Elliott's buildup: semi-resto 60

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Continuation of Elliott's build....

Well, I am the proud new owner of Elliott's old cruiser. I have been a bit busy with work lately and have not had much time to dig into the project. I have driven it around a bit though and discovered a few more mechanical issues and have decided to tackle those first before I worry about the body or interior. Here are the issues mechanically that I know of that need working out.

1. Rattling noise coming from the driver's side, near the exhaust. --- took care of it today, was tough to locate and easy to fix; a loose blank-off plate for some smog related stuff (I think....)

2. Power steering fluid leak coming from somewhere on the low-pressure/cooling side of the lines. One of the return lines was in rough shape, so I decided to just replace all of them to heal any future issues. I was reading up on the problem and discovered that some people were just going with an aftermarket NAPA generic cooler. Didn't seem like a bad route to go, only $40 for the cooler. ---- I am in the middle of installing it right now, surprisingly enough getting the hoses on the fittings has been the toughest part. I threw a few pics in to just show the part and install. (At least I am trying, I am a bit new to this posting business)

3. There is a light tapping noise coming from under the valve covers. I think since the top-end of the motor was recently rebuilt, but not run to much be Elliott, that the heating and cooling cycles have just loosened a few things up. --- I just need to get in there and check the valve clearances and adjust if necessary. Not a big deal, I had to buy the feeler gauges though.

4. This is the problem that I am most concerned about. There was a large puddle of coolant underneath the vehicle after the last time I ran it, although it took a few days to accumulate. It is dripping from the transfer case though, not anywhere near the radiator. The only thing that i can figure is that one of the lines coming from the back of the motor near the firewall (the line behind the carb that heads back into somewhere I can't see because of a cover, probably a heat shield or something) has a small leak and just needs to be tightened down. ---- I have not really had a chance to dig deeply into this one yet, I just decided to tackle one thing at a time. Any advice would be nice.


I am not sure whether I will continue to post things on here or whether I will kind of start a different page to continue the build. Any feedback? Is anyone really interested in following the rest of the build?

Cheers,

-Caleb
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Good work on the PS cooler!

The coolant leak near your transfer case is most likely your rear heater lines. The rear heater under your passenger seat may or may not still work but the lines have rotted through, causing a leak. Pop under the truck and start looking under the passenger side and you will find your leak.
 
cool to see what's going on with this project.

keep up the good work Caleb
 
Thanks for the input gents.

Johnny C -- Thanks for the suggestion about the leak. I started digging into it and also did some research on here and found out what that line runs back there for (rear heater). The heat shield is a bit difficult to get out. Had to remove the valve cover to get to one of the bolts, the other one behind the carb wasn't bad, and I believe there is a third behind the head or something cause it still will not come off... Once I get it off, I will be able to inspect to see exactly what the cause is of the leak. I am pretty sure it is coming from up near the top of the motor though, cause its dripping coolant all over the place back there...

I am thinking about just doing away with the rear heater, seems like it is just another item to leak/break or just be a PITA, which it's doing right now. If I do decide to fix the leak and leave it in place, is there any problem with NOT placing the heat shield back if I am able to remove it???

Thanks, and I have a few pics that I will post later on with this, just didn't have time to upload them last night.
 
Dude Your truck is really coming along nice!!! Love the bumpers man!!!:cheers:
 
I was kind of forced to put everything back together before I really wanted to... I have a two car garage and my roomate has been gone for some time, I have kinda been taking up both spaces in the gargage to work on the rig :) He comes back this afternoon. sigh.

Also, I needed it running so I could get around in the snow today. It seems to be running great, the PS Cooler is working well, no leaks. The rear-heater hose behind the head near the firewall was not leaking much last night. I tightened up the hose a bit, but I don't think that was the fix, not sure. Also, the rear heater is not working, and I decided I want to keep it. It just gets a bit chilly out here in WY and I think it would be worth having to thaw out things in the back seat. I need to figure out what is wrong with it now. It should be getting "hot" coolant back there to the heater core in the rear. Just need some time to diagnose.

Is there a fan with the rear heater, and if so is it linked in to the control for the fan in the front? OH, also realized after driving in the snow today that I could use some new rubber...

