Builds New here, no idea where to start.

[Nader]

I'm going to share my emotional rollercoaster over this minor exhaust fiasco with you all. I know, it sounds stupid, but bear with me.

So I was initially optimistic that this young Toyota enthusiast was going to set me up right with an exhaust that would cure my several week issue with toxic fumes in the cabin. This guy was quiet and nice, told me about his own vintage Toyota truck project, and I immediately liked him. Then I was angry at the first exhaust attempt, and let him know it. Vented to you all. Felt a little guilty about it later, because in the grand scheme of things, it's not a big deal in my world, but it might screw up his world at work.

Going back to pick it up, feeling guilty about it all, I was prepared to tip him for the redo, nothing big, maybe a couple of $20s I had in my wallet. But I go inspect the second attempt before checking in at the office, and I'm dismayed again that the pipe awkwardly bends beyond the frame rails like I showed above. But I check my disappointment (I sometimes lack a social filter, and feel it's best to just shut up rather than escalate) and tell him that it looks good, better than before. I'm in a hurry to get out before I say something I regret. He's even apologetic that it wasn't done to my satisfaction the first time around. I tell him it's fine. But I'm still dismayed and opt not to tip him. I just want to get my rig and get the F out of Dodge.

Driving away, I see this kid limping away from the shop, maybe to a nearby strip mall to get some lunch. He waves at me, and I wave back. Man, I feel like a real heel for this whole episode and not tipping him. I dunno. I'm still disappointed that I have get this redone at some point. Or maybe not, just live with it and be careful on the trails. Meh. I'm emotionally spent over this whole stupid first world problem. Thanks for reading.

 

[Nader]

Whew, that kind of venting is therapeutic and exhausting. I just had another Bud Light Platinum, and I'm ready to move on!

Next up, are the door hinges. This truck was soooo loud with the busted exhaust and the rattling doors. There was nothing left of the original plastic door hinge bushings and you could rock the door on its hinges about a half inch at the outer edge. So it rattled like an empty beer can over the lightest ripples in the road. From both sides!

I bought the brass door hinge bushings that Alex makes, and they fit perfectly! Getting the hinge pins out was a little challenging, but I have some nice vintage Snap-On tools, circa '78, that got the job done. Probably the same as what may have been used on the truck if it were brought in for service in the late '70's. Made in Kenosha, WI.

So satisfying to have a quieter, more solid truck.

 

[sterling]

Sounds like he should have done a better a
job and you both have that Cruiser karma.You can always slide him a couple by bills for lunch after you ask him about some random questions about the exhaust at a later date.
Just a thought.

 

[Nader]

Yeah, Sterling, I'll likely revisit this at a later date when I'm more over it. Poor guy meant well. I'll do it for peace of mind, karma, whatever.

 

[thebigredrocker]

Good call getting the heck outta that muffler shop. It'll be fine for the time being. Not worth blowing a gasket over.

Love those old USA made tools. I have some of my grandpa's USA made tools. I always grab one of his first. Here's some names: S-K, Plumb, Challenger, Langline, Blackhawk, Diamond Caulk Horseshoe Co., Bernard, Walden, New Britain and of course Snap-On.

Your bike sounds great.

 

[waiting for time]

I'm going to share my emotional rollercoaster over this minor exhaust fiasco with you all. I know, it sounds stupid, but bear with me.

So I was initially optimistic that this young Toyota enthusiast was going to set me up right with an exhaust that would cure my several week issue with toxic fumes in the cabin. This guy was quiet and nice, told me about his own vintage Toyota truck project, and I immediately liked him. Then I was angry at the first exhaust attempt, and let him know it. Vented to you all. Felt a little guilty about it later, because in the grand scheme of things, it's not a big deal in my world, but it might screw up his world at work.

Going back to pick it up, feeling guilty about it all, I was prepared to tip him for the redo, nothing big, maybe a couple of $20s I had in my wallet. But I go inspect the second attempt before checking in at the office, and I'm dismayed again that the pipe awkwardly bends beyond the frame rails like I showed above. But I check my disappointment (I sometimes lack a social filter, and feel it's best to just shut up rather than escalate) and tell him that it looks good, better than before. I'm in a hurry to get out before I say something I regret. He's even apologetic that it wasn't done to my satisfaction the first time around. I tell him it's fine. But I'm still dismayed and opt not to tip him. I just want to get my rig and get the F out of Dodge.

