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New proud member, will need your help with my 72 commando

Discussion in 'Jeepster Commando and Commando Tech' started by KeyserSoSay, Sep 3, 2017.

  1. Apr 3, 2018
    commanlerwrangdo

    commanlerwrangdo Member

    Cleveland, Ohio
    Joined:
    Feb 10, 2014
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    470
    Great looking mod. Been there on the check-if-tail-latches-are-closed-before-travelling route many times. Ususally occurs after major chuckholes! It IS a pain!
     
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  2. Apr 4, 2018
    KeyserSoSay

    KeyserSoSay Collector of Hobbies and Vestigial Skills

    Edgewood New Mexico
    Joined:
    Sep 2, 2017
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    128
    Got some good news today. My wife informed me that she is going to give me half of our Federal and State income-tax refund to piss off on my projects as I see fit (I EFF-ing love that woman!). That should give our little Commando project a much needed shot in the arm!!

    [​IMG]

    I should also note that- while I make a decent living- she brings in a good deal more than I. She also has a side/weekend business that had around $80K in sales last year but she reinvested into the infrastructure of the business to the extent that it did not generate a profit- (she works about 100 hours a week with never less than a smiling Joy). So when I say she's "giving me half" of the refund, it does encapsulate the gesture.

    My (the Commando's) cut is around $4,000.

    I'm giddy.
     
    Last edited: Apr 4, 2018
  3. Apr 4, 2018
    KeyserSoSay

    KeyserSoSay Collector of Hobbies and Vestigial Skills

    Edgewood New Mexico
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  4. Apr 4, 2018
    masscj2a

    masscj2a Member 2023 Sponsor

    Ware, Mass
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    Dec 27, 2013
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    Can I rent her around tax season ? :rofl: I'm single and can't even get half of my own tax return. I invest in the infrastructure of paying off my bills. :shrug:
     
  5. Apr 4, 2018
    masscj2a

    masscj2a Member 2023 Sponsor

    Ware, Mass
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    Did you build the oven for your Cerakoting ?
     
  6. Apr 4, 2018
    KeyserSoSay

    KeyserSoSay Collector of Hobbies and Vestigial Skills

    Edgewood New Mexico
    Joined:
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    Luckily, her mom (my Mother-In-Law) is a CPA and does our taxes for us and helps us eek out every dime we can. Like I said before, she had big sales this year with the side business, but we are getting a lot of those taxes back since the business did not make a profit due to infrastructure investment. That refund is about double of normal for us.

    We're at the end phase of the rat-race and will be retiring in a couple of years and moving off-grid to my homestead to be prepper-hippy artists/fabricators/farmers. Aside from the current mortgage we've basically paid off all the debt. Thanks to the wife, we also have a small weekend business that can now generate a $40K weekend income for us in our retirement in addition to her 401K nest-egg and my pension. If I can ever clear my pallet of old jeeps and vans to build, I can make a decent income from my silver-smithing work as well.

    To answer the second question, Yes, I built that oven specifically for Cerekoting guns and I also Cerekote and enamel some of my jewelry and metal work that I build. I needed an oven I could hang a long-gun in, and figured it would be easy enough to build one. As I often do, I kind of went overboard on it and it cost me probably $400 or more to build when I meant to spend $150-200 on it. Commercial ovens of that size go for around $600 though and it will last me a lifetime- plus I gained a lot of skills and experience building it.
     
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  7. Apr 5, 2018
    Nekaf&Jeepsterdude

    Nekaf&Jeepsterdude 1968 Jeepster Commando, 1951 M38a1C

    The Netherlands
    Joined:
    Aug 22, 2016
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    80
    Wow, nice "hack". Would suite my C101 as well I think...
     
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  8. Apr 5, 2018
    masscj2a

    masscj2a Member 2023 Sponsor

    Ware, Mass
    Joined:
    Dec 27, 2013
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    We are a lot alike you and I. I am almost seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. Hoping to pull the plug this year. I am already a prepper, have a small farm raise my own food and only normally buy paper and cleaning products. We also pressure can , but I'm planning on buying a freeze drier soon. I have Cerakoted a lot of firearms that I build, and also some automotive items, like my Sanderson headers etc. I use a 55 gallon drum right now and the house oven , when the little woman is not around.
     

    Attached Files:

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  9. Apr 6, 2018
    KeyserSoSay

    KeyserSoSay Collector of Hobbies and Vestigial Skills

    Edgewood New Mexico
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    Also consider this as an option.. I did not find these latches until after I'd spent a considerable amount on the other set (and actually another pair of different slam latches as well).

