long term fj40 build. 3 link, custom toyota axles, LS swap.

[ryantowry_81]

so this is a long time coming. I have been slowly building these axles for roughly 11 years and 3 different states.



here is what i am starting with:



73 fj40 with hard top, bikini and soft doors included.
freshly rebuilt TBI 350 already wired
freshly rebuilt SM465
NP205
Dana 44 front, shortened with chromoly shafts
dana 60 semifloat rear, shorteded with Dutchman shafts
uninstalled 4.88's front and rear and rear detroit
brand new( but old) 35" KM1's
pile of associated parts from years of the PO collecting.
all in all i have about 3500 in it with trades and cash.
I was previously building this:
T100 Family Wheeler. AKA the Mutant Turtle

so the wife wont let me, and i don't have time to build both so i am going to be using some of the parts from my last build for this build and selling off the rest.

at this point i know the 40 is getting this


14" 2.0 FOA's

Barnes4WD 3 link kit with endure joints

rear u bolt elimination kit

37x12.5-17 yokohama geolander M/T's on steelies

 

[ryantowry_81]

as for the axles i am pretty sure at this point i will be ditching the dana axles that are under the 40 right now and going with a long term set of axles i have been building for going on 6 years now. if you want a lot of detail it is in my previous thread but they are basically full width fj60 front and full float fj80 rear:





basically used LCwizard's extension sleeves on both sides of the fj60 front and added minitruck IFS outers hubs for +1.5" on both sides. I even have custom inner shafts from Bobby from back in the day with brand new never used 30 splines.

for the rear i added a custom machined spacer to the short side to make it be right at 67.5" WMS-WMS and used a nitro cut to length shaft for that one side. I actually ended up with a spare spacer if anyone else wants to do a similar full width rear FF FJ80.

 

[ryantowry_81]

I did get her in the garage last night and took some measurements. It is sitting at about a 92” wheel base and 24” to frame on 35” tires. There is 12” from top of tire to fender well so I am assuming I will be lowering it 4-6”. The rear springs had a 20/24” eye to centerbolt to eye Doug I flip them around I should get 4” of wheel base added. If I push the front forward another 4 that should put me right about 100” on 37’s with about 18-20” under frame.

 

[ryantowry_81]

pictures of measurements.

roughly 24" to frame on 35's aired up.

roughly 92" wheel base right now trying to measure by my self.

in the garage

pile of parts


35 BFG KM1 vs 37" yokohama


Saginaw PS conversion was done pretty well. looks to have a GM steering column as well.

high steer on the dana 44. nice custom tie rod hahaha


really trick rear shock mounts.

anyone want a really big rear winch bumper?

rear dana 60 around 64.5" once i slip the rotors on



37 bolted up with rotor. looks small on there with about 12" to top of wheel well.

found this tag on my rear springs. anyone have any idea what they are?
quick search leads me to think they are these:
Toyota Land Cruiser Replacement Leaf Spring (6 Leaves, Rear)
A and B measurements are pretty close.


so the 205 has a round mounting pattern and 32 spline female input and the sm465 has the figure 8 and 10 spline so i am assuming the PO was getting ready for a doubler? anyone have a 10 spline 203 laying around?

good windshield and frame but no windshield wipers. will need to figure something out there.

 

[ryantowry_81]

got a couple hours last night to tinker some. pulled the rear axle and flipped the springs to see what the wheel base add would look like and then put in my FJ80 rear for mock up.

definitely gained about 4" in wheel base, still needs to be a lot lower though.


did find there was an add a leaf spring in this pack as well i will probably take out.


width went up from 75 to about 84" outside of tire to outside of tire. looks kinda funny right now sitting so high but i think with some small tube fender flares in the back and some fender trimming they will look a lot more at home. also shameless beer poser pic!

just clamped together for now until i can get the pinion angle set. only down side to the u bolt eliminator kit is mockup is a little more difficult.

rear diff is still offset about an inch to the passenger. i could have went full centered but it would have cost me another 225 dollar shaft so i figured 1" was not worth 225 dollars to me.



i also air hammered the old rear winch bumper off because i kept hitting my head on it getting the axle in. came off surprisingly easy. glad i never actually hooked anything to the trailer hitch.

 

[ryantowry_81]

well not a bunch of progress but i did get the motor and trans bolted up and in place.

i plan to add the front accessory parts, cross over pipe and fenders/grill to get a good idea of what i am going to need to avoid/ move when building the 3 link.

i bet it will all come out one more time before putting it in for good.

 

[ryantowry_81]

not a whole lot of progress but I did start upping the front suspension for the 3 link:



but now I have to pull the motor to swap out the transmission because this fell in my lap:


NV4500/atlas 3.8:1, old but never been run. got too good of a deal to pass up. just need to buy fluids for it and swap the yokes for Toyota.

I was going to leave the 4.10's in the axles with the sm465 to make the hwy bareable but now I have OD I can use the 5.29 gear sets already in my tool box and move some of the stress off my driveshafts and pinion flange.

