Builds Doc's 1978 FJ40 Rebuild (1 Viewer)

[TractorDoc]

you should start restoring 40s for your fellow mud members...

To this day I still get inquiries from people wanting their tractor restored. Sure, the final product looks nice but most folks do not have a clue the effort and finances required to get there. "You will give me five hundred bucks to rebuild and paint your tractor? Ill get right on it !" Most people have a different definition of restored than I do and I do not have it in me to cut corners. When asked I usually reply that I never have enough time for my own endeavors but thank them for noticing my work. Michael is right. . . if I ever did decide to take on full restoration of someone else's vehicle I would spend too much time worrying about their happiness while my level of joy would likely be zero. Always willing to lend a hand on someone else's project but for now I better stick to my day job vs. entering the restoration business.

You could get ambitious and want to whip up a few more of those?

If Huck was just referring to the gate I'd challenge anyone to take that task on -- simple geometry and easy(ier) welding. Satisfaction of making something that (to me) does not look terrible mounted on the back of the truck. I would provide measurements but considering my tub is probably different than everyone else's it would not matter.

Speaking of the gate. . . painted it yesterday and mounted it for a quick test fit today.

I found the '72 license plate and put it on for nostalgia. I have Ohio historical vehicle plates but they lack personality. The 40 became a '72 (from '78) because the registration is based on the VIN stamped into the replacement frame.

I have to stop in the BMV soon to renew the driver license and tags on the other vehicles. I will check to see what it takes to utilize the original '72 plate. . . although I will be paranoid to use it now that it has been posted for the world to see on the internet.

I have seen proof that my missing tire carrier part now exists and should be in my possession before too long. More details to come and probably a full post or two on that topic alone. . .

 

[imyahucklbrry]

That is just.......... Skillfully functional - well done!

 

[handcannon]

I've gotten so far behind that this post will cover all the way from Yellowstone to how nice your Cruiser looks now. I love how nice the Cruiser looks now, but I am very partial to blue. Although I think that the 40 could be any color and it would look good with your attention to detail. I also like the tailgate you made, simple, yet very nice and functional.

Going back far enough to comment about your trip to Yellowstone, it has been a long time since I was there. On our way back from Oshkosh (1997) we decided to detour into Yellowstone. That detour got us at a campground just before dark, and a few hours the next morning at the lodge and a few minor stops before having to leave and continue on our way home. Your pictures and descriptions (absolutely fantastic!) was enough to bring out the "travel bug" in me. I don't know when it will happen, but I want to return and spend several days there.

Don

 

[TractorDoc]

Your pictures and descriptions (absolutely fantastic!) was enough to bring out the "travel bug" in me. I don't know when it will happen, but I want to return and spend several days there.

That is great to hear Don. I know Id like to revisit the area again as well, even having just been there. We had a good plan going in and decided ahead of time what areas we'd like to visit and what we could live with out seeing. Yellowstone is huge and I think one of the keys to enjoying the park is trying not to squeeze too many activities in. I hope you make it there soon and be sure to post pictures when you do!

Another week of little to no mechanical activity in the shop. . . at least not on the FJ40. I have been spending more time behind the wheel though in an attempt to get to know the truck a little better. All of my vehicles seem to have their own personality and after awhile I drive as much by feel as I do with my eyes. This is probably due to the fact that most of my cars/trucks have been 15-20 years old or better -- I imagine anyone else would be scared of the steering, braking, throttle response, or occasional death wobble I experience in my old pickup. I keep up on routine maintenance (tie rods, brakes, fuel system, steering stabilizer, etc.) but after several hundred thousand miles the truck is starting to show its age.

Today was a good day to be out and about and we eventually made it back over to my place. The 40 rested in front of the barn while I worked on a few things around the house -- both complimented each other on their recent facelifts.

The fall colors have been a little on the dull side this year (wet spring/hot+dry fall?) but the maturing corn makes for a nice backdrop.

Not much of an update but I suppose that is the price of progress.
More "tech" is on its way, I promise!

 

[imyahucklbrry]

“I imagine anyone else would be scared of the steering, braking, throttle response, or occasional death wobble I experience in my old pickup.”

Your above driving description is dead on what I think when I even consider agreeing to allow anyone the ‘privilege’ of driving my 40! My dad bought me an old truck to drive when I turned 16... a ‘69 Chevy step side with 3 on the tree. Put me in a brand spanking new 8-track player and green AstroTurf looking carpet (even had it painted to cover the dept of agriculture lettering). Of course I complained that it wasn’t as cool as some of my friend’s rides not to mention hard to drive.....

