1970 Jeep Gladiator 1 Ton 6BT 12V Cummins Build

[ross80truck]

I used a piece of 3X4 rectangle stock to make the new mounts. I cut it approximately 3" long, then cut it on the diagonal along the long side. See yellow line. The cutoff piece then became the mount on the other side. I used my welding magnets to position the new mounts along the top of the old mounts, then tacked them in place. Using my 4' level/straight edge I then scribed a line through the old holes centerline on to the new mounts. Red line. Notice the scribe mark is actually back from the red line. That's to account for the sheetmetal that was left on the pillar when I cut it off. The green arrow is my new mounting hole location.










I leveled everything and used blocks under the radiator to make sure there was clearance for body/frame flex.


I clamped angle iron (red lines) to the new mounts to position/support the front sheetmetal properly


Then mounted everything together


I think I hit all the major points to consider.

Resbum

So this is a quick thread hi-jack and gripe to Resbum. I have spent all day trying to figure out how the heck you stuffed the stock Dodge intercooler in the front valance. In another thread that I started about intercoolers you even recommended using the stock intercooler. Well, I have measured and looked and measured and looked and I have come to the conclusion there is no way to stuff a 15.625" tall intercooler into a space that is only 14" tall. I think I waisted all day pondering this conundrum. Then I looked at the above pictures. Your J20 has different body mounts than my Wagoneer, effectively giving you what appears to be a 1.5" to 2" body lift over what I have. And that is how you were able to fit the stock intercooler in there. So, in order to use that IC, I need to install a body lift.

Okay, gripe session over, problem solved. We will now return you to your regular broadcast.

[Resbum]

Haha. I have the same amount of room as you. I think you missed the part where I said I had to cut the top two rows off the intercooler. Sorry I threw you off track. Compared to other things it's a pretty simple mod.

I can come over to your thread and post some pictures, if you'd like.

[ross80truck]

Haha. I have the same amount of room as you. I think you missed the part where I said I had to cut the top two rows off the intercooler. Sorry I threw you off track. Compared to other things it's a pretty simple mod.

I can come over to your thread and post some pictures, if you'd like.

Yes, come on over and post some pics. That makes more sense now! I would prefer to run the dodge IC, but I could not see how it would work and did not want to do a body lift. If you don't mind post some pics on my thread or yours of the intercooler mod. Thanks Resbum!

[ross80truck]

Resbum, I was looking again this morning. The body mounts are a little different between our vehicles. Look at this picture. This is a picture of how the front valance mounts to the frame on my Wagoneer. Look at the top picture of post #436 of your frame. Your frame appears to have a small riser welded to it from the factory that I do not have.

[Resbum]

Wow, I guess there is a difference.

To use the stock Dodge intercooler would mean cutting off the top number of rows to make it to fit. If you're not planning to crank up the boost that's still plenty of cooling.

I just sat down with my morning coffee and will pop over to your thread a post some pictures.

[Resbum]

Here's what I've been doing the last few days.

When I prep'd and primered the inside of the cab roof I noticed a few dents that I couldn't see or feel from the outside. I figured there was a little bondo up there. That didn't really surprise me because while doing the earlier work on the cab it was obvious it had been worked on before.

What I wasn't expecting was this.


There was a lot. Something I hadn't noticed before was that the drivers side of the brow seam and the whole seam above the drivers door was packed with bondo. Bondo on metal isn't a bad thing. Using bondo to cover and repair things improperly is a bad thing. So, one long, messy session with my grinder and wire wheel got me to this.



The good news is the bondo wasn't covering rust or other core metal problems. The bad news is that at some point in the past the cab was either rested on the roof or someone danced a jig up there. Once I saw the bondo I knew what to feel for on the inside of the roof. Then I could feel it all. It's like they made no effort to smooth things out first. Just fill everything with bondo. That's the ticket.

Yesterday I attacked all the seams with gusto. I ground, scraped, sanded, and wire wheeled every last bit of rusty or suspicious material out of them and ended the day hitting them with rust converter to get anything I couldn't reach. Today I'll work out all the dents as much as my skills will allow, and then, I'll skim bondo on to smooth everything out.

[Resbum]

I promise to never again b¡tch about how much a body shop wants to charge. Okay, I may b¡tch but I won't think it's outragously overpriced. Doing the initial work isn't too hard. Getting the finished surface ready for top coat takes skill and work.

I now have a dedicated pair of pants and shoes for Bondo.

The brow was flattened more in the middle then it was above the corners so I had to pound it back up from the inside. Then I finished shaping it. I ended the day with getting the rough work and bondo done above the drivers door. Now it just needs the skim coat and final sanding.

After 36 years of turning wrenches the last 5 weeks of learning bodywork has been fun and interesting, even if there has been frustrating points.

[budojeepr]

I second that. Body work is tough, and for me not all that rewarding. I did minimal straightening on mine and got it ready for paint, did the prime - sand - prime - sand - top - clear thing, and never want to do it again. I'll pay next time.

[ross80truck]

I really feel sorry for all of you that have to buy FSJs up in the rust belt. Not to brag, but my 85 Wagoneer does not have a spec of rust on it from down here in Texas. If there was, there would be no way I could afford to build a Jeep or have the patience.

[Resbum]

I definitely don't have the rust issues the guys on the east coast have. They tend to use sand on the roads here on the west coast. I once bought a Toyota truck that came from Delaware. By the time I was done mod'ing it I swore I'd never buy an east coast vehicle again.

[Resbum]

Well, it's been a productive week. A month ago I was learning how to paint and this week I've been learning bodywork. I included the sanding blocks in this picture because they're some of the best money I've ever spent. 8", 16", and 24". They identified every little ripple, wave, a out of shape spot. The roof ended up with more area covered, but less bondo used than was originally on it. Almost all of it is a skim coat to smooth out the wavey areas.


I also made these templates out of plastic spatulas to get the shape of the brow and curves above the doors right and uniform. I found the best area above the doors and the brow and used those places to make the shape of the templates. The red one is from Lowes and is normally used for drywall.

I also spent two days disassembling the doors and bit the money bullet to have the doors, fenders, and hood hinges media blasted. Hand stripping was just taking to much time. That just leaves the hood and the sidewalls of the bed to hand strip. Those don't have a bunch of nucks, crannies, and seams that I can't get to.




Luckily, the roof was the absolutely worst area of the truck that needed bodywork. About the only things I have to deal with on the rest of the truck is skim coats over minor dents and dings, and there's not many of those.

[bigun]

Keep at it, you'll get finished by the next presidential election! Maybe!!! Of course I can't say much, it has been 2 presidential elections since Crom made it to Ouray!

[Resbum]

After all the troubles I had primering the firewall I was procrastinating shooting the top of the cab. Last night I finally sucked it up and did it. I'm glad to say it looks like I figured out what I was doing wrong. I'm still on a learning curve with bodywork/painting, so I'm going to have to scuff sand it and hit it with one more coat to get it uniform. Besides that it turned out good. Now I can start seam sealing the top and bottom of the cab.

What I am very happy with is how all the contouring turned out. All the lines are perfect as near as I can tell.

[Tnfalconer]

remind me what color you are painting your truck?

[Resbum]

Cummins Beige (Tan). I made a paint chip with the same OEM Cummins rattlecan paint I used on the engine and had the paint shop match it.