Just finished a 300 mile round trip fishing for small mouth in the ozarks on on of the hottest weeks on record. I just got to say the old girl didnt hiccup once. Highway speeds of 65 for an hour or two and lots of steep county road hills. She is a beast. Caught a bunch of smallies too.
For the back story, I almost sold her a few months ago but the family put a stop to that. I bought the 40 from the original owner in 1995 and drove it with a few fixes until 2002 when I put a alum body on it and did a fairly good refresh of the mechanics, mild lift and new paint. Over the next few years I had fj40 jim redo the carb, added a paki top and put on power steering. Well after the family said no to to selling I decided to go at it again and freshin her up. Everyone here knows how it is when you start something like this with a cruiser and one thing leads to another. Too many details to cover as this could get longer so a short list is complete fluid change, tune up, belts,hoses, bilsteins, set of roundeyes, a couple of spring brackets replaced, painted the wheels, cleaned up and painted the old hub caps and bought a couple, new interior stuff, visor,seatbelt and such. I am sure I missed something but you get the idea. She tracks straight and keeps her speed on the highway and it was good to get her out for a trip, everywhere I stopped people ask about the truck and someone always tried to buy her. I Hope I can post a pic or two. I only have recent shots. It use to be blue, I sometimes miss the original color. I dont post here much but have been around for awhile, thanks to all who contribute so much knowledge to keeping the cruisers going. Bill
For the back story, I almost sold her a few months ago but the family put a stop to that. I bought the 40 from the original owner in 1995 and drove it with a few fixes until 2002 when I put a alum body on it and did a fairly good refresh of the mechanics, mild lift and new paint. Over the next few years I had fj40 jim redo the carb, added a paki top and put on power steering. Well after the family said no to to selling I decided to go at it again and freshin her up. Everyone here knows how it is when you start something like this with a cruiser and one thing leads to another. Too many details to cover as this could get longer so a short list is complete fluid change, tune up, belts,hoses, bilsteins, set of roundeyes, a couple of spring brackets replaced, painted the wheels, cleaned up and painted the old hub caps and bought a couple, new interior stuff, visor,seatbelt and such. I am sure I missed something but you get the idea. She tracks straight and keeps her speed on the highway and it was good to get her out for a trip, everywhere I stopped people ask about the truck and someone always tried to buy her. I Hope I can post a pic or two. I only have recent shots. It use to be blue, I sometimes miss the original color. I dont post here much but have been around for awhile, thanks to all who contribute so much knowledge to keeping the cruisers going. Bill
I found a 77 I'm doing right now, although I would take that extra paki top if you ever decide to sell it
I really favor the look you have on your 40 over the mint condition ones you see for $30-$40k. Though they look amazing using them to even a 1/3 of their potential would give most people a heart attack. Your rig is what I envision when I think of taking on a resto. I just bought a 72 off of a member here and am waiting to have it shipped from NC to me in PA. It's a true "project" cruiser, but I'll be keeping your truck in mind as I tear into this one. 
