Charleston SC '77 FJ40 Buildup

[Raff2145]

OK so I have been a lover of the FJ40 for a couple of years now, and bought my first project cruiser in December of 2009. Discovered this site around the same time and instantly became addicted! Just browsing through all the other build threads has increased my knowledge of the frame-off restoration, even though I've never done anything of the sort before in my life.

So here goes!

Discovered a decent deal on a '77 FJ40 on Craigslist that the PO had done a half-a55 job of cleaning up so that he could cruise the beaches at Edisto Island. As well as can be determined, the body is in good shape; there are a few areas that the PO had welded patches into (not the prettiest of patches), and one spot that has chipped and looks like a possible bondo-job, but overall at this point I think I may be able to manage fixing this up with a little blood, sweat and tears.

Now I've procrastinated starting my build thread for a few weeks, so I apologize for the catch-up posts. I'm currently in the middle of disassembly mode, getting everything taken apart so that I can decide what stays and what goes. I'm down to the tub, frame with suspension, and engine so I still need to get the engine on a stand and the tub on a set of sawhorses so that I can clean the frame up and get it off to powder coat. Then the plan is to get the 2F on a stand and start the disassembly on it so that I can clean it up and rebuild it as well as the transmission and transfer case. From some of the threads I've read this should be a lot of "fun".

I'll attack the body at some point as well- I'd like to remove all of the paint from everything so that I can see if I'll need to weld in some replacement body parts.

My intent is not to necessarily restore the FJ40, but to clean it up and add a couple of modern improvements. Don't have a set design, but I do have some ideas. I guess we'll just see how it turns out!

 

[Raff2145]

More pics:

1. Removed winch, bezel and bib.

2. Removed seats and roll cage.

3. Removed dash pad/some minor clutter.

 

[Raff2145]

Pics cont'd:

1. Progress to date

2. Windshield hinge screws are stuck tight. The screws themselves are soft and just go to heck when I try to remove them... any ideas for removal besides just drilling them out? Pretty much every bolt or screw I've removed so far have just broke at the shaft, salt water has done its job on this beast, I'm afraid. Maybe this does not bode well for the condition of the body (hopefully the 5 layers of paint have helped protect the metal).

3. You can remove junk and old add-ons from the dash for hours and it still looks like you haven't made a dent!! I've got the steering column, brake booster and lots of old worthless crap removed.

 

[xxxbrutusxxx]

I had to use a hammer and chisel on my windshield screws. I think only one or two actually came out with the screwdriver.

Like yours, at least half the bolts on my 69 broke even though I had soaked most of them with PB Blaster two or three times before disassembly. Most were bolts with nuts so no problem. The bolts that thread into the frame or captured nuts are a different story. I have a few headless studs I still need to remove. Its going to be heat and vise grips for those. If that doesn't work, then its time for the drill. Its frustrating but has to be done. Good luck!

 

[Raff2145]

Yeah thought so... gonna have to go get some chisels. Kind of surprised I haven't been forced to use one yet...

 

[Raff2145]

More progress photos:

1. Started disassembling the fuel tank. I have a feeling I'm going to want some kind of documentation to reference when putting the fuel system back together- does anyone have a fuel system diagram or suitable alternative?

2. Once I removed the gas tank cover I noticed that the PO must have had to replace it when he "restored" the rig before I bought it. Nice to discover little surprises like this!

3. I guess all good things come with a price. Seems like the PO put a plastic panel under the fuel tank. I'll have to check this out a little further when I start stripping the paint off of the body. EDIT: after removing the paint, I discovered this is a steel patch. Pretty solid, but I'd have done it a little cleaner. Not as big a deal as I thought it would be.

 

[Raff2145]

1. Removed the transmission cowl. Tons of oil-soaked sand all over the tranny and transfer case. Looking forward to cleaning that off.

2. Removal of the tranny cowl was fairly easy, except the infamous PO welded part of the cowl to the floor. Why, I'm not sure of- but I'm sure it will reveal itself at some point down the road. There is an awful lot of glue-like stuff all over the floorboards, perhaps plastic weld or caulk.

3. Starting to run out of room in the garage now, so I'm going to have to start thinking about getting some shelving so that I can prepare to set the body tub up on saw horses next to the frame.

Next week I need to drain the radiator and begin further disassembly of the drive train. Once I do that I'll need to work on organizing my work space, so it may be awhile until I post again. I'll try to get some more shots of the drive train disassembly before I disappear though!

 

[Eshu Elegua]

Good project, dont forget to kiss your kids, move the bed to the garage, turn the radio loud enough for when someone call you ,you still laughing at them....lol this take time and effort but its a good 40 that you have,almost just clean and paint...congrats...

