Restoring Green Bean '82 FJ40 (1 Viewer)

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With the help of a friend I've just about finished chipping off the bed-liner. I will leave the rest for the sand blaster. I found some bondo in my hood. Is something that can be repaired or am I better off looking for a later model hood?
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A little work done this weekend. I cut off the monstrosity of a tow hitch that was welded to the frame. I might cut off the tail and re-install it, but jury is still out on that. It was pretty rust and the PO made swiss cheese out of my rear cross member. I can't tell how many extra holes there are, but I think at least 4. Hard to see in these pictures but I found a rust hole in my rear sill, I think it's around the drain hole? Not 100% sure if that's correct but it looks like a round oval that is rusted out.

Here is my 82 frame and tub. as the years went by Toyota had fewer and fewer hole in the back frame member.

It was a beast. The mechanic who inspected the 40 prior to my purchase told me to never let anyone talk me out of that hitch, it is bullet proof.

I would disagree with him. Seen many rear frame members bent because of a trailer hinge. Modern receiver hitches bolt to the side frame rails. On the FJ40 the spring perches prevent you from doing that. I removed at least three hitch that were attached to side rails install of the center torque tubs. Since I don't tow anything heavier than 1/4 ton trailer I'm happy with just the stock pintle hook. Here one off my 70. Really not a bad idea. Spread out across the rear frame member plus protected the tail lights. I got lucky and only a small part of one of the extra holes shows behind the left reflector.

I found some bondo in my hood. Is something that can be repaired or am I better off looking for a later model hood?

I have come across this problem a few times. Haven't had the pieces pop riveted on. The cause is the hood sitting to far forward. Very common on a FJ40. Key is to have the front lip as close to the rubber pads as possible. Also important to have all the pads on the bib to spread the weight of the hood out. If your hood is rusted out you may be better off getting a replacement hood. If its just bent it can be worked out. For me I just had to use C clamps with blocks of wood to straighten it back to stock.
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Here is my 82 frame and tub. as the years went by Toyota had fewer and fewer hole in the back frame member.



I would disagree with him. Seen many rear frame members bent because of a trailer hinge. Modern receiver hitches bolt to the side frame rails. On the FJ40 the spring perches prevent you from doing that. I removed at least three hitch that were attached to side rails install of the center torque tubs. Since I don't tow anything heavier than 1/4 ton trailer I'm happy with just the stock pintle hook. Here one off my 70. Really not a bad idea. Spread out across the rear frame member plus protected the tail lights. I got lucky and only a small part of one of the extra holes shows behind the left reflector.



I have come across this problem a few times. Haven't had the pieces pop riveted on. The cause is the hood sitting to far forward. Very common on a FJ40. Key is to have the front lip as close to the rubber pads as possible. Also important to have all the pads on the bib to spread the weight of the hood out. If your hood is rusted out you may be better off getting a replacement hood. If its just bent it can be worked out. For me I just had to use C clamps with blocks of wood to straighten it back to stock.

LITP, thanks for the pictures, I'll use those for a reference in the future. The hitch - I just thought it overkill and a little much for the 40. The hood - I think it is definitely rusted through, not just bent.
 
If it rust then probably better off just replacing it. Problem is shipping is expensive on a hood.

Just picked a small boat and thinking about one of these. http://www.nueratrailerparts.com/p-3522-holland-2-combination-pintle-hook-hitch-10-ton.aspx Advantage of the pintle hook is it's high and doesn't hang below the rear frame member. Less likely to hit dropping off a ledge. My 79's rear frame member is bend just for that reason. Last owner was a friend of my and hard on his toys. Lucky for me he didn't have it too long.
 
Able to work on GB again this weekend. I'm still just stripping the tub to get it prepped for cutting and welding. I was able to finally remove the DS fiberglass patch that tipped me off to this entire process. I've attached some pictures. For anyone wanting to remove a fiberglass patch here is my process. 1) Buy a good quality heat gun, the hotter the better. 2) Spread the heat evenly over the patch 3)Once you see it starting to soften focus on an edge 4) Use your screwdriver and pry up a corner of the glass mat 5) Use vice-grips to pull the rest of the patch up, heating as you go. Also, use a respirator as the heat will release some volatile compounds you don't want to inhale. This just leaves me what patches to purchase. I'm looking at real steel (http://realsteelcruiserparts.net/products.html) and thinking I need the floor pan and inner rocker panel. The outer looks okay so far. I have rust in places that they don't have patches for. Not sure what I'm going to have to do, (fabricate?).

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I'll be borrowing your heat gun if I have to remove fiberglass from mine :D

Good work Adam, too bad it has required so much work based on how it was advertized



...via IH8MUD app
 
Dang, all that fiberglaas reminds of something... ow i know.. my own DS floor and doorsill. I'll be keeping tabs to see how you fix this. Good luck on the learning curve. I'm sure it will turn out great
 
Hello Adam,
Excellent progress on the truck thus far. Doing all the right stuff. The rust will be 10 times worse than you think. I am in the middle of an 1981 repair and panels I thought would be ok were just iffy, panels I thought might be salavagble were shot and needed replacement, panels I knew needed repair just crumbled.... What you are seeing is the tip of the iceburg, these things rot from the inside out, wherever there is a seam with spot welds, it will be rusted. Get ready for lots of decisions, I always found best made while staring at my truck with a couple cold ones thinking omg what have I signed up for.
Awesome, thread, I have subscribed!!! Keep it up, stay at it... Don't be like me, 4 years in and still removing panels... LOL. Check out my thread if you wish (should be in my signature), PM me if there is anyway my experience might help.... Our trucks look to be almost identical in rust condition... Take care and good luck...
 
