Builds Salt wagon My first fj40 (build) (3 Viewers)

[CruiserTrash]

Did my first oil change after putting my 2f together yesterday. I had 10w and I think it was too light for it in the heat here. I think it was burning a little bit of oil. No smoke or anything but I knoticed it was a hair low as in just below full after 700 miles. put some 20w50 castrol gtx because it has lots of yummy zinc for the 2f. I have read good things about this oil though. we shall see. It seems to like it.

I also installed the last of the turnbuckles on the soft top. They came in yesterday.

I’m going to be assembling a 2F (for my 60) starting tonight. I got the block and other pieces back from the machine shop and have all the other parts ready to go.

The owner of the shop - who’s been doing F/2F motors for probably 40 years - said he likes to see 10-30 or 10-40 on a rebuilt F or 2F, and not to use 15-40 or 20-50. His reasoning was they’re new and tight, and aside from there being no real reason for thicker oil (like in a worn out motor), the thinner oil will lubricate better. This is all post-break-in of course.

He also had a lot of unkind words for Rotella because the new formulation doesn’t have enough zinc. I asked what oil brand he recommended for zinc content and he balked - he had a lot of opinions up to that point, then clammed up.

So … not trying to resurrect the ongoing oil debate present in every automotive forum on the web, but what do you think? You’re saying 10-XX was too thin in your application?

 

[Roastchestnuts]

I’m going to be assembling a 2F (for my 60) starting tonight. I got the block and other pieces back from the machine shop and have all the other parts ready to go.

The owner of the shop - who’s been doing F/2F motors for probably 40 years - said he likes to see 10-30 or 10-40 on a rebuilt F or 2F, and not to use 15-40 or 20-50. His reasoning was they’re new and tight, and aside from there being no real reason for thicker oil (like in a worn out motor), the thinner oil will lubricate better. This is all post-break-in of course.

He also had a lot of unkind words for Rotella because the new formulation doesn’t have enough zinc. I asked what oil brand he recommended for zinc content and he balked - he had a lot of opinions up to that point, then clammed up.

So … not trying to resurrect the ongoing oil debate present in every automotive forum on the web, but what do you think? You’re saying 10-XX was too thin in your application?

I saw a picture of that block. looked good. I have been thinking about picking up another block to build for fun/backup. I was just thinking about picking up a 3fe and making a 3f carbed engine from it for cheeper. (if I can find a late model 2f head)I am teaching an automotive club next sememster and I could use it for that too.

on the oil: I am not sure. I have seen fj40 manuals saying you can use 20w50 oil in more warm climates. figured I would give it a try and see. I am not an oil expert but I know a lot of people run 20w50. seems to run pretty good with it. no issues so far. I think on a fully rebuilt engine 10w30 would be fine.Mine had good compression right in the mid 140s so I figured I would not bore out and spend all that money. I suspect the slight oil burn (I am probibly just being paranoid) is coming from valve seals. I replaced them but did not go with toyota ones.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

been enjoying a few days off before my summer job starts. I got a quite a few things done though. I finished installing the soft top. I got my twist lock keepers in and I decided to put the jerry can on the drivers side. I decided not to put it on the rear because I wanted to be able to put my longboard surfboard out the back. if the jerry can was on the barn door I could not do this. I put it on the drivers side instead of the gas tank side because I want to be able to see better when backing up and such to not bump it. Additionally I think it balances the 40 out a little better because the gas tank and spare are on the passenger. I was not going to install it at all because I didnt want to drill holes in it but my wife "I bought you that jerry can you better mount it"

It was a little tricky with the soft top but I found I still can use the turn buckles. I mounted the jerry can mount so I can reach the middle turn buckle through the middle of the mount. its not the best and I might figure out if I can 3d print a rubber spacer. just to give a little room. But it looks really good! and all oem toyota parts so that make me happy! also side not check out the sbc that I still need to move haha. Just some lawn art.

I installed this light from a later model fj40. the troa soft top bows had a hole already cut out here for this. I wired it to a keyed Ignition so I cant forget to turn it off. (well I guess I can if I leave the keys on) Really like this as I have not had an interior light that worked since I got it.

I got some photos back from the lab that I love. These two below are my favorites that I took of my wife with my hasselblad SWC. They are awesome. Pre soft top.

