I got a little thinky...

[6spdYJ]

As with many of my projects, I have been thrown a curveball. I had a 1985 Wagoneer 44 land in my lap. Anybody familiar with what parts mixing I need to do to go selectable with 5 on 5 1/2"? Right now it's 6 on 5 1/2" with fixed hubs.

[6spdYJ]

After a lot of research I have learned that everyone says you absolutely cannot under any circumstances adapt discs to drum flat-top knuckles. Long story short - yep, you can. You don't modify the knuckle at all. You really don't want to because it would move the studs out of the bosses and potentially weaken the knuckle.
Oddly enough, the Wagoneer spindle has a spacer behind it with multiple clocking holes drilled. One set of six, another set of five - using a common one with the six, and one set of six clocked 12 degrees offset from the originals. By following the pattern on the spacer and clocking the holes in the caliper bracket backwards, the caliper is rotated forward to a point where it completely clears the knuckle without any additional effort. Without any sanding or grinding there is a clear .035" between the caliper piston housing and the knuckle casting rib. With minimal cleaning of casting texture, an easy .060" can be had. Sure, the original knuckles afforded over 1/2" of clearance, but if my bracket flexes 1/2" I have bigger things to worry about than caliper clearance.
What made this the route I took was that the clamping surface of the caliper nut is completely over virgin steel on the bracket. Clamping strength is unaffected. To ensure the integrity of the bracket, I tapped the original holes to 7/16-20 and used corresponding alloy set screws to plug the holes, loctited and staked the threads on both sides to prevent them from walking out.

One of the "reasons" it "won't work" is the myth that the caliper bracket has interference with the knuckle and will not sit square. I don't want to name names, but a writer who is clearly a true authority on the subject has a picture stating and showing this "interference". If you look at the picture and read the caption, it clearly states the bracket has 1/4" of interference - and clearly shows the bracket placed on the knuckle without the spindle - which has a 1/4" - 5/16" shoulder. With the spindle in place, the interference is no longer an issue.

[6spdYJ]

On to the high steer arm... I need to cut the tapered holes for the split cone washers. The commonly agreed taper is 26.5*. According to what I've been able to find, the 26.5* end mill or reamer is a mythical beast. There is evidence of their existance, but nobody knows where to find them.
What I'm considering, since I only have to cut three seats is to grind the sides of a double-fluted step drill to 26.5* and use it slow with lots of oil. Any thoughts?

[6spdYJ]

The uni-bit thing worked like a charm. I used an old $6 step drill from harbor freight and ground it on an end mill sharpener.
I made 7* tapered inserts for the OTK tapers on the Chevy knuckles so they compress into the 5/8" shank of the grade 8 bolt in double shear. I stacked a 5/16" spacer above the top rod end and same below the bottom one. Since everything is compressed and double shear I went with a straight spacer as a wider seat wasn't necessary. If any movement was lost, it's negligible.

Does anyone know of a shop near Riverside that can bend 1 1/2" DOM with .188" wall?

[6spdYJ]

Here is what I wound up with.

The initial setup was made with lower rear control arms. It happened that the front lowers allowed just enough clearance from the pitman arm at full stuff with the steering centered. Another coat of paint and it'll hit . I tried the front lowers and the Jeep liked them. It does lean the shocks back a bit much, but at full droop they will be nearly vertical. We'll see how it plays out in the future. It netted 3 7/8" forward stretch. Let's just say 4"... I ended up using G2 locking hubs. I figured nodular iron for a few bucks less than aluminum and a lifetime warranty was worth it. The wheels are 2007 Dodge Dakota SLT with the centers cut out. I had quite a few lucky breaks along the way. It would have been a HP Dana 30, but a guy on craigslist needed to get rid of a wagoneer Dana 44 for free. Glad I could help! I was able to sell a set of JK driveshafts for the amount a neighbor wanted for a damaged Detriot No-Spin locker. It happened to be from a non-Rubicon JK, so TJ Rubicon 4.10's went right on it. I used the side gear from my original broken Detroit to replace the bad one. The knuckles came from a 1970 GMC Dana 44. I sold the housing from that for the cost of the gas to go pick up both 44's. The arms were thrown in for free when I bought the lift for my wife's JK. When I bought the coilovers, I got 3 12's and 3 10's with two sets of springs. I was able to sell the 10's with a set of springs for a fair price and was able to supplement my budget a bit. Since my stock front driveshaft is useless (off-centered yoke) I'll use the yokes from a DJ5 rear driveshaft that was thrown in when I bought the coilovers. I recently got a set of 4340 narrow track shafts with CTM ujoints for $125. I'm still giddy about that deal. The first 4 pictures are on 285/75-16's. The last one in the parking lot is on 315/75-16's. If the transmission was a 5 speed, the 4.10's would be insufficient. The 4.46 1st of the 6 speed is just enough. It's been quite a ride getting to this point. Near future mods are a Detroit Truetrac in the back Scout II 44, Reverse-eye flat spring pack SOA on the back, relocated gas tank and transfer case crossmember with separate flat skidplate.

[6spdYJ]

A huge thank you to Art and Kurt for guidance through all of this. I wouldn't have it anywhere near this level if it wasn't for the help you guys have been.