Strode 1982 Cherokee Laredo

[Strode182]

"Scorpion" Decals!!!

Ha-ha! Now that would be a stroke of ironic serendipity coming full circle (?) or something, wouldn't it.

But you're close

[nester]

Just read the whole thread. Very nice build! Wish I had the skill to take on body work, it frightens me..

[Strode182]

Just read the whole thread. Very nice build! Wish I had the skill to take on body work, it frightens me..

Thanks Nester.

Well, it seems like I've been wetsanding and polishing for 2 weeks now.

I did the whole truck in 1500 grit, then 2000 grit. After I polished some, I decided that wasn't quite aggressive enough, so I went back over most of it again lightly with 1000 grit. Next time, I'll just do 1000 grit then 2000 grit.





And the WHS test for shinyness: Surely there's a fly in that reflection someplace?



I started out with 3M stuff, and was running out. On the paint store guy's recommendation, I switched to Wizards Mystic Cut Compound and Mystic Polish. Good stuff, and it smells good.

[Strode182]

Not quite Scorpion stripes, but almost.

When I did the stripes, I wanted it to look like it could have come from the factory that way. And I decided when I first started I wanted Laredo badging on it.

So, the special Rocky Mountain Edition Laredo Package that was never built but should have been.....





Originally I was going to put them under the clear coat, and I'm glad I didn't. I can take them off or get something different this way. They are CJ5 decals from Phoenix.



They are not that "bold" in real life as they are in the pictures. They really stand out in the pictures.

What I'll be doing next is adding some pinstriping to bring it all together. I'll do a pinstripe in orange, and maybe one in beige creme or something. It will make the decals tie in with the striping.

I was practicing with my pinstriping brush, and I'm too chicken to try it. I think I'll be buying a Bugler striping tool to do it.

[whsii]

A++ Brad,

Excellent!

[nester]

Badging looks good, can't wait to see the striping, should make it pop just right. The gloss is amazing.

[Road Trip]

Brad, that shine is excellent and the Rocky Mountain Laredo looks great.

[Irocz327]

Bud, I just wanted to let you know I just dedicated what felt like 3hrs of my life including an hour of work ( don't tell the boss man lol) to read this front to back & all I can say. Is that was an inspiring read for me to build my truck! great looking truck & fantastic job on the metal working!

Also I was wondering what model cb did you use & did you need to trim the dash a lot to fit it?

[Strode182]

Thanks for the comments, guys

Bud, I just wanted to let you know I just dedicated what felt like 3hrs of my life including an hour of work ( don't tell the boss man lol) to read this front to back & all I can say. Is that was an inspiring read for me to build my truck! great looking truck & fantastic job on the metal working!

Also I was wondering what model cb did you use & did you need to trim the dash a lot to fit it?

Iroc, it's a Uniden PRO520XL. It took a little bit of fabricating to make it fit, but it is sized right to fit where the clock went. I think most of the fabricating is on page 7. It's much easier making it fit if the dash is out. It doesn't interfere with the stock radio place but I redid it all.

I think Matt (Redone) did the same thing also & that's where I got the idea. The clock is doesn't need to stay with a modern stereo.

[TUDrewser]

Man, I really like the look of that dark painted stripe. Wonder if a waggy could be repainted with a dark section to imitate wood grain but have it be paint.

[Strode182]

Well, I finished pinstriping it.

If I have ever done anything on this Jeep in the last 2 years more frustrating than trying to put just 6 long straight pinstripes down, I do not remember what it was.

Not one of them was good from start to finish. I messed up or slipped or something on every one, and had to wipe it out and start over. 2 or 3 of them took 6 tries I think.

If I had planned better, I wouldn't have tried to put them on body lines. That really screwed me up.

It's no wonder Von Dutch died young. I could do fine on curly curvy things, but the straight lines were a pig. I won't describe all my travails, but I am glad that's over.







I used a Beugler pinstriping tool and a magnetic strip. It's a cool tool, and I learned ALOT. Next time would be much easier. I mixed some 1-Shot paint till I got a color match with the decal.

I fixed alot of little places, still have a couple little spots that bug me, but I will live with them. The wife says nobody will know they're there but me. You can tell it's paint and not vinyl stripes, I guess I'll take that as a matter of pride.



Tomorrow I can finally put some final polish/wax on it, and start putting things on.

I did wax the roof and clean it up....



I also found one good Explorer bucket seat in brown. I wanted to really clean it up, so I took it apart to scrub the upholstery. And I need to install the seat heaters. I just need one more good brown one, then I won't have to pay to have the front seats recovered. That would be a big savings.



I like how Ford put their seats together. Should be pretty easy to get the covers back on.