 

[clrussell]

Can Looks right at home there.

Pics are fantastic as always. Love this thread

 

[Roastchestnuts]

I have been MIA on mud for a few weeks. summer Job has me busy and sweaty haha. My wife and I have a contract down on a house on the small island we live on and thats been taking up most our time and has caused alot of stress. Unfortunutly this house does not have a garage and I am bummed about that. but I think there is room for a metal shed that could be big eough to pull the fj40 into. Saw a cool Fzj80 import. Would have been cooler with the diesel but still a nice 80 series. A few friends came down that come down every year from Pennsylvania and it was good to talk land cruisers with other cruiser nuts. He always said when I finish with this one I will get bored.... Now that i am more finished with my fj40 I have been thinking about trading it for a fj55 in similar shape. Just thinking about it dont get crazy now! I want to get through our house closing first and through the summer. I still want to do more things to the fj40 too. like 4 on the column swap and do the birfs. Ill add some photos from this summer so far too!

If we do end up with the house I will need to find a forum on contruction haha. This house is from 1900

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Saw this nice lexus100 series at the coffee shop the other morning.

 

[clrussell]

I have been MIA on mud for a few weeks. summer Job has me busy and sweaty haha. My wife and I have a contract down on a house on the small island we live on and thats been taking up most our time and has caused alot of stress. Unfortunutly this house does not have a garage and I am bummed about that. but I think there is room for a metal shed that could be big eough to pull the fj40 into. Saw a cool Fzj80 import. Would have been cooler with the diesel but still a nice 80 series. A few friends came down that come down every year from Pennsylvania and it was good to talk land cruisers with other cruiser nuts. He always said when I finish with this one I will get bored.... Now that i am more finished with my fj40 I have been thinking about trading it for a fj55 in similar shape. Just thinking about it dont get crazy now! I want to get through our house closing first and through the summer. I still want to do more things to the fj40 too. like 4 on the column swap and do the birfs. Ill add some photos from this summer so far too!

If we do end up with the house I will need to find a forum on contruction haha. This house is from 1900

View attachment 3664946S

Saw this nice lexus100 series at the coffee shop the other morning.
View attachment 3664948View attachment 3664949View attachment 3664950

Love the pics as always.

Awesome news on the house! That’s always an advantage in itself

 

[Roastchestnuts]

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Love the pics as always.

Awesome news on the house! That’s always an advantage in itself

Thanks! There are a couple of things that we are concerned about that are going to come up in dudiligence. two of the most immediate things To be liviable are the bathroom needs to be repaired. (rot under the house around the toilet. the sink is also not plummed correctly and probibly caused the rot) some of the floor joist need attention. weirdly enough the water damage in the house is all caused by s***y repaired plumming and not roof leaking.

Some of the other things are : needs heat and AC. Right now just has window units. Septic will eventually need to be redone. Not broken but its an old school ses pool and those are not up to code here now.

I think If we cant get the house for cheeper in Dudiligence we will walk.

 

[clrussell]

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Thanks! There are a couple of things that we are concerned about that are going to come up in dudiligence. two of the most immediate things To be liviable are the bathroom needs to be repaired. (rot under the house around the toilet. the sink is also not plummed correctly and probibly caused the rot) some of the floor joist need attention. weirdly enough the water damage in the house is all caused by s***y repaired plumming and not roof leaking.

Some of the other things are : needs heat and AC. Right now just has window units. Septic will eventually need to be redone. Not broken but its an old school ses pool and those are not up to code here now.

I think If we cant get the house for cheeper in Dudiligence we will walk.

I’m sure housing isn’t easy to find out there.

I almost bought a fixer upper house. Sat down did the math, thought about it. Bought a house that needed zero work and paid a lot more.

But I decided I was paying for time. Time I would have to take away from my family and things we’d like to do. So ultimately it was worth it. Minus having to make that payment hurts the ole wallet

 

[sogafarm]

Don’t forget to have the electrical wiring and box inspected. I’ve restored many old houses and there is definitely some crazy electrical wiring on most. All the other stuff can be addressed as long as the foundation is solid and no termite damage. Good luck with the purchase!

