What did you do on your 70 series today? (41 Viewers)

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Went on a short road trip and did some exploring the past couple days. LC is running fine after the turbo install. Hours on the road and original seats, springs, and bushings are wearing on my butt and back. At a minimum I will get new bushings and at least one new seat. Looking at suspension seats used in tractors and heavy equipment. Thinking about getting some new springs maybe OME with 1-2" lift. Rubber bushings and not poly.................It has been many years since driving my 72' FJ40, but in my memory the BJ73 rides much rougher and bouncy in comparison. Much more like a jeep..
You can get rubber bushings from cruiser outfitters for under $20.

is yours lifted now?

I have a 3” lift and some old Australian shocks and it’s rides really really well. Pretty sure the shocks are just as it wallows more than I’d like so I’m upgrading shocks, hope it doesn’t mess up the ride.

I need to switch seat bottoms from driver to passenger as the driver foam is crushed from the years and slightly tilted. The passenger is great so that will help there. They aren’t the best seats to begin with, but a super bouncy ride indicates bad shocks or bad valving.
 
You can get rubber bushings from cruiser outfitters for under $20.

is yours lifted now?

I have a 3” lift and some old Australian shocks and it’s rides really really well. Pretty sure the shocks are just as it wallows more than I’d like so I’m upgrading shocks, hope it doesn’t mess up the ride.

I need to switch seat bottoms from driver to passenger as the driver foam is crushed from the years and slightly tilted. The passenger is great so that will help there. They aren’t the best seats to begin with, but a super bouncy ride indicates bad shocks or bad valving.
Thanks for the lead on rubber bushings. It is not lifted it sits on original springs, bushings, and shackles from 1989. Bushing rubber is cracked. Springs are flat as it sets. No real arch in them. Rear has a very slight sag. Shocks are not original. Some type of after market off road shock not original. It is not super bouncy, but it is bouncy like a 4 corner leaf spring vehicle with very little suspension travel. LC is from spain and has 250K on the odometer. Seats are worn out. Underneath the after market seatcovers are several layers of duct tape holding things together. They adjust forward and back, but the seat back does not tilt either way.. There is evidence of a rusty cable that is broken off, but I don't know what it controlled..................My FJ40 was sigificantly newer with less than 80K miles in 1991 when I was driving it than this smaller and I'm guessing lighter BJ73 is now.......This road trip has given me a bit more motivation to spend money on some new springs.
 
Been driving with only the driver side wiper working for the past couple of months. Finally got the link assembly replaced. My lady will be happy now that she can see out the windshield.
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Spent a lazy Sunday on my stereo. Highs are crisp and the bass rattles my windows now with the help of my son.
Amazing what a good earth and an amp tune will do. Also set up apple play so I can get my maps onto the double din screen.

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Spent a long, 4-day weekend in the Chiricahua Mountains/Coronado National Forest... other than a battery/alternator issue the Troopy is proving a great family exploration and camping vehicle.

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Spent a long, 4-day weekend in the Chiricahua Mountains/Coronado National Forest... other than a battery/alternator issue the Troopy is proving a great family exploration and camping vehicle.

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Great photo.
 
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Blacked out my grill. It was a little rusty and very scuffed. I sanded, primed with an etching primer, then applied Gatorliner bedliner. The last step was a mistake.
I like the look but its a little rough up close. Next time I would just rattle can it.


I also finished my new bumper. I bought the kit from Coastal Offroad in Vancouver. My kid was home from school and he wanted to weld it (he's in engineering and things he should know how to actually do stuff, how cool is that?). So we borrowed a friends welder and went at it. Problem arose when we realized the kit from Coastal offroad was sized for a longwheel base 70 series. It mostly fit but....we ended up cutting off the side plates. Brandon at Coastal Offroad was pretty helpful and offered me a discount on sliders that I want but don't need.....hmmm. My kid is no fancy welder, but it was really fun to do this project with him. The end result is really beefy and the lines are pretty good. This project was a priority because I didn't like my bike swaying around on the old hitch receiver. This is way more solid.




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Pto winch? What front bumper?

Good to hear your engineer is hands on.
 
Made some new trim panels out of wood, quarters and rear doors. They were a real pain in the ass ‘cause I didn’t have a good template to make them from. I was putting this off for a long time because of that.

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Used 6M nursert (poly nuts) to mount them. Next up Ill spray ‘em with raptor liner, along with the floor platform I’m fitting.

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Pto winch? What front bumper?

Good to hear your engineer is hands on.
Yes PTO winch. I had the bumper fabricated locally. I made a template out of plywood and they used that. It’s not as elegant as some but because I kept the lines simple it only cost me $400. Around here custom welding is very expensive so I am glad to have an in house option now.....
 
I like the bumper! Good welding and fabrication is expensive everywhere.
Talking to a welder our school hired, he says you should learn/start with stick welding.
I have a very small MIG.
 

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