One Piece at a Time...

[BeerM3]

So the propeller shaft yokes should be aligned huh? That's not what Larry did. Assuming it was originally balanced like they show in the FSM I figure I have a 50/50 shot of re-aligning it to the correct orientation. I can't really blame Larry too much on that one though. The sliding yoke is so short it wouldn't be hard to accidentally let it come apart and if you didn't mark it ahead of time...

On the upside the old grease caked U joints are rock solid! I think I'll clean it up and give it a little POR 15 makeover while I've got it out.

 

[Ian Macdonald]

Whoever coined 'One thing after another' and 'It never ends' musta owned a 40. Enjoyable read!

 

[BeerM3]

Whoever coined 'One thing after another' and 'It never ends' musta owned a 40. Enjoyable read!

Thanks man. The 40 is fun to tinker with for sure. There’s comfort in knowing once all the wrongs (including some of mine along the way for sure) are righted these things run forever.

 

[BeerM3]

Well, the box-o-goodies from Toyota finally arrived last week and I had a little time to start piecing things back together. I had to order some tiny obscure parts that were missing from my emergency brake and in hindsight it would've been faster to just order a full kit. Regardless I've been so busy with work I'm not sure it would've mattered. It sucks living without a decent garage or car port because I think I could get it all back together this weekend if it wasn't calling for rain all day Saturday. Que sera.

After some CONSIDERABLE degreasing, the drum & housing were ready to be cleaned up. I tried out POR15 for the first time and I have to say I'm impressed with the end result. In a perfect resto world I'd sandblast and powdercoat the backing plate...but this will never be a perfect resto. I hope the POR neutralized the rust that was starting to spider on the plate because I don't want to do this again if I don't have to.

Big props to @Coolerman for his thorough how-to on the e-brake rebuild. That, along with other pic's here on mud & the FSM donated by @Trollhole made it a fairly painless process. By fairly painless, I mean I only have one blood blister to show for it from trying the hard way to remove the shoe C clips...putting the top return springs back on was a close second.

The drum looks splotchy, but that's just because of the paint gloss, old rust pitting, and overhead lighting.

 

[BeerM3]

Also related; I posted my findings on whether I could use the later e-brake cable still available for the 3/76 40 on my 1/76. Turns out I can!

Take Coolerman's advice and crimp that C Clip on the e-brake cable before installing the shoes. I did and it was so much easier. Of course I'd pulled my old cable out completely so the new one didn't put up much of a fight.

 

[BeerM3]

If anyone is using my photo example above on how to rebuild the E brake drum, if you've done your homework you'll notice one (probably inconsequential) mistake: The lower spring should be mounted on the back side of the shoes. At least that's how the FSM details it. I also forgot to grease the indentions on the housing, so I took it apart one more time and did it according to the instructions. I thought the springs would be easier to put in on a bench but that only prevents you from easily slipping in the cable end after it's mounted. With a pair of vice grips the springs are a cinch to stretch into place once it's on the output shaft. 4th time's a charm.

With a spotter for the master cylinder fluid level this time (don't ask) we actually successfully bled the $%^*(&# brakes! And...then promptly discovered the front right has mismatched cylinders with the older one (assumption) being frozen shut. No wonder it was pulling on a hard brake before. Maybe next weekend.... All the drums are out of round and need turned anyway. . On the upside, I have a winter rebuild project on the way that is a legit '76 disc axle. Fun greasy times ahead!

 

[BeerM3]

City Racer has a nice install guide on his website. This evening I got out the digital calipers and checked the spacing on the Napa NMC M2284. It's 8mm from the flange surface to the bottom of the piston. Toyota spec is .1 to .5 mm clearance from the end of the booster rod to the bottom of the piston. After multiple measurements just to be safe it looks like the booster is sticking out 8mm, and the piston is 8.3-8.4 deep. I love it when the hard work is done.

One thing I noticed and double checked is that there's a tiny lip, right at 0.9-1.0mm tall at the base of the booster studs, so I put the MC on the booster and pressed them together hard and it looks like that gap will remain, so I accounted for it in the clearance measurements.

View attachment 1649725

Edit: I was wrong. There’s enough countersink on this particular NAPA MC that it pulls together flush. Search for the CityRacer brake booster thread to find out more.

 

[BeerM3]

Well...one step closer to having a 4000lb vehicle that actually stops! But not yet. After bleeding the brakes again last weekend; it took! And then we started to test drive it and immediately noticed something was wrong. One of the front right cylinders was completely frozen, which explains at least some of the earlier pulling and bleeding issues we were having.