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Thanks! There are a couple of things that we are concerned about that are going to come up in dudiligence. two of the most immediate things To be liviable are the bathroom needs to be repaired. (rot under the house around the toilet. the sink is also not plummed correctly and probibly caused the rot) some of the floor joist need attention. weirdly enough the water damage in the house is all caused by s***y repaired plumming and not roof leaking.

Some of the other things are : needs heat and AC. Right now just has window units. Septic will eventually need to be redone. Not broken but its an old school ses pool and those are not up to code here now.

I think If we cant get the house for cheeper in Dudiligence we will walk.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

I’m sure housing isn’t easy to find out there.

I almost bought a fixer upper house. Sat down did the math, thought about it. Bought a house that needed zero work and paid a lot more.

But I decided I was paying for time. Time I would have to take away from my family and things we’d like to do. So ultimately it was worth it. Minus having to make that payment hurts the ole wallet

yeah we are pretty much pushed out of the market for anything move in ready. Its really disheartening realization. its people want a nice vacation home pay 6 - 7 hundred thousand for. some are going over 1 million now. This has pretty much pushed any local out of the market for a house here. The jobs here just dont support a morgage for a house that high - At least a move in ready one. its sad when you have lived somhwere all your life, been a part of the community, Teach the communitys children and cant afford somthing that does not need a ton of work. On the upside this house is more than big enough for a family. just needs some sweat equity. good news is I am pretty competent with carpentry. we just gotta see what the seller says after dudelligence.

We saw a place for sale here for 500,000 that was a studio with a kitchen. It was sitting on a big plot of land but there was a water way easment that made 90% useless and unbuildable. Its gotten wild down here.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

Don’t forget to have the electrical wiring and box inspected. I’ve restored many old houses and there is definitely some crazy electrical wiring on most. All the other stuff can be addressed as long as the foundation is solid and no termite damage. Good luck with the purchase!

Thanks man! we had an inspection and the electrical wierdly checked out. We were pretty sure the wiring was completley redone sometime in the 90s. the things we thought would be issues were not and the things that are issues we did not see. 100% why you get an inspection. I guess thats how it goes sometimes. honestly its alot like buying an old car. fun fact this house probibly has ship wreck parts in it. Most of the homes here built before 1940 do.

 

[pb4ugo]

I hope the house will workout for you. It sounds like there could be a huge upside in the future. Be careful with the septic. Around here it seems the state and local govt change the requirements yearly. A lot of these changes make them really expensive, like 10's of thousands of dollars. New systems may require periodic maintenance.

I have a friend that uses a large wooden shed as a shop and stores their jeep in it too.

 

[Roastchestnuts]

I hope the house will workout for you. It sounds like there could be a huge upside in the future. Be careful with the septic. Around here it seems the state and local govt change the requirements yearly. A lot of these changes make them really expensive, like 10's of thousands of dollars. New systems may require periodic maintenance.

I have a friend that uses a large wooden shed as a shop and stores their jeep in it too.

Thanks! Yeah septic for a 3 bedroom permit is pricy we got a quote there are two types the one we got quoted for needs less matenence. the other "pod" type needs to be inspected and sturred up every 6 months or so. Its pretty s***ty haha. People tend to go for the pods if they dont have room for a drain field.

my plan is for a shed if we get the house. Get one of the metal sheds thats big enough to pull the land cruiser in. you can get them for cheep for what they are I feel like. Just sucks to put them together. I would also put it up on a wood subframe so I can get it off the ground.

 

[Chilkoot]

yeah we are pretty much pushed out of the market for anything move in ready. Its really disheartening realization. its people want a nice vacation home pay 6 - 7 hundred thousand for. some are going over 1 million now. This has pretty much pushed any local out of the market for a house here. The jobs here just dont support a morgage for a house that high - At least a move in ready one. its sad when you have lived somhwere all your life, been a part of the community, Teach the communitys children and cant afford somthing that does not need a ton of work. On the upside this house is more than big enough for a family. just needs some sweat equity. good news is I am pretty competent with carpentry. we just gotta see what the seller says after dudelligence.

We saw a place for sale here for 500,000 that was a studio with a kitchen. It was sitting on a big plot of land but there was a water way easment that made 90% useless and unbuildable. Its gotten wild down here.

