Builds Stevo's '95 4BTRunner

[StevoJonesFJ60]

So now that the shop is pretty much organized the way it will be going forward I am able to get back to work on the truck.
Having a CNC Plasma table is so nice to have for getting all the random brackets cut.

Front spring perches:

Rear Frame supports:

Motor Mounts:

Working on getting the frame 100% finished up and it feels good to be getting close.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

I went to install the new flywheel/clutch assembly and things were going fairly well until I went to install the trans.

The pilot bearing was the wrong size for the input shaft of my ZF6 transmission, so I had to reach out to south bend to get the new one.
Of course it had to be removed once I had everything else torqued to spec so I pulled the pressure plate and clutch.

I was not going to retorque those ARP flywheel bolts, so I used a trick a mechanic had taught me.

If you know, you know, ;p

I had to call for some reinforcements as well.

But after about 5 minutes later I had the old bearing out and will just have to wait to install the new one when it gets in.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

I ended the day on a positive note and was able to source my new rear leaf springs, they were out of a C&C Silverado 3500 so they have a couple extra leaves I have to remove.

They have a bit of corrosion on them as well so I went about breaking them down and cleaning them up.

I also said goodbye to a friend today lol, my first twisted wire wheel I bout with my grinder 19 years ago was pretty much used up and starting to shoot metal wires right into my stomach when using it.

I then was able to get the springs painted on one side and the leaf spacers as well.

Last thing I was able to get finished was to drain all of the old diesel out of the tank for the salamanders, and get the fuel tank cleaned up and flushed all the debris from the tank. I fit it back in to make sure that there weren't any fitment issues with the additional bracing. Fit perfect.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

So I have been also working on a "To-Do" List, there is probably a bunch more, but this should keep me motivated to get things crossed out.

To Do List:

Engine Bay:
Fill with oil
Prime with oil
Install turbo
Install intake
Test run
Connect coolant system
Connect fuel lines
Connect starter
Connect shutoff solenoid
Pull hydroboost master/slave from junkyard
Install hydroboost master
Install ZF6 Clutch master/slave
Plumb brake & clutch lines
Wire Gauges (Pyro-Boost-Temp)
Rig up Tachometer

Frame:
Finish welding front suspension
Make crossmember for NP205
Finish welding rear suspension
Finish welding fuel tank crossmember
Weld in front shock mounts
Weld in rear shock mounts
Remove old frame brackets
Weld rear frame corner braces
Weld caps on front frame
Weld tubing in for steering box

Drivetrain:
Install Flywheel/Clutch
Reinstall Transmission
Pull NP205
Clean-up NP205
Install NP205
Make Midshaft
Make Front Driveshaft
Make Rear Driveshaft
Finalize rear pinion angle

Steering & Suspension:
Cut out steering box frame spacer
Install steering box
Ream pitman arm for 1 ton TREs
Fabricate drag link
install drag link
install upper sway bar links
Pull 4 leaf 63" Chevy donor packs
Clean up leaf springs and rebuild packs
Fabricate rear traction bar
Install shock absorbers

Body:
Install body lift and bushings

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

Was able to get the new pilot bearing installed, and the motor and trans back into the frame.
Next on the list was to make a decision on installing the transfercase now or later. Fortunately I was able to trade some side work for a new-to-me NP205.

Getting this into position by myself took a bit of work, but with some perseverance and pretty much every other thing I could think of, but I was able to get it into a workable spot.

Cut out some more brackets on the PlasmaCam, which will allow me to make some minor adjustments as needed to the transfercase position forward and back along with any angle needed to reduce vibrations.

Everything is cut out of 3/8th plate so it is super beefy, but I will be adding a little bit more triangulation to strengthen the "straights" where the bolts attach to the transfercase bracket and the frame mounts.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

New Rear Leaf packs assembled.

U-Bolts and Plates Painted

Installed:

I haven't installed the u-bolts yet because I won't be able to finalize my pinion angle until I get my midshaft installed and T-Case position finalized. But I have that ordered so it should hopefully be next week.

Next on the list was getting the new steering box installed, I started with a very high tech positioning system.

