FJ40 Heaters; some call it restoration, some refurbish... I will let you decide (1 Viewer)

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Tanker120

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There is a lot of info about Heaters on here on MUD, but I hope to add to some to that and try to be complete in the process.

I welcome and ask for any corrections, better ideas and other experts that know better…I am no means an expert, but I do have OCD as you might notice as we go along.

This is met to be informative as well as drawing ideas from others, I can only provide information on the heaters I have worked and have experience with.

First start with heaters that needs some work. I have started to finish, refurbish, restore, clean-up or whatever term you would like to use. I will have lots of pics.

My first attempt at trying to refurbish a heater, i realized only thing i did was paint over bad and made it (what I thought) look good, I have since seen the works of some great restorers, the one that probably influenced me the most was shane (Aatlas1x) which as disapeared several years ago, but some of his work is still around.

I have started with HEATER BLOWERS

Here is a before and after shots of a heater I did recently

I try to keep it original as possible to include markings.

I have found it is important to have the correct tools and good sources for parts and what I call bulk items which I will share were I get them. I have spent a lot of $ and time looking for the right materials to match as close as possible the original parts


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Watching this thread. Just did one in my 55 and the only thing I couldn’t find was foam that was worth a crap to replace the disintegrated 40 year old foam. 🍿🍿🍿
 
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Here are some more pics of before, as you can guess it is the first step when working a any repair or restoration...lots of pics...I am only showing some of the pic that best shows what I started with.
Of course there has been a few times I will get going on something and forget to take the pics..
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Also don't forget to take lots of pics of the markings, some are hard to see but location is also good and with a little research you can at least know what info could have been on the stamp. I will be adding the info I found in the upcoming post as well as what stamps I used, the ink and art work so if you want to make your own it will be a good starting point.

The round stamps are inspections stamps with the word insp or the Japanese version, a date and a number which I assume belongs to whoever is inspecting, some round stamps only have a number which I believe is the inspector once more.

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Disassembly is the fun part, I have always liked taking things apart, trick is putting it back together, I wound up using tubs to help keep them organized and again pics and leaving as much stuff together until I was ready to work on them.

biggest thing i had a hard time was not loosing the springs for the brushes- I now put them in a small zip lock bags with any other small parts

I also consolidate all items that need plating as part of the cleaning I prep them to be replated.

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Then on to cleaning, repairing, testing, refinishing and finally putting the markings on.
 
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Very cool (pun intended)! BTW, have you found a good source for the foam insulation tubes covering the in-cab heater pipes? Everything I have found so far seems very expensive.
 
Very cool (pun intended)! BTW, have you found a good source for the foam insulation tubes covering the in-cab heater pipes? Everything I have found so far seems very expensive.
Yes, I believe I have, I just need to order the right size, I will let you know when it comes in, it is from McMaster-carr-I have ordered some, but was wrong size. This is only the foam, not the tubes themselves.
 
Yes, I believe I have, I just need to order the right size, I will let you know when it comes in, it is from McMaster-carr-I have ordered some, but was wrong size. This is only the foam, not the tubes themselves.
If you want to look at it, here is the link, it is the 3/4" OD 1/2" ID, again I have not ordered this size, but believe it will work, the fun is putting it on, I have read here on mud a method I believe with baby powder?, but normally soapy water works.

Ultra-Weather-Resistant EPDM Foam Tubes​

 
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If you want to look at it, here is the link, it is the 3/4" OD 1/2" ID, again I have note ordered this size, but believe it will work, the fun is putting it on, I have read here on mud a method I believe with baby powder?, but normally soapy water works.

Ultra-Weather-Resistant EPDM Foam Tubes​

I recently used the McMaster Carr epdm hose on the heater pipe. I cant recall the size. I think 1/2" id x 3/4od sounds right. I think it was recommended to buy 2 pieces. I used the search function here and found what others have done. I found lightly sanding down the pipe and the baby powder trick worked the best.
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I recently used the McMaster Carr epdm hose on the heater pipe. I cant recall the size. I think 1/2" id x 3/4od sounds right. I think it was recommended to buy 2 pieces. I used the search function here and found what others have done. I found lightly sanding down the pipe and the baby powder trick worked the best.
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It looks great, I have ordered two of them and $ is not bad. I get all my foam from them for seals and vents among other bulk items. Thanks for the pic and method-I will try the baby powder.
 
Yeah, I'm aware of the M-C option... I just need the two pieces for the front pipes (rear heater is not in the truck). With shipping it ended up around $25, which for two 8" pieces of foam just seems nuts. I'm surprised the 1/2" ID stuff fits, especially over the long pipes to the rear.
 
Yeah, I'm aware of the M-C option... I just need the two pieces for the front pipes (rear heater is not in the truck). With shipping it ended up around $25, which for two 8" pieces of foam just seems nuts. I'm surprised the 1/2" ID stuff fits, especially over the long pipes to the rear.
Actually the pipes to the rear heater are smaller than the coil on the front heater, so the front pipe only may need a different size, If I have any left I can send it to you and you wont have to worry about getting the wrong ones...
 
When I did it, the hose referenced fit all the pipes.
 

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