|
|
The West Coast Jeepster JamFirst time in the West From the October, 2012 issue of Jp By Pete Trasborg Photography by Pete Trasborg
|
|
This big blue ’67 is rolling... This big blue ’67 is rolling on 37-inch BFG MTs but it isn’t the 5.3L Vortec V-8 that sets it apart. Heck, it isn’t even the fact that Andrew McCleskey wheels it so hard he frequently is swapping body panels that sets it apart. You see, this Jeepster was an original convertible. Most Jeepsters came with hardtops and the convertibles are somewhat rare and collectible. Now, before you go firing up the hate mail generators, know that this thing was in pretty bad shape even before Andrew beat it up. An SM420 and Dana 300 back that new-age V-8 while a Dana 60 front and Dana 61 rear put power to the corners. The 61 seemed an odd choice, so we asked about it. It’s real easy to mis-identify a 61 as a 60 and it wasn’t until it was under the Jeep that the truth came out. Still, it took the 4.56 gears and ARB Air Locker to match the front, so there is no real reason to yank it out. Jeepster Jams have been happening for years. They are, of course, a regional or national gathering focused on the Jeepster Commando. Put on by Jeepster enthusiasts for Jeepster enthusiasts, the events are a great source of information and feature lots of camaraderie. Of course, the VJ Jeepster isn’t shunned, but most of the activities involve 4WD and low range, which kind of leaves out the VJ. If you live in the Eastern or Central US and own a Jeepster, chances are you’ve been to one of those regions’ Jeepster Jams. But, if you live on the West Coast and own one, you have either been relegated to loading your Jeep up on the trailer and driving a partway across the country or hoping that the national Jam will make it out your way next year. Well, hope no more. We got the opportunity to go to the first ever West Coast Jeepster Jam. It was a week after TDS in the same location as TDS, but you’d have been hard pressed to keep Trasborg away. It was jam-packed with wheeling, grilling, and even a raffle. There was a lot of talk about doing a West Coast Jeepster Jam for 2013 as well. However, there was some discussion as to whether or not there would be enough interest and both the location and date were up in the air. For more information about next year’s events, check out jeepstercommandoclub.com. But for the straight skinny on the 2012 event, read on.  It’s always the quiet ones....  It’s always the quiet ones. David Goodrich showed how the added interior space of a Jeepster could be put to use by loading up the wife and kids and piloting his rig where often only the “more built” vehicles dared go. Under the hood is the stock ’67 225ci V-6 but it is bolted to an ’80s-era TH350 which is backed by a Dana 300 with a 4:1 TeraLow. From there power goes to the front Dana 30 with Yukon 4340 chromoly axleshafts and a Lock Right and the rear Dana 44 with a Detroit Locker. Both axles are hung from 4-inch-lift YJ Wrangler leaf springs and turn 35-inch-tall mud tires.  The ’71 Jeepster is probably...  The ’71 Jeepster is probably our favorite model year. New enough to have Saginaw steering, but still pre-bullnose it’s the sweet spot. Jeff Holder built his up in a hurry, taking it from stocker to this in a mere four months. It still has the 225 under the hood bolted to the TH400 automatic and Dana 20. The axles are another story though. A front Dana 44 sourced from a Wagoneer and a rear Dana 44 from an Isuzu both were stuffed with 4.88 gears. A custom leaf suspension lift and 13⁄8-inch-tall body lift combine with custom rockers and cut rear fenders to clear the 35x12.50R15 BFG KM2s.  The quiet tan exterior of...  The quiet tan exterior of this ’69 belies some pretty stout hardware under that sheetmetal. A 350ci Chevy V-8 from a ’90 Chevy with throttle body injection resides behind the grille and Warn 8274 winch. Backing the engine is an SM420 and a Dana 20 which sends power to front and rear high-pinion Dana 44s. The axles were pulled out of a ’74 Ford, stuffed with 4.88 gears and ARB Air Lockers, and slung under the Jeep in a spring-over configuration. The spring-over made space for the 36x14.5/15 Super Swamper TSLs.  Nothing like starting an event...  Nothing like starting an event with carnage. This radiator is easily the worst fan damage we’ve seen and it came out of a ’72 Commando. Chris Reeves was the owner and got some early wheeling in on Friday. He then tried mightily to get another radiator in time to go wheeling Saturday, but it just wasn’t in the cards. A shame too, because not only was his Jeep orange, but it was set up pretty well; rolling on 35s, with a fuel-injected 304ci V-8, ARBs front and rear, and lots of other cool aftermarket goodies.  If you’ve never been out to...  If you’ve never been out to Ocotillo Wells and Truckhaven in Southern California, there are literally hundreds of interconnecting trails which means that you don’t have to take the same route as the guy ahead of you to get to the same place. So, with Jeeps of all sizes and levels of build, it was a bit like herding chickens to get all the Jeepsters from Saturday morning in one place and stationary at one time. Little known to us, there were even more Jeepsters back in camp waiting for us to get done gallivanting all over the desert.  In the same bowl we got the...  In the same bowl we got the early group shot was a bunch of loose gravel hillclimbs. Many of the V-8-equipped Jeeps let their horses run. Here Dennis Gray unleashes his throttle body injected 350ci V-8 while the 700R4 dumps power through the Atlas II, and front and rear TeraFlex high-pinion Dana 60s. Since Trasborg didn’t get his Jeepster back together in time, Dennis got the dubious honor of playing chauffer from place to place for him. Thanks for the lift Dennis.  