1964 CJ-6 restore, diesel swap, axle swap

Tr0nL0rd

New member
As the title implies this will be a long haul of a build, so I'll lay out what I have so far and the choices I will need to make as far the setup an hopefully some of you can help me make the rite call to make this girl a truly trail capable rig. Keep in mind I am working on budget and can't go all out of the hardware, that being said for the rite parts I will eat ramen for a few weeks :)

So what I have is a 1964 CJ-6 with a rough body and solid frame:
0814151144.jpg0814151144b.jpg
Needs some patch work and bondo but should do nicely, the narrow track axles will have to go though
2012-06-27 19.21.51.jpg
and my old friend, a 4JG2 3.1L turbo diesel mated to a re-geared version on the 4L30E, I have run this engine in an I'll fated truck before and it is solid as they come with torque for days.

Don't yet have any decent photos of them but I have a rear dana 44 60" WMS width and a front GM 10 bolt (8.5") 67" WMS, the dana 44 is LSD but gearing on both axles is currently a mystery.

Now what I need to decide,
what sort of suspension set up would y'all use in my position?
I am drawn the flex I'll get off a 4-link setup but am worried about the cost of building it and have no experience with the geometry, so any advise would be greatly appreciated.
What is my best option for lockers?
I intend to run mostly trails with the rig but don't have a tow vehicle so she needs to be street-able.
What is the best bet for retro fitting power brakes and steering?
I'm looking at stripping the PS pump out of a 80's blazer and fabbing a column as I have solid pump on my engine already.
Brake wise I am hoping to strip the pedals and booster out of the same vehicle to limit the fab required to mate them together.

Now to set off a 6-keg project haha

I'll keep this post updated with current build progress
 
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Hello and welcome to jeepz.com . The CJ6 is an uncommon jeep , at least in our forum that I'm aware of but will make a very interesting build. The fact that this is going to be a mod will be even more exciting . We look forward to build threads and will be looking forward to yours . Thank you for sharing your project with us and especially thanks for your membership here at jeepz.com .
 
One thing I notice, is it looks like you have the spicer-18 tcase which has a offset out put and uses a offset rear axle. The good news is the spicer18 case and dana20 case have the same bolt pattern. you cant use your centered rear with the 18, but you can with the 20.
 
I have a 69 5, so our frames and drivetrains are the same. As you know, the pedals come off of the frame and through the floor, switching to hanging pedals is a great upgrade, and going to hydraulic clutch is even better, Im in the process of this now. Pedals are hung and brake master and clutch is in. another great upgrade is to ditch the factory steering for a cross over set up. the factory ross steering is a VERY poor design, way too many moving parts to keep the slop out of the system. So when you swap columns you may consider swaping the rest of the steering as well. There are a few mods to do for the steering though but not too tough. The other thing to consider is your axle swap, your current axles should be 51" wide. Any axle will be wider, and you say you have a 44 with wms to wms of 60", that almost 10" wider than you are now. The tires will stick WAY out, even the AMC narrow track axles are 3" wider than your stockers. I believe the 80,s wide track are 56" and the wagoner 44s at 58". suspension wise being on a budget I would stick with the leaf springs. Yours are 1 3/4" wide, the 70,s are a bit wider, I think they are 2" and the wrangler (yj) are even wider I think 2 1/2" or 3". You will need to change the spring hangers on the frame to swap springs. wrangler spring are longer flexier and offer a smoother ride. The factory springs are stiff and ride like a tank. Got anymore pics
 
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