Builds Slowest Build Thread ever - 1992 FJ80 "Golgo13" (1 Viewer)

[Golgo13]

I've been following this forum for 3 years and have recently started trying to make a contribution. I try to only share when I know things for sure. If I'm not too sure, I get right to doing some research. I actually bought my rig in May of 2012 a week before my FJ showed up at the dealership. Thank God I have a second vehicle as a daily driver.

Golgo13 is a '92 with the 3F-E and is pretty much bone stock. I don't have a solid plan for it yet. I just want to get it on the road and get comfortable with it before I decide on a direction. I live in Ann Arbor, MI, so there isn't much rock crawling or any real serious wheeling to be done around here.
My other rig is a 2012 FJ. It is a lease(which I will buy out). I have no plan to modify it since I think it does really well on its own.

A little about me: I'm a Mechanical Engineer in Chassis design for your favorite automobile manufacturer. I haven't built a tool collection yet, so I'm doing everything by hand, the old fashioned way. AND since I only have a 1-car garage, space is a little tight. I'm also a little OCD about making sure things are done right the first time even if it takes twice as long.

These are the rigs from my sig line.
Please excuse the sideways pic, I'm still green at posting stuff here.
I really hope I can contribute to the knowledge base here while learning some stuff myself.

 

[geologic]

Can't get any slower or more OCD than your southern 80 brother, Geologic. I've had 2 identical LX 80 series and haven't finished either one enough to enjoy them regularly. I sold the first one because I got frustrated by my lack of a garage. Then two years ago I bought an identical one with diff lockers and twice as many miles. I called it the trash truck because the mindset going in was that I was going to use it up and enjoy if. Well two years later I'm still trying to make it new. I like em too much. Hard for me to trash one out. I hope you will enjoy yours and get on the road or trail soon. First pic is my old 100k truck and the second pic is the trash truck.

 

[artech]

Golgo 13 is a great anime!

 

[Golgo13]

After much anguish and some trips to the dealer for parts, I finally tore open the diff. It was rusted pretty bad, so I ordered a new cover and hardware. I had a leaking seal on driver side axle so I figured I'd pull it and replace the seal and bearings while I have it open.
My biggest fear was rust from water in the axle housing. Thank god the oil was clear as honey and the axle shaft was clean and smooth.
Of course, once I had it all pulled apart, I finally noticed how rusted the diff breather was. I don't plan on a water crossing any time soon, so I'm going to use a fuel filter as a replacement.
This was definitely a 1 banana job.

 

[Golgo13]

Ugh, it has been 6 months without a post, I figure I owe some updates!

Since my last post I have bought some tools. Thanks to my great girlfriend(eventual wife) I have a 30Gallon air compressor. That prompted me to buy an impact gun and get to work.

This all started with a blown brake line. I figured "well, one of them rusted through, I might as well replace them all." HAHA, yeah, right.
I went ahead and replaced the bearings and seals in the rear axle. I replaced the rear dif cover and added some new bolts. Put it all back together, and said F-It, lets get a "new" axle from Jason at Cruiser yard.
This weekend I managed to finally get the old axle out... Covered in rust. It may be tough to see, but I measured some of the scale to be ~1mm thick! I don't ever want to hear anybody complain about rust again unless they are from Halifax or similar. This is ridiculous.
I spent Friday afternoon loosening all the bolts/nuts which hold the axle in place. On Saturday I dropped the axle, pulled the very rusted springs and slid the old-boy out. Damn, that felt good.

After I got the axle out, I decided to stop by the dealer to order some parts. My @$$ hurts after seeing the bill for some hardware and the bound stops. I get a discount since I work for Toyota, but I still think they're having their way with me. I wish I could pressure suppliers without it being an ethical issue. Damn ethics.

Then I started trying to pull misc stuff out for replacement. First up were the shocks. Please remember, everything is rusted beyond belief. I got 1 of the shock mount bolts out, stripped the head on another and gave up. Anyone have any ideas on getting the stripped bolt out? The head is stripped, not the threads. Yes, I tried a bolt remover. That is how it was stripped.

I went for low-hanging fruit. The bump-stoppers no longer have rubber on them, so, why not replace them? 3 bolts came out fine, the head of the last one broke right off. SOB. Spent some time to drill-out and re-tap.

