So one day my father said, "How hard would it be to put that ute tub you have on an 80 chassis", and so began what has been dubbed the "Fishing Truck". After going back and forwards about what he wanted and what it was for he settled on:
This is what we started with. An early base model carby 3F 80 series. It had recently had the front end gone through and had been a country car for most of its life.- HJ47 troopy body
- FJ80 chassis and running gear with 5.7L LS1 , 4l60E, stock part time transfer case;
- Modern conveniences ( sat nav, A/C, comfy seats, etc).
We contacted a local guy Paul Read who runs Mr Landcruiser (MrLandcruiser - Automotive Parts Sepcialist), he basically parts 40 series and the odd 60, usually cars that are past the point of salvation and often stalled projects, in regards to body tub.
We swapped the carby 3F and 5 speed for the body tub, front panel and some guards I think. I think the 3f was destined for Africa... Below is the new tub sitting on the 80 frame.
During the course of researching this, we met Billy McKinnon. Billy has a couple of 40/80 series builds on mud, this being his most recent:
Fj80 Troopy build Aus
After talking to Billy and agreeing on a plan, we let him loose with the pipe bender and mig. Things got a bit carried away, the plans changed, and well this is where we're at.
For thise wondering about the cage design, it doesn't come forward to the front seat because of government legislation regarding modifying vehicles, there's ways around it, but not worth the hassle given what this will be used for.
Its next stop is Rough 2 Tough Cruisers for body work, widened front guards and some rust work:
https://www.rough2toughcruisers.com/
Thanks