The Aftermarket Tub Scene (1 Viewer)

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Joined
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Greenfield, MA
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:mad:

This may belong more properly in chat, so mods feel free to move if you prefer.

I have an HJ47 utility, which, as most of you know, has a tub very similar to a FJ45 utility.

When i got the truck from Australia, it required extensive rust repair, and i ended up putting something like 600 hours of welding into the tub, including the swap of firewall and cowl over to LHD.

Unfortunately, 7 years later, the cancer has returned, and while I've managed to keep it somewhat at bay, the writing is on the wall.

The basic choice is:

-obtain, scavenge or make some patch panels, strip the tub. obtain a welder and a place to do the work and engage in another marathon session of welding, followed of course by body prep work and getting it painted.

-obtain an after market tub

There is of course no option to obtain an OEM tub, and if there were, I imagine the price would be well north of $10,000.00

So, I've been exploring the aftermarket tub supplier avenue for quite a while, and my experience so far has not been what you might call scintillating. Let's run through the options and what I have found....

Pacol Online.

Their product looks pretty good and is a fairly close reproduction in steel. I emailed them, explained i was looking for a tub and wondered if they could get back to me on price. No response. Emailed again a couple of weeks later .The owner's wife got back to me saying that the owner would be in touch shortly. He did finally drop me a line. Did he give me an answer to my question? No. He basically just touched base. I emailed him again, asking for the price on a complete tub. I phoned and left messages. I emailed again a few months later. No response.

Teseven.

These guys in France make some awesome stuff and they have tub options in steel, stainless steel, aluminum and even brass it would appear. Their reproduction is incredibly close to OEM and they are craftsmen. I emailed them last year, using Google translate for French, and weeks later got a reply with some general brochures from them attached. I then wrote back with a couple of questions about dash configuration and steering column options, and time frame to build, cost to ship. I haven't been able to get a reply from them since, and I've sent half a dozen emails to various email addresses associated to the company. Nothing.

CCOT.

I looked at their patch panels, and they are lacking in some basic correspondences to the factory units, like the inner sills having no drain holes punched, simple metalworking processes like that. Seems they were obtaining complete tubs from Paul Pilgrim at one time and we know he ran off with a bunch of customer's money.... Have bought other CCOT stuff and found it lacking, so I'm not inclined in that direction. I just checked their site and tubs are no longer available, so the point is moot.

Malotte.

No thanks. Quality not there from what I have gathered. Bad reputation perhaps. The 'wood reinforcement' does not appeal.

Gozzard.

Seem to be very stoutly built, but also seem to require a lot of tweaking to get doors, windshield, etc., to fit. Not sure about the insurance ramifications of having a road collision with one. Not keen to work with gel and mat to do repairs or customizations. Body no an electrical ground. Like the removable dash panel though. I'm kinda meh on these, but still considering. Gozzard is in the yacht business and these tubs are a hobby/sideline, so getting a tub produced might take a while, depending upon his schedule.

There also a German supplier of fiberglass 40 panels.

Aqualu.

They make an aluminum tub as most of you know. The tubs are fairly stout but suffer a bit on details. The '79 and later tubs have a raised floor and the Aqualu version has squared up corners so the factory floor mat is not going to fit. I wonder what else might be a PITA to fit? The dash lacks the stamped profile of the original. They state on their website that they don't include gas tank mounts because they "aren't sure where they are located" (!). Does not inspire confidence I guess. They do at least respond to emails and the pricing on their product is reasonable. Not sure how aluminum is going to hold up here on the east coast with the corrosive salts used on the roads. I had some aluminum wheel spacers and they corroded enough in 5 years such that they needed to be chiseled off the rear hubs. That leads me to worry about fasteners getting stuck in the aluminum and bonding in there, breaking upon removal. I wish their product was as well-detailed as Teseven's, but it isn't.

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Feel like I've gotten nowhere in this search. I wish their was a supplier out there, but I'm not so sure. Many of them won't even return emails. Maybe I should go into business doing this myself - there can't be a shortage of demand.
 
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Awl TEQ?

Very nice looking stuff...

Yes it is, however Kevin is only making a few select things like rear floor sills at the moment, and a few other bits. I would love to get a pick up box and tailgate or tub from him one day, but he seems uninterested in those sort of projects at the moment. I think the many orders of beds and tailgates he did last year were a bit more work than he was expecting or wishes to get into again. Not sure if that's true, but it was my take on what happened.
 
from the sounds of it, you will not be happy with anything but OEM so you might as well just start looking for one. Everything else has a trade off.

After you get it done fixing it up again stop driving it in the salt. If you have not realized by now it will not last with salt.
 
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Oh, I've parked the truck for the winter. And yes, lesson learned. It was indeed obvious after a short time.

I've been thinking about trying to source a tub from somewhere desert -like and LHD. I've looked. Nothing so far.

I would be happy with a Teseven tub for sure, if I could get one.
 
Fwiw ... When using dissimilar metals you must have a gaskit btwn those parts.
Aqualu and Gozzard are Excellent products as I have personally seen.
You sound like a perfectionist / purest . Nothing wrong with that as we are all different.
My suggestion is to find one in another country in the condition you desire, rip it apart and galvanize/ powder coat every part inside and out and re-assemble.Then sell the one you have.
I too am in the same situation of rust and ideally would prefer steel.
I'm sure if Kevin had the means he would give the frenchman a run for their money on this side of the pond. However he has not entered into this as a business so it is what it is.
I am balancing the happy wife / happy life scenario and trying to balance life.
My bj42 (stainless) is down as is my recent purchase 81 bj42 is also more rusted than imaginable... more balancing of LC addictions. : )
My passion like yours is of my stainless bj42. it's not perfect, dd and 10 years of wheeling has had it's toll but every little dent is like a cute little dimple with a story ! And there are many !
It has rust but I would rather be driving it than not driving it at all !
If someone comes up with some replacement parts my ears are open like us all.
Cheers and welcome to ''Club Rust ! '' lol
by the way what is the length of your 1/4 panels on the 47 ?
JMac
psps. How about banderante parts ? you'll need a translator !
 
