CJ7 junk yard parts bin on 42's

[Clubbs]

Usual back story - been wheeling full size mopars forever. Always wanted a nice cj daily and weekend warrior. Got carried away one weekend and now it's on 42's and tons. Since our hobby has long since passed this sort of basic build - below is the cliffs version mostly for entertainment value as this is very low tech.

In the beginning it was a rust free 85 from california. Has a hardtop and nice full hard doors to. Bought it with the mopar multi port efi kit installed. Dude said that was the only way he could pass smog in cali. Anyways it was otherwise stock. I did a spring over with yj springs all around and tossed on a set of dry 33 bfg I've had laying around forever. I'm in range of Watson's jeep salvage so the whole spring over parts list including the junkyard shocks was about $80. Ran it like this for a couple years. Several URE trips, Kairos, run around town etc.

I've had a set of cucv tons laying around and an older set of 42tsl's with maybe 100 miles on them. Changed jobs and have a stupid commute so the jeep pretty much just sat in the garage or got trailered to the hills. So considering I wasn't doing hardly any road miles on the old cj I couldn't think of one good reason why it shouldn't receive a few minor adjustments...

Back to Watson's to pick up some xj rears and some 7 leaf waggy fronts for a bargain. Some fab parts from our friends at Barnes, motobilt, and ruffstuff and a few Saturdays of gluing things together

Bought a used Psc ram from a fellow nc4x4 member with hoses, sold the cj axles and a pair of yj springs and nearly broke even. Then my grinder smoked - and botched the whole plan of net $0 on the project...

Had to spend the $50 to pickup another metal massager. Back to Watson's for more junkyard shocks and a pair of front cj shock mounts that I welded onto the frame for the rear "shock towers" again for a bargain. Drilled and tapped the steering box, stretched the driveshafts and a new 1410 yoke for the rear. Two days later I found the same yoke in my parts bin - uhg. More welding and figuring on the steering linkages hoping I guessed right on the front axle location for enough clearance with the steering box in the stock location. Scored one of those junk 15 gallon rci behind the seat fuel cells off craigs for $40. Barne's fuel cell bracket is holding it all together. A couple quick measurements to verify it still fits out the garage and we're off for a victory lap around the residence.

Anti wrap bar goes in and unfortunately stiffens up the squishy rear suspension (still pondering what to do here). Fender triming and redneck clearance test on the goose

Knobs clear nicely on the bumps and lock to lock. Steering surprisingly clears too, mostly thanks to those handy offset tie rod ends.

It runs down the road straight and smooth - at least up to 50mph anyway. Stops / steers better than it ever has, but it's not finished

Still todo: clean up / properly secure the new brake lines, steering lines, axle vents, install harness seats ( also had those laying around for a few years) and add more roll over protection. Will likely come to terms that 4.56:1 and the cute little Injected 258 just isn't going to cut it. I've got this 440 mopar sitting here... And in my typical cheapo build from surplus / junkyard parts I think these barely used TSL's are 15 years old and hard as bricks so we'll see what happens there.

 

[Clubbs]

Re-did the antiwrap bar again trying for a less jarring ride. The front seems normal squish with 2 leaves removed from a waggy 7 leaf pack. The rear is sitting on stock xj springs that are FLAT. Shackle angle is near about 45 degrees and it's on stock 14 bolt perches. When I first put the thing together a few weeks ago it felt really soft, almost too soft. Then after sitting on its own weight for weeks it seemed to put itself in a bind. Springs must have settled because the antiwrap bar was binding the bolts. I took it out and drove it and it still felt rigid.

And on this test drive with no antiwrap bar the fan brushed the radiator if I gave it any throttle at all. I cut the top bar off the antiwrap and burned it back in. All 3 bolts spin easily at ride height. Drive it again and I can't get the fan in the radiator no matter how nutzo I get on the throttle. Must be some connection with pinion angle anti-squat torque moment force couple thing going on.

Height to bottom of frame is 24", wheel base is 108" and ive got the front of the antiwrap bar as low as I can without it being a rock snatcher. This thing just rode so smooth with the yj springs and a spring over, and now it rides like a jeep again. Is it just the big shift in unsprung weight or am I missing some trick with xj leaves?

 

[CBloomberg]

Usual back story - been wheeling full size mopars forever. Always wanted a nice cj daily and weekend warrior. Got carried away one weekend and now it's on 42's and tons. Since our hobby has long since passed this sort of basic build - below is the cliffs version mostly for entertainment value as this is very low tech.

