Rudycon's 1947 CJ2a rolling restoration

[zooke581]

WOW! Nice work. Ever get the urge to touch them while running?

[rudycon]

Zooke: yep. Sure do. I tried it last weekend. They zing you about the same as regular spark plug wires.

Weekend update:

Gotta crew doing windows and siding, plus my parents came to visit...But I did get some wrench time in between crisis.

Replaced leaking 3 row radiator with water tight 2 row. Might not be enough cooling. With no shroud on the 4 mile climb up the road to the house I hit 200 degrees. An all time high for me.
removed chevy de-lux heater core on passenger side, removed hoses, changed pipes and plugs to match the single heater config. Fixed left tail light, checked compression for the first time.
80-81 PSI on 1-6. altitude adjustment for 8500 feet, brings that up to a sea level equivalent 98-100PSI on all 6. I say good enough for 6.5:1 compression ration engine (and I forgot to hold the throttle wide open.) We used Dad's analog volt meter and the regulator is set a little too high at 7.8 volts instead of 7.4 volts, but for electro-mechanical regulator...good enough? The only adjustment on the newer VR-1 regulator would be to bend the tangs on the contacts.

Built the last 2 new plug wires. Went back to the old cap and rotor as the BWD parts suck.

Took a trip to the hardware store with my Dad. Studebaker ran OK. We jacked with the timing and my Dad. (Mr. go by the book) has it set with less advance than I think I can crank in up here. But it does have lots of low RPM torque with only 12 degrees more advance than set down in South Bend, Indiana.

I might use the willys this evening to haul and load old windows up to the dumpster.

Hope y'all had a good weekend

[Haines Garage]

Sir Rudy
You are always so descriptive in your posts, and I most enjoy reading them .

[rudycon]

The Stude-a-Willys currently has a 2 row radiator with no fan shroud. This is not enough for life about 8000'.

Took a "long" trip to Evergreen. Overheated at 210 degrees with a 4# cap and some % of antifreeze for coolant while pulling the 3 mile grade floored at 45-55 mph with ambient at about 75F.

No problem. Stopped and waited for the Willys to cool down, then headed downhill to a little car show at the NAPA. SO I can say the Willys has been to a car show now. (I parked well away from the real participants!)


Parked, got some parts, then drove home. Overheated again and pulled over at a nice trailhead with some shade and enough hill to help me restart if there was a fuel issue on the hot stop. Found this great ol' cowboy hat, so I took a few pictures. Looks dashing on both me and on the Willys!
Took my photo in the windshield reflection. Sepia tone provided by the hood up, hot stop status of the Willys.

Stay cool out there!

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[Haines Garage]

And There He Is!!!!
I was starting to wonder what happened to you!
Great post, and thanks for the update!
Love the pictures !!!

[zooke581]

Nice. I really think a fan shroud would do wonders in helping with the cooling. The fan is actually drawing from everywhere and not directly helping pull air through the radiator. Basically you are getting what is pushed through when you drive.

[rudycon]

I'll have to get some steel and see what I can fab up for a shroud. I don't have a brake or anything. I'll have to do a lot of cutting/welding. I don't think a stock shroud will work, but it might be a great starting point. I don't think the studebaker's fan is centered on the radiator.

This morning I went to get some pine boards from the shed and the Willys greeted me with a dejected limp. Driver's front tire is flat! I'll see if there are any spoons/tools up in Grandpa's old pole barn in Michigan. I might be the last one in the family who knows how to use them. My dad is up there right now. He might be able to send them down to me in Colorado so I can DIY tube patch.

My Dad used to have a Coats model 1 pneumatic tire changer. The air cylinder would break the bead for you, but you still had to walk the tools around the tire yourself. My Dad's early pneumatic tire changer was rumored to be Bugsy Moran's wheelman's old tire changer.

[rudycon]

Flat tire.

So I jacked up the Willys in the shed, slipped off the wheel, then lay down the wheel, put a 2x4 close to the rim and ran it over with the Jeep JK.
Rotated the wheel on the ground and repeated. That was enough to pop the bead. I pulled out a pair of $5 harbor fright (sic) tire irons, put on my safety glasses (always smart around harbor fright tools) got a lever in, then jumped on the tire on the other side of the rim so it could go down into the deeper center section of the rim, Got my other iron in and then worked my irons around prying the bead over the rim (mind the tube!) about 25% of the way around I dropped the tire on end and that finished the job. As with most things, more technique than strength required.

