HefJ40
SILVER Star
Hey everyone, MUD newbie here. First post, but I’ve been scouring threads on here for about 3 years now. Seems to be a great community with a wealth of knowledge. I feel like my head is about to explode though
I’ve been out of the wrenching world since 2004 when I had to park the 40 due to electrical issues. SO, this will be a humbling experience. I greatly appreciate any advice and criticism as I work though this build….so please share your experiences! I will also note, I am completely new to posting in forums….so bear with me.
I’m not a long-winded storyteller, so here are the nuts and bolts of my backstory with the 40, if anyone’s interested.
In 1996 (I was 16) my dad found a rusty 1979 Mustard Yellow FJ40 for sale in in the weekly Bucksaver in Ashland, Va. We had CJs, but he said he’d always wanted an FJ40. I had never seen one, but I fell in love immediately. $4,500 later, I was happy to be broke again because I had a landcruiser project to build with my dad.
I spent about a year of nights and weekends researching through off-road mags how to somewhat restore the truck to safe, drivable condition, which led to much sandblasting and doing bodywork in the driveway. No welding, just fiberglass and bondo because I was 100% green. We painted her in the driveway back to the original mustard yellow.
It wasn’t long after I got her on the road that the 2F took a dump in the middle of an intersection. I still have the 2F in the barn, hopefully to rebuild one day. The 350 conversion was a hot mod back in ’98, so I found a rebuilt 350 out of a 72 Camaro (I believe) and made the swap. Other than it not being Toyota, I love that engine.
Next came the shackle reversal, Rancho 4” lift and 33x12.5 BFG’s. I really liked that ride height and clearance without being too top heavy, however, it seems like those Rancho springs were extremely stiff. I had nothing to compare it to, so I made it work. Looking back, it seems like the angle of the rear extended shackles wasn’t enough----they were basically vertical. Maybe that was my problem?
That’s about the extent of my work on the 40. I was able to have tons of fun wheeling and exploring until 2004. I really can’t believe how long it’s been. Life happened with family and careers, but I vowed never to sell her no matter what. Unfortunately, from about 2004 to 2010, she sat outside and deteriorated even more. In 2010, I was able to move her into the barn, which I’m hoping saved her life.
This is a special addiction that won’t go away and I’m thankful for that. I’m finally at the point in my life where I can start to chip away at restoring the 40 back to a point where I can enjoy and use her as she was meant to be used.
Wife and kids are on board---a HUGE plus. I have a small ‘shop’ area and have been accumulating tools to be able to do as much of the work myself as possible. Financially, I can outsource some things if needed, but it’s so much sweeter to be able to fully understand every part of the truck and spill the blood and sweat myself. I still have the problem of TIME. Career and other house projects take up much of my time, so I’m only able to wrench on occasional nights and weekends. I’m sure if I’m able to get tips and advice on MUD, I’ll be able to dedicate more and more time to focus on the build!!
I’ll post some pics shortly. I’ll scan and post any photos I can find from when I had her running in the late 90’s so you can see my work from back then. Again, please share your thoughts based on what you see so I can avoid doing the same thing again if there are visible issues with that work. I’ve been documenting my progress thus far, so I’ll get those posted as well.
I’m hoping the 40 community will find this build of interest and you guys will be willing to help me bring her back to life. Many thanks in advance! I’m really looking forward to finally being able to do this!
-Hef
I’ve been out of the wrenching world since 2004 when I had to park the 40 due to electrical issues. SO, this will be a humbling experience. I greatly appreciate any advice and criticism as I work though this build….so please share your experiences! I will also note, I am completely new to posting in forums….so bear with me.
I’m not a long-winded storyteller, so here are the nuts and bolts of my backstory with the 40, if anyone’s interested.
In 1996 (I was 16) my dad found a rusty 1979 Mustard Yellow FJ40 for sale in in the weekly Bucksaver in Ashland, Va. We had CJs, but he said he’d always wanted an FJ40. I had never seen one, but I fell in love immediately. $4,500 later, I was happy to be broke again because I had a landcruiser project to build with my dad.
I spent about a year of nights and weekends researching through off-road mags how to somewhat restore the truck to safe, drivable condition, which led to much sandblasting and doing bodywork in the driveway. No welding, just fiberglass and bondo because I was 100% green. We painted her in the driveway back to the original mustard yellow.
It wasn’t long after I got her on the road that the 2F took a dump in the middle of an intersection. I still have the 2F in the barn, hopefully to rebuild one day. The 350 conversion was a hot mod back in ’98, so I found a rebuilt 350 out of a 72 Camaro (I believe) and made the swap. Other than it not being Toyota, I love that engine.
Next came the shackle reversal, Rancho 4” lift and 33x12.5 BFG’s. I really liked that ride height and clearance without being too top heavy, however, it seems like those Rancho springs were extremely stiff. I had nothing to compare it to, so I made it work. Looking back, it seems like the angle of the rear extended shackles wasn’t enough----they were basically vertical. Maybe that was my problem?
That’s about the extent of my work on the 40. I was able to have tons of fun wheeling and exploring until 2004. I really can’t believe how long it’s been. Life happened with family and careers, but I vowed never to sell her no matter what. Unfortunately, from about 2004 to 2010, she sat outside and deteriorated even more. In 2010, I was able to move her into the barn, which I’m hoping saved her life.
This is a special addiction that won’t go away and I’m thankful for that. I’m finally at the point in my life where I can start to chip away at restoring the 40 back to a point where I can enjoy and use her as she was meant to be used.
Wife and kids are on board---a HUGE plus. I have a small ‘shop’ area and have been accumulating tools to be able to do as much of the work myself as possible. Financially, I can outsource some things if needed, but it’s so much sweeter to be able to fully understand every part of the truck and spill the blood and sweat myself. I still have the problem of TIME. Career and other house projects take up much of my time, so I’m only able to wrench on occasional nights and weekends. I’m sure if I’m able to get tips and advice on MUD, I’ll be able to dedicate more and more time to focus on the build!!
I’ll post some pics shortly. I’ll scan and post any photos I can find from when I had her running in the late 90’s so you can see my work from back then. Again, please share your thoughts based on what you see so I can avoid doing the same thing again if there are visible issues with that work. I’ve been documenting my progress thus far, so I’ll get those posted as well.
I’m hoping the 40 community will find this build of interest and you guys will be willing to help me bring her back to life. Many thanks in advance! I’m really looking forward to finally being able to do this!
-Hef