I'd already replaced the rear cylinders with good ones, but tried to leave the fronts which were stopping "ok" previously. I now have an actual '76 front axle with knuckle ears to attach disc brakes too, but that's going to require a nasty, greasy rebuild sometime down the road before it's serviceable. I replaced the last bad cylinder with a Napa version, not wanting to sink more money into an old drum axle that'll be gone (hopefully) within the year. After a couple tries it feels like all air is out of the lines, but she only crawls to a stop. I think I wasn't diligent enough making sure I had equal adjustments or starting positions with the new cylinders. The tires don't lock up until the pedal is mashed to the floor.

But I'm at a point where I can pull the tires like a Daytona pit crew, so I've got that going for me. Which is nice.

 

[BeerM3]

Yesterday was a good day! The new MC ordered from Cruiser Outfitters arrived Saturday and right away I could tell the difference in quality between it (Aisin) and the one I have from Napa. So after two months of fiddling with the brakes (my major screwup was outlined here with confirmation help from MUD) the novice brake mechanic finally go it right. I took apart every wheel and made sure each cylinder was an equal number of turns from the other, adjusted tight and backed off 2 clicks, adjusted the booster rod to fit the new one, bolted it on, bled the brakes one more time and it'll lock 'em up! And it barely pulled from center when hard braking on pavement.

So off goes the top and we took it for a spin around town. The was actually able to drive it to work again today.

Bench bleeding one. more. time...

I had to bend the lines to fit the side insert of the older '70-75 drum version, but I didn't have to cut them so they can be put back in place for the top thread '76+ style later.

Ahhhhhhh! Damn it feels good to have that behind me. I'm sure I'll have to adjust them a time or two after a little driving, but I think I finally know what I'm doing...

 

[cruiseroutfit]

Glad to hear!

 

[BeerM3]

Perhaps the easiest and least expensive replacement I'll ever have on this thing...the original alternator has a bearing going out and it started to make a serious chirp/grind/click combo. For a $5 core charge I'm keeping the original should I find some free time to rebuild and replace the bearings, but that will cost as much or more than the replacement from Napa. OEM would be nice but unfortunately it's discontinued. So it goes. I was happy to find the Napa replacement was nearly identical. And the local shop was kind enough to take 1 minute to swap out the pulleys for free.

Note to self: Ask Santa for a 1/2" impact wrench.

 

[troy scott]

Good to know theres a fj40 brake mechanic so close

 

[BeerM3]

Good to know theres a fj40 brake mechanic so close

lol. If you need it done wrong the first time or two or three, then yeah, I'm your guy!

 

[Martyt]

lol. If you need it done wrong the first time or two or three, then yeah, I'm your guy!

As a big aside or as some would say non sequitur, BeerM3 wins the award for the best Avatar--love Norm

 

[BeerM3]

The more pressing home projects are wrapped up and winter is coming, so it's time to see how the Paki frame and old Kayline top I bought to replace the well used BestTop that came with the 'ol girl will work. I picked this up from @Wadesters a while back and although it's largely in good shape with solid original primer, step 1 was to Ospho the rust and primer the pieces. It'll be a few years before I'm ready for actual paint, so I'm hoping this delays the rust until then!

 

[BeerM3]

The wife and I spent a beautiful fall afternoon piecing together the soft top bows. Except for a little grinding and some help from Sil-glyde to get it all fitted together, it went reasonably well! Until....it came time to put the top on. It was always a crap-shoot whether it was going to work. The seller threw it in for free with the bows because he wasn't sure how much usable life it had left in it. I think it came off the same import the paki bows did. It's an old Kayline OEM replica, and from what I've gathered might even have been from the era when Toyota quit making their own and sold replacements via Kayline.

C'est la vie. 100 degree sunshine and a come-along won't be able to stretch this thing back to it's original size. The 30 year old vinyl crinkles and cracks when you move it around, so that coveted Trollhole top may have to be purchased sooner than later. Maybe I'll write a letter to Santa...

 

[BeerM3]

p.s. for any novice auto body people like myself reading this, note the surface rust ^^ on the seams of the RealSteel tailgate panel. This is what happens when you don't read the directions. I did a good job last year prepping and cleaning the steel, and painted it with self etching primer. What I didn't realize is that it should have had another layer of epoxy or standard primer over the top of that prior to painting with the rattle can. Self etching is mostly just a pigmented phosphoric acid coating to neutralize rust and provide a good grip for the rest of the layers.

$#^%.

 

[BeerM3]

After a summer of enjoying driving the ol gal without any mechanical issues to speak of I gave it an oil change, greased all the zerks and adjusted the valves. Next up: Swap out the old working, but moody, starter for a gear reduction. While hunting down some missing parts, @pardion hooked me up with a Denso re-manufactured version that others have given high praise on Mud. It was a little greasy from its previous life (and will be again) but it cleaned up nicely. Easiest starter installation job I've ever done, and it fires up with sooo much more authority now. Easily one of the better upgrades I'll probably do.