Found them. Had to search grote 2 to 3 wire adapter. No idea if this site is legit but here they are. Buddy that gave me mine said any truck/trailer shop “should” have them.
Accidentally building an LJ
- Thread starter Rnuovrcj5
- Start date
Hokie_YJ
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jul 22, 2006
- Location
- Johnson City, TN
I'm at work tonight, but I'll measure it in the morning. I still have a Swag brake kit in the box too.
One of these days I'll get around to welding it up.Thanks for the link, I like those a little better.
Hokie_YJ
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jul 22, 2006
- Location
- Johnson City, TN
Even better!Found them. Had to search grote 2 to 3 wire adapter. No idea if this site is legit but here they are. Buddy that gave me mine said any truck/trailer shop “should” have them.
Grote 9" Long,HARNESS, Single LED Lp 66242
www.vehiclesafetysupply.com
skyhighZJ
Gov retirement < needs to live
- Joined
- May 31, 2012
- Location
- Aberdeen, NC.
FYI/ anything grote is cross reference- able at your local NAPA.
Getting closer again. Coolers, condenser, and radiator are all mounted in it and all the cooler lines are done. Fragola pushlock fittings are no joke to get a hose on. Working on bleeding the steering system little by little as I’ve been bouncing around on other stuff.
Electric fan is all wired up and ready to go although I think I’m going to add a kill switch for it on the Auxbeam panel. I ordered a normally closed relay to wire into the circuit for that.
I had a buddy with a machine shop spin me up a couple of reducer bushings for the high steer arm to swap it from the tie rod taper to the 5/8” bolt I’m using now. Got that welded in the passenger arm and then made the double shear bracket for it. It’s probably overkill but now I shouldn’t have to worry about it. A little paint and it’ll be finished up.
I think that once I find some radiator hoses that’ll work and finish plumbing the front brakes, it’ll be good to take it on a test drive. There’s a few other things on my list like bolt checking everything and fixing the transmission leak (pretty sure it’s the drain plug) but they’re either all pretty minor things or stuff that it can be done after it’s back on the road (like the front of the cage). I’m feeling pretty confident that I’ll make it to my goal of back together in time to drive it to the beach in 3ish weeks.
Electric fan is all wired up and ready to go although I think I’m going to add a kill switch for it on the Auxbeam panel. I ordered a normally closed relay to wire into the circuit for that.
I had a buddy with a machine shop spin me up a couple of reducer bushings for the high steer arm to swap it from the tie rod taper to the 5/8” bolt I’m using now. Got that welded in the passenger arm and then made the double shear bracket for it. It’s probably overkill but now I shouldn’t have to worry about it. A little paint and it’ll be finished up.
I think that once I find some radiator hoses that’ll work and finish plumbing the front brakes, it’ll be good to take it on a test drive. There’s a few other things on my list like bolt checking everything and fixing the transmission leak (pretty sure it’s the drain plug) but they’re either all pretty minor things or stuff that it can be done after it’s back on the road (like the front of the cage). I’m feeling pretty confident that I’ll make it to my goal of back together in time to drive it to the beach in 3ish weeks.
Front brakes lines are almost plumbed. Just gotta flare a couple ends and tack on some little threaded studs for the clamps to hold them in place.
I went ahead and swapped out the master cylinder for the common ram 2500 swap one (might be a van one, I’ve slept since I bought it) and ditched the factory TJ proportioning block thingy. I’ve got matching calipers on all 4 corners and it’s never felt like it had enough rear brake. It’s got a super fancy AP Racing proportioning valve plumbed inline now. Are used NASCAR brake parts gonna make it faster or slower??
I also ordered one of the Undercover Fabworks hydraulic parking brake brackets. Uses a wilwood/tilton master cylinder mounted where the factory cable would split and uses the factory lever and front cable to activate it. I snagged a 3/4” tilton master and some fittings from SRI to make it all work. Once it’s done I’ll have replaced every single brake line on this thing.
I also made a little shield for the hydro line coming off the outside of the box. Probably not needed but now a stick can’t tag it and knock the line off.
I went ahead and swapped out the master cylinder for the common ram 2500 swap one (might be a van one, I’ve slept since I bought it) and ditched the factory TJ proportioning block thingy. I’ve got matching calipers on all 4 corners and it’s never felt like it had enough rear brake. It’s got a super fancy AP Racing proportioning valve plumbed inline now. Are used NASCAR brake parts gonna make it faster or slower??
