Buck's Dirty Bird Build Thread

[blbuck12]

The progress continues on turning the Dirty Bird into a reliable DD. Installed new stock replacement front shocks and new front side marker lights as the old ones were destroyed. Definitely rides much smoother with the new front shocks. I couldn't managed to loosen the top nuts on the old shocks so I just took a cut off wheel to them and skipped the headache. Still need to find time to get the rear ones installed. That will have to waiting until next month since I'm leaving for 2 week motorcycle road trip this weekend.

A new noise coming from the clutch pedal started last week, like a kind of grinding with a small bang. Turns out the clutch pedal linkage has broken and there wasn't quite enough room for it to completely fall apart so when I'd step on the pedal it would all jam back together as it slid over the threaded post. A quick touch with the welder and I was able to weld the nut back on and the clutch pedal is good to go again.

Next items on the list are to install the new rear shocks, chase down some idling gremlins when hot, bleed the brakes and drop the tank to fix a potential leak. and the list continues to grow

 

[blbuck12]

The bird left me somewhat stranded last week when some dirt or something made it's way into the carb. Pulled the top of the carb off and also realized my accelerator pump was getting shredded... Ended up picking up a lightly used Trollhole carb as to hopefully make my life a bit easier. Today I pulled the stock carb and dropped in the Trollhole after giving it a bit of an inspection. After getting it started and setting the idle it runs real smooth. Definitely a little better than the stock carb, but not perfect. Still need to set timing and make sure I'm not goofing anything up. @HemiAlex Any tips on setting this bad boy up, I know you have been waiting for me to ask!

I haven't used a light to set timing since I don't have it with me. There is a bit of a flat spot from 1,500-2,000rpms then things get better after 2k. Also, I think there may be an issue with the accel pump as the plunger wasn't a snug fit in it's hole and there is a noticeable lack of response when pressing the accelerator. These issues are hardly noticeable in 1st and 2nd, but are definitely there in 3rd and 4th.

Currently have the one vacuum port hooked up to the Vac advance on the distributor, and the HAC advance port on the dizzy is capped. Is this correct or should the HAC advance port be left open?

How do you have your VTV setup for the EVAP system?

Does the stock carb accel pump plunger fit the trollhole?

 

[NeverGiveUpYota]

@OSS or @mwebfj60 any thoughts to help this guy out?

 

[gt7058a]

I just put on a Fuji carb from city racer that is similar to a troll hole. The connections I used are here.

What did you do with your 60 this weekend?

 

[mwebfj60]

HAC advance port should be capped when not in use just to keep funk out. It operates independently from the primary. The single port on the carb, you can use a T and send one side to the vacuum advance and the other side to the 's' port on the VCV. Just make sure the advance diaghragm and the VCV will hold vacuum.

 

[blbuck12]

@gt7058a So you have the S to gas filter (3 prong thing), X to carb cover. So you are not using the BVSV at all?

@mwebfj60 Great, I'll double check my diaphragms are still in good order, and do the paperclip test

 

[gt7058a]

@gt7058a So you have the S to gas filter (3 prong thing), X to carb cover. So you are not using the BVSV at all?

@mwebfj60 Great, I'll double check my diaphragms are still in good order, and do the paperclip test

My BVSV wasn't working so well in terms of air flow so I deleted it from the circuit. I may buy one from city racer at some point, but haven't noticed issues without it.

 

[blbuck12]

After a few days of finicking with the trollhole carb I finally have things dialed in pretty well. The bird is definitely the most drive-able it has been yet! Power is great and idles around 600 consistently. Haven't had any stalls or mishaps with it, with is much more than I can say with my old stock Aisin.

When i first setup the trollhole though, it ran okay but wouldn't take any throttle unless it was down hill or over a long period of time. I discovered pulling the choke to fast idle immediately solved that issue. Throttle response, power and idle all immediately improved. So I just tightened the cable so i don't have to have it pulled out at all, and it's solid.

Finally got around to installing my new rear Monroe shocks, had installed the fronts a month or two ago. Also swapped out the stereo for a new bluetooth unit. Pioneer MVH-390BT Now I can avoid the "no touchy cell phone" law in WA.

Next on the list is to paint the grill black, fix the dome light open door wiring, shampoo carpets/seats, ...

 

[blbuck12]

After a little camping a couple weeks ago I decided I wanted to add some additional lighting to the rear gate area. Already had a bright LED in the cargo area but I doesn't make it's way onto the gate much at all. So I had the idea to add some LED strip along the middle of the gate to light it up. Decided to mess around with it last night and ended up adding about 3' of flexible weatherproof LED strip lighting to the bottom rubber of the rear window. Wired it through the hole for the rear glass element and under the head liner to the back of the rear cargo light. For the time being I wired it to the gate activated ground so it always comes on when you open the gate. I play to rewire it so it works with a separate switch than the dome light.