-C
 
So I was driving around the other night, went to switch the low beams to high, and all the lights cut out... Then I found out that you could not just replace the bulb. I am now considering upgrading the lighting system and throwing in some new wires and relays and such, that will handle higher wattage bulbs and help out with the voltage drop problem the stock harness has.

Anyways before I put in the new harness I wanted to be sure that the existing one was fixed. Not sure if anyone else has/is having this problem, but this helped TREMENDOUSLY!!!

https://forum.ih8mud.com/60-series-wagons/110746-high-beam-lights-fixed-finally.html

Update on the PS pump. I found out after driving a bit that it still has a leak. It's tough to say where it is coming from, but I suspect its coming from the shaft that the pulley is connected to, then dripping down the sides of the pump... Kind of a bummer. I think a new pump will be on order at some point, most likely a saginaw, I have heard good things about them.

When I was messing with the pump I replaced the belt as well. When I was replacing the belt, I noticed that the pulley was pinched, and that after putting on the new belt, the belt is not flush with the pulley. I don't think it is the proper pulley on the pump. It is also out of alignment, when looking from the drivers side to the passengers side, the PS pump pulley is more toward the firewall than the other pulley. Does anyone have a pic of their PS pulley or a know of a link to some pics on here with one?

Thanks, and I will update when I get cranking again!
 
I helped Elliot get it ready for you before you came to grab it and the coolant leak is definitely coming from the top of the firewall behind that plate from what I could tell. I tightened it up and thought it was fixed as there was no more leaking but I guess it is an intermittent problem. Elliot said it dumped a ton of coolant the night before and I could still see the drips from that area but the entire time we ran the engine there was no issues.
 
Satchel, thanks for the heads up. The funny part about that leak, it does not seem to leak when the vehicle is running. After I turn it off, and it has sat for an hour or two, then it starts leaking... Kinda weird. I tried removing that heat shield to get down there and see where it was leaking, and you probably know how much fun that was... I tightened it up a little more, didn't want to go too tight I was afraid the clamp would just cut right through the hose. Seems to be doing fine at the moment though.

Just out of curiosity, anything else that you all worked on that I might look into?!?!?!? Thanks dude, I appreciate it. Talk to Elliott recently, he has been MIA as far as I can tell. I think he was pretty straightforward about most things on the Land Cruiser, but has not been in touch at all. I sent him an email just saying hey, nada in return. No worries though.

Thanks again.

-C
 
Are you sure its not just overfilled? I had a situation like that, where I had filled it to the brim (front uphill, running at operating temp, extended funnel) to make sure there weren't any airbubbles. The next couple times I ran it to operating temp, it would leak out the resevoir drain spout after I turned it off...after it gave up what it needed, it never happened again
 
Trapper50cal,

Nope not sure. Everyhting is a possibility. I know that it is full, but the line to the overfill reservoir is connected and it hasn't spit anything out into that. I would like to think that's the first place that it will spit out extra coolant, not behind the motor by the firewall.

Last night when it was running, there was a strong scent of coolant with the hood open, but no visible leaks. I can smell it, but just can't see it leaking....
 
Thanks Bruiser, I need to get back to working on it... I spent a long weekend out in Steamboat Springs, CO skiing. I saw some nice cruisers out there though, and it has given me a bit of motivation to get back to cranking on it. I have also started to put together a list of things I need/want, and I need to start prioritizing them....
 
Bury-

how was the boat?

im originally from there. got some knee deep in the trees last weekend

how's the rig?
 
The boat was great! They got about 2 feet during the week before I went, then 8" on Friday night, then another 4" on sat night. Windy though on Sat, they had 5 lifts closed, couldn't get to the top of the mountain, or Morningside...

Good weekend though, and it was free lift tickets for me, which was great.

I have not had much time to play with the Rig lately. I need to adjust the valves, fix a small exhaust leak, and figure out what the deal is with the PS pulley. It seems to be out of alignment with the other pulley's and it is smaller so the belt is does not fit flush with it... I was thinking about heading down this weekend to Fort Collins to meet up with some guys in the club there to get some opinons, and maybe go for a trail run. They are meeting at Albertsons at 9 am on Sat. At least that's what i know so far, need to message them and get any other info... You ever head up to the WY direction?

-Caleb
 
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