Builds "It's Huge" New SOA

[Cruiserdrew]

Road test

A bit of progress.

I got a front FJ60 DC shaft retubed for the rear and installed that.

I got a 26 inch rear brake line made and installed and bled the brakes. If you want brake lines look for a "Brake Quip" guy. Really nice brake lines made custom while you wait.

Welded the rear perches in their permanent location.

Made a bracket to hold the e=brake cable.

Re-used the existing OME shocks in the rear. Not happy with that but I wanted to drive it.

It drives great. i did an initial cruise around the 'hood and it was OK, so I tightened all the bolts and did a short trip on the freeway. It worked great with good steering, no real body roll, very stable up to 70 mph. I'm going to drive it to work tomorrow.

I have worked every day for 2 weeks and will get some more pictures this Thursday when I get a day off. Thanks for being patient.

 

[chicago]

Andy,
Did you increase the wall thickness of the DS when they did it?
How much did that run to have done?
Did you keep the sways, or nix em?
Did you relocate the rear shock placment?
Mind posting some pics of the rear set up you did?

IIRC, Brett did the same tranny/ t case combo youre thinking of, and it was impressive to say the least when I wheeled with him last year. Though, Im sure you know that.

Chicago

 

[Cruiserdrew]

Andy,
Did you increase the wall thickness of the DS when they did it?
How much did that run to have done?
Did you keep the sways, or nix em?
Did you relocate the rear shock placment?
Mind posting some pics of the rear set up you did?

IIRC, Brett did the same tranny/ t case combo youre thinking of, and it was impressive to say the least when I wheeled with him last year. Though, Im sure you know that.

Chicago

Yes-Wall thickness to .120. Stock is about .060. The driveshaft guy said the thicker 0.250 tubing was too hard to balance for a rear shaft, and to stay with the .120. It cost $98 at Sacramento Driveline. I really think these guys are great.

Sways are gone, but the front is coming back I think. It really felt good without the sway but I figure for safety reasons I feel it should go back.

For now, the rear shock location is unchanged. I will likely re-locate to run longer shocks.

No pics until I get a day off.

 

[Dirtgypsy]

Wednesday of Rubicon Week. I'd love to have it ready to rock. needs--sliders, rear bumper, lockers and Toybox.

sliders and a locker and you should be fine. but a toybox would be sweet!

hmm, sliders and a bumper..

Bob may be in

ok so I have myself, portfj62 and brokenparts in for Rubithon, do I smell a 60/ 62 only run next year?

I am in either way!

Clint

 

[chicago]

Yes-Wall thickness to .120. Stock is about .060. The driveshaft guy said the thicker tubing was too hard to balance for a rear shaft, and to stay with the .120. It cost $98 at Sacramento Driveline. I really think these guys are great.

Sways are gone, but the front is coming back I think. It really felt good without the sway but I figure for safety reasons I feel it should go back.

For now, the rear shock location is unchanged. I will likely re-locate to run longer shocks.

No pics until I get a day off.

So did they pull the ends for you off the shafts?
This sounds like a pretty good way to go in lieu of all new shafts...
Ill have to keep them in mind for sure!

Chicago

 

[chicago]

sliders and a locker and you should be fine. but a toybox would be sweet!



ok so I have myself, portfj62 and brokenparts in for Rubithon, do I smell a 60/ 62 only run next year?

I am in either way!

Clint

I might try and make it this year.
Its an event that Ive always wanted to do. It will depend on the time off.

Chicago

 

[chicago]

Haha, I completely agree. Hopefully I'll be doing my SOA next spring / summer.

Just in time for the wheeling season?
DRRRRAAAAAG!
Youre gonna do a write up, yes?

Chicago

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Just in time for the wheeling season?
DRRRRAAAAAG!
Youre gonna do a write up, yes?

Chicago

We shall see Chicago, we shall see. I'm going to be doing an internship at Toyota for 6 months during the spring and summer, so the cash flow will be there. I started talking with the Bluegrass Crusier guys through their TLCA forum, (KY) and it seems that there are 7 or 8 working where at the plant I'll be at, so odds are good I'll be able to do it.

When it happens, there will be a write up.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

We shall see Chicago, we shall see. I'm going to be doing an internship at Toyota for 6 months during the spring and summer, so the cash flow will be there. I started talking with the Bluegrass Crusier guys through their TLCA forum, (KY) and it seems that there are 7 or 8 working where at the plant I'll be at, so odds are good I'll be able to do it.

When it happens, there will be a write up.

Get started on it now! It takes a long time to accumulate the parts, and all I basically have is a SOA truck with no lockers and inadequate gearing for what I want to do with it. So even though it's now drivable, it isn't close to done.

If you start with all the parts in hand, the spring over part can go pretty fast. It was helpful to have done a spring over previously on my FJ40.

If you decide to use Ford shock towers, I have a set I did not use.

 

[LCOwner]

This thread is seriously lacking in pics. C'mon man pimp you junk out there.

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Get started on it now! It takes a long time to accumulate the parts, and all I basically have is a SOA truck with no lockers and inadequate gearing for what I want to do with it. So even though it's now drivable, it isn't close to done.