As of now it's bright as hell, and could probably have gone with a little less than 3' of lights. But now there is no way I won't be able to see what's going on back there. Will post another photo of the wiring if anyone is curioius

Enough typing here are some pics.

 

[Spike Strip]

Wow. Looks like a theater marquee.

Yes, post some pix of the wiring when you get a chance. I'm gonna do this and agree, an On/Off switch would be welcome.

How did you attach the LED strip?

Thanks for posting.

 

[blbuck12]

I'll take a pic today in the sunlight so it's easier to see. The flexible LED strip has a peel'n backing to it. Holds well enough, but could see it getting pulled off the rubber of something catches it enough

 

[blbuck12]

Like usual, I didn't take photos while I was doing it. Here are a couple photos that show how I routed the wires along with the connectors I used to splice it in. Pulling the rubber grommet out and using a solid copper wire to pull everything through was an absolute must. That and carefully pulling back the headliner from the corner.

The routing of the two wires. I used black wires for both the - and + so they would be less noticeable.

 

[blbuck12]

Finally picked up a new steering damper and adjusted my alignment. Motivation was driving on a grooved highway in a heavy wind, aka scary s***. There was 0" of toe in, so set that at about 1/8" after using a torch to try and loosen the rod ends.

Got a replacement steering damper and really needed to massage the original with a torch and a 5lb hammer to remove it.

Oh my word what a difference with the toe in and a working steering damper. Definitely in the top 3 of 'improvement of driving experience upgrades' that I've done so far.


Next items on the list is repairing the cracked dash, new seats (current ones are really starting to kill me) and installing some new window runs.

Also going to start working on a sleeping platform for next spring and summer. Hoping to build something similar in design to the one in this video of an FJ Cruiser build (video here). So something without drawers that packs into itself and relatively light.

 

[blbuck12]

Figured it's about time I provide an update. updates organized by system, not chronologically.

(Carb) In the last couple months I have ran into a handful of carb issues. I followed pinheads videos and the FSM to rebuild my stock carb and after a few weekends of wrenching, swearing and tinkering i've got it running smooth and strong.

(Brakes) After picking up my SO from the airport on a rainy evening I had to stomp the brakes due to some sudden traffic and discovered that my rear wheels could spin freely while the front wheels locked up... Not a fun situation. Pulled apart the rear drums the following weekend to find brand new pads out back with no wear. After a full day of trying to diagnose the drums, figured out that the master was totally shot.

(Lighting) Got a pair of Hella H4 conversions from Santa and got them installed in no time. One of my favorite gifts this year and they make a helluva difference!

(Seats) The foam in the drivers seat was far from plush or supportive so i pulled the drivers seat. Used a big knife and a razor to cut away a decent amount of the stock foam then added some high density upholstery foam I had around from an old project. Haven't gotten around to installing it yet and I've been working on sealing a leak along the firewall that has been soaking my drivers footwell. Carpet should be dry next weekend so will be all ready to get the re-foamed seat a test ride. Sitting on it outside of the vehicle it feels like a massive upgrade.

(Dash) Removed the dash this past weekend in order to do a little rehab on the crabs and give it new life. Plan is to cut back the cracks, fill and coat in SEM Textured Dash Spray. That's right, it will be a black textured dash. I don't have any attachment to the vinyl dash and don't like the dash caps at all. Figured I can try the black texture look, and if I don't like it I can paint it with SEM Flexible coating to match the original color. Or if it looks like total crap, i'll just wrap it in grey marine vinyl to get close to original. I'm planning on doing some black BMW seats this year so I think the black seats and black dash might work well together.

(Body) I thought I had killed all my leaks this past summer by re-sealing my gutters, well turns out that wasn't the case. Realized a few weeks ago my drivers footwell was soaked and decided to figure out why. At first it looked like the big grommet coming through the firewall was the culprit as it was wet on the inside and had a big tear in it. Sealed that up but it didn't do the trick. Used some food coloring to trace down the leak to the sealant in front of the hood hinge. Decided to be thorough and removed the fender to seal up everything that could be causing the leak. Glad i did as there was some rust forming at the bottom of the windshield and making it's way south.

That's about all i can think of now. Have a ton planned for this year with the goal of having the major repairs/upgrades done by late june for the NW Overland Rally.

Going to be working on re-doing my dash this week, fixing a blown out tire valve and trying not to spend too much $ on parts.

