- Thread starter
- #21
Im aware, already have new seals for all of them… will also probably end up replacing the windshield.
Hen’s tooth build thread
- Thread starter effjay55
- Start date
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that would be a good time to do the repaint in pepto pink also. but in all honesty if your going to repaint when windows are all out is the correct time. its a very slippery slope of how far to go when you start vs driving and enjoying. thats the reason i have multiple cause one always has to be on the road and multiple in different stages of fixing or starting s*** i shouldn't have.
I’ll echo what some others have shared, just drive and enjoy it. Getting it and keeping it perfect is difficult, time consuming and expensive. Pockets of rust are popping out on mine like small pox but I just keep wheeling it with my kiddos because fixing it all is like a snowball from hell. Welcome to the Sty!
- Thread starter
- #25
I know how much you guys love the color so I figured I’d share what I was planning on doing with it.
Since the color is originally a VW Mango Green I wanted to mock-up how it would look matched with one of the complimentary colors they would use on the two-tone microbuses: Seagull Grey.
I actually like the way it looks!
(It’s ok you can hate it)
On another note… pretty sure I need a new throwout bearing, so I guess some preventative maintenance is in order when I go to swap that out.
Exciting times ahead…
John
Since the color is originally a VW Mango Green I wanted to mock-up how it would look matched with one of the complimentary colors they would use on the two-tone microbuses: Seagull Grey.
I actually like the way it looks!
(It’s ok you can hate it)
On another note… pretty sure I need a new throwout bearing, so I guess some preventative maintenance is in order when I go to swap that out.
Exciting times ahead…
John
That color combo looks rad!I know how much you guys love the color so I figured I’d share what I was planning on doing with it.
Since the color is originally a VW Mango Green I wanted to mock-up how it would look matched with one of the complimentary colors they would use on the two-tone microbuses: Seagull Grey.
View attachment 3617163View attachment 3617164
I actually like the way it looks!
(It’s ok you can hate it)
On another note… pretty sure I need a new throwout bearing, so I guess some preventative maintenance is in order when I go to swap that out.
Exciting times ahead…
John
- Thread starter
- #28
Fits like a glove! It looks kinda small in that spot. Guess it’s a compactHow you get to park ain compact spot???
!
I like it too!!! Totally Rad
Yeah, what's not to like about those colors. 
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Very classy color. LIKE.
Looks just like yours except it has a rear axle under it. (I’ll let myself out now.)
I'm getting close.
- Thread starter
- #34
ehh so a bit of an update, nothing exciting yet, still waiting on moving her up the shop to begin the real work of rust repair, but for now I’ve been hunting some grounding issues and fixing up trim here and there.
Turns out this 3-speed boot for the FJ40 works great for me. I stripped and rattle canned the metal ring and it looks great.
Anyone want a free 4-speed boot? It may or may not have been cut and glued back together, but you can’t even tell… and free is free !!
, just DM me if you want it.
Turns out this 3-speed boot for the FJ40 works great for me. I stripped and rattle canned the metal ring and it looks great.
Anyone want a free 4-speed boot? It may or may not have been cut and glued back together, but you can’t even tell… and free is free !!
, just DM me if you want it.
Nice!Greetings everyone!
Some of you may have seen my other post over in the 40- / 55-Series Tech forum; I failed to realize there was a distinguished group of awesome individuals already here in the FJ55 Iron Pig Preservation Society! My name is JM, or John, and I recently became the proud owner of a 1974 FJ55 that is pretty close to original. It has the original late-model F engine (1.5) and the 3-speed, but has a couple of mods such as a 3” lift kit, pertronix ignition with flamethrower coil, and some mean sounding headers… she’s actually in great mechanical and physical shape, but is missing a bunch of trim and needs some body work to repair some rust + paint job. Im still learning!!!.. but when I get into a hobby I tend to geek out and dig myself into a rabbit hole real quick. So forgive me if I start talking in tongues and your eyes start to glaze over (kind of used to it anyways…).
I’ve decided to start my own build thread to document my progress with my FJ55 who I’ll be naming Hen’s tooth, shouldn’t have to explain that name…
If you’re interested in reading a little story about me and how I came to acquire the pig you can check out my other thread here: New FJ55 Owner.