Took out the tube, checked the tire and rim for sharp stuff that could have holed the tube. Nothing found. Hmmm.

Down to the slop sink in the basement; found the puncture in the tube. Used the Harbor Fright (sic) patch kit to buff, cement, and patch the tube. Put some air in the tube after 5 minutes, then set the tire and rim on the tube. It was still holding air this morning. I'll try to remount the tube/tire tonight.

I have my Dad looking for "period correct" tire irons/spoons in Grandpa Bob's old pole barn up in Michigan. It feels wrong to use the HF tools, but I have to admit they are simple, sturdy forgings and may well be one of those rare HF tools that actually work.

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[Haines Garage]

Once again Sir Rudy

Very informative and well written post.

I can wait to see what you come up with for a shroud!
Very cool stuff.

You and Sir Hawkridge wrestling with those tires! Must be a Colorado thing.

[rudycon]

Tire re-mount seems to have gone well. If it isn't flat in the morning, I'll call it a success! I used 2 tire irons and windex to ease the tire back on over the bead.

[zooke581]

I used talcum powder when I mounted my new tires. It worked surprisingly well. Better than the soap I used to use. I tried the patches from Harbor Freight and never got them to work always blew on me. Maybe where my cut was on the tube probably. Had to use a new tube on mine. Bu the spoons worked well. Had to get the 40 year old tires taken off by a tire shop though.

[rudycon]

Thanks, Zooke. My wife had to go to town tonight and she brought back talcum powder for me. I hope Hypoallergenic is OK!

I've patched maybe 1000 tubes working with "Trips for kids, Denver" (an organization that takes underserved city youth and puts them on real mountain bikes on real trails.)
My harbor fright (sic) patch held just fine last night with pressure in the tube alone. We'll see how it does inside the tire tonight!

I miss the cardboard tube patch kit with the buffer built into the lid and the monkey on the label. Those were old when *I* was a kid patching our swimming tubes (we used tractor-trailer tubes. They would be about 4' around when blown up!)


Wednesday morning update: The tire still has air. I'm calling this patch job a success.

[zooke581]

How I remember tractor tubes for floating. Those were the days!

[rudycon]

Fan shroud project:

So the Studebaker overheats on long climbs in the summer with the 2 row Willys radiator.
Today, I turned my cardboard template into a metal shroud.

I started with a piece of scrap steel. This was once the front of my dishwasher. I cut out the basic shape with a jigsaw.
I clamped the sheet between a couple of pieces of angle iron, made my bends with a trusty hammer.

Test fit! Tight on the top and the left, but it'll work. I made the right a little looser. I can put one more shim under the right side of the radiator to get more room on the top and the left.

Phone went dead. I welded a 1 1/4" piece of bar stock I had bent into a curve on my wife's flower pot. 110 welder as low as it would go. I burned through a few times, but got better and better. Why do I always start where everyone will see the bad welds the most?

I straightened as many of the fins as I could on the radiator. I flushed the radiator. nothing came out. I flushed the engine with the thermostat out. Nothing came out. Wrapped it all up in the rain under a tree.

The shroud only covers maybe 80% of the radiator. The bottom 20% will need a shroud that bolts onto the top half...somehow. Not an easy build really.

TEST DRIVE!
I went to "town." (my test run.) Temp only made it to 150 going downhill. On the way home, It hit 190. This is a good 20 degrees cooler than yesterday when it boiled over at 210. BUT ambient was also 10 degrees lower on this test drive. 62 today 72 yesterday.

So was this a success? yes. I didn't overheat. However, I don't think this will be enough. I will have to move my shroud to the 4 row radiator after it gets repaired.

How did I get more than 1/2 way around the fan and still be able to slide it down? The fan is 4 blade. 2 close, 4 far. So if I orient the blades Skinny up down, the radiator slides right down!

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[rudycon]

Saturday bellcrank rebuild:

The loosest part of my steering system was the bell crank. With the Jeep still in the shed I decided to work on it.


While I was scraping the concretions off of the bell crank, I found something slightly harder than the rock hard goo. Welding on the steering bellcrank? maybe. Shoot. How how do break the steering arms? Well I used my pickle fork and some wrenches and hammers and I got the bellcrank and the pin out. Yep. Worn. Cleaned it up. yep. Someone welded both arms on the bell crank.
Replaced the pin and the bearings. Tighter.