I also ordered one of the Undercover Fabworks hydraulic parking brake brackets. Uses a wilwood/tilton master cylinder mounted where the factory cable would split and uses the factory lever and front cable to activate it. I snagged a 3/4” tilton master and some fittings from SRI to make it all work. Once it’s done I’ll have replaced every single brake line on this thing.
I also made a little shield for the hydro line coming off the outside of the box. Probably not needed but now a stick can’t tag it and knock the line off.
Hokie_YJ
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Jul 22, 2006
- Location
- Johnson City, TN
I’m interested to see how you like the UCF parking brake bracket. I have one in my pile of parts for mine. The Ram van master is the one I bought for mine. Did you have to modify the push rod at all?
As long as it works well enough to pass the stupid NC yearly inspection I’ll be happy with it. That’s the only thing it lacks to legitimately pass. I’ve been getting away with a set of wheel chocks on the passenger seat for a few years now
Well, for the first time in the 7 or 8 years I’ve owned this pile of parts, I got to lock the hubs and actually shift it into 4Lo.
I finished up plumbing all the brake stuff and got the parking brake master cylinder mounted up with a used 3/4” Tilton master I got at SRI. A buddy of mine hooked me up with a factory e-brake handle and cable. It seems to work decently. The brakes suck overall though. I’m thinking I need to extend the pushrod a bit more than I already did. The pedal is super soft and goes pretty deep before any braking really starts happening. If that doesn’t help I might swap back to the TJ master as it was better than these are currently.
I managed to find a couple radiator hoses at the little hole in the wall Napa here in Harmony. Both are for 60’s Ford trucks according to their parts computer. I’ll probably grab another of each to have spares just in case. Radiator got filled with antifreeze/water/water wetter and I ran it up to temp. With the temp switch in the inlet side radiator tank, the gauge gets to about 215* and the fan kicks on. Then drops right back to 210* where it normally runs.
I drove it around the yard a bit and then put 40ish miles on it going to Troutman and back to grab dinner. Seems to drive pretty good other than the soft brakes. There’s a few other things to tweak like the steering wheel being off center a little but nothing major so far. My 4yo who has been asking me daily if we’re taking the jeep to school is gonna get to ride in it tomorrow for her last day of pre-k
.
It feels great to have this thing back up and going again. Hopefully I can get it fully buttoned up in the next couple of weeks and then go try it out at Uwharrie or Gulches.
I finished up plumbing all the brake stuff and got the parking brake master cylinder mounted up with a used 3/4” Tilton master I got at SRI. A buddy of mine hooked me up with a factory e-brake handle and cable. It seems to work decently. The brakes suck overall though. I’m thinking I need to extend the pushrod a bit more than I already did. The pedal is super soft and goes pretty deep before any braking really starts happening. If that doesn’t help I might swap back to the TJ master as it was better than these are currently.
I managed to find a couple radiator hoses at the little hole in the wall Napa here in Harmony. Both are for 60’s Ford trucks according to their parts computer. I’ll probably grab another of each to have spares just in case. Radiator got filled with antifreeze/water/water wetter and I ran it up to temp. With the temp switch in the inlet side radiator tank, the gauge gets to about 215* and the fan kicks on. Then drops right back to 210* where it normally runs.
I drove it around the yard a bit and then put 40ish miles on it going to Troutman and back to grab dinner. Seems to drive pretty good other than the soft brakes. There’s a few other things to tweak like the steering wheel being off center a little but nothing major so far. My 4yo who has been asking me daily if we’re taking the jeep to school is gonna get to ride in it tomorrow for her last day of pre-k
. It feels great to have this thing back up and going again. Hopefully I can get it fully buttoned up in the next couple of weeks and then go try it out at Uwharrie or Gulches.
gslander
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Aug 13, 2021
- Location
- Hickory, NC
Awesome!!!
I extended the brake pushrod and it helped the brakes out some but they were still pretty terrible. After doing a little more research, I swapped it back to the factory 1” master cylinder and now it’ll hang you off the seat belts and trigger the dash cam. I’ll call that a win. It still takes a bit more force than I’d like to hold it back in low range but it’s also geared pretty deep so It’ll work.
4LowandSlow
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Nov 25, 2017
- Location
- Savannah
Congrats dude! looking good
Thanks man!