Driving away, I see this kid limping away from the shop, maybe to a nearby strip mall to get some lunch. He waves at me, and I wave back. Man, I feel like a real heel for this whole episode and not tipping him. I dunno. I'm still disappointed that I have get this redone at some point. Or maybe not, just live with it and be careful on the trails. Meh. I'm emotionally spent over this whole stupid first world problem. Thanks for reading.

Lets look at this from an other perspective.
Say you are a young shop manager in a mufler shop. A guy comes in with a rusted, taped up and beat up LC. Now you can relate to the guy having an older Toyota yourself. So you want to do him right and gtthe job done as cheap as possible not to take to much out of his wallet as he needs it to keep his 40 running.
The guy is not happy with the job done so you fix it as good as you can without charging extra.

You might give him the tip and go back in a later stage when more work has been done and let him know you are worried the exhaust gets stuck on the trails and ask him if he can help. Remembering the tip he will go out of his way to fix your issue.

 

[Nader]

I wasn't really crazy about the fog lights I installed. They work great, are well-built, and are cheap as dirt, but I'm not a fan of the multiple small LED solution to lighting. Kind of raises this mild trypohobia I have. I couldn't find any similarly cheap round models that didn't use a bunch of small LEDs, so I spent some more, and got these 4" LED driving/spot lights. I think they look better, and man, they're bright. I haven't tested the aim and spread at distance yet. I'm thinking of putting yellow laminate on the lenses to tone it down a bit and bring it closer to what Toyota had originally.

 

[ginmtb]

@Racer65's headlamps are like daylight on high beam. You wouldn't need driving lights with those.

 

[Nader]

Don't need more light. I need more lights.

 

[airon23]

they make your other ones look like they need to be changed out.

 

[ginmtb]

they make your other ones look like they need to be changed out.

Old and decrepit vs. new and sexy... lol

 

[Nader]

Nice fella at Torfab discovered the reason my speedometer doesn't work is because the internal cable between the speedo and the speed marker box (for the EGR) on the firewall was missing. Unfortunately, that short speedo cable is NLA. So I had to get a long one to bypass it straight to the transfer case. Satisfying to have a functional speedometer, but it would have been nice to have the short cable for originality and ease of disconnection when I flat tow the rig.

So now that the 40 is completely functional, down to the last courtesy light, I'm turning my attention to improvements. I think the suspension is tired, saggy, and needs work. Someone suggested putting an Old Man Emu setup in it to improve the ride. So $1800 and a week later, Brown Santa showed up with this. Now all I have to do is put in in the 40:

 

[Nader]

Okay, done.

Putting a full suspension into an FJ40 was easier than I expected. Maybe 7 minutes, tops (I am strong, like Hulk!). The ride is definitely a bit softer, maybe the extra weight is helping? But noisier now with all the new rattling. The back end sags a bit more, and I've lost some storage space. And how are the future jump seats supposed to fold down with all this suspension in the way? I'm not sure this was worth it. We'll see when I hit the trails. Am I doing something wrong?

 

[waiting for time]

You could spray it with insulation foam and cover it with plywood.
That will take care of the rattles and give you a flat floor again.

 

[thebigredrocker]

It's hard to tell for sure from the picture, but it looks like your front shackle's are orientated wrong. The arrow should point rearward towards the fixed shackle pin.

 

[Nader]

Welp, my starter crapped out. Count me in as another convert to the almighty gear reduction starter. I'm gonna do that relay trick to keep the coil energizer thingamabob wired up. I really like how the starter sounds winding up and winding down.

 

[Nader]

Okay, so an OME suspension in the cargo area doesn't really count. So I started to install it. But first, I had to paint the frame and all the fixins in the undercarriage. See the pretty diff, axles, and aux. tank? Those old yellow shocks had me worried that I already had an OME suspension in place, and that I'd be foolishly replacing it with a new one. Not the first time I did something like that (like the time 15 years ago when I removed an excellent Bilstein suspension from a street Miata to replace it with a nearly identical one to race as a Spec Miata).

 

[Nader]

I ordered the heavy springs, with visions of be carrying a motocross bike on a hitch-mounted carrier out to the hinterlands. But reality is a nagging bitch that I sometimes can't ignore, so I did a leafectomy on the pack in the interest of day-to-day drivability.

 

[Nader]

Took all day, but I got one corner done. Greasable anti-inversion shackles and all. This old bastard fought me like a Comanche! I'm hoping the other three corners go smoother. It's never a good project when you bust out the BFH and pickle fork.

 

[skidplate]

It's interesting to see your attitude change through out this thread. You went from wanting to dump the POS to really enjoying it! These things truly are addicting.....and I don't want to quit!