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When you say "utility" are you talking about what they call the Ute in OZ or a enclosed FJ40 type of tub? I have no dog in the hunt I'm just curious.
 
My 2 cents...I bought one of the first generation Aqualu aluminum tubs when I restored my '71 FJ40. I also installed their aluminum fenders too. My experience with them was very good, and I was living in Alberta at the time. I was not thinking about a museum original resto, but longevity and peace of mind. I powder coated the whole thing and found it to be very durable. I also put bedliner inside. Land Rovers have been been made of aluminum for decades. If properly coated, this would be my direction again for my next one. My currrent ride is an HJ61 and I live in Qbec, the winter salt is trying it's best to eat my truck. But, every August I get it oil sprayed and this has been the best rust prevention. I work for the fire department in Ottawa and every year the Pumps are all oil sprayed, they too are mostly aluminum chassis. I have noticed that all of the ICON units have an aluminum tub, supplied by Aqualu I believe. Hope this helps...
 
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My suggestion is to find one in another country in the condition you desire, rip it apart and galvanize/ powder coat every part inside and out and re-assemble.Then sell the one you have.

That's kind of the direction I've been going. Since I haven't found that replacement tub I've been going through the other parts making the improvements you suggest.

When you say "utility" are you talking about what they call the Ute in OZ or a enclosed FJ40 type of tub? I have no dog in the hunt I'm just curious.

Yes, ute being short for utility; I'm referring to the 2-person cabs, the shortest ones.

My bj42 (stainless) is down as is my recent purchase 81 bj42 is also more rusted than imaginable... more balancing of LC addictions. : )
My passion like yours is of my stainless bj42. it's not perfect, dd and 10 years of wheeling has had it's toll but every little dent is like a cute little dimple with a story ! And there are many !
It has rust but I would rather be driving it than not driving it at all !

I'd like to see that truck. Did you paint the stainless or leave it?
 
I'd like to see that truck. Did you paint the stainless or leave it?[/QUOTE]

I was a welder fitter for 10 years and had supply to stainless, original 1/4 panels are I believe 18ga. So I replaced from the door post back in 16ga stainless in and out. The rear channel that Awl-teq (Kevin) sells I redone in stainless 1/8 and 16ga as it is two pieces. This was done in 1996. The paint is a spray can and was a similar match. I'm not one to worry about scratches as I can always buy another cheap spray can.
I thought I would repaint the truck later with 464 when ever I get around to etch priming it first. The 'when' is really the question.
If I had the option at the time the inside panels would have ribs, however the inside floor and fenders are flat with channel under bed. Rocker gaurds nerf bars and front bumper out of stainless. Yes ! I love stainless ! it's all tig welded.
Pic: kanga and the roo with friend standing. I kinda like #464 biege.
How about sharing some photos of your rust issues ? and how she sits now ?
Cheers
JMac
Copy of Picture 001.jpg
P1040647.jpg
 
I think you need to reconsider Wally. Have you see. Some of his trucks which aren't intended to be wheeling trucks?

Here is Randy's troopie https://forum.ih8mud.com/fj45-owners-club/177052-got-troopy-8.html

Post 424 here is a Wally tub https://forum.ih8mud.com/40-55-seri...j40s-best-color-show-us-what-you-have-22.html

Here is mine we are currently working on. Done out of 1/8 steel like Randys. With the 47 he can blend in the rocker better be cause of the lip that goes all the way to the bottom.





Post 7 is the 45 bed he built for me. I wanted it shorter than stock for wheeling.

https://forum.ih8mud.com/fj45-owners-club/725295-fj-45lwb-pick-up-box-styles-pics-please.html
 
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I've seen that site before - and thanks for sharing the link.

Hard to gauge the quality from the pictures.

There's a funny thing about fiberglass tubs and the way they are made. While it makes perfect sense to mold the tub and side-steps as one piece, or the fenders, aprons, hood and bib as another, there's something about it that doesn't quite work for me. I'm not saying it's logical for me to have that reaction...

"Teseven was busy to please the french market, now after about 100 bodys being sold he may find the time for overseas customers. His quality is outstanding to say the least."

'May' being the key word there. I hope he does.
 
I email Teseven, he said he would be ready for exporting by next year. Thought about going to France, and arranging the shipping myself. I don't know if he has inventory, or if each tub is made to order. Some further investigation is in order. Stainless is ultimate solution, shouldn't be much more expensive, most of the cost is labour.
 
. Stainless is ultimate solution, shouldn't be much more expensive, most of the cost is labour.

I'd be interested how much it is....

I build brew stands, and mild steel is about $200 for materials and 304 stainless is $900 for materials... :eek:

Also, while stainless can be MIG'd or TIG'd, either way, you have to flow argon over the back side of the weld or you get oxidation that doesn't look very nice... More equipment, and labor... I can see a stainless tub being significantly more expensive.
 
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Teseven's pricing for the three materials, same tubs. In the standard 40 model, the stainless steel version is 35% more than the steel one, and the aluminum is 10% more than the steel one. By the time you're looking at the troopy however, these differences stretch out a bit - the stainless troopy is 50% more than the steel one.
bon de commande 02 11.jpg
 

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