Post your most non-elegant but effective customizations

[JpX]

Post your most hideous but effective custom solution to an FSJ problem.
If I had pictures of the wag my dad had where he used roofing shingles to patch
the tailgate and the rear bottom quarter panels and isntalled a green treated 2x10
for a rear bumper I would. That was in 82 so no digi camera's.



In order to get my GM hydro clutch bracket secure I fabbed up brackets out of
flat stock with a propane torch a grinder and a drill. I used a ton of washers
various bolts and managed to wedge a bolt onto the stock steeringwheel/brake/clutch
pedal bracket. This whole structure went in unwillingly every step of the way!
http://www.zorprime.com/258shrunk.JPG

[bigun]

http://www.fullsizejeeps.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10014/ouraytrail.jpg
Crom

[grand_wag_85]

In dash CB

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b360/spf150/100_0590.jpg

[baybilly]

I can make it over that creek bed :D :D
my tag didn't, zippy ties and string. had a geat time:thumbsup: :thumbsup:
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c46/baybilly1980/45a6b574.jpg

[grand_wag_85]

BayBilly-Where did you get that pushbar?

[baybilly]

79 ford bronco cut and welded to fit. use what ya got:D :D

[garyindiane]

Here ya go. I had a old semi at work, and this was free.

http://i65.photobucket.com/albums/h218/garyindiane/100_0442.jpg

[fulsizjeep]

about the only one I am about to admit to for now... sometimes you just have to ditch the hood when vaporlock comes to visit :banghead:

http://frontier.net/%7Emystkblu/06ouray/giterdun/stoney/images/stoneye_jpg.jpg (http://frontier.net/%7Emystkblu/06ouray/giterdun/vaporlock/index.htm)

[Jeep_Guy]

Previous owner musta swiped the passenger side of the rear bumper on something cause when I got it, there were two bolts with some leftover plastic on em sticking out.
I found out the night before my inspection that there has to be some sort of cover on the end to prefent sharp edges, so I made this out of a peice of scrap wood I took out of our trash bin, some surplus stainless bolts/nuts, and a little black paint. It took all of 15 minutes. This picture was taken the same night.
http://img389.imageshack.us/img389/9348/1001975da0.jpg
It's definately not pretty, but it works.

[JpX]

Pretty good so far, I know there's more out there.

Semi Gas tank in the bed was pretty crude but effective.

[dngrs1]

So.....how does one post pictures within the message without it being an attachment??? Or does it have to have a URL as in saved on another site????

[Warmachine]

How about front inner fenders made from old tractor innertubes?

Redneck Recycling is an art AND a joke all at the same time!

Drivers Side
http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n245/WarMachine_1949/1977Cherokee/DriversInnerSkirt.jpg


Passengers Side
http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n245/WarMachine_1949/1977Cherokee/PassengerInnerSkirt.jpg

[FSJ Guy]

I like the inner tube idea! MUCH easier access to the motor. Is that why you did it, or were they rusted out??

[Warmachine]

PO hack job. Cooling (?) is the only thing I can figure, no rust on the rig whatsoever

[JpX]

So.....how does one post pictures within the message without it being an attachment??? Or does it have to have a URL as in saved on another site????

I believe it requires a URL. I've never uploaded a pic to IFSJA before. i broke down and bought my own domain and webhosting service for 4 dollars a month. I still don't even have a website just uploaded pictures and learned how to find the link to them.

That innertube idea is actually quite good me thinks. I'm still plotting the best of both worlds larger than 32x11.5 tires but no trimming or lift beyond 2" not sure how I'll do it yet.

[Jeep_Guy]

I use www.imageshack.us (http://www.imageshack.us). You don't have to register there to be able to upload pics, however if you forget the links, you won't ever be able to find em again. If you register, you will have a "my images" section where all your uploads will be stored for you. Next to each of your images there will be lines of text, you want to copy all of the first line (should say something like, embeddable code for forums/message boards) and paste it right into your post where you want the picture to show. Otherwise you could post the link to the image in your message here like this

link to image goes here.

