Tearing down my HJ47 troopy (4 Viewers)

[gswest]

Thanks guys!

Thanks for all the encouragement. From Australia, Saudi Arabia and everywhere else. I love the fact that there are people on the other side of the planet that have my same obsession, which is getting these trucks on the road and doing what they were meant to do. Thank you all both guys and girls!
Scott

 

[gswest]

Thanks Lostmarbles

I'm an amatuer, but still have a pulse, so am learning.

 

[gswest]

Halfway on the welds

Slowly getting it patched.

 

[gswest]

Welded and grinded

Now if can just coax these patches into a somewhat flat and smooth orientation I'll be happy.

 

[lostmarbles]

Now if can just coax these patches into a somewhat flat and smooth orientation I'll be happy.

Already looks better than my end result.

As well as patching my rust holes I welded the entire seam on the back and added extra captive-nuts for extra screws to hold the lower edge of my mesh:

 

[cult45]

When I repaired mine [in 2000] I used a piece of 3mm angle. I saw the truck about six months ago, still driving, still rust free.

 

[gswest]

Captive nuts installed

I fabed a piece of metal to weld the captive nuts to. It aint pretty, but I'll never see it after it's back together. The next guy to tear it apart might scratch his head a bit though.

 

[gswest]

Windshield frame needs repair

These Windshield frames are not easy to come by, at least good used ones. I know Pachol (I think out of Georgia) makes aftermarket ones which S.O.R. sells for $750. So, I'm going to attempt a repair on this one. It's actually only rusted through on the bottom flange area. Everywhere else is perfect. I know the body shop guys can fix it, but that's almost as expensive as the aftermarket one, I'm guessing.

 

[Henry James the 47th]

It seems to me that the piece of metal you put at the bottom of the bib will trap dirt and moisture and thereby rot out sooner than otherwise.

 

[gswest]

I agree

Your right Henry, and i think that's one reason those areas are so prone to rust out. The original configuration has those 2 layers of metal in that area. I was thinking that I needed to add back some metal for strength and to attach the captive nuts. All of that metal was rusted through, so I had to remove it. But when I look at the design, it's a perfect storm for moisture to collect. What do you suggest? It's not too late to go a different route.

 

[gswest]

Lostmarbles welded his seam there

Looking back at lostmarbles post. He appears to have welded the entire seam in question. Maybe that's the perfect fix? That's a lot of welding on thin metal; not my strong suit as yet.

 

[Henry James the 47th]

The issue connects to the original Toyota design. Spot welding 2 sheets of metal together will always mean that the site of the weld, as welding will burn off any primer that was present, are sites where rust will begin. There's no way around that with spot welding.

I would seriously consider making a second sheet of metal as reinforcing, epoxy priming it completely and then attaching it to the back of the bib using automotive structural adhesive.

3M makes several structural adhesives:

http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/...4GSSPD0422000000_nid=48RGL190R0be4VCX679CQ4gl

 

[Chamba]

It's funny, almost every rig I have seen down here has the rusted bib. In the US, it seems like it is less-than half which rust out. I don't know why this is as snow is something most Aussies only ever see on the telly - never on the road. It is also a dry climate generally, so I have yet to understand why this is such a rust-prone area.

Your repair looks really nice. I've always been amazed that there are not more Aqualu bibs down here.

Josh

 

[Henry James the 47th]

Part of it is the steel too. The 18 gauge steel used in the '79~'84 trucks just doesn't hold up so well. I've had one of those early bibs with the marker lights built in and it was almost twice as heavy - and nothing but minor surface rust.

 

[gswest]

Weld-thru primer

I did use weld-thru primer extensively in that area, but I have to say now that using that particular design of metal may have been a mistake. It's something I had laying around, and meant I didn't have to cut a piece out of the 16 guage sheet. At this point I guess I could pump some epoxy in those holes to seal out moisture, or go the adhesive route which would probably work better.

 

[lostmarbles]

It's funny, almost every rig I have seen down here has the rusted bib. In the US, it seems like it is less-than half which rust out. I don't know why this is as snow is something most Aussies only ever see on the telly - never on the road. It is also a dry climate generally, so I have yet to understand why this is such a rust-prone area.

Your repair looks really nice. I've always been amazed that there are not more Aqualu bibs down here.

Josh

Hi Josh.

Aussis and kiwis have traditionally been of the opinion that a real 4WD doesn't need to be garaged.

And our homes are generally much more basic than those we see on the telly as being typical in the US.

We have only recently (like the last 20 years) started having double-garaging as the norm. So even if families wanted to garage their 4WD, they haven't generally been able to (in the recent past).

And those that could afford extra garaging generally bought poser/comfort-4WDs like Rangerovers rather than rugged workhorses like 40-series landcruisers.

Remember that condensation can cause rust too. Sometimes on a fine frosty morning the underneath of my bonnet/hood is covered in millions of massive drops of condensation, that, as the temperature warms, run down and pool elsewhere.

But in the States, the higher standard of living (that sadly you guys appear to be losing to other countries now) meant that cruisers could often be "garaged and forgotten", even by families that would never have been termed "wealthy" in your eyes.

Hence you have your useful "barn finds" while we just have our waste-of-time "field finds" where our prize is just a mound of rust particles (amongst chunks of rubber and a few bits of plastic).

That's my take. Now go ahead and tell me I've got the picture typically-skewed for someone living down-under.



Sorry for the diversion Gwest.

I must say I prefer to have the inside of the bib "clean" so that no moisture can hang-up anywhere on it.

I'm not sure about Chris's adhesive idea. I know some are really strong. But they haven't been tested for 30+ years yet.

Before the addition of that piece of angle, your welding skills looked better than mine.

And overlap welding (like I did on my seams) is easier than the butt-welding you did but you still need to use the same technique (of doing spots spaced-out along the length and then gradually filling in the gaps while keeping the panel cool).

 

[gswest]

Epoxy

I may use an epoxy in that area to seal out the moisture. I'll wait until the final body work is done incase the metal has to move a bit. As far as the garage issue goes, I'd like to keep it in the garage, but it probably will live outside most of the time.

 

[gswest]

Windshield frame

I spent quite a few hours trying to make the first repair patch for the windshield frame. On the third try, I think I got it close enough. Will weld it in on my next day off.

 

[Falco80]

Good job on the bib repair! Mine is rusted along the bottom also. Bad design really, as the water can just collect there. I'm enjoying watching your progress, keep it up man.

 

[gswest]

Thanks!