[Elbert]

Great project and what an effort. Good documentation & pics... Appreciate the time and and effort involved. Just as a comparison...its amazing what some of these "new" TV shows leave off when they have a show about building a car. ITs a lot of work and thousands of details.

[VTCruiser]

Originally Posted by Elbert

Great project and what an effort. Good documentation & pics... Appreciate the time and and effort involved. Just as a comparison...its amazing what some of these "new" TV shows leave off when they have a show about building a car. ITs a lot of work and thousands of details.

no kidding. I certainly gained an appreciation for the power tools that I don't have...

[Dirtgypsy]

stunning.

what are those wheels?

Thay are some of the best I have seen on a cruiser.

clint

[VTCruiser]

Originally Posted by Dirtgypsy

stunning.

what are those wheels?

Thay are some of the best I have seen on a cruiser.

clint

thanks, I'm not sure what the wheels are. They were on my HJ when I bought it, I only painted them black.

[2everest]

Just wanted to let you know, I followed the thread from the beginning, and she has turned out beautiful. Great work dude, and I am glad you are happy with the rig.

Keep it up bro!

-Josh

[Bryan062087]

One question, how did you close off the vent holes on the front fenders that you used? They were US spec FJ60 fenders right?

[VTCruiser]

Originally Posted by 2everest

Just wanted to let you know, I followed the thread from the beginning, and she has turned out beautiful. Great work dude, and I am glad you are happy with the rig.

Keep it up bro!

-Josh

Thanks man, there's still a lot of work to go, but it's great to have her back on the road.

[VTCruiser]

Originally Posted by Bryan062087

One question, how did you close off the vent holes on the front fenders that you used? They were US spec FJ60 fenders right?

nope, I used a set of Canadian spec fenders. The original ones on my HJ were too beat up, so I bought these off some parts rigs over the years.

[VTCruiser]

Not much of an update, but i'm driving the cruiser every day and it's running pretty good. I calculated the actual mileage of the clock and engine considering all the tire and gear combinations I have had making for a pretty ridiculous spreadsheet, but I think my results are pretty close. Actual mileage on the clock is about 231k miles, and the 1HZ now has about 116k miles. I am averaging about 21mpg with the 4.11s around town which is about the same as before, and naturally I've had to reduce my highway cruiser speed and little. It's taking a little longer to crank and warm up on cool mornings, so I suspect some new glow plugs are in order. I also plan to replace the BEB's with some ACL's and then get a turbo.

Speaking of the turbo, I have also started working on some graphics for the rig. I am working on some stripes to resemble some period disco stripes and turbo graphic. I want to keep it subtle so it will likely just be two parallel stripes (one orange and one brown) about 3/4" each following the shoulder line of the body down each side and across the hatch. The turbo graphic will be worked into the stripes and located on the right side of the hatch looking something like this:



A local shop quoted be about $125-$150 for it.

[2everest]

Vintage! I love it.

[06reg4x4]

i allways wanted an fj80 but the truck makes me want an 60 so bad. i love how clean but still capable it is.

[Joe_E]

Awesome buildup thread you got here. Gives me alot of inspiration.

Did you ever get the frame galvanized ?

[VTCruiser]

Originally Posted by Joe_E

Awesome buildup thread you got here. Gives me alot of inspiration.

Did you ever get the frame galvanized ?

no, I am still expecting to make modifications to the frame, so I decided not to have it done just yet.

[johnkappus]

Wow!

Just wanted to say this has been a fun resto / swap to watch.

REALLY inspiring and amazing

Looking forward to seeing the next phases : Turbo etc.

Keep up the good work ... you have a sick cruiser and it's goin to get sicker

[Tofudebeest]

As a dude who is nearing the finish line on a similar build (though much more rudimentary, dirty and stock), see: http://forum.ih8mud.com/60-series-wa...fudebeest.html, I have to say that I wish I had seen your thread a year ago when I started. I think I would have taken the time and attention to details that you did. Amazing...and I know first hand how hard you've worked... You've built yourself a $30-45K rig.

[VTCruiser]

Originally Posted by Tofudebeest

As a dude who is nearing the finish line on a similar build (though much more rudimentary, dirty and stock), see: http://forum.ih8mud.com/60-series-wa...fudebeest.html, I have to say that I wish I had seen your thread a year ago when I started. I think I would have taken the time and attention to details that you did. Amazing...and I know first hand how hard you've worked... You've built yourself a $30-45K rig.

Thanks! I've been checking in on your build and it looks like your making some good progress. I am far from FL, but let me know if you have any questions I can help with. I was surprised to find quite a few similarities between FJ62's and HJ60's.

[VTCruiser]

Originally Posted by johnkappus

Wow!

Just wanted to say this has been a fun resto / swap to watch.

REALLY inspiring and amazing

Looking forward to seeing the next phases : Turbo etc.

Keep up the good work ... you have a sick cruiser and it's goin to get sicker

Thanks, its been nice to be able to enjoy it a little. Makes it all worthwhile. I am itching to get a turbo though...among other things...

