Builds 1985 BJ70 Story and Modifications

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i do like the LOOKS of the defender ...
in hind sight i should have done Moab while i still lived in Alberta.

Moab is a great place for sure...I will be going back there again in the near future. So many trails to do, so much scenery everywhere you look....very cool place.
 
The head came back from the machine shop. The shop said it looked really good and the magnaflux did not revealed any cracks. I brought the old pre-cups back home with me. Surprisingly, onyl two pre-cups were cracked.

I also started cleaning the head bolts in preparation for the head install.
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Yes, those rims look great-much better than grey. Chrome rims look good too. :p
This is shaping up to be the nicest BJ70 ever on planet Earth.
 
Super looking! Great work. Will help me keep going on my BJ74!

:cheers:
 
it is nice to watch a budget rebuild in progress. very "real" for all of us. the results are encouraging.
keep up the good work!!
 
I bought a set of ISSPRO gauges to monitor the engine when the turbo is installed. I bought a Water Temperature Gauge, a Turbo Boost Gauge, and an Exhaust Temperature Gauge with all the proper sending units.

To mount them, I bought a gauge plate from Wayne (crushers) to install the 3 gauges under the factory radio. Wayne's plate is an amazing piece of work and it fits the 3 gauges perfectly. Thanks again, Wayne!

I learned about Wayne's plates on the thread titled:

https://forum.ih8mud.com/diesel-tech-24-volts-systems/349415-post-your-gauge-install-photos.html

I liked the configuration that "bj74redrider" (3rd photo below) had on his truck and decided to go in the same direction (Page 3 of link above):

https://forum.ih8mud.com/diesel-tech-24-volts-systems/349415-post-your-gauge-install-photos-3.html
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I made the decision of holding on the turbo install for a couple of weeks after the engine is back up running again. I have touched a bunch of parts as it is already and I want to test drive it and make sure the head install went well before I add an extra component (turbo) to the system. Plus, the down pipe for the non-turbo configuration is already there.

I think that I will wrap all these little projects (rear axle swap, and finish interior) prior to take on the turbo install. My guess is that I should be able to have the turbo installed within a month...but we will see.

In preparation for the turbo install, I mounted the sensing unit for the water temperature sensor in the plug that 70 series 3B's (not sure if all of them have the same plug) have on the thermostat housing next to the factory temperature sensor. The nice thing is that the ISSPRO water temperature sensor comes with adapters that actually matched the thread and pitch of the factory thermostat housing plug :)
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