This ’69 belongs to Mark Bertolucci...  This ’69 belongs to Mark Bertolucci and might have been the most extensively-modified Jeepster out there. It’s got all the big parts in the right places from the ’91 Chevy TBI 350ci V-8 all the way out to the front Dana 60 and rear Dana 70. The axles are both stuffed with 4.88 gears, 35-spline shafts, and Detroit Lockers and turn 39.5-inch-tall Super Swamper IROK tires. In the middle is a ’53 SM420, and ’81 Dana 300. The leaf springs were tossed in favor of a three-link with track bar up front and a wishbone-style rear suspension.  That is all pretty normal...  That is all pretty normal fare for a big off-road Jeep, but it is the little details on Mark’s rig that make us say it might have been the most-modified one out there. From the stretched, welded, and front-tilt one-piece all-steel front clip to the cool homemade half-doors there are a lot of little ideas on this Jeep that we hope to use on ours in the future. He used LED strip lighting along the cage rather than a normal dome light and it does an awesome job helping find things at night. Under the tilt-nose was this dual battery setup. The top battery is the stock Jeepster location, and the lower one is a simple mount that cleanly clears the frame, inner fenderwell, and is well out of the way.  You might think this is yet...  You might think this is yet another picture of Dennis’ Jeepster, but you’d be wrong. This ’69 belongs to David Miller and is so clean that we were often surprised at the lines he’d pick and the obstacles he would attempt. It has a 90s-era 350ci Chevy V-8 under that clean custom-louvered hood. Behind the engine is an SM465 and Dana 300 that hands power off to the stock Dana 27 front axle and Dana 44 rear. Both axles are open with stock gears so that helps keep them in one piece. A 4-inch suspension lift couples with 11⁄2-inch-tall body lift to clear the 33x12.50R16 Mickey Thompson Baja Claws mounted on Mickey Thompson Classic Lock II wheels.  Robert LaMont was one of the...  Robert LaMont was one of the guys waiting for us back at camp with his newly-completed ’71. Well, ok, maybe not totally complete, but this was the first run for the ’71 in years. With a newly-swapped 4.3L Chevy V-6 backed by a 4L60E there was a lot of swapping and wiring that happened under the hood. The original Dana 20 still splits power, but it is going to a CJ-sourced open-knuckle front Dana 30 and a Scout-sourced rear Dana 44. Both axles are stuffed with 4.88 gears and OX lockers. Custom 6-inch-lift Deaver springs provide the clearance for a set of 35x12.50R15 ProComp Extreme M/Ts.  Dennis had the only Jeep out...  Dennis had the only Jeep out there with 40-inch tires on it, and at times that made him kind of fearless. It was a well-setup Jeep to be fearless in though. The 40-inch Goodyears are wrapped around TrailReady beadlocks and four-link suspension front and rear meant that flex wasn’t a problem. The axles are hung with ORI struts and stuffed with 5.13 gears and ARB Air Lockers. The power steering system has no problem pushing the big tires around since the pump, box, and ram are all PSC units. A Viair compressor and tank provides the locking pressure for the ARBs and a Warn 9500lb-rated winch pulls recovery duties.  Unlike later Jeeps, many of...  Unlike later Jeeps, many of the Jeepsters have a lot of space between the grille and front bumper because there’s no Saginaw steering box hanging off the frame and no huge crossmember. Scott Simon made good use of that space in his ’69 by building a custom winch plate and mounting the Bulldog winch lower than normal. He’s also got a full custom ’cage and the V-6 breathes better through an Offenhauser intake, 4-bbl Weber carb, and dual exhaust. The rest of the drivetrain is stock with a T-14 tranny, Dana 20 T-case, Dana 27 front, and Dana 44 rear that have no problems living with the 31-inch tires.  The engine, tranny, and T-case...  The engine, tranny, and T-case might be willing, but sometimes those open axles just don’t help matters. Just after we snapped the above picture, David got hung up on the front differential. If David’s Jeep was locked, he’d have had no problems with the tires. Fortunately Scott’s Weber-powered, odd-fire-driven ’69 was nearby. They teamed up and made short work of freeing David’s Jeepster without any damage to that clean black paint.  Like we said earlier, David...  Like we said earlier, David Goodrich had no problems pushing his red ’67 but this is the only time we saw him have any issues. Of course, Trasborg had his camera ready while Gary gave him a yank. For all you Jeepster people at home, check out how David cut down the factory hardtop and mated it to an aftermarket rack mounted to the rear of his ’cage. Now he’s got shade for the whole family and some extra storage capacity if ever needed.  Scott did very well where...  Scott did very well where even the larger-tired Jeepsters went. This picture is a bit misleading, it was actually a pretty steep hillclimb and the Weber ended up having some problems staying running on it. We aren’t sure if Scott has the Weber mounted backwards, but a quick winch ride back to level ground got him restarted and he was good to go for the rest of the weekend’s wheeling. You can also see the old school modular black-and-chrome wheels and uncut rear fender in this shot.
|
|
|