If you start with all the parts in hand, the spring over part can go pretty fast. It was helpful to have done a spring over previously on my FJ40.

If you decide to use Ford shock towers, I have a set I did not use.

I was planning on using those! I just might have to buy them from you.

As for setting it up for gearing / etc, I already bought my FF rear with 4.11's that I'll put an Aussie into before I install it, I have an H55 + newer split case on the boat from AU, and I have a spare front housing sitting, waiting for me to strip it then do a cut and turn. When I put my rear axle in and rebuild the front, I'm going to change the brake lines with longer ones that will work once I do my SOA.

I'm getting there, but this thread isn't about me. What gearing do you want to run? What lockers are you going to run?

When is your ROTW???? I'm sure we all want to see more pics, specifically of it in action!

EDIT: I see you already have an H55 + 4.11's. What gearing do you want to go to? Are you going to run a toybox? I was considering that route so I could keep the 4.11's for highway driving.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

What gearing do you want to run? What lockers are you going to run?



EDIT: I see you already have an H55 + 4.11's. What gearing do you want to go to? Are you going to run a toybox? I was considering that route so I could keep the 4.11's for highway driving.

Here is this week's plan:

The H55f comes out and goes in the FJ62. Autobox goes in the dumper.

I have an H41, so, the h41 gets a Toybox and my spare split case. that keeps the overall length in check for a better fit. I actually set the rear pinion angle to fit this combo. Hopefully, I can get that done in the next couple of months.

Lockers-I may just pull the 4.56 diffs out of my 40 since they have ARBs, but more likely I'll just get some more ARBs for this truck. I have to see how the finances look.

The 60 has 4.11s now, so they stay and I get some rubber overdrive with 35s or 36s. My goal is to do Rubicon in this truck the way I have done it in my FJ40. This truck is still pretty straight, so I want some armor to keep it that way.

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Alright. So you're planning on running about the same setup as I am, except I plan to run an H55 as opposed to an H41, because I do a ton of highway driving. That's excellent news for me, because the only info I had to come up with that combo was the gear calculator that NorcalDoug ( I think ) made for the 60 series cruisers. An overdrive with the low first gear ratio of the H41. The length of the drivetrain isn't that much different though, right? 4 inches or so?

 

[Cruiserdrew]

So did they pull the ends for you off the shafts?
This sounds like a pretty good way to go in lieu of all new shafts...


Chicago

It isn't a matter of pulling the ends. It's hard to explain, but the whole thing is modular, so basically you cut the weld and pull off the tube. Then insert a new tube of the right length and reweld, then balance.

Sac Driveline has an interesting history. They basically invented all the machines and tooling that all the driveshaft shops use now. I think even guys like Tom Woods and High Angle driveline use thier stuff. What's really nice is the same day turn around. I usually wait an extra day and let the paint dry.

 

[Randy88FJ62]

sliders and a locker and you should be fine. but a toybox would be sweet!



ok so I have myself, portfj62 and brokenparts in for Rubithon, do I smell a 60/ 62 only run next year?

I am in either way!

Clint

I'm in for a waggy run as well.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

Mo' Pics

I took a few more pics of the truck today, and renewed my silver star since it ran out since I first posted. The first few are still comparison shots, including one of my son Jeff who is 6 feet exactly. The tires are still 33s, so if anything, it will get taller.

The 62 is completely stock, right down to the stock size Michelin tires.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

A picture of the front end. If you are alert, you can see the brake "t" is relocated to the top of the diff.

Then there is a shot of the front drive shaft angle. The pinion came out to 16 degrees. I measured and that's what it was for whoever asked.

The last pic is the double cardan shaft at the rear t-case output. It started life as an FJ6O front shaft-the 81-84 trucks came with this gem. It's a gem because the bolt pattern fits FJ40s and FJ60 from 1975-1984. I'm running one on the rear of my FJ40, which has a 76 pattern.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

This shows the drive shaft angle at the rear-inline with the rear output minus a degree or so. I've had it to 70mph without vibes. You can also see the extension of the e-brake mount on the axle.

I integrated the shock mount into the perch. If you want a very pro looking version of this, get the ones that Mudrak sells. I just made these with the Ruffstuff perch and some 3/8 bar stock. these shocks are temporary until I can flex and measure. Probably will be Rancho 9112s. Notice I didnt cut the lower perches off the rear axle in case I don't like being spring over. If I like it, I'll go back and cut off the lower perches.

3rd pic shows the front brake line and what you do when you eliminate the backing plate.

 

[Cruiserdrew]

Another blurry shot of the front brake line to the caliper-I relocated the hard mount and ran the hard lines over the springs so they don't get crushed by rocks.

The shock hoop-1.5 inch DOM bent on the driver's side to clear the steering box. The shocks are Rancho 9012s

Last pic is the roof of the 60 inside the garage. I had to measure the clearence with a feeler gauge.

 

[Spike Strip]

Looks great - Did you have those brake lines made? (sorry if that's elsewhere in the post, I'm too lazy to look)