I’d give my left testicle to have that truck back!

 

[TheHardWay]

Same here. While in college I worked summers at a Corp of Engineers run reservoir. The site manager drove a '72 stepside around the dam, only used 2nd and 3rd gears. I still think about that truck - love that body style.

 

[TractorDoc]

I was very excited to see a package waiting for me from CityRacerLLC.com today. At long last my missing tire carrier piece arrived.

Originally I did not think the tire carrier was going to be an issue. Many posts and several months back I showed a picture of the new tire carrier pin set that I ordered from Racer. Fast forward to August. I had the tire carrier framework painted and dug out the new pin set to start assembly. It did not take long to see that there were some differences between the new upper carrier pin and my original.

I contacted Roger about my findings and after a little research we were able to determine there was a parts change/difference on the upper tire carrier pins after the 1980 model year. His pins were designed for '81 and after. Without missing a beat Roger offered to make new versions of the upper pin for the '76-80 models so I sent him a couple parts for reference. After a short time waiting on shipping and manufacturing my new pin arrived today. A huge thank you to @Racer65 and @koxfarm for taking on the project. I imagine the earlier style pins will be available from Racer's website (if not already) in addition to the later style.

I had just a short time to spend in the shop, but went right to work on installing the new pin. I was in such a hurry that I did not realize the picture card was not installed in the camera -- I took a picture of the new pin but had started installation before I realized the card was MIA. I looked up a picture Roger had sent me of the new pins -- I am pretty sure I circled the one he sent me .

The fit is/was tight. I used several methods to start the carrier mount but in the end a rather large C-clamp worked to push the mount on the pin.

Nothing against the metric system, but an 11/16" socket allowed the threaded portion of the new pin to pass thru while still advancing the mount on the pin.

View of the new pins installed on the carrier.

As much as I wanted to push on I left the carrier on the moving blanket to be installed another day.
Very much looking forward to completing the truck's rear view; with any luck I should have the carrier installed by the weekend.

 

[DSB345]

Love it!

 

[koxfarm]

I recommend using some military grade or heavy duty copper or graphite grease that doesn't leak out. The carrier and pins are exposed to sunlight and heat.. regular grease may separate and leak overtime staining your paintjob and spare tyre.
Awesome job mate and thanks for the support!

 

[TractorDoc]

Proceeded with installation of the tire carrier.
For a brief moment I felt a wave of panic thinking I had installed the upper carrier support upside down on the pin (even though I measured/looked at original pictures before installing) but quickly came to my senses once the bolt holes lined up. The upper support is not coming off without heat/damaging the paint so it was smart to plan ahead.

The tire is a close fit but does not rub -- I placed several washers on the studs before final install to give a touch more clearance. My organized chaos in the shop caught up to me this week when it came time to find the lug nuts to secure the spare. I had three clean nuts sitting on the work bench amongst other future needed parts. I found two of them easily enough but the third. . . several attempts at moving all the clutter on the bench from one side to the other proved unrewarding. After 20 minutes or so I gave up and installed double standard nuts on the last stud. Just as I was about to snap the hubcap on I walked by the bench one more time and wouldn't you know that third lug nut was stuck to a magnet on the back of a flashlight sitting right in front of me! As I searched the nut hitched a ride on the light and was unknowingly moved to the "no nut here" pile. I cannot tell you how many times I find things when I am not looking for them vs. when I need them. . .

Took a quick drive outside to check for any rattles or instability. Those stainless pins sure look good with the stainless hardware.

The size of the spare dominates the view from the rear. I forgot to swap in my vintage license plate so I tried my hand at photo shopping out my actual numbers with something more vehicle appropriate.

I actually drove to work for the first time in the 40 today. It was later in the afternoon, the weather was nice, and a good test of the new carrier's roadworthiness. It passed with flying colors .

 

[TractorDoc]

This week wrenches have been turning on a different shop project.
Sometime back I picked up a Steiner garden tractor that was having hydraulic issues. I've had 40 tunnel vision over the last couple of months but now that we are cruising around the neighborhood I bought the tractor into the shop and removed quite a bit of stuff to get access to the hydraulic pump and drive motors.
The Toyota looked on with curiosity. . .

Deep down inside the forward drive motor (of course the most difficult one to access) was a jacked up cylinder block/piston assembly (on the right in the next picture). I took the other cylinders/plates from the tractor plus an extra set I had saved for just an occasion to the hydraulic shop. They lapped the machined surfaces which should bring hydraulic pressures back up to like new condition. Now to put everything back together. . .