In the beginning it was a rust free 85 from california. Has a hardtop and nice full hard doors to. Bought it with the mopar multi port efi kit installed. Dude said that was the only way he could pass smog in cali. Anyways it was otherwise stock. I did a spring over with yj springs all around and tossed on a set of dry 33 bfg I've had laying around forever. I'm in range of Watson's jeep salvage so the whole spring over parts list including the junkyard shocks was about $80. Ran it like this for a couple years. Several URE trips, Kairos, run around town etc.View attachment 333857

I've had a set of cucv tons laying around and an older set of 42tsl's with maybe 100 miles on them. Changed jobs and have a stupid commute so the jeep pretty much just sat in the garage or got trailered to the hills. So considering I wasn't doing hardly any road miles on the old cj I couldn't think of one good reason why it shouldn't receive a few minor adjustments...
View attachment 333858

Back to Watson's to pick up some xj rears and some 7 leaf waggy fronts for a bargain. Some fab parts from our friends at Barnes, motobilt, and ruffstuff and a few Saturdays of gluing things togetherView attachment 333859

Bought a used Psc ram from a fellow nc4x4 member with hoses, sold the cj axles and a pair of yj springs and nearly broke even. Then my grinder smoked - and botched the whole plan of net $0 on the project...
View attachment 333860
View attachment 333861

Had to spend the $50 to pickup another metal massager. Back to Watson's for more junkyard shocks and a pair of front cj shock mounts that I welded onto the frame for the rear "shock towers" again for a bargain. Drilled and tapped the steering box, stretched the driveshafts and a new 1410 yoke for the rear. Two days later I found the same yoke in my parts bin - uhg. More welding and figuring on the steering linkages hoping I guessed right on the front axle location for enough clearance with the steering box in the stock location. Scored one of those junk 15 gallon rci behind the seat fuel cells off craigs for $40. Barne's fuel cell bracket is holding it all together. A couple quick measurements to verify it still fits out the garage and we're off for a victory lap around the residence.View attachment 333862

Anti wrap bar goes in and unfortunately stiffens up the squishy rear suspension (still pondering what to do here). Fender triming and redneck clearance test on the gooseView attachment 333864
View attachment 333865

Knobs clear nicely on the bumps and lock to lock. Steering surprisingly clears too, mostly thanks to those handy offset tie rod ends.
View attachment 333866

It runs down the road straight and smooth - at least up to 50mph anyway. Stops / steers better than it ever has, but it's not finished

Still todo: clean up / properly secure the new brake lines, steering lines, axle vents, install harness seats ( also had those laying around for a few years) and add more roll over protection. Will likely come to terms that 4.56:1 and the cute little Injected 258 just isn't going to cut it. I've got this 440 mopar sitting here... And in my typical cheapo build from surplus / junkyard parts I think these barely used TSL's are 15 years old and hard as bricks so we'll see what happens there.

Man it is looking good, a lot has changed since I last saw it.

 

[XJsavage]

This reminds me of how much I love a built full bodied CJ.

 

[Clubbs]

Picked up some "street tars" from @jyaks yesterday and got those mounted. Nice set of 35" mtrs did great on the rode. Speed-o-meter is a good bit off, but it's the first time I've been able to use 5th gear in awhile.

I was so pleased with it's highway abilities being all stable, steerable, and stoppable at lighting speeds (65 mph for an old cj) that I went full winter mode this afternoon with the hardtop and doors. I may even start driving it to work again on Friday's. My daily commute is right at 150 miles so we'll see how that goes...

 

[jyaks]

Glad that it all worked out.

 

[Clubbs]

Dealt with the rear suspension harshness a little over the winter, but taking the hardtop off really pointed out how stiff the rear is. So I started peeling leaves out of the rear xj pack. After four attempts I ended up with the main xj, the main yj (with ends cut off) and the second yj leaf. It's a decent ride but still not as smushy as the soa stock yj's. Must be sprung vs unsprung weight and all that. It'll have to do for now.

Did take it to work a while back and it did fine for the 75 mile one way commute. Wiped her down with boiled linseed oil shine juice and that's an amazing experiment if you've never tried it on old paint I highly recommend it.

I actually bought a new part: the rear deck cover canvas thing. I had a used one I found from a yj on my last trip to Kairos and was very happy with how it sheltered the tools and whatnot in the back from the mud that rains down during trail rides. But the yj cage and cj cage aren't the same so it didn't fit well. The new one fits really tight and nice.