    These would actually fit inside the top portion of the Commando Tailgate without too complex a modification, and only the slider knobs would be exposed outside the tailgate. I would probably create a tubular sleeve inside the tailgate that these would slide into, and then be bolted into, and then weld-in the sleeve. If I were to use these, I would grind down the pin at an angle so that the tailgate could be closed without manipulating the latches (like a "slam latch"). All things equal, I went with the latches shown in the post above, but these would make for a pretty slick modification to a Commando (or CJ) tailgate.


    [​IMG]


    Stealth Tailgate Latches Hidden Type Stepside 1973-87 Chevy Truck Stainless | eBay


    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Apr 6, 2018
  10. Apr 18, 2018
    KeyserSoSay

    KeyserSoSay Collector of Hobbies and Vestigial Skills

    Edgewood New Mexico
    Joined:
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    I'd be interested in seeing what you do for a freeze dryer, how much do those run if you just (uhhgg) buy one? . I've been collecting some parts for a freeze dryer build in the future, (industrial vacuum pump and an extra chest freezer) but that project is far down the list and the list is not moving very fast now that I've turned my eye to restoring old vehicles.

    my main (non vehicle, backburner) projects are a wood-gasifier that will feed a single piston ultra-low RMP oilfield engine and run a 5KW generator using wood pellets as fuel. I'm also building a wood-pellet-powered closed-ammonia-loop walk in refrigerator/freezer.

    One of the most enjoyable parts of sharing these projects on the internet in these types of forums (apart from the obvious help and wisdom that resides here) is being able to meet other like-minded folks. (y)
     
    Last edited: Apr 18, 2018
  11. Apr 19, 2018
    masscj2a

    masscj2a Member 2023 Sponsor

    Ware, Mass
    Joined:
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    I'm also building a wood-pellet-powered closed-ammonia-loop walk in refrigerator/freezer.

    Wow, I have never even heard of that. I've looked around on the net for the freeze dryers, pretty pricey and I really don't have time to think about building one. Way too many Jeeps to finish for that. the wood gasifier I have seen working. That's something that could power a vehicle, maybe a Jeep.
     
  12. Apr 21, 2018
    KeyserSoSay

    KeyserSoSay Collector of Hobbies and Vestigial Skills

    Edgewood New Mexico
    Joined:
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    During WWII (when basically ALL the gasoline on the planet was diverted to military use) over 1,000,000 vehicles in Europe ran on wood gas, most of them were commercially produced and included large freight trucks and busses. Most people today don’t realize just how truly viable woodgas is as an effective vehicle fuel source, nor do they understand how well established the technology is.

    Pretty simple really: burn wood with limited oxygen enough to release flamable gas from the wood but not consume it, cool and filter the resulting gas/smoke to remove particulates and then mix with clean air at an engine’s intake, and then run like hell (2-3 hours) until the fire burns out.

    My first woodgas vehicle is going to be a converted Ford 3600 gasoline tractor. People have converted diesel engines, but I’m going to keep it simple. The idea is to have a tractor that runs if the day ever comes that the fuel trucks quit showing up at the gas stations (which is a more significant danger in the coming 20 years than most realize).

    Anyway, wrong forum for this stuff, sorry guys.

     
  13. Apr 23, 2018
    KeyserSoSay

    KeyserSoSay Collector of Hobbies and Vestigial Skills

    Edgewood New Mexico
    Joined:
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    My step-mom has been in the hospital with some serious ailments so we have not gotten much done recently with the Jeep. We did do some testing with the powder coater this weekend and I am pretty thrilled with how it came out and now that I’ve got it all set up, we’ll be doing a lot more powder coating of parts as we roll on.

    I know this is old-hat for some of the guys here, but for the rest I just wanted to give a little testimonial that this is as cheap and easy to get into as it looks.

    I sandblasted the tailgate hanger/latch brackets but wouldn’t have had to if I didn’t put these in primer in the first place (not sure what I was thinking).
    [​IMG]


    I cleaned up the gate hangers on the wire wheel- still may trade these out for cables but so far I’m not having luck finding the right ones.
    [​IMG]

    Like anything related to applying metal coatings, the job is 95% prep and 5% coating. In this case all the parts had to be free of ANY paint or rust, or fingerprints, or oil, etc. etc. also had to hang everything on uncoated wire hooks so that I could ground each piece through a metal bus. I took care to make sure that my hanging system would work transitioning parts into my powder coat booth (big cardboard box), and from there into my oven. A dry run is always in order, and I found that my original plan would not work, and a dry run helped me understand which parts would hang where, and in which order I should coat my parts. ( in my case- Big, little, little, little, big in order to facilitate hanging the powdered parts in the oven ).

