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Scott's Build Thread- 85 CJ7

181K views 2K replies 85 participants last post by  Jim1611 
#1 ·
This will be a very slow thread! Since Clay and I are building his 5 I am not really building my Jeep at this time, but there are a few things that I am doing along the way. I can't put them in Clay's thread, so here is mine.

Her name is Lizzie. She's a 1985 CJ7 I got from a guy up in Hawkinsville, Georgia. She had sat in the woods for 5 years until I saw her and talked the guy into selling her to me. I got her for $1750. So far Lizzie has received a bench seat (from a Commando), MC2100, some gaskets, 2.5" RC suspension lift, ProComp 9000 shocks, and all poly suspension bushings. She is Nuttered and runs well. I am redoing the spare tire carrier and she just got some new wipers and dimmer switch.

Today I was replacing a wheel cylinder when AJ and his son JR pulled up. They helped me bleed the brakes and we discovered my Master Cylinder was bad. So we started to rebuild it. Used to be you could do that for about $3, buying a seal kit, but we discovered you can't find the seal kit anymore. So bought a reman master from Auto Zone for $18 plus the core.

Here are some pics of AJ working on the old master before we learned that we couldn't rebuild it, and some more pics of bench bleeding the new reman unit.

This is JR. He's as good a mechanic as his dad, AJ. Sitting next to JR is the old master cylinder disassembled.


To disassemble the master you have to remove the snap ring where the piston rod goes into the body. Then you carefully pull everything out. There are two plungers. The second one will be inside the body of the master. We used air pressure to force it out.


AJ buffing the lip so the lid will make a good seal.


Cleaned up and ready for the lid.


AJ used this tool to clean the bore of the master. The metal rod has a slot in the end. He used some sandpaper.


Wind it up on the rod.


Insert it into the bore and slowly spin the rod, cleaning the bore.


This is when we discovered we couldn't find a seal kit and opted for a reman. So we changed gears.


Here is the new reman master. I stuck it in my vise to prepare it for bench bleeding. I want to polish the lip so the lid will seal well. I used a metal file to do this. Keep it flat at all times. Protect the inlets from dust and trash.


Lots of filings.


Blow it out and level it in the vise.


Attach the bleeder nipples and tubes as described in the directions. Keep the ends of the tubes away from the inlets inside the reservoirs. You don't want to keep recirculating the air that will pump through the tubes.


Add clean fluid to the reservoirs, making sure the ends of the tubes are covered. Add fluid as needed to keep the tubes covered.


Push in slowly on the piston to begin the bleeding process. This will take you around a half-hour, more or less. Go slow. The directions say to use short strokes.


Bubbles!


Once all the air is removed top off the reservoirs, remove the tubes, and cap the nipples. You are ready to install.


Sorry for the super long post! But that will be all for awhile! :D
 
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#357 ·
I'm sure he will post some pics here too. He mentioned he is busy today. I know yall giving him a hard time is all in good fun, but it only makes sense to have a thread over there since there will be more Cherokee owners for input. Especially on the particular issue that may come up. Let's just make sure he keeps going on HIS Jeep too.
 
#358 ·
Okay... okay... you got me! But let me explain. Wifey had me busy all day, preparing for our annual Chirstmas parade. I had to SNEAK into the house and load pictures to the forum, and I had to HURRY! Getting busted wasn't an option. My wife is a REAL TASKMASTER when she gets into one of her work modes, and there is no help for it. The BEST you can do is HUSSLE! I think I lost 11 pounds today. I posted pics on the XJ forum because I thought "They" would make comments about what I bought, and I wanted the input. But, ironically, and I hope it's not an omen, the ONLY comments I got were from my CJ BUDS! Virtually no XJ comments as of this moment.

The GOOD news is that AJ came over and gave me a Thumbs Up on the Cherokee, and Beth says she wants one! Really?? Thinking of a name for my new business... The Jeep Spa.

Ya'll still want pics, or have you already seen them?

The 7 is still on track. No work this weekend because it is a busy weekend. Parade today, Church here tomorrow. Looks like Wed/Thurs for 7 work.
 
#359 ·
I call BS, you don't even kow ANYONE IN THAT SECTION.
You told everyone that reads your thread, about what you bought. Then you go to the X whatever section and post pictures. Like I said BS.
No, I don't want to see them.

