jj big shoe

Yeah, me too actually. Trouble is it only looked good for a few months then it started to fade. After a year the top surfaces were cracked and 6 months after that it was embarrassing to drive it looked so bad. If I had the space and tools I would have re-sprayed it "Pepsi can blue" again but with better quality paint. It was a cool color.

Yeah, a helluva lot of work, though. There's still a few areas where you can see the sanding scratches but it looks pretty good, especially for what it is. Most folks are surprised when I tell them its Rustoleum, even some old hot rod guys gave me props. I'll try to pop a few pics this weekend after I install the new BL. I traded my tires and rims for 33x13.5 Swampers and now I can't turn without slashing up the tires, D'oh! It'll never get that deep gloss like the base/clear jobs on newer cars. Its more like the old 70's laquer cars, but still nice. And you can't do metalics or flakes or anything because the flakes won't be dispersed evenly since you're rolling it on. Google $50 paint job and you'll get tons of info, mostly from a Mopar forum. I had planned on doing a write-up, but most of the info is on that Mopar site anyway and alot of it is trial and error until you get the feel of how to do it.

Thanks. Its actually orange (a mix of Safety Red and Safety Yellow) and there's no clear on it. I thinned the paint with mineral spirits at about a 1:1 ratio and applied it in several coats with a 4" foam roller, wet sanding between every two coats with 800 grit. I finished it off with a mix of rubbing compound and polishing compound on a rotary buffer with a wool bonnet, then a foam pad. I screwed up a few times so it took quite a while but once you get the technique down it's not too hard. It came out looking pretty good and has held up better than the blue $400 spray job so far.

Yeah, but without the rainbow window sticker! The darker blue kinda looks like my old paint job. Here's a pic to give you an idea of what it might look like on yours: It was a cheapo paint job, about $400 with me doing all the prep, and it held up for maybe 18 months in the Florida sun. Definately invest in some good quality paint if you're going to do it yourself. Or just go and get some Rustoleum. That's what I did and its held up nicely since I rolled it out in January:

That's why I carry a stock filter in the truck. I can screw the adapter off and slap the stocker on the block if something happens to the lines.

Get yourselves one of these to distract you...

If it still doesn't cool efficiently on the highway I doubt it has anything to do with the fan or clutch. Sounds like coolant flow or a blockage would be the problem to me. Besides, when fan clutches go bad, don't they usually sieze up so they're always on? Pop the cap off the rad (when the engines cool, of course) and watch for coolant flowing past when the t'stat opens. If your temp gauge is over 1/2 and there isn't any flow yet, I'd really suspect the t'stat. If there's only a slight flow, there's prolly a blockage somewhere or the t'stat isn't fully opening. BTW, that's also how I've always "burped" my cooling system. Once the flow starts it'll move the air bubble around and you'll see the coolant in the rad drop, then just fill it up.

Take pics of everything you couldn't see easily with the body on if you could. Seeing things from a different angle, how it mounts, where lines are connected, etc. could be helpful when trying to explain something to someone else. The pics could be used as a common reference. Not to question your carpentry skills, but please be sure your body stand is totally solid and won't give way before you crawl under there. You're going to be banging, chopping, prying, etc. and it needs to be sturdy. This project is going to be hard enough without a collapsed lung or something.

My 87 5-speed has a 2"x3" blank plate on the firewall just to the left of the brake booster. I ran the air lines for my shocks thru it. Don't forget to use a grommet or you might have trouble later on.

Sorry to hear you're letting it go but it might be the right decision. Its always more satisfying working on a vehicle to improve it with mods and things than laboring just to get it running. Don't be a stranger here and keep checking craigslist and stuff for a good low-cost Pathfinder, they pop up a lot.

I think I have some Pro Comp shocks that I removed when I went with the Ranchos. I will give you a real good price if/when you decide to get the body lift, much less than cheapo Monroes or something. PM me if you're interested.

If you decide to go with a replacement frame, why replace the entire thing? Couldn't you chop the bad rear section off your truck and weld a new section in place? Just make two small new rails from box steel (or fab your own) that will slide a foot or so into your frame and also extend into the new frame section. Pre-drill each frame in a few spots for welding access then butt weld and fish plate the seam. Those old "gasser" dragsters extended their front frames in a similar way in order to mount the leaf springs and move the front axles forward. Seems strong enough since their slamming back down after wheelies each run. I'm not a welder nor a frame repair specialist, but it seems to me splicing in a factory-made section of frame would be much easier than making one from scratch. All your hangers, perches, mounts, etc are already there. As long as you measure correctly before you chop everything should bolt right back up.

