Learning curve for repairing/maintaining own truck (1 Viewer)

[bottombracket]

All the above plus:

1. a can of Kroil (or other penetrating oil, but Kroil is the best)
2. a 1/2” battery powered impact wrench (I like the Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2767)
3. a 3/8” battery powered drill (M12 or M18 Milwaukee for me).
4. a healthy relationship to diesel friendly cruiser shops/vendors (Valley Hybrids, Cruiser Outfitters, Torfab, @joekatana).
5. Discover the supply chain for parts you will eventually need (those shops above, Partsouq, Amayama, Impex Japan, Japan 4x4....)

Have fun, get greasy, and we will be here to support you.

 

[ybggziggy]

All the above plus:

1. a can of Kroil (or other penetrating oil, but Kroil is the best)
2. a 1/2” battery powered impact wrench (I like the Milwaukee M18 Fuel 2767)
3. a 3/8” battery powered drill (M12 or M18 Milwaukee for me).
4. a healthy relationship to diesel friendly cruiser shops/vendors (Valley Hybrids, Cruiser Outfitters, Torfab, @joekatana).
5. Discover the supply chain for parts you will eventually need (those shops above, Partsouq, Amayama, Impex Japan, Japan 4x4....)

Have fun, get greasy, and we will be here to support you.

The responses and support have been awesome. So grateful

 

[OGBeno]

Toyota Factory Service Manual.
Decent set of metric tools.
And a willingness to learn.



At worst, some skin on your knuckles.

Oh and a thick billfold... no one ever mentions that.

 

[ybggziggy]

Oh and a thick billfold... no one ever mentions that.

I hear you

 

[Gun Runner 5]

I hear you

You can’t put a dollar value on having some stranger say “man that’s a cool Jeep”.
Buy a RHD and you’ll enjoy even more goofy comments.

 

[clintnz]

Apart from the parts availability issues you may have in the US, a BJ73 is actually a pretty good vehicle to learn some wrenching on. Have at it.

Most of the common service & repair jobs can be done with basic tools, parts are quite sturdy & difficult to wreck accidentally, access is quite good to most areas & the way they are built is mostly straightforward & often common to many other Japanese vehicles of the same era.

As suggested above, start with simple service jobs & work your way up. Resist the temptation to pull stuff apart unless you have a clear plan on getting it back together.

Cheers
Clint

 

[ybggziggy]

Apart from the parts availability issues you may have in the US, a BJ73 is actually a pretty good vehicle to learn some wrenching on. Have at it.

Most of the common service & repair jobs can be done with basic tools, parts are quite sturdy & difficult to wreck accidentally, access is quite good to most areas & the way they are built is mostly straightforward & often common to many other Japanese vehicles of the same era.

As suggested above, start with simple service jobs & work your way up. Resist the temptation to pull stuff apart unless you have a clear plan on getting it back together.

Cheers
Clint

Thanks Clint. Interesting you mention the BJ73 as that’s what I’m focusing on, in part for the reasons you describe. And I currently drive an older truck with crank windows and no A/C; I survive. Part of the appeal is the contrast with modern amenities. I’m up to speed on the 3B hp limitations having read tons of threads but that’s another topic. Thanks for the advice!

 

[Vitek]

Before you pull something apart do some research about it. This will help you avoid doing damage, mistakes and you can order things ahead which are supposed to be replaced. Keep in mind that things can take a while to arrive!

 

[ybggziggy]

Before you pull something apart do some research about it. This will help you avoid doing damage, mistakes and you can order things ahead which are supposed to be replaced. Keep in mind that things can take a while to arrive!

Thanks!

 

[AussieHJCruza]

Best way to learn is by doing...get a decent set of metric 6 point sockets and metric spanners, and a 1/2 inch torque wrench, and you will be able to do a very large proportion of repairs.

Get a FSM and also the videos by @OTRAMM and others, even if they aren't 70 specific, are useful to watch so you've got a bit of an idea of what you're needing to do before opening something up.

 

[peakbagger]

I am not a fan of impact or power tools on unknown equipment. Way to easy to snap and strip stuff. If its something like lug nuts, have at it once you have taken them off and replaced them by hand but I find that I am far better off "feeling" the torque on a fastener by hand. I then resort to penetrant and maybe my torch to heat things up. Replacing snapped and stripped fasteners eats up lot of time and frequently it does not come out clean.

That said, this is my first Toyota (LJ70) and I am quite surprised on how much I can do with my portable tool kit similar to this one Amazon product ASIN B00F4AVRGW Mine is lot older and cost less but the quality is much better than Harbor Freight type kits Obviously I only use the metric side for the LJ. Toyota tends to standardize on a few nut sizes. I do supplement it with a few long extensions and a flex head ratchet.

My other vehicles I wrench on are a Unimog 1300 and a 419 SEE. Both are Mercedes Benz products and far more complex with correspondingly much more expensive parts. An overdrive for the 1300 was about half of what I paid for my LJ. They need much bigger tools.