I'll be borrowing your heat gun if I have to remove fiberglass from mine :D

Good work Adam, too bad it has required so much work based on how it was advertized



...via IH8MUD app
Thanks Matt! You're telling me. I thought I had bought a truck that was too complete to be a project, but oh well. Lesson learned I suppose.

Dang, all that fiberglaas reminds of something... ow i know.. my own DS floor and doorsill. I'll be keeping tabs to see how you fix this. Good luck on the learning curve. I'm sure it will turn out great
Have fun! I'll never understand the logic behind glassing something over as opposed to either leaving it or welding in the a patch. More pictuers coming soon!


Hello Adam,
Excellent progress on the truck thus far. Doing all the right stuff. The rust will be 10 times worse than you think. I am in the middle of an 1981 repair and panels I thought would be ok were just iffy, panels I thought might be salavagble were shot and needed replacement, panels I knew needed repair just crumbled.... What you are seeing is the tip of the iceburg, these things rot from the inside out, wherever there is a seam with spot welds, it will be rusted. Get ready for lots of decisions, I always found best made while staring at my truck with a couple cold ones thinking omg what have I signed up for.
Awesome, thread, I have subscribed!!! Keep it up, stay at it... Don't be like me, 4 years in and still removing panels... LOL. Check out my thread if you wish (should be in my signature), PM me if there is anyway my experience might help.... Our trucks look to be almost identical in rust condition... Take care and good luck...

Wow! That is some intense rust.. I hope mine isn't that bad, but you're right I won't know until I really start digging into it. This truck has never lived in the salt so I hope I get away with keeping more panels that you did... Who knows! It's an adventure!
 
Updates! Finally cut some of the rust out of the rear bed and patched in some 16 gauge steel. Learning curve here for sure, and m welds were pretty crappy at the beginning, I was blowing holes in some of the thinner parts of the original bed in some spots which required a delicate touch. I think it came out okay, I have some more grinding to do. I sprayed some black primer on it to see what it looked like painted. Not too shabby, the holes will need to be filled in with a light skim of body filler. I still need to grind the backside and make sure everything looks good over there. Any suggestions are welcome.

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Great work. When I was welding my '80 FJ40 panels and blew a few holes in thin areas (or due to too-high a voltage setting), I would build back toward the hole by attaching a blob of weldment to the existing welds (which are thicker), and work my way back across the thin area.

This take a gentle touch and some practice, but you can fairly elegantly close up holes and grind down the weldment and 'fix' your blown holes this way.
 
Great work. When I was welding my '80 FJ40 panels and blew a few holes in thin areas (or due to too-high a voltage setting), I would build back toward the hole by attaching a blob of weldment to the existing welds (which are thicker), and work my way back across the thin area.

This take a gentle touch and some practice, but you can fairly elegantly close up holes and grind down the weldment and 'fix' your blown holes this way.

Thanks Steve! I did the same thing as well. I'm worried about the back as I didn't prep it at all. I'm getting the whole tub blasted and primed after I do the large patches and then after that addressing any other issues I see. Should I grind the back flat and look for poor penetration?
 
I wouldn't obsess about it. You should have enough engagement of the weldment. You will likely find some 'missed' areas after the sandblasting and have to re-weld those anyway. I rarely had any decent access to the back side to check weld quality or penetration.

Reply #350 on this page (link follows) shows how his 'back side' welds are as pretty as his front side welds. I wish mine looked half this good. http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=53534&page=18

To check weld integrity, in a darkened garage, I would shine a strong light from the backside of any area you welded, and be sure that your welds don't show any voids on the front side.

Also, when you're all done and painted, it's imperative that you treat the back side of those rusted areas with paint (Hammerite or something like that) and grease those areas to prevent future rust.
 
I wouldn't obsess about it. You should have enough engagement of the weldment. You will likely find some 'missed' areas after the sandblasting and have to re-weld those anyway. I rarely had any decent access to the back side to check weld quality or penetration.

Reply #350 on this page (link follows) shows how his 'back side' welds are as pretty as his front side welds. I wish mine looked half this good. http://www.garagejournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=53534&page=18

To check weld integrity, in a darkened garage, I would shine a strong light from the backside of any area you welded, and be sure that your welds don't show any voids on the front side.

Also, when you're all done and painted, it's imperative that you treat the back side of those rusted areas with paint (Hammerite or something like that) and grease those areas to prevent future rust.

Those are great looking welds. It helps not to have rusty panels to blow through. I might hit it with the grinder and weld up the seam back there that was the original cause of the rust, will be a tight fit. So you're suggesting that after it's primed and painted to treat it with hammerite? or do you mean once I'm done with the top to at least hit the back with some paint prior to the blast/paint? I'm assuming after the blast/paint I should be good.
 
Work done! I'll take some more pictures to post later. The rear bed is almost done, I just ordered all the panels from Real Steel. I also got a small die grinder to help with the small areas to work on.
 
I would coat the back side of the welded areas with 'something' and I wouldn't just hit them with spray primer. Hammerite seems to hold up well on such a surface and has a thick film coat. Ultimately, you're trying to keep any water out of the back side of any welded seam. After I used Hammerite, I later applied grease to the surface to also prevent rust. I'm a rust-freak - grew up in Michigan, and am a bit paranoid.

The front (attractive) side of your welded seam will get filler, primer, and paint, just as you normally would prep and paint that kind of surface.
 
More welding! Haven't had a chance to grind down any welds. I know some of them look like poor penetration, but I was trying to do some fill as you might be able to see. Steve, I think I"m going to weld that seam shut and and then coat it with something.

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