Have a similar issue with the real estate market where I grew up in SE Alaska. Would love to go back and raise my children there but housing has gotten out of control due to wealthy people moving in and turning it into a retirement community. The next generation of locals have been pushed out due to local jobs not affording housing as well. Rough times. Hope that you guys are able to get an excellent deal to continue being in that area you obviously enjoy and keep helping those kids!

 

[smooth]

Wrapped up our annual Outer Banks family vacation a few weeks ago. First week is spent on Ocracoke, it’s become one our favorites for many reasons. One of the highlights of the trip is spending time with Robert and The Salt Wagon. Had a few chances to hang out on the beach and in town. Great to see you and your wife. Also great to see the 40 and the progress you have made.

As far the house goes…….make smart decisions and do what is best for you. I’m sure you have the talent to fix/repair/renovate. What you don’t already know you’ll learn and figure it out. As you mentioned, it’s very similar to the old cars. Do your homework, be creative, patient and persevere. As for me, I’m a renovation guy. I’ve renovated every home I’ve owned (4) and currently live in what was previously a Grist Mill built in 1850. Much like the cars it’s very rewarding to see the finished product and know you had brought it back to life. Don’t be overwhelmed, see the big picture, prioritize and knock off one task at a time.

Good luck, you know the island, and the market and I’m confident you’ll make the right decision. Hope to see you again next year or sooner…..Bill

 

[FJBen]

Now that i am more finished with my fj40 I have been thinking about trading it for a fj55 in similar shape. Just thinking about it dont get crazy now! I want to get through our house closing first and through the summer.

Oh man, 55…that’s a deep jump into a very dark and strange corner on ih8mud.

As a former 55 owner, I would say trading the 40 for it would be a mistake. A 55 would make an epic surf wagon so the answer is always to ADD to your fleet.

Ps. Don’t get a green one, they are overrated

 

[csanders]

Saw a cool Fzj80 import. Would have been cooler with the diesel but still a nice 80 series.

That 80 might have a JDM twin up in KDH. Saw this one back in January.

The Salt Wagon is looking killer too!

 

[clrussell]

Any new updates?

 

[Roastchestnuts]

Any new updates?

I am about to have lots of updates. I will update soon! I apologize summer is busy time for me in a different way from teaching. much more physical labor running a rental/surf/tour outfit. coulple of things to note is the PCV valve grommit was basically non existant I replaced that and it seems to idle much better and less erratic. bad news is one of my used motor mounts let go. so I will be replacing those as soon as I get them in. (I will post pictures of that when I do it.

Soft top is great! its been fantastic this summer and I wish I had bought it when I first got the fj40.

I also am about to order the 4speed rebuild kit and a birf rebuild kit too. so thats coming!

The house stuff is still in our 45 days of dudilegence and its going well. we got stuck with a s***ty appraisal quote because of where I live... trying to get that lower. still trying to figure out garage/tool space once we move in as I will need somthing soon after we move. upside is I can do what I want with it because I would own it. I really want a concrete pad to park on haha.

Hope everyone is having a fantastic summer! and had a great 4th of july!

 

[RevISK]

I am about to have lots of updates. I will update soon! I apologize summer is busy time for me in a different way from teaching. much more physical labor running a rental/surf/tour outfit. coulple of things to note is the PCV valve grommit was basically non existant I replaced that and it seems to idle much better and less erratic. bad news is one of my used motor mounts let go. so I will be replacing those as soon as I get them in. (I will post pictures of that when I do it.

Soft top is great! its been fantastic this summer and I wish I had bought it when I first got the fj40.

I also am about to order the 4speed rebuild kit and a birf rebuild kit too. so thats coming!

The house stuff is still in our 45 days of dudilegence and its going well. we got stuck with a s***ty appraisal quote because of where I live... trying to get that lower. still trying to figure out garage/tool space once we move in as I will need somthing soon after we move. upside is I can do what I want with it because I would own it. I really want a concrete pad to park on haha.

Hope everyone is having a fantastic summer! and had a great 4th of july!

I'm with you on the concrete pad. I've rolled around for too many hours on my gravel driveway (garage is a woodshop).
Good luck with the house.
You've got me wanting a soft top now (you and @KennyBob).