Build Bridger - the family 62 build

[cliffrdavis]

I’ve been a long term user of MUD and love the forum. I’ve restored an fj40 and sold her a couple years ago. I purchased an Fj60 with v8 conversion and as soon as I took delivery my wife got ill so I sold it.

Made some tough choices this year and quit my leadership position as a physician at a major university hospital and switched to 50% in January 2026 to support my wife and kids. I figured one of the best ways to fill my time and bring together family was to start a rebuild of an fj62. My 13 year old loves mechanics and my 83yo father was a wrencher when he was younger. So the intention was to get 3 generations working on it for my 13 yo to drive when he turns 16.

Vehicle was on MUD classified for several months with no bites. Just by fate it was located in Blacksburg VA and my family was visiting there as VT is my Alma Mater. Purchased in late 2025 and shipped it to Tampa FL. Looks to have been sitting for a few years but amazingly has no significant body or frame rust. No idea how - as it was located in mountains of VA it’s entire life. Only 120k miles! Several mechanical issues - but that’s the challenge and the intention of the build!

So here is the build thread for BRIDGER - named for bridging 3 generations of my family!

Here is what he looked like at the start - entirely stock including radio, engine and interior.

 

[cliffrdavis]

So I decided to do this build a little differently and develop a goal for the 62 at the end and build that over time instead of what I’ve always done - fix one thing at a time and see how it turns out.

My 13 yo showed me how to use AI image creation and we started brainstorming, collecting photos and mechanical upgrades. We did this for weeks to make sure we started down the right road The current paint is peeling and will need a repaint either way so we were considering color change.

Here is the plan - change color to Toyota Blue, retro graphics, nomad wheels, 3 inch lift, @TRAIL TAILOR bumper and sliders. Hoping to salvage the 3FE and A440 tranny for now. Brake upgrades. Modernize safety, lighting, wipers. Keep interior classic with radio upgrade to CarPlay and touchscreen. Amazing what AI can do if you feed it some details!

 

[cliffrdavis]

Given this is a long term build I first wanted to focus on safety and drivability first. I installed a two post auto lift in my in-laws barn last year.

Brakes were soft, tires were shot, suspension was soft and we planned a wheel/tire upgrade and spring/shackle lift anyway - so we decided to start with brakes, suspension, steering refurbish and front 2005 Tundra big brake upgrade. Planned to remove the axle housings, clean up and paint - same with the frame where exposed.

 

[cliffrdavis]

Rear axle wasn’t leaking and oil looked good so I decided to just remove it - clean up and do complete brake rebuild with new pads, cylinders, hardware and drums.

Got my father and son Colt on this as it was simple mechanical work!

 

[cliffrdavis]

Axle housing, drive shafts, spare tire holder and rear bumper removed and wire brushed and painted - decided on a rustoleum auto frame paint - and their caliper paint for anything that was exposed to heat. Seemed easier than my experience with POR50 but I have no idea how it will hold up. MUD users have suggested it was very good. Bumper had a big dent and was rusted on bottom so I planned to replace it.

Removed the old hitch and sent for powder coating with various tranny, engine, case rock shields.

Notice my son got a lot of this work - unskilled labor

 

[cliffrdavis]

We then removed all the steering arms, front brakes, knuckles and front axle housing, birfs and painted parts got the same treatment. Purchased new tie rod ends from Cruiserteq + knuckle rebuild kits. The steering box felt ok but looked to have some oil residue. I couldn’t tell if it was just crud or leaking. @cruisermatt suggested I keep it and replace with an 80 series box if it leaks later. Bolt on replacement but hard to find - and require you to pull one off a junker and send for rebuild as they aren’t for sale without a core to rebuild at this point.

I had a BITCH of a time removing the last tie rod end from the steering knuckle arm. Eventually had to drill it carefully out with carbide bit! Torch, air hammer, oil, big ass hammer didn’t work!! Same with steering stabilizer end - but after I got the correct air hammer fork I was able to get that off. My rec - if you have an air hammer get the correct fork and save yourself a lot of sweat.

We covered all things that could get wet with moving wrap and power washed most of the parts first. Left it to dry in the sun, then wire brushed them piece by piece. Finally paint a couple coats.

Measured tie rod ends for replacement length (we knew it would change with new suspension but wanted to have a baseline to use).

 

[cliffrdavis]

Just a lot of wire brushing and painting for a couple weeks. Cleaned it all with brake cleaner prior to paint. Nasty crap so we got a carbon filter 3M mask for that!

 

[cliffrdavis]

After we got all the removed parts cleaned and painted I started on the frame. This took a couple weeks.