About to put the 42's back on for my first trip to the ranch next month. Still have to put new axle breather hoses on and get the hydro lines shortened on the steering ram. I did change the radiator hose and a few other basic maintenance topics, but now the trans is dripping a bit... That will have to weight till later.

Contemplating the 440 swap still, but another member offered up stroked Mopar 360 that I probably can't afford, but am working on it. May require me to sell my ramcharger which will be a sad day since I've had it since new, but it just sits these days.

 

[ponykilr]

As an old Mopar guy myself, RBs aren’t that heavy and I vote 440. It’ll run with your gears fine and have hwy torque to spare. Might would use a 727, on the 42s the gearing would be tolerable for your commute on Fridays.

In another life I built a 70 Dart with a 472 stroked low deck and my first car was a 69 Charger. We were a Dodge family.

 

[Clubbs]

Working this direction. My 440 is in front of a 727. Considering buying a jeep 727 this weekend for the tcase adapter and tail shaft. Then my Dana 300 will bolt right up. Not sure if the front driveshaft will clear though. I hear it's tight with the factory jeep axles, and even though I'm running full width axles I think the proximity of the front driveshaft output flange to the trans sump is close. I've got a gm 205 rebuilt sitting in the shed I could use too I guess. Just need to figure out what's needed to get that to bolt up. Got a 203 as well, but not near the length to do a doubler in the cj...

 

[willness33]

Working this direction. My 440 is in front of a 727. Considering buying a jeep 727 this weekend for the tcase adapter and tail shaft. Then my Dana 300 will bolt right up. Not sure if the front driveshaft will clear though. I hear it's tight with the factory jeep axles, and even though I'm running full width axles I think the proximity of the front driveshaft output flange to the trans sump is close. I've got a gm 205 rebuilt sitting in the shed I could use too I guess. Just need to figure out what's needed to get that to bolt up. Got a 203 as well, but not near the length to do a doubler in the cj...

I'm still waiting for that mopar FI to come up for sale.

 

[Clubbs]

I'm still waiting for that mopar FI to come up for sale.

Maybe coming up... Still attached to the 258. I haven't forgot our previous conversation.

 

[Clubbs]

Trans had a leak so I dropped that took it all apart did a reseal, everything else looked great. Put in a new clutch cuz your supposed to if your that far anyway. Changes fluids in trans and the Dana 300 and switched out the speedo gear so it's accurate with the 35's on it. Can street this thing on the hwy at 70mph no problem, really happy with it's ability to sling the 42 swampers on the trail and then make my 150 mile round trip commute to work on the 35 MTR's. I have a lock right to put in the front 60 and three huge boxes showed up with the genright CJ cage I need to glue in. So all systems are a go just using it and building as time permits.

So now here's a newish problem: wife and frankly me too are sick of looking at my old Ramcharger just sitting in the yard. For different reasons of course, but I don't have the funds to make it great again and she considers it an eye sore that she's put up with for 18 years now. (She's incredibly patient like all our spouses have to be with this stupid hobby of ours). So I'm reluctantly going to let it go, but not before I get the 440 and trans out ... Here it is SAD. Keep reading for the transplant plan I need a sanity check...

"Plan" - 440 to Mopar big block 727 (already bolted together in the Ramcharger) then NWF ecobox to the 205 I've had rebuilt sitting in the shop for 15 years. I bought another 727 out of a waggy cuz those things have the shortest output shaft and t-case adapter of any 727. Bought the np231 guts I needed all from Watsons Jeep Salvage just down the road from me. So I need to sell the Ramcharger as a roller to fund the project. Once I get the power plant out I'll do some measuring and figuring to see if the nwf box and 205 will actually fit in the CJ and back up plan is to adapt the 205 straight to the 727. But with a 6" stretch on the rear my initial swag says the nwf box doubler thing a ma bob should work.

Then the 258/T5/Dana300 comes out in all it's fuel injected reliable torquey greatness (this is where I start to question my sanity, but I keep telling myself I can't think of one good reason why I don't need 440 cubic inches of Mopar mayhem in the CJ). So once the big block is in and actually does fit and function with the current Holley carb, I'll sell the injected 258 and it's drivetrain to fund a sniper kit for the 440.

Pretty sure the 440 and gear boxes will fit fine other than the steering shaft and headers. Need to keep it streetable so full hydro is out. That and the cooling opportunities are my current concerns.

Here's the stubby waggy trans and 231 parts sitting on top of the genright cage puzzle.

