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Coiz 1979 CJ7 Frame Off Resto; picture crazy

861K views 2K replies 300 participants last post by  jatepper 
#1 · (Edited)
Coiz 1979 CJ7 Frame Off Restoration - picture crazy

I started working on my Jeep in 2/08 and wanted to document my progress in a thread so I could share with all of you and have an easy reference for my friends and family. So first I will give a brief history. Sorry for the book as the first post.

I've owned this Jeep since my 3rd year of college in 1995 in Colorado. We had a lot of four wheeling around the college and used to take a lot of trips to Medano Pass as well as a couple Easter Jeep Safari Moab trips. The 258 had a bunch of Clifford performance parts and ran like a champ but I could never get the carburetor working correctly on the trails. You could walk up to my Jeep grab the roll bar and shake to get it to stall. So when I got out of college and moved to Detroit for work I opted to install a fuel injected 5.0L out of a 1992 Mustang GT, last year for the forged pistons. :thumbsup: I put some GT40 heads on it with some Cobra roller rockers, SVO block hugger headers and a K&N air filter. During the engine conversion I swapped to a NP435 and kept the D300 transfer case. I also full floated the rear Dana 44 and installed a Detroit locker at the same time with 3.73's. The D30 front currently has a Detroit EZ-Locker. I removed a 4" ProComp kidney buster to install a 4" Skyjacker Softride suspension and a 20 gallon gas tank around the same time. I also had a friend who had a Corvette that switched from brown to black interior so I picked up the seats from him for the Jeep.

The PO installed the 6 point roll cage, custom front bumper and welded in the Scrambler bulkhead behind the seats. It appears that he also did some bodywork.

I drove the Jeep for about a year with all the upgrades before I moved to Memphis with a job that supplied a new company car every 4-6 months. Needless to say the Jeep stayed parked most of the time. I got out of four wheeling and into motorcycle road racing so it ended up sitting for 6 years in a friend's climate controlled warehouse. I moved to northern IL where it sat in the corner of my garage for 3 more years. I finally came to the crossroads where I needed to either sell it or fix it up.

Realizing that I couldn't get half of what I had in it and the fact that I just love the Jeep, I decided I would just replace the rusted fenders, some quick bodywork and fresh paint to make it road worthy. Yeah right.... It wasn't long after I realized I was at the beginning of a frame off restoration.

I am fairly well along in the project but still have a lot left, a lot. So I am going to post up some pictures and comments of the progress I have made along the way and continue to post as I go. With any luck it will be on the road by next fall but don't quote me on that. Questions and comments welcome.

Here are some pictures before the tear down:

Look at how clean the garage is. Hasn't looked like that in almost a year. :crying:

Worst of the rust:


Dash:


Interior:


5.0L HO with about 29,000 actual miles:


Minor dents:


Rust on the cowl/windshield area:


The only bad spot on the frame, driver's side inner rail:

The passenger's side ended up about the same. Anyone who owns a CJ knows what looks like hairline cracks are not. More details on that later.

Next up will be pictures of the tear down.
 
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#554 ·
Wow, I just read all 37 pages and im super impressed...

The amount of detail your taking here just to restore this frame and body back to better then factory condition is jsut impressive. I really wish I had the skills, tools and patience to do something of this magnitude.

Good luck man! Your getting close!
 
#557 ·
Thanks for all the great feedback everybody! I really appreciate it.

I know this is not much to look at here is where I'm at with the wiring. Once I finish putting the grill back together I can get it mounted and install the fenders to finish off the wiring to the fans, headlights and alternator. The cover over the BJB is a generic one I found at the salvage yard which looks like it would work OK but I actually ordered the factory 2006 Escape Hybrid cover yesterday.


Today I plan to prep my rear bumper for POR tomorrow. I need to give it a once over with a wire wheel and get it cleaned then prepped with Metal Ready. I need to figure out a good way to hang it for paint, that thing is a beast.
 
#558 ·
ma-o-man I stumbled across this thred lest night, when checking my own, around 8:00 pm. it is now 2:51 pm the next day, I've read the whole thing and checked out all the links for the products and other info and now can't wait to get my hands on my next jeep. I've done three very similar builds in the past, with as mutch detail and understand the work involved. Your the man. I can understand the almost stock look but I'm going to go off the deep end like I always do.

I had convinced myslf that I could find another cj in good shape and just leave it alone but now the old creative bug is awake and chewing on the brain, thanks. There goes my sleep, budjet, life, carreer and wife for the next 5 mounths. When I start every thing else gets put on hold. I don't have your patience, I can't walk away at all till it's done. 2.5 years is awe inspireing I'd be nuts by now.
 
