Rims Size for a 1978 FJ45 (1 Viewer)

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Joined
May 29, 2003
Threads
82
Messages
1,085
Location
Fort Collins, CO
Group,

I've gone through as many archived posts as I can and it seems the standard rim for an FJ is 15X8 with bs 3.5". I do have a question concerning a 16" rim.

Shopping around on the net, there doesn't appear to be too many 16" rims with 3.5" bs. If I went up to a 16" rim, can I go to a 4" bs? Is there anyone running 16" wheels?

Now, here is my situation. I've purchased a Canadian 78 FJ45 and I need to go retrieve it here soon. Currently it is sitting on 35X12.5X15 Goodyears. My plan is to strap it to a tow dolly, disconnect the rear drive shaft and tow it back. A concern is the 35" tires. The security strap on the tow dolly will not fit around those 35". The gentleman said he would comp me on the price if I bring my own tires. Currently I have some 275X70R16s sitting in the garage collection dust. Can I put them to good use, or should I look for some tires sitting on 15X8s?

Michael
Fort Collins, CO
 
not sure if this will help but Candian spec fj45's came with 16" split rims, yours being a 78 would have had them at one time. did you ask the seller if he happens to have them?

also a 78 would have a rear full floater :) if a rear FF then wheel fitment is even a bigger bitch, I had a heck of a time getting a 15 wheel to fit over the rear drums. I ended up with 3.75" 15" Unique wheels, fit with no spacer.

but any 15" OEM fj40,55,60,62 wheels will fit front or rear with no problems

and i have no clue about aftermarket 16" wheels, I recall they are hard to find for a Cruiser
 
If you weren't so far away I could loan you some old stockers. See if you can borrow something locally. That 6 bolt lug pattern was used by most every maker of trucks. For towing you can use those little 14" wheels from any mini-truck with 6 lugs. We have some here for pulling in trucks that are just too tall.
 
[quote author=hammerhead link=board=1;threadid=6562;start=msg53318#msg53318 date=1066759660]
If you weren't so far away I could loan you some old stockers. See if you can borrow something locally. That 6 bolt lug pattern was used by most every maker of trucks. For towing you can use those little 14" wheels from any mini-truck with 6 lugs. We have some here for pulling in trucks that are just too tall.
[/quote]

like i said if a rear full floater the only thing I know will fit(it the larger drums that are an issue) are OEM cruiser wheels(fj60/2 work great) I wouldn't trust taking a set of Chevy wheels up to Canada hoping they will fit.

Hey......where in Canada? if you heading BC you could stop at my place and I can find something that would work.

John H
 
Stockton Wheel can build you a quality steel welded wheel with any backspacing and stud pattern you like for about $100 per wheel. This may not solve your immediate problem.

Mike S
 
I have a set of Chevy rallies that I modified the center on to fit my 40. I dont know how much larger the hole would have to be to fit a FF, if indeed you do have one. Wouldn't take much to enlarge the hole a little more, though. I'm in Laramie, Wy and your more than welcome to them if you want to give them a try. They have 33s on them now, but a junkyard could set you up with some 235/75/15s good enough to get you home for next to nothing.
 
Okay, let me see if I can hit everyone's replies.

Landpimp - (1st reply) The builder, Wayne Smith in Calgary, did say that he had the factory splits sitting around and that they were 16's, but believed they were only 6" or 6.5" wide. The 275s needed a minimum of 7" wide to fit. Currently he has 15" rims on there, and he has done the disc brake conversion to the front so I don't know if that will be a concern. Worst case scenerio I can pick up some old factory splits with decent tires to get the truck home and then look for something else.

Hammerhead - thank you for the offer, I am on the prowl for something local to borrow if I can't find something more permanent.

Landpimip - (2nd reply) So you think if I find OEM I should be fine? Also, I would love to swing by your place if I could, but driving from Colorado to Calgary should be enough.

Mike S - Custom job is a bit down the road, I am trying to cut some costs since the import tariff will put me over my budget.

Muscletombuffpants - Thank you for the offer. Landpimp's comment on the FF rear has me worried about using a Chevy rim now. I think I might be best off getting the truck down here in OEM and then test fitting things here rather than the disappointment after a long drive to Calgary.

Thank you everyone. Thank you Landpimp of the heads-up on the FF rear dilemia.

Michael
 
Its not the center hole(for hub on a Cruiser wheel) but backspacing and the way the wheel is made(the shape of the center)that makes fitting non cruiser wheels hard to fit on a FF(with drums, drums are bigger or something), wheels that fit the disc front end fine would not fit on the rear. Even the 4 Wheel Parts Rock Crawlers that are speced for a Cruiser didn't fit! But the cheapy Unique in 3.75 did ???

Yes, any ole set of 15" Cruiser wheels(up to 90) will work(or at least did for me)

the OEM splits are 6" I believe....no bigger than that at least. I forget what tiree size are on mine but they are 32" tall and some kinda radial(came on my 45)......they are mounted on my ole non driving fj40.

yeah it would be a bit of a drive.....just thought if you were heading this way I could unload some old pre-disc 40 wheels :D and help ya out to boot :)

Congrats on the 45 BTW :) got pics?

John H
 
Yup, you're right pimp. I checked today and the wheels I meant were not good with disc. I had only used them on drum so it seems I was talking out my ass.
 
John H,
So any pre-90 wheels should work? Is this to say that I can use some FJ60 wheels also? I'll have to see if someone local will let me borrow a set/or cheap purchase.