Bill
 
#361 ·
I call BS, you don't even kow ANYONE IN THAT SECTION.
You told everyone that reads your thread, about what you bought. Then you go to the X whatever section and post pictures. Like I said BS.
No, I don't want to see them.

Bill
Okay... I won't post them. You're right. It's BS, and I didn't really buy one. ;)

Turtle...lets not resort to common sense and logic :rofl:
Yeah... what's the fun in that? :D

You should ignore this pic. It is just a CL ad. I wouldn't mind having this Cherokee.
 

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#362 ·
Skerr said:
The GOOD news is that AJ came over and gave me a Thumbs Up on the Cherokee, and Beth says she wants one! Really?? Thinking of a name for my new business... The Jeep Spa.
Congrats on a decent XJ. I say if the wifey wants an XJ then get her one. That would be awesome. Y'all could hit the trails as a family. Every one would have there own ride. SWEET!
 
#364 ·
Apparently, she's serious. She's talking about retiring the Astro. I'm going to steal the drivetrain out of it anyway.

How many miles does the XJ have?

Bill
227,000. I can hear the timing chain rattling (I think). Not leaking oil, but it's running rich. Tranny shifts okay... mostly... AJ says it needs a modulator valve.
 
#373 ·
I asked because everything I've read says the 4.0L Is a 200,000 mile engine, same for the trannys.

Bill
300,000 is not uncommon either. I have 305K on my YJ's 4.0L.

227,000. I can hear the timing chain rattling (I think). Not leaking oil, but it's running rich. Tranny shifts okay... mostly... AJ says it needs a modulator valve.
The XJ looks good Scott. We had one that looked just like the one in the pic. I believe it was an '89 or '90 but it had the Renix fuel injection and it was not the High Output 4.0's they came out with around '91 IIRC. It's still a 4.0L though.
 
#366 ·
Scott it looks good. I was tryin to talk my grandpa into buyin my sis an xj but my mon said no because we don't have enough money to pay for gas on two jeeps. Haha oh well my sis a POS car and I get two jeeps:D
 
#367 ·
My local automotive paint house carries this line. I've never heard of it. Clay stopped by there today and brought me home a Kirker brochure. I'm thinking Medium Charcoal Gray Metallic. I can't find any paint chips on the page, but it is really nice on the brochure. They also carry a dark garnet red, which looks very good. What to do, what to do...

http://www.kirkerautomotive.com/index.html
 
#370 ·
Thanks, Jim. I took it out for a test after installing new shocks. I ran it through the tranny, manually shifting the automatic. It hit second at almost 5500 RPMs, jumped into second, back up to 5000, popped it into 3rd, and then OD, and I was doing 75 before I knew it! Wow! She still has some life left.

Skipper Kirker is a very good brand Eastwood re brands the stuff with their name.
The paint store owner said it was a high-end brand. He has been really good to me over this past year, although I have never met him. He said a "kit" will run about $115. He told that to Clay when Clay stopped by for me. I'm not sure what a kit is??

Clay just finished welding up my WS frame. He has done everything under the sun today, EXCEPT my WS frame. I checked on him about 30 minutes ago. He was hitting it with a hammer, on the face/exterior, the part you SEE from outside!!! I walked away.

Off tomorrow, burning comp time. Sick as dog.
 
#372 ·
Well if you live in the dog house as much as you say you do.............. then it would make perfect sense that you would be sick as a dog.

However the SheGator has offered to send you some road kill possum soup to help you get back on your feet again.
That sounds better than the Skunk-a-dillo we had nite before last....
 
#376 ·
#377 ·
Thanks Rene. It looks pretty close to my local shop. He sells a kit for ~$115, which includes a gallon of paint and a quart of hardener.

I spoke with my paint guy this morning. The Kirker paint is a urethane enamel, single stage. He said it is an old DuPont recipe and that a gallon can actually comes with 3 quarts, rather than 4. You would add one quart of hardener to give you the full gallon. Of course, whatever you don't use is wasted. So it's actually 3 quarts of paint and a quart of hardener for ~$115. The color I want comes in a bc/cc too, but he said this paint is more durable and will last longer. The high build primer I used on Clay's Jeep is the same primer I would use with this paint, and I have some leftover in the shop. So when I finish repairing my WS frame I can spray it with that and not have to buy something new.

