Builds 1978 FJ40. Waking up the ol’ girl!

[airon23]

Got my gas tank off the shelf today. It’s been there awhile. I didn’t examine it too close when I took it out but the inside looked clean and the outside was just some surface rust…I thought. Went at the underside with a wire wheel and the rust underneath is bad. Right in the same spots where the holes in the floor were. ugh! Of course it’s rusty! Anyway…decided not to tempt fate and ordered a reproduction from CCOT. The spending never ends!

Couple really bad rust areas like this….

I had a similar situation as you with the gas tank and took the same route as you. If I can offer one word of advice. Just because the CCOT comes new, don't trust that it has no leaks. If you can try to water/pressure test it to see if there are any leaks. I got a CCOT tank which at first glance was great and looked just like OEM. Anyway, I installed it and didn't really think anything of it for some time, since I wasn't driving it for some time either. Shortly after installing and filling and running it, I noticed there was still a gas smell but ignored it thinking it was all the new hoses and tank that was just getting gas.

Well over time the smell never completely left and after roughly a year or more had past, I happened to be changing out the E-brake hand pull cable and was hanging out under the seat line when my flashlight caught a shiny glance from near the gas tank. I look again and sure enough from around the lower seam of the tank there was some gas leaking. To be fair I'm still not 100% sure where it is leaking from, because I just haven't found the time to pull it yet, but all hoses and such were brand new all the way around.

Either way, it's a good idea to test that before you're too far in and can still work with CCOT if necessary. Not bagging on CCOT at all, full disclosure, I called them up and even though this was out of the warranty period they were willing to replace it if I would ship it on my own dime. To me that is going to be too much headache and $ so if I can I'll get it fixed locally. Good luck with everything.

 

[EStein]

I had a similar situation as you with the gas tank and took the same route as you. If I can offer one word of advice. Just because the CCOT comes new, don't trust that it has no leaks. If you can try to water/pressure test it to see if there are any leaks. I got a CCOT tank which at first glance was great and looked just like OEM. Anyway, I installed it and didn't really think anything of it for some time, since I wasn't driving it for some time either. Shortly after installing and filling and running it, I noticed there was still a gas smell but ignored it thinking it was all the new hoses and tank that was just getting gas.

Well over time the smell never completely left and after roughly a year or more had past, I happened to be changing out the E-brake hand pull cable and was hanging out under the seat line when my flashlight caught a shiny glance from near the gas tank. I look again and sure enough from around the lower seam of the tank there was some gas leaking. To be fair I'm still not 100% sure where it is leaking from, because I just haven't found the time to pull it yet, but all hoses and such were brand new all the way around.

Either way, it's a good idea to test that before you're too far in and can still work with CCOT if necessary. Not bagging on CCOT at all, full disclosure, I called them up and even though this was out of the warranty period they were willing to replace it if I would ship it on my own dime. To me that is going to be too much headache and $ so if I can I'll get it fixed locally. Good luck with everything.

Ok thanks that’s good advice. I’ll see what I can do. I’ve ordered a fair amount from those guys and always been happy. Had some issues with the rear sill I ordered from them and they bent over backward to help me out and make it right.

 

[airon23]

Ok thanks that’s good advice. I’ll see what I can do. I’ve ordered a fair amount from those guys and always been happy. Had some issues with the rear sill I ordered from them and they bent over backward to help me out and make it right.

yeah and like I said even after it was out of the period they were also willing to make it right albeit with me shipping it, but even so it wasn't on them to even cover anything. good luck and good work.

 

[EStein]

yeah and like I said even after it was out of the period they were also willing to make it right albeit with me shipping it, but even so it wasn't on them to even cover anything. good luck and good work.

That’s good! I haven’t had a bad experience yet with any of the Land Cruiser vendors. Pretty good group.

 

[EStein]

This just arrived. Woohoo. Looks good.

 

[EStein]

and another delivery! Exciting day! Thanks @ToyotaMatt. You always do an amazing job of packaging as well!

