Builds Treebeard

[ntdb]

Roll the beautiful camping pics.

I didn't take a ton of photos but I got a few good ones! Some coworkers and I went out to eastern Washington for a weekend. I love this terrain and I want to explore more of it. It actually drizzled on us for our whole hike on Saturday which was surprisingly nice.

The truck ran perfectly... except for one incident. The trip was about 300 miles long in total. When I was 10 miles from home, driving in heavy rain, my driver's side windshield wiper snapped off and was lost to the center lane of i90 coming into Seattle. RainX made this less traumatic than it could have been and I briefly considered driving home without it. I ended up pulling onto the shoulder and swapping the passenger side wiper over. I got home and ordered the CityRacer 4Runner wiper kit.

 

[ntdb]

Tonight I installed a new steering stabilizer, air filter, and trailer hitch! I think my old steering stabilizer still had a lot of life left but it’s one less unknown.

Drilling the two holes in the frame needed for the hitch was a pain but I only broke one drill bit so I’m calling it a win. I used the Draw-Tite 75725 which I got for $130 from Amazon. I also had to buy some hardware: 2x M12x1.25 bolts for the two holes on the bumper and a box of washers. The bolts were only necessary because I threw the original ones away. The washers act as spacers to clear the rivet heads on the frame and to fill the gap between the hitch and the bumper.

I’ll add some photos tomorrow when daylight returns.

 

[ntdb]

Photos, as promised! Not pictured: the metal shavings from frame drilling that I’m still finding everywhere.

 

[ntdb]

Last night I got back into the shop for the first time in a while. I re-installed my rear seat belts (after burning bolt holes through the MLV), installed a new thermostat, and installed a new fan clutch. I forgot to take proper before and after photos but I cleaned up the fan and housings while I was at it and I'm pretty happy with the results. Note the broken bolt on the upper-left hand side of the housing in the first photo... thankfully that came out with the two-nut trick without issue. My hope is that having the engine at temp will help it run stronger, cleaner, and more efficiently.

Getting those fan clutch studs/nuts back in place SUCKS. I rented one of the "fan clutch holders" from O'Reilly but it did not work very well for me. This might be partially because of the random nuts I used on two of the studs. I need to go back and torque them one more time.

 

[ntdb]

A few weeks back I picked up a transmission and transfer case from a 1983 FJ60. My hope is to reseal the transmission, rebuild the transfer case, and swap them into the truck over a weekend (with a new clutch, RMS, etc). Is there anything I can do on the bench to evaluate the condition of the H42? It seems to shift cleanly, things look good under the cover to my untrained eyes, and a magnet came up clean from the bottom of the case.

 

[ntdb]

Saturday night I drove into Olympic National Forest to camp with some coworkers. The next day I did some exploring before heading home. No surprises, just fun.

 

[ntdb]

Today I got the truck into the shop and checked off a lot of todos. Changed the oil, flushed the clutch fluid, put clean brake fluid in the MC, installed a new oil fill cap gasket, and greased the driveline and suspension. The most obvious thing I did today was to plasti-dip my wheels. I did probably 6 or 7 coats (two cans) and re-installed them with brand new lug nuts from McGard. The truck looks completely different and it’ll take some getting used to but I think I like it.

 

[ntdb]

Let’s have a little update, why not.

I sadly missed SAS for a variety of reasons… it was the right choice to not go but I’m still bummed. In June and July I didn’t do much with the truck but I’ve started working on some projects again.

Last week I spent some time cleaning rust off of my spare body parts (tailgate threshold and front inner wheel well). It’s nothing glamorous but every bit of rust repair counts.

This week I installed an aluminum AC bezel (thank you @jonathanfaunce!), USB charger on the bezel, early 90s Toyota radio, wooden tailgate panel, and wooden cargo panels with speakers (mostly installed anyways, thanks @richfj62!). The nutserts for the tailgate and cargo panels have been giving me grief so the cargo panels are just sitting in place for the time being.

I was very excited to pick up some ARB drawers off of Craigslist this week. I was not exactly prepared for the expense but I had to jump on them, it’ll be fine. I’ve been plotting to buy or build some drawers for a while and I just love the fit and finish on these drawers. I need to replace one of the latches and I need some keys. I called ARB and they’re mailing me some keys completely free of charge! The drawers are not bolted down yet but I’ll do that eventually.