Cut out a box on the plasma and welded in some reinforcing tube.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

Cleaned up the FJ62 Box, fortunately it has the staggered bolt pattern, so if I ever need to upgrade in the future I can swap in a fj80 box with minimal issues. I also swapped the pitman arm to a fj80 one, definitely heavier duty than the fj62 arm. I feel much better reaming it out for the 1 ton TREs.

Drag link all fabbed up.

Had to put a bend in it, not super easy to do with the thick wall tubing.

Box installed finally, much easier to turn the tires now.

Of course when I went to lift the truck up I noticed the passenger side ball joint is totally shot, so it looks like ball joints are on the list now.

 

[A10Driver]

Cleaned up the FJ62 Box, fortunately it has the staggered bolt pattern, so if I ever need to upgrade in the future I can swap in a fj80 box with minimal issues. I also swapped the pitman arm to a fj80 one, definitely heavier duty than the fj62 arm. I feel much better reaming it out for the 1 ton TREs.

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Drag link all fabbed up.

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Had to put a bend in it, not super easy to do with the thick wall tubing.

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Box installed finally, much easier to turn the tires now.

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Of course when I went to lift the truck up I noticed the passenger side ball joint is totally shot, so it looks like ball joints are on the list now.

Nice work, but that pitman arm and leaf spring are not going to play nicely together.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

Nice work, but that pitman arm and leaf spring are not going to play nicely together.

I was cycling the suspension while I was working on it to determine whether to put the TRE on the top or bottom of the pitman arm and the pictures make it look like its almost sitting on the leaf, it actually has about 3" of clearance. Not the perfect scenario, but if it becomes an issue I can always modify the pitman arm to give it some more room.

 

[A10Driver]

I was cycling the suspension while I was working on it to determine whether to put the TRE on the top or bottom of the pitman arm and the pictures make it look like its almost sitting on the leaf, it actually has about 3" of clearance. Not the perfect scenario, but if it becomes an issue I can always modify the pitman arm to give it some more room.

I can guarantee it's going to hit, I had to notch my frame and move box up. 3 inches over a bump is different than cycling

 

[GLTHFJ60]

Sorry if it was covered. Why did you have to space the steering box off the frame so far? That's a first in my book.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

I can guarantee it's going to hit, I had to notch my frame and move box up. 3 inches over a bump is different than cycling

Yeah, that is a good point, ill probably just modify my pitman arm. If I can get to around 4" or 5" that should be enough as I will be limiting my uptravel.
The other thing to remember is that I am using slider boxes which react differently than standard shackles, as a shackle system hits a bump, the eye of the spring moves "up" as the shackle rotates toward the front of the vehicle (assuming front shackles), with a slider box my eye moves "out" toward the front of the frame while maintaining the same vertical position.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

Sorry if it was covered. Why did you have to space the steering box off the frame so far? That's a first in my book.

I never explained why I did that, the reason is due to my boxing out the front frame.
In 2nd gen 4runners the frame goes from 2"x4" down to 2"x2.5" as it extends through the firewall. it also raises up by 2" Once I boxed it out I didn't have enough space to mount the steering box and have the top hang over the frame without cutting out a big chunk of the frame itself. There also would have been a fitment issue with the power steering pump and front timing cover on the cummins. I have the engine set low in the frame to keep my COG down.

Since I'm running super duty axles there is tons of room outside of the frame so I made that "bump out" so I could use the FJ62 box or FJ80.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

Well, while I am waiting for the ball joints to come in I messed around with the steering some more.
The end of the TRE was probably going to make contact with the springs at full stuff and now is the time to fix things while everything is apart.
Fortunately the pitman arm I have is nice forged steel so it is easy to modify without having to worry about it breaking.

Made the cut.

bent it and then double checked its fit on the frame/springs to make sure there wasn't and contact. then filled the V in with weld and smoothed everything out.

top side

painted up and installed

I also took a picture of the space underneath with the eye of the springs in the slider box as a reference.

The bottom of the TRE is higher than the top of the leaf spring as it mounts in the slider box. The other eye of the spring is level with the front, so there is no way I will be making contact with the TRE or drag link, unless I get a few inches past flat, which will be limited by the bump stops.

