Inspiration is a funny thing. You just never know what will inspire you. Unfortunately, sometimes its timing is terrible.

Case in point: A few days ago Patterson wouldn’t start. I checked all the usual suspects and finally decided it was the fuel pump. I shall not bore you with the machinations I went through testing the original fuel pump and two others I have. I hand tested them, then installed them and they’d fail. Then I’d remove them, manually test them, and they’d work again. It was bizarre.

I concluded that somehow it was the cam on the inside of the engine; that wasn’t an easy fix. With time working against me, Craig Brockhaus of theFCConnection.com recommended I get the same electric pump he has on his Tour Jeep. It was a good price and available on Amazon and I’d get 2 day delivery for free. Done deal.

For two days I worked on other things, waiting for that fuel pump to arrive. When it finally did, I took it out of the box, climbed under the jeep, and sized up possible installation options. I decided that since the gas filter had to precede the electric pump, I needed to bring that under the jeep with me. I got up and found the gas filter. Attached to it I’d left a 4″ piece of connector hose that originally connected the filter to the pump. As I looked more closely at the hose on the pump I realized that it looked roughed up by the clamp.

And then it dawned on me. Inspiration struck! What if there’s a small hole in that short piece of hose. When I had hand tested the fuel pump, I didn’t have the filter or 4″ hose attached. So, I held up the hose to my mouth, plugged the rear hole, and blew. I could feel the air rushing out a hole on the tube.

I quickly reinstalled the original pump, Then, installed a new short piece of hose. With everything tight, I turned the key a few times and before I knew it Patterson fired right up! It was a hole in the hose the hole time.

The question I have is, why couldn’t I have been inspired before I bought the electric pump? Life is a mystery!

As of this evening the engine is running smoothly and feeling peppy! I also had time to find a solution for installing a CB Radio. I didn’t want to drill new holes if possible and I wanted it easy to remove. So, I decided to build a small pedestal on top of the transfer case lever plate. It is something I can easily swap out for whatever reason.

You can see the square tube welded to the transfer case lever plate. The tube is cut at an angle and a plate is welded atop that. A CB holder bracket is bolted to the plate.

This shows the radio installed. You’ll note that just above the radio there is now a cigarette lighter for phone charging.

Tomorrow I install a tow bumper: