1973Guppie
Supporting Vendor
looks killer! Great job, post more pics!!!!
Noah
Noah
Builds 1972 fj40 build-up thread (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter mattcrandle
- Start date
This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.
- Thread starter
- #62
1973Guppie said:
i just posted up like 30 pictures today - that is all i have for now, but a few more will be following tonight or tomorrow for the steering knuckle rebuild.
pbgbottle
Forum Lifer
have any shots of how you mounted the fan i am gonna tackle this job in the next few weeks . looks good
man that cruiser looks great. hope mine will turn out that nice. the only thing is it looks like you got a fair share of mula to do it and i am broke as a joke.
Looks great. I have been trying to decide which way to go for power steering, and I like the idea of not having to drill out the dross member. Keep it coming!
- Thread starter
- #66
pbgbottle said:
the first post on page 2 shows how i mounted the taurus fan. i welded two small tabs vertically to the radiator frame, to which i also welded a nut so that i could bolt the fan through the side. on the other side, the flat part of the fan fit perfectly on the flat part of the radiator frame, so it was a simple bolt-up.
- Thread starter
- #67
oldIron said:
after doing the Astro conversion, i would definitely do it this way again. the box is just like a regular Saginaw box on the outside, so you can use any of the common mounting plates available. you dont have to drill through the cross-member, and your steering box is behind the cross-member so it is not sticking out up front, interfering with your shackle hangers, bumper, or winch.
- Thread starter
- #68
front end rebuild
Now that the engine was running, we decided to move on to something else. I had ordered up a set of 4x4 Labs steering arms from Luke Porter and had been planning on rebuilding the front knuckles when I installed them. Because I installed my steering box a little lower than most, I was able to use the stock flat Astro pitman arm. Only problem was that the stock pitman arm has four indexing teeth on it so that it can only be installed at 90 degree increments. I broke out the triangular file and filed the indexing teeth out so that I could mount the pitman arm in the correct position.
I knew that the knuckle rebuild was going to a messy job, but I also thought it was going to be complicated. In actuality, it turned out to be pretty easy. We tore down the first side really quickly, and the most time-consuming part was cleaning up the years of caked-on crud that covered everything.
Once everything was cleaned up, it was time to re-assemble everything. One the first side, the bearing pre-load was too high with the original shims and the new steering arm, so we had to pop it off and add a shim. Oops, now it was too loose, so we popped it off one more time and used the thinnest shim I had. We put it back together and the bearing preload was just perfect. The second side was a breeze after doing it once already.
The 4x4 Labs steering arm on the passenger side was just barely hitting the shock when turned to full lock. I could have adjusted out the steering stops a little more, but just to be safe, I removed a little bit of metal so that the arm would clear without problems.
When it was all said and done, I was very pleased with the outcome. My draglink is almost perfectly paralell to the ground vertically, and almost paralell to the tie rod horizontally.
Now that the engine was running, we decided to move on to something else. I had ordered up a set of 4x4 Labs steering arms from Luke Porter and had been planning on rebuilding the front knuckles when I installed them. Because I installed my steering box a little lower than most, I was able to use the stock flat Astro pitman arm. Only problem was that the stock pitman arm has four indexing teeth on it so that it can only be installed at 90 degree increments. I broke out the triangular file and filed the indexing teeth out so that I could mount the pitman arm in the correct position.
I knew that the knuckle rebuild was going to a messy job, but I also thought it was going to be complicated. In actuality, it turned out to be pretty easy. We tore down the first side really quickly, and the most time-consuming part was cleaning up the years of caked-on crud that covered everything.
Once everything was cleaned up, it was time to re-assemble everything. One the first side, the bearing pre-load was too high with the original shims and the new steering arm, so we had to pop it off and add a shim. Oops, now it was too loose, so we popped it off one more time and used the thinnest shim I had. We put it back together and the bearing preload was just perfect. The second side was a breeze after doing it once already.
The 4x4 Labs steering arm on the passenger side was just barely hitting the shock when turned to full lock. I could have adjusted out the steering stops a little more, but just to be safe, I removed a little bit of metal so that the arm would clear without problems.
When it was all said and done, I was very pleased with the outcome. My draglink is almost perfectly paralell to the ground vertically, and almost paralell to the tie rod horizontally.
- Thread starter
- #69
front bumper
just a couple of pics of the front bumper ala HawkDriver. pretty nice piece of work if you ask me.
just a couple of pics of the front bumper ala HawkDriver. pretty nice piece of work if you ask me.
eww you bolted that on, i'd probably weld it
j/k progress looks good.
j/k progress looks good.
that thing looks awesome keep up the good work.
I'm getting jealous no time to work on mine.
I'm getting jealous no time to work on mine.
Adventure Teq
SILVER Star
Holy smokes! Where the heck have I been? You are smoking through this build. Looks fantastic!
Oh and thanks for the promo. That's the first pic I've seen of my work installed on someone's rig. All smiles here. Keep at it. 
