Builds Build: Rusty Pumpkin Project 74' FJ40 (1 Viewer)

[bdawg23]

Long time reader here and recently picked up this 1974 project. I've had a 2000 LC for a few years now.

So here is what I know so far about this rig:
- SN from frame the frame FJ40 162185
- Engine SN is F 406213
- title says 1974
- I believe the original color is Pollux Orange

The story of the truck from what I was told was that it spent most of its life in Texas as a fleet vehicle, then it was sold to an owner in Florida before the seller purchased it. They drove the truck from FL to PA and the previous owner had it for 8 years before selling it to me. Repair work that was completed 8 years ago included a new clutch and 4 speed transmission and transfer case. I was told these were out of a slightly newer year FJ40 but I can't confirm. The F motor looks stock except for the DUI ignition and Weber carb.

Parts that came with it include; transfer case with some gears, 4 speed transmission, original carb, some 15 inch white steel wheels, a few misc shifter components, and a few bags of hardware.

Enough text here is it when I picked it up:

With a little elbow grease it now looks like this

 

[bdawg23]

Slowly working on a few things. The truck ran fine and drove ok when I picked it up but after putting it up on a lift it was clear it could use some maintenance to make it drive a lot safer.

• play in the front wheels , the bearings sound and feel very tired
• brakes are super firm but don't stop very well, it has disk brakes up front (which I think are an aftermarket thing given the year). The pistons feel frozen.
• I went through and greased all of the fittings I could find to try and add some fresh grease.
• did an engine oil change
• I'll do gear oil changes but after I fix a few other items for example the speedo cable is broken and t-case oil is dripping out of it

 

[bdawg23]

I had the valve cover off for a quick inspection. This is after some cleaning work was done. I also rebuilt the original fuel pump with a rebuilt kit from the Cruiser Cult.

The cover originally had a rubber gasket but the replacement gasket is cork and doesn't seem to fit all that great. I've read a bunch that the F valve covers aren't reliably square and don't always sit very well to the engine. I did not use any gasket sealant and after installing I think I'm going to need to redo this with sealant.

I rebuilt the mechanical fuel pump. When I removed it the spring was broken so I'm hoping the new seals and spring will bring it back to life. It was attached to the engine but wasn't in use. Thankfully the inlet/outlet were sealed up but there was a bit of gunk inside of it. I removed the electric fuel pump and set it aside as a backup. Ideally would prefer to use the mechanical pump and start to clean up the wiring on this rig to keep it as simple as possible.

 

[bdawg23]

The rebuilt kit came with two new valves but the valves on my pump were not serviceable. They were stamped in and did not look like they could be removed so I left them in. I know I'm showing the wrong side here but the other side is stamped. I think some years newer came with a 4 valve pump which are serviceable.

 

[bdawg23]

I ordered a seal kit for the front knuckles and it arrived last week. I had to source a jack and some jack stands before I could start this project. Tonight I dug into passenger side everything was going pretty smoothly.The steering connector is being quite the PITA where it connects to the steering arms. I sprayed it PB Blaster and left it alone. I'll try more this week.

These calibers feel seized and don't seem to move at all. I think I'm going to need to replace them. The bolts on the caliber were SAE so I'm not even sure what make it is so I can find a replacement. Same with the rotors, have no idea where to start with those. Open to suggestions here.

Before disassembly started. Lots of wobble here and I'm hoping it's just the wheel bearings that need replaced. I checked the hubs before I took them off to make sure they lock/unlock and they do.

 

[pb4ugo]

You are correct, the disc conversion is made of aftermarket and gm parts. The kit appears similar to JT Outfitters. The calipers are likely from a mid 70's Monte Carlo or similar gm car. The kit uses the stk drum brake knuckles, coarse spline birfields and lockouts and doesn't use the better, late model parts from a disc brake Toyota frt end.

The tie rod end uses a tapered stud. There are a couple of ways to separate them. 1st you can get a pickle fork and put it between the tre and steering arm. This can damage the tre boot. A 2nd way is to loosen the nut and leave it on the stud to protect the threads, then smack the female portion of the steering arm where the tre stud goes thru steering arm. Don't hit the tre or stud. It may take a couple of hits.

 

[bdawg23]

Thanks @pb4ugo! I’ll follow your suggestions here and see what I can sort out. Much appreciated!

 

[pb4ugo]

The impact releases the taper. The nut protects the threads and catches the tre. Smack anywhere around the circumference.

 

[bdawg23]

The impact releases the taper. The nut protects the threads and catches the tre. Smack anywhere around the circumference.
View attachment 3619324

Thanks for the visual!

 

[South Texas 97]

Looks like a great project truck. Enjoy the challenges along the way. You will get lots of help from this community - as you can see already.

Will it kill me (Steering, brakes, brake lines, fuel lines, and electrical for electrical fires)
Will it strand me somewhere (Fuel pump already taken care of) Hoses - fuel, coolant and vacuum, spare tire, check lug nut wrench and jack work, etc
Will it annoy me and make me not enjoy my ride.