October has been fantastic weather wise and I have taken the 40 out whenever I can both on the road and off.

Of course the off road adventures have been in areas that are completely dry and free of paint swiping branches. We give the farm trails here plenty of width. . . travelling off the paved path is fun but we are not savages.

After a lot of looking, researching, and more looking I finally settled on a new wide angle lens for the camera. I find the 40 is a good subject to photograph and have been pleased with the new perspectives allowed by the wide angle.

At this point in the build I want to declare "Phase 1" complete.
The goal was to have a running/driving truck this year. The doors (all four) and hardtop could/can wait until next year; I did not want to burn out on trying to finish everything at once without getting some enjoyment from the work put in thus far. I think it was a good plan -- its been smiles all around (myself included) whenever the 40 has been out over the last month or so. I cannot stress enough how helpful the MUD forum and its members have been along the way. Helpful advice, knowledgeable vendors, and positive commentary made working thru the teardown and rebuild process a joy even when things in the shop were not going my way.

Specifically I want to thank different members/vendors for their advice and wares.
The first pieces I purchased (after the truck itself) were the rear disc conversion parts from @Poser . Thanks Steve for welcoming me to the world of Land Cruisers and answering all my new guy questions.
From there I think I called @cruiseroutfit weekly -- they provided the OME lift as well as engine parts, knuckle rebuild parts, transmission/transfer rebuild parts, etc. Kurt and Bryce were great to talk to and were able to send the parts I needed, even from my less than knowledgeable descriptions.
Of course @FJ40Jim worked his magic on the carburetor -- thank you Jim for taking a crusty core and making it new again.
I installed the transfer/trans oil bypass hose from @shipmag just in case. . .
The wiring was given new life by @Coolerman . Thank You Mark for working with me to keep the old style rear lights with a newer style front harness -- for sure not just plug and play!
I stopped by @RockAuto for brake calipers, rotors, and misc. engine parts. Not quite "All the Parts my 40 will ever need" but they had more than I thought would be available for a truck of this vintage.
Most of the Stainless JIS Hardware was obtained from @davework . The dished heads on the bolts give a much more authentic look; Thanks Dave!
CityRacerLLC.com was visited frequently enough that @Racer65 's site was near the top of my browser's history bar for awhile. I still keep checking back to see if he has added anything new since I was last there. . . Thanks Roger for so many great offerings.

These are just off the top of my head. If there are others that I missed I sincerely apologize and will go back and add in with the edit feature as I remember.

My local paint guy, tire, glass, muffler, and seat shops get a big thank you. . . but I do not believe they are members of the forum so do not get a call out.

Not listing everyone that ever made a comment, but Thanks to @Jdc1 , @waiting for time , @gator25 , @DSB345 , @mrboatman , @alabamatacomaguy , @tstepp920 , @White Stripe , @pngunme and everyone else for being regular posters and likers.

Now that all that is out of the way we can get back to work.

One last parting shot before moving on and starting "Phase 2. . . "

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Wowzers!

Gorgeous!



Thanks for letting us part of your build.

 

[DSB345]

Your rig sure turned out great! It's always encouraging to watch a fellow mudder complete their build.

Dave

 

[waiting for time]

Its been a joy to follow your build.

Nice pictures, I like the new lens and hope to see more from it in the near future.

 

[handcannon]

Although I haven't posted very often I have been following your build very closely. You have done a real good job with your build, and have posted some very good pics of your work, and the surroundings. Keep it up!

Don

 

[jrcfj40]

Is such a tight fit between the parking brake drum and cross member a common accurance on stock set-ups? After dropping the motor/trans/tcase into my frame (stock 1977)with new motor mounts I cannot get my parking brake drum off. It hits the cross member. Maybe loosening the motor mount bolts and shifting the engine might help it clear? It does not need much more room.

