Completed Projects
Here's a list of the projects, large and small, that I've been doing with "Bob". Some of these are big enough they warrant a page of their own.
A Word About Manuals and Books
One thing I can’t recommend highly enough is finding a copy of the Factory Service Manual (FSM) for your vehicle. Not the same as a Chilton’s or Haynes manual, the FSM is what was distributed to dealerships when your vehicle came out with specific service procedures for each system in the vehicle—with tons of photographs and illustrations. A must have, particularly for the CJ owner. I found my copy, 1976 Jeep Technical Service Manual, on eBay for about $50 and it was well worth the expense.
In addition to my FSM (and Chilton’s manual), I’ve found the following to be of great assistance in working on my Jeep, and in driving it:
- The Jeep Bible (3rd edition), by Granville King and Willie Worthy. One of my favorite books. Great bedtime reading too!
- Jeep 4x4 Performance Handbook (2nd edition), by Jim Allen. A good overview of current technologies and basic Jeep systems.
- 4-Wheel Freedom, by Brad DeLong. A great introduction to offroad driving, lots of tips on things to pack.
- Guide to Safe, Common Sense Off-Road Driving, by Mark A. Smith. Handy driving how-to. Carry it with you whenever you are offroad. Really. (if you can find a copy)
And now, the projects
Added a Hi-Lift jack, "Bob" didn't come with any means of changing tires and the Hi-Lift is just a handy tool in any case! Mounted on brackets across the back of the tub behind the back seat. Easy to get to, safe and secure.
An unintended project, at least so early in the game, was the replacement of the Carter YF carburetor (which wasn’t itself original) with a new one after "Bob" repeatedly failed smog tests. The documentation that came with the Jeep indicates that it regularly failed—with lots of manual carb tweaking to try and get it to pass. And it certainly failed when I had it done as part of the registration process. Fuel level within the float bowl was also an issue—a sticking float or something along those lines. Clearly a rebuild or replacement was in order and, not having the time to fool with it myself, I opted for a quick replacement by a local garage. So - brand new Carter YF carb!
In preparation for the various things I plan to stuff under the hood, not to mention just general security, I've added a lock to my hood latch. It's the standard CJ lock from Midwest Equipment Specialties, purchased via Quadratech for about $20. Took fifteen minutes to install. A recommendation: when unscrewing the latch mechanism to mount the lock, first insert a piece of cardboard or heavy card stock through the grill and press it up against the radiator. This will protect the radiator when you (inevitably) fumble and drop the latch/lock mechanism. Don't want bent radiator fins. Learn from my mistake.
Enhanced lighting with new, more powerful headlamps. Not only that, but new wiring with relays controlling the headlamps. And a Painless auxiliary fuse block for future expansion. (This project was big enough to warrant a dedicated set of pages to clearly document the process.)
A quick little project was the addition of a Gorilla lug wrench. "Bob" didn't come with one (or a jack). I didn't want it to disappear from under my seat, so I ordered some nifty hold-downs from Duckworks Boat Builders Supply in Texas. These are perfect for attaching the wrench handle and sockets to the top of the left-hand side front wheel well. Safe in one place and under the locked hood so they won't walk off... Here's a picture of the finished installation. Quick hint with these hold-downs: they are relatively flexible hard rubber and I found it necessary to use a washer at the head of the screw to keep the screw from simply pulling right through the hold-down when tightening the nut on the other side of the wheel well. Next time around I’d recommend using Quick Fist hold-downs instead. The ones I used are good but don’t handle extreme shaking/vibration as well as the Quick Fists which entirely enclose whatever they are holding down. Live and learn...
Another quick project, but one deserving a page of its own, was the installation of a hand-throttle to control engine speed independent of the accelerator pedal.
In preparation for some summer camping a bit off the beaten path, I installed a CB radio - actually a package deal including a Wilson antenna, an SWR meter and a Teraflex mounting bracket. The radio is a basic Uniden Pro 510XL. Package purchased from Right Channel Radios. Good folks there, highly recommended.
To further enhance security I've installed a Tuffy secure console between the front seats.
Not so much a project as regular maintenance, but I'll list doing a brake job here because I had a strange clinking sound coming from the right-hand side of the vehicle that I'd notice only at low speed (at high speed there was too much road and wind noise to hear this particular sound). Didn't seem to matter if the Jeep was in gear or not—just so long as the wheels were turning. So up on the jack stands it went and off came the rear wheels and brake drums. Sure enough, in addition to needing a regular brake job the parking brake strut and its spring on the right-hand side was loose and simply flopping about within the drum! Who knows how long that's been going on? Since the brake pads have to come out in order to fit the strut back into place it made sense to do a full brake job. So I did. Perhaps more of a real project will be restoring the parking brake to full operation. When the Jeep was redone by a PO years ago they neglected to re-install the parking brake pedal within the cab, so I'll need to run new cables and install a pedal.
The original brake light switch activated by the brake pedal and situated above the steering shaft failed. I actually saw it go! Backing up one evening right up to a white wall, stepped on the brakes and they came on and flickered off and on once or twice then died completely. All other lights back there worked, and jumping the two sides of the switch brought the brake lights back on—bad switch. The problem lay in the painful process of pulling the switch. I had to remove the driver's seat so I could lay down by wedging my fat self under the steering wheel and into the smallish footwell space. Then, the switch itself must be unscrewed from its mount to remove it. The replacement (Napa part ECH SL169) then screws in. Fortunately it comes with two nuts which make it easier to simply push it in past the sheet-metal "threads" and fix it in place by clamping the mounting bracket between the two nuts. What a pain.
In tracking down an increasingly noticeable smell of gas I replaced the filter at the bottom of the charcoal canister which vents the gas tank. Learned a thing or two about the canister in the process...
Though it is only a year old, I found I had to tear down my Carter YF carburetor to figure out why “Bob” refused to idle. Completely refused. Coming down off fast idle when warmed up it was like I’d turned off the ignition—instant shutdown. So, I did some reading, bought a rebuild kit from Napa and proceeded to rebuild the carb.
Not really a project so much as something that just needed to be done: swapped out the old, dying battery for a new Optima Red Top. Boy, what a difference in starting! (An update here. About two months after buying the new Red Top, which has performed flawlessly so far, someone—not mentioning names, but she’s the mother of my child—took Bob for the day and left the lights on for a good eight hours. Brought the battery down low enough so Bob couldn’t be started. It was jumped, but the alternator killed itself trying to charge the battery. Fried the diodes. Smelled great. So I’ve now installed a new, reman’d Delco 10SI 55 or 60 amp alternator to replace the old one.)