 

[ToyotaMatt]

 

[EStein]

Working on my tank…going to let him sleep and do something else for awhile. He’s starting to show some gray around his eyes and muzzle. Makes me sad….

 

[EStein]

Got the tank all hooked up. In the process of replacing all the old fuel hose. Picked up some Gates Barricade fuel line from the local Napa. Seems to be good stuff and hopefully fuel smell won’t permeate. Now just waiting on the transmission…

 

[EStein]

Worked on the seat mounts a bit today. Took all the metal seat parts to the local machine shop and stuck them in the hot tank for a little while. Had to repair some rusty bits. Not the best weld job, but I forgot to turn the gas on. Oops. Going to use the old seats for a while. Saving for some SOR covers and new foam. Maybe by Father’s Day. It’s been so cold here the last few weeks I haven’t had a lot of motivation to be in the shop.

 

[EStein]

Got the transmission back today. Hoping to get it in sometime later this week. Looks really good. A little more expensive than I had planned…. just like everything else! Wish I was brave (skilled) enough to take on the rebuild.

 

[sggoat]

My daughter spent a few hours working with me today. Turned her loose disassembling the right front. I like to give her jobs and let her figure it out...helping if needed. Usually she does a really good job. She was a bit hard on a brake line! Dang it! Good lesson for us both. Guess I’ll be looking for a new one!

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You cannot buy this kind of Father-Daughter relationship--comes from confidence and caring--She oughta get tis truck when it's done----

 

[sggoat]

thanks for that. I was afraid something like this was coming…. I added one of the smallest shims on the upper and the lower hoping that would keep it centered. At this point I’m going to take a chance. If it starts to leak then I will address it then… I can’t bear to go back in!

If it starts to leak you WILL have to go back in --the marlin inner seals are the best bet--as for the centering -must follow the FSM on this--if you did not document exactly where each shim came from, you're going to have to start from scratch---adding a litle shim here and there will cause exactly what Numby related

 

[sggoat]

So my left front turn signal stopped working a few days ago and I decided to dig into it yesterday. Electrical is definitely my least favorite...don’t always have the brain for it! The first thing I noticed when I tore into it was the lights on the left front were definitely dimmer than the lights on the right front. Also when I took apart the light housing, you could see that there was some bleed over to the larger bulb causing it to glow just slightly. To me it seems like whenever there’s an electrical problem with these rigs, you start with grounding…weird huh?

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You must have missed what's commonly called "Claudia's Admonition---"It's a ground issue"

 

[sggoat]

Front pans and rockers…View attachment 2880276View attachment 2880275View attachment 2880277View attachment 2880278View attachment 2880280View attachment 2880279

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Very nice work on this!

 

[sggoat]

Dismantled my heater. Got it all cleaned up and the foam replaced on the flapper doors. The only foam I could find was from the craft store. About an eighth of an inch thick. Comes in 8 x 11 sheets. We’ll see how it holds up.. The core was a mess. Thanks 40 Channel for another good video. I got in trouble for cleaning it up in the kitchen sink and using the dish scrubby. I don’t see what the issue is. Anyway got the hoses hooked up and the rear heater in. waiting on the fuel tank and I’ll be able to fire this thing up!
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Ahh--pb blaster basted bananas- doesn't get much better than that!----ha!

 

[EStein]

You cannot buy this kind of Father-Daughter relationship--comes from confidence and caring--She oughta get tis truck when it's done----

Agreed and yes, someday it will be hers but I’m going to enjoy it until I’m too old.

 

[EStein]

If it starts to leak you WILL have to go back in --the marlin inner seals are the best bet--as for the centering -must follow the FSM on this--if you did not document exactly where each shim came from, you're going to have to start from scratch---adding a litle shim here and there will cause exactly what Numby related

Seems like so long ago I forgot what it looks like in there! Time will definitely tell once I get this thing back on the road. It’s been fun.

 

[EStein]

Very nice work on this!

Thank you!

 

[EStein]

Ahh--pb blaster basted bananas- doesn't get much better than that!----ha!