Been a while sense I've done any work on my jeepster.

I took everything off the jeepster that would unbolt (except for the chrome grill, that's stays). Started the body work (lots of work to do here). Hope to paint it May 20th 2007 and have it all back together for a run on June 7th. Still need to have the Line X touched up in the bed area but other that paint, no more upgrades for this year.

On the wish list for next year is a set of tube fenders for the front. I have a design on paper, just need someone with a bender to fab them for me.

	I picked up this jeepster in San Diego Ca. It had so many things done to it, I just could not pass it up. It already had the Chevy 350 motor, headers, SM 465 tranie and the 205 transfer case. It also came with the Ford 9" rear end with a Detroit locker. I knew it was going to be a great jeepster because I had to drive it home 500 miles in 110 degree weather. It drove like a Cadillac at 80 mph. This is what she looked like when I picked her up.
	First thing I did was pull the cage it had and modified it to my liking. The cage is a six point that attached to the frame. I also attached the seats and belts to the cage. When the cage was finished, I had it power coated before I installed it.
	Here's a picture of the cage installed in the jeepster.
	The jeep came with a Dana 30 front axle. I pulled out the axle and had a custom made Ford 9" from Currie Enterprise with 4.10 gears and a ARB to match the rear. I used Scout outer knuckles for the brakes and Superwinch premium hubs. I also converted to cross over steering with 11/8' round stock and hymn joints
	The jeepster had manual Saginaw steering in it and I opted to install the Howell steering with ram assist. I didn't have allot of room with the big 350 Chevy, so I decided to mount the pump and located the reservoir on the fire wall.
	The brakes were too soft for my liking so I installed a Navajo master cylinder and power booster
	I repaired the cargo floor with all NOS sheet metal parts Next, I had the inside of the jeep covered with Line X
	The jeepster needed a tire carrier so I bought a Tompkin bumper and swing away carrier and modified it to fit the jeepster. I bent and reinforced it to match the sleek jeepster tailgate angle. The jeepster came with this personalized license plate .
	Next, I made the front bumper to match the rear Tompkin bumper. The bumper also serves as a front cross member support needed for the power steering. I added tow bar mounts and a universal Warn winch mount to the bumper. Next came the Warn winch. I choose a Warn 9000 lb quick recovery winch. I built a couple of brackets so the high lift jack would fit in the tow bar brackets
	I started working on the inside of the jeep and decided the stock gauges were not going to work for me. I wanted the inside to look nice and everything easy accessible. l . The dash that came in the jeepster was cut up so I cut one out of a partster and installed it in my new jeepster. I had the dash power coated and all the gauge backing plates chromed. I went with Auto meter gauges with a matching clock. I completely reworked the switch panel with CJ switches. I also put in a bank of Moore switches for the ARB, electric fan, and fog lights in front of the center console. Next came the Flaming River stainless steel tilt column and mahogany steering wheel.
	Because I used the spot in the dash for the gauges, I needed a place to put the stereo. I bought a lockable Tuffy overhead console to fit radio and CB. I used a Cobra CB, a Pioneer stereo and amp, Infinity woofers tweeters and crossovers.
	The jeep had some 33" 10.50 tire and they had to go. I decided on the Dunlop's 35" tires because of the price and wanted a good all around tire.
	To keep the local police off my back and rocks out of others windshields, I used a set of CJ 7 Bushwackers
	I put the new front clip on this week. It features a chromed 71 grill, powder coated fenders and hood.
	I replaced the old 1/8" rocker guards with a 3/16 cold roll steel. The thinner ones just didn't hold up the granite rocks on the Rubicon Finished the doors. I completely rebuild all parts on the doors and windows. I gutted the doors down to the shells, relined the window tracks, repined the door hinges with 3/8" removable pins, cleaned and greased the window cranks, had the window frames and vent windows chromed, installed new door rubber and cat whiskers (belt weather strips ). I realigned the doors and they now open and close just like new. I plan on doing a complete section on the door rebuild on the tech page a little latter. That's it for this project until after the 4 wheel drive season. I plan on painting the rest of the jeep, installing a Klune V under drive and fuel injection this winter
	Upgrades this year were done from 11/1/2005 to 3/8/2006 Well this winter brought many changes to my jeepster. One of the problems I had last year on the harder trail was ground clearance. Mostly my transfer case hit all the big rocks. It was so bad I had to take much harder lines to get around the big stiff. 1st thing I did to help with the ground clearance was a spring over axle (SOA) in the front with a set of new Alcan springs with a 2" lift.
	Next thing was the shackle reversal. Again to help with the overall clearance, the rear shackles pivot in the middle of the frame
	Next clearance problem was the NP 205 transfer case. This thing drug on everything. I decided to ditch the 205 transfer case for a NP 241 case. The 241 has a 2.71 low gear compared to the 1.96 in the NP 205 and it clocked up nicely to the bottom of the jeepster. I did have to cut the floor under the passenger seat a little to make it fit.
	Next up was the Klune-V. The Klune didn't do anything for the clearance but much improved my gearing. The Klune's gear is 2.7. With my SM 465 low gear at 6.1, the NP 241 transfer case at 2.71 , the Klune at 2.71 and my 4.10 axle gears my final crawl ratio is around 180 to 1 Actually the Klune is installed before the NP 241 transfer case
	Next up was the rear suspension. I first was just going to do the SOA in the rear but opted to do a 3 link coil over with a hard pan bar. This was a tough decision because of the added expense but the results were phenomenal.