I’m planning to head out to camp for a few days starting tonight so I’ll get to really start playing with the drawers straight away. I quickly picked up a power inverter from Amazon to keep my laptop charged while I’m working from the coast, if it works out well I’ll post my review later.

 

[MoaByte]

Mesmer's grey single coat might be the ticket on those wooden panels. I'm thinking along that very solution.

 

[ntdb]

Mesmer's grey single coat might be the ticket on those wooden panels. I'm thinking along that very solution.

I have some dark brown stain ready to go on them whenever I start getting more particular about the build lol.

 

[MoaByte]

I have some dark brown stain ready to go on them whenever I start getting more particular about the build lol.

I was thinking 1/4" marine ply and maybe some EVA marine decking pad. It's down the road still.

 

[ntdb]

Things are happening! I'm driving Treebeard from Seattle to Chicago starting next week. I'll come back mid-October to complete the 4200ish mile trip. Any suggestions about things I have to see between Seattle and Chicago? I'm tentatively planning to spend time around Badlands NP on the way and I've been warned to avoid Wall Drug lol. I'll start planning the return while I'm out east.

With the trip in mind I've ramped up my focus on the truck and have gotten a lot done in the last few days.

• Finished installing the front carpet. I'm not 100% happy with it but it's much better than it was before. I'm re-installing the rest of the trim next.
• Replaced the front PS wheel well. The old one was rusted out at the front body mount. New one is rust free.
• Cleaned up all wheel wells. Undercoating all around and new aprons on the fronts (thanks @blbuck12!).
• Finished installing wooden cargo panels. Installing nutserts is much, much easier with the right tool. Don't skip it.
• Borrowed a roof rack and awning from @Jonathan Faunce.
• Installed a kill switch that I won't be detailing here. I'm happy to share info over PM if anyone needs help installing one.

Coming in the next week...

• Running 10gauge wire from battery to the rear cargo area. I have a Blue Sea panel with a 15a circuit breaker that I'll put on a cargo panel. This panel will feature a voltmeter and two 12v sockets (one for Jackery battery, one for fridge).
• Installing a bluetooth module on my radio. I found one on Crutchfield that'll plug right into the CD player pins on my head unit.
• Replace all coolant hoses and clamps. I ordered them all months ago, they've just been waiting for me...
• Install @Ophir's hand throttle solution.
• Install some tie-downs on the drawers.
• Install Scheel-Mann Vario F XXL driver seat. I still can't believe I'm actually going for one of these seats but I expect it to make my trip significantly more enjoyable. I'm picking the seat up in Portland on Friday, the bracket in Bellevue on Tuesday, and starting the trip on Wednesday. It's gonna be tight.

I don't have much by way of photos to share but I'll pay the tax.

 

[77CruiserDog]

Things are happening! I'm driving Treebeard from Seattle to Chicago starting next week. I'll come back mid-October to complete the 4200ish mile trip. Any suggestions about things I have to see between Seattle and Chicago? I'm tentatively planning to spend time around Badlands NP on the way and I've been warned to avoid Wall Drug lol. I'll start planning the return while I'm out east.

With the trip in mind I've ramped up my focus on the truck and have gotten a lot done in the last few days.

• Finished installing the front carpet. I'm not 100% happy with it but it's much better than it was before. I'm re-installing the rest of the trim next.
• Replaced the front PS wheel well. The old one was rusted out at the front body mount. New one is rust free.
• Cleaned up all wheel wells. Undercoating all around and new aprons on the fronts (thanks @blbuck12!).
• Finished installing wooden cargo panels. Installing nutserts is much, much easier with the right tool. Don't skip it.
• Borrowed a roof rack and awning from @Jonathan Faunce.
• Installed a kill switch that I won't be detailing here. I'm happy to share info over PM if anyone needs help installing one.

Coming in the next week...

• Running 10gauge wire from battery to the rear cargo area. I have a Blue Sea panel with a 15a circuit breaker that I'll put on a cargo panel. This panel will feature a voltmeter and two 12v sockets (one for Jackery battery, one for fridge).
• Installing a bluetooth module on my radio. I found one on Crutchfield that'll plug right into the CD player pins on my head unit.
• Replace all coolant hoses and clamps. I ordered them all months ago, they've just been waiting for me...
• Install @Ophir's hand throttle solution.
• Install some tie-downs on the drawers.
• Install Scheel-Mann Vario F XXL driver seat. I still can't believe I'm actually going for one of these seats but I expect it to make my trip significantly more enjoyable. I'm picking the seat up in Portland on Friday, the bracket in Bellevue on Tuesday, and starting the trip on Wednesday. It's gonna be tight.

