Project: Tetanus Shot - 1948 Willys

[YJJPWrangler]

The X is complete. All harness mounts are tacked to the cage. I had to cut two more holes in the body to mount part of the harness but it turned out well and isn't noticeable. Working on completing the halo this week and then cage prep for final welding. There will be another support bar that runs vertical from the X node to the seat bar but that will have to be installed once the cage is fully welded and reinstalled.

 

[YJJPWrangler]

Started work on the halo last night with @getstucksome. Should be able to finish it up by this weekend. In other news, I got the steering column firewall brace in and reconnected all steering. Took a lot of slop out of the original setup and the column is rock solid now. Reinstalled gas tank yesterday and cleaned up the mounts.

Going to do a tad bit of rework to the X so everything fits better today. Notching tube is tedious work with a flap disc...

 

[YJJPWrangler]

Halo is complete. Reworked it a bit more and am happy with the way it came out. Final welding is happening. So far, all seat tabs are welded in and a portion of the topside of the cage. The plan is to weld as much as we can with it on the jeep and then remove it to finish welding and paint. The vertical bar that comes down from the bottom of the X can't be welded until the cage is 100% complete as it ties into the seat bar that is not removable.

While the cage is off, I'm going to paint/herculine the floor.

Left to do:
-refill power steering and bleed system
-rework brake pedal as it contacts steering column
-hook up gas lines
-install O2 sensor bung
-tune motor
-redo transfer case shifters and trans shifter
-install battery tray
-a bunch of misc small stuff

 

[Dawnpatrol]

@YJJPWrangler how many sticks of tube did you end up using for the cage? I'm trying to get an idea of what to plan for for my YJ cage project.

 

[YJJPWrangler]

@Dawnpatrol I originally ordered 100lf and ended up going back for 40 more. Obviously I didn't use all 140lf. I still have a 8ft piece leftover and I have probably 5-8 pieces of scrap that are about 2ft long. With it being my first cage, I wasted probably 10ft or so due to bad notches or wrong bends. A lot of the "scrap" tube got reused for smaller pipes etc. I also got a 20ft piece of 1.5" and 1" as well for battery box, part of the seat mounts etc.

 

[YJJPWrangler]

@getstucksome came over last night and burned in about 70% of the cage work. We still have to weld the windshield bars in and then its time to pull the cage for final welding.

Figured out my placement for my transfer case shifters. Should be a lot easier to move while strapped in.

I've also been able to rework my rear brake lines, finish the steering, and rework the brake pedal a bit. Closer than yesterday.

 

[YJJPWrangler]

Cage is welded as far as it can go while still on the body. The plan is to drive it out, remove and fully weld cage/paint. While the cage is off the jeep, I'm going to raptor line the entire interior. In order for me to drive it out, the motor needs to be tuned. My 02 sensor and weld in bung should be here tomorrow so I'm going to work on removing the Y pipe as it will be easier to drill/weld/install the O2 sensor with it out of the jeep. After that, it should be a day or so of tuning and then I can drive it out and continue the work. I'm also planning on temporarily mocking up my shifter linkage with tack welds to see how it will look, feel, and function.

 

[ghost]

Cage is welded as far as it can go while still on the body. The plan is to drive it out, remove and fully weld cage/paint. While the cage is off the jeep, I'm going to raptor line the entire interior. In order for me to drive it out, the motor needs to be tuned. My 02 sensor and weld in bung should be here tomorrow so I'm going to work on removing the Y pipe as it will be easier to drill/weld/install the O2 sensor with it out of the jeep. After that, it should be a day or so of tuning and then I can drive it out and continue the work. I'm also planning on temporarily mocking up my shifter linkage with tack welds to see how it will look, feel, and function.

Tuning is something that I've recently been looking into. Will you do it or a shop?

 

[YJJPWrangler]

@ghost, a friend of mine is well versed in the chevy motors. All that I am I really planning on doing is timing the motor, checking for vacuum leaks etc. I am not planning on adding any different tune to the ECU at this time.

 

[R Q]

@ghost, a friend of mine is well versed in the chevy motors. All that I am I really planning on doing is timing the motor, checking for vacuum leaks etc. I am not planning on adding any different tune to the ECU at this time.

Just remember, Howell will burn you a custom chip for about $200. It helped me a lot when I had running issues on my current motor.

 

[YJJPWrangler]

@R Q I remember you telling me about the custom chip in the ECU. Since I'm running only one o2 sensor and no catalytic convertor, I'm wondering if that is a good route to go. What exactly were your issues before you put the custom chip in? Also, did you get any noticeable increases in power/torque or was it more driveability/running correctly?

