Build 1st FJ40, '76 - SMOKEY - Puttin’ her Back Together

[Vae Victus]

A lot of the times folks put thicker gaskets and heat spacers under carbs to keep them from getting too hot, and boiling off fuel.

The problem is you would have to tighten the carb down harder on the thicker gaskets to get a good seal (or so people seemed to believe). Then after a series of heat/cool cycles and vacuum cycles, the overtightened carb would have nowhere to expand or contract, so it would do so unevenly. Ie: the (unbolted) center would flex, while the edges were held in place by the over torqued bolts. This would cause warpage, which in turn would cause bad seals at the various gaskets in the carb. This is very common to see in the air horn section of quadrajets. Not sure where it is observed on the webers.

Another good reason to be changing it out for a TrollHole.

 

[Vae Victus]

Progress this weekend: removed the old Weber carb, began removing the old front blinkers to replace with new ones. Replaced the headlights with OEM for now. Hope to upgrade to LED or HID in the future.

Does the 40 have a high beam switch stock?



Removed the fuel tank (plastic - hmmm) and the fuel collector (also plastic). Floor was not too bad under it. Looks worse from below.








Then hosed out the inside of the truck to get all the caked on dust and grime that coated it. Came out a lot cleaner.

Worked on the drivers floor board. It was coated with something that was thick (maybe 1/4") and black, maybe POR15 that I read so much about? I chiseled it out with a big screwdriver and a hammer.







It came off in brittle chunks. Floor was virgin under it!

This morning, decided to punt on the idea of finding an inexpensive OEM booster rebuild, and went to the PullAPart for the first time. Pulled a 1995 Camry booster in about 25 minutes [EDIT - does not fit, too new!]. Pretty cool place. Felt like a criminal walking around looking inside all the cars. Very clean booster and valve for $28. Still has clear grease on the spindle. They even put little deodorize in in all the cars. I didn't even get my khakis (too) dirty.

Have about $500 in parts sitting in the SOR cart at the moment. About to pull the trigger. Getting the transfer case small parts kit, plus the additions 2-3 gaskets they said "get if needed". How the h*ll do I know if I need them until I get in the middle of this? Since they were cheap, I went ahead.

I'll tell ya, this intimidates the cr@p out of me. I've never done transmission work, and I'm kinda dreading it.

Also included is new voltage regulator, emblems and pads for the rear, new door panels (doors are from the same donor truck that gave the hood evidently). The more I dig, the more I learn.

I'm to the point now where I can begin to put the engine bay stuff back together again. Once water pump arrives, I'll put it back together. I'll work on the transfer case gaskets and bearings, fix the eBrake pads that are soaked (kit in hand already), then radiator, hoses, belt, etc.

Need to get mirrors, replace blinker flasher units, and then, hopefully, take it to go thru (fail) emissions, and get the title transferred!

Then the real work begins, but that can wait a while.

Thoughts?

Oh, burning question - the hood is structurally weak when lifted from one corner. The central brace that runs from back to front is not connected. Is the supposed to be spot welded? I see no welds or bolts in it.

 

[Jtk72]

That black rubber stuff was some kind of heat dampener that Toyota laid down (that's what I was told, anyway). I've got it on my 74. I try to steer clear of SOR. I try to use cruiserparts.net when I can. Their customer service is nothing less than Amazing and they have just about everything - call them and they'll try to find it for you.

Joel

 

[FishTacos]

That black rubber stuff was some kind of heat dampener that Toyota laid down (that's what I was told, anyway). I've got it on my 74. I try to steer clear of SOR. I try to use cruiserparts.net when I can. Their customer service is nothing less than Amazing and they have just about everything - call them and they'll try to find it for you.

Joel

X2

cruiserparts has been great to me. They just dont have a comprehensive website. The stuff they post on their site is just a miniscule sample of what they have. SOR, on the other hand, has a great web portal but higher prices.

 

[Jtk72]

Yep, I use SOR to figure out what I need and the high end price, then I hit up cruiserparts.
I need a better name, like "fish tacos" - was going to use "twinkles" but I thought I might give off the wrong first impression. Anyways, great thread. You've given me the courage to go deeper and all hands on with my own FJ.

 

[Vae Victus]

Yep, I use SOR to figure out what I need and the high end price, then I hit up cruiserparts.
I need a better name, like "fish tacos" - was going to use "twinkles" but I thought I might give off the wrong first impression. Anyways, great thread. You've given me the courage to go deeper and all hands on with my own FJ.

You didn't mention such a cool name like Vae Victus? Wow, how'd you miss that?