[TexTJ209]

I use www.imageshack.us (http://www.imageshack.us). You don't have to register there to be able to upload pics, however if you forget the links, you won't ever be able to find em again. If you register, you will have a "my images" section where all your uploads will be stored for you. Next to each of your images there will be lines of text, you want to copy all of the first line (should say something like, embeddable code for forums/message boards) and paste it right into your post where you want the picture to show. Otherwise you could post the link to the image in your message here like this

link to image goes here.


Imageshack is alright, but has too many popups and annoying ads. Photobucket seems to be a lot easier to use and more reliable.

[backpack09]

In dash CB

http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b360/spf150/100_0590.jpg

CB? Look at that tach!!!

[J4GRAND]

Got rid of the wimpy, paper thin rear crossmember and placed some real steel on the back of my J4000:

http://fsjworld.tenmagazines.com/gallery/J4GRAND/82926.jpg
Since the ends of the frame are a weird size, my local steel suplier didn't have any "C" channel that would fit so I bought a piece of 1/4" thick angle iron and had it bent to shape. With the bending, I have less than $40 into it.

[SeanKHotay]

I wish I had a pic of the duct tape holding up the passenger window in my old '84 (before replacing the flex-strip)...

[BRUTUS]

In order to get my GM hydro clutch bracket secure I fabbed up brackets out of
flat stock with a propane torch a grinder and a drill. I used a ton of washers
various bolts and managed to wedge a bolt onto the stock steeringwheel/brake/clutch
pedal bracket. This whole structure went in unwillingly every step of the way!


Tim,

I'm not sure how set you are about having all those washers in there. This is a crude photochop of what I was suggesting when we talked the other night. see attachment.

The washers are just really unforgiving when it comes to adjustment.

[shimniok]

I'm going to have to go with my fancy pants windshield washer reservoir upgrade... ugly but effective!

http://tc.wagoneer.net/sblog/images/DSCF3055.JPG

I cut a giant hole in the fender, and used some strap steel I had laying around to keep the tank from falling through to the pavement. :D

So why'd I go through all the trouble? In Colo they use mag chloride on the road in winter and between the crappy oem washer nozzles and the puny tank, you can run empty in just a single commute to work. So I got a cheap 5 liter tank out of a VW & efficient late 80's Honda nozzles. I got through 3 major snow storms and more on a single tank. It is awesome!

Detailed write-up here (http://tc.wagoneer.net/sblog/index.php?entry=entry061026-181924)

It's also on a thread around here somewhere.

Michael

[letank]

I wish I had a pic of the duct tape holding up the passenger window in my old '84 (before replacing the flex-strip)...

what a waste of tape.... a big flat screwdriver wedged between the glass and inner wipe works very well.... and you can still open the window partially or all the way.....

[CustomWag]

no pics, but I have a paint stick (stirrer) jammed into the driver's seat belt receiver stalk to keep it upright since the plastic broke & it was flopping around and I kept sitting on it.

Thanks to someone (seems like it might have been hud or crocket_boone?) on this board for that "mod":thumbsup:

[BigRedChief]

Cable actuated e-drive :thumbsup: :

http://www.buildyour4x4.com/assets/images/Tech/FSJ/Edrive/QT_final_open.jpg

[Serious Johnson]

I wish I had a pic of the duct tape holding up the passenger window in my old '84 (before replacing the flex-strip)...

The driver's window on my Miata is held up by a stick -- has been since 2003 or so. It's not a matter of money, since a friend has about a dozen crashed Miatas in his yard with good cables, or time because I really haven't been all that busy. I reserve the "drunk" excuse for paint jobs and questionable internet posts, so I guess there's no way around attributing it to pure laziness. I wish I could find that picture of the straps I use to raise/lower the tailgate window on my Wag. It's been working fine for some years too.

S.J.

[Serious Johnson]

Crom

Whole thing, huh?

[BenE]

do you mean chrome?
and if so thats not a bad upgrade!

