Builds 81 bj42 build..... trusty rusty (1 Viewer)

[Ambrew]

Ok, so it's been an intense few weeks. I finally was able to take some serious time to get the front axle rebuilt and painted, as well as a paint job for the rear axle. Work finally slowed down and with the frame at the painters, I had the room.

Motivation came from the fact that I didn't want my newly painted frame to sit outside for a few months, so by having the axles done, I can get to a rolling chassis pretty quick.

I started with the front axle, and decided to do it one side at a time, so I would have a backup plan and the parts would be easy to track. Thanks to 'mud, it was pretty easy! Everything inside looked good but i put in new bearings anyways just for peace of mind. I also bought more rags.

wire wheeling was a bitch! Had I not got so far, i would have had it blasted, which is what i did for the rear axle. 40$ was worth it to me! After much research, i got some POR 15 but the finish came out patchy, half matte and half glossy.... A quick spray of gloss black fixed that problem and by the time I will be driving it, I wont care. As long as it doesn't rust! Got all new front brakes since calipers weren't to healthy. Could have saved the rotors, but turning them was half the price of new ones.

Also found a place that rebuilds clutches so that got done, 140$ flywheel machining included! way better than 300$ for a clutch kit.

So now just waitning on the painter who should be done this week! here's the porn:

rebuilt clutch

what I started with

Laying out the parts and shims

rear axle blasted

Ended up getting a parts washer and blasting cabinet from princess auto. Made the job much easier! I do wish however that I would have got it before doing the first knuckle... cleaning the parts was a bitch!

first set of parts cleaned by hand

Fresh POR 15

you can see it's kinda matte

First side done! second set of parts, blasted this time

DONE!

A little bling bling for the hubs too! new plated bolts on the way...

 

[Awl_TEQ]

Very nice work! Who did you use for blasting? Can they do a frame also ( maybe they did yours - I'd have to check back in the thread)

 

[Ambrew]

A guy named mike, has a spot near Kanata, west of Ottawa. Charges the going rate of 100/hour, but works outside so weather dependant. I'm sure he would tackle a frame no problem. My frame (which i get tomorow) was done at RLD industries, in Ottawa on Albion rd. and it will come electrostatically painted (dry). Can't wait to see it!

 

[Ambrew]

Went ot get the frame on Wednesday, looked great! got a bunch of other stuff painted as well (mostly the skid plates and heavily rusted parts). 32 pieces in all. When i got home, I started to assemble the rear bumper and noticed pin holes in the paint, all they way to the metal in spots. Sucks. So, back in the truck and back to the painters. They didn't argue one bit, and sanded before re coating "hot" to get more powder on. Looks good now, but too much paint for the spring pins to fit...Meanwhile i cleaned the engine with degreaser... will be easier to find the leaks now! Looks good enough for now, but an engine rebuild is in the very distant future.

Got the rear hanging on springs so i can move it around, but wont be touching it for another month now due to work.

pinholes. they were in patches everywhere.

installing the rear bumper and spring hangers so i can get it inside before i leave for work, tomorrow morning....

back inside!

 

[Awl_TEQ]

pinholes. they were in patches everywhere.

Looks like what we refer to as "out-gassing" - basically impurities like grease, rust and old paint will give off gasses when baking the powder. Even in microscopic amounts. Also, cast iron pieces will do that because they can be porous. It can usually be dealt with by washing and baking the piece before powder. At least you now have double coverage - always a silver lining

 

[Ambrew]

Yeah, and I got a bill too. If it goes awry in the first 2-3 years, I'll be back. I should have got my sill from you, looks way better than what i go from 4 wheel.... Maybe next time! Already have my ideas set on a 45 or 46........

 

[sityslkrbj70]

Really nice!!

 

[Ambrew]

Hello again it's good to be back.

Finally had some time this week to poke around in the garage! Bought a ton of small parts on my trip to San Fran, and tried to find some stuff on my trip to Japan, but to no avail. Went to see the Toyota technology museum for the second time, and I'm planning to do a small writeup. Great museum that shows you toyota from the beginning!

So before i left, i got the suspension under the frame and started on brake lines. Most of the line are done, with the exception of the 2 going from the frame to the master cylinder. Might just buy those ones, flaring is a bitch.

My buddy Brian came over and helped put the engine back on! starting to feel like a build! So far i have changed a bent manifold stud, new water pump and rtv'ed the rocker cover. That old cork gasket was finito, and took the better part of an hour to remove. Ordered the 2 main seals today, as well as a diaphragm so I'll get all the "maintenance" type things done while it's easy. Got a new primer pump too, just for kicks. I'm waiting on my next trip to the us to order the trans and tcase rebuild kits, cruiser outfitters has the best price by far.

After that, took the steering center arm, sedimenter and steering box apart, sandblasted and 2 coats of por15 tonight. Next step is to put the steering back together, install the exhaust and the pull the crank pulley to get to that seal. can't see further than that for now, but progress is being made!!

New brake line at the knuckle.

Lining up the frame to go under the motor

Brian helping me out. He has an 81 bj42 as well, practicing on mine!

