'82 HJ60 - Intro Post

[englechad]

Hey Mudders,

Long time lurker - wanted to introduce myself and my HJ60. I took delivery of it last week and purchased from a fellow mudder here who has taken extremely good care of it.

It's a 1982 HJ60 with 122k miles that was imported from Australia in 2007. Sarah (apocalypsegrrrl) did a ton of work removing rust, restoring parts & bringing it to the awesome condition it is now. I am definitely going to continue to carry that torch. Recently it had a new clutch, new master cylinder & a new water pump installed.

I'm a longtime car enthusiast and have owned all kinds of stuff throughout the years. This HJ replaced my '14 Tundra (why not go vintage right?) and will be my daily along with a Dual Sport motorcycle. (CRF250L)

My plans for the future are pretty simple, continue the restoration and upgrade a few things as we go.

Plans:
- update / restore interior (drivers seat bottom needs replaced, unsure if I want to keep the bench)
- OME suspension (do I need a special set since I'm RHD or do I just reverse the fronts since they're side specific?)
- upgrade wheels / tires (love the split rims but, they freak me out. I also know my rear axels are different, anything I should keep in mind there?)
- upgrade lighting (already swapped for LEDs in the dash, new cibies soon)
- relay rod / tie rod (need some help sourcing parts on this one?? Steering wheel is a solid quarter turn off and super squishy. Found tie rods but, not relay rods)
- Repair exhaust leak (burned through) should I get a custom or a catback? (I assume diesel and gas are the same exhaust? Can't find diesel only anywhere)
- fix A/C & Heat (blower currently doesn't turn on, checking fuses first...)

Future:
- roof tent
- 5spd
- some other goodies

Anything I should keep an eye on / watch out for? Looking forward to sharing some adventures.

 

[TLC Norway]

Welcome, and congrats on the beauty!
Sounds like you have the plan figured, and if it was my rig, I'd also start with the maintenance and service points, while saving up for a ome kit.

Fix the steering, get familiar with the brakes, bring a solid spare for the long runs.
A mod I really recommend is bmw seats, and you can buy bolt in brackets from @torfab at least for the drivers side, don't know about the bench side.

 

[englechad]

Welcome, and congrats on the beauty!
Sounds like you have the plan figured, and if it was my rig, I'd also start with the maintenance and service points, while saving up for a ome kit.

Fix the steering, get familiar with the brakes, bring a solid spare for the long runs.
A mod I really recommend is bmw seats, and you can buy bolt in brackets from @torfab at least for the drivers side, don't know about the bench side.

Thank you! Definitely am going to fix the steering. Trying to double check that I have the correct parts for RHD and finding a relay rod kit seems somewhat difficult...

Will definitely have 5 wheels too... Only way to roll. pun intended.

BMW seats -
Ive considered them, I almost want to keep factory and be some sort of purist & recover them but, Ive seen a couple sweet builds with bimmer seats. (Theron)

Maintenance & Service points -
Can you expand on which ones you'd snipe first? Definitely going for working rig 1st then upgrading 2nd but, this thing is in solid running order currently and am going to keep it that way.

 

[TLC Norway]

Most serviceable parts are easy to find if you know what to search for or who to ask
I get most of my parts from George at Valley Hybrids (@orangefj45 ) or you can check with Kurt @cruiseroutfit or Onur @beno
Depending on where you are located, or who can get the parts. Send off a PM for your needs.

You should try out other seats if you are planning to change seats, as it is very subjective choice.
I am quite tall, and never felt comfortable in the stock seats, and with my back condition i need to vary the seat geometry alot during a long drive, which is why i went with electric bmw seats, as they move in every direction.

On what service points to address first... i dunno, it depends. I guess you have a 2H that is 24v? or is it 12v?
Most 2H's run forever if basic maintenance is followed. I run a semi-synth oil 10-40, and change filter every 5-7k, and fuel filter once a year.
I swap the batteries side to side when changing oil, as the lower one has a tendency to get less charge in the 24v circuit.
Check that NOTHING is tapped for 12v on your lower side battery, that every 12v need is ran through a converter. (lots of info here on the subject)
A recent thread was started in the 60 section, a chick got a nice 60 and is prepping it for winter conditions, lots of good info there.
Plan to rebuild knuckles if they haven't been done.
Check that your driveline is tight, that the u joints in the driveshafts are smooth and greased.
Check/change oils on gear, transfer and diffs if they are in bad condition. Make sure diff breathers are not clogged.
Check wheel bearings, i see you have a full floater rear, so you'll have to pull off the driveshaft to check the wheel bearings in the rear.
Check water hoses and drive belts.

-i don't know your skill level, and i'm just listing stuff that i check often because i'm anal about the maintenance since my 60 is a DD.

Enjoy the ride!

