Rob's 97, nothing crazy

Yeah my suggestion is mostly a last-resort type of thing since it's not exactly the most fool-proof way of going about things. Chances are someone out there is running them also, it's just a matter of trying to pin them down when you have nothing else to go off of.

Post a pic of them on jeepforum.com in the tech section - good amount of guys on there will be able to tell you what manufacturer/generation and size bushing you need

So, no photos in this update but...yea it's been...interesting lately.

The gas tank skid let go and left me stranded. So that was fun. I finally got a Savvy skid in, new tank in, new fuel vapor line in because the old one (what was left of it) was heavily rotted and everything all buttoned up. I started it up last night to run for a bit because it hasn't been run in a while. Once the lines filled with gas, started up no problem. So I let it run while I picked up tools and whatnot.

Little background before we move any further forward with this story; over the summer, I replaced the serpentine belt and adjusted it to the best of my ability (this has a manual tensioner ). So when the belt started sqealing a little, I didn't think much of it, just figured it may need a slight adjustment since the weather is colder now.

So I let it go for a few seconds then tried to give it a little gas. Sometimes a little extra slippage will heat up the belt enough for it to get traction and stop slipping. Well it didn't work per the usual, but it did slowly start quieting. Sweet. But since the thing hadn't run in a while, I think there was some dirt or grime burning off the exhaust or something, I dunno, it smelled kinda bad. So I popped the hood the take a look annnnd the alternator is not spinning at all. It's just locked up and the belt is dragging across it. So I shut it down immediately. A few seconds later, I'm back in the engine bay just blank-staring at it and then the belt just lets go. A final "fuck you, I'm out."

So yeah...alternator is on order now. Still can't drive it, but man I was close.

Thats too bad about the alternator Rob.
Those alternators have been known to  sieze up after they have been sitting.
I went through two of them myself and ended up installing a unit from a cherokee that puts out more amperage.
it is physically larger than the stock unit but fits in perfectly, i believe that it was 120 amps compared to the 90 amp unit it came with.
Good luck with it.

I didn't know that was a common thing Mark. I put a wrench on it and I was able to get it to spin again, but it feels like the bearings are pretty crusty. It probably still works, so I'm gonna hang onto it for a future project. I was able to find a replacement 117 amp on Amazon for ~$90 so that's what I went with. You can spend a lot more on an alternator, though! Holy crap, I had no idea.

Rob wtf you doing in Cambridge??

Boy is that an accident waiting to happen or what!

hahahha holy crap that's bad.

I'm an idiot you guys.

For reasons unbeknownst to me, I didn't install one of the caster washers on the control arm. The nut was tight on the bolt, but had bottomed out on the threads, not the axle bracket. So it was tight, yet loose. Washer was in the console? So I installed it correctly. I don't know what I was(n't) thinking when I put the control arm in the first time, but it should be good now.

Now just shocks and tires.

Rob Cote wrote:I'm an idiot you guys.

Far from it Rob, we all have brain farts from time to time. lol

Not sure where's a good place to discuss this so I guess here's as good as any.

I want new shocks. When I installed the lift, I got the cheapest shocks I could find. They were like $20 a piece or something. They've been fine for over the road conditions. I would like to find something that will be well-mannered for street use, as it will likely get moved to daily-duty for summer. It's a convertible, duh. But also, I need something that will behave well on washboard. And obviously crawling, which is probably the least demanding for a shock. I don't think that washboard will be a significant portion of the driving to the point where a reservoir design is necessary. But I don't really know. I like these:

http://www.ridefox.com/product.php?make=Jeep&model=Wrangler%20TJ%20/%20LJ&t=shocks&year=2006-1997&position=Front&m=truck&p=1&ref=filter

What else should I be considering?

There are so many brands of shocks out there it's crazy.
I got my shocks here a few years ago and i have no complaints about the 51000's
http://www.shockwarehouse.com/site/bst_5100.cfm

I've heard lots of good things about the 5100s from Bilstein. Although I was reading some accounts of people who've owned 5100s and the Fox shocks I posted above, and the Fox ones were nearly-unanimously preferred. And the price difference isn't huge. So that's what got me questioning the 5100s. Maybe it's worth the extra money? I dunno.

OME also just released some that look pretty awesome, but I think they're only available for JKs at this point? I'm not clear. There isn't a lot of info out yet because they're so new.

Wow those are different, never heard of them.
I don't think the fox shocks were even available when i purchased the 5100's.

Who has the tooling to drain an a/c system and then later on recharge it? Or, at minimum pull a vacuum on it?

Rob Cote wrote:Who has the tooling to drain an a/c system and then later on recharge it? Or, at minimum pull a vacuum on it?

I'm betting this is somehow heater core related. I don't know how much a system evacuation will run you because mine was completely empty when I did my heater core and A/C evaporator replacement (thus the reason I needed a new evaporator) but I can tell you that it cost me around 150 big ones to have my system recharged a few weeks ago at Midas. I don't have a tool for you but if you can find someone who does that's definitely the way to go. Also, don't be an idiot like me and wait four months before refilling your system. Luckily I have no ill effects from waiting but it's not worth the risk of damaging A/C system components.

Rob, your looking for a shop that will evacuate the system before you open the system because you want to work on it ?

You guys got it. Heater core is leaking I believe.

I don't have that equipment but any shop with ac service should be able to evacuate system so you don't pollute atmosphere by releasing refrigerant.

If you do that you should duct tape all hose ends immediately after you remove hoses because moisture is the ac system's worst enemy.
Then when your done you can vac the system and then recharge it.

That's what I figured mark after some more research after my initial post. so who around here does AC work cheap!

"A/C work" and "cheap" are unfortunately terms that I don't think often go together. Midas was the cheapest I could find to refill the system at $147 after tax and fees. Firestone wanted around $200, but they told me their price was based on the amount of refrigerant needed and they were telling me it needed way more than it actually takes. I recommend doing some research on how many ounces a TJ requires before you take it somewhere (for reference the XJ takes 20 ounces).

Mark is spot on about covering the lines. I actually chose to cover mine in small resealable Ziploc bags and zip-tied the ends for extra precaution. My system was only open for a few hours so I wasn't too concerned but again Mark is spot on that moisture will ruin things. Also, as long as the TJ HVAC box is similar to the XJ (which I assume it is), now would be a good time to replace your A/C evaporator (if you care about A/C) as well as the blower motor. Even though mine doesn't have any issues I regret not replacing the blower motor just because it would have been one less thing to worry about down the road.

THOOPY3 wrote:Also, as long as the TJ HVAC box is similar to the XJ (which I assume it is), now would be a good time to replace your A/C evaporator (if you care about A/C) as well as the blower motor.

This is the kind of info I REALLY needed. Thanks!

Actually you know what I just got to thinking maybe this is a good time to convert to OBA. Do I really need air conditioning?

hmmm

Do yourself a favor and keep the ac,,  i'm not getting rid of mine for nothing.

Wether in the middle of the woods on a steamy humid day or night full of mosquitos or in traffic moving at a snails pace and it's 95 degrees out i'm keeping cool.
There is plenty of room and options for oba somewhere in the jeep.

The conversion would be cheaper than paying to have the system evacuated twice, filled once, and buying a standalone compressor for tire fills.

As it is now, I'm the guy waiting around after a trail run til someone else's compressor is freed up.

I think an air compressor would be of more use to me than air conditioning is. If it were my only vehicle, I'd most likely agree with you. But it's not. And it's a convertible. If it's hot enough outside for a/c, I don't have doors on, and most likely don't have a top on either. The A/C's effect is marginal at best.