CJ Shock Tower Drain
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Crud and Mud
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Check out the rust!
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Frame rust
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Drain hole drilling
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Final cleaning
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POR-15 applied
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I recently found and resolved a potential rust area on the front frame rails of
my 1983 Jeep CJ7. An area that is often over looked as a collection point for
dirt, mud and grime is between the front shock towers and the frame rail. The
shock tower is constructed in a channel like manner and when mounted to the
frame forms a pocket to catch all manners of debris, with no mechanism to
drain. This style shock tower is used on all '82-'86 CJs and some full size
Jeeps.
While working on a engine swap I removed the front clip of my 1983 Jeep CJ7
which allowed easy access to the front shock towers on my Jeep. As I was
working in and around the front frame rails I noticed that mud was packed
in between the shock mount and frame.
Of course, this is a recipe for the evil of all Jeep evils, RUST! I decided to
clean this right then and there. I removed both shock towers from the frame.
by removing the 3 bolts holding each shock tower. There was considerable rust
in the shock tower and on the frame rails. Using a wire brush, and a small
ball peen hammer I cleaned all the heavy crud from the towers and the frame.
After cleaning, I drilled a 3/8" hole near the bottom of each tower (credit
to friend Ken Miller for this idea), the idea being to let water, mud, etc.
drain from the tower to prevent this heavy build up of dirt, mud and rust
in the future.
I used a wire brush on a 4" grinder to clean the heavy rust and scale
from the frame and shock tower mounts. Then appled a generous cost
of POR-15 to protect the towers and frame to complete the project.
This is a simple and low cost project. It should prevent long term rust
damage to the frame and shock towers.
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