Jeep Willys ground-up build

[I Lean]

Slowest build ever! I can't wait for you to post more progress.

That makes two of us, believe me.

 

[KrazyKarl]

Hey if you can't find some aluminum all thread or bolts let me know and I can turn some threads in some bar ends for you after work.

 

[bryson]

Those wheels aren't gonna fit over your front hubs... are they?

 

[Bart]

Going to be nice. Take your time.

 

[I Lean]

Hey if you can't find some aluminum all thread or bolts let me know and I can turn some threads in some bar ends for you after work.

I appreciate that Karl! I called Bolt and Nut Supply, they have both allthread and bolts in Aluminum, so I think I'm covered.

Those wheels aren't gonna fit over your front hubs... are they?

They should easily. The 4runner they came from had hubs, and I'm pretty sure they're larger OD than the D44 hub is. (I haven't checked for sure though....so that could come back to bite me)

Going to be nice. Take your time.

Thanks!

 

[redrockrover]

Carl,

I love it so far. You have some great skills. I can't wait to see it in person. I really loved Ilean and I think this one will be better that Ilean. Keep up the good work.

Russ

 

[I Lean]

Some more minor progress! :greg:

I got the front axle set up, 4.56 gears, all new bearings and seals, new U-joints, diff cover, etc. I also ground off about 1/2" of material that hung down below the diff cover.

mounted up one of my wheels to see if Bryson's fears were founded--the center hole is quite a bit larger than the hub body. The bad news is, the tie rod end hits the wheel. I'm not planning on using the stock tie rod, but any tie rod end is going to hit. I ground enough material off the current one to make it fit for mockup purposes. It only really fits when rotated backward, and during real-life use it's free to rock forward which would put it into the wheel HARD.

I can't see any real options other than running heims on my tie rod, which I really didn't want to do. They're a little smaller diameter which helps, and they're also lower profile, sit closer to the steering arm so they stay away from the rim. Anyone have any other ideas?

 

[RockMonkey]

What if you took a tapered reamer and reamed it deeper, to get the tie rod end to sit down a bunch further. It looks like you've got a good 1/2" or more you could go down. Since it's a tie rod it really doesn't need to have much range of motion. The less the better, actually.

 

[mbryson]

how much are offset steering arms (like I'm running on my 60) for a D44? I've really liked those with my swapping of wheels/tires.

http://www.rockstomper.com/catalog/steering/highsteer.htm (about 3 pictures down)

 

[Herzog]

What if you took a tapered reamer and reamed it deeper, to get the tie rod end to sit down a bunch further. It looks like you've got a good 1/2" or more you could go down. Since it's a tie rod it really doesn't need to have much range of motion. The less the better, actually.

I like this idea. It would be worth a try. Then you could weld a spacer on the bottom to soak up the extra space for the castle nut, or just re-drill new cotter pin holes in it if you have enough thread hanging down.

 

[I Lean]

What if you took a tapered reamer and reamed it deeper, to get the tie rod end to sit down a bunch further. It looks like you've got a good 1/2" or more you could go down. Since it's a tie rod it really doesn't need to have much range of motion. The less the better, actually.

The no-range-of-motion is the sole reason I'd almost be OK with heims there, but I'll take a look and see if moving it lower would create enough extra room. I'd really prefer a TRE there. I looked a little bit for large-taper tie rod ends that have a small body, but didn't find any promising ones. If reaming it deeper gets me enough space, I'll do that--and certainly need a spacer underneath like Zog says, since I would run out of threads quickly.

how much are offset steering arms (like I'm running on my 60) for a D44? I've really liked those with my swapping of wheels/tires.

http://www.rockstomper.com/catalog/steering/highsteer.htm (about 3 pictures down)

My current/normal hi-steer arm clears the rim with no problems, even with a big tie rod end in it. I'm going to stick with the stock steering arms for the tie rod though, for three reasons: 1) Cheaper that way. 2) Stronger that way. 3) Less clearance problems on up travel.

 

[Tacoma]

I'm guessing spacers are not an option??? I"m about to order mine to run some H1's.

 

[I Lean]

I'm guessing spacers are not an option??? I"m about to order mine to run some H1's.

Wheel spacers? Not an option. I bought these high-backspaced wheels on purpose, to keep my wheel track where I wanted it despite the wideish axles.

By the way, my outside-to-outside measurement ended up 69" rear, 70" front.

 

[Tacoma]

Ah, that's right. We talked about that once-- keeping it as narrow as possible. So even 1" spacers woudl be too much... but they make smaller ones... and you don't need much.

I think your width is like, what I've got to WMS, you're like feet narrower hahahahhaha

 

[Erik d_lux]

Never seen this thread before.

Looks great!

 

[Silly Willy]

If you need any help in the build, I would be very happy to give you a hand.

 

[I Lean]

I suppose it's time to update this finally. Since the last update, I got the drivetrain mounted, and the basic outline of the cage done:

 

[Herzog]

Progress!

 

[Kiel]

lookin good, nice shiny wheels too! Does the cage go through the firewall, or just bolt to the dash?

 

[ShortShaft]

Awesome! You better get a lot done this week!!!!!!
Cage looks great!!
What is the ground clearance of your engine at ride height?!
I am trying to decide where to mount mine in relation to the tub & frame (keep center of gravity low, but push the engine up as high as possible for clearance)!