Exactly. Don't try to convince him he should scrap the truck. He's supposed to buy my old body lift!

Looks like the difference between the kits is how each lifts the rear. The Pathfinder kit has coil spacers and the HB kit has U-bolts and blocks. HARDBODY PATHFINDER Those kits list for about $1,000 and used at half that. The part I think you'd really need from the kit would be the front bracketry that drops the axle. I'd imagine the rear can be lifted with taller springs. For $250, it's a steal. You'd pay that for new A-arms. If I had the cash, I would definately snatch it.

Firing order should be 1-2-3-4-5-6. Standing at the front looking at the engine, the #1 is passenger front, #6 is driver rear. 5 6 3 4 1 2 If you give more detail about your problem someone here should be able to help. What's it doing/not doing?

Thanks for the offer, but I swapped the clutch fan for an electric one from a Taurus long ago. Yeah, I jumped out of a bowl and sent the front end about three feet in the air. If I had an inch more lift or and inch less tire it would've cleared. Thanks for the info, Bud. I cruised 88s Cardomain page yesterday and it looks like he's got maybe the same offset but I've got wider rims. Either way I'm pretty sure I'll make them work at least for the street after the 3" BL. If there's no way to get them to tuck into the fenders or I have to chop more than I want I'll sell them and get something a bit less aggressive. I'm just not really looking forward to the labor since I just painted it and I have some other obligations right now. Oh well, idle hands...

I had to trim the flares a little with 32" BFG A/Ts on 15x8 rims and 3.75" backspacing. As long as you don't jump it and shove the front tires into the fenders you should be ok.

I figured it might be a Trailmaster 4" kit since those include shocks. Might be worth a call.

Cool. I posted a feeler in the "Parts For Sale" section, but since no one has responded yet you'll get first dibs. I'll hopefully be able to do the swap in the next few weeks and will let you know via PM. I'll get the 2" lift parts list and make sure everything's included and in good shape. The store is an hour away in Tampa and for the time and gas I figure $8 isn't so bad.

???

Yeah, trimming is definately in order even after the 3" BL. This is what happened with 32s and only a suspension lift: BTW, I went ahead and ordered a 3" BL today for $110 w/ $8 shipping! Best price I found. It's from 4WheelOnline.com. Looks like their having a sale. I have to pay sales tax since its shipping from within the state, but still a good deal.

Yeah, but I'm going from 32s to 33s and side-by-side they are taller. I lifted and trimmed enough to clear my old tires at full compression and off-caber stuff, but looks like I'll have some trouble with these mostly due to the rim offset. It doesn't look like they'll tuck in easily after a taller BL even without the flares mounted. I do better when I plan and think things out before diving in, mostly because I can do it bit by bit and gather everything I'll need. This is going to be different since I don't have a way to return the truck to its previous configuration. I'm prolly just making a big deal out of nothing and a BL will get me where I need to be for the most part. I'm just noidie that way and don't want to get stuck with a truck that chops it's own tires up. Either way, I think I came out ahead since I could sell these tires/rims for more than I could've sold the old set for, definately more demand around here for 33" Swampers. I'll make it work, I just wasn't planning on messing with the Pathy for a bit. I promised to get a '77 Vette streetable in the next month or so and will be busy. Oh, did I mention the new wheels look super-cool? (giggle)

suspension lift nissan hardbody - $250 (oregon city) 89 Nissan Pathfinder 2/door - $550 (santa rosa beach) Off Road tires and wheels Mickey Thompson - $275 (Mesa)

Thanks for all the suggestions but after thinking it over, I'm going with buying a regular kit. I'm still going to need stuff like a gas filler extension and bumper brackets so the kit would be the way to go. For those who don't know, I'm all about "repurposing" things for my needs. But sometimes (usually) it ends up being a ton more work and costs only a small pecentage less when the project is finished. The thing is I traded my wheels for these. Call it shrewed, call it impulsive, call it stupid, but now I can't move my truck. I was surfing Craigslist and found a guy who wanted to trade his Super Swampers for a more streetable tire, so we swapped. The rims are 15x10 with maybe 3.5" backspacing and the tires are 33x13.5, not exactly what I would've gone shopping for but I took the deal. I'm just hoping I can massage the sheet metal enough to make them work after the lift. The adult in me is kicking himself for making such an impulsive decision and not thinking the whole project through, but the 12 year-old kid in me thinks they look badass.

Yeah, but I don't have the $100 for a lift right now. I'd have to see how finances are going late next month to do a cash sale. Otherwise, it's going on the card.