FJ40 project build...from Tasmania!!!

[hsv587]

.Got my ford F250 shock towers in,got my lower shock mounts sorted and fitted the adjustable Ranchos the other day...but seems to be starving for fuel...spluttering and stalling once the carb secondarys are opening.
Changed fuel filter,checked small filter inside the weber,blew back through the fuel line..no change.
Maybe blocked jet i thought...went out to have another fiddle with it...jumped in,hit the key to start it,pressed the accelerator....and the throttle cable broke
Pulled the throttle out of another FJ40 (and future project),Pulled carb down,cleaned everything,and spent hours in the heat trying to fix it.
it ended up being a weak fuel pump..it would flow enough to work at idle/low revs,but wouldnt flow at higher revs/under load....new pump,shes like new again..and shocks that actually work are a great improvement

 

[hsv587]

 

[watrob]

You have a shock problem, first off check that these Rancho's are not for a 2" lift vehicle, the reason is they will bottom out on the shock first before the they hit the leaf bump stops?

Should have gotten the standard sized shocks, or you can install new leafs?

 

[hsv587]

I was just planning on inboarding the tops a bit more to get the extra compression

 

[Tasmanic]

Cob, don't know how I stumbled on this? I read it all. Great tales. Miss the place. Enjoy that summer in yer 40!

 

[hsv587]

Ok,its been a long time between drinks here...
Well,the poor old 40 has been sitting here out of action for about 12 months...the bottom end didnt like the fresh rebuilt head and grumpy camshaft..its broke an oil ring or 3 ...it smokes more than willy nelson and snoop dogg lost in a gunja crop.

But,the next installment of my landcruiser woes is about to start..and ive moved to a new location.The "ghetto gutter workshop" on the street outside home has served me well for nearly 15 years...but my dream has come true I have built a workshop in my backyard .Yes,no more working in the rain,hail and snow .

And today I just scored a HJ60 wagon..2H,5 speed,power steer,disc front...now I can build it the way I wanted it....stay tuned

 

[hsv587]

 

[hsv587]

 

[hsv587]

Theres the big 2H 60..1st month 1985 build..engine sounds sweet,and got a homebrew high mount turbo manifold too....its ugly,but it works.It has a T3 flange,So im planning fitting a Hitachi HT18 from a jap spec R33 gts-t skyline.its around a T28 size,with .60 A/R compressor and .50 A/R turbine so theoretically it should work pretty good.stock boost is 7 psi,i might run around 10psi and it should stay happy
Cheap and easy to source in australia.

 

[hsv587]

Well,got a few bits and pieces for my new and improved sporty shorty to HJ-T40 build
Got new high steer kit with rock rod relay and tie rod,big,solid,beefy bars from Superior Engineering here in australia to suit HJ75/FJ75 and also a 75 series cruiser pitman arm.Some spring perches so I can get rid of my semi floating rear end and use the full floater rear out of the HJ60.
Welder is the new cigweld transmig 220i...it is the new version of the tweco/thermal arc/esab fabricator 211i (which was our transmig 200i)....when it is released in the US I suspect it will be branded as the ESAB fabricator 221i.
I havnt had a chance to run it yet,as im still without power in my shed...which should hopefully be sorted in the next couple of days

 

[hsv587]

Ok,bit of an update...
Issue 1...pulled old drum front knuckles off,started the cut n turn on one side,then looked at my front springs...they are flat which is good,but have a small amount of sag...there are 5 leaves on the front,so my plan is keep the main and military wrap spring,but replace the lower leaves with the lower leaves from the HJ60...the 60 has 6 leafs so ill use the lower 4 i reckon...thats the plan anyway.

2nd issue,which is also part of the first issue...the ford alloy head 250 xflow im removing is relativly light for a 6 banger...the mighty 2H isnt...its a big fat bastard...so im going to need to sort out the front springs and fit the 2H before I can do an accurate cut n turn.

3rd issue...I cant do my rear diff until drivetrain is installed either..i need to get the perch angle right as I may be flipping the rear springs so the angle will be different from my current 40 SOA rear axle..flipping the springs depends on if it will work with the stock 60 front driveshaft with the H55 gearbox.

issue 4 ...I need to source some chassis to engine mounts...the ones riveted to the chassis...my stock items were replaced with custom mounts for the ford conversion...I have already sourced the HJ47 mounts that bolt onto the engine and a new pair of the rubber insulated mounts...just need the chassis mounts...this is holding me up a little.

Issue 5...not a big issue,just need to source a couple of bits for the power steering conversion...i need a 75 series intermediate shaft and a 80 series rag joint..ill source them tomorrow hopefully.

I have had a couple of wins though...I finally have power and lights in my workshop,so s***s been getting done.the front clips have been pulled off both the 40 and 60,the engine and gearbox are ready to come out of the 40,heads off,exhaust gone,10 minutes work and its out.

the wiring harness wasnt butchered in the hj60,and the superglow and edic systems all work fine,so I got creative ...I split the wiring loom and created a engine loom,keeping the oil pressure,temp,starter,alternator,superglow,dash glow light,temp gauge,oil gauge,ignition switch and edic controls...I plugged it all in,connected a battery and it kicked into life first shot ..edic and glow is working fine still .

