Aug. 85 FJ60 build "The Cruiser" (1 Viewer)

[LittleRedWgon]

This is my page so I can finally document the Journey that I have been waiting to take....I purchased my Aug. 85 FJ60 in July 2011. I have been patiently waiting to get started on her and finally I have had time and funds to dedicate more time and energy to her. I hope you enjoy my trip!

I am lucky to be the second owner of this lovely lady..the good ol boy that I bought her from was a great guy in his early 80's and was ready to pass her on for a new life. He was glad that I had a family with young kids that would enjoy the same kind of trips he took his kids and grandkids on.

He took great care of her and now has passed the torch to me.

Below are the photos of her first day as mine...

 

[rrv333]

Congratulations on the 60!

 

[WHG423]

Looks beautiful!

 

[gregnash]

Awesome 60 and looks to be in great condition. Wow so you bought in 2011 and are just now starting a build thread?! Let alone asking questions on repairs?

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Well, First thing I did was get a few new tires.....Just because I was not quite sure what I was gonna be doing with the lift or suspension and the Cruiser needed them badly. I jumped up a few sizes and went with Les Schwab's Open Country MT 31x10.50 R15.
They are good tires for the price..and If I want to jump up to 32 later, I can talk my wife into the purchase.
Below are before new tire and after new tire images.

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Awesome 60 and looks to be in great condition. Wow so you bought in 2011 and are just now starting a build thread?! Let alone asking questions on repairs?

I have been asking questions and fount the Mud site just a few years ago. Made some not so smart choices, but nothing that screwed her up...Now finally ready to post and get my site updated with what I have done.

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Looks beautiful!

Thanks, Man!

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Decided to do the suspension myself!..I had never done anything like this, so I read up a lot on removal and install....Was a fun project!
I went with SOR Heavy duty 3" Lift kit... Before and after images.. What a difference!

I am lucky that everything came off just fine..no cutting, or really any hard work..(The job was a challenge, but it didn't kill me) I sprayed everything down the week prior with PB Buster..so that probably helped. I was expecting stripped bolts and a lot of pounding, possibly some cutting..but got really lucky. Thanks to the PO..this was an enjoyable task!!

I did a poor job documenting these tasks when I first started...the stuff I do now has many more images.

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Had the pleasure of taking my girl on a 2 week road trip through Oregon, Washington, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming.....Was awesome!
Was excited to get back home and do some modifications! A few images from my journey...On my Trip while crossing the Idaho/Montana border the sweet girl turned over 200K!! was awesome to be there for it!

 

[LittleRedWgon]

More Photos

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Making some modifications to suspension because my clearance just was not as good as I was hoping...Broke a bolt on a rocky road. My fault for not trimming bolts "I Know, I Know"..dumb ass move. But, It really helped me get a handle on some things that I did poorly during my initial suspension install. The SOR Kit is good, I am happy with it, but I made a few errors. I torqued the Shackles too much and over time they bent inward...causing a s***ty ride and other issues...like bushings wearing uneven and breaking down. I should have gotten greaseable bolts for the shackles too. But, You live an you learn. That was before I found Mud!...Now, I know better and will hopefully make fewer mistakes.

While updating the Shackles, I added some needed shims to correct my Castor angle. This has helped my steering and control issues so much!..amazing. I also took the time to basically scrape and clean my under carriage and put a fresh coat of paint.

I have the SOR skid plates...we will see how the hold up. I might switch to the 4+plus bolt flip kit for clearance and the fact that they look solid.
below are some before and after shots..nice and clean now!

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Moved the family from Oregon down to Arizona....decided I needed the windows tinted on the Cruiser...Hot as hell here!
I like how it looks..went with as dark as possible, it helps cut the heat and looks cool too. IMHO. Oh yeah, also added some Nerf Bars..I like em...now trying to decide if I want to get rid of the pin striping the PO did as well as the black trim --door protector.. maybe I'll keep it for a while and see.

 

[gregnash]

Great looking cruiser and welcome to the family and MUD <---- official MUD welcome!

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Great looking cruiser and welcome to the family and MUD <---- official MUD welcome!

Thanks! Glad to be here....Now that is the kind of welcome I can appreciate!
Have a good one!

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Exhaust finally took a big dump...crawled under and noticed that the muffler and tail pipe were shot...had blown out and melted my rear shock boot and burned off the paint to the shock..glad I caught it. Decided to get to work on it and picked up MAF 2-1/2" CAT Back Exhaust system with new CC...Took everything apart and added new bolts, gaskets, new hanger pads and painted heat shield with high temp paint looks pretty nice under there now! Sounds good too!

 

[LittleRedWgon]

While I was under there for the Exhaust system, I picked up a rear Sway bar and mounts from Cruiser yard....Sanded and painted it too. With the lift I needed the Link Extension Kit from SOR... New bushings all around. One problem, the link on the Exhaust side touches the Tail pipe..worried that this will have heat transfer...Any thoughts from anyone??

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Cheap Labor!..He is helping.

 

[srogers]

Nice 60 - thanks for posting

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Started a rear seat conversion....Picked up a 62 rear seat back, stripped it down and also picked up a trashed front seat....Cut out the Head rest from the front seat and welded it into the rear seat for a total of 3 head rests (got 4 kiddos..wife wanted the rear safer) Had a good time with this seat project...Will post the after shots soon. Decided to do an install of Cruiser Crap while I had the seats out...Just finishing it up now!

 

[LittleRedWgon]

Pulled everything out...decided to Quiet Crap the Cruiser! Did 80mil package from Cruiser Crap...was a great fit. was able to do entire floor, double layer on wheel humps, tranny hump, driver, passenger foot beds and rear seat foot bed. Had enough left to do behind the trim panels in cargo area too! I am very lucky that when I pulled everything out, there was no rust..I mean none!..just wiped her down with some Simple Green and a shop vac..was ready to roll!