 

[YJJPWrangler]

O2 sensor is done. Had to pull the Y pipe to get in drilled and welded in but its back in there now. Moving on to shifters next.

 

[R Q]

@R Q I remember you telling me about the custom chip in the ECU. Since I'm running only one o2 sensor and no catalytic convertor, I'm wondering if that is a good route to go. What exactly were your issues before you put the custom chip in? Also, did you get any noticeable increases in power/torque or was it more driveability/running correctly?

The wiring harness that I bought originally was Howell and I got a chip for the ECU that came with the whole package. It deleted a couple things and it was supposedly tuned for optimum performance. It's a 4.3 so you're only going to get so much performance! Just do as you said with plugs, wires, etc., and see where you land before going further. If you have running issues then I would def call them for help. On my newer motor I did have running issues and the chip they burned me fixed those issues completely

 

[Caver Dave]

Just remember, Howell will burn you a custom chip for about $200. It helped me a lot when I had running issues on my current motor.

And if you mod the ECM to 28-pin ZIF socket (allows use of larger capacity EEPROMs vs. the stock EPROM)... I can burn all the chips you want, just don't "tune"

 

[YJJPWrangler]

Shifters are connected and are working. Pain in the ass to shift the D300 while its just sitting but thats normal I guess. I will have to get longer shifters and rework them a bit as they are in the seat. Battery box is mounted. I used some trick tabs so its removable if needed. Right now everything is tacked in place because it will have to be removed to pull the cage for final welding.

Plan is to get it running sometime this week and get it outside and pull the cage, final weld/paint. Then raptor line the inside and reinstall everything.

 

[ghost]

Trick tabs had to google that. I've seen tabs but not with threaded nuts. Those look slick.

 

[rockcity]

Hurry up. The NC ride at URE is coming up quick!

 

[Caver Dave]

I will have to get longer shifters and rework them a bit as they are in the seat

If you have enough leverage on that length, why not just pie cut them (to remove some of the offset/make them straighter) and weld them back together?
Keeping them "protected" in between to seats from accidental bumping (out of gear) during a thrash is a plus...

 

[YJJPWrangler]

The leverage is there but I would like them to be a tad longer. Right now I have to reach down and stretch to touch them when I'm strapped in. Also, these are aluminum and I don't have a TIG. I think I can flip them around to get them out of the seat for now but I will eventually need to get or make longer ones.

 

[YJJPWrangler]

Shes running again. It fired up and we were able to get it idling pretty well. No more starting it on one injector and then plugging in the other. Bad news is, my rebuilt steering box has a leak so it was puking fluid everywhere. We ended up taking the belt off but we could only run the motor for a few minutes before it got too hot. Right now we have it idling around 900 rpm or so and it sounds good. I'm planning on pulling the steering box tomorrow and rebuilding it(again). It looks to be leaking from the input shaft from the steering shaft. Might just need to be tightened down a bit more. I also need to get some header spark plug wires as well as some header spark plugs because I'm running normal style ones right now and the wires are resting on the headers.

2 steps forward, 1 step back but I'm excited to get this thing going.

 

[paulevans76]

This thing has come a long freakin' way. Super nice work so far.

 

[rockcity]

Shifters are connected and are working. Pain in the ass to shift the D300 while its just sitting but thats normal I guess. I will have to get longer shifters and rework them a bit as they are in the seat. Battery box is mounted. I used some trick tabs so its removable if needed. Right now everything is tacked in place because it will have to be removed to pull the cage for final welding.

Plan is to get it running sometime this week and get it outside and pull the cage, final weld/paint. Then raptor line the inside and reinstall everything.

Open up those seat bars and drop that battery lower and use the empty space under the seats for the battery. Your right elbow will thank you later.


Looking awesome so far!

 

[YJJPWrangler]

Open up those seat bars and drop that battery lower and use the empty space under the seats for the battery. Your right elbow will thank you later.


Looking awesome so far!

Agreed. However it would push those bars underneath the seats. I don't think that would be an issue just looking at it but I won't know until I try it. Everything is still in with tack welds so its easily changed.

 

[rockcity]

Agreed. However it would push those bars underneath the seats. I don't think that would be an issue just looking at it but I won't know until I try it. Everything is still in with tack welds so its easily changed.

Or, bend a pair of U tubes (or miter cut) and leave the bars in the same place, just make them a different shape to maximize space and comfort.

looking good!

 

[YJJPWrangler]

Steering box got rebuilt last night. Apparently the C clip that retains the seals on the pitman arm shaft wasn't fully seated and when it started to pressurize, it couldn't hold it. I'm going to hook it back up today and bleed it and then hopefully that allows us to finalize the timing on the motor sometime this weekend.