[ghinmi]

What'd you use to plug the roof rack holes? New paint looks GOOD!

[Strode182]

Thanks Ghinmi.

I just got new rubber well-nuts with a little silicone, and siliconed the screws. The roof rack can go back on if it needs to.

[ghinmi]

Hey, I like that idea! Probably do that on mine. Thanks!

[Strode182]

I put my rear window regulator in, and my new relay system didn't work. So I got to troubleshooting my new power distribution/relay box I made up, and it was wrong.

Some crazy person apparently (!) rewired my relays while I slept. So since I had a better idea now of what exactly I needed out of the PD box, I decided to start all over again. I got 3 new (used) ones out of 90s Jeeps from the junkyard and pulled all the pins, and started again.



I changed the tailgate relays, and put in 2 relays for my door actuators to work with the alarm. I have the HEI going thru a relay, and made 3 fuses off a relay for run/start, and 3 for constant hot.



The new one ended up like this. Everything ends in a plug, and I still have spare fuses and 1 spare relay. I will need external relays for my lights that I will mount on the fender wells.



All installed:

[Strode182]

Then I started putting wiring in for my Avital alarm system. Found out half my stock fuse block was dead in the run position! I tore the dash all apart, and tested and probed and tested. I couldn't figure out what I did wrong. After probing/testing/head scratching for a few hours, I turned the key a little more and everything came alive.

D'oh! I wasn't turning the key far enough….another shining moment.

The alarm is made for professional installers only, I guess. I picked the Avital because it's one of the few that I could find instructions for before I bought it. Some of the terms they use, I don't know what they're talking about.

I dummy wired up my door lock actuators relay system and they work.

This stage of the project is kinda good because I can flip flop around between different things that need done and not get bogged down. Lots to do. I really appreciate having the garage space to work on this.

[Strode182]

Catching up on some progress:

I got a new windshield put in the other day. I am not a studmuffin, and I did not do it myself. Going off another member's recommendation, I had it put in by a very knowledgable guy who had done hundreds, probably. $210 installed with my gasket from BJs. Well worth it.



Yes, I pulled my instrument cluster again for some more wiring.

I did install the side glass with the Mrs.



I got my Bronco mirrors installed. I thought I had cured the dog eared look, but once I see them with the doors on the truck, they are still pointed up. So my grinding solution didn't work so hot. I have an idea on how to fix them yet, but it will have to wait and I'll have to live with this for awhile.

[Strode182]

I had the day off today, and pretty much spent the whole day putting the passenger side door together. Putting things in the wrong order, taking them out, etc.

I had the door windows tinted while they were out, and when I put everything in, I realized I should have tinted the wing windows too. D'oh! So I'll have to have that done when it's drivable. They are not coming out again.



I got the speaker in and the tweeter. This picture shows the little door light that came out of a Honda that I added.



Here's the tweeter. The little red LED is wired to my alarm, and will blink on/off when the car is alarmed.

The little black rocker is for the power door locks. The switch came out of a Mercury Mountaineer. I tried to use and fill up the old remote mirror hole, it's close. Alot of time was spent wiring in the power door actuators. They work good

[Strode182]

After putting all the door weatherstripping in, and the window wipes, I notice I have these big gaps on the outside of the doors:





Those won't do, but I don't know what to do about them. Has anybody else run into that problem? If I had known they were going to be there, I could have seam sealed it before I painted it. Grrrrr........

[Strode182]

I sliced some vacuum tubing longways and stuffed it in the bigger hole...



....and got a good suggestion, and used some black RTV in the smaller hole.



I got another rear window w/defrost from the junkyard the other day. Not as pristine as the one I got from JP, but this one didn't need a new flat braided wire soldered on it. So I'll put it in for now and fix and use the one I got from JP later.

It did have some really minor scratches on the defroster grid, so I got a repair kit from FrostFighter.



I got frustrated with trying to get the clips on the the regulator arms, so I broke down and drilled some access holes.



Boy, the flash on the camera really picks up the excess grease I put on the regulator...LOL. It doesn't look that smeared on in real life.



I got most of the weatherstripping on, dealing with some minor issues. The rear window with the relay system works good, and the defroster with the Explorer relay/switch works good. My tailgate torsion bar binding issue went away, it works smooth now. Having a heck of a time with the alignment pins, for some reason.

Still have some dead spots on my factory fuse panel, and I don't know why. I study the wiring diagram and can't figure out why some spots are dead. So I found a 81 Waggy at the junkyard the other day, and grabbed the harness out of it. I stripped it and cleaned it, and will use it to see exactly where the problem might be. I also found some minor pieces I was needing.

Still hunting for one more pristine Explorer seat in brown. I fixed the passenger side mirror so it looks nice and level now too.