I have not looked super close but I am assuming at this point my drivetrain weak link is going to be u joint or pinion flange splines. I guess only time will tell.

 

[ryantowry_81]

not a whole lot done last night but I did get the yokes swapped out for toy flanges. turns out this atlas was built in 2002 so it was still a 26 spline front output and 32 spline rear. luckily WFO down the road had a dana 44 to toy flange that fit the bill perfectly and a 32 spline toy flange for the rear.


also wire wheeled the nv4500 to give it a little paint to keep it from rusting any further.




hopefully this weekend I can pull the motor and get this bolted up and stabbed in. need to rebuild a new cross member now also.

 

[ryantowry_81]

so not as fast getting them swapped as I hoped but that is life.

pulled the motor and trans last night but first had to build a little jack extension to put under the transmission because I was tired of the old stacking of wood block sketchiness.

I used a short piece of axle shaft and a scrap of 1/4" plate to fit on the jack and a tube and angle iron slip on attachment to get the extra height. this seemed a lot more stable than the 4x4's I used to stack on the floor jack to get extra height.




I did get the motor out so now to bolt up the new trans and transfer case and fab a cross member to hold it in place and then get to the links.

 

[ryantowry_81]

engine in the fj40, take 2. This time with the NV4500/ Atlas bolted up.




still need to figure out the right height and build the cross member but I can tell you my engine hoist is glad that is over....
also looks like I only have about 21" for the rear drive shaft with where the axle is now. I am so used to Toyota minitruck stuff where you have miles of rear drive shaft so this makes me really nervous.
I think with the rear leafs I have now I could probably push the axle back another 2-3" before I have to get into mounting the shackles off the back of the frame. do you guys out there in keyboard cowboy land think 24" long for a rear CV shaft? I need to figure angles based on final ride height because this thing is getting lowered a bunch, but 24" sounds short to me.

 

[ryantowry_81]

not a bunch to report but I finally received my knuckles and FROR keyed histeer arms back and I am pumped!!!! these things are BEEF!


I also purchased some ARP studs for the hi steer arms and the FROR Tacoma brake adapter kit so I can put first gen tundra front brakes on this:

I tried out this "Steel-It" paint given to me by one of our vendors. It is supposed to be super tough and durable and you can weld over the top of it they say. we will see how it works on these knuckles:



in this last picture you can see the machined part on the knuckle so the hi steer arm slides down over the top of the knuckle by roughly 1/4". should help keep some of the strain off of the studs.

 

[ryantowry_81]

I installed the ARP's and the stock bottom studs and then bolted the knuckles on with a temp tie rod to get ready to mock this thing up under the truck.


I think I grossly mis estimated the caster angle I tacked the knuckles on at because the hi steer arms seem turned up really far but hopefully I can get it under the truck where I think ride height will be and turn them to be right and then start getting the link mounts in place.

 

[ryantowry_81]

so a little more done over the weekend.
got the axle rolled under the truck and started planning location. I broke the tacks and rotated the knuckles to 7 degrees caster with the pinion pointed to the t case so it should be closer to actual now. just trying to figure out how far forward and how high to place bump right now.


where I have it in the pictures is about 1" from the tie rod hitting the frame, and the axle is about 4-1/2" forward from stock. If I move it back about 2" I can get the bump higher or I might have to notch the frame. I really want to keep 6" uptravel from ride height and keep it as low as possible for CG reasons.
then I threw on the tires and fenders for some reference and motivation.


she is definitely wide! and I am definitely going to need to do some custom fenders but I am thinking moving the axle back 2" and notching the frame is where I will probably go next, just need to make sure firewall clearance is good for a 40 for possible future growth.
once i get the axle location figured out i plan on building the links backwards of most. i figure i will tack them in place where they fit well then throw those numbers in the calculator and then start massaging from there. i figured there was no reason to come up with link lengths and position in the calculator just to find out they wont work under the truck.

 

[ryantowry_81]

not a big update but I finally got some time to work on her.
picked up two IFS CV drive shafts from a good friend for free and cut one apart to start mockup on the front shaft.



I got lucky and just happened to have some drive shaft tubing I was given by a friend a while back that looks to be real close to the right length. only buzz kill is my Toyota flange on the atlas does not have the CV pattern so I am going to have to take it off and drill it for the new pattern.
I also tacked in the lower links and raised the axle until the tie rod would hit the frame to see how it would look. this will require some notching for the drag link for sure but would gain me 2" of up travel hence lowering the ride height 2". right now the lower links are 44" eye to eye and I think the upper is going to end up around 36-40" I think.




in the last two pictures you can see I started to try and place the upper link in there and it is tight. if I had it strait up and down it would contact the nut on the fan belt. I angled it back to where I think it would fit at full bump and have a little clearance for adjustment but it brings my vertical separation down to around 6" which is slightly concerning. I am also going to probably have to bend my upper link some to clear the motor mount unless I rework the motor mount too.
if I can make this as my full bump it would put my frame height at full bump around 16.5" so if I add in 5" up travel it would put me about 21.5" to frame at ride height, then 2" down or so for the belly pan would make the belly around 19.5". this is a little low but I can always turn the shocks up to around 6" up travel and get my belly over 20 if needed.