 

[blbuck12]

"Progress" continues on the dirty bird. Have been working on a few things here and there and will lay them out in order from complete to totally goobered.

1) Finally got some sunny and warm weather here in the Pac NW so took advantage of that to install the BOSS airbag kit from @SLOCRUISER. Didn't get much seat time after the install but plan to test them out soon on some forest roads soon. The airbags bolt in where the bump stops are and get held to the axle under the U-bolts. As per tradition, all of my bump stop bolts broke off with about 1/4 to 1/2 turn. Thank Cthulhu that I had some nutzerts in my tool box that I have been waiting to use. So had to drill new holes and buy new bolts. Things went smoothly after that until I overheated the drill bit on the last hole and had to sharpen my new drill bit with an angle grinder... whoops! Couldn't have completed the install without a 90* drill attachment, nutzerts, a fresh drill bit and a breaker bar for the Ubolts.

Also forgot to take an after picture... Even without air in the bags, the top of the wheel well seems to sit about an 1" higher. Plan to always run some pressure though as the bags are mainly to help the old tired suspension.


2) Got around to completing the Oil Galley Plug Fix. After reading about it dozens of times on here I finally decided to read what it actually is and discovered my plug was the cause of the oil constantly coating the side of the engine. Got the Irwin drill & tap and got it done in a little over a hour last weekend. Definitely gives me a little more peace of mind.

3) I had preciously sealed my fender and the lip inside the engine bay to stop the constantly wet floor in the drivers well. Turns out the sealant I used reacted with water or something else and never cured solid. After a week I found water on the floor again. I started prodding the sealant and found that it was soft and came apart like room temperature mild cheddar cheese. Very specific I know, but accurate. After 20 minutes with a wire wheel it was entirely out and I re-did the sealant with a tube of SEM sealant. It cured quickly and with waaay better results than the tube I found laying around. Another lesson of using the correct product the first time. Luckily nothing major was lost or damaged.

4) So now for the totally boogered... I started working on fixing my severally cracked dash. Used a dremel and various tools to carve out the cracked and get things flat or low. Filled the holes with hot glue and then bondo.

 

[blbuck12]

After getting everything smooth I coated it with some SEM texture spray which left it a very nice matte black. And here is where it started to go down hill. After reading the back of the can I realized it needed to be top-coated so i grabbed a can of gray spray paint and gave it a even coat. Then after a week or so of sitting in the car (not even installed) I came back to find the dash had cracked again. Some entirely new cracks, and some that were along some of the fixes.

My guess is that I used regular spray paint when I should have used the Classic Coat flexible spray that is specifically designed for this application. But it totally skipped my mind at the time and I was eager to get the dash finished.

I pondered for a while on what to do. Sand it, and retry or maybe wrap in vinyl? Unfortunately instead of giving it another go I decided to wrap my dash in vinyl... After a significant amount of spray adhesive and contact cement I was able to get the black vinyl stretched around the whole dash with minimal folds or creases. I came up with a cleaver idea for the vents that I could use a slight cone shape to help form the vinyl and glue it in place. I ended up using a hair dryer and some glasses from the kitchen that fit perfectly and seemed like they would leave a good end result. Unfortunately that did not happen and they did not stay.

the marine vinyl wrap actually looked really nice and felt great. But there is no way I could live with the vent holes looking the way they did. I tried installing the vents but it looked bad. If anyone has any master tips on getting the vents looking proper I may retry as I have just enough vinyl for 1 more attempt. If not I may try stripping everything off and going to texture route again. Or... I have been wanting to try flocking on the dash.

Next items on the list are a minimal style bed platform for the back and doing some test drives in to get ready for memorial day weekend. Heading to WA coast for a few days and want to make sure she's all ready for some beach cruising

 

[blbuck12]

Well, time flies and progress has continued over the last 8 months. This will cover the major items I've worked on. I'm aiming to be more consistent with my updates and to make some videos of some of the work i'm doing in 2019.

The dash I ended up going back to the SEM dash texture, which still has cracks today. After leaving it in the car a few days, even without a topcoat, it cracked to all hell. That said, it still looks better than the stock cracked dash. Also, turns out the hot glue filler was a bad idea once summer came around. The dash got hot enough that it remelted the glue and formed a few small craters. I thought I was being clever and didn't think about hot it would be getting during the summer... Sometime I'll pull it back out and fix it differently then maybe flock it.

Built a basic bed platform that sits on top the rear seats when folded down. I fit pretty comfortably back there with my +1 but use a sleeping pad because an air mattress eats up too much vertical space. Tested out a few an ended up with some REI 3" mats that I found on special. It also provides nice storage for my tools and keeps them totally hidden from prying eyes. Still need to secure it with some bolts to the floor, but it sits pretty tight back there with the rear seats up.