SOR certainly has a comprehensive site. So far though, with the SOR member discount, they've been within a dollar plus or minus.

I have a big list of, well, stuff, and went back and forth between the two comparing prices. So far the big difference has been the flasher module, but that was a used vs NOS price, so not really a comparison.

I'll take your word (and Fish and Rick) and give cruiserparts a shot.

Re confidence: this board is great for that! Everyone is very helpful. And - these things are really simple to work on vs anything new. It's all metal and thus all repairable. Working on a MINI is all plastic and there is no fixing that stuff.

 

[Chamba]

Sure, very cool name but none of us will ever admit that we have been conquered by our Cruisers....our wives perhaps, but never our Cruisers.

 

[Jtk72]

Aw, heck. I just looked up your name and, man, now I must change my name. I thought I was being original using my initials... So far I've been lucky with mine. I started out thinking that I'd just get the electrical up to snuff and hire a mobile mechanic to get the timing and everything right. Unfortunately, I have the attention span of a cricket so I kept jumping around to different areas on it. After finally learning to focus and figuring out this is a marathon, not a sprint, i was able to clean out most of the switches and just about cried when I pulled the wiper switch and the wipers started working. I learned that steel wool catches fire when you clean the fuse contacts with the battery connected. (Coolerman should mention this ). You are absolutely right about these vehicles and their ruggedness. My FJ sat most of its life and just about everything seems original. The crazy thing is, everything seems to work once I clean it up. When i bought it, i was told the radio doesnt work. I pulled it out and saw theres a hidden fuse in the back that was blown - I'm hoping thats it. The p.o. Dorked with the wiring in the back and there's a mystery wire coming off of the alternator, but everything else seems to be pretty good. I'm hoping to get my radiator back on this week, flush the system, finishing my heater rebuild, and start messing with mechanicals this weekend.

I have the leaky brake cylinder like you but I've been afraid to mess with it. I guess I'll bide my time and see how yours turn out

Thanks again for the thread.

 

[Chamba]

Aw, heck. I just looked up your name and, man, now I must change my name. I thought I was being original using my initials....

How about 'twinkle taco'? I'm almost certain it's not taken.

If you like the Latin, how about 'Rex robus' in honour of your Cruiser?

Latin can be good or bad as nowadays only lawyers and clergy understand it and neither are held in particularly high regard. Being a member of the former, I appreciate a good Latin turn of phrase....which is probably all the more reason to steer clear of the ancient tongue.

 

[Jtk72]

It was supposed to be "Twinkie" (the foodstuff) but my iPad autocorrected... Twinkie Taco would raise an eyebrow or two, huh?

 

[Vae Victus]

Latin can be good or bad as nowadays only lawyers and clergy understand it and neither are held in particularly high regard. Being a member of the former, I appreciate a good Latin turn of phrase....which is probably all the more reason to steer clear of the ancient tongue.

I will admit that Vae Victus is my XBox online name. The proper Latin phrase would be Vae Victis, but no one knows Latin, and it doesn't really roll off the tongue. My 13 YO son is Sol Invictus (the "Invincible Sun"). We thought it was a cool double entendre, while we were killing Spetznatz soldiers online. I'm not quite as invincible as he is now. My Xbox heyday was about 10 years ago when it first came out but it is still fun to play with him from time to time.

 

[Vae Victus]

It was supposed to be "Twinkie" (the foodstuff) but my iPad autocorrected... Twinkie Taco would raise an eyebrow or two, huh?

Hey, it's better than Vae Victus. I like it. It's like wearing a pink shirt - you have to be sure of yourself.

 

[Vae Victus]

So, is there any hope of getting this top back to factory white?

 

[RWBeringer4x4]

All this talk of fancy names, and here I am using, essentially, my full name, and "4x4." Very creative, indeed...

I'll take your word (and Fish and Rick) and give cruiserparts a shot.

Since I just learned I'm dealing with at least one Lawyer here...I just wanted to point out that you got your sources crossed. I have provided no referrals or recommendations, expressed or implied, for cruiserparts.net. This is not to say they are a bad outfit, I have simply never ordered anything from them. So unless there are two Rick's on this thread - I wanted to get the facts straight.

You are absolutely right about these vehicles and their ruggedness. My FJ sat most of its life and just about everything seems original. The crazy thing is, everything seems to work once I clean it up.

Whenever I show off my FJ40 to friends, I tend to get the same response. They look at my truck, they look at me, they look back at the truck, and then there's always some variation of "WHY?!"