I’m a normal dude that works a crappy desk job with pretty much a minimal set of skills when it comes to working on old cars. But its always been a dream of mine to own a pig, so here I am today. I know I’ve got a decent head start, just call it a handicap, considering the pig is in pretty good condition and isn’t missing much, but I know I still have plenty of work cut out for me knowing how much of a perfectionist I am… maybe not as big of a perfectionist as some other folks on here though (some of the build threads I have seen are amazing).
For now though Ill kick off this thread with photos of the body and some of the rust that was spotted as I did a walk around, one of my initial goals is to start going at the rust and trying to see how bad it truly is then go from there.
My current backlog:
That’s definitely a high level look at where I am at.
- Registration ←
- 60mi (96.5km) drive to home base
- Stripping her down
- Rust repair
I ordered a ton of parts , including new headliner and seals. So I’ll update the thread with some pictures of the parts and the inevitable gear acquisition syndrome haul as I get them. But for now here’s a photo dump of the rusty bits…
Rust
View attachment 3615651
You found us - good...
You're in LA? I always think of that scene in Easy Rider where Peter Fonda tells the rancher they're from LA. The rancher says, "L A?"
LOL
And then I just finished watching the Netflix show - Everybody's In LA.
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- Thread starter
- #36
Lol, not too fond of living here. I'm looking to buy a home soon, and definitely won't be in CA. But being down the street from SOR has had its perks so far...
- Thread starter
- #37
Good news of sorts:
After a very long 60 mile trip, complete with 6 pitstops on the side of the road to clear out the fuel filter. I finally got the truck up to garage where I'll be working on it. She ran strong whenever the fuel delivery wasn't an issue, but definitely made re-shift my priorities; going to be focusing on fixing this fuel delivery issue before anything else. I talk about it a little more in that other thread
A huge bubble keeps forming in the fuel filter which is what I suspect is causing the fuel delivery issue.
Have a new OEM filter on order, but will be flushing out the fuel lines and tank to make sure there isn't anything clogging it, I suspect there will be plenty of crud in the tank and lines...
After a very long 60 mile trip, complete with 6 pitstops on the side of the road to clear out the fuel filter. I finally got the truck up to garage where I'll be working on it. She ran strong whenever the fuel delivery wasn't an issue, but definitely made re-shift my priorities; going to be focusing on fixing this fuel delivery issue before anything else. I talk about it a little more in that other thread
A huge bubble keeps forming in the fuel filter which is what I suspect is causing the fuel delivery issue.
Have a new OEM filter on order, but will be flushing out the fuel lines and tank to make sure there isn't anything clogging it, I suspect there will be plenty of crud in the tank and lines...
For your shift boot, it may a set up kind of like your transfer case shifter - a rubber boot under a glamorous vinyl cover.Interior photos
One of my first major absolutely essential fixes and accomplishments/milestones in my life and existence on this planet was the shift knob and the shift boot which were pretty worn off. I'd like to thank my family for the support and for believing in me-- ahem...anyways... I think I screwed up with the boot
The shift boot that was on this thing is weird. It consists of a retaining ring and some old worn rubber boot.
The only pictures I can find of 1974 FJ55’s interiors seem to show it was something like a leather boot with the metal retaining ring. Looking at the old boot, it looks like the screw holes were drilled out, so it seems DIY.
View attachment 3616052
I bought the wrong 4-speed boot because like a dumbass I assumed it was the same bolt pattern, but found out the hard way…
I tried to model out and 3d print a sort of retainer ring, but even the smallest part of this boot is too big for the bolt pattern.
Anyone know what kind of boot this thing takes?
What is your build month/year? 1974 was a transition year from the 3 spd to 4 spd. I think the 4 spd was supposed to start in 9/73.
So maybe your Pig has some early set-up? Or a 3 spd boot?
Moisture in the roof is no bueno for our Pigs.
Oh boy, if you are thinking of painting your Pig pink, I will highly encourage your choice. I have bored everyone in here with my thoughts that Pig should be painted Panther Pink - a color in Chrysler's High Impact color line from the 60's/70's. Somewhere we have a sweet photo chop of a Pink Pig.
Do it!