Soooo,the plan is to do the same to my 40...split the loom,keep all the body wiring and get rid of the engine/starter/alternator etc wiring out of the loom,retaping as I go,run my engine loom,connect it up to my fusebox and all should be apples ...thats if everything goes to plan....which it never does.

 

[hsv587]

More progress today,fitted the HJ60 front springs to the small eye pins and shackles using OME bushes..my local ARB store had them on the shelf...the joys of australia .
going to take the bottom smallest leaf out of both packs and hopefully they will sit nice and flat once the weight of the engine is on them.

I bolted the fj40 springs back into the 60 just to keep it rolling for the moment (i didnt put bushes in) and they are already slightly inverted from the weight of the 2H so I think I made the right call pulling my soft flexy springs out.

 

[White Stripe]

I'm not exactly sure if I'm reading this right. You put front springs from the 60 on your 40? If that's the case the 40 springs are better to keep on the 40 as they are 2" longer. They should have 7 leafs from the factory so maybe someone removed some leafs. The rear 60 leafs are a good upgrade to put on the 40 though. U can put the rear axle in and just put some light tacks on the perches, then when u get the motor and drivetrain in knock the welds loose and set you final angles and burn the perches in nice.

 

[hsv587]

I was doing some reading on spring lengths,the 60 series are only about 12 mm shorter from memory..ill pull the shortest leaf out of the bottom and see how it all sits once I have the drivetrain weight in it..worst comes to worst ill go back to my origional plan,and use the 40 main and military wrap spring,redrill and use the 60 leafs .
I understand the rears are better,but I cant really alter my spring hangers ..I need it so I can throw the complete stock setup springs and axles out of my spare parts 40 under it in case I get a dreaded transport department inspection notice,or defect.

the current rear axle angle is spot on with the 4 speed,but I think ill flip the rear springs,so ill take my angle measurements of where my tailshaft will be pointing with the current 40 axle with the 5 speed installed,use some basic maths,and set my perches up .I have the next 2 days off work,so ill try to get a fair bit done...I want to get it bowled over...this landcruiser has been like a spoilt,petulant child .As soon as I start giving some attention to my main love,my 1953 jaguar MK VII,the landcruiser breaks,and takes up all my time and emptys my bank account..again .

What started out as a joke project,build a cool bush s***ter out of a paddock wreck using crap I have laying around has led me into investing thousands into..well,a cool bush s***ter....while the gentlemans express is still languishing in the corner at 63 years old,and my F100 has leaked all its tranny fluid onto my street :/.

im really hoping its going to stop breaking now im getting rid of the ford crap out of it and going the indestructable 2H and went overboard on my steering gear...time will tell.

 

[hsv587]

Well,I picked up a secondhand garrett T3 60 trim .63 AR turbo,has been rebuilt fairly recently...mr google tells me this turbo came out on the buick grand national over in the states...things have been moving slowly,im just getting over a bad dose of man flu...

 

[hsv587]

Well, due to lack of interest here, I ended up taking part 2 of my rebuild straight to facebook.
But, the end result is im back to daily driving my 40 .

It now is a 2H turbo, 5 speed,60 series power steering, superior engineering high steer kit with solid rods,60 rear diff, floor mounted handbrake, 60 series front discs, knuckles and locking hubs, cut and turned front axle, custom 60/40 front springs,60 booster and master etc etc etc...its finally my dream 40 ...and pulls like a train

 

[Indestructible 47]

no lack of intrest here! beautiful work

 

[hsv587]

Well, I utilized as much of the hj60 as I could drivetrain wise...as you can see ive mounted the 60 booster, clutch system, radiator (screwed off behind the headlight buckets) rear diff/handbrake cable/handbrake lever, some of the wiring etc.
As for the power steering I used a fj55 column which I shortened to just under standard 40 column lenght for comfort, 75 Series collapsible intermediate shaft, hilux (mini truck) steering universal joint (small end one side big end the other) connected to a 60 series box with 75 series pitman arm, and 75 series high steer kit .

The power steer is by far the best mod on the 40..combined with the cut n turn giving me 3 degrees positive castor it steers great and turning circle has been majorly improved.

I modifyed the 60 series gearbox crossmember and used the complete 60 series bellhousing and 5 speed box, not much room in the early 40s so I had to massage the tunnel coverplate with a hammer, but I made it fit.

Turbo kit I decided to see if I could make up one for less than $ 500 australian....done it with ease...the big 2h has a little blow by, but its a healthy engine and pulls very well...boost is around 13 psi and pulls real good, and it dont seem over stressed...I blocked the wastegate actuator hose by cabletying it, so the boost is governed by my fuel screw setting, which seems to give me the lowest egts.

Conclusion. ..if any of you are thinking about doing a diesel conversion, do it ...and a properly set up 60 series power steering conversion completely changes the driving experience. ..best mod for any 40 hands down

 

[hsv587]

Well havnt needed to update for a while...2h turbo is still running strong on 18 psi boost,wastegate is wired shut so boost is governed by the fuel screw setting.The EGTs dont get too hot so it seems to be working well

 

[Indestructible 47]

nice mate! interested to see how she holds up. need to get down to tassie someday.