 

[Chungas Revenge]

One of the unsung colors in Toyota catalog. Well done.

 

[bdawg23]

Looks like a great project truck. Enjoy the challenges along the way. You will get lots of help from this community - as you can see already.

Will it kill me (Steering, brakes, brake lines, fuel lines, and electrical for electrical fires)
Will it strand me somewhere (Fuel pump already taken care of) Hoses - fuel, coolant and vacuum, spare tire, check lug nut wrench and jack work, etc
Will it annoy me and make me not enjoy my ride.

Thank you @South Texas 97 ! Good outline to guide where I put my energy over the coming weeks!

 

[bdawg23]

Figured out the wobble, it doesn't seem like it was the bearings as I thought. I put the hub on the axle and the amount of play was coming from the bushing. This is the passenger side.

I've been reading about some model Toyotas having a needle bearing and bushing combo as a replacement but I can't seem to find anything for a 74 that's related so it looks like I'm on the hunt for bushings.

This seems to be the needle bearing that comes in the kits with a reduced bushing for what it's worth.

BTM344017A-KOYO​

Sector off road has the bushing but not for my model year. I'm looking at the #080-70 bushing.

Read a few posts about this topic like this one here but not much else.

Here is the bigger picture:
- JTO disc brake conversation, calibers are seized, rotors are pretty rusty, brake line is ok
- I'm already on track to replace the bushings and the bearings on both sides
- brake pedal pressure is VERY firm and doens't stop well

Should I just switch back to drums up front? I found some used drums on ebay full working set from an 82 for $75. Then I would just need hubs and bearings. I'm not running oversized tires and don't plan to. My goal is make it safe and drivable in proper order. Thoughts?

 

[cruisermatt]

This is great example of why it might be a good idea to talk to a Cruiser shop before purchase. Hopefully you didn't pay much.
firstly, you definitely got a random story about the origin. That is definitely not a USA model.. and definitely a mix-match. The dead giveaway is the single circuit non-power brakes, no heater, and the lack of dashboard. Look inside glove box for hint at original color.

The body tub is more of a 75 since it has the left-side tire carrier and ambulance doors. I would guess it is from Costa Rica, they seem to have the ambulance doors more then the rest of the South American market, which mostly had the earlier style lift-gate and barn doors. Not sure if there was crossover with later tire-carrier but earlier windshield frame...

On top of your calipers being seized, (and those calipers are likely too large a bore for the stock un-boosted master) a big reason the pedal is hard and firm is because there is no booster. So it will still be firmer and have less feel then a boosted example.
I make conversion parts to install a booster in this style firewall which is NOT the same as a pre-70 US non-boosted firewall.

If you go back to drums I'd do the 74-older version. The ones you see on Ebay for $75 are the +75 Non-US drum setup will require a different spindle, wheel bearing hub, birfield and locking hub. The spindle and birfield are the same for disc brakes so at that point you might as well just spend a bit more and do the +75 OEM disc brake setup on. If you do decide to do those brakes I have a few pairs of the correct +75 Non-US drum brake hubs I'll sell you cheap. Also have the right spindles as well.

 

[bdawg23]

This is great example of why it might be a good idea to talk to a Cruiser shop before purchase. Hopefully you didn't pay much.
firstly, you definitely got a random story about the origin. That is definitely not a USA model.. and definitely a mix-match. The dead giveaway is the single circuit non-power brakes, no heater, and the lack of dashboard. Look inside glove box for hint at original color.

The body tub is more of a 75 since it has the left-side tire carrier and ambulance doors. I would guess it is from Costa Rica, they seem to have the ambulance doors more then the rest of the South American market, which mostly had the earlier style lift-gate and barn doors. Not sure if there was crossover with later tire-carrier but earlier windshield frame...

On top of your calipers being seized, (and those calipers are likely too large a bore for the stock un-boosted master) a big reason the pedal is hard and firm is because there is no booster. So it will still be firmer and have less feel then a boosted example.
I make conversion parts to install a booster in this style firewall which is NOT the same as a pre-70 US non-boosted firewall.

If you go back to drums I'd do the 74-older version. The ones you see on Ebay for $75 are the +75 Non-US drum setup will require a different spindle, wheel bearing hub, birfield and locking hub. The spindle and birfield are the same for disc brakes so at that point you might as well just spend a bit more and do the +75 OEM disc brake setup on. If you do decide to do those brakes I have a few pairs of the correct +75 Non-US drum brake hubs I'll sell you cheap. Also have the right spindles as well.

I probably overpaid!

When I was in WA I relied on TorFab and crew for guidance but after moving East I've been going rogue which is how I ended up with this rig.

Would make sense why this truck felt so close. It is also from Costa Rica.

I'll PM you my cell and we can chat about the brake setup recommendation. Thank you.