Jeff

The big event for today was joining the transfer case up to the transmission. I was actually able to convince Mrs. TractorDoc to come over to the shop with me; it was helpful to have two people for the job. She ran the chain lift for me while I steadied the heavy engine. We lifted it out of the frame and rested it in the bed of the Kubota ATV again. While I had explicit instructions that I was not to include her in any of my pictures she took it upon herself to take a couple action shots. I am not one for putting my image out there on the web too much but you will get to see a bit more of me than usual in today's post. Once the engine/transmission was stable I carried the transfer case over and started it over the transmission output shaft. I slid Jim C's provided drive gear into is position in the case and used the new oil seal to help hold it in place while engaging the output shaft splines -- not the easiest job!
View attachment 1391421
In case anyone with a sharp eye is concerned I did not steal my lifting strap from the local fire department. . . that is a leftover from yet another one of my previous lives. Once I had the transfer case up against the transmission I had the Mrs. come over and start/snug up the mounting bolts. Torqued everything up, installed the spacer, new trans output shaft bearing, other spacer, washer, and new nut. . . then torqued it down.
View attachment 1391422
I put the spark plugs back in the engine and engaged the transmission in first gear to get the nut tight -- Jim C. advised me to tighten the output shaft nut as much as I can to minimize the play in the transfer drive gear. The Mrs. ran the lift again and before you knew it the engine, transmission, and transfer case were mounted in the frame.View attachment 1391423
The fit between the parking brake drum and cross member is as my old mentor Smitty would say T - I - T Tight! Only about an eighth of an inch between the two. I started another thread to discuss whether I should modify the cross member or not. . . looking forward to see what kind of feedback I get.
Installed the transfer linkage after referencing back to see how everything fit together:
View attachment 1391424
I also test fit one of the transmission to transfer case bypass hoses from @shipmag at the suggestion of @thebigredrocker -- I know this is a band aid fix and should not be necessary with the new seal between the transfer case and transmission. . . only way I can see it hurting though is by going up hill a lot and having more oil than necessary flow back to the transfer case. If I goofed up my seal at the install or if it starts to let some oil by from the transfer case to the transmission due to my output shaft wear the hose might save the new bearings I just installed.
View attachment 1391425
And that was where I left things for today. Took my six year old nephew out to see the movie "Monster Trucks," I was hoping to see an FJ40 make an appearance but the movie must have been sponsored by Dodge as Ram Trucks were everywhere. It was his first movie and he seemed to have a good time. . . the kid can eat some popcorn!

I will see if I can get the propeller shafts installed tomorrow and think some more about what to do with the cross member. . . that should be one of the last big hurdles before I mount the cowl on.

 

[TractorDoc]

Although I haven't posted very often I have been following your build very closely.

No problem there Don, I am more of a follower than a poster myself.

Is such a tight fit between the parking brake drum and cross member a common accurance on stock set-ups? After dropping the motor/trans/tcase into my frame (stock 1977)with new motor mounts I cannot get my parking brake drum off. It hits the cross member. Maybe loosening the motor mount bolts and shifting the engine might help it clear? It does not need much more room.

The fit is tight between my parking brake drum and frame cross member because I used a replacement 1972 frame with a 1978 four speed transmission and transfer case. Later frames (1973/4 and after?) have a different style cross member to compensate for the longer four speed transmission and should allow access/removal of the drum. Your 1977 frame should have the U-shaped bend in the cross member to allow access to the parking brake; if still tight you can try removing the rubbers from under the bell housing mounts to drop the transfer case down a bit more. Many people choose to modify the cross member on the earlier frames when swapping the longer transmission in but I have no problem with my setup and can work around it if ever needed.

This week did not move on to Phase 2, but perhaps Phase One and a Half???
I picked up a bikini top just in time to enjoy the blustery fall weather.

I draped it over the seats to let it relax and remove some of the wrinkles. . . it reminds me of what the wife says my shirts look like when we go out to dinner. Before I can install it properly I need to secure the tiger channel to the windshield frame. There are holes along the top of the windshield frame that can be used to attach the channel, but no threads or underside access to make installation easy. I picked up some rivnuts and an installation tool that should create stable mounting points using the factory holes.

No actual work accomplished, just money spent on new stuff.
That should change with the next post when the top is officially installed.

 

[TractorDoc]

Proceeded with the Tiger Chanel installation.
The Rivnuts are straight forward -- install in the hole and crimp.

Of course the holes on the channel do not line up with the holes on the frame. The tape marks the hole locations on the frame and the white dots are where new holes will be drilled in the channel. The picture is not the best because I am holding the camera over my head and using my best guess as to position.

Tiger Channel Installed.

And a couple indoor shots with the top installed.

A little too cold to be cruising around outside today. . . there were a few snowflakes falling this weekend and temps have been hovering around the 40s. Hoping there will be a couple more nice days yet this year for one last drive but it can be hit or miss mid-October and beyond. Not ready to drive into storage and put the cover on just yet, still enjoy walking into the shop and seeing the 40 there.

 

[tls3601]

Dave I drove mine around with bikini top and soft doors for a LONG time and really enjoyed it! Good times for sure.

 

[Varty Yo]

Nice job again man!!!! I will revisit this build when i do my 3/4 aqualu tub on my 42.

Cheers! Enjoy it everyday