[mrlocksmith]

MrLocksmith's 1985 Toyota FJ60 "Leaky"

I stumbled upon this 1985 FJ60 on Craigslist while looking for a capable four wheel drive for my metal detecting trips. Little did I know, owning a classic 4x4 like this can be really satisfying for someone who enjoys fixing and tinkering with things. You also tend to meet some very cool “Cruiserheads” that are just as eager to help you work on your rig as their own. So thanks to all you MUDDERS for your help as I have only owned this rig since Sept of 2007, and I have not turned a wrench on a vehicle for almost 20 years.


Below you will find some photos and modifications that I have made to my Landcruiser. Please let me know if they are of any help to you in modifying your own rig as I have done most all the work myself including putting in a H55F and T-case rebuild.



SPECS: 1985 Toyota FJ60 Expedition Rig

Here is a quick list of the mods and additions I have added to the rig. Otherwise it is mostly stock.

1. ★Nickname: Leaky (Cause I’m always fixing some type of fluid leak)
2. ★H55F 5 Speed Manual Transmission and Rebuilt T-Case
3. ★Ron Davis Aluminum Radiator
4. ★BFG AT 33x9.5x15’s
5. ★Mean Green 200 AMP Alternator
6. ★Longfield Birfs (Yup I broke one)
7. ★Poly Performance Semi Float Axles
8. ★Dual Battery HellRoaring System w/ Optima Batteries, Urban Landcruiser Battery and Ground Cables, VTE Marine Fuse Buses (Click Here for a Write-up)
9. ★OasisII Roof Top Tent (RTT) mounted on Yakima Bars
10. ★ARB Bull Bar (Front)
11. ★ARB Old Man Emu (OME) Heavy Springs (Talk to Kurt at CruiserOutfitters)
12. ★Warn XD9000 Winch
13. ★4Plus Rear bumpers w/Jerry Can Holders
14. ★Custom Rear Plywood Cargo Cabinets for Gear Organization (Click for Write-Up)
15. ★SOR Cordura Seat Covers and Rubber Floor Matting
16. ★CoolCruisers Center Tuffy console
17. ★Dual Band 144/440 MHZ Ham Radio FCC LIC: K7VQU (My Late Grandpa’s Call Sign)
18. ★RigRunner Fuse Block/Power Dist
19. ★CB Radio
20. ★Ram Laptop Mount
21. ★On Board Topo Navigation
22. ★Recovery Gear: HyLift Jack, Pull Pal, Misc Tree Savers Etc.
23. ★Onboard CO2 Tank.
24. ★WagonGear Rear Tailgate Panel.

Other Stuff on Board for Most Trips

1. ★Pett Toilet
2. ★Outback Privy Shelter
3. ★Kelty Car Port Deluxe Awining
4. ★Coleman White Gas Stove
5. ★Spare Parts, Hoses and Belts
6. ★Air Compressor
7. ★Prospecting Gear
8. ★Bug-Out Bag
9. ★Petromax Lantern

For a list of Gear/Spares I carry click here





REAR CARGO CABINETS



Anyone who has gone car camping with a respectable amount of gear can sympathize that an unorganized mess can quickly make your trip a struggle to keep things where you can find them. I wanted to be able to keep a base level of water, food, spare parts, tools and recovery gear at hand and organized at all times. Hence I build this set of cabinets that are mainly designed around the larger cases that needed to fit in to shelves and cubbies. I then made smaller sub shelves to hold smaller items. The build was simple and took the most of a weekend.
I first made a cardboard mock-up and then cut ant test fit each piece on my table saw and made adjustments as necessary. Outdoor carpet was then glued to the top surfaces and aluminum angle were used to trim the edges. Please do not ask me for dimensions as they were made for my needs. I drilled holes in the bottom of the floor and used 5/16 x 18 carriage bolts to bolt the bottom of the cabinet to the frame. Pocket Holes were used instead of DADO cuts to mount the shelves. Hold downs were morticed in the top to strap larger items to the top deck.





The large compartment behind the seats hold some of the larger, bulky recovery gear and spare parts.