 

[hj 60]

Nice truck, a lot was done already but nice stock look.
To find parts just read a bit and find the mud sellers and also for small specific parts the dealer is fine (bolts, gaskets, just find the part number)

The tie/releay rods are important for safety, 2 of them are adjustable, difficult job and better to do all at once.
Brake lines can be rusted, the whole front end at once seems a better fix than a lot of small repairs (brake discs, pads, bearings, birfields, seals)
Tires splitrims are fine, no danger, anything fits.

I can post a lot of pictures but the maintenance manual is a good starter:

1986 Maintenance 26 pag.pdf

 

[englechad]

Most serviceable parts are easy to find if you know what to search for or who to ask
I get most of my parts from George at Valley Hybrids (@orangefj45 ) or you can check with Kurt @cruiseroutfit or Onur @beno
Depending on where you are located, or who can get the parts. Send off a PM for your needs.

You should try out other seats if you are planning to change seats, as it is very subjective choice.
I am quite tall, and never felt comfortable in the stock seats, and with my back condition i need to vary the seat geometry alot during a long drive, which is why i went with electric bmw seats, as they move in every direction.

On what service points to address first... i dunno, it depends. I guess you have a 2H that is 24v? or is it 12v?
Most 2H's run forever if basic maintenance is followed. I run a semi-synth oil 10-40, and change filter every 5-7k, and fuel filter once a year.
I swap the batteries side to side when changing oil, as the lower one has a tendency to get less charge in the 24v circuit.
Check that NOTHING is tapped for 12v on your lower side battery, that every 12v need is ran through a converter. (lots of info here on the subject)
A recent thread was started in the 60 section, a chick got a nice 60 and is prepping it for winter conditions, lots of good info there.
Plan to rebuild knuckles if they haven't been done.
Check that your driveline is tight, that the u joints in the driveshafts are smooth and greased.
Check/change oils on gear, transfer and diffs if they are in bad condition. Make sure diff breathers are not clogged.
Check wheel bearings, i see you have a full floater rear, so you'll have to pull off the driveshaft to check the wheel bearings in the rear.
Check water hoses and drive belts.

-i don't know your skill level, and i'm just listing stuff that i check often because i'm anal about the maintenance since my 60 is a DD.

Enjoy the ride!

Now we're talking I'm with ya on all of that (skill level wise) appreciate the robust list!!

 

[englechad]

Nice truck, a lot was done already but nice stock look.
To find parts just read a bit and find the mud sellers and also for small specific parts the dealer is fine (bolts, gaskets, just find the part number)

The tie/releay rods are important for safety, 2 of them are adjustable, difficult job and better to do all at once.
Brake lines can be rusted, the whole front end at once seems a better fix than a lot of small repairs (brake discs, pads, bearings, birfields, seals)
Tires splitrims are fine, no danger, anything fits.

I can post a lot of pictures but the maintenance manual is a good starter:

1986 Maintenance 26 pag.pdf

Thank you! Will definitely look at my brake lines.

I know split rims are fine... But, airing up & down, removing them etc. and finding a tire shop that will change them is another thing to think about. Would also like to get into a 8" wheel for a wider tire. Thanks for the maintenance manual! Appreciate it

 

[cruiseroutfit]

...My plans for the future are pretty simple, continue the restoration and upgrade a few things as we go.

Congrats on the new rig!

...- OME suspension (do I need a special set since I'm RHD or do I just reverse the fronts since they're side specific?)

Overall the same, simply discuss your RHD when you purchase and the OME kit can be tailored to your RHD setup.

...- relay rod / tie rod (need some help sourcing parts on this one?? Steering wheel is a solid quarter turn off and super squishy. Found tie rods but, not relay rods)

We have all the RHD TRE's and tie-rod and drag-link tubes:
Cruiser Outfitters

Let us (Cruiser Outfitters) know if we can help out with some parts!

 

[englechad]

Congrats on the new rig!



Overall the same, simply discuss your RHD when you purchase and the OME kit can be tailored to your RHD setup.



We have all the RHD TRE's and tie-rod and drag-link tubes:
Cruiser Outfitters

Let us (Cruiser Outfitters) know if we can help out with some parts!

Thank you for the info! Will definitely be coming your way shortly for the TRE's and RRE's

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Thank you for the info! Will definitely be coming your way shortly for the TRE's and RRE's

Say the world, loads of them in stock

 

[sitesbyjoe]

That is one awesome 60! Love the barn doors!

 

[Hondu]

Awesome truck! It would look (and ride) even better with the OME. It was one of the first things I did to mine and it transformed the truck. Not to mention, your truck is begging for some factory cable lockers. Congrats!

 

[Tapage]

no one .. ? seriously ..

great addition / addiction put a turbo on it ..