1966 FJ45LV restoration/buildup project

[merbesfield]

Nice welds - do you run a bead or tack one after the next or do you jump around?

Do both. If it I am concerned about warping and it needs to look nice I jump around. I always jump around while setting my piece. If I don't jump around and run beads, I am still on and off the trigger placing spots as I go. The pieces were really strong so I was not worried about any warping. Cleanup grinding is a pian tho, mainly bc I am anal and want it to look good. Even though you will never see the welds. I will be applying seam sealer and then Body Schutz over everything. And the peal and stick after that for road noise.

 

[Awl_TEQ]

Yeah - same here. Tack around the perimeter to set the piece and then weld as much as you can without blowing through - depends on the location and situation. Grinding is the worst part as you said. I too like it nice and smooth even though I will be the only one to see it.

 

[merbesfield]

These are a little out of order. I actually built this corner week before last, just forgot to post it. Had my buddy Scott working with me for motivation and making sure I did not screw anything up.

 

[merbesfield]

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[merbesfield]

Rear sill work

I have been working on the left rear qtr and the rear sill. I bought a sill from cruiser_guy aka Charles. He worked with Paul to have this built. They did a great job, but because much of Charles’s rear sill had rusted and been fix who knows how many times much of this sill was not usable to me. So I decided to take parts of my sill and parts of the new sill and marry them together into a new sill with all the correct proportions and dimensions. The areas that needed work was the inside corners with not the right curve. Luckily my corners were in very good shape so I salvaged them. The other main problem was the bolt hole spacing was not the same center to center as my truck. This could be due to many reasons, one being the hand built nature of these trucks? I had to add 9mm to the center section of my sill. So first step was to removed the old sill from my truck and dissect it. You can see the extent of rust I had to deal with. Not much there to work with. Next, I dissected the reproduction sill. I took tons of measurements before cutting everything apart. After separating the corners, I Clecko’ed them back in the exact location. I figured the best way to rebuild was to use the truck as the template making sure everything went back in the same place it originally came off of. I used my original tailgate to get the spacing between hinges, which told me I needed to add he 9mm. I fabricated a small section, seen in the pics, with all the proper bends like the sill, split the sill, fit the new 9mm piece and the welded it back together. I am now ready to reassemble sill section. This will require two sets of hands, so I have solicited the help of Scott, my trusty partner in crime. Will post more pics after I get that back together. Thanks to Charles for his hard work.

 

[merbesfield]

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[merbesfield]

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[merbesfield]

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[merbesfield]

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[The Swede]

Nice project!

 

[Awl_TEQ]

That's a lot of cutting and patching but you've got the right man for the job

 

[merbesfield]

That's a lot of cutting and patching but you've got the right man for the job

The pics of the rusted sill are for reference only to show how bad the sill was. I am not using it, except for the corners. I took it apart to salvage the the original corners as they are very detailed and beyond my capabilities. My rear sill will be 100% new steel.

 

[a.greenspan]

Great job Mark !
Cheers
Peter

 

[merbesfield]

Great job Mark !
Cheers
Peter

Thanks Peter. Still working on the P car, just figured I would mix it up a bit. Cheers.

 

[merbesfield]

More work on the rear sill. I know the pics do not look like a lot of progress but there are many hours in fitting these parts together and reworking them to meet original measurements etc. One the truck and off the truck too many times to count. Clecos work great for this. One or two more good work days and should be ready to spot weld back together. But I always seem to underestimate the amount of time this takes so who knows. It will be done when it is done. If you were having to pay for this type of restoration you would need to be restoring a Ferrari to justify the hours involved. But as we all know this stuff is a labor of love. Or just plain sickness

 

[subzali]

and last the JIS stuff I was waiting for.

Sorry if it's been asked before, but are these bolts directly from Au-Ve-Co? They look like a pretty darn close match to OEM.

 

[merbesfield]

Sorry if it's been asked before, but are these bolts directly from Au-Ve-Co? They look like a pretty darn close match to OEM.

Yes and others. It has been a while, but I do remember getting some from them. The problem is no one has Yellow Zinc JIS, so you have to have them re-plated once you get your hands on them. Obcessive, yes, but that is what it takes to do it right. Some of the bolts I got from Bolt Expo Industrial Anchors, Threaded Rods, Threaded Studs, Bolts, Nuts & Washers & Screws. Ask for Kevin, he is the owner. He knows where to get this stuff. Remind him about Mark the Land Cruiser nut who owns Greenmark Landscaping and he will remember. You do have to stay after him though as he is busy and this is pretty small stuff for him, but he is happy to do it.

 

[subzali]

Are the washers captured on some of those you have pictured? Looks like you got some flange heads too.

 

[merbesfield]

Are the washers captured on some of those you have pictured? Looks like you got some flange heads too.

No captured washer screws yet, those are called SEMS. Some of the sources sell them but I was not sure what sizes I needed so did not order yet. No flange heads either. Don't thk there were many of those on the original cruiser, at least not mine.

 

[merbesfield]

Continued sill and rear qtr reconstruction.

Title pretty much says it all. Worked all day on the outer skin of the DS qtr. I should call this truck Frankenstein. Take the good, cut out the rusted, fabricate new pieces to patch in the wholes and weld it all back together again. Ignore the rough welding, I have not cleaned it up or done any real quality hammer and dolly work. I just wanted to get the basics back in place. All the ribbing is done, now I have to fabricate the curved rear corner and tie it all together. Once I have that complete, the entire rear sill and two qtrs can be assembled and welded up.