certainly make things look more uniform and finished since then all your door jams and engine bay and the like will match. plus it's a good color. Ideally I will stick with the factory color but since its a metallic my did isn't sure if he will be able to paint it. I may go with the same color without the metallic or the newer jeep jk anvil grey color but then ill paint the door jambs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted February 6, 2020 Author Share Posted February 6, 2020 Today I decided to make myself a trailer wiring harness using the junkyard Cadillac connectors and a dual 7 pin/ 4 pin trailer connector. I plan to tow a boat with my truck in the near future and I’m going to put brakes on the boat and a controller in the truck so I can make sure I have plenty of control. The boat only weighs about 3k pounds but I want to make sure I can panic stop it when needed. I’m also going to be swapping in a newer booster and master sometime soon. I made the trailer harness using solder and heat shrink connector which seem to work pretty well. I’m waiting on the trailer light tester to come so I can make sure it all works. I also made a couple extras that I’m planning to sell to someone for about what it cost me to make since I had the parts to make 3. The second one I made ended up even shorter than the one I have pictures of. The hardest part was swapping the pins in the connector around but I ended up using a small flat head and a pick to get them out and back in the right places Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeep Driver Posted February 6, 2020 Share Posted February 6, 2020 I assume you know you'll need an -electric over hydraulic- system. Make sure when you buy a controller that you get one that is compatible. The P3 controller is the best your money can buy. Also......Ground Ground Ground.......your current system is not sufficient. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted February 6, 2020 Author Share Posted February 6, 2020 8 minutes ago, Jeep Driver said: I assume you know you'll need an -electric over hydraulic- system. Make sure when you buy a controller that you get one that is compatible. The P3 controller is the best your money can buy. Also......Ground Ground Ground.......your current system is not sufficient. I had looked at that brake controller before so I might have to consider it some more. I was planning on doing electric over hydraulic, I already found a kit that will work with my boat trailer. Most of the ground wires on my truck have already be upgraded with 2 gauge battery cables when I did the v8 swap. I pulled a 21 foot canoe trailer over the summer with the truck and it did fine towing it even without brakes but I still want to install them for extra insurance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SatiricalHen Posted February 9, 2020 Share Posted February 9, 2020 I’d like to start work on installing ac in it as well once I figure out how to make the gm compressor work with the factory Jeep ac box A/C is fun, I’ve installed an aftermarket system in a 1970 ford, and I converted my Comanche over to r134a using bits and pieces from here and there. It’s got the compressor, drier, and lines from a 95 Cherokee, but the expansion valve, evaporator and condenser from factory. When I get around to pulling the dash out it’ll end up with a full AC system from a 95(well new parts, but made for a 95 Cherokee), but at the time I was being cheap and lazy. It works well for what it cost. A/C stuff isn’t bad once you get past the initial thought of it. I can’t count the number of compressors and other AC parts I’ve replaced on cars by now. Might have a little issue with it being carbed sometimes they like to stall out when the compressor kicks on if they aren’t just right. Had a CJ come in one day that had aftermarket AC that would make it stall out when the compressor kicked in. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88mjsally Posted February 22, 2020 Author Share Posted February 22, 2020 This week I got new led bulbs for my taillights and reverse lights installed. I also put in a better set of taillights since my old ones were cracked and in bad shape. The leds are much brighter than the old bulbs so hopefully I’m more visible now. I need to figure out how to hook up the reverse lights now on my shifter which will hopefully happens this week. I also went to the junkyard to try and get a 95-96 xj dual diaphragm booster and master but both of the ones they had were junk so I’m just going to order new ones. I got a proportioning valve though so I can delete the rear valve on my truck since it doesn’t appear to be working. Hopefully that’ll make my brakes better because they have never worked all that well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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