Where the heck have I been? You are smoking through this build. Looks fantastic!Oh and thanks for the promo.
That's the first pic I've seen of my work installed on someone's rig. All smiles here. Keep at it. - Thread starter
- #73
no posts for a long time here since progress has been slow since we moved. but this past weekend i spent quite a bit of time working on the landcruiser and actually got quite a lot of stuff done.
i had started working on the doors awhile back, but never finished because i didnt have the weatherstripping for the vent windows. i finally got it, so i decided to finish up the doors. between the new regulators, weatherstipping, and some fresh spray paint, i think they turned out really nice.
i have been ready to dive into the wiring, so the first thing i did was to get the battery mounted. i ended up using a mount from man-a-fre that mounts to the shock tower. it was pretty painless to install after making a few modifications, and it seems rock solid. you cant see it here, but i also got the positive and negative cables all wired up.
next up was the front driveline. i had been fighting with this issue for a long time. using the stock transfer case with the th350 caused the front output of the transfer case to be very close to the transmission pan. i finally got a custom driveshaft made by Tom Wood and, although it had been laying on my garage floor for a couple of months, i just gotten around to putting it in. i 'modified' my tranmission pan (in other words, beat on it with a big hammer to dent it in on one side) and used the grinder to take some of the lip off. i also had to make a special low-profile bolt to use for one of the transmission pan bolts. in the end, it was a very very tight fit, but the driveshaft just clears the transmission and seems like it will work. no pictures, but you can be sure that i am glad that is done.
i also installed the rear bumper, complete with spare tire mount and cooler carrier. it was a very straight-forward install, except that i broke three 1/2" drill bits drilling the holes in the frame. overall though, it turned out great and i think it looks really good. all i have to do is throw a cooler in and be ready for a nice long excursion (oh, and get the vehicle running, steering, stopping, and all that stuff too).
finally, it was time to dive into the wiring. i had actually been looking forward to doing the wiring the most on this project. my old harness was pretty ragged and crusty, so i was replacing all of the wiring in the vehicle with a wiring harness i got from EZ Wiring. the first order of business was to mount the fuse panel. i made up a bracket out of some sheet metal and mounted it to the original fuse block location. i ran the wires for the rear of the vehicle first and got everything back there wired up.
next up was wiring the engine compartment. i already had the battery mounted and the battery cables in place, so i wired in the starter, alternator, and distributor, as well as the temperature and oil sending units. i ran 12volts to a distribution block and ran power leads to my two fan relays as well as the thermostat module. i wired up the taurus fan so that the low speed is controlled by the thermostat and the high speed is controlled by a manual override. all of it is wired to a three-way switch on the dash that lets me toggle between the modes. i also wired up the front turn signals and parking lights, but didnt wire in the headlights or horn yet until i get a few more relays.
while i was running wires in the engine compartment, i also installed the heater blower. i cleaned it up and painted it black and got the vent pull all re-installed. i cleaned up and painted the actual heater core as well, but didnt not install it yet until i finish the rest of the dash wiring.
at that point, all i had left to wire was the dash. i got the ignition switch wired up first, in anticipation of actually starting the engine again soon. i had previously disassembled and cleaned up the instrument panel, although the speedometer did not work. my dad found me a working replacement, so i swapped them out and re-assembled my instrument cluster. i got it all wired in so that i could use the gauges when i got the engine running again. i also wired up the light switch and the dimmer switch while i was at it. i still have to wire up the remaining dash knobs, but it should go pretty quickly.
with the wiring started, i decided to do another project that i had been wanting to get done. i mounted the transmission indicator/shift boot and got it all wired up. it is also wired into the neutral safety switch, which i mounted on the firewall. it was exciting to be able to turn the key and have the indicator light up, as if the vehicle were actually able to do something on its own.
hopefully the momentum will continue and the next post will see me starting the engine and finishing up the wiring. then i have to run the brake lines and get the steering components all welded up, but that is pretty much it other than some final assembly.
i had started working on the doors awhile back, but never finished because i didnt have the weatherstripping for the vent windows. i finally got it, so i decided to finish up the doors. between the new regulators, weatherstipping, and some fresh spray paint, i think they turned out really nice.
i have been ready to dive into the wiring, so the first thing i did was to get the battery mounted. i ended up using a mount from man-a-fre that mounts to the shock tower. it was pretty painless to install after making a few modifications, and it seems rock solid. you cant see it here, but i also got the positive and negative cables all wired up.
next up was the front driveline. i had been fighting with this issue for a long time. using the stock transfer case with the th350 caused the front output of the transfer case to be very close to the transmission pan. i finally got a custom driveshaft made by Tom Wood and, although it had been laying on my garage floor for a couple of months, i just gotten around to putting it in. i 'modified' my tranmission pan (in other words, beat on it with a big hammer to dent it in on one side) and used the grinder to take some of the lip off. i also had to make a special low-profile bolt to use for one of the transmission pan bolts. in the end, it was a very very tight fit, but the driveshaft just clears the transmission and seems like it will work. no pictures, but you can be sure that i am glad that is done.
