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A Different Kind of Jeep Project

It’s been a while. It’s been a LONG while. Turns out having a kid not only takes a lot of the time I used to have, but also the money that would be necessary for me to continue working on Ike. That’s not to say it’s been without Jeep-related fun. In fact, today marked the start of a new Jeep project. No, it won’t take the place of Ike, but it will let me have a little Jeep fun while also passing the torch to Hayden. What could I possibly be going on and on about? Well, here’s the start of…

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Double K *beep* *beep* U-R-T-I-S

In what has turned out to be the most difficult portion of the rebuild so far, I’ve actually completed my T90 transmission rebuild. A few weeks ago, I got the lower end of the transmission rebuilt, getting 44 needle bearings in place and fighting with trust washers to get the cluster gear into place. The other problem was reverse idler shaft and countershaft not going in at the right angle. To keep the shafts from spinning and working their way out, a plate slides between two keyed slots in each shaft. As you can imagine, getting the a flat slot…

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Oh yeah, I have a Jeep

A lot has happened since I last worked on Ike. The weather got unbearably hot. I got really into reloading ammunition. I found out I was going to be a father. I installed more storage in the garage. Oh yeah, and I’m going to be a father. That actually might have something to do with me not giving the Jeep any attention. I’ve spent the last few months not working on the Jeep and instead focusing on other endeavors. Until today, and now I feel like I really missed out on the last few months of Jeep building time. On…

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Shifting to high (and low) gear

With the exception of a missed spring on the last part order (sucks that the $4 spring prevents a $300 rebuild from being completed), the final setting of the rear drum, and the front yolk, the transfer case has been completely rebuilt. The front yolk will require that I borrow the impact wrench from my dad again to get the appropriate 100-120 ft. lbs. of torque on the nut. The rear companion flange and drum will get pressed on once the spring has been replaced and the shoes adjusted. Since the output shaft of the transmission runs through the input…

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Prepping the T-Case

It just so happens that when you work all day on what is supposed to be your off Friday, getting a transfer case put back together is nearly impossible to accomplish. On top of that, hunting for a baby brother for Ike certainly spent what little extra time I had left. Especially when that hunt comes up short. That being said, I was able to get all of the various transfer case parts cleaned, prepped, and painted. In fact, I got all the way to starting to put the output gear cluster together and then realized that I hadn’t bought…

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Starting year 3 with Ike

I can hardly believe that it’s been just a little over three years since I first brought Ike home from Temecula. It’s been a great three years, and now that I’m nearing 2.5 years in restoring him, my efforts are starting to actually look like something that can and will drive again. After last weeks success in getting the intermediate gear and shaft pulled from the transfer case, it was time to get that pesky output gear cluster out. As I mentioned last time, the problem with continuing the removal is that the gear cluster is held together with a…

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Splitting some gears

After getting much of the errata off of the transfer case nearly two weeks ago, it was time to flip the thing all over and remove the innards. Following a couple of guides online (one even based on the other with a few more pointers), I was able figure out that I needed two things – first a brass hammer with a brass drift, and second a MUCH better impact wrench. This last weekend I had my dad come by with an electric impact wrench with far more torque then my cheapy Chinese-made weekend special. With the more torquey wrench,…

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Starting the transfer case

As this quarter of school winds down, I decided to take a break from studying (read: I neglected to study for my finals at all and instead went outside to play in grease) and work on Ike a bit. Being the late afternoon/early evening, I knew I wouldn’t have much time to play. Unfortunately, the work bench was covered in oily cardboard, bits and pieces of previous rebuilding, crumbs of old grease, basically all kinds of old nasties. This of course led to a chain of events. While clearing out the bottom shelf of the work bench, I needed something…

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Ike gets a column

Being an active full time MBA student has its ups and its downs. One BIG down is that the time I have available to me on the weekends is dramatically cut short. Add in the normal stuff that needs to be done while off work, some quality time with the wife (which I enjoy more than working on the Jeep the vast majority of the time-Love ya Kim!), and the time available for the Jeep becomes far smaller. That being said, over the last two months, I’ve done some work off and on. From masking parts, to putting a few…

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Rolling Chassis Complete

It was a little over 2 years ago (2 years and 5 days ago to be exact) that I started tearing down Ike. After only a few months, the Jeep was little more than a rolling chassis, until both of the axles were dropped. Now, after all that time, 18 months of which the axles not attached to the frame, I now have not only a rolling chassis, but something that actually resembles a Jeep. As has become custom when I’m out working in the garage, I’ll occasionally get a neighbor that pokes in their head to see the Jeep.…

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