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Truck ADD strikes again...

CreeperSleeper

I bRoKe It
Joined
Jun 30, 2020
Member Number
2210
Messages
76
Loc
Canby, OR
As some of you know, I got the opportunity to buy my old FJ40 back from my buddy 7 or 8 months ago. (Link to thread on FJ40) The idea was I would either keep it and finish the build I originally wanted to do, or flip it and keep my '85 Xtra-Cab truck. (Link to thread on '85 Truck) I was able to take them both out wheeling in February and decided that I liked my little pickup too much to sell it. I ended up putting the FJ40 back up for sale right when COVID hit... Needless to say, I didn't have much action selling it! I ended up pulling it off the market and decided to wait until summer to list it again.

The day I posted the 40 up for sale again, I was contacted by a guy on FB asking if I would be interested in a trade. I told him honestly that I really needed to get rid of vehicles, but I would entertain the offer. He sent me these pics:

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Let's see.... Favorite generation, extended cab, bobbed bed, 3.4l V6, SAS, dual cases... Dammit! Now I'm interested...

We messaged back and forth talking about the trucks. He bought this rig built for his wife to follow him around in his buggy, but she just rode with him anyway. It has 300M RCVs, 4.88 gears and Detroit locker in the front end. 4.88s and spooled rear. The rear case has a 4.7 gear set. Everything works well and runs good. He said that it was built around 35's and when he put 37's on it, there are some clearance issues he hasn't fixed yet. He took it wheeling and bent up the passenger fender...

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Darn! Oh well, I'm just going to beat it up anyway... I called another buddy of mine who has been bugging me to sell him my '85 and asked if he was still interested. He was more than interested, he was enthusiastic. I guess that takes care of me needing to get rid of something...

I loaded all of my spare parts into the 40, borrowed a trailer, and got everything loaded up.

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My wife and son joined me in the 166 mile drive to meet this guy half way between us. We met, looked over the rigs, and struck a deal!

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My buddy is coming over tonight for us to finalize the details in him buying the '85, so it looks like this will be my new toy!

My first order of business is to move the front axle forward about an inch, pull a leaf or two, and cut for clearance. After that, we will see where it goes...
 
I'm not sure if they are drilled or not. Either way, it won't be difficult to drill another hole in the perches. I will have to do some measuring and see how far I can go forward before the steering rods start touching...
 
There is a point where you start having some negative effects. Toyota lift (tg/allpoo) springs are already pretty offset as it is.

Best thing would be to move the shackles to the correct end of the leaf, then you won't have to shove the axle so far forward to make bigger than 35s fit.

You ever going to come get this 4runner tail gate? Would look good on this thing :flipoff2:
 
I'm pretty sure the front leafs are RUF, but I'm not sure. I need to get a measuring tape on them to see.

Negative effects as in with the geometry? I've ran offset leafs on a lot of rigs and never seemed to have an issue no matter which end the shackle was on... However, I do tend to agree with you about which end is correct. I prefer the shackle in the front of a wheeler. But if I was to go that far, I would just link the front and be done with it. LOL!

You still have that damn tailgate?!? Dude, that was like 8 or 9 rigs ago!
 
I'm pretty sure the front leafs are RUF, but I'm not sure. I need to get a measuring tape on them to see.

Negative effects as in with the geometry? I've ran offset leafs on a lot of rigs and never seemed to have an issue no matter which end the shackle was on... However, I do tend to agree with you about which end is correct. I prefer the shackle in the front of a wheeler. But if I was to go that far, I would just link the front and be done with it. LOL!

You still have that damn tailgate?!? Dude, that was like 8 or 9 rigs ago!

Offset leafs are fine. But having a 20/27" offset leaf, then drilling the perch 2" more forward, things can get goofy.

Tailgate is long gone, grudge is alive and well :flipoff2:
 
So I finally got to spend a few hours working on the truck. I am a year into owning my own business, so I have been working very long hours. And apparently my wife thinks that any time I'm not working needs to be devoted to her needs, not getting a truck ready to wheel....

