Builds DomSmith’s H55 build Thread… SBC Fj40 (1 Viewer)

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Rear driveshaft (30"). Original 3 speed driveshaft with 4 speed slip yoke...


...and front FJ60 Split TCase flange from Kurt at Cruiser Outfitters...
reardriveshaft.jpg
frontflange.jpg
 
P****!!! At least now's the time to find it......:frown:

Ed
 
Anyone who's been around 40's for awhile knows exactly what this is. How the hell was this seal leaking already!? :mad: I hadn't even moved the rig. So again I was forced to backtrack a bit and investigate.

Well, as it turned out I had installed one of the two seals I recieved in my parts collecting process. With my luck I chose the one in the Transfer Case rebuild kit with the idea that I would keep the one provided by SOR in the Split Case Parking Brake Kit as a spare. Unfortunately for me the one from SOR matches the shaft from their kit and the original I used was WAY too big and didn't even come close to sealing. So, I removed the retainer and pulled the old (new) seal and pressed in the SOR seal. Lesson learned.
leak2.jpg
 
Dom, are you going to put in a CV drive shaft? Thats a pretty good angle working there, what angle do have on the other end?

The build up looks great!
 
I installed the front transfer case flange and bolted up the front driveshaft. It matched up well with the tranny crossmember and there seems to be plenty of room for movement once this thing gets off-road. The Toyota crossmember was the key here rather than fabbing up a custom crossmember with space for the yoke. Especially since my fab skills are VERY limited...
driveline-front-tcase.jpg
 
Tony-

The driveline angles actually came out better than expected. Here's the rear driveline angles. If I have a problem in the future I may go that route...

EDIT: Oh now I see what you mean Tony. That pic is just the yoke hanging there with no driveshaft attached.
drivelineanglerear1.jpg
drivelinerearangle.jpg
 
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Once the driveshafts were in and the exhaust was installed I double checked my list of TO DO'S that I made to prevent me from jumping the gun and trying to drive it w/o any fluids, etc...

Aside from the issue of the clutch not being quite right I decided it was time for a test drive.

First Impressions: I couldn't believe how low first gear was. Yes I know, it's not THAT low, but coming from a stock 3 Speed, it felt really low. It's basically for starting out, period. I was able to stretch my 3 speed's first gear and get some speed going (hey I only had 2 gears left anyway, right?), but not with this. I get out of the hole and I'm looking for second right away. The shifting is smooth and tight which took some getting used to. My 3 speed had a wide throw and slop all around, so this is a small little box to shift in. More on the driveability in a bit.

The shifter was positioned about as well as I could have asked. Centered right on the floorpan (I had to cut it a bit) and I didn't have to touch the transfer hole...


Yes I know, I'm having a tranny boot made to match the stock tcase shift boot...
shifter-location.jpg
 
So I attempted to heat up the shifter and bend it w/o success:

https://forum.ih8mud.com/showthread.php?t=168993

After catching the rubber bushing inside the shifter on fire in the process I am still stuck with the second gear issue. The bushing seems to have stiffened up again after drying from it's "gooey" state earlier. No biggie, but I'd like short people to be able to drive it too.

I'm considering taking it somewhere to have them bend it but I'm afraid I'll end up with a $110 unusable piece of shat.
 
One issue I'm not super stoked about is the lower transfer case clearance. From the pics I've seen this might be a common problem, but if I was to do it over again I might try to gain an inch or so by lowering the engine. As it stands, the tranny is about 3/8" from the tranny hump and I wasn't comfortable trying to push it up any higher and I didn't want to mess with the hump...
transfer-clearence2.jpg
 
You can't go wrong with a Poser-design:)


Ed
SP002.jpg
 
I did the same with the 4wd indicator. I haven't decided where I want an indicator to display in the cab so it's attached but not finished off. I remember my 71 w/ vacuum shifting had a green dash light but I'm not sure that's what I want to do. I could use this brake light (just remove the brake plate) as it's not hooked up. Anyone make a "4WD" plate? :)
4WD-wiring.jpg
4WD-indicator.jpg
 
After driving around for a while I noticed a small bit of tranny fluid at the front of the parking brake back plate. With a little investigating I determined that the bolts on the rear bearing retainer on the transfer case were seaping fluid. I originally didn't use any type of thread sealer on these bolts as suggested in the FSM so, I had to drain the fluid and take out each bolt and apply some sealer. I chose to use the gray RTV instead of thread sealer and it's worked perfectly.
leak3.jpg
 
Well I finally updated post #49 the cost breakdown. I dug through TONS of receipts and tried to include everything for a realistic cost. As stated this didn't include some generic items like the engine oil, gear oil, paint, a few special tools, etc. which I had most of anyway. It also doesn't include a few wrong parts I got and were unable to return.

I haven't gotten the courage to add it all up myself yet... :doh:
 
i need a new exhaust system for mine and wondered what make, model, and in/outsizes your muffler was. love the description-quiet, loud, quiet. thx jim
 
Jim-

I'll be home tomorrow and will post up the info...

EDIT: OK, here it is: (Magnaflow Part#12289)

I've got 3" Intermediate into the muffler and 3" down to 2 1/2" (fit the aux tank batter) to the rear. I can snap a few more pics if needed.
 
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