Thanks for catching the potential issue before guys, its a nice thing to be able to address a problem even before it becomes evident.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

I had a productive day at the shop today. I was able to get my front sway bar all hooked up, I will still need to add a bracket to put it in double shear. I don't like the idea of just a bolt keeping it from bending.

I needed to modify my transmission crossmember to make room for my front driveshaft. So I chopped up the old crossmember and started making the changes needed.

New tubing cut and tacked in.

Gusseted with some triangles

Capped and painted.

While I am working at fixing potential issues I took the time to notch the frame near my started to give a bit more clearance on the solenoid.

Patched in and starter reinstalled.

Also was able to fully weld up the NP205 crossmember and get it painted.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

Needed to modify the pieces of the midshaft a bit to get it to fit.
First was opening up the recess on the back where it mated to the ZF6 Flange. Surface finish isn't the best but it fits perfect now.

Next was cutting the slip section of the yoke, just needed to trim it down so there was more room to slip it in and out. Once its installed there really isn't any movement so as long as its greased up it should be fine.

Installed.

With the midshaft in, I was able to get my rear pinion angle set, and also got my rear shocks burned in.

Yellow shocks are just temporary.
Final things are getting checked off before the test fire. Fuel lines are in, and hopefully I will be starting it up in the morning.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

To Do List: Its getting smaller

Engine Bay:
Fill with oil
Prime with oil
Install turbo
Install intake
Test run
Connect coolant system
Connect fuel lines
Connect starter
Connect shutoff solenoid
Pull hydroboost master/slave from junkyard
Install hydroboost master
Install ZF6 Clutch master/slave
Plumb brake & clutch lines
Wire Gauges (Pyro-Boost-Temp)
Rig up Tachometer

Frame:
Finish welding front suspension
Make crossmember for NP205
Finish welding rear suspension
Finish welding fuel tank crossmember
Weld in front shock mounts
Weld in rear shock mounts
Remove old frame brackets
Weld rear frame corner braces
Weld caps on front frame
Weld tubing in for steering box

Drivetrain:
Install Flywheel/Clutch
Reinstall Transmission
Pull NP205
Clean-up NP205
Install NP205
Make Midshaft
Make Front Driveshaft
Make Rear Driveshaft
Finalize rear pinion angle

Steering & Suspension:
Cut out steering box frame spacer
Install steering box
Ream pitman arm for 1 ton TREs
Fabricate drag link
install drag link
install upper sway bar links
Pull 4 leaf 63" Chevy donor packs
Clean up leaf springs and rebuild packs
Fabricate rear traction bar
Install shock absorbers

Body:
Install body lift and bushings

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

Last Friday I was able to get the truck fired up! So exciting to hear the engine come to life for the first time, even just for a few seconds.
With that behind me the next step was to get the body installed on the new frame. The new body had gotten a little dusty sitting patiently for the new frame to get finished up.

Out with the old:

In with the new:

Had to drop the rear tank an inch to help with the clearances on the fuel lines, and then had to remove the helper spring from the tailgate, but after a few up/downs I had it sitting on the new frame.

It's sitting a little bit high, but it also is missing a bunch of weight, a full tank of fuel will be an additional 300lbs, dual batteries and bumpers will bring it up another 300-400lbs. The fact its got 31" rollers doesn't do it any favors either.
However the great thing is I can pull a leaf or two to bring it down a bit once its loaded up and the new shoes are on.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

Good news is there is plenty of space for the engine, I still need to pull the gas engine related nonsense out of the engine bay, but I will have plenty of room for getting the engine hooked up.

 

[StevoJonesFJ60]

Spent the day cleaning out the engine bay, a lot nicer now. Not really looking forward to going through the wiring harness to eliminate all of the unneeded wires, but that's the next thing on my list.

Once I get the intercooler installed ill be able to figure out what I want to do for a front bumper.

Semi Stock position:

Lowered to better protect the front suspension.

Another issue to be resolved is to modify the radiator to adjust the lower hose connection, I currently have just a little space before it would hit the fan.