	To hold everything in place a cross member was fabricated out of 1/4" steel and mounted with rubber bushings to the side of the frame rail to keep it out of the rocks

	Here are a few photos of how the new suspension flexes
	Next up was a new set of tires. I decided on the Pro Comp AT 38.5 on 17" rims
	Here is a shot of the jeepsters new ground clearance
	Still need to do some trimming on the front fenders and rear fenders. I'll need to cut the bed another 4 " to make the rear tires clear. I bought a set of tube doors that I need to paint and install. Also need to figure out what I'll do with the spare tire. The new spare 38.5" tire will not clear the tailgate when opened. I'll probably just mount it to the old carrier for this year and redesign a mount next year to mount to the cage. Next years upgrades will include, high steer knuckles, a high pinion in the rear, fuel injection, on board air, tube fenders and hopefully some paint. That's it for this year, it's time to go out and enjoy the upgrades. See you on the trail.
	Been a while sense I've done any work on my jeepster. I took everything off the jeepster that would unbolt (except for the chrome grill, that's stays). Started the body work (lots of work to do here). Hope to paint it May 20th 2007 and have it all back together for a run on June 7th. Still need to have the Line X touched up in the bed area but other that paint, no more upgrades for this year. On the wish list for next year is a set of tube fenders for the front. I have a design on paper, just need someone with a bender to fab them for me.
	Primer and body work completed. Next up is the paint and then putting it all back together
	Jeepster paint finished and all put back together
	Jeepster with 1/2 doors. I took a set of doors and cut them along the line for my arm to rest. I filled them in with flat stock and painted them. I plan on setting some recessed cup holder in each door
	Jeepster with tube doors
	Next up will be a high pinion in the rear (Hi 9 for my ford 9" axle). Coil over in the front, Hydro Boost brakes, puller radiator fan (do away with the mechanical and pusher fans). Fuel injection, but before any of these I'm heading out on the trail and enjoy the jeep for the summer.
	Well it's been just short of a year since I last updated this build page. Not a lot to add but I did do a few upgrades to my jeepster over the winter. I always like coming back and looking over what I had planned the year before and see if I was able to do what I wanted to do over the winter months. By the looks of my last post, I hit 75% of what I wanted to do.
	First upgrade was to the braking system. I was running a vacuum booster with a big bore master cylinder for a few years and for the most part that system worked very well. When I moved up from 35" tiers to 38.5" tires, braking was an issue. I decided to install a GM style Hydro boost. I already was running a high volume power steering pump with a big remote reservoir so I didn't have to do anything to my existing set up. I added a inline filter and cooler to the system which also added capacity. I wanted my front to rear braking properly proportioned so I added a fixed proportioning valve under my new master cylinder. I used a valve with a 65/35 ratio
	Next upgrade was to due away with the mechanical fan. The fan was not very efficient because not being centered in the radiator because of all the lift. The fan was so low, when I went through water, it would splash up into the carburetor and kill the motor. I had a electric pusher fan in the front but by it's self would not cool the big SBC. I re did the drive pulleys on the crank and water pump and made enough room to add a 2100 CFM puller fan. I think I have about a 1/4" to spare but it fit great. I added a bank of relays for both fans and a few other devices. The puller fan is controlled by a 185 degree thermostat with a manual off switch in the cab for those deep river crossings. I kept the pusher fan in front of the grill just incase of a real hot day of the puller fan fails.
	Night lights for some night wheeling was next. A switch in the cab along with a relay for the light power. I've done night runs without the lights, this should help with some better lines.
	Because of all these new electrical devices, I upgrade my alternator to Delco 140 Amp.
	Next came my satellite radio. I already have it in my truck so I wired it into my stereo. I have a removable unit that I can take from jeep to truck so I didn't have to buy two.
	TBI fuel inject came next. I went with the Howell unit for most all V-8 motors. This kit was complete and simple to install. The kit came with a external rail mount fuel pump. Because my custom Aero tank sits so low below the frame, I decided not to run the external pump and install a intake pump. Not that the pump that came with the kit would have served it purpose, I wanted something that would run cool, and not loose it's prime. The pump I installed has a baffle around the pump and goes to the very bottom of the tank. Another reason for using a tank pump was I didn't want to rip off on a rock or burn it up in the mud
	Last upgrade for the year was I finally installed my Kay line top. It's a few years old and this was the 1st time I've had it on since owning the jeep. I used some best top products to clean it up. Maybe next year I'll finish early with the upgrades and make a snow run with the top on
	That's it for the winter of 2007, next projects will be a high pinion in the rear (Hi 9 for my ford 9" axle), coil over three link suspension in the front and if time permits, some tube front finders and a set of bead locks.