Build 1971 FJ40: project Milk Money

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Did you ever rebuild your rear sill?

Mine needs it pretty badly. However I plan on al alternative route later on so I don’t want to spend the time and money on an actual replacement.
 
pb4ugo said:
What side is your spare tire on?
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I don't currently have a spare tire carrier. Iwant to eventually get a 4Plus swing out tire carrier, and would want to have my spare on the passenger side.
 
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clrussell said:
Did you ever rebuild your rear sill?

Mine needs it pretty badly. However I plan on al alternative route later on so I don’t want to spend the time and money on an actual replacement.
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I haven't yet, I am waiting for my Bud Built quarter panels to arrive (Should be here this Wednesday). I also plan on a alternative route and plan to make my own floor/sill to hopefully prevent rusting out like the originals.
 
I only ask because it depends on what side you mount the plate bracket. My spare's on the drivers side so I'll be moving the welded bracket.
 
pb4ugo said:
I only ask because it depends on what side you mount the plate bracket. My spare's on the drivers side so I'll be moving the welded bracket.
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Gotcha, I'm glad I left it then lol!

I did get a little bit done today, I finished welding the square tubing frame up. I also spot welded the 2 halves of the right side door together, I didnt get any pics,. Tomorrow I will be getting a cheap set of body hammers and dollies to help straighten out some of the warping.
 
I got a little more welding done on the right side barn door/ tailgate project. I have a few more holes to fill in. There were so many layers of paint on it that if I accidently hit it with my flapper disc, it would heat up and smear the old paint onto the clean metal. So I finally had enough of that and stripped the majority of the paint off with a wire wheel.
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Also found some hinges and cut the a third one down that will be the hinge for the middle of the tailgate. My original plan was to follow IelandEOD's tailgate build and have some spring loaded latches inside the tailgate that would allow the gate to open with a turn handle (mimicking the upper lift gate hardware). But I decided to simplify it and reuse the barn doors latch. I'm hoping to be able to rework the grey one and make it a lefty so I have one on each side. (*EDIT I Found a write up on converting right side latch to lefty*)
Converting RH Tailgate Latch To LH - https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/converting-rh-tailgate-latch-to-lh.446531/

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Bought a cheap set hammers and dollies. Played with them a little bit, I have a low spot across the barn door where I welded the two halves together, hopefully I can work that area and get it flat.
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I picked up a gm NP205 (27 spline) t-case in good working condition yesterday off of market place for $350. I see that Advanced Adapters sells a adapter to mount a NP 205 t-case to a 4L60E. I believe this will add approximately 6" to the length of the drive train. I will be flipping my rear springs to move the rear axel back 3"...
My question is has anyone ran this setup in their 40? I am trying to decide if I should stick with the 4L60E or if I should just get a turbo 350 to try to keep the drivetrain shorter. Any help/advice is appreciated.
 
Why would you want to run a np205? Imo, therexare better choices. Are you centering the rear end?
 
pb4ugo said:
Why would you want to run a np205? Imo, therexare better choices. Are you centering the rear end?
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Hey pb4ugo, I had a few reasons,
1st it was cheap and in good condition and I'm on a shoestring budget,
2nd its bullet proof, although dang heavy lol,
3rd i needed a passenger drop t-case for the front, I'm not too worried about the rear at this moment, worst case scenario I can always build a hybrid centered rear axel as there are alot of mini truck parts in my area. I just kinda jumped on it as I knew it wouldn't last very long on MP! I really just need to get the ball rolling so I can start getting the drivetrain mocked up and start making some progress on this. If the NP205 doesn't work out I can always resell it (maybe make a little profit lol) as there was plenty of interested parties on MP in line behind me.
 
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A little more progress. I picked up a turbo 350 off Market Place pretty cheap, the guy said it was working when pulled, I guess we will see, but in the mean time at least I have something to bolt up to the NP205 for mockup. I still need to get a LS to TH350 dished Flexplate adapter P# 712500A from Advanced Adapter. Also this week I started removing the passenger side rear quarter panel and inner wheel well. I got it all braced and finished removing the quarter today. The boxed center brace that runs across the middle of the tub doesn't look to be in to bad of shape (on this side, despite 50 years of dirt and mud being packed in there). I dont think I will be so lucky on the driverside tho. Here are some pics of the carnage.

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I got the other rear quarter removed today. The rust was worse on this side. Mocking up a new rear sill made of 2x2x .125 square tubing. Next will be removing the boxed in body brace just behind the door. Going to rebuild it and raise the floor 1-1/2" to make the rear floor level and eliminate that 45° raised portion.
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Today I cut out the rest of the rusted floor and started drilling out the spot welds to remove the boxed in body brace that was full of dirt and the 3 layers of sheetmetal where the floor is joined that collects all the rust. Broke my spot weld cutting bit in the process, I need to pick up another one tomorrow.
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I've been looking for a big piece of angle to build my new middle body brace out of. The idea is to keep it open instead of boxed so it won't trap dirt inside. I found this 6ft long channel that is 6-1/2" wide by 2" and 1/8" thickness. I decided to cut the lower lip off so that water can't collect inside the channel, and then made some body mounts that will rest on these poly body mounts. Raised the rear floor approximately 1-1/2" so that its level. The top pic is a before shot of the channel before cutting the lip off, last pic is showing how the new rear floor will be level all the way across eliminating the raised 45° part of the floor. Tomorrow I will weld in the body mounts and then paint the brace with some rust encapsulator. Then I can start tacking in the rear quarters.
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I did a similar thing back in the 90's. I called all the folks I wheeled with looking for a jeep bumper. One guy had access to a big metal brake and made a C channel to my spec. I then gusseted it. Pardon my crappy cut and pics.
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