Ok, so I am going to get this started. Been thinking about he direction I want to go with this Jeep. I have had many and gone many different ways but with his one I think I will go with a tasteful resto-mod. I have had the CJ-6 for about 6 years now and have done absolutely nothing. My Subaru sickness got in the way and I really went back and forth with the Jeep build, basically could never decide on what to do. Given the rarity of this particular Toledo steel, I have finally decided to go with a tasteful mod, leaving much of the useful parts and scraping the parts that are not so desirable.. (258 cough, cough).
History of the Jeep.
As most of you know it is a CJ and is pretty old now. As many of you may not or are confused by the "6" designation and what exactly it is, I will attempt to give a brief history. Hint, it?s not a Scrambler.
The CJ 6 is simply a longer wheel based CJ 5. Twenty inches longer, to be exact. Through 1971 it had a wheelbase of 101 inches. 1972 to 1975 it?s wheelbase was 104 inches. The reason for the lengthening of the wheelbase for 1972 and beyond was when AMC took over they needed a bit longer front clip to accommodate the longer engines they planned to use, 258, 232 and 304. Otherwise, it is exactly the same as the CJ5.
The CJ6 was developed and introduced in 1955 in response to consumers demand for a larger, more roomier, Jeep. A Jeep to carry more but still be based upon the venerable CJ series Jeeps of the era. Unfortunately the CJ6 never gained much success with the public and therefore was largely produced for things such as forestry service and other civilian and government work forces. The others were largely exported to other countries for such duties, etc. Domestic consumption and sales ended in 1975 and the CJ6 finally ceased all production and exports in 1981. Within this 20 year time frame, the CJ6 only saw about fifty thousand units made. This low production coupled with lack of consumer enthusiasm and sales, has led this Jeep to be of rarity at this time.
My history with the Jeep:
I fell in love with the Jeep when my grandfather purchased an M38 for winter duties at his lake house. My first experience with driving was in this military Jeep. My love for Jeeps was born at a young age.
Since that time I have been involved with Jeeps, about 19 years now to be exact. CJ?s, YJ?s and TJ?s have adorned my driveway in that time frame. I went two years without a Jeep once in that time frame. LOL
I first laid eyes on the CJ6 somewhere in the early-mid 90?s when I was fooling with my CJ5. I had seen some off-road videos by a gentleman by the name of Rick Russell. His choice ride was a bright yellow 6er. The length of the Jeep and it?s ability to overcome trial obstacles had me sold though it took roughly 14 years to find one in my area for sale.
Late winter of ?07 I found one for sale and snatched it up immediately. My first thought was to do what I have done before, rip everything out and replace with heavy duty drive train and high powered engines. Long story short, life ensued and she sits in the driveway untouched.
How she came and sits:
All stock besides the top and wheels/tires.
258 inline six all original and even the original electronic ignition.
Dana 30 front. Drum brakes.
Original Warn hubs.
T18 trans
Dana 20 T-case
Dana 44 rear with drum brakes. Seems to be Lincoln locked or spooled.
SOA with factory springs
Q78-15 Swamper TSL
Some 15x8ish turbine style wheels.
Original interior
A steel hardtop probably from a mid 60?s CJ. (these were made by others and bought through dealers and installed as a dealer option)
Full steel doors with roll up windows. (missing several pieces. No luck in finding parts)
The plan:
Have a really nice vintage Jeep with minimal molesting and tasteful upgrades but maintaining an attention to keeping things period correct or period feeling.
I have gone the hardcore route before and hopefully plan to keep this one more tame. After all, she is rare and I don?t want to deviate too much without being able to return back to original.
Paint and body back to a more period correct appearance. Think tan for a color.
Probably go back to a soft top as was original. Maybe half cab the steel top.
Retain the axles but do a full rebuild with upgraded shafts, gears and lockers.
Relocate the springs for a SUA and utilize a small lift.
Shackle reversal.
Repair any cracks or damage to the frame. Box or brace high stress areas. Undercoat.
Disk brake conversion for the axles. Retain the manual brake setup.
Retain and rebuild the trans and t-case. Install a low gear set for the t-case.
Repair and spray liner the interior tub.
Mastercraft seats in a period tan/browns.
Upgrade the heat and install A/C.
Install OEM gauges and a few aftermarket.
Install a full roll cage.
Install 3 point belts.
Remove the six banger and either utilize a newer 4.0 for a more period feel or utilize the complete 302 fuely I have in my shed.
Add power steering.
Upgraded cooling for the engine.
Maybe work a winch in there somewhere. Try to find something like a Warn 8274, maybe.
All supporting mods for the above engine and drive train.