In general the search functions on forums are your friends, rarely will you encounter a problem that someone else has not had. I also have been lucky searching You Tube. My LJ came with no records so I had to assume my timing belt needed replacement. I found a great video on You Tube on changing a timing belt complete with tips. The engine was in a HiLux but the timing belt change was the same.

I also am firm believer in buying nut and bolt assortments to have on hand. Having to do a hardware store run in the middle of job wastes a lot of time and the cost for the fasteners is steep. I can buy a box of 50 for what I might pay for 5 at hardware store. I usually buy stainless fasteners. Yes they can gall a bit easier than carbon steel but a bit of grease on the threads solves that most of the time. Note stainless is not as strong as a graded carbon steel fastener so on critical stuff it pays to order what you need.

I also stock taps and dies for common thread sizes. 5 or 6 of each will cover the vast majority of the fasteners in an LJ. I use them to clean up threads rather than cutting new ones.

 

[ybggziggy]

Best way to learn is by doing...get a decent set of metric 6 point sockets and metric spanners, and a 1/2 inch torque wrench, and you will be able to do a very large proportion of repairs.

Get a FSM and also the videos by @OTRAMM and others, even if they aren't 70 specific, are useful to watch so you've got a bit of an idea of what you're needing to do before opening something up.

Thanks!

 

[ybggziggy]

I am not a fan of impact or power tools on unknown equipment. Way to easy to snap and strip stuff. If its something like lug nuts, have at it once you have taken them off and replaced them by hand but I find that I am far better off "feeling" the torque on a fastener by hand. I then resort to penetrant and maybe my torch to heat things up. Replacing snapped and stripped fasteners eats up lot of time and frequently it does not come out clean.

That said, this is my first Toyota (LJ70) and I am quite surprised on how much I can do with my portable tool kit similar to this one Amazon product ASIN B00F4AVRGW Mine is lot older and cost less but the quality is much better than Harbor Freight type kits Obviously I only use the metric side for the LJ. Toyota tends to standardize on a few nut sizes. I do supplement it with a few long extensions and a flex head ratchet.

My other vehicles I wrench on are a Unimog 1300 and a 419 SEE. Both are Mercedes Benz products and far more complex with correspondingly much more expensive parts. An overdrive for the 1300 was about half of what I paid for my LJ. They need much bigger tools.

In general the search functions on forums are your friends, rarely will you encounter a problem that someone else has not had. I also have been lucky searching You Tube. My LJ came with no records so I had to assume my timing belt needed replacement. I found a great video on You Tube on changing a timing belt complete with tips. The engine was in a HiLux but the timing belt change was the same.

I also am firm believer in buying nut and bolt assortments to have on hand. Having to do a hardware store run in the middle of job wastes a lot of time and the cost for the fasteners is steep. I can buy a box of 50 for what I might pay for 5 at hardware store. I usually buy stainless fasteners. Yes they can gall a bit easier than carbon steel but a bit of grease on the threads solves that most of the time. Note stainless is not as strong as a graded carbon steel fastener so on critical stuff it pays to order what you need.

I also stock taps and dies for common thread sizes. 5 or 6 of each will cover the vast majority of the fasteners in an LJ. I use them to clean up threads rather than cutting new ones.

Great advice, thanks!

 

[MyCruiserisaHogBeast]

@ybggziggy I can't think of a better vehicle to get your feet wet than a Land Cruiser. They tend to be simple-ish to repair with standard hand tools, and even some of the bigger items can be done at home with a shop manual and patience. 4x4s are bigger, you can get under them and reach everything with normal sized hands, and old Land Cruisers are designed to be able to be patched together with garbage you find in the middle of the African desert and some duct tape.

Perhaps the biggest thing about a Land Cruiser is that it still has a functioning community that hasn't been polluted by tribalism and mean spirited internet BS. (I work in the 4x4 vehicle aftermarket and there has been a real erosion in many parts of the community in the last few years). It's still a real community and members value being there for other members. If you ever break down in a Land Cruiser, it won't take too long before someone pulls over to help you who owns a Land Cruiser or has a story about one. Cops let you off for rolling stops because "my dad had a Land Cruiser" and you won't get speeding tickets because they're so damned slow.

I will say that while from technical standpoint a 70 series is a great start, here in the USA there aren't a lot of shops that are familiar with them, so with the help of the IH8MUD and TLCA you will need to be your own expert and advocate or else you'll be putting your rig on a trailer a lot and sending it to one of the handful of experts (all of whom reside here on 'mud) to fix things. I'm in Southern California and luckily many shop owners here are from other places that are familiar with them, so I've gotten lucky with a couple of weird diesel issues that I've needed to ferret out. That shouldn't dissuade you from getting a 70 series, in my opinion they are the best of the Land Cruisers if you want an old school hands on rig that is tolerable as a driver, but you should now what you're getting in to. If, after some research, you decide that a 70 series is too exotic for a starter rig, a fool proof idea would be to cut your teeth on a US spec 40, 55, 60 or 80 series. Chances are really good the 25 year import rule will always be there, and there is a steady drip of non-US Land Cruisers making their way to our shores so you should be able to find one later down the line.

