Thanks Pascal and forum members for creating and maintaining this community.
First, the username - I was simply going for - "the red one" but after I had registered, I see how it can also be read as "there done"
Why I picked up a CJ3A?
One, growing up, first was driven around in one as a kid and eventually learnt to drive, a CJ3A derivative in India. The family had a Mahindra Jeep (back when the Indian manufacturer produced only one model of the CJ3A and probably didn't have a model name) that was powered by a 62hp Peugeot Diesel. So lots of happy memories associated with this version.
Two, in the US, when I looked for an off-roader, I went towards the Japanese route - given all the issues surrounding build quality and reliability of modern Jeeps. So owned a Suzuki Samurai, a Toyota '85 pickup and now a 80-series Land Cruiser - all built up pretty well for off-road use. But always wanted a Jeep and after looking at the simplicity of the early CJs, decided that these were very different from their successors in design and build
What did I get?
A nice gentleman was parting with this beauty and seemed to know very little about what's inside, except that it has a Ford 302 V8. After spending time under the jeep and searching over the Internet, I was able to determine:
Transmission: Some version of the Ford Toploader 4-speed manual. The close gearing suggests it came from a truck.
T-Case: The casing seems to be a Dana 20 based on the model code stamped on it but the internals probably Dana 18 because it has two sticks - the passenger side goes H-N-L and the driver side stick only seems to have two positions, In/Out.
Front axle is a stock Dana 25, Rear axle is a stock 44. Based on the diff cover bolt tag, that says 44-11, the gearing is 4.27:1.
Has power steering and modified gauge cluster.
The odd thing is, as you can probably judge by the picture, that the front is spring over to clear the oil sump pan but the rear is spring under. And, one of my first orders of business would be to get a pan with a rear hump and bring the nose down. Other major under-the-hood upgrade planned is to switch from carburetor to TBI.
I have some other things to fix on it - primarily small leaks in both diffs and in the t-case. Cosmetically, I need to put a soft top on it and have to figure out how to put up the hardware for it that won't mess with the roll cage. And go back to the round headlights from the current set of ghastly rectangular ones. Also, throw some armor around it.
I plan on driving it around town but also occasionally tow it to trails. I live in the SF Bay Area and no OHV or off-road areas are within one hour drive distance.
With that, thanks for letting me in and look forward to learning from other members and as I build some expertise, helping other members
