83 CJ7 progress

[Chuck Wolfsen]

No real issues just been off line for awhile and thought I'd catch up. Since my last post I've been replacing a few parts on the 83 CJ. I got the Best Top soft top and doors. Didn't think I'd like the doors but actually they're pretty good. If you order them make sure you get the correct striker and posts. Had to replace the steering box, brake booster and master cylinder. Both bad seals. Thought I had major leaks on the transmission or transfer case but it turned out my dip stick guide was leaking at the block and basically channeling back the oil to all the lower components behind. A little gasket sealer took care of that. My son installed a CB and PA (I'm not so hip on that but he thinks it's cool) The old chrome wheels were pretty pitted so my son sanded them down and painted them black. The pic below is from his High School car show. He entered it in the dirtiest jeep category. It took him two days to clean it afterwards but I'm pretty sure he had fun getting it show-ready.:shades:

 

[TerryMason]

Dirtiest Jeep category huh? I like it.

 

[absolutemoon]

Lookin good. Where did you buy the steering box? Was it hard to install or a drop in? Bry

 

[Chuck Wolfsen]

I got the steering box at good ol Auto Zone. It wasn't very tough. It is an 83 so I had to use lots of liquid wrench. If I had to do it differently I'd attach the hoses prior to mounting the box back on the frame. Real tite space. The spline at the end of the steering rod was a bit boogered up so putting it back on was tricky. There was enough 'travel' in the rod so I was able to align it with the box and tighten up all the mounting bolts. Then with my son rotating the steering wheel (front tires off the ground) I was able to tap it in with a hammer without damaging it. The rest was just filling the steering pump and following the directions for bleeding the system which consisted of turning the wheel stop to stop until there were no more bubbles coming up in the pump. Repeat the process with the engine running. With all the inspecting, disassembly cleaning reassembly and beer it took me a whole day. A pro would probably knock it out in a couple of hours.