The_Big_E
NAXJA Forum User
- Location
- I'm like Horse Dookey: I'm all over
So, yeah, this thread WAS the "NWFest Winch / bla bla bla" note... but since NWF has passed, i had to change the topic.
SO after 3 weeks of work without a day off, 2 friends getting hospitilized, and some personal junk going on, I FINALLY got a day to myself for some Zen-Like XJ activity. since I'm home today with a severely strained left shoulder, I'm gonna write a novel.
At this point, I had already torn down the front end's Brakes, pulled the 3 bolts out the backside of the bearing retainers (What's the proper name???) soaked everything with PB plaster EVERY DAY for nearly 2 weeks, so the axles were the next on the list.
Sunday starts off with me pulling out my brand-spanky new Harbor Freight special Slide Hammer Kit. The included CAST adaptor plate that had so much slag on it that I had to get my torch out and blow the holes open a little more. I cooled it off, bolted it up snugly to the wheel studs, threaded in the hammer, bang bang bang cuss swear cuss bang bang bang... torch, PB Blaster, bang on it with a hammer, slide hammer, torch... FINALLY came out... but the adaptor plate for the slide hammer was broken. Dang. So for the other side, I figured i could overlap the broken piece on top of the main broken piece... which worked until I bent the smaller broken piece and the whole thing let loose. So now i've got it back together in another overlapping position that should work, heating (Gently) the bearing retainer (Remember, I don't know this things name LOL) and hasta the thing to loosen it while slide hammering it... bang the shaft of the slide hammer tears out of the plate and hits the side of the house. It' must have loosened and tore the last 3 threads off. So I rethread it, get it set up again, hit it like 2 more times with PB Blaster and the torch and KA-FRIGGIN-BOOM! I yank the slide hammer as hard as i could and the whole shootin match slide hammer, axle, hub etc... hits the side of the house. LOL!
I pryed and pryed on the Diff trying to get it out, then remembered my last jeep, got my copper hammer, whacked the housing 1 time and she fell right out.
I put an Aussie Locker in the front end, install was super simple to the point where I installed it, then went and looked at the instructions, and YUP I got it right on the first try.
I then spent about an hour with my 1/4hp industrial die grinder and a bunch of various abrasives to clean the nastyness off the front end parts and paid special attention to the mating surfaces. (I used to port 2 and 4 stroke engines and this tool is like a Dremel with Bawls) Got it spotleess, then slathered it with Waterproof Axle Bearing Grease before reassembly. Buzzed the surfaces of the Diff Cover free of gasket material too, threw down a new bead of some blue stinky spew-out-goo from a can, reassembled and let it cure overnight.
Then I got real ambitious and installed the roof-rack mounted spare tire hold-down that I bought off John at Auburn Car Repair and Off Road, one of the sponsors of this forum and a helluva nice guy. (See diesel programmer at end of note)
Yesterday, my shoulder pain which had started during the middle of last week, got really bad at work. Went to the doc, just got Ibuprofin and some pain meds, and here i sit at home, shoulder killing me, but smiling now because my buddy Dennis came over last night to fill the front diff and get'er off the Jackstands, retorque the wheels and then we took it for a ride around the block. I AM HAPPY! The 'j is a 1995 with no front end vac disconnect. I figured the locker was at least gonna go clack clack clack around tight corners. WRONG. The noise I heard was sooooo barely audiable that I'd be willing to call it almost silent. Just loking at the design and how it compares to the Lock Right I have for the rear end, I know it will work fine.
So now I'm down to Re-Wiring the winch up to the top terminal posts on my Optima yellowtop, Securing the battery, and it'll be trail ready, but not complete.
To Complete the thing, I need the rear axle taken apart, and I have Yukon Shafts to go in, and a Lock Right to go in the Diff. Then bolt the hitch on (Rear recovery point) and she's Done!* (Until the next Quadratec Catalog comes in, we want tube doors)
Now, on to Mr. John from auburn Car Repair and Off Road, remember them for all your offroad needs. (LOL!)
Nancy and I are standing in ACRO talking to John and picking up my 31" spare tire and wheel and roof rack mount, and he gets to talking about my truck, 2002 Chevy Silverado with the 6.6L Isuzu diesel LB7... and just so happened John had a top-of-the-line Power Programmer for CHEAP! Much to my surprise, Nancy my dear, dear girlfriend and bestest buddy says "He'll take it"... and here i sit with it! She bought it for me. Thanks to John for the Sweet Deal on the extra HP, and Thanks to my Sweetie Nancy for careing enough to get involved in my hobbies and even encouraging the habit. John, got a price for a 4" MRBP Exhaust from Turbo back? Right now my tow vehicle for my Jeep (See, it's still Jeep related) gets about 12.5mpg towing here in the west, 16.5mpg on the commute up 99 to Everett, and just weeks ago pulled 19.75mpg on an unloaded tour of the Olympic Penninsula, lots of idleing, stop-n-go, sit for 1/2 hour watching Elk in the rain with the defrogger and heat on. I hear that my combo of engine, gears, tire size, programmer and an MRBP 4" exhaust will put me up in the 19-20mpg stop-n-go area, and 25+mg unloaded on the freeway at 70mph. Not to mention i can dial up a few hundred extra horsepower to pass the Prius's on the mountain passes. :clap:
So there ya go, there's my weekend and Monday. I may actually make it out on the trail this year!