Next on the list was the LSPV. I already have a new valve and bracket. No problem, right? PFFFFFF! Wrong again! Two of the bolts are right next to the gas tank. Rusted so bad that the 12mm socket won't grip and not enough that an 11mm won't work either. Not enough room for the ratchet or a wrench or anything else, so it looks like I'm dropping the gas tank... and buying new straps and hardware.

By the time I'm done, I will probably replace every bit of hardware on the underside of the truck!

I'm at my wit's end. Anybody have any advice?
I will not entertain the notion of selling it and getting something with less rust. I'm in too deep to give up!

 

[artech]

Try soaking the bolts for a few hours in a 50/50 mix of acetone and regular ATF transmission fluid before trying them. I got that recipe right here on this forum and I just can't believe how good that works, and it's a ton cheaper than PB Blaster or anything else so you can use a ton of it. I'm in Maine so I feel your corrosion pain! They are using calcium chloride on the roads here now, and that stuff is worse than battery acid for the underside of your truck. Brutal rust. I mix the stuff up in a glass jar and just brush or splash it on, and I have had really good luck with it. Won't get every bolt of course, but it'll give you a good chance anyway. It eats most plastics so watch out for that! Hope this helps.

 

[powermad]

If you are dealing with a lot of rust I would start using heat to help it along.
Good sockets and wrenches help immensely with rusted stuff.

I work on a lot of rigs that come from the East and sometimes it's crazy bad.
Don't use 12 points on anything not a 12 point.
Matco has a new line of sockets and spline drive wrenches that work really well on corroded bolt heads and nuts.
Usually end up knocking the fastener out with a punch on the bad ones.
Iv'e used the 10 mm ratcheting flex wrench with a 6" 3/8" extension and 15 mm socket over the handle and it either breaks the bolt or it spins it out.
That's what I use to get the EGR piping bolts out of a Cummins ISX. One is a wrench only bolt and I used to have to torch the head off when the corners crumbled away. I haven't stripped the heads yet with this wrench.
The new sockets are working great for the corroded exhaust manifold bolts as well.

For lube I use whatever I have laying around, PB blaster, Kroil, ATF witches brew etc.
Lately I have been using door wax.
We have a recall (Volvo) where we have to spray wax into the door cavity to seal the bottom.
It's a silicone based wax, sprays out runny and hardens. You get a giant can with every one and one can will do about 6 rigs, so I have tons of it.

Heat the area with MAP gas or torch, let it cool just a bit and hose it down, the stuff wicks down and the bolt usually spins right out.
Best stuff ever on stainless bolts and studs. Doesn't gall and wipe the threads out.

 

[Golgo13]

Hey guys, thanks for the tips! I forgot about the acetone/ATF mix. I have been using PB Blaster anywhere I can. Most of the time it doesn't seem to matter.
What about the bolts where you can reach the nut end because it is in the frame or tucked away real nice? For instance, this little SOB that holds the shock in place? I striped the head with a bolt remover...

 

[artech]

That sucks! If you have a welder or a welding friend then welding another nut to the top of the bolt might do it. If not then most likely you'll have to drill out the bolt and re-tap the hole. This may mean cutting the shock right off the mount to get some working room, that'll not be a ton of fun. Been there, done that, wasn't all that great really. Sawzall or angle grinder with cutoff wheels are your friend there. Best bet is the welding since the heat helps with the original problem as well as fixing the new one. It's worth a few bucks to get it done at a muffler shop or whatever, that's money well spent!

 

[powermad]

Weld a nut on it, the heat will help.
I have removed far worse than that with those sockets I mentioned.

I usually don't end up buying entire sets of sockets or wrenches. Just the ones I need.
http://www.matcotools.com/catalog/p...-6-POINT-CHROME-SOCKET-SET/?source=igodigital

 

[mattafact]

That's a lot of rust! I had a rusty vehicle once. Never again. If it gets to be too much, get one from the south west and leave the memories of broken bolts behind.

 

[LandBruiser69]

Hang in there man! I've had rusty-er rigs!!! PB blaster and the torch became my best friends...

