project: crunchy roll (53 cj3a)

[Squishymonster]

How do people feel about filling and idling with kerosene to clean the sludge? I think I'd need to take all 4 wheels off the ground and put it in 4x4 and 1st gear.

I use a ground based propane heater in the winter so if kerosene settles like gasoline I think it's a non starter for me.

I bought a couple gallons of engine degreaser today and I'm thinking of closing it all back up, filling with degreaser and idling it off the floor. Maybe doing that twice, flushing with water then filling with gl1 right away.

I like your recommendation of displacing the water rather than leaving it on the surfaces.

[Bruce_W]

  Your degreaser is probably a petroleum product, so is likely as dangerous as kerosene. Shut your heater off while you do this. Flushing with the degreaser probably won't hurt at this point, you've got to do something, right? I would not flush with water, you're using the degreaser to get rid of water, why put water back in to flush the degreaser out? Idle it in gear as you say, and let it drain overnight. Twice, if you like. ANY water still in there with any petroleum product will wind up in the bottom, the petrol will float on the water, unless it's stirred up well, then it will settle out with time.  BW

[Oilleaker1]

A good flusher is ATF. Automatic Transmission Fluid. Take it for about a 6 mile drive. Then drain it over night. Works very well in my stuff. When you ford water up to the headlights, it tends to get into things----LOL.

Wobbly front wheels that death wobble are almost always caused by worn out knuckle bearings and races. Lots more after that that creates play all the way up to the steering wheel can also cause the wobble.  Oilly

[Squishymonster]

I went ahead with the ATF and did a 6 mile ride - my longest yet! The new tires felt great and took all of the severe bumpiness out of the ride - the old tires were really rough and I was worried up until this evening that there might be bigger problems.

This was the first ride were I felt like I was in something that works and needs improvement rather than something that isnt road worthy. Though I dont feel confident in its reliability yet.

Still so much to do though. I need to get another gallon of ATF swapped in. I need to drain and fill my diffs. Unfortunately the gaskets and steering knuckle I ordered from KW got lost by fedex so I'm going to have to buy another set while I wait for them to figure things out.

I'm also going to start focusing on safety equipment. I have a horn and signal ready to install and want to get seat belts.

Up at my parents in WI I have most of  2a in parts so unless a conveniently located and priced tranny and xfer case pop up sometime, I'll grab those, rebuild, and swap them in when they are ready. Then rebuild the 3a's.

[Squishymonster]

I got my diff gaskets this week and opened the covers today. I figured I'd find water or air but I guess luckily I found lube. Did you ever see the movie Prometheus? My gear lube looks like that. Thick, black, and metallic.

I got the mating surfaces all cleaned up and I'm going to put some new junk lube in there for some miles and just keep changing it a few times over the season to get the crud cycled out

I also have a very loose set of kingpin bushings and replacements for those. Pretty excited to see how much play those take out.

[Squishymonster]

And... just got back from another successful test drive. About 6 miles again. Wife's first ride!

Made a small distributor timing adjustment so I could reduce choke.

Thought I had a fuel issue because I couldnt get it to run for long when warming it up for today's test... just turns out last test drive I parked it with 30 seconds of fuel in the tank (or filter). I had a spare tank on both rides just in case.

[Squishymonster]

I displaced Crunchy for the evening to make room for bumper/crossmember painting. Turned out pretty well.

My frame horns on both ends are flared out so I need to think about heating and squashing them down. The back mounting tabs were torched off at the bend by a PO. I bought a pair of weld hinges that are just the right size to trim down.

[Squishymonster]

Btw both crossmembers are from Kaiser Willys - their US made variant.

[Squishymonster]

So I think step-next is attaching the front bumper which requires a little frame smashing. Shouldn't be a big deal.

Then the rear bumper requires some new end-tabs be welded on since a PO cut the originals off for some reason.

Then I think I'm going to work my way upward - I have a new rear seat, and 4 lap belts to install. But the bed is pretty cupped, the tailgate resembles a hard-shell taco, and the right fender was welded to the bed crooked by someone's five year old. So i have a lot of work to do back there just to get the seat in, and get my spare gas can out of the rear foot area and onto the rear of the vehicle.

I bought a Harbor Freight portable hydraulic bender yesterday that I'm going to try getting the bed a little straighter with. I am also going to pick up some lengths of round and square rod to force through parts of the tailgate to bend it straight. I'll try to photo or video some of those efforts.

Also I need to swap a headlight, and wire a bunch of stuff. I could go in a hundred different directions right now since the mechanicals are working.

[Squishymonster]

Front frame bent into shape and some welds cleaned up. Bumper installed.

Rear frame cleaned up as well and straightened out enough to clear the bumper. Test fit it but I need to weld on new frame tabs.

[Squishymonster]

Oh yeah. Swapped a dead headlight.

[Squishymonster]

Bumpers installed. Tire carrier removed - mostly because the fender is all mashed and cracked underneath.

I did mar up my bumper paint a little in the back right but I can always touch it up.

I'll also try to post a pic of the taco tailgate that I want to straighten up. My goal there is to work around to the rear right fender because its attached very loosely and sagging / bouncing.

[Squishymonster]

I went for a short 3 mile ride to warm up the ATF and drained it right when I returned. The old stuff was a well flowing mud color. It definitely picked up a lot or most of the sludge but needs another round.

I also replaced the xfer case drain plug. The new one fits much better and doesnt collide with the gearing. I'll include a comparison photo of the old and new.

I mounted a gopro and get a good hood angle and recorded my ride. I was intending to get audio for people to critique but I unwittingly put the GP inside a waterproof housing so the sound didnt come through. I'll capture again later in the week.

I am pretty sure the transmission and xfer case are louder than intended. The engine sounds pretty good though.


I turned on my phone GPS and cruised at 40mph but it's fairly loud there. It's much more pleasant at 30.

During my ride my xfer case slipped into neutral while rounding a 90 degree turn. Took me a second to figure out why I could accelerate. The xfer case engage/disengage lever likes a little pressure toward the dash to keep from rubbing gears. Without pressure I can distinctly hear it lightly spinning against a gear. I will probably bungie it for now.

I also installed a new air vent as mine was missing upon arrival. I wired it shut since my adjustment clip is busted off at the welds. Still it's a nice upgrade. That little hole let's in a surprising amount of air.

The second photo is the transmission drained of ATF after the first flush. Still messy but much better. Round 2 is in and waiting for its maiden voyage.

[Squishymonster]

That plug was hitting a gear inside the xfer case and I think it's interesting that you can see the chunks of metal missing get bigger consistently in the direction it threads in.

I would test drive it in a loop around my house / yard and sometimes after stopping and starting again something would bind like the engine was under load. And the first time I installed that plug myself I noticed it physically move the driveshaft while tightening it down.

It's fixed now but I dont think I'd have ever figured it out except by accident.

[squidtone]

The Jeep looks great....