i also installed the rear bumper, complete with spare tire mount and cooler carrier. it was a very straight-forward install, except that i broke three 1/2" drill bits drilling the holes in the frame. overall though, it turned out great and i think it looks really good. all i have to do is throw a cooler in and be ready for a nice long excursion (oh, and get the vehicle running, steering, stopping, and all that stuff too).
finally, it was time to dive into the wiring. i had actually been looking forward to doing the wiring the most on this project. my old harness was pretty ragged and crusty, so i was replacing all of the wiring in the vehicle with a wiring harness i got from EZ Wiring. the first order of business was to mount the fuse panel. i made up a bracket out of some sheet metal and mounted it to the original fuse block location. i ran the wires for the rear of the vehicle first and got everything back there wired up.
next up was wiring the engine compartment. i already had the battery mounted and the battery cables in place, so i wired in the starter, alternator, and distributor, as well as the temperature and oil sending units. i ran 12volts to a distribution block and ran power leads to my two fan relays as well as the thermostat module. i wired up the taurus fan so that the low speed is controlled by the thermostat and the high speed is controlled by a manual override. all of it is wired to a three-way switch on the dash that lets me toggle between the modes. i also wired up the front turn signals and parking lights, but didnt wire in the headlights or horn yet until i get a few more relays.
while i was running wires in the engine compartment, i also installed the heater blower. i cleaned it up and painted it black and got the vent pull all re-installed. i cleaned up and painted the actual heater core as well, but didnt not install it yet until i finish the rest of the dash wiring.
at that point, all i had left to wire was the dash. i got the ignition switch wired up first, in anticipation of actually starting the engine again soon. i had previously disassembled and cleaned up the instrument panel, although the speedometer did not work. my dad found me a working replacement, so i swapped them out and re-assembled my instrument cluster. i got it all wired in so that i could use the gauges when i got the engine running again. i also wired up the light switch and the dimmer switch while i was at it. i still have to wire up the remaining dash knobs, but it should go pretty quickly.
with the wiring started, i decided to do another project that i had been wanting to get done. i mounted the transmission indicator/shift boot and got it all wired up. it is also wired into the neutral safety switch, which i mounted on the firewall. it was exciting to be able to turn the key and have the indicator light up, as if the vehicle were actually able to do something on its own.
hopefully the momentum will continue and the next post will see me starting the engine and finishing up the wiring. then i have to run the brake lines and get the steering components all welded up, but that is pretty much it other than some final assembly.
Looks killer. I did all the upgrades minus shiny paint. fun!
Looks great.
I noticed that you're running your stock brass radiator. I'm not one you like to point out weaknesses, but the stock radiator is a real weakness when running a SBC motor, even when running a high flow water pump.
I know from expereince becasue I made the same mistake when I completed my FJ. I was even running a high flow electric fan and it was still borderline hot. When I would run the motor hard, it would overheat.
I would strongly suggest buying an aluminum radiator with a high flow electric fan so you don't have to worry about it in the future. Becool makes a direct replacement, it cost a lot of JACK, but it cools up to 400HP. It's very well made and will keep your rig cool.
I noticed that you're running your stock brass radiator. I'm not one you like to point out weaknesses, but the stock radiator is a real weakness when running a SBC motor, even when running a high flow water pump.
I know from expereince becasue I made the same mistake when I completed my FJ. I was even running a high flow electric fan and it was still borderline hot. When I would run the motor hard, it would overheat.
I would strongly suggest buying an aluminum radiator with a high flow electric fan so you don't have to worry about it in the future. Becool makes a direct replacement, it cost a lot of JACK, but it cools up to 400HP. It's very well made and will keep your rig cool.
- Thread starter
- #76
thanks for the radiator advice. several other people have said the same thing, and i have been seriously considering replacing it. seeing as how i have only run the engine about four time, and the longest was less than 10 minutes, i have not had any issues yet =) but i definitely dont want to fight cooling issues forever, so i am sure a new radiator will be in my near future.
If you buy the radiator, get it from Becool directly. Their cost is actually lower than Summit's (with fan and mounts) after you include the handling charges.
Remember that if you go through Becool, be-cool when you talk to them becasue their prices are negoitable from their initial quotes.
I can't say enough but the radiator is awesome. I'll post pics next week...
Remember that if you go through Becool, be-cool when you talk to them becasue their prices are negoitable from their initial quotes.
I can't say enough but the radiator is awesome. I'll post pics next week...
Your cruiser is looking awesome! Becuase of how good it is coming out, i woundn't be able to sleep at night. Great job!!
- Thread starter
- #80
funny you should say that because i was tossing and turning all last night, thinking about how i was going to ground the instrument panel and how to install the wiper motor and when i was going to put the gas tank back in and a million other details that i want to get wrapped up.