SLEEPING PLATFORM

I removed the back seat and installed a cargo box that is braced to the rest of the cabinets with 2x4's and uses the seatbelt and seat latch holes for mounting to the body. The box fits in between the wheel wells and blitz can holders were mounted over the wheel wells to hold water cans. On the drivers side there is room for my sleeping bag between the door and the cabinet while the passenger side holds my CO2 tank. The front of the cabinet has my MaxAxe and Pull Pal Mounted to it. All this was done to save on weight and my OasisII tent is now off. I will try this for a while and see how comfortable it is VS sleeping in my RTT.





For sleeping, the front seats slide forward and the rear cabinet cover bolts to the front of the cabinet addition to form a platform.





This project was not hard and can be done with a skill saw and a drill. I found that things are not always square and many of the pieces had to be custom cut on non standard angles for a close/custom fit to the side of the inner quarter panels.

HAM RADIO INSTALL

Here we have my Kenwood TMV7A and Cobra CB Radio mounted on the Cool Cruisers Center Console. The Kenwood Radio is mounted inside the console with a remote mounted head. The Antenna Coax exits via the rear cargo hatch and runs to a Diamond Mag Mountedn antenna. The CB Antenna is mounted on the ARB bumper.

ROOF TOP OASISII TENT

At this time I just finished building a bed extension for my cargo cabinets in order to save weight and sleep inside. Removing the cargo rack, bars and tent saved almost 100LBS !! (I'll try to post up more photos of that later) I am including some info on my Oasis II RTT as I did find it comfy.

OasisII Roof Top Tent (RTT) This tent is the “bee’s knees” as far as I am concerned. I had tried out a first generation Mombassa RTT and found that it’s 120 pound weight made my FJ60 way too top-heavy off road and it was way too big for me. The OasisII comes in at 40LBS + 15LBS for the ladder. The floor of the tent is much like that of a trampoline and is very comfortable to sleep on. I have been very comfortable sleeping in the tent in northern Nevada under cold 30F weather with 20-30 MPH winds. I have a +60 to -60F Warmlite Down sleeping bag with a 2” Mountainsmith sleeping pad under me and I have installed a reflective heat barrier on the bottom of the tent under the mattress cover. The heat barrier is a double mylar layer sandwiched between a layer of bubble wrap and is commonly found in the insulation dept. of the “big box” home improvement stores. The ladder hooks that secure the ladder have been modified with “truck hooks” as the OEM hooks are flimsy and bend easy.

Here is a view of the rear of the truck with the OasisII Tent, Kelty Carport Awing, and Camp Table with Stove. Photo was taken in a placer gold bearing region of Nevada. Since I get asked about the tent all the time I plan to write a review of it soon.

Dirty Toy School 2008

Here I am at Dirty Toy School (DTS) at Anza Borrego Park in Southern California. I decided that I had better learn how to drive off road safely rather than wreck my FJ60. All I can say is if you want to learn how to drive a capable off road vehicle Bill Burke and his crew at DTS are awesome !!! You will learn a bunch and be challenged in many ways. My 6500LB FJ60 did very well !! Click on the photo below for a short Quicktime(TM) Movie. Well worth the effort and money !!!!

Thanks for looking

Mark Weiss
(Mrlocksmith)

Also A special thanks to Brian White "Whitey" for helping me with my mechanincal "woes"

[wngrog]

Excellent

[GLTHFJ60]

Sweet RTOM!! If those are OME Heavies, then you have a LOT of weight back there!

[mrlocksmith]

Yup, It (was) loaded to the gills at 6400 LBS when photos from Drity Toy School were taken. At the time I just had OME Med +(1) DXL2 Leaf, NOW they are true CS005RA's Rear OME Emu Dakar Leaf Springs and the DXL2's. I have also gone though all my spares and tools and the weight is now down to 5800 LBS.

Mark

[GLTHFJ60]

Originally Posted by mrlocksmith

Yup, It (was) loaded to the gills at 6400 LBS when photos from Drity Toy School were taken. At the time I just had OME Med +(1) DXL2 Leaf, NOW they are true CS005RA's Rear OME Emu Dakar Leaf Springs and the DXL2's. I have also gone though all my spares and tools and the weight is now down to 5800 LBS.

Mark

Still, 6000 lbs? Wow. Must get 10 mpg!

[mrlocksmith]

I get anywhere from 11-14 MPG

Mark

[GLTHFJ60]

Originally Posted by mrlocksmith

I get anywhere from 11-14 MPG

Mark

Not too bad! That's the range I'm shooting for with my truck as soon as it gets roadworthy again.

