New Axles for the Willys

Woohoo! My axles are finally here. What started out as a couple of minor upgrades has snowballed into a major makeover for the Willys. Initially the Jeep was down for a dual master cylinder upgrade. Then I came across a good deal on some shocks. Then all hell broke lose. Here’s what’s in store:

• Dana 44 front, disc brakes, 5.38 gears, ARB locker
• Dana 44 rear, disc brakes, 5.38 gears, Detroit locker
• 4” Skyjacker leaf springs for an early CJ5 (longer than Willys stock length)
• JKS U-Bolt plates
• Edelbrock shocks
• RCI fuel cell

All of the leaf spring and shackle mounts have to be relocated to allow for the longer springs as well as out boarding the front mounts to get around the Scout Dana 44 pumpkin. The Jeep will end up with a track width about eight inches wider, sit about 2” higher (plus another 1.5” after I upsize the tires), and the wheelbase will be stretched 2-3”.

To Do List:

• Fabricate the front spring mounts
• Weld on spring perches
• Build a drag link (anyone have a spare w/ heavy duty tie rod ends on it?)
• Switch transfer case output to a cv yoke for cv driveline
• Fitment of drivelines
• New shock towers and mounts
• Mount and connect the ARB
• Install new master cylinder, brake lines, bleed brakes
• E-brake assembly to rear wheels

Most of this stuff I’ve never done before, just kind of winging it and learning as I go. If anyone has some life experience to share with me on this type of work, let me have it. For instance, I only want to weld the spring perches on once so it will be important to get things mocked up right the first time.

While waiting for parts I decided to weld up all the holes in the body where the old roll bar was mounted, soft top snaps, etc. Well that was another can of worms. There were over 60 holes on the passenger side alone! It wasn’t my intention to start a body work project on a 65 year old tub, so I just gave it a quick Bondo skim over the patches and moved on. One good thing about a small Jeep is it only takes 5 cans of spray paint to change the color, so I’m taking the Willys MB back to its military roots. That’s right - Olive Drab Baby!

If anyone wants to get their hands dirty, come on over, I’m in Vista. Help will not be turned away. It would be great to get a second eye on some of this stuff like the pinion angles, and I’m still on the fence about the shock mount locations.

Flatty Mike