After a great deal of pondering and plotting, I decided to start my restoration early. So much so that I actually went and changed my restoration countdown on the right hand side to show December 17th as the day for starting. The plan was simple, I would get the thing started and running for a fun day of driving on my day off, go running through the desert, driving around town, and generally just having fun. Then, Saturday would be a day of draining fluids and starting to pull off some of the easy accessories into Sunday. That would have…
1 CommentCategory: New Parts
After way too many weeks, I finally finished the latest batch of small parts. The master cylinder inspection plate, transmission inspection plate, and both the transmission and transfer case shift boot retention rings have been sand blasted, primed, and painted. I also got brand new shift boots since the ones that were “there” for the most part where all but destroyed. Poor Ike started out with this on the floorboard: Under all that old metal was a little bit or rubber and a very torn transmission shift boot: Then after sand blasting: And now reinstalled: Unfortunately I found out the…
2 CommentsIke’s first oil change, they grow up so fast 🙁 Well, maybe not the first oil change, but certainly the first oil change in a long while. After owning Ike for only a few months, it was time to give him a good old fashioned oil change. Some observations: the drain plug is HUGE compared to what I am used to. The bolt head is over an inch across, and needless to say I didn’t have any proper tools to get the bolt off. I ended up having to use a pair of channel locks to get around the large…
1 CommentWell, I had some pretty high hopes for Ike this weekend. While I didn’t accomplish nearly as much as I was hoping to get done, I did fill the weekend pretty successfully. My weekend offroading adventure ended up getting cut out completely. Saturday went from being a offroading day with some sand blasting, to being a day of relaxation with some sand blasting thrown in. Due to the high heat this weekend, inside with the AC on was really the only tolerable place to be. Sunday I went down to the Pomona Antique Auto Swap Meet, which was a total…
2 CommentsWow, has it really been more than a month since my last post? Part of the problem with having a Jeep pending restoration is that finding tasks that don’t keep it out of commission completely is rather difficult. After all the work I have done to this point, Ike is roadworthy and isn’t in dire need of much of anything right now. That lack of need came at just the right time. One of the things that has kept me from enjoying Ike is the start of a new job. This new job has a very good point and a…
2 CommentsToday I did something that I finally realized I needed to do: add a cup holder. Now I know what you might be thinking. A Jeep shouldn’t have a cup holder, it’s not the way Toledo intended it. Well, here is my defense. I like to drive Ike to and from work. Some mornings, I’ll stop at Starbucks and get a coffee before I go in. After spilling my coffee all over Ike, I decided something had to change. So, I did a search and found that someone at 1942MB had already figured out the least invasive and most usable…
1 CommentAfter what seems like an eternity, Ike is finally back up and running again. To recap, a few weeks ago, Ike had a little cooling problem. After getting the 60 year old radiator rodded out, purchasing a used thermostat housing, radiator hoses, new thermostat, retaining ring, bolts, hose clamps, and thermostat gasket, as well as blasting, sanding, priming, and painting the radiator shroud, Ike is back together. Everything was put back together with brand new bolts, nuts, and washers as well. Here is a look at the fan shroud before and after blasting, priming, and painting: The radiator before and…
1 CommentAfter a few weeks of purchasing parts, waiting for them to arrive, and doing lots of sand blasting, sanding, priming and painting, I’m only a few steps away from having Ike back together and running. After getting back the radiator, I ordered a new thermostat housing. After getting the new part, prepping, and painting it, I am very glad that I did. The differences are astounding. The fan shroud isn’t quite done yet, it needs a second coat of pain on the front and a first and second coat of paint on the back before it will be ready, but…
Comments closed“Thar she blows!” Today was a “must drive the Jeep” day. Due to some minor issues on my primary car, I had my dad take it into the dealer for some warranty repairs. So, with the daily driver out of commission, I had a perfect excuse (as if I needed one) to drive Ike to work today. With the slightly warmer weather and longer daylight hours, today was the first drive to work where I didn’t need lights and gloves to get to work in one place. After work was done for the day, I decided to run to my…
Comments closedGot a wonderful present on the doorstep today. My first parts order! Needless to say I was a little like a kid who woke up on Christmas Eve hearing Santa at the tree. After finishing digging up the sprinklers in the back yard, and going out to dinner, I got to go install my new parts. So, what did the old guy get? 1. I already put these on since they came a few days before the rest of the parts, but brand new hood blocks with proper screws as Toledo intended. The old blocks (original?) were very worn down.…
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