Once again, nice truck!

[PAFJ]

Excellent build-up! Your rear storage box is awesome. Our rigs are twins, mines not as cool though.

[smkymntn]

Great write up. Love all the mods. I wish I had your carpentry skills.

[Lost]

what kind of stuff do you look for metal detecting?

nice rig!

[mrlocksmith]

Gold Nuggets, old Silver Coins and Trade Tokens

Linky: Metal Detecting & Nugget Hunting

Mark

[djawahir]

Wow. That's a very inspirational rig.

Great job!

One day I hope to have as nice a truck and be RTOM too!

[Dirtgypsy]

wow!! you did all this work in a little over a year? fantastic ROTM.

Clint

[Ducks]

Most excellent ROTM. Have you fixed all of your leaks?

[mrlocksmith]

Originally Posted by Ducks

Most excellent ROTM. Have you fixed all of your leaks?

Heck No !!! I wish. I still have an oil leak from hell. I have done the oil pan gasket three times, the pushrod cover, the RMS, and the valve cover. I have checked the EGR valve too but it still leaks after driving on the highway for ~ 1HR. On the trails and surface streets it is fine. I get oil in and around the starter side of the clutch inspection cover.

Next will be to pull the tranny / bellhousing and look at the RMS again as well as the lower crankcase freeze plug. That is the only thing that is left before I can change the nickname.

Mark

[ChuckB]

Very nice ROTM! My 60 was the same color, man I miss it. I like how all of your mods are simple and to the point.

[Joe_E]

Wow dude, that rig is set up bigtime!

[Cabrito]

Mark,
Nice to see your rig featured here - It's about time!

Your truck is awesome!

-m

[mrlocksmith]

Michael:


Thanks. I heard you went to death valley, how did your '62 hold up?

Mark

Originally Posted by Cabrito

Mark,
Nice to see your rig featured here - It's about time!

Your truck is awesome!

-m

[vipergrhd]

that is one word that comes up to describe not just your rig but your patience getting all the work done yourself,for some one that have very little wrenching i can honestly say you have done very well my friend. about y our leak i hope it gets fix after your trip don't hesitate to calll if you need anything.


John




Cabrito, how was that death valley trip? share some pics.

[kcowyo]

I'm a big fan of this build and the no-nonsense approach.

The basics like storage, power and water are covered, along with some unique personal touches. The Kelty and Oasis II finish it off nicely. All you need and nothing you don't. Very nice.

Hope to see this one in person sometime!

.

[cruiseroutfit]

Yup, you sir have a kick ass 60

[redcorn]

Nice wagon Mr. Locksmith.
Purpose built and driven too

[mrlocksmith]

Thanks Kurt and the OME's I got from you help me haul said arse

Mark

Originally Posted by cruiseroutfit

Yup, you sir have a kick ass 60

[Cabrito]

Originally Posted by mrlocksmith

Michael:


Thanks. I heard you went to death valley, how did your '62 hold up?

Mark

Originally Posted by vipergrhd

Cabrito, how was that death valley trip? share some pics.

Truck held up like a champ!

Pics are here - Image hosting, free photo sharing & video sharing at Photobucket


Full report is here - Cabrito

[NocalFJ60]

Nice writeup Mark. You have built up one really nice 60.

[mrlocksmith]

Thanks Kevin and you deserve a for helping me put in my tranny last year. In fact... have another ,


Mark

Originally Posted by NocalFJ60

Nice writeup Mark. You have built up one really nice 60.

[whitey45]

I got to personally see this rig evolve over a very short time.When Mark knocked on my door one day and asked if I could work on his landcruiser,he was as green as any greenhorn! I worked on the 60 a few times, and Mark then grabbed the bull by the horns and started wrenching on it and the modifications began!! I have been amazed at some of the repairs and mods Mark has done with very little experience.This truck turned out great and nothing is onboard that doesnt serve a purpose,and best of all it gets used!! Great to see your rig on here Mark,nice job...I remember early on telling you that you have been infected with the strange landcruiser virus,that none of us have found a cure for yet!!!

[vipergrhd]

we don't need no cure for this cruiser virus it just needs some $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ and some more of $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$ and that will keep the virus at bay.LOL

John

[TheSurvivalist]

Great looking rig!!!