Operation 'Basket Case MJ'

[Gojira94]

Likely the chain is the only thing not salvageable in that unit, 3 years with no oil and a little humidity could do that, but the cast/ machined parts should clean up. Always best to get a new chain when rebuilding as they can stretch to the point where they grind on the case with larger tires and off-road use

I did take it all apart and treated the cast/ machined parts for a couple weeks but most of it was way gone past saving. The case was stored indoors the whole time I had it before I cracked it open. This was water 100%.

Guess it would depend on the terms as to how it was sold. But at this point it would seem to be a non starter after sitting “in your possession” for that long (not saying it’s your fault at all! ) just saying…… YMMV

Yeah, I'm just gonna let it go. It was represented as a working pull with fluid in it...

 

[Gojira94]

This was worth the wait. I was thinking that massaging the drag link's bends to gain steering clearance on the passenger side would be a solution. That works, but having to replicate that on a wear item on a big lift when a replacement is needed wasn't an attractive option, long term. This build has required a few things one would call a 'big ticket item' but aside from new tail lights from Key Parts (coming early November) and at some point a Dana 489 from ECGS, this is probably the last.

 

[Gojira94]

OMG this Trail Forged setup is BEEF. Steering clearance issue is solved. Their instruction setup pics have the steering damper on the tie rod with a factory track bar (?!). My TB interferes so I have it on the drag link instead. Mocked up with lengths set within a degree or two on the toe, nothing tightened up yet. I ordered mine bare steel for DE1634 coat instead of their powder coat (black not availalble). Next is to pull and paint and reinstall and check toe again and adjust as needed to get close enough to drive it to the alignment shop. Did some computer work on a friend of a friend's Hunter alignment machine so I'm invited for an "as much time as you need" alignment.

 

[Gojira94]

Long time, no update. I'm stuck waiting for a different drag link from Trail Forged (long story, we'll see how it ends - Update 11-14-25: it'll be here probably tomorrow, 11-15-25).

So in the meantime, I'm trying to pick off anything else I can ahead of the maiden voyage. I picked up one of the last 10 pairs of black-trimmed Key Parts tail lights. Now out of stock, I have my doubts they'll do another run. I meticulously cleaned out the tail light pockets, re-coated the insides and hung the new lights:

 

[Gojira94]

I went to the trouble of cleaning out, re-greasing and sealing the original wiper motor maybe 2 years ago. I jumpered it in high and low positions directly with a battery, and it's slow and noisy. Technically it works, but no sense using it and then replacing it soon out of frustration. I got the harness from a 2002 WJ- the colors are slightly different from some of the XJ examples posted elsewhere here but no big deal. The WAI WPM447 has the connector and is $4 cheaper than the WPM438 with no connector. So I built an adapter to keep the harness side uncut and connect to the newer motor.

It's about a foot long, more than needed, but again, no big deal hiding inside the wiper cowl.

 

[Gojira94]

Finished up the wipers on Saturday. The harness adapter works with no issues. I was wondering what I was going to do about not having the rubber jacket around the motor and I had a thought pretty far outside the box. That's a microwaveable meal tray trimmed for flexibility and fitment is more than acceptable lol. I spent parts of 2 days getting all the scale and peeling clear coat off the cowl cover with a .002" feeler gauge and soft brass brush. Then wet sanded the lines between base and old clear. Next, some dish soap and 1200 grit on the areas of base that had been exposed to remove oxidation. I also touched up a few spots with a very small brush - sprayed Rustoleum Colonial Red in the cap and dipped the brush in it. Finally, I cleared the whole thing with Upol/ Raptor diamond coat 1k. I'm impressed with it, dries very hard and very fast and has very decent UV protection. Maybe one day I'll fork out 8-10k for a real paint job but in the meantime I'm just trying to keep it red and protected from peel and rust.

New later arms...

 

[Gojira94]

Also from Saturday - got one of the new finder liners in. Fitment is... decent but by no means perfect. A couple of the holes aren't quite right and require a little trimming. I think I can do a better job on the other side. New rubber flaps up front from Detroit Muscle Technologies.

 

[Gojira94]

Trail Forged setup with 'high lift' drag link. I swapped the drag link out due to the heim joint angles being steeper than I felt comfortable with. Much better angles now. The drag link isn't nearly as close to the oil pan as it looks in the first pic.