I'm at the same crossroads now as I was when I was considering cutting up my super clean cj7 to swap in one tons. Seems nuts but the potential reward sounds mo Betta than the current situation. Anyone put a Mopar 440 in a CJ before??? Send me a pic...

 

[Infamous1]

@Stuntman Autoworks could probably give that RC a loving home....

 

[Stuntman Autoworks]

Yes I've been looking for a ramcharger

@Stuntman Autoworks could probably give that RC a loving home....

 

[Jody Treadway]

Trans had a leak so I dropped that took it all apart did a reseal, everything else looked great. Put in a new clutch cuz your supposed to if your that far anyway. Changes fluids in trans and the Dana 300 and switched out the speedo gear so it's accurate with the 35's on it. Can street this thing on the hwy at 70mph no problem, really happy with it's ability to sling the 42 swampers on the trail and then make my 150 mile round trip commute to work on the 35 MTR's. I have a lock right to put in the front 60 and three huge boxes showed up with the genright CJ cage I need to glue in. So all systems are a go just using it and building as time permits.

So now here's a newish problem: wife and frankly me too are sick of looking at my old Ramcharger just sitting in the yard. For different reasons of course, but I don't have the funds to make it great again and she considers it an eye sore that she's put up with for 18 years now. (She's incredibly patient like all our spouses have to be with this stupid hobby of ours). So I'm reluctantly going to let it go, but not before I get the 440 and trans out ... Here it is SAD. Keep reading for the transplant plan I need a sanity check...
View attachment 364813

"Plan" - 440 to Mopar big block 727 (already bolted together in the Ramcharger) then NWF ecobox to the 205 I've had rebuilt sitting in the shop for 15 years. I bought another 727 out of a waggy cuz those things have the shortest output shaft and t-case adapter of any 727. Bought the np231 guts I needed all from Watsons Jeep Salvage just down the road from me. So I need to sell the Ramcharger as a roller to fund the project. Once I get the power plant out I'll do some measuring and figuring to see if the nwf box and 205 will actually fit in the CJ and back up plan is to adapt the 205 straight to the 727. But with a 6" stretch on the rear my initial swag says the nwf box doubler thing a ma bob should work.

Then the 258/T5/Dana300 comes out in all it's fuel injected reliable torquey greatness (this is where I start to question my sanity, but I keep telling myself I can't think of one good reason why I don't need 440 cubic inches of Mopar mayhem in the CJ). So once the big block is in and actually does fit and function with the current Holley carb, I'll sell the injected 258 and it's drivetrain to fund a sniper kit for the 440.

Pretty sure the 440 and gear boxes will fit fine other than the steering shaft and headers. Need to keep it streetable so full hydro is out. That and the cooling opportunities are my current concerns.

Here's the stubby waggy trans and 231 parts sitting on top of the genright cage puzzle. View attachment 364814

I'm at the same crossroads now as I was when I was considering cutting up my super clean cj7 to swap in one tons. Seems nuts but the potential reward sounds mo Betta than the current situation. Anyone put a Mopar 440 in a CJ before??? Send me a pic...

I helped a buddy install a 440 in a YJ way back in the day. CJ and YJ being very silimar under hood and such, it's an easy sway. We made our own frame mounts, but I'm sure you can order them nowadays. Cooling won't be an issue as there is ample room for a proper HD CJ radiator and Volvo electric fan.
Nice build man, I just now followed the thread. I dig it.

 

[Clubbs]

I helped a buddy install a 440 in a YJ way back in the day. CJ and YJ being very silimar under hood and such, it's an easy sway. We made our own frame mounts, but I'm sure you can order them nowadays. Cooling won't be an issue as there is ample room for a proper HD CJ radiator and Volvo electric fan.
Nice build man, I just now followed the thread. I dig it.

Inside of frame on the CJ is roughly 25". The Ramcharger is closer to 25-1/2". So I think it ought to drop in. Might be a bit aggressive to squeeze in the eco box and 205, but hoping the stubby waggy tailshaft on the 727 + rear stretch generates decent rear driveshaft geometry.

Eyeballing the CJ steering shaft inside the frame rail in comparison to the 440 headers seems close, but who knows. Hoping to keep the stock brake booster and not go hydro. I suppose there's a way around all this stuff it's just money. The point of this build was to fab a capable crawler and road warrior with parts I had laying around - adds to the innovation aspect.

