About the Old Girl

She was born in the summer of '69 in Ontario, Canada; titled in '70 in Maine, USA. She shares some traits of both a '69 and a '70.

My uncle is the first owner; after 35 years of pining for it I talked him out of it.

She is mostly stock; what little add-ons are mainly because I haven't found a true stock replacement. These are all interim solutions until she gets a true frame off restoration. Of course I'll document that all here. She's had a face-lift about 2004-05; lots of rust was removed and a big portion of the body replaced. Maine winters can be pretty harsh on steel.

Key bits of info:
- Engine - Buick V-6 225 cubic inch
- Transmission - Dana T-14, 3 speed
- Transfer Case - Spicer T-18
- Front Differential - Dana 27, 3.73 ratio
- Rear Differential - Dana 44, 3.73 ratio
- Wheels - 15 inch
- Winch - front mounted Ramsey MX-2000 PTO (dealer installed)
- Top - Meyer Steel top (dealer installed)
- Color - Omaha Orange

This blog is a record of what we do together and of course what I do to her to keep her in good shape...

Tuesday, October 20, 2015

That sexy look over her shoulder...


Mirrors.  And other details of course.  But let's talk mirrors.

Originally the CJ family had a simple post sticking out the driver's side with a small round mirror on it.  Then in about 1965 somebody at Kaiser decided to listen to safety advisers (aka the gov'MENT) and increase the size of the mirror.  They chose a rectangular job.


In the above photo you can just see it.  That's a photo from the 1969 assembly line in Toledo, Ohio.  Likely taken just before Kaiser SOLD OUT to AMC, but hey that's not my bag, baby.  But this photo plays a few roles in some other things I'm doing to make her like her original self.

Later in the '70's, I believe about '74, the rectangular mirror was replaced by two square mirrors, one on each side.  Enough on the history you say, what about the Old Girl?

Getting a perfect replacement for that style of mirror is pretty difficult, unless I can find someone willing to part with theirs...unlikely since the few that exist, exist because the owner wants to keep their Jeep original.  Otherwise most of those mirrors went to the same place the Old Girl's went: caught on some branch while on the trail, and subsequently the remnants were removed and sent to the local landfill.

So, I browsed the internet with my...browser, and found a pair of replacement mirrors.  I decided the price was right and got a pair, one for each side.  I doubt I'll ever install the one on the right simply because it would require tapping 4 holes, et cetera; and for accuracy she wasn't born with 2 mirrors so why bother?


So I've got this beauty mounted.  Of course after all the adjusting and getting it just right...can't see much out of it because of vibration.  Just a blurry mess.  Oh well, at least she looks good!


Thanks for looking...

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