 

[ryantowry_81]

so a little more:
I got the atlas flange drilled for the CV pattern for the front drive shaft and threw that in and dropped the axle 5" on my axle holding jig to estimate ride height. then I threw together a temp drag ling from some extra SS pipe I had laying around.





I am liking how flat the drag link is around ride height but I think I might see if a flat pittman arm with the hiem below woud help raise the steering box end just slightly and help keep it from being the low point when at full bump.
I also measured the lower links and they are about 3 degrees upward at full bump and about 4 degrees down at ride height. I think this is decently flat so should have ok manners on the road.
then I threw a fender and tire on at the estimated ride height for a visual.



looks a lot less crazy wide down near ride height. I am definitely going to have to build tube fenders or move these fenders up to hood level almost to clear the tires when articulated.

 

[ryantowry_81]

no real big updates besides this thing will be being put on hold for a while. I just accepted a new position in Yakima WA so I will be moving and needing to find a new home before I can start work on it again.

 

[ryantowry_81]

well no real good updates but I did take the job in Yakima and got the rig moved to Spokane at my sisters house until I can get our housing situation figured out.

here was the load moving north. I packed inside the 40 with all my parts and a lot of tools.

 

[ryantowry_81]

sorry for the radio silence but no big updates as of late. We finally got our houses In California sold and are building a house in Naches Wa right now on 10 Acres. If it weren't for Covid we would be done right now but Inslee decided residential construction was not essential so we will have to wait a couple more months.

Hopefully once the house is built I can get the FJ back in the garage and start back down the road of getting it complete. I have been exploring some in the wifes sequoia and there are plenty of trails around here to explore!

 

[ryantowry_81]

well I dove further down the Land cruiser rabbit hole and picked this up yesterday:

Probably just borrow the spartain locker from the 40 and put the winch on it and run it. get me and the kids camping and snow wheeling while I work on building to 40 and my shop

 

[ryantowry_81]

well this project has taken another turn. it just donated it's motor to a 72 c10 truck that i acquired. I think i will just rebuild the 350 from the c10 and put it back in this but it is going to be a while.

I have decided to try and end my unemployment by starting my own business:

https://highoctanespirits.com/

I am opening my own Craft Distillery in Naches Wa inspired by motorsports. I don't want to give to much away until i have actual label approvals but i am hoping to do some wheeling inspired spirits including a over-lander gin.

Please follow and like on social media to help me get the word out!!!

 

[ryantowry_81]

well, i was not really ready to install this but the right deal fell into my lap and i ended up getting a new heart for this project:

it is a 2002 4.8L out of a silverado. Kid got T boned and bought it back to make back some money. ended up paying 500 bucks for the whole motor, harness, compurer and stock air box.

now just have to get the parts to adapt this to the NV4500 and figure out the wiring and computer part.

 

[rugburn]

Nice 40 story.

Were you in AK in the service back in early 2000?

Black Hilux ?

 

[ryantowry_81]

thanks man.

I was not in the service but was in alaska from 2008-2012, and built powerplants on a couple bases up there. I had a green then tan toyota.

84 toy build-39.5 tsl's and buick v-6

www.pirate4x4.com

My buddy Ray (MikeHoncho on pirate in the old days) had a black tacoma on tons up there in 2010-2011ish. he was in the army 501st airborne i believe.

 

[rugburn]

I remember the handle from PBB as well.

You rocked the fuck out of that truck 😂

 

[ryantowry_81]

I remember the handle from PBB as well.

You rocked the fuck out of that truck 😂

thanks man.
That truck still exists down south and even make it to truck night in america for one episode. guy driving was Kevin Shortt. it is grey now.

were you stationed in AK?

 

[rugburn]

I have family in Big Lake, AK and I have a super memory from the PBB daze.

Hilux like your old one stick in my mind like glue

 

[ryantowry_81]

I have family in Big Lake, AK and I have a super memory from the PBB daze.

Hilux like your old one stick in my mind like glue

yeah that truck is one of the few i really regret selling but i am guessing by the time i get the fj40 done it will be more capable and better for taking the kids out and teaching them how to drive a stick....lol

 

[rugburn]

My girls grew up in a spring over FJ60

 

[Alaskan24]

Looking good Ryan, I might have a spare btr stage 1 torque cam that would go great in the 4.8. I also have a spare set of headers but shipping those to you wouldn't make any sense from AK.

 

[ryantowry_81]

Looking good Ryan, I might have a spare btr stage 1 torque cam that would go great in the 4.8. I also have a spare set of headers but shipping those to you wouldn't make any sense from AK.

Hey josiah! I see you found your way over here too!

I haven't started researching cams yet so i will have to go look that one up. LS parts seems like the last thing a ford guy would have....lol