Builds Project 2027: 1977 FJ40 Rebuild (1 Viewer)

[fjdiesel]

I too love the color choice!! Now seeing some cement grey ones part of me wishes I would have done that instead of keeping it the factory color...

On my body mounts(I have an Aqualu tub as well), I ended up having to use 2 different thicknesses on the cowl mounts to get all the body panels to line up correctly. The fenders, aprons and bib was very time consuming to get them all to look good. Honestly, I had given up at one point and said that's as good as its gonna get. Them about a week later I took it on again and let my ocd make it perfect.

I bought the Energy Suspension mount kit. They had a couple different thicknesses for different locations. I added one that was about 3/16in to the one cowl side. Then the body sat flat and everything lined up.

Hope that all helps, and makes sense..

 

[DavidA]

Most of the frame work involves removing the old undercoating. However both rear spring hangers and body mounts were in such bad shape, with rust, that I cut them off. Managed to score OEM replacements from @pardion I will bolt the replacements on and then weld them to insure against moisture getting underneath in the future.

Before...
View attachment 1595145

After...

View attachment 1595146

I’m waiting to finish the top rail before I’m able to flip the frame and remove the bottom bracket. After the top is done I’ll do knuckle rebuilds before pulling the axles from the frame. Figured it would be easier to work on while they’re still attached.

In the second photo, the area closed to the left side of the frame looks great. I assume this is where you had cleaned it up. How did you do it?

I know this post is quite old now, but Im trawling through the page as an introduction to what has fast become an obsession........buying an FJ40

 

[Jetlander]

I actually used a combination of things. To knock off most of the undercoating I used a wired cup wheel on a 4 1/2” grinder. Then to remove the shallow rust pitting I used a 4 1/2” grinding wheel, and finished it off with a lap disk to smooth everything out.

It was a very long and tedious process though as I was very careful not to take too much metal off in any one place. It was extremely light pressure, just enough to skim the surface.

 

[reddog90]

Looking good. I like cement.

 

[Jetlander]

So this happened again...

This is the second friggin PS pulley I’ve had to basically destroy to get off because I couldn’t get it to line up with the front crank pulley.
The original one was in the same orientation as what the picture shows. Short side in, which worked when I was still driving the rig. However, since adding the AC I need to run the pump off the front pulley. Problem is, when I mounted the second pulley I put it on with the long side onwards and then it was too far forward, even with all the adjustments to the pump mount.

As you can see in the pic I can only press the pulley about halfway onto the shaft for the alignment to work, which seems dumb.

So what the hell am I doing wrong?

 

[Jetlander]

The only other option I can see here would be to grind or cut off the area indicated in the picture. Then I could press it on far enough for the alignment to work... Would I be creating future issues by doing that? Would there be any chance of it slipping on the shaft with that portion of the pulley removed?

 

[fjdiesel]

That would concern me that it wouldn't be on the shaft far enough. Only one time have I had a P.S. pulley come off on its own. On our 04 Duramax. I put loctite on it when I reinstalled and it hasn't come off again.

Can you shim the pump back more?

 

[Jetlander]

That’s the thing, there is already a ton of adjustment possible without shimming and still no way that I can see to make it work. It’s crazy unless I have the wrong pulley, but I’m pretty sure I don’t.

 

[cruisermatt]

Dude. Just buy the correct $20 pulley tool and quit cutting pulley's in half
Amazon product ASIN B0014WH9SY

 

[Jetlander]

And on a different note...

Trying to make a decision on reupholstering the seats. I happen to get some free leftover leather from a Gulfstream that just had its interior redone at work. These are the two colors I have to choose from. The grey is very similar to what the paint will be. The other color is a very light beige.

I have three choices...

All grey...All beige...Or two-tone?

What say you?

 

[fjdiesel]

I like the grey. But I'm not a fan of lighter seats..

 

[G-Cat]

Grey

 

[SWCruiser]

Are those pics of the leather with outdoor lighting. if not take it outside and retake the pics. based on the pics from the other posts the cement grey looks like it has a slight yellowish tint. Above it looks a little blueish. probably do to the lighting. I think that if the greys arent the right hue it wont look as good as an interior with a contrasting color Imho. It also depends if you want them to stand out or just fade into the interior. Im going with duneish beige with olive colored seats.

 

[Jetlander]

Are those pics of the leather with outdoor lighting. if not take it outside and retake the pics.

That’s outside. It was overcast though.

 

[Jetlander]

Dude. Just buy the correct $20 pulley tool and quit cutting pulley's in half
Amazon product ASIN B0014WH9SY

Haha. Where’s the fun in that? Actually when I had the long side towards the pump that tool...which I have...won’t work because it can’t grab the ring. At least that’s how I understand it to work. Either way it’s done now and the question still remains on why I cannot seem to get things to line up properly.

 

[SWCruiser]

well the beige is a statement. Looking at those engine pics I think the grey will not be a stand out.

 

[imyahucklbrry]

Surely there be a photo-shop wizard on here that could set these approx colors on a 40
If the beige is maybe a bit darker than it looks in your photo, I kinda like that FWIW...

 

[Jetlander]

Surely there be a photo-shop wizard on here that could set these approx colors on a 40
If the beige is maybe a bit darker than it looks in your photo, I kinda like that FWIW...

Great idea on the photoshop! I’ll create a thread and see if anyone could mock a picture up.

 

[Jetlander]

Well...

The current status of two steps forward one back is holding true. Might even be one forward and 1.5 back at the moment. The latest issue seems to be the door alignment, which will inevitably also mean the top as well. As you can see in the pic, the door gap at the rear is too wide. Wide as in, at least 5/16ths.

The door striker isn’t even close to engaging the latch. Funny thing is I know for a fact nothing has changed in the door hinge department because they haven’t been touched at all during the tear down. In the second pic you can see the seam between the original cowl and Aqualu tub line up perfectly.

Not really sure what the next step needs to be. I can’t even wrap my mind around how it could be off. All of the body mount holes lined up perfectly when I installed the tub.

I do not have the hinge bushings installed, but even if I did, we are only talking fractions of an inch of door movement. I haven’t ever removed the hinge plate on the door so the question then must be, is there any adjustment there?

 

[White Stripe]

Well...

The current status of two steps forward one back is holding true. Might even be one forward and 1.5 back at the moment. The latest issue seems to be the door alignment, which will inevitably also mean the top as well. As you can see in the pic, the door gap at the rear is too wide. Wide as in, at least 5/16ths.

The door striker isn’t even close to engaging the latch. Funny thing is I know for a fact nothing has changed in the door hinge department because they haven’t been touched at all during the tear down. In the second pic you can see the seam between the original cowl and Aqualu tub line up perfectly.

Not really sure what the next step needs to be. I can’t even wrap my mind around how it could be off. All of the body mount holes lined up perfectly when I installed the tub.

View attachment 2230324
View attachment 2230326

I do not have the hinge bushings installed, but even if I did, we are only talking fractions of an inch of door movement. I haven’t ever removed the hinge plate on the door so the question then must be, is there any adjustment there?

Hopefully you haven't drilled holes in the cowl yet to mate the tub. Door bushings need to be installed. Get all the lines right then mount the tub including hard top. Your doors will need to be loosened and slid away from the cowl. This may help...

Builds - Fj40 Daily and Wheeler build

Yeah that sounds about right. Ive redrilled a center hole or two before. No fun. I was hoping you found stick on pads. Ill just stick with that graphite paint when i do mine. Thank you for the good info. Just in time.

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