Build Project Reset

[65swb45]

Let me start off by saying that I named this project because it seems that, by and large, the owner is having me just take everything back to almost stock, a reset so to speak.

This 1971 FJ40 originally came to me back in August of '24 looking to have the stock carb rebuilt. The owner had bought the truck a couple of months before, with a weber on it, and the stock carburetor in a box in the back. I posted up a few weeks later that, having rebuilt the carb, the customer wanted me to install it, and I insisted on baselining the engine first.

14 inches of vacuum turned into 20 with a proper valve adjustment, and I told him to take it for a spin around the block. At the end of my driveway he hit the brakes and the rear end made such a loud noise I frantically waved him off the test drive. I had him do a quick back and forth while I looked under the rig, and sure enough the driveshaft and pinion were hopping up and down. I begged off installing the carburetor in favor of replacing the rear diff. I didn't have the time or energy at that point to do the install, and arrangements were made with another local shop to do the labor. IOW, I did not inspect the truck.

 

[65swb45]

When he returned with the replacement diff installed I took it for a test drive and listened to the transfer case howl. He said the outside of the case was covered in silicone, and he figured there was something wrong. At that point we agreed that a full vehicle inspection would be in order. That is when I discovered his front engine mounts were bolted into the framerails, not riveted. Aha moment! Now I know why the rear end and the transfer case were toast: retrofit from a V8 conversion. This also explains why the battery tray support was not in the stock location, but is instead hanging off the passenger fender. Headbang.

 

[65swb45]

So I built another transmission and transfer case, and we again arranged to have another shop do the install, because I’m just getting too old to do the heavy lifting. Truck ran well after that, and we went wheeling a couple of times, still with the Weber and Delco dizzy on the waiting list for replacement.

The customer said the truck was running hot, so he bought and installed a new Toyota radiator on his own. One banana job. At that time he noted that the fan shroud had a second set of holes drilled in it, as the stock holes wouldn't let the shroud clear the fan. Still running hot, I advised him of the 6 blade fan upgrade, and he asked me to do it. Knowing how things can often snowball, I still agreed to do it. After all, it was only a fan, right?

 

[65swb45]

So now it's in my driveway as MY job, and I'm taking a hard look at the truck, and I realize the rear engine mount pucks are duddy flat, which is tipping the front of the engine UP, part of what's pushing the fan so close to the top of the shroud. So I tell him I'm going to change ALL the mounts; the front ones are the round kind that haven't been used in ages, so they're always suspect.

Also note the funky kluge of hoses in the foreground coming off the thermostat and water pump

 

[65swb45]

 

[65swb45]

I get underneath the truck to start only to discover that someone has worked extremely hard to do something I've NEVER SEEN IN FORTY YEARS! The left side rear engine bolt is not only right side up when it is supposed to be upside down, but it has the castle nut AND COTTER PIN...INSIDE THE FRAMERAIL...WITH THE EXHAUST PIPE DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF THE ACCESS HOLE! This tells me two things. One, they obviously installed the engine before the exhaust, and 2, they have very little idea about how the 40 was originally put together.

So now I'm forced to deal with the exhaust, and I'm horrified to discover that the headpipe is BOLTED to the manifold, insead of being attached with studs. Proceeding with all due caution, I get the bolts out and see a cheesy compression collar forced up against the manifold, with no stock exhaust pipe penetration into the manifold...because of course it's not a stock headpipe.

 

[65swb45]

Now I happen to have a small cache of NOS headpipes, and I offered the customer that option. HE asked me about a header, and I told him the only option I could offer is a one-off stainless steel prototype that the manufacturer won’t even list. He's game.

BUT, and this is where it gets really interesting, while I'm underneath the truck dealing with the rear engine mount and exhaust I look up and see, hidden behind the headpipe, the stud used for the carburetor linkage on an F135. When the customer returns to check on the progress I point to the stud as evidence the block may be older than the head. With the radiator out, there's easy access to the front of the engine and, sure enough, the harmonic balancer is pressed on. Pretty conclusive evidence that his F145 head is sitting on an F135 block.

 

[centerlineseal]

No good deed goes unpunished!

In this case, the "F" in FJ40 indicates Frankenstein.

At this point, you seem "doomed to live in interesting times".

Any other cliche's that fit?

 

[3_puppies]

I hope I'm never one of those PO's

 

[Augustiron]

I love a good horror story

 

[65swb45]

Well, mail order business finally picked up a bit, so work on the project has been slower. Boosting the core support to align the fan and shroud got things in the ballpark, but not good enough for my liking. I ended up notching the shroud to lift it the last 1/8” where I could feel comfortable taking the customer out on the trail with me without literally hearing about it!

On to the manifolds. Customer REALLY wanted a header, so I installed the prototype. I’m super glad that I didn’t retail it out, because it wasn’t until I hung it that I could finally tell that it was massaged for an easy fit on a 2F, making the ear contact with F manifold washers marginal. I went over it with the customer, and he is looking forward to making some custom washers that will provide better contact.

I elected to leave his old manifolds intact, as matched pairs make better installs. So I provided him with one of my beadblasted intakes.

Today it was finally time to hang the carburetor that I rebuilt a year and a half ago. I was hoping for a simple plug and play with the fuel line. But the extra height of the F135 block threw the geometry off.

 

[65swb45]

Next up will be the fittings on the manifolds. It’s had a cheesy breather on the PCV because there was nowhere to hook it up to on the Weber (which I know COULD have been done). We discovered in disconnecting the booster that a kluge of hoses was used there as well.

 

[65swb45]

I drilled and tapped the core support to make a proper install for the compact coolant bottle from ToyotaMatt.

 

[65swb45]

Today's rabbit hole was cleverly disguised as a 'unique opportunity'! I decided to hook up the choke cable.

The choke cable was not previously in use as the Weber had a thermostatic choke. So it was zip tied to the vacuum shifter cable for the transfer case, and I figured that it would be a simple job of cutting the zip ties, straightening the cable and hooking it up. But wait! Why are there two small hose clamps on the cable right next to the firewall? Oh, the cable housing is broken.

But wait! There's a unique opportunity here, because I haven't hooked up the heater hoses yet. So I can just pull out the front heater and get up behind the dash, release the broken cable and replace it, right?

I get in the cab and start loosening everything up.

 

[65swb45]

I look up at the dashboard and notice that the hazard flasher switch is hanging at an angle, with no mounting bezel.

 

[65swb45]

Hazard switch was broken. Called the customer. He didn't even know the truck HAD a hazard switch!

Two trips to the vault later, the customer has a period correct choke cable and hazard switch, both of which have been on my shelves for over 30 years.

Time to turn to the polyurethane leaf spring bushings stuffed into the firewall for the heater tubes.

 

[ferg]

Yowzers!

 

[RodrigzCrzr]

yikes!

 

[Chungas Revenge]

It’s like peeling an onion back. There’s a lot of layers.

 

[pb4ugo]

It appears his vault doubled as the a circular file likely full of beer cans. At least they recognized they had to use something to try and protect the tubes.