#561 ·
ma-o-man I stumbled across this thred lest night, when checking my own, around 8:00 pm. it is now 2:51 pm the next day, I've read the whole thing and checked out all the links for the products and other info and now can't wait to get my hands on my next jeep. I've done three very similar builds in the past, with as mutch detail and understand the work involved. Your the man. I can understand the almost stock look but I'm going to go off the deep end like I always do.

I had convinced myslf that I could find another cj in good shape and just leave it alone but now the old creative bug is awake and chewing on the brain, thanks. There goes my sleep, budjet, life, carreer and wife for the next 5 mounths. When I start every thing else gets put on hold. I don't have your patience, I can't walk away at all till it's done. 2.5 years is awe inspireing I'd be nuts by now.
Dang. Talk about going all in. I am also the type of person who typically can't leave things unfinished but you learn to take it step-by-step and day-by-day with a project of this magnitude. Especially when you end up doing 99% of the work by yourself.

You still using the same spray gun for the POR? How much of that stuff have you used on this project so far and where do you get your supply of it?
I added that up for someone prior and want to say I have used 6 quarts of POR15 and 2 quarts of the Blackcote. Several times I bought it directly from POR and a couple times I picked it up from a semi-local paint distributor(POR told me who the local distributors were when I called them looking for some locally in a hurry).

I just used the cheap Harbor Freight gun for the POR. I am on my second gun because I messed up the tip of the needle while cleaning it. Otherwise I would still be on the same gun. I had bought two when I first started expecting them to be throw away and to have a spare gun for "just-in-case" something happened while in the middle of painting. That kind of happened yesterday while putting the final coat on the rear bumper, go figure. :rolleyes:

Looking forward to seeing all the wiring complete, as I'm sure you are too Mike. Also will be great to see the bumper painted. The bumpers Eddie makes sure are quality stuff. Hey could you rig something up for painting it by using the reciever hole? Just a thought.
The bumper is painted. That was a good idea on hanging it from the receiver Jim but ultimately wouldn't work for me. I wanted to paint these outside, away from the CJ, so had to use sawhorses with nothing to really hang them from. I'll post that up in a bit, I need to get out and mow the lawn before it gets too dark.
 
#562 ·
I always plan on taking my time it just never happens that way, did the full pan off resto. on the wifes bug in 2 mounths thought it would take a year, just couldn't stop. The only break in my fast and the furious mobile was waiting for mail order, took 3 mounths. did all the work myself on both. still very impressed with your build and patience.
 
#564 ·
Rear Bumper

I finally got around to painting my rear bumper. I kept putting it off but I finally had to buckle down and get it over with. Last weekend we had fairly nice weather for it although a bit on the cool side. Here is the bumper after having sit in my garage for the last four months.
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This was after spending about thirty minutes with a wire wheel.
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Here is the gas can mount.
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The spare tire mount, Hi-Lift jack mount and the frame tie-ins. I asked Besrk for two sets of frame tie-ins and had to trim the gussets on the inward pair to clear the corner of my aftermarket 20 gallon gas tank. No big deal.
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I had a bunch of other parts which I had previously bead blasted and primed and painted with rattle can spray paint. They generally looked good but I didn't like the way they chipped and scratched so easily. Chipped paint obviously will lead to rust so I took my wire wheel to a few more parts.
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Here are most of the parts after being striped and cleaned with Marine Clean. I can't say enough about how great of a degreaser it is!
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I started soaking the swing out portion with Metal Ready first.
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Here are most of the parts after about 45 minutes worth of Metal Ready. Notice the catch buckets at the main drip points, I have all the small parts in there soaking plus I can reuse all the fluid caught in the bucket.
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Here are the rest of the small parts ready to be rinsed off with water.
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I was able to set them up on the saw horses pretty well. The swing out I just added a carriage bolt to the end so the entire thing would be suspended for paint.
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On the main bumper, I actually stood it up flat and painted the bottom of the feet by hand with a nice coat of POR then waited about an hour before laying it flat and painting the rest of it.
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It was somewhere about this point in the day when I realized my Coke can had a boat on it, seemed only fitting it needed a Captain. Just so happens there was one drink left in the bottle, must have been destiny. :D
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#565 ·
Rear Bumper Painting

I loaded up the gun with POR thinned at 5% and sprayed at 32 psi. I started with the small parts. Here are the fender supports and some of the bumper accessory mounting hardware.


Here are the steering column mounts and the Hi-Lift jack holder.