    Notice the silicone plugs and thread sheaths on some of the parts. I purchased a variety pack of these off E-bay and they were dirt cheap. These are handy but you can always chase out the threads with a tap after coating if you have one.
    [​IMG]

    I just ran a raw steel rod through my cardboard coating booth (which is only there to collect oversprayed powder and minimize the mess, I also reclaimed a good deal of powder this way). I used a heavy gauge wire with large alligator clips that attached from this rod to my house ground, which is a piece of rebar protruding from the floor under my fuse box. I ground a flat spot on the house ground and on this rod. The Craftsman powder coater also has a small ground clip you can do this with, but the better ground you have the better this will work.
    [​IMG]

    Staged up and ready to spray.

    [​IMG]

    Dirt simple. I had my kid do most of the spraying. I try to have him do as much of the fun stuff as possible as he usually ends up being my gopher and clean-up man. I was the gopher on this job, but transitioning these parts to the oven was the real delicate job.

    FWIW, my Craftsman powder gun was broken on arrival (like 90% of them from what I can gather). I took mine apart and did some internal repairs and reinforcements in the cheap-*** plastic housing and I’m comfortable I can keep this one running for a few years worth of this now. Probably gonna buy another refurbished gun, maybe two, and I’ll be able to keep ONE of them going for the long term.

    [​IMG]

    Before the cook. My kid didn’t realize this was going to be a shiny (kinda chromey) silver and was less then impressed at first.

    [​IMG]

    Was really fun to watch the powder melt and get shiny.

    [​IMG]

    I’m really thrilled with the silver powder. It’s not close to chrome, but matches very well with the nickel plated latches and hardware on the tailgate and elsewhere.

    [​IMG]


    I’ve had this powder coating stuff sitting new in a box for about a year- I sure wish I’d have broken it out sooner. Just about every part I see now is singing a Siren’s song... “powder coat me, you know you want to”

    Apart from some other unrelated colors (OD green, and FED STD tan) I’ve got a Ruby red which is a very close match to our Jeep’s final color, this silver, matte black, and I just ordered a silver vein and a red vein which are a really cool hammered textured finish.
     
  14. Apr 26, 2018
    KeyserSoSay

    KeyserSoSay Collector of Hobbies and Vestigial Skills

    Edgewood New Mexico
    Joined:
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    I took the driver’s side door apart and found lots of broken components inside that will probably need to be fabricated- doors are definitely going to be a headache to get back in working order.

    I have a few questions for the experienced mob here. I found most of the replacement rubbers and weatherstripping at the usual sources (none of it cheap), but I cannot find the rubber that fits around the door window itself- that seals it within the metal runner. I really want to be able to remove the glass and rubber- powder coat the metal window frame, and then replace the rubber when reinstalling the glass. Is there such a rubber out there? I’m concidering just using a liquid rubber (windshield sealant) to do this or potentially a universal rubber sheeting, but wanted to see first if I’m missing something.

    The vent windows are a different story, a complete rubber replacement is available for this window allowing the vent window to be disassembled, re coated, and then reconstructed with new rubber (to the tune of $200 for both sides- ouch).

    Also, I assume there was some kind of felt in the window channels but it’s all gone now. I assume this is as simple as just glueing felt into these channels and trimming it, but am I missing something? Is there a more formal felt, rubber, or installed runner that is needed or available to restore these window channels to their propert function?

    Along this same line.. the back lift gate on our Jeep did not have either liftgate support when we brought it (you have to hold it up). I had not given it much thought as it seems an easy fix to replace the OEM hatch supports with more modern gas struts. Having said that, I’m wondering if anyone can help me determine the measurements of the OEM liftgate support, when extended and when closed. I guess I could make a SWAG at it, but my liftgate is removed from the vehicle right now. Better yet would be to find some OEM liftgate supports, but I’ve not found any.

    Anyone have any feedback on using fold-forward front seat brackets (either the YJ or the TJ versions) in their commando? The passenger seat bracket that is in there now is designed around the low back seats, and will not work well with the high back seats I have, I’m hoping the lift and lurch design of the newer Jeep brackets will better accommodate the high back seats I have, and I’m also hoping someone here would have experience with either of these two types of brackets. I’m really committed to using some kind of head-rest seats as I’ve been the first responder to too many wrecks in my life and lowback seats are a no-go for me.

