Bean! My FJ60 build and adventure (3 Viewers)

[wardharris]

As near as I can tell, there ain't no such animal as James Baroud USA.... at least a registered business entity (corp, llc, partnership) in New Jersey, New York or Connecticut.

The trademark for James-Baroud (Europe, USA, Australia) is owned by Tony Partenio of Sao Felix Da Marinha, Portugal - a town 48 KM down the road from the apparent corporate HQ of the firm that owns the Baround business.

Kind of confusing.... Good luck with this, love to see how their "5 year manufacturer warranty" deals with your request.

Theron -

I have followed your postings for a while now and am a big fan of you, your photography and your truck. It is always a pleasure to see it in person at Torfab, as two weeks ago (I was the guy in the Lexus delivering parts).

As a "young" importer/dealer of Land Cruiser parts, your challenges with the jersey boys is a great lesson for me in how NOT to build relationships, reputation and brand in our community.

I am sorry for your challenges and hope that they see the light and make it right. If it is any small comfort, please know that my partner and I will try to learn from your experience in our own business dealings.

Thanks for taking the time to document the issue, your efforts and (hopefully) a positive resolution.

Ward

 

[spressomon]

Any update on the James Baroud issue?

 

[theron]

Any update on the James Baroud issue?

Current update on the tent is the very awesome Tom from Adventure Ready (who is a JB dealer) shipped my tent back to "James Baroud USA / OK4WD" for inspection in person....then they are gonna decide if they will honor the warranty. I'm out a tent for at least 2 months during this process and if they deny the claim I'll be responsible for shipping back.

 

[theron]

Bean is back at Tor's shop for an awesome and very necessary refresh


Updates:

- Full float FZJ80 rear axle conversion, using my existing 3.7 gears and ARB locker. The biggest side benefit is that I now get rear disk brakes and still have a functional e-brake.


- Front axle was converted to take 03-06 Tundra brakes using Front Range Off Road caliper brackets


- New OME springs + shocks, and Torfab customized the rear leafs to handle the extra weight...my truck sits level now with no airbags!


- ARB front locker! Since the front axle was apart anyway


-New OEM Toyota U joints in the drivelines, my last set of U joints failed and caused the rear pinion bearing to come loose down in Mexico



Old parts coming off:



Stock FJ60 axel dropped:




Big Tundra brakes up front now! Pumped on these....








Rear axel gets disc brakes now! With a functional FZJ80 e-brake (you can also see the 2 extra leaf packs in the Heaviest ARB pack)






Kept the FJ60 differential




New leafs and ARB sport shocks all around




Custom sway bar and extensions

 

[theron]

Front suspension all refreshed after 70k hard miles:




Worn out earlier model ARB shocks:




New FZJ80 axel installed! The bigger sway bar and new suspension makes my '60 drive like a whole new truck, it's amazing the difference











And! My truck sits level now with no air in the airbags:





I did have to switch to 17" wheels so the Tundra brakes could fit. Ended up using the same style wheel I had before and used a wheel designed for FJ Cruisers with a different offset so my wheels would still tuck. Ended up going with the new BFG KO2's in 34x10.5 over the Duratrac's

 

[MicahMan]

Drooling!

 

[Major Nelson]

somehow this truck has become even more epic.

You selling your old 4Runner front break upgrade and MC?

 

[spressomon]

Current update on the tent is the very awesome Tom from Adventure Ready (who is a JB dealer) shipped my tent back to "James Baroud USA / OK4WD" for inspection in person....then they are gonna decide if they will honor the warranty. I'm out a tent for at least 2 months during this process and if they deny the claim I'll be responsible for shipping back.

Sorry to hear this. Like many "guarantees" the fine print/hassle of returning the goods moves it out of the asset column...

And like the mods you've performed especially the upgrade in brake and rear axle departments!

 

[The Phoenician]

What modifications if any did you have to do to fit the tundra brakes?

 

[mongoose2231]

Same question as above?

 

[MACFJ60]

I absolutely love this thread. Very well done.

 

[theron]

What modifications if any did you have to do to fit the tundra brakes?

Same question as above?

You need the Front Range Off Road caliper brackets, 17" wheels to clear the bigger calipers and the proper Truck spindles....I'll get more details on the exact spindles for ya next week

 

[The Phoenician]

will 16.5 in wheels do? the conversion wouldn't be worth it if I have to also get new wheels and tires.

How much better stopping power do you feel you have. I know the rear disks will improve a the stopping distance a lot.

 

[torfab]

they're 86-95 mini truck or 4 runner spindles, front range brackets,03-06 tundra calipers, rotors, pads. This makes future brake changes easier also, no need to pull the hub to replace the rotor

 

[FJ60Cam]

Which master cylinder do you run with this setup?

Nice work, btw. That's a sweet truck

 

[TLC Norway]

I like that setup!

 

[torfab]

we use a 1993 fzj80 brake master cylinder, a wildwood proportioning valve and a 2psi residual valve

 

[84 yota dude]

Such a cool rig and adventure! That's not original paint is it?

 

[theron]

Which master cylinder do you run with this setup?

Nice work, btw. That's a sweet truck

Here are some pics of the 1993 FZJ80 master cylinder + the Wildwood proportioning valve

 

[theron]

The front end of my rig also received a little refresh. Figured it would look a bit cleaner mostly black:


- Installed a set of the 7" Truck-Lite LED headlamps (these are the same as the GE branded ones)

- Added a set of LightForce 180 LED combo beam driving lights, the PIAA 570's I had before looked good but had bad/low light output

- Black Viking Offroad fairlead, to replace a silver and corroded Warn one + new Warn cover

- 100' of Viking Offroad winch line with a thimble, instead of the Warn hook before

- Set of made in the ole USA Black Shackles....which were tough to find...black made in the USA ones




LightForce 180's and Viking Fairlead/Thimble




Truck-Lite 7" LED (Model #27270C)




Black USA shackles