Build PZJ78 truck build??

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the lifted vs the stock springs
taking the old out is no big issue, jack stands under the body, remover the tire, remove the shock, twist and out it comes... watch your fingers!
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when it is late at night and you don't have coil spring compressor you need to get inventive.
Rusty designed this idea and it works like a charm.
but
no matter what KEEP YOUR FINGERS AWAY from ANY pinch points just in case the retainers let loose. YOU WILL LOOSE A FINGER(S) if they are caught.
the springs slipped right in, put the shock on, put the tire on, put the weight of the body back on the spring and cut the retainers. done.
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old spring out
even compressed the LH side rear needed a hand to get the spring in. i love bottle jacks but hate the hand cranking so a modified crank and a 1/2" cordless drill and you have a speed bottle jack.
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one of the best additions to a PZ HZ @LTE is a feeder pump. it really makes a difference to starting, power ... as long as you don't mind the purr of the pump.
a poor mans exhaust dump. the system i had on the PZJ70 was a 2 1/2" aluminized exhaust with a steel muffler. these systems last forever and since the old system was only 2 years old i wasn't ready to pitch the system. a dump and a hanger and all is well.
Rusty's answer to the swap bar drop for the rear. i can attest, this works well.
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Rusty's exhaust hanger using the factory mounting plate and locations.
installed
the sway bar mounts installed
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the tires that came on the truck, nothing wrong with them.
the truxus, they are okay but not what i wanted
the ice radials for the winter on white rims, this is what i will run for now.
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we decided to test fit the off road tires i run, 36" tractor tires on factory rims.
tons of clearence all around.
they are my bitch'n babies for off road fun.
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manual glow system
5 seconds and away it goes, nice thing is you can reactivate while running to clear that pesky start up burp.
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the engine installed, the front clip installed and ready to rock and roll.
i wanted to paint but my 1 month old heater crapped out and by the time i got the heater back the floor of my garage was being busted up for a poor-mans overhaul. different thread.

i will post up pics of the paint when it gets done so this is it for now. thanks for following along.

if you have questions, ask, i will TRY and answer them.

in reality, this swap is not for the faint of heart but it is doable and the results are amazing. well worth the money, effort and time invested. i have fell back in love with the 78 series again.

cheers guys. edit: that sure is a crappy shot, sheesh.
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Nice this is a cool ride
How do these trucks ride of road or the rear suspension setup 3 link compared to say a 80 series offroad or 5 link rear for comfort and offroad ability and flex etc?
 
rides as nice as a 80 series, smooth, controlled and comfortable.
flex? not noted for flex but seems to work well on the mountain trails. rock crawling or extreme off road then it would be ... limited.
 
looking good Wayne, that spring compresion trick is a good one to remember.:beer: Rusty.
Can't say enough about how I'm loving this combo, especially when the cold approaches and you start to see some/most the 2LTE's having touble/rough starting, like you said 5 seconds and "away it goes" I never had a manaul glow with my 2LTE but I'm sure it would of helped, and saved face in front of the "other" guys.

Next time your out could you have a look at your RPM - speed in 4th, I'm tach less and am wondering what my engine is up to. I'm currently running 235/85/16 winters on some equally stunning whites.
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Thanks
Joel.
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:lol:
i screwed up a couple years back and cut the tach sending wire on the PZ and never bothered to fix it...
tachless here too...
 
beislebub said:
looking good Wayne, that spring compresion trick is a good one to remember.:beer: Rusty.
Click to expand...

thanks

i was originally going to fab up a threaded rod thru the middle of the spring with brackets at each end,

while I was rooting thru the scrap metal bin I found the 2"x3" (I believe) rectangular tube and thats when inspiration hit

my dad got hit in the face (and lost a tooth) way back in the day trying to compress a McPhearson strut for an Audi....

that (Audi) strut was a tiny little ball point pen of a spring compared to the coils on the cruiser.....
 
Rusty has been a great help, he keeps me motivated when i am tired and makes me laugh with some of his dreams...but then some of his dreams are definately doable...
he just needs to get his cruiser up here so we can do smoe mods and wheeling...

THANKS Rusty
 
crushers said:
my old club ( Rocky Mountain Land Cruisers )was filled with MIBS infected individuals (Peter S with the Behemoth is a fine example) so this discussion really is old for me.
of ALL the really built rigs i have seen in 30 years, Peters was the most impressive. a BJ60 on 53" tires with roughly 4" of fender clearence. he designed it himself, he built it and wheeled it. it was a capable BEAST of a truck. BUT there was very few places in the mountains that i couldn't go with the LJ78 on 34s that he could with that monster.
Click to expand...

Wha-who. Did someone call my name? Wayne, Are you giving props to Tippy the Behemoth? Nice.

I like this build Wayne. Coils=good. I also have respect for a frame chop/weld. Double Nice. I did giggle when Bruce warned you to put on sidebars, but you didn't. We all know better, we all agree we should , we never do, and we all have dented rockers/doors as a result. Myself included. Tee Hee.

As for the discussion re: that stock 7x front x member... if that was all that was supporting the frame... it would still probably be enough. But most of us have big bumpers, and those typically remove all conerns about from x-member strength.

MIBS FOREVER!
 
oh my, a ghost from Christmas past dropping in for a visit and bringing glad tiddings with him!
the pipe bender should be here on the weekend and sliders are being made up.

cheers
 
have you sheard or crack those avn hubs or what ever they are called yet mate??
 
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