[Mack_T]

Cable actuated e-drive :thumbsup: :

http://www.buildyour4x4.com/assets/images/Tech/FSJ/Edrive/QT_final_open.jpg



YEAH! I like that one. I'm still trying to figure how I'll eliminate the vacuum 2hi-4hi switch on my GW ;)

[baja]

One of my more creative desperation type fixes was...
After destroying the radiator in my 77 Cherokee, I needed to replace it so I could drive to work the next day, and I had no more FSJ radiators sitting around. But I did have a radiator from a mid-sixties Ferd Galaxy with a 390. 3-core cross flow with the outlets in the correct spots, and it fit width-wise in the front where it was supposed to, but no way to easily bolt it up.
So, out came about a dozen Bungie Cords.
The radiator worked so well that it stayed bungie-corded into my Cherokee for about 4 months.
I unfortunately never got any pictures of the set-up(it was over twenty years ago)and to this day I don't think I could dublicate the engineering marvel. And it did earn me a nickname.
baja

[Serious Johnson]

do you mean chrome?
and if so thats not a bad upgrade!

No, the name of Charlie's (bigun) truck is Crom, and it's ummm, unique.

S.J.

[Serious Johnson]

...So, out came about a dozen Bungie Cords...

Back around the early Seventies, when SCCA safety rules basically just frowned on killing a fellow racer without a good reason, there was a Formula Ford in contention for the national title, and it's springs were a whole bunch of bungee cords.

S.J.

[andy d]

1st access holes to service the rear window clips were Vees cut with a chisel and pried up. Then I got fancy and started using a holesaw........:thumbsup:

[janie]

Our rigs are firm believers in re-surfacing the driveway.



http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v203/79j10peso/PesopukinATF3.jpg

[etjeep]

I can make it over that creek bed :D :D
my tag didn't, zippy ties and string. had a geat time:thumbsup: :thumbsup:
http://i24.photobucket.com/albums/c46/baybilly1980/45a6b574.jpg

What would we do without zip ties and duct tape?

My contribution, I'll stick with this ghetto fab... http://rides.webshots.com/photo/1438840833069564115NVIKat

Ratchet strap to hold tailgate closed, duct tape on window switch and zip ties holding my cargo lamps to the cage. The ratchet strap and duct tape were both trail fixes and have been a low priority to correct. The zip ties will stay until I come up with something else.

[chrisnsarah]

No pics yet, but over the years, I've:

Used 2 dozen worm clamps to fix a clutch cable sleeve on a Jeepster.
Temporarily (6 months) repaired a motor mount using a piece of lumber.
Used heim joints for clutch linkage.
Coated rotted fuel filler hose with shoegoo (package said it was gasoline resistant, why not?)
Jammed CB radio in ash tray space.
Replaced rotted body bushing with rubber/cork HVAC equipment pad.
Used stair tread skid tape for brake and clutch pedal pads.
Installed a cheap parts store universal shift boot upside down for the lower portion of a D20 shift boot.

[backpack09]

What would we do without zip ties and duct tape?

My contribution, I'll stick with this ghetto fab... http://rides.webshots.com/photo/1438840833069564115NVIKat

Ratchet strap to hold tailgate closed, duct tape on window switch and zip ties holding my cargo lamps to the cage. The ratchet strap and duct tape were both trail fixes and have been a low priority to correct. The zip ties will stay until I come up with something else.

That is one beautiful bumper/tireholder. I was too busy looking at that to even notice the strap :)

[Kaiser]

CB? Look at that tach!!!

Yeah, where the heck are you going at those speeds while taking photos from the back seat?

[etjeep]

That is one beautiful bumper/tireholder. I was too busy looking at that to even notice the strap :)

Thanks. A buddy of mine owns Goferit offroad shop in Greensboro NC. http://www.goferitoffroad.com/index.htm I gave him the basic ideas I wanted and he fabbed up a custom bumper for me using Big Daddy parts.

[baja]

On my first Cherokee, I had installed a set of Fibreglass rear quarter panels. These went from the door all the way back to the tail lights and from the just below the window down to the rocker panel. They looked great, had them riveted on race car style, looked tuff.

Well as we all know (now) the outer skins of our rear quarter panels (2 door Cherokee's anyway) actually ad a lot of support to the whole body tub in general. So with the original sheet metal skin removed the body flexed a lot more than it was ever intended to, to the point of fatiging critical support areas in back by the tail gate. So after it got to the point that is took 3 people to shut my tail gate, I figured I needed to do something.

