Older than dirt - refreshing a ‘64 FJ40 FST (1 Viewer)

[oregon fj]

Yeah, can’t find my wheel puller. May need to get a new one. Something in there isn’t right, for sure.

 

[pardion]

Old junkyard trick........Take the steering wheel to column nut off, lock washer and horn contacts. Sit in the drivers seat and give the wheel a tug towards you, it just might come off. Children please do not try this without adult supervision. John

 

[oregon fj]

Old junkyard trick........Take the steering wheel to column nut off, lock washer and horn contacts. Sit in the drivers seat and give the wheel a tug towards you, it just might come off. Children please do not try this without adult supervision. John

I've done that on other cars in the past, but as badly as mine is cracked, I'd be afraid to try it.

Today - proper tail lights and some more tidying in back.

Before:

After:

 

[whitey45]

Another steering wheel trick, back nut off until it’s flush with the shaft, and tap lightly with a hammer while pulling the wheel towards you, the idea is to (shock the splines). Works most of the time! Rig is looking great!

 

[oregon fj]

Another steering wheel trick, back nut off until it’s flush with the shaft, and tap lightly with a hammer while pulling the wheel towards you, the idea is to (shock the splines). Works most of the time! Rig is looking great!

I did try that, no go so far.

@whitey45 - did you ever take a look to see if you had the short running boards you mentioned on page 2? (Hoping...)

 

[whitey45]

I have one, not sure which side, saw it the other day, will get you a pic tomorrow.

 

[tucker74]

Old junkyard trick........Take the steering wheel to column nut off, lock washer and horn contacts. Sit in the drivers seat and give the wheel a tug towards you, it just might come off. Children please do not try this without adult supervision. John

Pro-tip: thread the nut back on the shaft a few turns so the wheel doesn’t hit you in the face when it comes off . Another variation is some persuasion with a rubber mallet from behind while doing this ...

 

[pardion]

I have a good, blasted step and tread trim, and a passenger tread trim. Maybe with @whitey45 we can come up with a set. John

 

[oregon fj]

I have a good, blasted step and tread trim, and a passenger tread trim. Maybe with @whitey45 we can come up with a set. John

Fingers crossed!

 

[whitey45]

Looks like all the stars are lined up!!
I have a pass side!! Needs a bit of straightening but good usable piece!

 

[oregon fj]

I have a good, blasted step and tread trim, and a passenger tread trim. Maybe with @whitey45 we can come up with a set. John

Looks like all the stars are lined up!!
I have a pass side!! Needs a bit of straightening but good usable piece!

Inviting you both to a conversation! Excited!

 

[oregon fj]

You might check to see if your turn signal cancelling pin is still in your steering wheels hub?

Got the steering wheel off today, the cancelling pin is there. But for the life of me, looking at the turn signal arm, I can not see how the pin can trip anything. Am I missing some parts in there?

 

[middlecalf]

I think it trips at the other end of the shaft?

 

[oregon fj]

I think it trips at the other end of the shaft?

Oh, under the dash? I’ll have to take a look.

On the last test drive a few days back, I noted that there was a lot of slop in the steering. Actually, what I should have said was that the truck wandered badly and was very hard to drive in a straight line, and I was blaming that on worn steering parts.

Turns out that was not the case. I put the front end on stands and started checking it all out this weekend. Steering box is nice, well less than the 1” play at the wheel. And all the tie rod and drag link ends are also nice and no slop. All in all, it all seemed (and still seems) quite good, better than I expected, actually.

So then I got out the tape measure and checked the toe. Close to 3/4” toe out!! That would cause it to wander around!

Went to adjust it back to a skosh of toe in, and found the root cause. Original owner had replaced one of the tie rod ends, and neither made sure it was threaded in same as the other end, nor checked the toe after. I had to drop one end and unthread it several turns so that I could get enough adjustment to bring the toe in to a reasonable setting.

Truck drives MUCH better now.

 

[pardion]

You are missing your cancelling flippers.

 

[pardion]

I think it trips at the other end of the shaft?

Nope

 

[middlecalf]

Oops, I was thinking about triggering the turn signal not the cancelling function. Sorry for the confusion.

 

[oregon fj]

Running boards and turn signal hub paid for.

In addition, @cppilot stoppd by briefly this afternoon with a totally useable ashtray and repro sticker for the heater box! Thanks, Mark!

Things are starting to come together. Will register and insure it soon.

 

[cppilot]

Anytime Arne, like to see this one back on the road...

 

[oregon fj]

Registered and insured it today, so I can now drive it legally. So I did!

And of course, that brought more things to light.

1.) Carb float overfilled - Drove it around a bit to show a few friends, came back home and parked it. A few minutes later I tried to start it, failed. Seemed to be flooded. Opened the hood and looked at the carb window, filled to the very top! @65swb45 - Mark, I’m assuming that despite the new pump and filter I have grit in the needle. Anything special I should know before I take it apart?

2.) Oil leak from dipstick - Lost some oil, seems to be pushing it out the top of the dipstick tube. Since this is a ‘64 and is pre-PCV, the valve cover is vented straight to the air cleaner. So I’m assuming I’ve got too much pressure, probably from blow by, possibly sticky rings. Still seems a bit odd, as you’d think the valve cover vent should be able to take care of that easier than the dipstick tube. Or is there supposed to be a seal on the dipstick? In any case, before the next oil change (soon) I will dump some ATF into the cylinders and let it soak for a couple of days, as that in the past has helped free up stuck rings on prior vehicles for me. Will have to see if that helps.

3.) Oil hoses - Speaking of the next oil change, I’m going to want to replace the oil filter supply and return hoses. Not seeing too many sources for these. Any suggestions? Or should I just take my originals down to the local hydraulic shop to be rebuilt?