Good luck on your search! Since you are new, I do recommend you go through one of the vetted importers that you can find here on 'Mud (just ask!) who bring them over and do a health check and a round of maintenance before setting them free into the wild, it's worth the additional cost. Buying one off of your local Craigslist is playing with fire if you're a new kid

 

[ybggziggy]

@ybggziggy I can't think of a better vehicle to get your feet wet than a Land Cruiser. They tend to be simple-ish to repair with standard hand tools, and even some of the bigger items can be done at home with a shop manual and patience. 4x4s are bigger, you can get under them and reach everything with normal sized hands, and old Land Cruisers are designed to be able to be patched together with garbage you find in the middle of the African desert and some duct tape.

Perhaps the biggest thing about a Land Cruiser is that it still has a functioning community that hasn't been polluted by tribalism and mean spirited internet BS. (I work in the 4x4 vehicle aftermarket and there has been a real erosion in many parts of the community in the last few years). It's still a real community and members value being there for other members. If you ever break down in a Land Cruiser, it won't take too long before someone pulls over to help you who owns a Land Cruiser or has a story about one. Cops let you off for rolling stops because "my dad had a Land Cruiser" and you won't get speeding tickets because they're so damned slow.

I will say that while from technical standpoint a 70 series is a great start, here in the USA there aren't a lot of shops that are familiar with them, so with the help of the IH8MUD and TLCA you will need to be your own expert and advocate or else you'll be putting your rig on a trailer a lot and sending it to one of the handful of experts (all of whom reside here on 'mud) to fix things. I'm in Southern California and luckily many shop owners here are from other places that are familiar with them, so I've gotten lucky with a couple of weird diesel issues that I've needed to ferret out. That shouldn't dissuade you from getting a 70 series, in my opinion they are the best of the Land Cruisers if you want an old school hands on rig that is tolerable as a driver, but you should now what you're getting in to. If, after some research, you decide that a 70 series is too exotic for a starter rig, a fool proof idea would be to cut your teeth on a US spec 40, 55, 60 or 80 series. Chances are really good the 25 year import rule will always be there, and there is a steady drip of non-US Land Cruisers making their way to our shores so you should be able to find one later down the line.

Good luck on your search! Since you are new, I do recommend you go through one of the vetted importers that you can find here on 'Mud (just ask!) who bring them over and do a health check and a round of maintenance before setting them free into the wild, it's worth the additional cost. Buying one off of your local Craigslist is playing with fire if you're a new kid

Awesome, awesome response. I really appreciate it. It will be fantastic when this all gets underway. Actually it has (no truck yet, but getting close); I've been on a journey the last few weeks that I know will last for many years. This community can probably relate to the moments of inspiration that took them down their paths. This has similar qualities to my decision to move to Peru in the late 90s (met my wife and started a family before moving back to the States four years later) and buying a cabin on the top of a mountain in the middle of nowhere two years ago. Some family and friends rolled their eyes and shook their heads. But sometimes you just know ... and some people are just wired a little differently

 

[bottombracket]

Sage advice: listen to a guy who owns two Unimogs!

Also, just because the battery powered impact wrench can put out 1400 lb feet of torque, you don’t need to use it all at once. I have definitely tightened things until they became loose again both by hand and with an impact wrench. Soaking overnight with Kroil usually does the trick if the M18 doesn’t pop it free immediately with a light squeeze.

As far as metric hardware, I really like Dave Work’s kit from Metric Overland. I splurged for the gold cad set in the carrier.

One more really useful thing is a metric thread checker. I bought this one off of Amazon, and I use it almost every day, almost as much as I use my cans of Kroil.

Nut and Bolt Thread Checker (Complete SAE/Inch and Metric Set) (Packs) - - Amazon.com

Nut and Bolt Thread Checker (Complete SAE/Inch and Metric Set) (Packs) - - Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

 

[ybggziggy]

Sage advice: listen to a guy who owns two Unimogs!

Also, just because the battery powered impact wrench can put out 1400 lb feet of torque, you don’t need to use it all at once. I have definitely tightened things until they became loose again both by hand and with an impact wrench. Soaking overnight with Kroil usually does the trick if the M18 doesn’t pop it free immediately with a light squeeze.

As far as metric hardware, I really like Dave Work’s kit from Metric Overland. I splurged for the gold cad set in the carrier.

One more really useful thing is a metric thread checker. I bought this one off of Amazon, and I use it almost every day, almost as much as I use my cans of Kroil.

Nut and Bolt Thread Checker (Complete SAE/Inch and Metric Set) (Packs) - - Amazon.com

Nut and Bolt Thread Checker (Complete SAE/Inch and Metric Set) (Packs) - - Amazon.com

www.amazon.com

Thanks!