Was gifted a set of '01 BMW electric seats which have made their way into the cruiser with a set of homemade brackets. I also temporarily/permanently wired them to a cigarette plug so I have to plug them in whenever I want to adjust either one. Which has been about 3 times in the last 4 months. Will eventually wire them up proper, but not today. I will also be picking up a set of BMW brackets because even though I measured about a dozen times my seats do not sit centered or straight to the steering wheel.

Picked up a used OME Medium 2" lift off of craigslist from a nice dude that had a fully built 60. Got that installed over the summer and didn't use the Boss airbags I have so I could try out just the OME kit. Oh man what a difference. No more jumping, bouncing, slamming... Discovered when taking off the 1 year old stock replacement shocks that 1 was already blown, O'reillys was nice enough to take it back on warranty too!

A few months and off road trips later my tie rods got super tired and started clunking quite a bit. Got a set of tie rod ends from Torfab and got those installed after a month or so. My steering improved, but still had some slop and still clunked when turning at low speed/going over bumps. Luckily some local 60 guys just happen to mention that the spring eye sleeve in OME springs are known to come loose and slide back and forth (1st pic below). Which is where the clunking and slop comes from. The fix is to tack weld the sleeve to the spring so it can no longer shift. I looked at my suspension and it was very clear my sleeves were shifting as the spring was not centered in the shackles. Pulled apart the front shackles and gave them a few tack welds yesterday(2nd pic below). Put some new poly bushing in too as the old ones were jacked from the springs shifting. Made a quick little video too in case anyone needs to do it themselves. Huge difference in steering now, no more clunking, maintains alignment. I only did the front of the springs but I think I should get around to the rest of the eye's whenever i change out bushings.

Some other projects that have been crossed off the list
-sound deadening in doors, wheel wells and most cargo area (doors made a huge difference)
-Picked up a new carpet set, will install once all rust holes are repaired
-repaired rusted wheel wells
-replaced fuel pump that died on the freeway
-replaced oil pan gasket, now it's potty trained
-Tinted my windows with 35%, love the way this looks and feels (summer temperatures)
-Installed tow light plugs
-Installed rear 6x9's
-updated and fixed AC, developed small leak after a month or so. Need to re-fix
-increased the length of my project list.

Next items
-more rust repair
-more sound deadening
-maybe dome light timer
-New seat brackets
-install new carpet
-side cover gasket
-change diff. fluid
-Install headers
-install new front discs
-refurb hubs
-paint FJ Cruiser wheels & mount tires

 

[NookShneer]

Made a quick little video too in case anyone needs to do it themselves.

Slick work on that video Buck! Glad that took care of it.

 

[blbuck12]

Another big fix/upgrade done on the dirty bird. Before I learned my brake master cylinder was toast I roasted my front brakes on a long downhill and warped the discs. More recently my cruiser has been pulling left, after a bleeding of the brakes it somehow got worse. Likely a dead piston in the passenger caliper so I picked up some new 1994 4Runner calipers, stock discs and new rubber lines. Got into last weekend and its really nice that my cruiser is no longer trying to pull me into oncoming traffic

New rubber lines, replacing the old cracked garbage

Hydraulic press makes quick work of getting the studs out,

New vs old calipers, big brake kit right!?

New disc installed, oh so nice

Forgot to take a take one with the wheel off, but can see the new calipers peeking through the wheel

Purchased all the parts from Oreilly's, I think it cost just under $200 including new rubber lines all around.

 

[NookShneer]

Another big fix/upgrade done on the dirty bird. Before I learned my brake master cylinder was toast I roasted my front brakes on a long downhill and warped the discs. More recently my cruiser has been pulling left, after a bleeding of the brakes it somehow got worse. Likely a dead piston in the passenger caliper so I picked up some new 1994 4Runner calipers, stock discs and new rubber lines. Got into last weekend and its really nice that my cruiser is no longer trying to pull me into oncoming traffic

New rubber lines, replacing the old cracked garbage
View attachment 1955110


Hydraulic press makes quick work of getting the studs out,
View attachment 1955111

New vs old calipers, big brake kit right!?
View attachment 1955113

New disc installed, oh so nice
View attachment 1955117


Forgot to take a take one with the wheel off, but can see the new calipers peeking through the wheel
View attachment 1955118


Purchased all the parts from Oreilly's, I think it cost just under $200 including new rubber lines all around.

Dirty Bird is starting to look #Baller