As for pictures. I have a few that were taken when Wayne was refurbishing the bed. My truck went on the back burner this summer, but he emailed me recently to say that it is next on his list. So I should be getting emails of the truck here soon as he finishes the paint job. I will load the pictures I do have and post them today if I can.

Michael
 
[quote author=madams557 link=board=1;threadid=6562;start=msg53648#msg53648 date=1066826623]
John H,
So any pre-90 wheels should work? Is this to say that I can use some FJ60 wheels also? I'll have to see if someone local will let me borrow a set/or cheap purchase.

As for pictures. I have a few that were taken when Wayne was refurbishing the bed. My truck went on the back burner this summer, but he emailed me recently to say that it is next on his list. So I should be getting emails of the truck here soon as he finishes the paint job. I will load the pictures I do have and post them today if I can.

Michael


[/quote]

Yes for SURE fj60(or 62)wheels will work I ran fj60 wheels on mine for a month or so, fit perfect, that your best bet.

John H
 
If your using a tow dolley, you would only need to change the two front tires, to smaller ones, so the straps will fit. Yes it may look strange but on the dolley with smaller tires the rig may sit more level. You gonna have any trouble crossing the border?
 
3 puppies,
It's funny you should suggest that. I was talking to a friend just yesterday about my dilemia, and he made the same suggestion and offered to let me borrow some tires from one of his 80's Toyota trucks, though I don't know if they would fit. Regardless though, it did get me thinking. It might look goofy, but it will get the job done.

As for crossing the border, I think I have all the information I need. I've contacted Custom offices in D.C., one in Colorado, Great Falls, MT and Sweetgrass, MT. The first three offices all echoed the same thing - contact the station which you would be crossing through for their absolute judgement call. So I contacted Sweetgrass. They tell me once I get to their station, I'll have some paperwork to fill out (NHTSA and EPA), and some customs paperwork where I will have to pay my tariff at that point. I will need only a Canadain bill of sale and the tariff will be based off of that. If the bill of sale fails to have a price, or no cost/exchange of money was made, the tariff would be based off of the blue book value. Strangely though, there is no blue book value for a 78 FJ45, only a FJ40.

Once through customs, I will need the tariff paperwork from customs and the canadian title to start registration procedures through the local DMV, part of which is allowing the Highway Patrol to do a thorough inspection of the vehicle. Then it is off to the state emissions office, and back to DMV.

Of course, this is all speculative based on conversation and heresay. I'm sure once the process starts, I'll have more hoops to jump through. My biggest concern is that getting through the border is as easy as I've been told. I prefer not to get stranded in Sweetgrass MT.

We'll see. I've been asked a few times how things work, so I'm planning on writing up an article for Toyota Trails once I've completed the whole process.

Michael
 
If you look at the mustard FJ45 on my web site you will se a set of BJ60 rims that were blasted and painted.

One of the larger tarrifs is 25% due to the fact it was sold under a work type industrial truck.

The guy who owns the truck is thinking of selling it for 11000US.

Rob
www.raddcruisers.ca
 
Sweetgrass MT is not a fun place to get stuck at. Don't forget some ankle weights so you don't get blown away. That crossing is generally easier to cross than some of the other ones I've been through. A lot of interstate truck traffic flows thru there, so shouldn't be much problem. I'm about 4hours south of the border on I-15 if you need anything send me an e-mail and I'll give you my #. When are you looking at making the trip?
 
Raddcruiser - I've talked to you before a while back when I was in the market and you let me know about that cruiser. I can't believe that owner hasn't sold it yet. The price is very good. Anyway, so those are 60 rims. Was there any worries about the FF rear on the FJ45, or does everything mate right up? Boy do I know about those tariffs. I tried to work with the NAFTA office in D.C. to see if I could qualify for a NAFTA waiver, but it didn't succeed. Maybe someday we may welcome true free trade with our northern brothern.

3-puppies - 4 hours south of Sweetgrass on I-15? Well that should place you around Great Falls. I use to leave there about five years ago and I will be crashing at a friends house there during my trip. Let me know where your at and I'll see if it is on my route. I don't think I will be going down to Helena and stay on the interstates. That great divide there outside of Helena is a b**ch. Instead, if I remember my route correctly, I'll head through Livingston? and make my way through the back door of Billings.

As for making the trip, I'm not sure yet. It is still being refurbished and I am pretty busy with college, work and family. If I get the chance, I might make the run during Thanksgiving break, but I am split on making the trip in the winter. Part of me would like to get the truck down here ASAP, but the other part remembers how bad a Montana winter storm can get.
 
East Helena here, I used to run all the maint. at Great Divide. working fro HS&G now, better benefits and more cruiser bucks.
If the owner of the rig has an extra tailgate, I'd be real interested.
Your right on your route, that'll cut a few miles off your trip. As long as the roads aren't drifted closed. That shouldn't happen for another month or two.
 
3-puppies,
I didn't even thank about this and thank you for bringing it up. I am willing to ship anything back that I can pick up along my route if anyone is interested. If you want something brought back from Canada, or anywhere along the route from Fort Collins to Calgary. Of course this is within reason.

As for the tailgates, the gent I am working with is Wayne Smith, at crushersrule.com. He has a shop full of items and was able to add a headache rack to the 45 for me. His email is somewhere on the page (let me know if it isn't) and let him know that I will pick it up for you. Also, he is a member of the Rocky Mountain Land Cruiser Assoc. to give him some credibility.

But again, the offer is open to anyone needed to send something along the route. I don't have a date on when I am going to make the run, but if that isn't important, then let me know.

Michael
 

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