 

[Raff2145]

Thanks! It does seem like it's in good condition from a distance... looks horrible close up though. I shudder to think what condition the body is in once I've stripped the paint!

1. Made more progress today. Bought some shelving for the garage to keep the parts organized and did a good cleaning. Still some more to do in that category but at least I was able to clean the area up.

2. Started to disassemble the steering linkage....... holy **** that was a pain in the A55! Beat the **** out of the tie rod ends but no go. Tried using a puller but it wouldn't grab because of the rounded edges of the tie rod ends, so I broke out the torch and cooked the bolts. A good couple of whacks with a 3 pound hammer and they popped right out.

3. One of the bolts loosened, but wouldn't pop out of the rod end (probably because of the damage I did to the threads), so I had to remove the steering arm from the right front wheel assembly along with the steering linkage.

 

[Raff2145]

Moved on to removing the radiator. Two bolts and one support arm held it to the frame- once off, I just had to loosen the hose clamps at the top left and bottom rear of the radiator and drain the water. There is a drain at the bottom of the radiator, but mine was clogged and nothing but dust came out when I opened it.

1. View with the radiator removed

2. Progress to date.

Still can't get the screws out of the driver's side hinge. Beat the hell out of them with a 3lb hammer and chisel, but they aren't moving. Going to move up to a solid impact drill with decent metal bits- not the worthless Kobalt screw removal bits I got at Lowe's.

Next week I'll be removing the brake lines, wiring, and anything else that attaches to both the body tub and the frame. Does anyone in the Charleston area know anyone I can rent a body rotisserie from? I'd buy one, but I don't plan on using it again after this build. If I have to I'll use two engine stands, but I'd prefer to just rent the right tool. Any help in this area would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Dedtruk]

What's up with that aftermarket fan? Guess that was another PO "bright idea." BTW your tub/cowl is terrific, don't knock it. Good luck, looking forward to watching your progress.

 

[ocdbeetle]

If you use a steady hand, with a dremel tool and thin cutoff wheel, you can cut into your windshield screws enough to make a slot for a standard screwdriver to catch.....the heat from the cutting process along with the slot for the screwdriver makes it pretty easy.....

 

[nohuri]

I had the same problem with the screws on the back doors and I used a impact screwdriver, worked great.

 

[fjjonnie]

I had to use a hammer and chisel on my windshield screws. I think only one or two actually came out with the screwdriver.

Like yours, at least half the bolts on my 69 broke even though I had soaked most of them with PB Blaster two or three times before disassembly. Most were bolts with nuts so no problem. The bolts that thread into the frame or captured nuts are a different story. I have a few headless studs I still need to remove. Its going to be heat and vise grips for those. If that doesn't work, then its time for the drill. Its frustrating but has to be done. Good luck!

x2 on the hammer and chissel. That's what I had to do for mine.

 

[Raff2145]

There just isn't enough time in my day. Or maybe there just aren't enough me's...

1. Made a little progress today, stripped the brake lines from the firewall, as well as the wire harness. Removed the alternator, fan, hoses and miscellaneous leftover brake booster/carburetor hardware. Also removed the steering box.

2. Noticed this little red grommet/boot in my firewall. Anyone know what it's for?

3. Progress to date.

 

[Eshu Elegua]

Noticed this little red grommet/boot in my firewall. Anyone know what it's for?
thats the dust cover for gas pedal...

 

[Raff2145]

So to switch gears for a second... I need some input on two items:

1. I'm interested in using aircraft paint stripper, because it seems like it's relatively easy to use. My question to those who have stripped their body panels is this- which is the better way to go, aircraft paint remover, media blasting or some other method I'm not aware of?

2. And the other thing I'd like some input on is what is the best way to remove the polyurethane crap on the inside of the body tub?

Thanks in advance for the input...

 

[Raff2145]

Noticed this little red grommet/boot in my firewall. Anyone know what it's for?
thats the dust cover for gas pedal...

Thanks Eshu, good to know. I guess the PO ghetto-rigged the throttle cable through a different opening, because it was routed through the hole above the red boot.

Is this the OEM dust cover?

 

[Eshu Elegua]

yes oem cover....sand blast the tub its the best way...

 

[Raff2145]

More progress today- had a buddy come over and lend a hand. The goal today was to make a little more progress on cleaning out the junk from the body tub so that we can remove it sometime int he next week or so.

1. Started removing the body mount bolts. More bolt breakage- definitely going to have to order all new bolt kits from CCOT when I rebuild this.

2. Found out that I'm making money with this build- found $0.12 underneath the windshield weatherstripping haha. FINALLY got the windshield screws out so that I could take off the windshield. I cut a slot in each screw and then used an impact wrench and they came out no problem. About F****** time!!!

3. My build buddy Hemi guarding the 40.