Project - why did i do this? (1 Viewer)

[nerdalert]

Hi All,

Have been lurking here for a while and figured I should post a build thread to add to all the valuable knowledge here. My experience should be used as an example of what not to do. It has been a very long process. I hope i get to drive it some day. the most recent screw up was that I just discovered that I welded the Gas filling pocket upside down. probably because I was over tired and in a rush. I am still not sure how I am going to solve that one. I made the decision to do all the body work last march as the shut downs started. then left from late June untill maybe October. picked it back up then had to stop when my dad got sick and I had to go over to help take care of him. (he is recovering and we are optimistic that he will be in remission). anyway, I am now mid-way through the re-assembly process and hopefully this will go well.

I did not take many pictures when of the before, there was moderate visible rust. there was so much body filler on the panels it was insane. First mistake was starting without a clear end point or understanding of what it would take. I guess it only lets you post 5 pictures so I will continue on the next porst

 

[nerdalert]

Next step was pulling out the engine and getting the body off the frame. this was right about the time that Covid started to impact life. I had just gotten back from Japan and knew what it was going the be like here. so i decided to try my hand at painting. after removing and patching all the rust i sprayed a couple coats of Frame specific Epoxy shield. it is nice and goes on thick. do to space constraints Then put the Body back on the frame and built a "Paint Booth" out of plastic and PVC pipe & 5 box fans plus an "air mover" or big fan for final exhaust. I went through at least 40 furnace filters by the time i was done.

 

[nerdalert]

This is the inside of the paint booth. I did way too many parts at a time. as i got better I did smaller batches to manage the paint flash times and consumption. also the timing between coats was critical. I never thought this project would spread to my office, but it did. I used SPI Products for paint. the quality of the products is fantastic but the value is Barry the owner gives you his personal cell so you can text him with tech questions. he has been a savor for me during the process. I cannot say enough good things about the guys at SPI. do not even look anywhere else if you are a DIY'r and you are painting a car.

 

[nerdalert]

once all the painting was done I started on the Engine, i would recommend doing the opposite of this and doing the engine rebuild first. it is easier to mock things up and change them before paint. however i did not think i would be doing an engine rebuild when i started so here we are. when i turned my attention back to engine I realized i needed to do a rebuild. the block was still in spec as were the pistons but i had to get a valve job and all new valves, springs and seals. After a lot of reading on here i went with the OEM Head Gasket. and glad i did. i had also ordered an after market one (its free if anyone in the Denver area wants it just let me know) and the OEM gasket was WAY better. here are the before and after pics of engine rebuild.

WD-40 and a Scotch bright pad helped get this back in shape. when i had the oil pan out i check the spacing on crank shaft and bearings. luckily all was in spec so just needed to send the top end off to "Hi-PRo" engines. they are near me and amazing craftsman.

When i put the engine and tranny back in it was really helpful to have a load strap that i put around the gap between bell housing and engine to s*** the support a little further forward. this let me move the balancer back and avoid damaging my pristine paint job

 

[nerdalert]

Here is where it stands now

quite possibly the stupidest thing i have ever done in my life, at least the highest consequence screw up. when i replaced the quarter panel i welded the gas tank neck upside down. I am still shocked at the level of stupidity it took to do this and to not notice it during all of the time i could have fixed it easily before paint. any suggestions on solutions would be fantastic.

 

[nerdalert]

a couple of other items which i will add pictures for later. when I went through the wiring harness i checked & cleaned all the connectors. also I added the Painless performance 3 circuit aux fuse block with relay. I made a small mounting bracket so that i can have a clean install of the JBL Cruise X audio system and then still have 2 extra circuits already tied in so the next accessory will also be clean, not sure what that will be yet. There were a bunch of other wires and stuff from previous owners that i either removed or added to harness. then i added a set of 4 12-16ga wires in a nylon sheath that run from the fuse box to the connection to the rear wire harness. and did the same for the rear harness. i figure i can easily tap into them at any point along the route and get whatever i need setup pretty easy that way.

I have about a thousand other pictures of detailed stuff so i can post all that too if it helps.

 

[SteveH]

any suggestions on solutions would be fantastic.

How about sawing/slicing off the entire fuel filler box about 1/4-1/2" in from the edge, rotating it 180 degrees, and welding it back on? Access on the bottom edge will be poor. If you do this correctly, it will only be visible when the fuel door is open.