SO after 3 weeks of work without a day off, 2 friends getting hospitilized, and some personal junk going on, I FINALLY got a day to myself for some Zen-Like XJ activity. since I'm home today with a severely strained left shoulder, I'm gonna write a novel.
At this point, I had already torn down the front end's Brakes, pulled the 3 bolts out the backside of the bearing retainers (What's the proper name???) soaked everything with PB plaster EVERY DAY for nearly 2 weeks, so the axles were the next on the list.
Sunday starts off with me pulling out my brand-spanky new Harbor Freight special Slide Hammer Kit. The included CAST adaptor plate that had so much slag on it that I had to get my torch out and blow the holes open a little more. I cooled it off, bolted it up snugly to the wheel studs, threaded in the hammer, bang bang bang cuss swear cuss bang bang bang... torch, PB Blaster, bang on it with a hammer, slide hammer, torch... FINALLY came out... but the adaptor plate for the slide hammer was broken. Dang. So for the other side, I figured i could overlap the broken piece on top of the main broken piece... which worked until I bent the smaller broken piece and the whole thing let loose. So now i've got it back together in another overlapping position that should work, heating (Gently) the bearing retainer (Remember, I don't know this things name LOL) and hasta the thing to loosen it while slide hammering it... bang the shaft of the slide hammer tears out of the plate and hits the side of the house. It' must have loosened and tore the last 3 threads off. So I rethread it, get it set up again, hit it like 2 more times with PB Blaster and the torch and KA-FRIGGIN-BOOM! I yank the slide hammer as hard as i could and the whole shootin match slide hammer, axle, hub etc... hits the side of the house. LOL!
I pryed and pryed on the Diff trying to get it out, then remembered my last jeep, got my copper hammer, whacked the housing 1 time and she fell right out.
I put an Aussie Locker in the front end, install was super simple to the point where I installed it, then went and looked at the instructions, and YUP I got it right on the first try.
I then spent about an hour with my 1/4hp industrial die grinder and a bunch of various abrasives to clean the nastyness off the front end parts and paid special attention to the mating surfaces. (I used to port 2 and 4 stroke engines and this tool is like a Dremel with Bawls) Got it spotleess, then slathered it with Waterproof Axle Bearing Grease before reassembly. Buzzed the surfaces of the Diff Cover free of gasket material too, threw down a new bead of some blue stinky spew-out-goo from a can, reassembled and let it cure overnight.
Then I got real ambitious and installed the roof-rack mounted spare tire hold-down that I bought off John at Auburn Car Repair and Off Road, one of the sponsors of this forum and a helluva nice guy. (See diesel programmer at end of note)
Yesterday, my shoulder pain which had started during the middle of last week, got really bad at work. Went to the doc, just got Ibuprofin and some pain meds, and here i sit at home, shoulder killing me, but smiling now because my buddy Dennis came over last night to fill the front diff and get'er off the Jackstands, retorque the wheels and then we took it for a ride around the block. I AM HAPPY! The 'j is a 1995 with no front end vac disconnect. I figured the locker was at least gonna go clack clack clack around tight corners. WRONG. The noise I heard was sooooo barely audiable that I'd be willing to call it almost silent. Just loking at the design and how it compares to the Lock Right I have for the rear end, I know it will work fine.
So now I'm down to Re-Wiring the winch up to the top terminal posts on my Optima yellowtop, Securing the battery, and it'll be trail ready, but not complete.
To Complete the thing, I need the rear axle taken apart, and I have Yukon Shafts to go in, and a Lock Right to go in the Diff. Then bolt the hitch on (Rear recovery point) and she's Done!* (Until the next Quadratec Catalog comes in, we want tube doors)
Now, on to Mr. John from auburn Car Repair and Off Road, remember them for all your offroad needs. (LOL!)
Nancy and I are standing in ACRO talking to John and picking up my 31" spare tire and wheel and roof rack mount, and he gets to talking about my truck, 2002 Chevy Silverado with the 6.6L Isuzu diesel LB7... and just so happened John had a top-of-the-line Power Programmer for CHEAP! Much to my surprise, Nancy my dear, dear girlfriend and bestest buddy says "He'll take it"... and here i sit with it! She bought it for me. Thanks to John for the Sweet Deal on the extra HP, and Thanks to my Sweetie Nancy for careing enough to get involved in my hobbies and even encouraging the habit. John, got a price for a 4" MRBP Exhaust from Turbo back? Right now my tow vehicle for my Jeep (See, it's still Jeep related) gets about 12.5mpg towing here in the west, 16.5mpg on the commute up 99 to Everett, and just weeks ago pulled 19.75mpg on an unloaded tour of the Olympic Penninsula, lots of idleing, stop-n-go, sit for 1/2 hour watching Elk in the rain with the defrogger and heat on. I hear that my combo of engine, gears, tire size, programmer and an MRBP 4" exhaust will put me up in the 19-20mpg stop-n-go area, and 25+mg unloaded on the freeway at 70mph. Not to mention i can dial up a few hundred extra horsepower to pass the Prius's on the mountain passes. :clap:
So there ya go, there's my weekend and Monday. I may actually make it out on the trail this year!