    The good news is, these Chevy Cavalier seats we’ve got have pretty extreme sliders on them and they can almost slide far enough forward and backwards to negate the need for a fold-forward bracket. I’m kicking around the idea of just installing double sliders which would basically allow the seats to be pushed up against the dash and give enough room to crawl in the backseat.

    Regardless, it’s never going to very comfortable to be a back seat passenger in this jeep for anyone taller than 5’8”.

    Any and all guidance on any of this is appreciated.
     
  15. Apr 27, 2018
    commanlerwrangdo

    commanlerwrangdo Member

    Cleveland, Ohio
    Joined:
    Feb 10, 2014
    Messages:
    470
    Post pics of broken door stuff - I could see what I have to save you fab time.

    Weatherstrip is pricy no matter who it's from. These guys have about everything rubber you can't find elsewhere: www.sealsdirect.co.uk

    The lift gate support comes up and a tab extends so you can ease the gate back down on it to stay open. To close you re-lift it and then it will close. Only fits on the left side, all it needs to support. Not sure if I have a spare of one of those.

    Like your Cavalier seat idea - sounds like a plan.
     
  16. Apr 27, 2018
    KeyserSoSay

    KeyserSoSay Collector of Hobbies and Vestigial Skills

    Edgewood New Mexico
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    Thanks, and I will be posting some pics of the broken door components as I take them on and work to repair them. Luckily, everything that is broken in the driver's door is functioning in the passenger door so I've got a good template of how things should work and fit.

    Also good news is that the main elements of the doors- the internals for the the latching mechanism, and the window lifts- are in excellent shape with little wear or corrosion... So, Yay...

    I do have one component that I need that I do not think I would want to try and fabricate- I think the best tact is to scour the interweb for a replacement. here it is below, I'm not sure what to call it except a "door guide", I think they are universal fit left/right. Worst case, I can cast one out of brass or aluminum, but would prefer not to have to get into all of that..

    if anyone here has an extra one of these, please let me know.

    [​IMG]

    I've found most of the rubber, trim, felts, runners and seals that I'll need to refurbish the doors- While none of it is cheap, it all can be found reasonably enough that it doesn't make me sick to my stomach. The only part that really irks me is the $200 vent window rubbers but mine are pretty ragged and I do like the idea of hanging completely refurbished to brand-new-condition doors on this jeep, so I'll probably bite the bullet and get them too. (ouch!!)

    [​IMG]

    I'm still committed to trying to powder-coat the metal brackets that hold the vent window in and the surround runner for the main window. This causes me extra problems as I have to remove the glass and replace the subsequent rubber. My main problem is finding the rubber seals that mount the actual glass into the metal trim that surrounds the Commando Windows. I've Googled until my lips turned blue, and cannot seem to find the proper semantics that will help me find these rubbers.

    [​IMG]

    From what I can tell so far, these are pretty simple rubber and I'm thinking a 1/8" rubber neoprene strip will work on these, and I can then trim it with a razor blade once mounted. I've also considered just using the black liquid rubber used when mounting modern windshields (either the butyl strips or urethane caulking), or some combination there-of. either way, I'm confident I can figure something out.

    [​IMG]

    [​IMG]

    What I need to do on the lift gate, is re-mount it and assess how much room I have to mount a gas-piston strut or two. A lot has changed since 1972 and the gas struts beat the heck out of the OEM mechanical supports and probably take up less room.

    [​IMG]
     
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  17. Apr 28, 2018
    ojgrsoi

    ojgrsoi Retired 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Weatherford, TX
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    I'm not clear on exactly what you need but had the same search fatigue as you when trying to replace sliding window rubber/fuzzy track. By accident I found a bunch of stuff on Rock Auto including what I needed.

    Don't know if this is any help but...

    Body Weatherstrip Door Window Glass Channel Parts | RockAuto
     
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  18. Apr 28, 2018
    ojgrsoi

    ojgrsoi Retired 2024 Sponsor 2023 Sponsor 2022 Sponsor

    Weatherford, TX
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    Iv
    I've seen the part you need on a postal Jeep with the optional rear door spare tire mount. Those are pretty scarce, as in - I've only seen one. The back door has a slot and the part assists the hinge in supporting the weight of the tire.
     
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  19. Apr 29, 2018
    jackdog

    jackdog Member

    Finger Lakes NY
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    Jul 16, 2013
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    I have some, PM me your address and I'll get it to you.
     
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  20. Apr 30, 2018
    KeyserSoSay

    KeyserSoSay Collector of Hobbies and Vestigial Skills

    Edgewood New Mexico
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    Wow, Awesome!. I'll be in touch soon. I'm not looking for freebies. I love this forum.
     
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