Builds Ryan’s 40 AKA "Bandit"

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Thank you! I marked overall measurements by laying it out on a 2x4. My steering was very sloppy before so I'm assuming it might take some adjustment even at the length they were before.

Not sure what your old toe-in setting was but you might want to try 1/8". It works for my rig with 33-12.50x15 tires on 10" wide rims and 2 to 2.5" lift.
 
I’ve never replaced brake cylinders and shoes myself but something doesn’t seem right. Each of my shoes has these “tabs” at the end of one side. Because of that part, they don’t fit into the notches of the cylinders. Am I doing something wrong here?

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Are those Toyota parts? The tabs look weird to me.

One end of your pad should have a thicker tab, which fits in only one end of the cylinders. I "think" it should fit into the adjustment wheel end.

Also, the slots on top of the pistons have an orientation sloped toward the inside of the wheel. It's possible to flip them upon installation.
 
One end of your pad should have a thicker tab, which fits in only one end of the cylinders. I "think" it should fit into the adjustment wheel end.

Also, the slots on top of the pistons have an orientation sloped toward the inside of the wheel. It's possible to flip them upon installation.
They aren’t OEM parts. I bought cylinders and shoes from Cruiser Corps. The cylinders were all labeled for which side they go on but no other documentation was included.
 
What a great weekend. It started out by heading to Overland Expo Mountain West in Loveland, CO with my dad and oldest daughter. My daughter had a great time looking at all the rigs. We saw lots of cool rigs and even some nice cruisers sprinkled in around the venue. Our highlight had to be running into Kurt at the Lexus booth and chatting about my 40 for a few minutes. Truly a pleasure to meet you @cruiseroutfit

We also got to check out the new Land Cruiser in person!

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I woke up Sunday ready to button up a few things on the 40. Kurt reminded me not to forget the safety wire when rebuilding my knuckles. My dad was an airplane propeller mechanic and has done this a million times in his career, so I called in the pro. He's retired and always had a classic vehicle he was working on throughout my life, so he enjoys coming over and working on it.

We also got the front wheels painted, painted the tie rods, installed new Bilstein shocks on the front, added new extended brake lines, and started installing new cylinders and brake shoes. The shoes were a bit of a problem as explained above. I saw a video last night where they removed the threaded part of the adjustable end on their old cylinders and swapped them into the new ones. I think I'll try that tonight. All in all, a pretty productive day.

I have new tires coming in later this week, so I need to get the bleed the brakes and get the front wheels back on so I can remove and paint the rear wheels.

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I don't believe these are OEM wheels. They don't have tabs for the hub caps and there's no evidence of them being removed either. This is a temporary job until I save up some money for some OEM wheels or perhaps some City Racer wheels down the road.

The color chosen was Rust Oleum Dark Machine Gray.

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I went to add my hard brake lines back to the wheel cylinders and one of the fittings had some bad threads. I tried threading the other fitting and it went in smoothly so I think it's just a single fitting that's damaged. I was having trouble finding a pre-made brake line for a reasonable price, so I just ordered some tools and tubing to make my own. I've never done this before, so here goes nothing!
 
I got the passenger side brakes on and I realized that I placed the rear spring behind the shoes and the front one in front of the shoes. Does it matter which one goes behind or does it just matter that there is one in front and one behind?

As Mongo says; I am just pawn in game of life.

I'm assuming Toyota specified that order for a reason, so I just imitate the picture.
 
New tires are here (pics coming). I started bleeding the breaks today with my dad. I got all the air out on all 4 corners and clean brake fluid was draining out the line. However, the brake pedal is still going all the way to the ground and doesn’t have much resistance. I’m working on adjusting the brakes but is there anything else I should be looking at?
 
New tires are here (pics coming). I started bleeding the breaks today with my dad. I got all the air out on all 4 corners and clean brake fluid was draining out the line. However, the brake pedal is still going all the way to the ground and doesn’t have much resistance. I’m working on adjusting the brakes but is there anything else I should be looking at?
Brake shoes should be adjusted before bleeding….
 
The brakes need to be adjusted tighter than you think. Also, make sure the wheel cylinders are in the correct position so adjustments are in the correct direction.

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What I do is to start adjusting the brakes while the drums are still off, until I have to almost force the drums on.

Then, I turn the adjustment wheels (evenly, on each side) until the wheels won't turn any more and then back them off a couple clicks. The brakes should drag a little. Once that is done, I bleed the brakes until I get good pedal.
 
The brakes need to be adjusted tighter than you think. Also, make sure the wheel cylinders are in the correct position so adjustments are in the correct direction.

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What I do is to start adjusting the brakes while the drums are still off, until I have to almost force the drums on.

Then, I turn the adjustment wheels (evenly, on each side) until the wheels won't turn any more and then back them off a couple clicks. The brakes should drag a little. Once that is done, I bleed the brakes until I get good pedal.
I adjusted the fronts evenly until I couldn’t turn them anymore. I then backed them off 4 clicks. I still have to pump the brake a couple times before I can get a firm pedal and stop. I’m going to give it a night and try adjusting/bleeding again tomorrow.
 
Finally got back in the 40 for a drive this afternoon. Im going to adjust the brakes again tomorrow because I still have to pump the brakes a couple of times before I get a firm pedal and can come to a stop.

The 40 is also a little sloppy on steering even after new TRE’s. I haven’t checked alignment yet, but that’s next up on the list.

By the way, I love how these Kenda Klever R/Ts look. It’ll be even better after I get a lift.

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I ended up having a shop take a look at the brakes. They did a brake flush and it brakes much better now but I still have to press down quite a ways on the pedal. I just ordered an OEM brake adjustment tool from City Racer. I'll try adjusting the rear brakes some more to see if that helps. Any other suggestions?

Also, after adding new TRE's my steering is still pretty sloppy. I need to have an alignment done because I don't have the tools to do it at home. After that's done, I'm planning on rebuilding the steering box. I know @65swb45 mentioned he rebuilds them so I may give you a call about that also.
 
Not much action on the 40 lately. I drove it to work for the first time last week and it did great. I'm planning my next projects for winter which includes taking care of the many leaks I've found:
  1. Coolant leak from drain tube petcock
  2. Front diff seal leak
  3. Oil pan seal
  4. Rear main seal
  5. Side cover gasket
  6. Transfer case seal
  7. New clutch kit
I've been sticking with Cruiser Teq for my parts for the most part but they are current out of clutch kits for my 72. Also, it looks like @ToyotaMatt is the right guy for the drain tube replacement. I also plan on doing the double seal upgrade from Valley Hybrids.

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The supply chains have been fickle lately. I happen to have 3 clutch kits on the shelf at the moment, but I was out earlier this year myself.
And I have dual seal speedo housings in stock.😉

www.marksoffroad.net
 
The supply chains have been fickle lately. I happen to have 3 clutch kits on the shelf at the moment, but I was out earlier this year myself.
And I have dual seal speedo housings in stock.😉

www.marksoffroad.net
I just tried giving you a call and didn't get an answer. I see now that your signature says you're out until Oct. 2nd. I was able to source my clutch kit before I saw your message but I'll give you a call after the 2nd about the dual seal housing and my steering box rebuild.
 
Not a lot going on with the 40 lately. I've amassed several parts to take care of my leaks but it's unclear when I'll get to this project right now. I'm starting the process to have hip surgery this winter. I don't know for sure when it will happen, but it will take me out for at least 6 weeks as I won't be able to walk for at least that long post-surgery. Hopefully I can get some of my checklist taken care of before then!

I also borrowed a compression tester to do that before I move on with anything else.
 

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