Well it's time to start putting stuff back on....

[ouroutdoorfamily]

Well I offically finished taking stuff "off" the 40, today we begin putting stuff back on!

I bought my 1977 FJ40 in early Dec. We decided to go ahead and just take it down to the frame and redo the main components and deal with the rust and other assorted issues.

We took it down, however we left the wheels, axels and springs on. I did a coat of herculiner over the entire frame and then finished it with a flat matte black paint, so there is no shiny areas from the Herculiner.

I then repainted the engine, manifold, transmission and exhuast pipe/muffler with a black 2000º paint, (i know it won;t last, but at least it looks pretty now).

The PO had welded a POS wench onto the front bumper, so that got cut off and tossed. I removed and Herculined all panels, plates and brakets that were facing the ground or were underneath the truck. We also scraped, pulled and chipped off all the old "half -#@%'ed" done bed liner off the bottom of the tub and redid it with 2 very heavy coats of Herculiner.

I patched up all tears, holes and gouges in the tub with a epoxy/kevlar fabric repair... (same method I use on canoes and kayaks), the results were awesome and can't even be noticed.

the enitre heater, and dash was taken apart, cleaned, repainted and will be installed shortly. We bought new seats and refoamed the jump seats.

The entire truck is painted with rattle can! we used a 3 step process:

1. self etching primer
2. Flat Camo Rustolem Tan paint
3. Rustoleum textured "sand" (This seals the Tan and makes it bomb proof)

We replaced all the lights, front and rear and reused as much as we could. Acetone has been our best friend!

We will be installing a new Painless harness as soon as we put the tub back on this weekend. All panel parts facing into the engine well were also painted with 2000º flat black. We bought a new master seal, brake booster, water pump, Manifold seal and a few other seals and odd's and in's.

I will try to post some "progress" pictures tonight, as for the "before" pictures, you can see those here.

Please let me know what you think of the restore so far and I'll be glad to take any advice.

Our last purchase will be the larger things such as a rear tire carrier, wheels and tires and we have to figure out what to do about the hard top!

I know we have some ideas about a solid roof rack and possabily some branch cables and a front bumper redesign along with a stringer bar from Metal Tech.

Are there any other FJ40 owners in the Houston, Cypress or Tomball area?

Chris

 

[jeepdude01]

i'm in the middle of taking mine apart, so i'm jealous of you. did you have the frame sand blasted or did you just hurculine over the old paint?

also, post pics!

 

[hedgehog23]

yes i wish iit was time for me to put her together. mine is still loosing weight by the day. most of it im sweeping up in the dust pan.

 

[hedgehog23]

double post

 

[Splangy]

The entire truck is painted with rattle can! we used a 3 step process:

1. self etching primer
2. Flat Camo Rustolem Tan paint
3. Rustoleum textured "sand" (This seals the Tan and makes it bomb proof)

You may want to rethink the rust-o-leum rattle can paint job (besides the obvious reasons). The stuff will peal and drip right off the first time it comes in contact with oil, grease, gas, cleaners, and probably even windex!

 

[ouroutdoorfamily]

Here are the current pics

Yeah, we have heard mixed responses about the paint job and using that paint, but I'm going off experience. All our guns have been painted using the same process and after years of use and 100's of cleanings with all sorts of cleaners they are still going strong.

So we are going to see what happens. If there is wear on the paint is is literally a 5 minute fix.

We are so excited! I will add the hard lines back on this weekend as well as start the harness. The tub will go on at a stage that makes sense and then all that's left is to start bolting stuff back on!

In response to the question about painting the frame. I read all the posts I could about Rust Bullet, POR, etc. I even bought some POR and POR Primer... they are still in the box un-used. In the end it came down to the grinder with some brillo pads and 60 grit sand paper... this was the SOP for pretty much everything.

I then gave everything a good cleaning and wiping down with......

Acetone, the stuff works wonders and etchs a little to. After that we primed and painted.

Look through the main page with the work day photos and you'll see the difference in the frame as before and after. We are very pleased with the progress and the results.

 

[Adax]

Are those Corbeau seats? How do you like them so far?

 

[cruiser enthuiser]

You've been busy and its looking good...nice job! Interesting on the textured sand finish - would love to see come close ups of how that turned out.

You may want to rethink the rust-o-leum rattle can paint job (besides the obvious reasons). The stuff will peal and drip right off the first time it comes in contact with oil, grease, gas, cleaners, and probably even windex!

I don't agree with this. Certainly any rattle-can paint is not as durable as true automotive paint and is much softer, but if your paint is peeling off like that I think it's far more likely the paint was applied to a poorly prepped surface. Believe me I have already spilled gas, oil and even windex on mine with no ill effect.

In the nine months since I "rattle-canned" my project my only concern is that the color has faded noticeably. I knew this might be an issue going in and its no big deal...I actually kinda like it. It's an old truck after all and I wanted a driver, not a show piece.

-Ed

 

[igotta40]

Yes sir, I am in the area. I recently left Jersey Village, in fact, May of last year. I needed to be closer to my work. I'm in Pasadena now, just off the Beltway 8. I have a restored 1974 FJ40 I've owned since 1980. I like what you're doing there, and it amazes me how fast it's moving along.

I like the Tomball/Cypress/Waller area, I may buy property out there when the time comes. Old Hempstead Hwy is great for road bike cycling, almost no cars at all.

 

[ouroutdoorfamily]

igotta80- well when I'm done we'll have to go wheelin. There's a group of use here form work that go regularly out at BVORR up near Bryan. It's a "dry" off roading ranch... it is a 250 acre previous rock quarry of some sort.

 

[igotta40]

I'm ready, let's go! BTW if you have a or a during your build let me know. There's very little about the FJ40 I haven't done, fixed, broke, rebuilt, restored or replaced over the last 30 years.

 

[ouroutdoorfamily]

Here's tonight's work

(Front End, Fenders, Right Blinker)

(Alternator, Solenoid)

(Radiator Hose Kit)

(Left Blinker, gasket broke, so I am making one with RTV)

(Windshield Washer Tank)

(Painting Side Mirrors, as well as the blinkers)

(mounted wiper motor cover and windshield hinges)

(Added hood latches)

(Mounted heat plates to bottom of tub)

 

[ouroutdoorfamily]

well it works good and it floats, lol