Note*- I can mix whatever portion of the can that I want to use. I don't have to mix the whole gallon.

Trying to finish the WS today, but I woke up this morning with a migraine. Don't know what's wrong with me these days.
 
#383 ·
Been working on these things today. Busy, busy, busy...

Sent the boys to NAPA for new bearings/seals. The Chinese bearings that were on it were virtually falling apart. Told them Timken, and they came back with SKS... Made in Mexico. WTF!? Trailer was bought by a friend of my son's at auction for $600. Beaver-tail with ramps, triple axle. GREAT deal!

Clay is welding up a water trough for somebody, and Jake is splitting a pile of Pecan for cooking wood.
 

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#384 ·
Clay is welding up a water trough for somebody, and Jake is splitting a pile of Pecan for cooking wood.
Clean livin' Skipper! You raised 'em right!!:2thumbsup:
 
#386 ·
Looks like you got some good work from the boys.

I can't understand why you need a Hyd. splitter for those little toothpicks?

Bill
 
#387 ·
Ohhhhh-kaayyyyyy....! Let's just say my back ain't like it used to be, and did I mention FAST! Yes... FAST! And my kid needs the exercise!! And it's FAST!

Why you need heavy equipment to pull a little 'ol piece of wood up a hill?

:rofl:
 
#388 ·
lucdog said:
Looks like you got some good work from the boys.

I can't understand why you need a Hyd. splitter for those little toothpicks?

Bill
I agree maul is the best way to go. And cheaper too:D
 
#389 ·
If you were to see my "wood" , you would know why heavy equipment is needed.

Nothing faster than a sotz monster maul. I'm old now, but back when I was your kids age I could out split a Hyd. Splitter by at least 3 to 1!

Shorts Sleeve Font Screenshot Knee


I've had mine since this add came out.
No maintence
No gas
Won't break down
No oil
And a $1000 less
And it's the same color as my Stihl saws.

This is what you need for the boys excersize. Not just moving a lever.
 
#390 ·
Well Billy I see a couple of problems here with Skipper using a Mual.
1) His arms is just to skinny to use such a device! And though he could talk the chicken off a bone, wood dont react to his voice!
2. Since he suffers from dialing finger dyslexia he would probably end up using the wrong end!
3. Since he got a Chickoree he has gotten high falutin and would get his hands dirty as evidenced by his comment.
I didn't even get my hands dirty today!!!
4. BS once again his Butt got Stuck again to his chair.
 
#391 ·
Ahhh... the 'ol monster maul. I see you have a puny 12 pounder. Mine, back when I had my firewood business (early to mid-80s), was 15 pounds. It's probably taller than Trent, too heavy for George, and if Bill had it he would weld it to his bumper.

And even though it was 15# and swung by the mightiest HE-MAN in the south, it don't go through Sweet Gum!
 
#392 ·
Skerr said:
Ahhh... the 'ol monster maul. I see you have a puny 12 pounder. Mine, back when I had my firewood business (early to mid-80s), was 15 pounds. It's probably taller than Trent, too heavy for George, and if Bill had it he would weld it to his bumper.

And even though it was 15# and swung by the mightiest HE-MAN in the south, it don't go through Sweet Gum!
If you look at the picture, total weight is 15#'s.
I'm not familiar with Sweet Gum, in the north we have real trees, like Oak, Walnut, and Hickory.
From a quick google, I don't think I would waste my time with the sweet gum, not enough BTU content when burning. It kind of sounds like the junk tree we have, we call it piss Elm. It smells like piss when burning, Especially if its damp, and is also hard to split unless its frozen.

So hop in the F150 and come on up for some real wood!

I thought this was funny, it's a screen shot from one of the forums I read on the Sweet Gum.

Product Rectangle Font Screenshot Line


Bill
 
#393 ·
lucdog said:
If you look at the picture, total weight is 15#'s.
I'm not familiar with Sweet Gum, in the north we have real trees, like Oak, Walnut, and Hickory.
From a quick google, I don't think I would waste my time with the sweet gum, not enough BTU content when burning. It kind of sounds like the junk tree we have, we call it piss Elm. It smells like piss when burning, Especially if its damp, and is also hard to split unless its frozen.

So hop in the F150 and come on up for some real wood!

I thought this was funny, it's a screen shot from one of the forums I read on the Sweet Gum.

Bill
Now THAT'S funny!
 
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