I've run into a little problem lately and know that this is the place for help.
My 84 cj body had a couple of rust holes in the rocker panels - no problem, i'll just grind off the paint around the holes, cut out the rust and weld in patches. I started grinding and the more I ground, the more bondo I found - over 1/4" thick in some places. Under the bondo, the metal was almost rusted away. Out comes the sawzall. Now, I have no rocker panels, rear fenders, wheel wells, rear corners, rear body mount crossmember or bed floor.
I have found a 90 or 91 (can't remember) yj body that I can get for $1000. The yj has no motor/transmission - it had a v-8 and auto and was about to be lowered and made into a street rod. I have not looked at it, but was told that the "4-wheel-drive stuff had been taken out". I do not know yet how much has been removed or changed.
My questions are: Will the yj tub line up with the cj fenders and cowl? How about using the cj dash in the yj tub, will it work? Any other problems I may run into? How much labor would this take?
I have thought about using 1" square tubing to frame up the sides, corners, etc and using 18 ga sheet to skin the framing. Not wanting to build a tube buggy, I was gonna frame the door openings, etc to match the factory dimensions as closely as possible. What are the thoughts on this?
I have use of typical machine/fab shop tools, ie shear, press brake, lathe, vertical milling machine, welders, etc, so I can build just about anything I need. I just want to keep the time/labor to a minimum.
I know that I could put my drive train into the yj, but I want to keep the cj as close to original as possible, because I like the big round headlights and the lack of a computer. I also like the cj gauges. I also want to keep the body steel because of my access to the metal working equipment. I can repair a steel body easier than a fiberglass one.
thanks in advance for any help,
yeller
My 84 cj body had a couple of rust holes in the rocker panels - no problem, i'll just grind off the paint around the holes, cut out the rust and weld in patches. I started grinding and the more I ground, the more bondo I found - over 1/4" thick in some places. Under the bondo, the metal was almost rusted away. Out comes the sawzall. Now, I have no rocker panels, rear fenders, wheel wells, rear corners, rear body mount crossmember or bed floor.
I have found a 90 or 91 (can't remember) yj body that I can get for $1000. The yj has no motor/transmission - it had a v-8 and auto and was about to be lowered and made into a street rod. I have not looked at it, but was told that the "4-wheel-drive stuff had been taken out". I do not know yet how much has been removed or changed.
My questions are: Will the yj tub line up with the cj fenders and cowl? How about using the cj dash in the yj tub, will it work? Any other problems I may run into? How much labor would this take?
I have thought about using 1" square tubing to frame up the sides, corners, etc and using 18 ga sheet to skin the framing. Not wanting to build a tube buggy, I was gonna frame the door openings, etc to match the factory dimensions as closely as possible. What are the thoughts on this?
I have use of typical machine/fab shop tools, ie shear, press brake, lathe, vertical milling machine, welders, etc, so I can build just about anything I need. I just want to keep the time/labor to a minimum.
I know that I could put my drive train into the yj, but I want to keep the cj as close to original as possible, because I like the big round headlights and the lack of a computer. I also like the cj gauges. I also want to keep the body steel because of my access to the metal working equipment. I can repair a steel body easier than a fiberglass one.
thanks in advance for any help,
yeller