[VTCruiser]

Still going strong...
With the weather getting cooler around here I noticed colds starts were getting a bit harder. I checked continuity of the glow plugs and they all checked out, but I decided to go ahead and replace them anyway since they are a relatively inexpensive part. I bought a set out of Australia made by Dreik in Japan and replaces them yesterday. The new plugs made a big difference when I cranked it up this morning. I haven't taken a close look at the old ones, but they looked about as I expected. I'll clean them up and snap a pic later.

[72cruiser]

do you have some provision for a block heater or something like that?

[VTCruiser]

Originally Posted by 72cruiser

do you have some provision for a block heater or something like that?

I have not installed a block heater yet. I have a coolant circulation style heater, but have not gotten around to installing it yet...

[VTCruiser]

I finally got around to working on the cruiser some more, nothing major just a couple things that were long overdue.

One was getting the glow electronics cleaned up a little and in an enclosure. I found one made by BUD that was just the right size for the relay and timer. I just drilled a couple holes for the wires, and an access hole on top for the timer adjustment.

Before:


After:


The second was getting a controller for the contour fan. I bought one from DCC which was pretty easy to install. I mounted it right to the shroud, and cut out a area for the temp sensor.


I also cleaned up the wiring a little.


Mounted, you can see how the temp sensor is installed. This is a shot from below.


It seems to be working, but I haven't had a chance to really test it yet. It's getting pretty cold up here so the engine hasn't gotten hot enough for it to turn on automatically. I decided to wire in an override switch to shut the fan down completely. When the override switch is "on", the fan is shut down, and a warning chime is activated so I don't forget to turn it back on again. I mounted the chime behind the driver's kick panel, it's the black box with "208" written on it.


I took advantage of having the dash ripped apart to wire in switches for the Racor fuel heater and aux power supplies as well which, if you recall, I pre-wired before. I mounted he switches where the cargo pocket, or inclinometer would be normally. The PO of m cruiser had up just a flat piece of ABS so I just mounted them in that for now.

[AGreekBoy]

good to see some more of your work man. oh and thanks for the comment of having the uc meeting at my place.

[VTCruiser]

Originally Posted by AGreekBoy

good to see some more of your work man. oh and thanks for the comment of having the uc meeting at my place.

no problem, sorry I won't be able to make it!

[Falco80]

This is a great build-up mate! It almost makes me want to head out into the garage, strip my 80 and re-build it the way i would like it!
Top job, keep them pics coming!

[VTCruiser]

Originally Posted by Falco80

This is a great build-up mate! It almost makes me want to head out into the garage, strip my 80 and re-build it the way i would like it!
Top job, keep them pics coming!

Thanks! Hopefully I'll be able to find a heated shop to borrow this winter so I can keep working on it. It's 7degF right now with wind-chill...

[VTCruiser]

I put some new shoes on the cruiser today. I picked up some some used 33x10.5-15 BFG AT KO's dirt cheap and decided they would be a better tire for the winter. The MT's are less than stellar on packed now and ice, plus I just don't wheel the 60 like I used to. I mounted the new shoes on some late model FJ40 wheels I had lying around. They're not pretty, but they'll do for the winter and until I go to 16's. I'll probably get another set of MT's at some point, probably in 255/85. In the mean time I'll sell the 33x12.5 MTs and alloys.

33x12.5 on a 15x8 wheel compare to 33x10.5 on 15x5.5 wheel:


mounted...


Skinny!




Curious horse...

[89s rule]

Looking Good. I kinda like the semi rusty rims. Looks cold. I was in Cullowhee 2 weekends ago and we woke up to snow.

[Dirtgypsy]

Still looking great. Hows the day to day driving? Still enjoy it? Odd question here but how do you think the 1HZ would push a set of 37's around? Maybe regear to 4.56's add a turbo? I know a long shot for an expedition forum but I thought I would ask.

Clint

[VTCruiser]

Originally Posted by 89s rule

Looking Good. I kinda like the semi rusty rims. Looks cold. I was in Cullowhee 2 weekends ago and we woke up to snow.

yup, it's definitely winter. Can't wait to hit the slopes!

Originally Posted by Dirtgypsy

Still looking great. Hows the day to day driving? Still enjoy it? Odd question here but how do you think the 1HZ would push a set of 37's around? Maybe regear to 4.56's add a turbo? I know a long shot for an expedition forum but I thought I would ask.

Clint

I really enjoy driving this rig. I mean it's slow and bouncy, but the big wheel, long throws of the shifter and brick sh*thouse feel give it a lot of charm. Complete strangers will come up and talk to me about, and I get a lot of looks from small kids with big smiles, the same way I used to look a my moms FJ60 when I was a boy.

If a 2F or 3FE can do it, a NA 1HZ isn't far off on power. You'd probably need to regear, but with a turbo there's no question.

[JJS]

Very nice. I would say too nice to drive in VT during the winter. Are you going to oil the undercarriage?