Since it was on a lift with no drivetrain I couldn’t Powerwash - wish I had before all this. It took a lot more wire brush. There was some remaining undercoating in spots - most had just some surface rust in a few spots. .

Removed front bumper. Looks to be some mild rush here due to a coolant leak that was dripping down the frame to the bumper mounts. I’ll need to figure this out later. Engine and cooling repairs are planned for second stage of this build. Did a little extra rust prevention and removal in this area.

 

[cruisermatt]

the best steering box you can do is a new OE 105 box, we have them and can mod to bolt up to your 62.

 

[cliffrdavis]

Didn’t know that! If this box shows any signs of leaking I’ll be giving you a call!! Thanks Matt!

 

[NYNick]

This is gonna be something...

 

[MWM1]

Great work! Will be watching! Welcome to the FJ62 crowd, more photos, please!
Ty!

 

[cliffrdavis]

Next step was frame painting. I used the same rustoleum product but applied with a brush. It’s thick sticky stuff but actually coated great. And with a flat black finished covered imperfections well. Again- I have no idea of longevity but other forums suggested it was good. Any place I couldn’t reach with a brush I used the spray can version. Here are some pics after the paint. I didn’t powerwash the bottom before I started - which was dumb- but most of the underside just has a thin coat of mud on the body/ tank, etc. I got really lucky on this one.

 

[airmech]

Great work! I'll follow your project. One of the best things for bonding time with your son. Long after I'm gone
my sons will remember Dad for the many, many hot afternoons we spent working on their cars. Take your time and do everything right the first time.
Proud original owner '88 FJ62

 

[cliffrdavis]

Great work! I'll follow your project. One of the best things for bonding time with your son. Long after I'm gone
my sons will remember Dad for the many, many hot afternoons we spent working on their cars. Take your time and do everything right the first time.
Proud original owner '88 FJ62

Thanks airmech - that’s the plan - and particularly for his grandfather that taught me most of these skills when I was 15 on our classic Plymouth Barracuda!

 

[cliffrdavis]

After painting most of the frame I was ready to install the suspension. Decided to do the rear first as the knuckle rebuild and brake upgrade were going to be time consuming and wanted my son to see some progress. It had been a few months and all we had done is tear things down and clean/paint so he was getting bored!

I had ordered my suspension before starting the project from ManAFre - I used them on prior project and everything for well and shipping was quick. Purchased a 3” medium duty OME with anti reverse shackle, sway bar fittings and the extended sway bar kit. I decided to send the sway bars and the rear tire frame support for powder coating as it was growing tired of wire brushing and painting after 4 weeks!

I ordered a LSPV lift bracket from landtank - but quickly noted it was the wrong bolt pattern and he only makes it for the 80 series. I added building a bracket to the list of to dos.

After identifying the leaf spring side based on the markings we painted them the same flat black color. The paint has a rubbery texture like thin undercoat so I figured it would be flexible enough to hold up.

 

[cliffrdavis]

Installing the rear suspension was harder than I expected. The springs had so much bend on them I had a hard time getting them flat/long enough to meet the shackles. I put the entire vehicle weight + ratchet strap and finally got it on. I even called ManAFre and asked if the spring numbers were correct - but just seems they need some flattening and weight.

Somehow between the original pic and actually attaching the spring I turned the shackles upside down. Another MUD member noted it on my brake upgrade post! I still haven’t reversed them yet. Notice how flat the shackles were when they were first installed - didn’t look right to me but seems to be flattening recently with weight and off the lift.

Cruisermatt hooked me up with correct flex brake lines from body to axle housing.

 

[cliffrdavis]

I searched on the forum and copied some ideas for a LSPV bracket to work with the lift. Bought a 2ft section of 1/8 galvanized steel.

I measured the length of the attachment points for the existing mount bracket , multiplied it x 2, then added 3” to compensate for expected height increase to keep it near factory level.

Marked mounting holes for the bracket at both ends. Drilled holes with carbide bit and bent it into a C shape with the 3” vertical length in the middle. Painted with same paint as frame and it mounted right up.

Also forgot to mention I purchased M4 - M10 bolt/nut packs on Amazon which has already come in handy. If a bolt was corroded or threads damaged - they got replaced with new ones.

 

[Alex7]

the best steering box you can do is a new OE 105 box, we have them and can mod to bolt up to your 62.

Hey @cruisermatt , if there is interest, do we contact you ? Site says out of stock. Thanks. (sorry to OP for the hijack)

 

[cruisermatt]

Hey @cruisermatt , if there is interest, do we contact you ? Site says out of stock. Thanks. (sorry to OP for the hijack)

Email is best info@cruisermatts.com