A sandblast cabinet is the way to go. no more wire brushing until the wee hours!

It took a full day to make that stud all shiny and new....... what a pain!

 

[Eric Winkworth]

Looking awesome man! She's really coming together!

 

[Ambrew]

[Transmission woes

It's been awhile, and progress is slow. But today i got into the transmission. Here's the long and short of it:

https://forum.ih8mud.com/40-55-series-tech/549733-h55-help-needed.html

 

[Ambrew]

H55 rebuild!

So i've decided to tackle the trans rebuild myself, with the coaxing of a few fine folks on mud'!

Was a little late on checking the clearances, but oh well. no signs of abnormal wear really.

Wasn't too careful pulling the 5th gear with a bearing puller, so this happened:

and it happened a few more times too, nothing major. All teh chips were filed down nice and purdy.

Had to buil the sst's, this one from 1/2 inch rod:

In action:

And another SST:

I built a sst to hold the drive flange on the tcase, but that was just 2 bolts welded to a piece of suqare tube. not quite picture worthy!

The rear main wouldn't budge, so desperate times called for desperate measures!

In all the excitment, i forgot the split ring on the countershaft before pulling like an idiot.... This is the counter front bearing..

All the guts laid out:

The case in por 15:

And the main ready to go back in!

I have it mostly all together now, just going to install the 5th tomorow. Won't be back at it until march I think...

 

[Ambrew]

Back home! Finally got some serious time at home...... So no time to waste!

Got the 5th gear back on the trans, blasted and painted the shifter, transfer adapter and the hard fuel line. I noticed that soem of the por 15 is flaking off the trans.... Not a good sign. I was hesitant to blast the case, since it would inevitably have some sand stuck in in somewhere... but i did prep very well. what can you do. I filed off what would come off and slapped some more on there. A couple of trail runs and it will all blend in!

So I unwrapped the trans cover this evening, and noticed a serious dign. Dunno if I will replace it, grind it out, or re weld some aluminium and shape it... I'll start another thread and see what the gurus say!

Looks like the 5th gear fork has been heated and bent at some point for the 5th gear "fix".

Shifter and transfer adapter blasted

I had to wire wheel the fuel line... I hope the por15 stick better than on the trans...

The dent:

 

[Gengis]

Nice work so far..

5th Gear Fix??? Could you elaborate. I am having a love hate relationship with a H55F at the moment and any input would be apriciated.
Regards
G

 

[Ambrew]

I ve read on this forum somewhere that, in order to stay in 5th, some people like to bend the shift fork forward a bit. Seems to be an accepted "fix" to the problem. You wil have to do some creative searching....

 

[Gengis]

Cheers , I will keep that in mind, although I never had that problem...
On second looks, could we just be looking at heat treatment, done by Mr. Toyota to harden up that area?????

G

 

[Ambrew]

I doubt it. They would have treated the whole fork... Having 1 hardened area would just create a brittle point.

What is their to hate about your h55? I cant wait to see if I will love mine...

 

[caper]

Subscribed , keep it goin .. about to do the same with mine. How do you like the BX25 I'm about to pull the trigger on a new one.

 

[Ambrew]

Love it! I leased mine at 0% with a 1$ buy back, saved me some taxes.... You will love it. You can do most any job, just takes longer on the big ones. I end up plowing 10 or so driveways every time it snows, just to play around!

 

[Ambrew]

Transmission is done! Got the t case all buttoned up, just add oil. It was fun trying to muscle the trans into the pilot bearing, but after a bit of research on 'mud, I used the bolts to pull it in the last 3/8".

The whole process was kinda held up by parts availability... I wanted to change the pilot and clutch release bearing for good measure, but got shipped the wrong parts. So, after 4 days of waiting, i did some research and found out that the bearings I had were changed 5000km's ago. Cleaned them up and put it all together!

I also wanted the tcase to look clean, so I went down to an engine rebuilder to get them hot tanked. Found out that my hours of scrubbing were better than what he could provide. He also schooled me about glass bead blasting and offered to do it for a reasonable price. I thanked him, went and got a bag of glass bead so i could do it myself. Wow! great results! had I known, I would have put glass bead in my blast cabinet from day 1. It blows the varnished crap right off, and leaves the aluminum in a satin finish. I then gave a quick coat of pewter spary paint, just to help keep it all cean for a bit longer.

To keep it looking like a 42, I butchered the 5 speed shifter and welded the arm off the 4 speed shifter onto the shift nub. looks good, time will tel if I got tha angles right!

A quick blast, ready for paint

I managed to heat up the parts washer, what a difference! going to make a more permanent heater setup... which will be safer than a camp stove wedged under the parts washer...

New bearings and seals

The clearance was too tigh for my liking

So I removed the brackets, moved the bolt holes 4mm up, welded in the bottom of the oval, and paint.

All done! still close, but will allow the whole thing to flex a bit before the driveshaft hits the crossmember.

 

[alberta mac]

Nice work !
Can I suggest looking at the body mounts below front seats, prone to rot.

Cheers !
A.M.