Did something that felt wrong to this today. I robbed the contactor box and the rope off of my 8274 and put them on an old m8000 and installed it on the jeep. It used to be on my trailer until a solenoid died on it and I swapped another winch on it. All the grease was pretty solidified inside it and the motor was kinda crusty. I scraped and brakleened all the gunk out and regreased it. Seems good to go. I may eventually cut the bumper up and get the 8274 to fit.
Shreddinlettuce
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Nov 20, 2016
- Location
- Hickory
Honestly you’ll get better cooling with that than an 8274, unless you need high speed continuous winching 8k should be enough for your rig
I know it. It’s had an 8274 on it for a few years now with no cooling issues though. The new Griffin radiator and the electric fan should be better than what it had before too. I just like that old big winch on a Jeep for some reason though.
gslander
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Aug 13, 2021
- Location
- Hickory, NC
The 8274s are badass, but the m8000 hauls some ass as well!
So I somewhat accidentally signed up for the August 24 Hours of Appalachia rally . I’ve got a few things to add/change up to get this thing ready for it but it should be a blast.
Engine temp creeps up a bit more than I’d like with the a/c on so I’ve got a brushless fan and shroud from a C7 Z06 corvette to replace the brushed fan/no shroud that’s currently on it.
I’m going to figure out some nav stuff too. It seems like most people are just running OnX and/or Gaia so I’m probably going to mount my iPad somehow and add a Bluetooth gps antenna. Then run a phone for a backup. I do have a Starlink mini that I’m tempted to mount under the soft top.
Gmrs radio is a requirement for the event. I’ve got one mounted where the passenger airbag used to be but I can’t hear it very well at all since the speaker is aimed at the dash. I’ll find it a new home somewhere.
I got sick of not really being able to hear the stereo so I stepped it up. Kicker 5.25” speakers in pods in the dash and some CT Sounds 5.25” stuff in the soundbar. My cheap Amazon head unit didn’t have enough power to push them so now it’s got a SSV Works Bluetooth receiver and 200w amp since I pretty much always just stream music off of a phone. Genright radio delete panel to fill the hole in the dash and mount everything. I moved the Auxbeam panel up there too so I don’t have to lean to reach it anymore. The empty switch slot is for a winch control switch that I need to wire up.
Fender wells for the front, a working windshield washer, and some extra lighting are high on the prep list as well as a clean way to carry a chainsaw and gas can. I’ve possibly got something cool in the works for the lighting part of it.
I’ve been pretty much driving this thing everywhere. Even took it to Holden Beach and back a couple weeks ago. It’s been doing fantastic other than the temp creeping up. It’s not overheating but it’s running about 3 needle-widths over the 210 mark where it normally sits.
. I’ve got a few things to add/change up to get this thing ready for it but it should be a blast.Engine temp creeps up a bit more than I’d like with the a/c on so I’ve got a brushless fan and shroud from a C7 Z06 corvette to replace the brushed fan/no shroud that’s currently on it.
I’m going to figure out some nav stuff too. It seems like most people are just running OnX and/or Gaia so I’m probably going to mount my iPad somehow and add a Bluetooth gps antenna. Then run a phone for a backup. I do have a Starlink mini that I’m tempted to mount under the soft top.
Gmrs radio is a requirement for the event. I’ve got one mounted where the passenger airbag used to be but I can’t hear it very well at all since the speaker is aimed at the dash. I’ll find it a new home somewhere.
I got sick of not really being able to hear the stereo so I stepped it up. Kicker 5.25” speakers in pods in the dash and some CT Sounds 5.25” stuff in the soundbar. My cheap Amazon head unit didn’t have enough power to push them so now it’s got a SSV Works Bluetooth receiver and 200w amp since I pretty much always just stream music off of a phone. Genright radio delete panel to fill the hole in the dash and mount everything. I moved the Auxbeam panel up there too so I don’t have to lean to reach it anymore. The empty switch slot is for a winch control switch that I need to wire up.
Fender wells for the front, a working windshield washer, and some extra lighting are high on the prep list as well as a clean way to carry a chainsaw and gas can. I’ve possibly got something cool in the works for the lighting part of it.
I’ve been pretty much driving this thing everywhere. Even took it to Holden Beach and back a couple weeks ago. It’s been doing fantastic other than the temp creeping up. It’s not overheating but it’s running about 3 needle-widths over the 210 mark where it normally sits.