I don't have much by way of photos to share but I'll pay the tax.
View attachment 2786765View attachment 2786766

It's not exactly on the way to Chi but I'd hit up the Land Cruiser Heritage Museum in SLC and take a drive through Arches N.P. I think they're both worth the detour. Also, let me know if you want to trade that stock bumper for a winch/brush guard.

 

[cheeese]

Not sure if you've already done this since the photos from April, but you'll be driving thru salt country— might be a good idea to coat the chassis and suspension with Fluid Film or Woolwax before you go.

Would appreciate details of your kill switch install as well… my 60 gets garaged but there have been several trucks boosted in Portland recently.

 

[MrMikeyG]

As a former North Dakota resident, I feel like there are places in Montana way more worthy of a stop than the badlands (Theodore Roosevelt NP?) That being said, I have been there more than once, and it is a neat place. If you meant the South Dakota badlands, the drive through/around the Black Hills is really cool. The 2 states "badlands" are fairly different due to different minerals in the soil.

 

[ntdb]

It's not exactly on the way to Chi but I'd hit up the Land Cruiser Heritage Museum in SLC and take a drive through Arches N.P. I think they're both worth the detour. Also, let me know if you want to trade that stock bumper for a winch/brush guard.

Great idea! I may very well swing that way on my way home in mid-October. Thanks for the recommendation! I may put an ARB bumper on my truck someday but I'll probably hang on to my stock bumper just in case.

Not sure if you've already done this since the photos from April, but you'll be driving thru salt country— might be a good idea to coat the chassis and suspension with Fluid Film or Woolwax before you go.

Would appreciate details of your kill switch install as well… my 60 gets garaged but there have been several trucks boosted in Portland recently.

Ahh that's a good idea. I'll get a little wild with Fluid Film just before I set out. Thanks! I'll send you a PM with some kill switch details.

As a former North Dakota resident, I feel like there are places in Montana way more worthy of a stop than the badlands (Theodore Roosevelt NP?) That being said, I have been there more than once, and it is a neat place. If you meant the South Dakota badlands, the drive through/around the Black Hills is really cool. The 2 states "badlands" are fairly different due to different minerals in the soil.

Yep, I mean the South Dakota badlands. They're right on the way so I can manage just about a whole day there without delaying my schedule. I'll make sure to check out the Black Hills. Thanks!

 

[changingground]

I gotta say, yours is one of the build I always look for updates on, and enjoy the commitment and tone youve taken with your truck. I’m also a little green about your road trip, though Chicago ain’t where I’d be pointing it. Good luck, and better adventures!

 

[MoaByte]

I gotta say, yours is one of the build I always look for updates on, and enjoy the commitment and tone youve taken with your truck. I’m also a little green about your road trip, though Chicago ain’t where I’d be pointing it. Good luck, and better adventures!

Thanks for your words that I can't express. And Chicago too, lol. Moab is a bit further out of the way, but more at home for Land Cruisers...

 

[cheeese]

Nice meeting you yesterday and good luck on the trip! Pick up a dash cam if you don't have one already.

 

[ntdb]

I gotta say, yours is one of the build I always look for updates on, and enjoy the commitment and tone youve taken with your truck. I’m also a little green about your road trip, though Chicago ain’t where I’d be pointing it. Good luck, and better adventures!

Thanks for your words that I can't express. And Chicago too, lol. Moab is a bit further out of the way, but more at home for Land Cruisers...

Ahhh thanks y'all. That means a lot. It feels like a vice more often than not but the truth is that I've gotten a lot out of my 60 and the communities it has introduced me to. Thanks for following along and helping me with my silly questions. I agree about Chicago haha. I have very good personal reasons for heading that way but much of the drive is going to be pretty uninteresting. If I can swing through Utah on my way back I'd be really happy to do that.

Nice meeting you yesterday and good luck on the trip! Pick up a dash cam if you don't have one already.

Nice meeting you! That's a great idea. I wonder what I can find on Craigslist...