The Engine is Almost in

My brother has been making the mounts for the engine and he suggested that we hold of on the re-assembly of the transmission so that it would be easier to move around. That way he could weld the mounts onto the frame and get everything in the right position without having the added weight of the fully assembled transmission. 

Last weekend we installed the transfer case, moved the engine into position and installed the incomplete transmission.  My brother then welded the mounts into place.  I was not there to see it but I can't wait until I do.  I will add pictures soon.

Rebuilding the NV4500

Three weeks ago my brother and I dedicated some time to convert the gas 2wd NV4500 to the diesel 4wd.  I have had the parts for quite a while but I have not had the time.  I was a little nervous at first but I had a thorough manual from quad4x4.com (here).  I didn't want to buy the mainshaft nut tool so I asked my brother to try to get it off with a chisel and hammer.  I didn't care if he broke it because I needed a new one to fit the new mainshaft.  He got it off pretty quickly after I told him that.

Next up was the fifth gear.  Again I didn't want to run around trying to find a tool to pull it off so we made our own tool.

We cut this angle iron to fit around the 5th gear lip and used two screws, some nuts, and spacers to work it off of the shaft.   

This is a lot cheaper than buying tools.

The rest of the steps were very easy as they were clearly explained in the manual.  One note though the snap rings on the mainshaft are a pain in the rear to get off.

This is it when everything was out.  

Sorry about these pictures.  I have been using my wife's Nikon D90 and so far we have only purchased one lens, the AF NIKKOR 50mm f/1.8D. It is a prime lens and I didn't bother to adjust anything when I took these pictures so the depth of field isn't what I wanted. 

Transmission Adapter is in!

It's been a while since I posted anything let alone did anything on the car but three weeks ago my brother and I put together the transfer case with the Advanced Adapter kit. There were no real instructions in the kit which I think is a bummer for how much I spent on it.  I take that back, the kit said (direct quote), "The assembly of the adapter plate to the transfer case should be very much like the originally transmission that is being replaced."  There were some drawn images as well but how hard is it to take a picture?

I also ordered a gasket set and nuts for the transfer case from Cruiser Outfitters (great company).

All in all it was an easy install but there was a lot of hesitation because the instructions were not clear. Here are some pictures (sorry, no tutorial I always forget to take pictures and when I remember my wife won't let me touch the camera with greasy hands). 

You'll notice that the shifter doesn't line up quite right.  That's something that I have to fix.  They sent a little mounting bracket for the shifter with the kit but it says that some modifications may have to be done to the shifters.