Here’s a great little post on the BP about tire size equivalents. Currently I’m running a set of 32×11.5R15 BF Goodrich Mud Terrains, but I’d like to set them aside for a smoother road-going tread at some point. It looks like 16″ tires are more plentiful, so the first thing I’d need is a set of four rims to mount tires on. I’d been led to believe I would need something like an LT315/70R15, but the BP thread is saying a 265/75R16 would work on a 16″ rim and sit at the same height as a 32″. Which would mean that a set of four Dunlop Radial Rovers (the brand I preferred on Chewbacca) would be about $118/tire.
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I was poking around on our backup server last night looking for some pictures and came across some old shots of Chewbacca in and around the blizzard of ’03. This was one of her shining moments and paradoxically the final nail in her coffin; After digging out there wasn’t anyplace we couldn’t go in 4-wheel drive, but I don’t think she was ever right after bathing in road salt that year.
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I’ve been thinking about replacing my gas tank ever since I got the poly tank last summer, and I’m making plans to gather the tools I’ll need to swap it out this spring:
The tank
A new sending unit
A pair of new J-hooks
A pair of new tank straps (although, for $24/ea, mine may still be usable)
Caps of some kind to cap off the evap outlets on my tank
Jackstands to hold the tank up as I’m pulling the old/installing the new
A professional siphon for emptying the remaining gas
A quick look on the Binder Planet returned a few good threads with pictures and advice:
Gas tank strap install – with a few nice pictures and advice on which side of the straps to start with (the fronts)
My quest for the correct o-ring to fix my leaking gas tank at the fuel sender – info on O-rings
Gas tank belch, possible fix!! , which talks about poly tanks and using the extra emissions fittings to avoid burps at fillup time.
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Here’s a really interesting article on the Jalopy Journal with some good information about hooking up an iPod to a hidden amplifier. The interesting part is the iPod dock connector, which I’d never really thought about searching for before. I believe the Kenwood head unit I have is equipped with RCA jacks that will support AUX input, so I may switch over to that instead of a mini stereo cable out the front.
Update: I’m out of luck with the Kenwood unit (it’s got no aux inputs on the back), so I may just sell it on Craigslist. I never liked the control/button setup anyway.
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Mama’s been sick for the past couple of days, so I haven’t had much spare time, but I decided to use Finn’s Friday nap to install my new speakers. I ran the included wire down the inside of the fenders and up the frame rails to the transfer case cover, then up under the dash to the Wal-Mart receiver. Everything is held together with electrical tape until I get a shrink-wrap kit and some time to tear the dash down correctly. I also still need foam baffles for the backs of the speakers and some cheapo grille covers to protect the tweeters, and I’ll use thicker wire when everything gets run permanently. But there are tunes! And those suckers are LOUD.
While I had the dash half apart, I replaced the bulbs in the two leftside gauge pods with new sockets and bulbs, which work much better. I couldn’t get the speedo pod out in time to replace those bulbs, and I still haven’t been able to reach the nuts that clamp in the switch labels (the clear plastic bars under the knobs) in order to swap those out.
Update: I did some sleuthing to figure out why my left indicator comes on and stays on when I turn the headlights on; apparently I have to do some work on grounding the light housings.
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This guy did some seat base repairs that are exactly what I need to do with mine.
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I almost forgot to mention the 6×9″ speakers Santa left under the tree for me, which will fill two jagged holes in the inner bulkhead and finally provide some form of in-flight entertainment. The current radio will stay until I make a proper DIN-sized cutout in one of the spare dash panels I’ve got, and then I’ll replace it with the old Kenwood from the Jeep. Thanks, Santa!
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Santa brought me, among other things, the Dave Emmanuel book for my Thermo-Quad. With this, a copy of the 1972 Chrysler manual, and a copy of the 1982 Federal Mogul manual, I should be in pretty good shape. I’m going to pick up a second spare carb in January for dis-assembly and tinkering so that I’ve got a complete bench model and one for practice.
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Peer Pressure is back in the garage now that the dumpster is out of the driveway, which makes me very happy. Chewbacca’s demise was hastened by being left outdoors in the elements, as well as exposure to road salt, so Big Purple will stay off the road as much as possible during inclement weather until I can get her undercoated and protected.
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