StretchASU
Playing country music til Troy's ears bleed.
- Joined
- Oct 17, 2006
- Location
- Claudville, VA
How do you like the new bluetooth adapter and stereo setup? We only stream so I've been flip flopping on our TJ between copying pretty much what you have or putting another Rugged headset setup in like our YJ.
I’m liking it so far. I might end up adding a small sub/amp in somewhere to pick up a bit more bass but I can at least hear it over the tires now. I thought about going with headsets but I drive it around enough that I don’t really want to have to wear them all the time just for music. I might still add an intercom at some point to have the option though.
The Amazon thermoswitch for my electric fan died on me the other day so I dove into upgrading the fan/shroud situation. Luckily I had the fan wired to come on with either the thermal switch or the a/c so it was still good to go as long as the a/c was on.
I upgraded from the 14” brushed fan sitting right against the core to a 600w brushless fan and shroud from a C7 Z06 Corvette. 15.25” fan and the shroud was a size that I thought I could make work on my Griffin radiator. It ended up working great. I had to notch the shroud around the inlet/outlet on the radiator but that was expected from the start. I ended up cutting into 3 of the flappers to clear the hoses and glued what was left of them shut. I 3D printed some filler pieces out of abs-cf to close up the notches and epoxied them in place. Then made a couple brackets out of aluminum angle to mount the whole thing on the radiator after cutting about 3/4” of depth out of the whole thing.
I’m controlling the pwm side of the fan with a Widgetman controller tied into the factory temp sensor. It turns on right as the thermostat opens and ramps the fan up/down as needed to maintain temp. It also adds 50% to the fan speed when the a/c compressor triggers. It seems to work pretty well and I ordered another one for a spare.
I upgraded from the 14” brushed fan sitting right against the core to a 600w brushless fan and shroud from a C7 Z06 Corvette. 15.25” fan and the shroud was a size that I thought I could make work on my Griffin radiator. It ended up working great. I had to notch the shroud around the inlet/outlet on the radiator but that was expected from the start. I ended up cutting into 3 of the flappers to clear the hoses and glued what was left of them shut. I 3D printed some filler pieces out of abs-cf to close up the notches and epoxied them in place. Then made a couple brackets out of aluminum angle to mount the whole thing on the radiator after cutting about 3/4” of depth out of the whole thing.
I’m controlling the pwm side of the fan with a Widgetman controller tied into the factory temp sensor. It turns on right as the thermostat opens and ramps the fan up/down as needed to maintain temp. It also adds 50% to the fan speed when the a/c compressor triggers. It seems to work pretty well and I ordered another one for a spare.
Got caught in a bit of a monsoon yesterday with the girls in the back seat. We all got soaked but they loved it.
I managed to get the dash bar in and mostly welded today. I’ve got to pull the a-pillar lights off to lay the window all the way down to weld the last 1/2” or so on each side. Threw the Axia Alloys tablet mount and the iPad in to see how it’ll fit. Looking like a race car now. That’s Bluetooth gps antenna up on the top bar too. I’m 99% sure that I’m gonna run Leadnav as a gps for the 24 Hours of Appalachia rally next month so I’ve been making routes and playing with it around here. iPad as the codriver/main nav screen and my phone in my line of sight as a backup/zoomed in view.
I managed to get the dash bar in and mostly welded today. I’ve got to pull the a-pillar lights off to lay the window all the way down to weld the last 1/2” or so on each side. Threw the Axia Alloys tablet mount and the iPad in to see how it’ll fit. Looking like a race car now. That’s Bluetooth gps antenna up on the top bar too. I’m 99% sure that I’m gonna run Leadnav as a gps for the 24 Hours of Appalachia rally next month so I’ve been making routes and playing with it around here. iPad as the codriver/main nav screen and my phone in my line of sight as a backup/zoomed in view.
After staring at that cage bar over the windshield for the last couple of weeks, I decided that I hated it. So I cut it back out and made a new one that tucks under the top latches and above the rear view mirror. Ended up being the same cut length and bends as the one I cut out but with different notches. The one I cut out got recycled into the center roof bar. Threw some diagonals in and I’m pretty happy with it. I’ll eventually add some stuff in the back too and probably a couple gussets in some corners. I managed to bump the rear view mirror just right at some point of folding the window up/down and cracked the windshield. And then it got a little worse before I finished it. It’s not horrible but it’ll need a new one again at some point.
