Building the Princess - HJ60 build blog. (1 Viewer)

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Joined
Mar 3, 2012
Threads
45
Messages
1,744
Location
Adelaide, South Australia
I'm a little into this project.. but I'm going to start a blog for this build anyhow.. I'll post some older photos and then bring it up to date.
In October 2020 I was very fortunate to be offered a rust free HJ60 cab - I dont take the phrase "rust free" lightly, it genuinely has ZERO rust after a number of repairs and then a full respray. It came with all doors (rust free) and the bonnet. The doors are the right colour but still have the original paint, the hood is the wrong colour. It was very well priced and I snapped it up and transported it home.

The head-lining is not installed in the cab so I've taken the opportunity to soak the inside of the roof/gutters/pillars with penetrol.

I already have a well established vehicle that I tour in (HJ47) so at this point its possible this new 60 is going to be a Pavement Princess when complete, at least for a little while.


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A year passed, and I finally located an HJ60 chassis that was quite close to where I lived.

Of great importance was that it was "registerable" in my state (South Australia). The seller had the number plates, identity plate from the cab and the original engine number - this GREATLY eases the re-registration of the vehicle to put it on the road - it can all be done online.


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3" lift kit installed on the chassis
Full diff rebuilds - hub to hub
Full clean and repaint of the chassis

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Full brake rebuilds, front and back
All new tie rod ends

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Ready for the cab to be mounted to the chassis..

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I dont have a hoist.. and I spent a LOT of time trying to work out how to get the cab onto the chassis.. I sort of wanted to do it alone just as technical challenge.. I bolted some brackets to the side, and back and tried to use my highlift jack to slowly raise up each corner in turn.. it was nearly a disaster, it got very unstable very quickly and I nearly dropped the cab onto myself. I abandoned the attempt and slowly brought the cab back down onto the dolly and started to reconsider how to get the cab onto the chassis.

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So I built myself a little gantry in my driveway..


And it worked! A block and tackle at the front on the gantry and an engine crane at the back.. I got the cab on alone and uninjured.



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Back into the workshop for more work on the braking system..

New master cylinder and cleaned up proportioning valve, all new brake lines, new calipers, new pads. Brakes bled and the pedal feels good!

I am really liking some of the fittings just being thoroughly wirewheeled, then hit with a high temp clear coat. Can anyone spot the issue with the heater core? :(



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So much shiny.. new rubber and rims! 15x10 rims. 33x12.5 tyres.. Everything clears nicely. Definitely going to need some flares to keep the local Constabulary happy.

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Also dropped 80lbs and quit drinking between the start of this project, and now :)

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This is the engine thats going into the Princess.. Diesel, 2H. It looks tired but its got great compression, and pretty much zero blowby. A full cosmetic refresh happening, fresh injectors, a few polishments of alloy pieces, a new clutch, new water pump, new thermostat, new thermostat housing, new alternator and new hoses/belts.

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Full spend details so far (Australian Dollars)..

 
Quick freshen up of this 2H.. Not quite the right colour for a 2H but pretty close!


Side covers coming off for wirewheel and clearcoat/black (not sure which yet). Then new clutch, new spigot bearing and new rear main seal before its nearly ready to go in.

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Cleaned injector lines, inlet manifold, exhaust manifold, lift pump, throttle body, A/C idler mount, rigid fuel lines and water pump housing.

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Your technical solutions (e.g. the dolly, the little gantry etc) are just inspiring.

I saw you purchased L+R hand motor mounts: your 2H engine seems to be a pre-1985: does it need special motor mounts, or you can use the same as the post-1985 engines?

Great job so far!
Subscribed!
 
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Your technical solutions (e.g. the dolly, the little gantry etc) are just inspiring.

I saw you purchase L+R hand motor mounts: your 2H engine seems to be a pre-1985: does it need special motor mounts, or you can use the same as the post-1985 engines?

Great job so far!
Subscribed!

Thank you for your kind comments.


Early and late 2H engines have the same mount holes on the blocks. I have the correct set of mounts when its ready to go into the vehicle, my engine stand requires early non power steering mounts though (ie HJ47)
 
Engine getting closer to going in.. Inlet manifold and fuel plumbing reinstalled. New clutch and spigot bearing still to go on.

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This is always a sweet moment.. usually just before you're about ready to throw your tools down in despair..

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