Builds 1MAC's 1965 FJ40 Project build (1 Viewer)

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1MAC

SILVER Star
Joined
Dec 9, 2012
Threads
24
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1,251
Location
Kansas
After years of dreaming that I could restore an old FJ, I finally got serious and did some shopping. I looked at several vehicles local to me and they were all way too far gone to be able to resurrect. We use a lot of salt on the roads in the winter here and it shows in the condition of our older vehicles.
I finally found this FJ on Craigslist. It was listed and titled as a 1966 and brought here almost a year ago from Colorado. The seller had planned to build it himself but said he had too many projects. Based on the VIN (35536), I believe it was built in mid-1965. It still has the 3 speed column shift and vacuum transfercase shift and a PTO winch.
This poor vehicle has been the victim of a lot of shadetree mods. I've started tearing off the "extras" like the antenna drilled through the top of the cowl, lawnmower gas tank under the hood, and the chevy WS washer pump! The firewall has a huge hole behind the aftermarket heater which makes me wonder if this is the second one it has worn.
The hardtop is in rough shape. Someone took off the hatch and replaced it with something resembling ambulance doors.
The tub is in decent shape compared to the ones I've seen in my area. There is rust-through in both rockers, both wheel wells and the rear sill. The rear doors are very rusty, and the right door is welded in place!
I have only very basic mechanical skills, but I'm hoping to learn them in the process of completing this project. I'll post my progress in this thread and hope to have some help and guidance along the way.

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Welcome To Mud

It looks like it's in good shape and a nice starting point. Looking forward to following the build.
 
This week's progress:

1. Changed the engine oil with fresh 20W50.

2. Took off the hardtop and doors.

3. Wired up a $6.99 ignition switch from O'Reilly's to replace the toggle switch that hung in the footwell.

4. Took out the passenger seat so I could get to the gas tank. Removed the fuel sender and was surprised to find the tank was rust free and clean!

5. Cleaned out the fuel filter bowl and ran new line from the filter to the fuel pump.

6. Cleaned and lubed the choke cable so it would operate freely.

7. Ran a compression check. 4 cylinders were between 145 and 150psi, one at 140 and cylinder 4 was 130. The engine makes a ticking noise that I think may be a valvetrain (tappet?) problem. Hopefully that won't be a major deal. I plan to adjust the valves when I get my first shipment of parts from SOR and then recheck the compression.

8. Worked on clutch hydraulics. PO had replaced the slave cylinder, but the clutch only disengages when the pedal is all the way to the floor. I checked the reservoir - empty. Filled it and bled the system - fixed! Then I noticed fluid leaking out of the master cylinder. I will try a CMC rebuild kit to see if that will fix it.
 
Welcome! I dig your 40, I also bought what I thought was a 1966 that turned out to be a 1965

Get ready to learn a lot!

I saw your thread, too. Actually did a double-take when I saw your VIN because it was so close to mine. I've enjoyed following your progress.
 
Now I'm stuck waiting for parts before I can proceed with the next steps. I decided today was the day to do a quick degreasing of the engine compartment and made an interesting discovery.

Under about 1/4" of hardened grease and dirt, I found an F145 decal on the valve cover! The engine number is F 260856, so I guess it's in the right range to be from a 1968? I would love to know how that came about.
 
Progress!

I received a shipment of parts from SOR that enabled me to resume work.

1. Rebuilt the clutch master cylinder. It took me a few tries to get it bled properly, but I finally got it done. Clutch pedal is now nice and firm and I adjusted it to factory pedal height.

2. Started the process of removing the wiring harnesses. Nothing on this vehicle works, so I'm going to do a complete resto of the electrical system. Got the cowl harness out and all the connections labeled.

3. Tested and cleaned the light, wiper, dome, dimmer, turn signal and courtesy lamp switches. They all work properly!

4. Removed the instrument cluster and dash bezel. Cleaned all the instrument faces (letters and numbers went from brown to white) and painted the bezel with a metallic paint that seems pretty close to the old color.

Most importantly, I took a lot of pictures of the routing and connections of the wiring harness. With a few exceptions, the wires are still the correct factory colors so it should be easy to put in the new one.
 
Now for the hard part: I want to do a complete new harness with modern wire using the same color codes as factory so I can always use the standard wiring diagram as a reference. The only source I can find for the correct components is Coolerman here on IH8MUD.
I have sent him two emails and a PM through the site, but still no response for about 2 weeks. He hasn't posted for about that long on here, either. Does anybody know another way to get ahold of him? I would hate to abandon my plan and use wire that was not the correct color.
 
strange a 65 didn't have a heater inlet? might be 64? the rear doors should have been bi-fold doors.
nice start.
 
Give Coolerman time. He'll get back to you. He does harnesses as a side gig
 
I am into your fj project. I will be following your progress as I want an fj40 like yours. Have fun.
 
I've got the main harness competely dissected and labeled. I used the Toyota FSM wiring diagram which was VERY helpful! The bib harness is very straightforward, it basically just connects the passenger side lights and horn across the bib to the driver's side. It should only take an hour or so to make.

The chassis (rear) harness is pretty simple compared to the main harness, but it is in much worse condition. The rearmost section is missing and was replaced by hillbilly wiring to include a trailer plug.

I got an email from Coolerman today. Mark is a very nice guy to deal with and will be supplying all the parts for me to build my own harness. I'd love to just ship my stuff off to him and have him build it, but the point of this resto is for me to learn some new skills.
 
That's cool you are making it yourself. Good luck.

I have been wondering what exactly do the little lights on the bib do? (Mine do not work)
Do they come on with the headlights?
Do they come on with the turn signals?
Are they just park lights?
:hmm::hmm:
 
That's cool you are making it yourself. Good luck.

I have been wondering what exactly do the little lights on the bib do? (Mine do not work)
Do they come on with the headlights?
Do they come on with the turn signals?
Are they just park lights?
:hmm::hmm:

They are parking lights (nothing works on my FJ currently!).

The 4 position light switch has one position that turns on the parking lights, tail, license plate light and gauges. I've seen two different diagrams as to which position that is. There is a P terminal on the back of your light switch that powers them. Good luck!
 
Nice looking rig! I am currently looking at a '66 just like yours. Best of luck with everything. I'll be watching so I can catch any pointers just in case I get mine.
 

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