Anyway here's a short clip of the 440 lighting off in the Ramcharger after sitting for 3+ months or so. Going to check compression before pulling it, but I cleaned it up before I swapped it in the Dodge 8 years ago. Oil pressure builds to 40ish at idle when cold and gets to 20 once warm. Going to leave it stock for now other than the sniper FI. Probably end up stroked out eventually via 440source.com

 

[Clubbs]

Front lockrite is installed in the Dana 60. That roll pin was a pain...

 

[Croatan_Kid]

Well....the INSIDE of the diff isn't supposed to be rusty

If it's like Eric's truck, we had to swap from the stock single diaphragm booster to the much smaller diameter dual diaphragm. Maybe that'd be an option for you? Older Dodge/CJ may be a close to bolt-in affair. Who knows?

 

[Clubbs]

Noticed a drip under the CJ, thought it was hydraulic fluid from the PSC stuff, but it's coolant so I ordered a water pump today. Hopefully get that swapped after church tomorrow.

The 440 is still in the Ramcharger, but I ran it today and dumped a can of berry man 12 down the big Holley. Never tried any of those potions in a bottle before but figured it's been sitting for most of its last 5 years. I wanted to get compression numbers on all cylinders before I pulled it and figured I ought to at least run it to get oil pressure up before the comp test so why not do a lazy man's cleaning on the top end.

I dunno if the can of solvents really did anything or not, but compression is in spec on all 8 holes.

 

[Clubbs]

Last trip to the ranch had the front axle twisting all sorts of wrong directions. Ordered another anti wrap parts box from Barnes and put that in today. Mighty tight but got a cross member right in front of the bell housing. Should still be able to service everything, but an antiwrap up front is just going to be short. Got the wrap shackle right at the rear spring eyes - supposedly that's good enough until I get around to linking it.

Flexed it out on the gooseneck, doesn't seem to have effected any movement, and it sure stops better now that the springs aren't rolling up.

Can't see much but here ya go... New front driveshaft is in development.

 

[Clubbs]

My son just got his license and will be daily driving this thing. On to the safety mods:

I ordered a genright full CJ cage about a year ago before metal prices went nuts. It's been sitting in boxes up to yesterday. I was dreading the prep work of pulling the dash and straightening up all the wiring. But did that last weekend. Rebuilt all the heater box stuff and installed new cable things so all that works like it should. Added a couple new switches for lights and buttoned it back up...

Then the cage went in last night. I will say this kit is very well done. Tacked it all in single handed in about 4 hours. No cutting or grinding required.

I'll test fit the hardtop then burn it all in, and add all the gussets. Have to pull it out for paint, reinstall and then modify the forward side of the hard doors so they close with the new a pillar support thing.

Picked up a complete AC system from Watsons last week too. That's got to be pressure tested and then installed, but it's winter so maybe later.

 

[Clubbs]

Cage is all welded in. Took more wire than I would have thought. But the hardtop fits.

Did some minor clearance on the a pillar plating so the hard doors fit

Mounted the new 35 Falken MT's for the street and light trail duty. Still running the 42's for the fun weekends

Bolted some angle to the bottom of the new Corbeau's from @StretchASU and of course they're way to high and will require probably more fab work than the cage to get them to work with the CJ flip seat risers. Sure to be worth it. Got a set of PRP 4.2's that'll go in last.

Hoping to be on the road again before Christmas.

 

[Clubbs]

I'm thinking about slicing the seat tabs off these seats and welding them back on horizontal or some other flatish bracket thing to try and save the factory risers and sliders.

To be sure one of you gurus have mounted a set of corbeaus in a CJ before. Any suggestions?

Not interested in paying hundreds for some Chinese 10ga angle iron and spray bom purchased brackets. Not because I'm above such ease but it's cuz I'm cheap

 

[rockcity]

I haven’t mounted corbeaus in a CJ but I have cut the tabs off of a Corbeau seat frame and welded it back on flat. Works pretty well.

 

[Clubbs]

I gave up on the stock seat risers and mocked up a seat mount out of some 2X2 quarter inch wall tubing I've had for years. Not really what I wanted to use it for (still have dreams to link this pig somewhere down the road), but I'll burn some of it for the most over built seat frame ever.

Why do all the spoa jeeps I see lean to the driver's side. This is ridiculous. When I first used stock yj leaves it did it so I swapped springs left to right, still leaned left. Now that I'm on xj's out back and waggys up front it still leans left. And no, I'm not a whale sitting on the captains side - I'm only 180 pounds... If anyone has figured this particular jeep mystery out let me know.

Pics of the seat framalater 4,000 will be posted once it's doneish