So, I have a correct 3/4" pivot pin, but welded to the axle, not the frame! This means the tie rod and draglink ball arms are upsidedown and won't work. No problem. Torch 'em off, flip 'em over and weld the steering system back together!

While I was in there, I rebuilt the front end of the draglink.

Steering is tighter, but....now the loosest part has become the ross steering box pitman arm/bushings. I can see the shaft move. That's why it's full of grease instead of oil. No seal could acomodate that wobble.

How do I feel driving welded steering linkage? OK actually. This has been welded for maybe 30 years and like many of the welds on this bucket...The guy was good. The problem is that there is no such thing as a spare bellcrank for me. Mine is 100% custom.

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[zooke581]

Nice work. Shroud looks good as well. Once the hood is down no one can see the weld. Actually the weld looks pretty good form here in VA. 

[Haines Garage]

Once again I am most impressed!!
A very talented person you are Sir Rudy!
Looking Good!

[rudycon]

Hey thanks, Zooke. That thin stuff was good practice for the body work I will have to do someday. I HOPE it turns out as great as Short Round.

Haines, I'm just a DIY kinda guy doing the best I can with my tools, my budget, and most important, problem solving skills my grandpa and my Dad taught me.

[Deleted]

Look on the bright side Rudy, you have a one of a kind Jeep that you know like the back of your hand. Looking good to me! John

[rudycon]

Funny, OilLeaker. "One of a kind" sounds a lot like "someone else's problem!" *laughs*

Last night I took a look at what I can do for a lower shroud. Maybe tomorrow I'll bust out the cardboard and tape and see if I can mock up something that will work. It would have to bolt on to the top shroud somehow. I see that stock shrouds go up, over, around the water outlet at the bottom.

Think I can pop rivet the shroud to the lower radiator tank? (joking.)

[Deleted]

No Rudy, self tapping screws from Morton Buildings with the rubber washer to seal the leaks! John

[rudycon]

Conduit top bows:

OK so I'm going to be buying radiators. So budget for this is low. So far I am in for 25 bucks. $20 for a shortbed pickup toneau cover at the Gee Dub (Goodwill), and 5 bucks worth of EMT. I already had nearly enough salvaged from the house siding project. This, plus some little pieces of scrap might be all I need for a basic sun/rain roof. I don't think the legs will fit in the holders because my radius is too big. Not a big deal. They will be too butch to show off anyway!

The bender? good old conduit bender so I can't get those 3" radius bends. only 6" radius.
The Plan? JPET's amazing blueprints. (Thank you JPET.)

I built the back hoop a few nights ago while I pondered the dog legs in the front hoop. Practiced a few times, then went for it tonight. I knew it wouldn't be great, but hey! The back top hoop lacks the horizontal bends. This might work out better because it doesn't matter if the bar rotates. I have no provisions to prevent that at this point.

I put the curve in the top horizontal with my shoe in 3 places on the conduit laying on top of 2 4x4s. Pulled up on a jack handle because I'm not heavy enough to bend the conduit.



Image #2? My Wife was driving the JK to work today, stopped and picked up this shorty craftsman 1/2" breaker bar in the road for me.

[Haines Garage]

Making your own top bows now?!!
Very Cool!
They look good .

[rudycon]

homemade top bows project update:

I am shocked! Even with the 6" radius bends, the rods fit in the pockets! I had shortened the windshield to first bow rod so the verticals would be, well, vertical. But I decided that there was hope to put my crude top bars on the rig. I drove the Willys to the hardware store and bought another 3' of 1/2" conduit to make one just long enough to fit the windshield bracket.



I also bought some nylon webbing and a few nylon buckles to extend the straps already on the toneau cover.

The willys ran better with a little less timing. I held 3rd gear on the way home. No over heating. But it was a wet 60 degrees too so I had the heater on.

Lin showed me how to use the sewing machine. I sewed a loop around the 3rd nylon buckle and made a strap to hold down the top bars on the port side.

I'm trying to paint the EMT black now.
Tomorrow I'm going to see about sewing up some of the extra material on the top to see if I can make it fit a bit better.
I bought a #16 and #18 needle for Lin's sewing machine. *shrugs* I won't be using marine grade thread, but this is kind of a first go-round. I also have some snaps from my 4runner's soft top. I might see about deploying a few on the low-buck top.

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[Deleted]

Handy handy! looking forward to Sept. and you'll most likely get to use it in the mountains huh? Tops by Rudy is next! Oil