 

[cruisermatt]

Man, I might have to take back what I said about the mix-match, that one on BAT is the exact same spec, even down to the earlier style remote oil-filter. Must be Costa-Rican market thing. You almost never see the ambulance doors on other SA hard-top 40's

 

[bdawg23]

So I've been reading more and more about these spindle bushings. Seems some folks are saying leave it and drive it and others are replacing just because they are doing the work and figured why not. Mine have some soft grooving but the rifling looks good still so I'm going to rebuild and leave them in.

I do know my truck was driven around with the hubs locked for the last 8 years. The guy told me he never bothered to unlock the hubs. I don't think this matters as much as the wheel bearings and the bearings at the top of the knuckle look to be more worn. For example the races for the top knuckle bearings had imprints of the bearing so I think a fresh set of races and bearings will reduce the play in the front wheels.

I can always take it apart again and now that I've cleaned off 8 years of mud/grease the project will go much faster.

here you can see the before image:

Here is the cleaned up knuckle with new bearing race installed. still some surface stuff going on but overall I'm content with it. I think fresh grease and new seals/bearings will do wonders.

I do have some wear on the inside of the knuckle from the cv but I think this is the result of the sloppy bearings and not the bushing. If I put it together and it's still super sloppy then I'll reconsider the bushings.

Time to buy some grease!

 

[South Texas 97]

Looking good, remember to pack the burf's full of grease as well before you install them. OTRAMM recommended one tub of grease per side. it gets you to about 3/4 full.

I got my gray moly grease from the local autoparts store.

Remember if you have you hubs unlocked, there is actually nothing turning in there, other than you wheel bearings, which use a different type of grease.

Cheers

 

[pb4ugo]

So I've been reading more and more about these spindle bushings. Seems some folks are saying leave it and drive it and others are replacing just because they are doing the work and figured why not. Mine have some soft grooving but the rifling looks good still so I'm going to rebuild and leave them in.

I do know my truck was driven around with the hubs locked for the last 8 years. The guy told me he never bothered to unlock the hubs. I don't think this matters as much as the wheel bearings and the bearings at the top of the knuckle look to be more worn. For example the races for the top knuckle bearings had imprints of the bearing so I think a fresh set of races and bearings will reduce the play in the front wheels.

I can always take it apart again and now that I've cleaned off 8 years of mud/grease the project will go much faster.

here you can see the before image:

View attachment 3623566


Here is the cleaned up knuckle with new bearing race installed. still some surface stuff going on but overall I'm content with it. I think fresh grease and new seals/bearings will do wonders.
View attachment 3623568


I do have some wear on the inside of the knuckle from the cv but I think this is the result of the sloppy bearings and not the bushing. If I put it together and it's still super sloppy then I'll reconsider the bushings.
View attachment 3623572


Time to buy some grease!

There's usually more to it than just replacing the bearings. Search knuckle rebuild. There is shimming for bearing pre loads, and centering the knuckles. Do you have a factory service manual(FSM)?

 

[Living in the Past]

This is great example of why it might be a good idea to talk to a Cruiser shop before purchase. Hopefully you didn't pay much.
firstly, you definitely got a random story about the origin. That is definitely not a USA model.. and definitely a mix-match. The dead giveaway is the single circuit non-power brakes, no heater, and the lack of dashboard. Look inside glove box for hint at original color.

The body tub is more of a 75 since it has the left-side tire carrier and ambulance doors. I would guess it is from Costa Rica, they seem to have the ambulance doors more then the rest of the South American market, which mostly had the earlier style lift-gate and barn doors. Not sure if there was crossover with later tire-carrier but earlier windshield frame...

On top of your calipers being seized, (and those calipers are likely too large a bore for the stock un-boosted master) a big reason the pedal is hard and firm is because there is no booster. So it will still be firmer and have less feel then a boosted example.
I make conversion parts to install a booster in this style firewall which is NOT the same as a pre-70 US non-boosted firewall.

If you go back to drums I'd do the 74-older version. The ones you see on Ebay for $75 are the +75 Non-US drum setup will require a different spindle, wheel bearing hub, birfield and locking hub. The spindle and birfield are the same for disc brakes so at that point you might as well just spend a bit more and do the +75 OEM disc brake setup on. If you do decide to do those brakes I have a few pairs of the correct +75 Non-US drum brake hubs I'll sell you cheap. Also have the right spindles as well.

This appears to be a FJ40LV~C. Doubt it's a FJ40LV~AC. Believe the A in this model appears to be North America model, most likely because of safety (padded dash) and emissions.

The C is for ambulance doors. Which I've never seen the 2/72-1/75 models with ambulance doors on a north America markets Amayama has a listed for them. Canada models had the door card in 74 they also had a heater standard. I would be curious if the roll bar has the bracket in the underside of the wheel wells. Shows this model as possible to have a roll bar but most imports do not have a stock roll bar.