Builds New Alaskan FJ40 intro thread (3 Viewers)

[Aussie Alaskan]

Yes, you can use a primer/surfacer. You're supposed to either etch, etch primer, or epoxy primer bare metal first. Then primer surfacer. Spray a few coats on the low spots, then block sand to level. Then a couple coats over the whole area and block sand again. I don't know how far you're taking this. If a show car finish is what you are looking for, it is a lot of this. Even if it is not, you want the surface as perfect as possible, even bad paint will show flaws in the substrate. Look up color sanding and guide coat. These are techniques to getting it leveled out. Evercoat Feather Fill is an example of 2K primer surfacer. Look at the tech sheets and it will explain how to prep and apply.
BTW, over the past few years the cost of these materials have skyrocketed.

Thanks for the clarification. Not going for show quality by any means, just looking for a non pitted looking surface with a single OEM style color coat. I know there will waves/warpage here and there, but don't want any glaring issues.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Here is a photo of the front of my FJ40 with all the rust spots sanded out. Looks almost camouflage.... I'm etching all exposed steel and then spraying filler on these spots between sanding.

I also am taking the advice of @River Bend and making myself an accessory switch console that will replace the OEM cigarette ash tray. I'm making it out of 1/8" SS sheeting and it should have room for 2-3 switches. Ofc I'll be keeping the OEM ashtray assembly if I ever want to switch back to the OEM look.

Got in some goodies the other day. A new T-case shifting placard and a new shifting detail for my Trans shift knob. Super tempted to throw these on as soon as I unwrapped them, but decided to hold off until the risk of them getting damaged by ongoing work is minimal.

 

[FJ907Warrior]

Greetings all.

I've been lurking and stalking this forum for a couple of months since purchasing my first FJ40 and it's been incredible the amount of information and help that's available for those willing to ask and search. Thanks!

As far as an introduction goes, I'm a mechanical engineer in Alaska and just purchased a 1977 FJ40 with no engine. I also procured a 1979 2F seized junk "boat anchor" engine that was potentially able to be revived, but had been full of silt, snow, ice and more for potentially decades.

I'm not a purist, but more a operationalist and simply intend to get this rig up and running and then figure out the next step in this venture. Not necessarily opposed to a decent sized resto, but I'm definitely not planning on a collector level resto. I've been replacing old rusty OEM bolts/nuts with SS wherever appropriate (not a high stress location, like engine mounts). So that gives you a good idea of my lack of FJ40 OEM purity .

I've added a couple pics of my new rig and the engine block I'm currently getting up and running. Wish me luck and I'm sure I'll be lurking/researching and asking many questions along the way!

View attachment 3197072

View attachment 3197073

View attachment 3197082

I was just looking at an old Facebook marketplace listing (marked sold) of this posted in central Alaska going why does it look familiar.

Looks like it's coming together nicely! Great job!

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

I was just looking at an old Facebook marketplace listing (marked sold) of this posted in central Alaska going why does it look familiar.

Looks like it's coming together nicely! Great job!

View attachment 3269243

Thanks!

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

The PO had opened up the radio slot in my dad, by cutting the opening back and then bending the radio mounting tabs back. I removed the dash pad, also cut, and re-bent the metal dash back to factory size. Then I tacked it up and applied filler material to smooth it all out. So far so good. Then I took my new accessory switch plate and put it on my milling machine and milled the pocket for the heated seat switch to set in. Ended up having an "oops" moment while welding and will be scrapping my plate and starting over. If anybody local has some 1/8" thick SS stock scrap let me know please

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Removed the side steps, and after a good hand wire brushing, painted them liberally with POR-15 rust inhibitor. Also did some metal repair to my driver's side door. It looked like it had been hit with a heavy hammer or branch and the metal had to be drilled, and pulled back out. Then I coated the area with filler for looks.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Took off the door cards and liberally sprayed rust converter down inside of the doors to head off any further rust. Then sprayed a bunch of WD-40 down in the door to further discourage the red monster.

Also took the opportunity to oil the window glass winding mechanism which helped dramatically with the window winding. I no longer feel as if I'm going to strip out the handle.

Hammered out some smaller dents in my front passenger fender and put some more filler on.

Opened up my rear ambulance door and it's missing the lower catch assembly. If anybody has a used one in decent shape give me a shout. Otherwise I'll have to find one.

Also when I re-installed my side steps I placed SS washers between the body and the steps. This should help water and mud to drain and not collect between those two surfaces. Obviously it'll all get disassembled again when I paint the rig.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Using POR topcoat I painted my rear bumper. Nice and shiny now! The POR-15 topcoat is very thick stuff. About the same consistency as molasses.
Pulled off the license plate holder and after wire brushing and rust converter I also painted that with the POR topcoat.
Got out my Dremel polisher attachment and polished up the license plate light bulb holder thingys. Turned out ok.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

And to bring this thread fully up to date, here are some pics of the body as it stands today. New rear quarter panel basically ready for paint. Dented fenders pulled and filled and ready for disassembly, final rust repair, and paint. The hood is even more camouflaged than ever with black primer, green etch primer, white filler and the green under paint.

And I installed the driver's seat to mount the brackets, drill the holes and weld on the capture nuts to my new driver's side floor plan. Looks very sharp in my opinion. This is shown fully back as far as can go. About 1/2" away from hitting the rear wheel well actually. Also it's about 3/4" higher than factory. Much nicer for some much needed leg room. And it's fully convertible if you wanted to return to the stock configuration.

 

[Alaskan Redneck]

Keep the pics coming. Mine is in about the same shape and I hope to start working on it soon.