 

[Golgo13]

Thanks for the support and encouragement!
I don't have a welder, or that is where I would have started with welding a nut in there. Also, the rig isn't moving without the axle, so I can't go to a welder with it. I have considered leaving some of these in place until I'm moving and having a mechanic get them out, but I do sort of enjoy the challenge.
My sockets are a really nice set of Proto Challengers that I got 20 years ago when I was 10. Dad got them as a sample back then, but already had a set of Bernz-o-matics which he had for 30+ years. My easy-outs are English size(do they really have a size?) from Craftsman(Made in USA).
I'll check into the critical sizes for a solid 6-point set since the majority of these are 12-point.

Has anyone tried the GripTite sockets? I saw these at Sears a while back and they actually seemed promising. I know a lot of sockets are just new gimmicks, but occasionally there are better sockets available.

Thanks again guys!

 

[Golgo13]

Been a while since I took time to update...
A month ago I pulled my front axle assembly and all the control arms. I'm going to have everything re-painted. I'll post pictures as they come back with before and after shots.

Right now I'm trying what to do with the knuckle/spindle/steering arms.
Here is a picture of the parts with all the grease finally removed.
I'm thinking about getting them blasted and powdercoated or a few good layers of epoxy. Can't make up my mind.

 

[Golgo13]

Also, my Birfs are not in the best shape. I know I could swap sides to buy a little time, but I figure if everything is apart and clean, I might as well go back in with new parts.

Who has the best replacements? I haven't seen much good about RCV. I guess they don't last as long? Are they just not heat treated? I see some good things about Nitro. Where else should I look? OE from the dealer are too expensive, even with my nice discount. Originals are from JTEKT/Koyo


Another odd thing was that during dis-assembly of the knuckles, I noticed that only one of the upper trunions had a shim. Nothing on the other side. I'm going with a newer/used/not so rusty housing from @arcteryx . Should I just add both shims to both sides and adjust until the pre-load is correct? Of course, Everything will get new nuts, bolts, washers, studs, etc etc plus new bearings and seals. I really don't want to have to go through any of this again for a long time.

 

[Aggiesdm]

I think the shims are independent of one another. I've heard that some have thicker shims than others and some have none at all. I read that you need to use the old shim when reassembling to start with, then add or subtract based on the reunion bearing load and how freely it moves. Not sure that this helps, but maybe yours was assembled without a shim?

Also...looks like you have a little rust on the parts. I would have those parts blasted then powder coated if I was you. Good luck and keep us updated on what you decide. Us 3FE guys gotta stick together.

 

[Aggiesdm]

Btw, if you were having any clunk issues, now might be a good time to replace the spindles. Especially if you're replacing the birfs.

 

[Golgo13]

Btw, if you were having any clunk issues, now might be a good time to replace the spindles. Especially if you're replacing the birfs.

I don't recall having any clunk issues at all. Not even clicking from the birfs, but they definitely have play. My plan was to replace the bronze bushings and keep the current spindles. (@~$225 each, it seems excessive to replace something which hasn't outright failed.)

Definitely will replace the axle flanges. Tomorrow I'll post up some pictures from the tear down and cleaning. Then the grooves in the birfs will be visible to all and you can also see the damage of the splines in the axle flange.

Also, yeah, any rust will be removed. I'm not putting rust back on after putting all this work into it...

 

[Florida 80]

Good call on the drive flanges while you are in there. I just did mine too while I was doing my birfs....so good to have it done!

I feel for you guys up north!!! That rust is a mother f@%#$@!

 

[BILT4ME]

THATH A LOT OF RUTHT!

I came from NW Iowa and I thought WE had a lot of rust to deal with! Unbelievable!

While I am a fan of Powder coating, is goes on thin and if not done properly, it can get ugly quick. That said, I like epoxy because it goes on thick, can handle rock chips, and it will bond well. In the epoxy case, I HIGHLY recommend having any painted surfaces sand/media blasted to a near-white finish (SSPC-SP10) in order to get the epoxy to bond the best, but they MUST be painted within "x" hours of blasting in order to prevent rust bloom under the paint.

I installed the RCV axles in mine from Slee. I'm not a crawler, and am 95% highway / city use with a little mud and backwoods. So far (5K miles) I have no complaints. I have heard that these are the old Longfields, however, I think those are the TREATED version (shiny, not "black" like I have.

Do you have holes in the floor of the truck also? If not, how will you prevent that from being the next thing? Blast and coat?

Good luck!