I went and got a garage door cable kit, some eye bolts and "J" hook bolts and a couple of turnbuckles and did an "X" pattern with the cables across from side to side just inside the tail gate to kind of pull both sides back into place and keep them there. Worked great, still let the body flex and wasn't too bad for getting things in and out of the back, and if they were in the way just loosen up the cables and unhook them, then re-attach.

This would work on a rusty one as well.

baja

[Radio Flyer]

Back in 86 the Prestolite alternator on my J-10 wasn't cutting it anymore. A buddy of mine gave me a 63 amp Mopar alternator left over from a car he wrecked. No way it would fit in the stock location so I removed part of the cast aluminum bracket with a hacksaw and flipped the alternator up and over, used an adjuster from I don't remember what to tension the belt. For the wiring I used some Chiltons and Motors manuals (the old thick ones that were worth something, not like the crap they sell today) to decipher what I needed to make it all work. What an upgrade! My lights had never been that BRIGHT:eek: and my ammeter gauge actually showed a charge instead of feebly waving back and forth in the middle.

[JpX]

Tim,

I'm not sure how set you are about having all those washers in there. This is a crude photochop of what I was suggesting when we talked the other night. see attachment.

The washers are just really unforgiving when it comes to adjustment.

I used everything my short-term memory could remember from your suggestions. Looking at your bea ootifly photo chopped picture makes it looks like a better solution.
But my whole plan was add legitimacy to the MOVIE the Fast and the Furious. A mechanical failure in my truck could actually be a ton of washers falling out from behind the dash just like it does in the movie! Now I just need to work on a way for a motor to loose a fragment out of it's block leak oil and just require a little more foot in the throttle to run fine. Oh yeah I'm not installing a 10" LCD to give me MANIFOLD warnings, there are limits yah know.

[grand_wag_85]

CB? Look at that tach!!!

Whats wrong with my tach?:huh:

[blackbess89wag]

I'm sorry, I don't have pics, but we currently have a fuel line run from the vent hole in the gas tank down to the after market electric fuel pump because the sock on the pick up tube is clogged. Need to have time to drop the tank, clean it all up and replace the fuel level sending unit--we just ran out of gas last week when the gauge said we had over a quarter....

Now on to bigger and better....Like the ones that really don't work. I saw someone hook a 20 foot grain auger to the bumper of a very small truck and try to pull it up a mountain road from a farm sale. It looked like a very big, scary, yellow icepick headed back down the road trying to skewer cars when it turned loose. Same day, same people (NOT US) used BALING WIRE to attach a gooseneck stock trailer to an old 2 ton grain truck bed. It had no hitch, they just wired it to anything metal that they could find through the broken boards. We got smart and left before that one could come unglued!

[Serious Johnson]

I'm sorry, I don't have pics...

Yeah, I'm sorry too I don't have pics of some of the more Colorful Colorado endeavors. I sorta recall (hangover balnk spots excepted) moving an old log outbuilding from where the 1870's miners put it on a steep slope near Guffey to a nice meadow far below. I do remember hooking two trucks below to pull, and one above to brake. In retrospect, we should have used an opposite proportion of tractive power. Movement was quick and chaotic, and the hill still bears wild scars from my Jeep on top sliding behind the building, and some divots in both sides of the walls from when the whole mess stopped.

S.J.

[Jethro]

Whats wrong with my tach?:huh:
They thought the red needle was the actual tach instead of being the red line.......

[grand_wag_85]

They thought the red needle was the actual tach instead of being the red line.......
HA!

[Desert Rat]

Most non elegant but effective mod...

That would have to be the burrito mod on my Frontier (sorry, not an FSJ, but it has FSJ parts on it). Cost: $3.28 and a couple spare nuts, bolts, and washers, and a couple L brackets I bent up from some flat stock.

Cooks trail burritos in aluminum foil like nobody's business!

http://www.piratepathy.com/desertrat/burrito%20mod.jpg

[Jeep_Guy]

^ Haha thats awesome. Nicely done.