 

[FJ907Warrior]

Using POR topcoat I painted my rear bumper. Nice and shiny now! The POR-15 topcoat is very thick stuff. About the same consistency as molasses.
Pulled off the license plate holder and after wire brushing and rust converter I also painted that with the POR topcoat.
Got out my Dremel polisher attachment and polished up the license plate light bulb holder thingys. Turned out ok.

View attachment 3278138

View attachment 3278139

View attachment 3278140

Using POR topcoat I painted my rear bumper. Nice and shiny now! The POR-15 topcoat is very thick stuff. About the same consistency as molasses.
Pulled off the license plate holder and after wire brushing and rust converter I also painted that with the POR topcoat.
Got out my Dremel polisher attachment and polished up the license plate light bulb holder thingys. Turned out ok.

View attachment 3278138

View attachment 3278139

View attachment 3278140

View attachment 3278141

Very clean looking!

Used to sell POR15 at Carquest when I worked there for a decade. Good stuff.
The undercoat that comes in the paint can will dull over time if exposed to sun. A gloss topcoat or clear coat will keep it shiny for decades.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Well, after doing a compression test a while ago, I realized that my middle two (3-4) cylinders are probably not even firing because of low compression. I've put it off for a bit, but was able to jump into solving the problem today. The rigs are new, the cylinder walls are honed and the compression didn't change much between a dry and wet test. My head gasket is also new and properly torqued, so I'm guessing it's the valves. I remember than when looking at the valves while doing my original rebuild on this 2F engine they had significant pitting before and even after I lapped the valves. My ignorance is that I assumed my lapping was "good enuf"
Anyhow, I pulled the head off and began the process of redoing the valve seat surface.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

I'm taking tiny bits of sandpaper and using some simple spray adhesive I'm gluing them to the valves and using the valves and guides to sand down the remaining rust pitting in the valve seats. It's cheap, it's hillbilly, but it seems to be working great. So far it's removing the pitting and giving me nice shiny valve surfaces. I'll lap each valve/surface interface again before reassembly, and then wait for new exhaust and head gaskets to come in the mail. I'm hoping the lack of compression and possible lack of firing will be fixed and the engine will start right up from now on. I'm doing this grinding process to every cylinder/valves except cylinder #6.

Let me know your thoughts about my process. I'm sure it's not very kosher

 

[pb4ugo]

Once the valves are installed, you can pour acetone or possibly lacquer thinner in the combustion chamber and see if it leaks thru the valves and seats.

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

Once the valves are installed, you can pour acetone or possibly lacquer thinner in the combustion chamber and see if it leaks thru the valves and seats.

I misspoke. I'm doing every cylinder but cylinder #5.

Thanks for the tip, I'm planning on doing that. I was going to use water, but is there a benefit to using a solvent?

 

[pb4ugo]

Water may work but may not show a leak. Acetone is thinner, usually it will flow thru cracks in castings or very fine gaps. Your valve is trying to stop air. It's an old marine trick to see if exhaust manifolds or blocks and such are cracked. It's not 100% but its a good basic test.

 

[Fastman]

When lapping valves, you need to use a grinding paste on the valve face that meets the seat so they wear in together to form a good seal. Then you can test them with water or gasoline to see how well they seal. There is a cheap dowel type of tool with a rubber suction end on it for sticking to the valve for spinning it. You can learn to hear and feel when they are lapped in proper.

I do like me a good hillbilly fixing though... especially when effective!

 

[Aussie Alaskan]

When lapping valves, you need to use a grinding paste on the valve face that meets the seat so they wear in together to form a good seal. Then you can test them with water or gasoline to see how well they seal. There is a cheap dowel type of tool with a rubber suction end on it for sticking to the valve for spinning it. You can learn to hear and feel when they are lapped in proper.

I do like me a good hillbilly fixing though... especially when effective!

I used the grinding paste you are referring to. Bought it locally at an auto parts store. Got all of the valves ground down clean with sand paper today and then lapped. The sanding took quite some time and a hundred or more tiny pieces of sand paper, but the results speak for themselves. Zero leakage when tested with Acetone! Now I'm stuck waiting for the head gasket to come in...
Ive seen the suction cup tool, but I just ended up chucking my drill to the top of the valve for both the grinding and lapping.

 

[RevISK]

I then bounced back and forth between the engine bay and the interior. You can see in these pics that the engine bay also needed some new paint, so I ordered a single can of matching paint from Cruiser Corp and after removing any rust on the firewall and priming, I painted it to make it look pretty again. I did this behind the brake and clutch master cylinders and also behind the blower motor housing. It turned out nice, and looks brand new. It was at that point when the possibility of bringing the entire truck back to the Toyota OEM Rustic Green first began to nibble at my mind.
The seats will need to be fully restored. Both front seats are held together by aftermarket seat covers. I ordered some OEM stitch pattern Tan vinyl seat covers from Cruiser Corp that will eventually be used to restore the seats. The seat foam is trashed as well so I'll have to either acquire new foam pads or take the whole lot to an upholsterer to have them install my new covers over their hand crafted foam. I also ordered some heated seat pads and will have those installed as the new seat covers go on. Will post more pics once the seats in better shape.
The floor under the gas tank needed some help with rust, and I began to chase electrical gremlins through the truck while rebuilding/replacing/restoring the control switches.

View attachment 3218150

View attachment 3218152

View attachment 3218153

View attachment 3218154

View attachment 3218155

This is a fun thread to follow. Thanks for sharing.
How well did the Cruiser Corps paint match? It’s hard to tell in the photo but it appears to be a different shade unless that’s just lighting differences and phone rendering.

Ian

 

[John McVicker]

Subscribed. Excellent thread.