Upgrades for the CJ-5

[skipdoo940]

So after the last time out and hitting that tree I have a mess to clean up. Let me start out with what I got and then where Id like to go with it and why.

1962 WIllys frame stretched 10" and boxed in afew places
1980's CJ5 fiberglass (i know not for go, just show, found that out the hard way) tub
Yota 8" front and rear rearends from 1983 4wd PU
Yota 22r 4cyl, 5 spd trans n t-case
38x12.5x15 tsls on steelies
Skyjacker Nitro Shocks
Srung over
Corbeau seats, KC lights front, walmart lights rear
smittybuilt xrc8 winch (broken right now, this thing is not very rugged but was cheap)

and the plan:
aussie lockers front and rear
4.7:1 trailgear t-case low kit w/ twin stick
hydro ram assist
Roll cage formed out of 1.5" tube (dont know if its DOM but the price was right)

these pictures were from before I broke the windshield and added a euro loop to the front bumper........

[skipdoo940]

I like having the narrow wheelbase so I dont want to go full width and scrap the axles, plus, correct me if im wrong but the axle shafts on the yotas are the same diameter as dana44s, 1 5/8. I forgot to mention they are 4.10 gears. As for the ram assist, im probubly gonna get west texas offroad to do up the box ( has the old fashioned yota push/pull style and I dont want to go crossover) and i hear that style is very un-popular for offroading. It has done me good so far and i figure that if i get a ram helping out that i should not have a prob with the push/pull bars breaking. Im going to scrap the stock tie rod and rod ends and instead go with a 1.25" Steel tube 1"ID with 5/8" heim joints for rod ends. This should be stronger than the stock rod ends and I dont wanna drill the stock knuckles out any bigger that 5/8" or else i would get 3/4" heims.

[highlandercj-7]

Check with the yota guys but a friend of mine is putting a set into his CJ-7. He is using a pair of rear TRD center sections out of the recalled triucks. The 3rds he picked up have selectable lockers and I believe he said 456's. The locker is electric activated but they have kits to convert them to manual activation.
As for the fiberglass body not taking abuse you may not have a quality tub. 4wd Hardware tubs take some serious abuse.

[skipdoo940]

Update:
Ok so now the winch works again. After a FREE new motor (thanks Smittybuilt) because the first one broke within a year of purchase, I got the winch spooled and put back in the front bumper where it belongs.




And now I got the front roll cage fabbed into the old rear section and bolted to the floor. Now I jst got to get the frame tie-in brackets welded up and im golden.



Next Step:
4.7 Creeper T-case gears, twin stick, motor mounts, and new clutch ordered and in the mail.

[skipdoo940]

Ok, lots of progress this week. Got the new clutch in.


Then since I had the T-case pulled it was time for 4.7 low range gears and a rebuild kit.


Yea I kno the outside garage sucks but the inside one was full of other projects so...
Notice the main shaft gear difference, new=on shaft


Also had to clearence the housing to make it fit



and the shifters



Trail gear came through for me with the parts on this one and their directions were spot on. It all wnet together in one day and I even got a new set of motor mounts on too to help offset the added drivetrain torque I now have (and because I kept breaking the stock ones before and got tired of replacing them). Heres how it looks now.



Next up: Aussie locker and some steering upgrades, also I think rear disk brakes might be in the near future because my braking now is terrible and I think the Master Cyl is going bad (its probably the origional and about 25 years old).

[Dick.Breakey]

i love the twin sticks. looks bad ass and i like that it says 4.7 on it

[skipdoo940]

As it sits now:




and no its not that shiney in person, its actually scratched to all to hell.

[jackb1]

I like to look at pictures and that is all I was doing in this thread until I saw the aluminum housing for the Tcase and got very confused. So I read... pretty neat choice for running gear.

[Deadman 94 xj]

I've been following along looks great!

[Toyota4x4Fan]

Dude this is sweet!!!

Love the Toy running gear

[skipdoo940]

Who knew christmas was in October? UPS must think so cuz they sent me multiple goodies and since I didnt have the tree to put them under they had to go under the front end of the CJ Anyway..... the goods:








Stock Steering Garbage:




The new Yota IFS box, Tapped:





And installed:




Ram mounted:




Pitman arm on with high steer:






Unfortunatly I was so excited after I got it installed that I forgot to take the pics, Instead I took it wheelin down casparis for a quick tryout and it functioned perfectly. Great road manners, smooth turning, and powerful as hell. Ill get around to the front end pics sometime soon....... now on to the lockers........

[skipdoo940]

Orderd up a Spartan Locker (almost like a lock rite but comes with a new hardened cross pi instead of re-using the old one). Installed it in the rear and while I was in there replaced both wheel bearings and all the seals. Also found out that my rear brakes arent worth crap. Gonna go rear disk brakes when I find a decent kit. Also got the temp guage installed so I know when the beast is hot or not. No new pictures yet but Ill get back with a review as soon as I get this thing tested. As far as I can tell both wheels always turn great and it didnt mess up the road manners too bad but the occasional bang from the rear end sounds terrible.