 

[nerdalert]

if i weld it back, the heat will peal / bubble up all the paint in the area. that is kind of the worst case option in my mind. How far would the heat spread?? If I did that would I have to touch up the outside of the quarter panel?

 

[saltydog20]

just do spot welds with a wet towel or ice pack held against the body... if you take your time I am sure you could do it with no bubbling... if you just do 3 or 4 spot welds spaced a few inches apart, let it cool then go back around again and again until its all welded up...

 

[Slapshot]

Other than the fuel door mix up, it looks awesome! Impressive DIY skills.

 

[Skreddy]

You could cut it as noted, flip it and use a body panel adhesive to reattach. Not sure how you’d deal with the seam but you could use a seam sealer or something?

 

[nerdalert]

Have any of you had any experience with something like Heat Freeze?? I cannot find many videos of it working that were not made by the manufacturer. If there claims are accurate maybe I can use this to keep the heat from spreading if I put it on the inside and outside of the "Fuel Neck Support" pocket while I cut and weld. Also how would you cut it, right now i am thinking of using a small disk on straight die grinder and accessing from the inside. maybe an inch or so from the quarter panel?

in an unrelated note, how do i add that "build" tag to my post?

 

[Skreddy]

I’ve seen some of that heat shrink compound used when welding painted panels. The stuff I’ve seen was Eastwood’s version. Seemed to work but I was just an observer. Still went very slow with small tacks. But then you’ll have grinding to deal with, depending on your welding skills/method.
A small body saw will make the least amount of heat, but you’d probably need to get to it from the inside of the tub.

 

[Living in the Past]

Really too bad about the fuel fill opening. Cruiser this nice would just bite the bullet and do it the right way and be done. Otherwise you'll be remind of it every time to fill the tank.
Overall looks like you have a very nice 77.

 

[plink01]

Yeah don't get too down about it, you have done an incredible job so far, there is always going to be mistakes along the way with a project this large. Its all part of it, those mistakes you learn from and they add character to the car anyway.

 

[tstepp920]

Don't half ass it now. You've done a good job so far. Fix it correctly.

 

[nerdalert]

I think i have a plan for fuel neck support, i got some "Wet Towel" heat absorbing gel and a small reciprocating saw so also ordered a backup neck support so i can remove sections and not have to worry about putting it all back together exactly.

Can anyone help me Identify these two pieces? I think they came off frame and are maybe a splash guard of some kind?? I was able to start her up and she sounds great!!! no i just need to finish putting everything back together. (Pictures 2 and 3)

I know some people have issues with the getting the gear shift back in, luckily I am guessing that you all have a pickle fork and the rubber lid grabber thing from the kitchen. together they make this job super fast and easy!!!. (Picture 4)

 

[nerdalert]

Okay i figured it out, picture 3 is the mid heat shield above the exhaust and picture 4 is a left rear splash shield for 79-84 FJ40. I am debating if i should order the right one for my 77 or not.

 

[nerdalert]

Now it has wheels. i took it for a very short test drive as there sill are no seats. i did discover that somehow i forgot the bib hinge when i painted everything else which was a major bummer. clearly i am not the most organized person. so yeah make sure you take the time to do the inventory and make sure you do not skip the details.
1) i also discovered that the rear main seal that i replaced seems to be leaking. so i think i get to pull the tranny out and deal with that later. I used a CCOT rear main that came with the rebuild kit, i think maybe it was defective or there may have been something i did. i will report back after i take a good look.
2) you can see the fitment issue with the hood on the passenger side. I have since fixed that there is way more room than you think to adjust the fitment with all the different mounts.
3) there is still some adjustment i need to do to get the back door to hang straight, at this point i think i will add a small rubber shim under the driver panel to straighten it out. i ordered some rubber from my best friend mcmaster so hopefully that works.
4) it did not want to drive in 2h but did drive in 4h so hoping that was just something simple like fluid levels or something because 2H definitely worked when i drove it into my garage a year+ ago.
5) I like the JBL Cruise X stereo as i t is a very small water proof package and with the noise of the FJ40 having the speakers right behind your head definitely makes it easier to hear.

any ideas on the 2H issue are very much welcome.

 

[greenbeasty]

Looking great!!