My response is always the same: "Hey, everything is broken, but everything works." These little trucks are the cockroaches of motor vehicles. It is d@mn near impossible to kill them. You can drive them up to their windshields in water, crash them into trees, pull parts off them, put different parts in, roll them, even set them on fire (just ask Vae Victus) and they will keep going...

Strongly considering changing my truck's name from Clustertruck, to "Roach..."

 

[RWBeringer4x4]

So, is there any hope of getting this top back to factory white?

Belt sander or angle grinder, respirator, about 5 hours of your weekend, and white marine gel coat.

Also, check out this thread. This guy had to remove roofing tar:

https://forum.ih8mud.com/40-55-series-tech/406615-roof-restoration-tar-baby.html

 

[Titan]

So, is there any hope of getting this top back to factory white?




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get a good quality orbital sander and bulk Velcro pads (cheaper) from an auto paint store 3M is best, start with 80 grit,and knock off down to primer coat, then switch to 120, the finer you go ,the less work it is on finish coats, I use a High Build primer,allowing me to finish sand with 300 grit. areas rusted thru, I cut with an angle grinder and metal fill. fortunately there's not really a lot of metal "body" on these trucks, I repainted a 69 ford galaxy..now that was a bear. Lookin good Amigo.

 

[TCSTARK]

Scott - you are teetering on the edge of a frame off my friend. This is exactly how I started. I purchased and orbital sander to sand off the rear quarters and sill on Big Blue and wound up with Bigger Blue.





My bodywork assistant sanding away.





Might as well sandblast all the tiny bits





If I am going to repaint the exterior I need to repaint the interior. Out goes all of the interior.





If I have gone this far it only makes sense to buy a second cruiser since this one has the frame powder coated and the tub is pristine.

The moral of the story is to drive it and have fun. Yes, it would be awesome to go back to the stock paint color. But,.. It is a slippery slope and everyone here can attest that the rabbit hole is indeed very deep.

Keep up the good work!

 

[Jtk72]

Hey, it's better than Vae Victus. I like it. It's like wearing a pink shirt - you have to be sure of yourself.

Now that's funny. My fj is a factory soft top without a top so maybe I could go with the "Topless Texan"... I bet I get a lot of profile views -and unsolicited offers for help.

 

[Jtk72]

All this talk of fancy names, and here I am using, essentially, my full name, and "4x4." Very creative, indeed...

Since I just learned I'm dealing with at least one Lawyer here...I just wanted to point out that you got your sources crossed. I have provided no referrals or recommendations, expressed or implied, for cruiserparts.net. This is not to say they are a bad outfit, I have simply never ordered anything from them. So unless there are two Rick's on this thread - I wanted to get the facts straight.

Whenever I show off my FJ40 to friends, I tend to get the same response. They look at my truck, they look at me, they look back at the truck, and then there's always some variation of "WHY?!"

My response is always the same: "Hey, everything is broken, but everything works." These little trucks are the cockroaches of motor vehicles. It is d@mn near impossible to kill them. You can drive them up to their windshields in water, crash them into trees, pull parts off them, put different parts in, roll them, even set them on fire (just ask Vae Victus) and they will keep going...

Strongly considering changing my truck's name from Clustertruck, to "Roach..."

My parents were here a few months ago, visiting from Michigan for a few weeks. My dad and I spent a lot of time working on the Fj. My mom just couldn't figure out why I was willing to put so much effort into it. There's a feeling of accomplishment that I get every time I clean a switch or track down a frayed wire. I look at this "roach", just sitting there, staring at me with those unblinking round eyes and I can't help but want to pick up my ratchet and start working on it. I've never worked on anything so frustrating yet so rewarding in my life.

 

[Jtk72]

Scott - you are teetering on the edge of a frame off my friend. This is exactly how I started. I purchased and orbital sander to sand off the rear quarters and sill on Big Blue and wound up with Bigger Blue.

My bodywork assistant sanding away.

Might as well sandblast all the tiny bits

If I am going to repaint the exterior I need to repaint the interior. Out goes all of the interior.

If I have gone this far it only makes sense to buy a second cruiser since this one has the frame powder coated and the tub is pristine.

The moral of the story is to drive it and have fun. Yes, it would be awesome to go back to the stock paint color. But,.. It is a slippery slope and everyone here can attest that the rabbit hole is indeed very deep.

Keep up the good work!

There was a guy down in mcAllen, Texas on the Houston Craigslist that was selling a 64 fj45 (long bed?) along with a 1974 40 for $1500 or $2500 if you are looking for a few more projects for your daughter