More period correct steel wheels with a 33x10.50 tire.
Basically just make everything new or fresh and have a really cool cruiser and mild off-roader.
Pictures to come soon and hopefully some work. A lot of other priorities are going to take precedence but I hope to get started within the year.
History of the Jeep.
As most of you know it is a CJ and is pretty old now. As many of you may not or are confused by the "6" designation and what exactly it is, I will attempt to give a brief history. Hint, it?s not a Scrambler.
The CJ 6 is simply a longer wheel based CJ 5. Twenty inches longer, to be exact. Through 1971 it had a wheelbase of 101 inches. 1972 to 1975 it?s wheelbase was 104 inches. The reason for the lengthening of the wheelbase for 1972 and beyond was when AMC took over they needed a bit longer front clip to accommodate the longer engines they planned to use, 258, 232 and 304. Otherwise, it is exactly the same as the CJ5.
The CJ6 was developed and introduced in 1955 in response to consumers demand for a larger, more roomier, Jeep. A Jeep to carry more but still be based upon the venerable CJ series Jeeps of the era. Unfortunately the CJ6 never gained much success with the public and therefore was largely produced for things such as forestry service and other civilian and government work forces. The others were largely exported to other countries for such duties, etc. Domestic consumption and sales ended in 1975 and the CJ6 finally ceased all production and exports in 1981. Within this 20 year time frame, the CJ6 only saw about fifty thousand units made. This low production coupled with lack of consumer enthusiasm and sales, has led this Jeep to be of rarity at this time.
My history with the Jeep:
I fell in love with the Jeep when my grandfather purchased an M38 for winter duties at his lake house. My first experience with driving was in this military Jeep. My love for Jeeps was born at a young age.
Since that time I have been involved with Jeeps, about 19 years now to be exact. CJ?s, YJ?s and TJ?s have adorned my driveway in that time frame. I went two years without a Jeep once in that time frame. LOL
I first laid eyes on the CJ6 somewhere in the early-mid 90?s when I was fooling with my CJ5. I had seen some off-road videos by a gentleman by the name of Rick Russell. His choice ride was a bright yellow 6er. The length of the Jeep and it?s ability to overcome trial obstacles had me sold though it took roughly 14 years to find one in my area for sale.
Late winter of ?07 I found one for sale and snatched it up immediately. My first thought was to do what I have done before, rip everything out and replace with heavy duty drive train and high powered engines. Long story short, life ensued and she sits in the driveway untouched.
How she came and sits:
All stock besides the top and wheels/tires.
258 inline six all original and even the original electronic ignition.
Dana 30 front. Drum brakes.
Original Warn hubs.
T18 trans
Dana 20 T-case
Dana 44 rear with drum brakes. Seems to be Lincoln locked or spooled.
SOA with factory springs
Q78-15 Swamper TSL
Some 15x8ish turbine style wheels.
Original interior
A steel hardtop probably from a mid 60?s CJ. (these were made by others and bought through dealers and installed as a dealer option)
Full steel doors with roll up windows. (missing several pieces. No luck in finding parts)
The plan:
Have a really nice vintage Jeep with minimal molesting and tasteful upgrades but maintaining an attention to keeping things period correct or period feeling.
I have gone the hardcore route before and hopefully plan to keep this one more tame. After all, she is rare and I don?t want to deviate too much without being able to return back to original.
Paint and body back to a more period correct appearance. Think tan for a color.
Probably go back to a soft top as was original. Maybe half cab the steel top.
Retain the axles but do a full rebuild with upgraded shafts, gears and lockers.
Relocate the springs for a SUA and utilize a small lift.
Shackle reversal.
Repair any cracks or damage to the frame. Box or brace high stress areas. Undercoat.
Disk brake conversion for the axles. Retain the manual brake setup.
Retain and rebuild the trans and t-case. Install a low gear set for the t-case.
Repair and spray liner the interior tub.
Mastercraft seats in a period tan/browns.
Upgrade the heat and install A/C.
Install OEM gauges and a few aftermarket.
Install a full roll cage.
Install 3 point belts.
Remove the six banger and either utilize a newer 4.0 for a more period feel or utilize the complete 302 fuely I have in my shed.
Add power steering.
Upgraded cooling for the engine.
Maybe work a winch in there somewhere. Try to find something like a Warn 8274, maybe.
All supporting mods for the above engine and drive train.
More period correct steel wheels with a 33x10.50 tire.
Basically just make everything new or fresh and have a really cool cruiser and mild off-roader.
Pictures to come soon and hopefully some work. A lot of other priorities are going to take precedence but I hope to get started within the year.
