Curing cancer, 76 FJ40

[tweek99]

Well, I think I am finally done with aligning my front end. I cut both frame braces off the fenders and lined everything else up. I had to really open up the holes in the fender for the front bib bolts, they weren't very close. Going to take some big washers.

 

[tweek99]

With everything aligned I could now re-spotweld the braces to the fenders. I had to bend the braces and slot the holes in order to make them line up. To bend them I cut wedges so they would bend more easily while they were bolted to the frame. When they were where I wanted them I tacked the slots pulled the braces back out and welded them solid. It's a lot of steps but it kept my blood pressure down.

 

[tweek99]

I put the front end on to make sure it would go together when I get things painted. And I am glad I did because the fenders didn't really fit very well.

 

[dad4x4]

just saw your build thread and you are making great progress in a short period of time. I look forward to following along on your build.

 

[tweek99]

Any opinions on whether I should color match the bed liner I intend to have applied or just go with black. I also intended to use an industrial semi gloss black for the engine compartment, wheel wells and underneath. I used the same black in my Monte Carlo. I thought I would save a trip to town by using it as a guide coat for sanding. Needless to say it added hours to the sanding.

 

[Heron]

I don't like black in the engine bay, grey make's it easyer to work and spot trouble.

 

[dad4x4]

I would definitely color match. Don't use black there. IMO, it looks much better color matched in the engine bay. it doesn't bother me one way or another in the wheel wells and underneath.

 

[BeeJii]

Just read through your build... wow! What an amazing work youve done! I think my patience would had run out way before i would of been done with project of this size. And the work you do is top quality from what i can see!
Keep it going i can´t wait until i see this one finished!

 

[diogenese]

That's an awesome amount of fresh steel going in there I got off very lightly with mine.
I'm having issues with my front guards too, the ones that came with my '45 were fibreglass and now I have them all painted I can't get the fit anything near close enough, they looked OK when it was muddy when I pulled it apart!
I'm going to repair some steel ones now.
I enjoy the repairing probably more than the finished item, I'm so glad you remade the tub instead of throwing it away and buying a replica, even if it is 75% new metal

 

[tweek99]

Thanks for the kudos guys. Doing this build thread has really kept me moving forward. Now it's time to get my power steering mocked up.

 

[tweek99]

Started into the steering by going over the options, lots of good information on the site here. With several possibilities to choose from I went with the astro van conversion. I chose this because I don't want to look at that ugly box on the front and I wanted to get rid of extra pivot points. It is a bit tight on space but I am dealing with a stock setup with smog garbage removed. So far I have notched the radiator support and the DS engine mount. I will fab a new engine mount when the box is bolted in place as well as modifying the shield that goes around the balancer.

So far, I have removed the old steering components. Which is still very tight, no play, so it won't be going to the iron pile.

 

[tweek99]

With the old steering out of the way, I moved on to figuring out where to set the steering box in the frame. I did this process with the front end off and only the radiator support on. I will edit this later to show my measurements for placement, if anyone is curious about a 2f astro conversion. Most info, with pictures, is for v8 machines. To get things where I wanted them I was required to notch the rad support, notch the lower corner of the cross member and notch the engine mount.

 

[tweek99]

With the placement figured out I made cardboard templates. Just trace the frame and add tabs for the bolts where needed. I had made a plate out of 14ga which I attached to the steering box, this helps with knowing where the holes will be and not having to guess when placing them on the template. The ones pictured are just outlines of the original ones. The templates were a little too tall because of where the trace lines were but you can trim the templates to fit how you want. With the templates done I went on to cutting the steel, I am using 1/4".

To be continued....

 

[tweek99]

Plugging away, got holes drilled in plates and rechecked the alignment. Was pretty close but had to ream them just a bit. Next I set the box in place with both plates. And the bolts I salvaged with the box.

 

[tweek99]

Got started welding things into place, then I ran out of wire . Oh well, I have to get ready for a road trip to be in a wedding. Guess the good Lord didn't want me losing track of time.

 

[oldschool4wheeling]

I just gotta say, I'll probably never learn to weld, but am really enjoying watching you do your thing.

Ditto!! I was thinking the same thing!!

Good work Tweek, wish I had your skills!

 

[tweek99]

Got back to it. Welded the steering box plates on and mounted the box.

 

[tweek99]

After that I got to the engine mount. I still need to add a gusset to help keep it stiff but I needed the steering shaft in place first.

 

[tweek99]

The steering shaft is quite a conglomeration. I used the steering shafts from the astro van and one from a third generation firebird. I also used the bottom end of a 96 Chevy truck column to use the shaft bushing and shaft.

 

[tweek99]

The first thing I had to do was make an extension for the input on the end of the steering box. To do that I used the splined side of the rag joint end of the firebird steering shaft, which is the same spline as the astro box. I cut the rivets which held them to the rag joint and popped it off. Next I cut a piece of 1" angle the same width as the splined connector and welded on a piece of 7/8" tubing for the extension. I then bolted the splined connector to the extension. This is a bit of extra work when they sell extensions but I didn't feel like spending a hundred bucks.

After that was together and straight I cut the astro stem about 2" up from the double d u joint. I reammed the 7/8 tubing to fit the astro shaft and be straight. When it was straight I turned up the heat and welded it.

Next up was the camaro shaft. I cut off the remaining part of the rag joint and ground down the flared end of the double d shaft so it would slip into astro u joint. This worked great, just had to grind a notch in it for the retaining bolt.

I used my original steering column but I hacked off the shaft a couple inches above the rag joint. I then cut off the end of the 96 column right above the retaining notches for the shaft bearing. This gave me a bearing for the bottom of the column and the shaft end fit right into the camaro steering shaft. I slipped the 96 stub over the fj shaft and welded it solid and it was a pretty good fit, not much slop. The tube with the bearing I tacked onto the firewall column retainer.

After it was all together everything seems to work as it should without binding. Next is pump brackets and finish welding the engine mount.