HJ47 welcome here? (10 Viewers)

[Henry James the 47th]

3 more

 

[Radd Cruisers]

Just running back through your posts, that hole looks awfully small to get proper pentitration into the shaft.

On a plug weld you start in the middleand work your way to the outside working the puddle.

I would run a bolt through the shaft for backup?

Just a suggestion.

Another 3 hours tonight. Doesn't seem like I got much done, though the driver's side floor is looking a lot better.

Started with a bit of work on the steering column. Before welding the splicing collar to the end, I wanted to make sure I could remove the bearing. No problem, so welded to holes up, and then assembled it to the steering column.

 

[Henry James the 47th]

another one of the rip repair in the lower curved part of the cab. I also received a new box in the mail, again from Australia - this time a new set of door locks with keys. Toyota doesn't have any more matched sets on the shelf, so I will have to take them to the locksmith and get them keyed alike.

 

[Henry James the 47th]

Just running back through your posts, that hole looks awfully small to get proper pentitration into the shaft.

On a plug weld you start in the middleand work your way to the outside working the puddle.

I would run a bolt through the shaft for backup?

Just a suggestion.

Yeah, I've been thinking about using a bolt or a drift pin, but haven't made up my mind yet. I might also chamfer back the collar so I can do a circular weld bead around the joint.

 

[Henry James the 47th]

What's the part number for those dust shields and how do you get them? That is cool. Thanks.

The part number for the HJ61 disc brake shields is: 47703-60031

 

[cruiser ken]

The part number for the HJ61 disc brake shields is: 47703-60031

Thanks!!

 

[Henry James the 47th]

Feeling almost triumphant today.


Yesterday I completed the lower dash lip on the left side of the steering wheel, and am pleased with the way it looks.

Tonight I put the cab back on the chassis, set up the front body panels to the cab, then cut off the side cowl...

 

[Henry James the 47th]

..and fitted in a nice clean section of cowl. The funnel to the heater blower on the back side in perfect condtion, unlike the other one I had.

 

[Henry James the 47th]

some fittin' and fiddlin'. I scribed the back side and trimmed to the line. Unlike the old one, this cowl meets the lower arch of the fender properly. There's a little jog in the heights of the upper edge in relation to the apron, and it's not much different on the other side of the truck

 

[ColoCruiserJeff]

Very inspiring progress!! Looking quite nice What ga wire are you using in your wire-feed??

 

[Henry James the 47th]

then, with a little assistance, moved the cab back into the welding area and went to work stitching the cowl piece into place.

 

[Henry James the 47th]

I welded from both sides, in a somewhat alternating fashion, and without hanging about too much, completing the weld in about 1/2 an hour.

 

[Henry James the 47th]

three more

 

[Henry James the 47th]

another set of three

 

[Henry James the 47th]

well, last two.

I am just about ready to put the cab into epoxy primer. I need to decide about whether to fit in an outlet port on the passenger rear foot well panel for the lines I might run. These would go from the hot water piping at the firewall to an aux. tank for SVO/WVO.

Anyway, there's no major welding remaining on the cab. The final big welding job in this build comes next: the lower edge of the upper cab section. I figure I can do it in 3 sessions, hopefully before the weekend is out.

I'm going to paint the truck in a deep blue color with a white roof and bezel and glovebox interior. I might go with a newer Toyota color- there's a nice shade of blue I've seen on the Corolla's from 2006~7. Or there's the period-correct option of Toyota #857 Blue. Or some kind of Marine epoxy paint...

 

[DanS HJ-45]

How many months ago was it when you were here frustrated with your welding?!?! That looks great! Better than the boogers I made earlier this week on one of the Dodges....

Looks to me like you've just about got this project licked and ready to start coming back together for good... I've got to remember this, as my Honduran truck never had a heater. Being a mountain boy, I need a heater. Lots of good pics and info here on that area.

Dan

 

[Henry James the 47th]

Very inspiring progress!! Looking quite nice What ga wire are you using in your wire-feed??

I'm using 0.23 wire, heat tap 3, and wire feed speed 30. I don't bother with the copper 'heat sink' plates anymore - not a good idea.

 

[Henry James the 47th]

How many months ago was it when you were here frustrated with your welding?!?! That looks great! Better than the boogers I made earlier this week on one of the Dodges....

Looks to me like you've just about got this project licked and ready to start coming back together for good... I've got to remember this, as my Honduran truck never had a heater. Being a mountain boy, I need a heater. Lots of good pics and info here on that area.

Dan

Yes, tonight I really felt like I had the hang of welding. I used to have difficulty with gaps and would fit in little slivers of metal and weld, - no more. I can work my way across pretty big gaps, like the lower corner of the cowl in picture #3, post #492, which I filled with weld. No burn-through problems any more, and I owe it all to the auto-darkening helmet. It would be interesting to try a regular helmet now to see if it was as tough to use as before.

One thing I realized on the heater blower motor, is that it doesn't actually need to fit up tight to the side of the cowl. This helped in terms of aligning the patch cowl section to the side of the cab. It's better to have a small space there between the fan housing and the funnel, and use a ring of sealing foam/rubber to achieve a seal. This is how the factory did it, as far as I could see by looking at a really clean stock truck earlier this year.

 

[MoCoNative]

You are exactly right about the heater blower housing and the cowl inlet. Just thick foam. Actually kind of interesting that the blower housing is so generic. The little tab next to the vent opening is there for the blower to seal against. The intake on the blower is bigger than the cowl vent. Why Toyota didn't just make it fit the vent opening I don't know.

As for the gap/irregularity between the apron and the cowl, that will just take some fitting. It is kind of an art to get the front end to fit back together. When you final assemble, take your time and carefully work each piece, the aprons, bib and fenders until they all line up pretty well, then tighten it all. I don't think the entire assemble ever fit perfectly, too many disjointed parts, but you can get all together fairly good though.

And yes, your welding has improved drastically, but that is why you tackled this job, to learn something and you have. I'm quite impressed, when you started this project I had no idea you were going to get so ambitious and do som uch body work, or would have to do so much. Very impressive, and it is looking great.

Oh, and one thought on the heater lines, using the FJ-40 tees is a good idea, but I don't know if I would run th elines through the cab just to exit again. Why not just run them down the firewall and under the cab to your heating tank. Look at the clamps used to hold the lines in a 40, and maybe make some to hold your lines up under the floor. The problem in a 40, is if the lines to the rear heater leak, that run through the cab, you have a big freakin mess. The two lines coming into the heater on the firewall are enough headache. If you do run them inside, see if how the lines for the rear heater were ran for you vinatage cruiser in a 40. My 73 has hard lines that hug the tranny hump. It may make for a cleaner install. Although you must insulate them or have the factory floor matting, as they get hot. Will burn a passengers foot in sandals.

 

[Henry James the 47th]

Didn't get a whole lot accomplished today - put the cab back on th chassis, attached the fenders and bib...

--and then wanted to mount the passenger side sidestep, as there was a hole required in some of the new sheet metal that needed a hole for a mounting bolt. The fit of the sidestep to the front fender looked like sh*t at first, but was eventually persuaded into position.