She's On Her Way

[CJ428CJ]

Chaplin and Ikestaa,

Like I said, I'm just a month or so ahead of you. Everything has gone together very well but here are a couple of things that will save you a little bit of time:

1. I had to remove the fuel tank to install the wire to the sending unit. No biggie but of course that also means disconnecting the fuel filler hose. After I finished the wiring, I reinstalled the fuel tank and the filler hose. Next I installed the trunk carpeting. I had expected the bottom mat to be trimmed around the fuel filler hose but it wasn't. Rather than trimming around the fuel filler hose which would have messed up the nice binding around the outside of the carpet, I chose to trim a hole in the middle of the carpet. So of course, that meant removing the fuel filler hose again. No biggie. Finished the carpet and reinstalled the fuel filler hose. Next came the rearend. I put it on a floor jack and started rolling it in from side of the car. It wouldn't clear the dolly wheels so guess what? Out came the fuel tank again to get a bit more room to maneuver the rearend. The moral of the story is, don't reinstall the fuel tank until you've installed the rearend, the carpet and the wiring.

2. I thought removing the fuel tank would give me enough room to install the rearend. I was wrong. The dolly wheels were in the way. I ended up placing the car on floor jacks and removing the dolly wheels. After the rear end was in, I replaced the dolly wheels but they wouldn't fit in the original location. I had to install them using the rear sway bar mounting wholes.

3. I installed all four badges. The side badges went on easily but I really struggled with the front and rear badge. They're installed using those really thin little push on type of nuts (I forget what they're called). But the fiberglass is relatively thick at that location on the hood and trunk and I couldn't get the push on nuts on. I struggled and struggled. I finally ran to the hardware store, bought a size 6-32 die for about $7 and threaded the posts on the badges. Threading them was a piece of cake and it allowed me to use a conventional nut and washer - way easier than those damn push on things that chewed up my fingers.

Tonight I'm working on the front suspension. Within a couple of weeks it should be time for the engine and tranny. Can't wait. If I have pointers after that, I'll let you know.

Chris