Builds '78 Refreshtoration, what next? (1 Viewer)

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I got the FJ60 Power Steering all set I think. I ordered a new Gates replacement hose for the high pressure line from Rock Auto and got a Toyota OEM return line. I was surprised at first that it said Yokohama on it, but upon closer inspection it looks like the old one was as well.

Next up is making new fuel and "return" lines. I'm a bit intimidated, not really sure why though. I have a 25' length of tube, bender, and olives and nuts thanks to a post from @GA Architect who always has the rare OEM part numbers. Will be bypassing the electric fuel pump installed by a PO in favor of the mechanical which I rebuilt with the kit from @red66toy. Fingers crossed.

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You got this! When I was making my new brake lines, I used welding wire to make templates before I bent up the tubing. Helped figure out the best bends and just consumed cheap wire vs the nicer tubing. :) I think any thick wire would do.
 
You got this! When I was making my new brake lines, I used welding wire to make templates before I bent up the tubing. Helped figure out the best bends and just consumed cheap wire vs the nicer tubing. :) I think any thick wire would do.
I did use your advice and pre bent some wire, but didn’t come out quite as neat as I’d like. The line I got is pretty stiff so not much wiggle room after using the tube bender. Then got a little aggressive trying to get the nut down onto the olive by the fuel pump and stripped the aluminum fuel pump thread. Removed the fuel pump, put it in a vice and got the L shaped steel female in there nice and tight. Essentially used the steel L piece to re-thread the fuel pump. Pretty nervous it will leak though. We’ll see I guess.

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I did use your advice and pre bent some wire, but didn’t come out quite as neat as I’d like. The line I got is pretty stiff so not much wiggle room after using the tube bender. Then got a little aggressive trying to get the nut down onto the olive by the fuel pump and stripped the aluminum fuel pump thread. Removed the fuel pump, put it in a vice and got the L shaped steel female in there nice and tight. Essentially used the steel L piece to re-thread the fuel pump. Pretty nervous it will leak though. We’ll see I guess.

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When I installed my pump I didn’t replace the olive. Sprayed fuel ALL over the engine and scared the living hell out of me. Hahaha. Learned to always replace the olive. I say disconnect the coil to dizzy and crank it a few times. Then check it for any leaks with a piece of paper towel. If it’s dry have someone start it while you watch. Another thing to try if you have a small leak is thread sealer for fuel fittings.
 
When I installed my pump I didn’t replace the olive. Sprayed fuel ALL over the engine and scared the living hell out of me. Hahaha. Learned to always replace the olive. I say disconnect the coil to dizzy and crank it a few times. Then check it for any leaks with a piece of paper towel. If it’s dry have someone start it while you watch. Another thing to try if you have a small leak is thread sealer for fuel fittings.
Thanks, I do have a roll of the yellow teflon tape for gas/petroleum. Is that what you mean by thread sealer or something more like pipe dope?
 
Thanks, I do have a roll of the yellow teflon tape for gas/petroleum. Is that what you mean by thread sealer or something more like pipe dope?
Oh yeah whatever works! I had used a Permatex thread sealant rated for fuel/oil. I used it on some pump builds as extra insurance against a leak.
 
I only had one full length bolt coming out of the bottom of the radiator support. Not sure if I broke it off during disassembly or happened earlier. I didn’t really feel like fixing it but knew this was the time to do it. I used an angle grinder to grind down the flat, nickel sized head and knock it out. Then swung by @vfrer who did a nice little bit of welding to get a replacement in. Big improvement.

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Fuel Lines

I went to put the air cleaner on last night and realized I needed to re-bend the new hard fuel line. Long story short, I ended up bending three and learning a few things along the way.

Using a vice to hold the bender made it much easier. Perhaps due in part to the fact I sustained a "game-keepers thumb" injury skiing and am down to 9 digits. I had ordered this tubing which is pretty hard to bend. Might have done a different metal if I did it over again. Used a regular plumbing tube cutter to slice it and then sanded the ends a bit to make sure no metal bits get in the fuel system. Used Toyota olives and nut unions for the ends. They don't require a ton of pressure to cinch down (learned the hard way). Using a sharpie to mark where to bend helped. Came out ok in the end and used the original fuel line I bent to become the return. Right now the return doesn't go anywhere, I'll see if I can figure out where it's supposed to go. Previously it was just capped and seemed to work fine.

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So I finally started filing with fluids last night. 7 quarts of oil went in, no leaks!

Then poured in half a gallon of coolant and…wet shoes.

I thought I had the petcock closed, all the way in but after trial and error, apparently all the way out is closed?

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Got it running! Sounds beautiful but I’m not confident there is oil pressure (gauge shows nothing, but I replaced the sender so could be the gauge/sender/wire). Also not confident coolant is flowing correctly and thermostat is opening. Oh and the OEM fuel pump I rebuilt isn’t working. But it sounds awesome

 
Put a mechanical gauge on it or remove valvecover to confirm oiling before going further!
I think you’re right. I’m gonna take the valve cover off to be sure but might try connecting to this unit under the oil filter instead of the current set up. The oil pressure gauge was never too reliable before but I was hoping a new sender would solve that.

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I’m having zero luck confirming oil pressure. I picked up this oil pressure tester kit at HF thinking one of the fittings would fit. Nope.

I took the valve cover off to see if the oil was moving around but can’t really tell. It’s “oily” but is there a specific spot that would be a tell tale sign of oil pressure?

 
At about 10:00 last night I was ready to give up. I opened the garage door to vent the exhaust as I was gonna try again to get a read from the sender. As I opened the door, my buddy walked in with some beers. Moral of the story: sometimes the most important thing in your garage is a friend. We confirmed it was getting oil around 11:00, took it for a drive, then I spent until 1:00 chasing leaks and cleaning up.

Kids woke up this morning and I told them and they jumped up and down. Both wanted to be driven to school in it. Man it’s nice to be driving it again. I rested the 200 and only drove the 40 today. All over. The highs and the lows…

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I took it to Block Island for a week of offshore sailing. Perfect vehicle for exploring the island. Just barely fit on the ferry with the surfboards.

It’s running really well. Ignition switch may be going though. Can’t turn it to just accessory and the starter kept on starting yesterday even after engine was fired up.

Been driving around with 6 guys in it though, no issues. Must be tight in the back, but it’s good to be the driver!

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The Forty came back from the trip with some war wounds. About 4 days in it started sounding like someone had chopped off the cat, but I don’t think Block Island is particularly prone to that. I discovered when I got home that the EGR block off plate some PO had crafted was loose. I tried to tighten the nut on the stud, didn’t really work. Eventually ended up shearing the stud off.

Around the same time, it was struggling for fuel, would stall unless I pulled the choke.

I dealt with the EGR plate first. I had a perfect replacement from @FJ40Jim that he sent when he rebuilt my carb but I never installed.

I finally found the time last night to drill it out after putting the kids to bed. Unusually for me, I took it slow and tried to be patient. I ended up being successful, and finished up around midnight. I’ve had a bunch of nights like this with the forty, and I relish them, honestly.



The fuel/choke issue turned out to be a much quicker fix:
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