Here are the frame tie-ins, Battery Junction Box mount and license plate holder.


Clutch rod and battery tray.


I am so glad I decided to do this for my battery tray. The durability of rattle can paint is a joke compared to POR.


I sprayed on two coats of POR15 then two coats of Blackcote about 60 minutes apart from each other. As I said earlier, I painted the bottom of the mount areas by hand and let it dry before painting the rest of the parts.


Another angle.


There's little bits of dirt here and there and the occasional bug that sticks when they land but for the most part it turned out pretty nice. I know it's not going to rust for a long time, at least it shouldn't. I also got the last U-straps painted so I can finally put in my front drive shaft. :thumbsup:


Here is one last picture I took the next day.
 
#573 ·
Super Bowl Sunday? Maybe. :dunno: :D

You got allot painted and it all looks great. That bumper is really going to look nice. Nice touch Eddie adds in cutting the star in the gusset that braces the receiver on the tire carrier. Mike I think the people that make POR ought to pay you to use thier stuff, you've been great advertisement for them!!
I thought the star gusset was a nice touch too. After the fact I wondered if I could of had a choice but I think the star is cool. A POR sponsorship would have been nice. The paint is top quality, the only complaints I have are the new cans are almost always dented in some way which makes them want to crush even more when you try to put the lid back on if not finishing the can. The other complaint is that two of the cans I bought the lids were already 'sealed' to the can when new. You can see where just the slightest amount of paint got in the seal and welded the lid on which you basically have to destroy to get open.

Each time I review your build, I think to myself a kick A$$ motor would so cool to have in a jeep :cool:. Hmmm, maybe it'll be one of my first upgrades after I finish mine:D. I bet the urge to Git-R-Done and drive it is overwhelming:thumbsup:.
The engine is the heart to every vehicle, it's nice to have a good one. :D I am definitely ready to get this thing running.

sorry if you already addressed this, but are you at all worried about the liner on the firewall holding up to engine compartment temps? what is it?
I can't say I'm worried about it. I have read countless posts where people have used it in engine bays but don't remember ever reading one where there was a problem with the liner due to heat. The dual fans and louvers should help a bit. The liner I used was U-POL Raptor.

Come on over any time. I've got all the spirits required, a big beer fridge and plenty of cans of coke just waiting for ya!:cheers2:

Lookin good.:thumbsup:
I might have to take you up on that some free weekend. Maybe even drive the CJ down in the spring. How long do you expect it to take until you are finished with your build?
 
#568 ·
You got allot painted and it all looks great. That bumper is really going to look nice. Nice touch Eddie adds in cutting the star in the gusset that braces the receiver on the tire carrier. Mike I think the people that make POR ought to pay you to use thier stuff, you've been great advertisement for them!!
 
#569 ·
Each time I review your build, I think to myself a kick A$$ motor would so cool to have in a jeep :cool:. Hmmm, maybe it'll be one of my first upgrades after I finish mine:D. I bet the urge to Git-R-Done and drive it is overwhelming:thumbsup:.
 
#570 ·
sorry if you already addressed this, but are you at all worried about the liner on the firewall holding up to engine compartment temps? what is it?
 
#572 ·
this is awesome. I can't wait to see it finished.
 
#579 ·
Looking great! Shooting bumpers with POR15.. brings back memories..:rofl: Up until a few years ago, I used to shoot them all with POR15/Chassis Black. The siding on the backside of my house is a nice shade of black.

Shouldn't have any issues with bedliner in the engine compartment.. I shot mine with Herc and haven't had any issues.

As for the Star Gusset.. I normally use a plain gusset but when I run out, I'll grab a Star Gusset off the shelf until I cut a new batch. I've also got Iron Cross, Radiation Symbol, Skull, and Bottle Opener Gussets. I only worry about using those since you never know what might offend someone.. but everyone likes a Star.:D
 
#580 ·
I've just read this entire thread starting at the beginning of my shift here at work. I managed to read the whole thing between calls. I'm not the first to say this is amazing quality work and I'm surely not going the be the last.

You have an unbelievable attention to detail in all that you do. Jeep, brewing, gardening. This thread is more than an informational bible for a CJ rebuild, it's a testament to the superb quality of your character.

I wish you the best and I'll be watching for the completion...and necessarily your exultation!
 
#583 ·
^^^ Thanks. It is all coming together. I either need to clean or replace a lot of that convoluted tubing. Most of the harness is rough taped and ready to be covered once I get the grill on and the front wired. Then I can check final fitment and finish it off.
 
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