Anyway, I was able to make a semi-solid plan for all the crap that I carry with me. I still need to install the tie down points, but at least I have a direction. I will get pics when there is something more to show on that front.

Also, I bought this truck with a broken winch. The wireless controller box shorted out and the winch ate itself. (Yet another reason I don't like wireless controllers, but that is a long rant...) The hook got pulled through the roller fairlead, hooked to the bumper, and the case of the winch broke. I pulled it out whole, but there is nothing holding the winch together:
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It did bend the bumper a bit, so I got that straightened out enough to work. Luckily the damage is behind the fairlead, so it isn't really noticeable. Then I installed a new Smittybilt 9500. I have had such great luck with these winches that I am confident it won't cause me any issues.

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So I am a little late posting this up, but I was able to sneak out to the garage on Saturday to start figuring out where everything was going to go and be mounted to the truck.

Mounted the pulaski with Quik-Fists in a spot that nobody will cut themselves:
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And my shovel (also with Quik-Fists) to shield the blades of the pulaski even more:
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I have ordered mounting brackets for my Hi-Lift to go here. This gives me enough room for my camping box. I can actually stack two of them here while still having enough room to open the cooler.
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I ordered a front loading jerry can holder for my NATO can. This gives me just enough room to hold my camping box against the tailgate. That way I only need to throw a strap over the top to hold the box in place.
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Trying to mount the cooler was proving to be a little more challenging. I could use a ratchet strap on the end towards the front, but it would be rubbing on the toolbox and would be super hard to get to. I also wanted to leave the space under my toolbox for firewood or my chainsaw. Quik Fists were the solution to this as well! I just mounted one to the toolbox to hold that handle.
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As for securing the other end of the cooler, I needed to find a way to also wedge my water jug against the bedside. This would make it to where I didn't need to strap down the jug. I ended up using a quick disconnect tie down point, which worked out perfect.
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The water jug cannot be lifted up because of the bed rail and the end of the cooler, but I can just disconnect the tie down point instead of needing to loosen the strap. I ended up putting another one of those tie downs in a spot that I can strap down my camping box(es) AND secure my PETT toilet and supplies.
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With that, everything will be secured while wheeling, but still super easy to access. The toolbox will hold my tools, recovery gear, backup air compressor, parts, and fluids. I decided the CO2 tank will live in the cab, but I will post more on that later. Overall, I'm super happy with how it all turned out and it will be modular for whatever I am doing at the time (day trip, camping, etc.).
 
I got a couple more things done this weekend. I found a stupid cheap Hi-Lift mount that is designed for the hood of a Jeep. I just mounted them to the bed and it worked well.
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I also got my front loading jerry can mount. I'm happy I spent the money on this one! Super solid and fits perfectly.
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I started to look at how I wanted to mount the CO2 tank and got discouraged. My original plan was to build a mount from where the stock seat bottom attached to the back of the cab, but it will end up being super flimsy. So now I need to decide how to mount it securely in the cab or sell the CO2 setup and run an onboard air compressor. I really, really like how fast my CO2 is, so I'm not super stoked on getting rid of it.... We will see how that ends up.
 
You guys will never believe it, but I actually got out in the garage to work on my truck!

But first I should bring you up to date: When I bought the truck, the nut that holds the rear output flange on the t-case backed off and was causing all sorts of vibrations. I didn't happen to have a new nut, so I just tightened it down so I could go wheeling. (Yes, I know that is not a reusable nut...) I also noticed at that time my u-joints were in need of replacing. Oh well, I have a spare and I was wheeling close to home.

The trip was great and the truck did really well, but there was a few things that definitely needed to be addressed. First of all, the output nut backed off again (big surprise there) so I needed to get a new nut. I also knew that I needed to replace the u-joints. It became even more apparent how badly I needed to move the front end forward and put bump stops on the truck. Due to that lack of bump stops, I now need new shocks. (Ooops.)

That was the last weekend of September. I drove the truck home and pulled it in the garage. It hasn't been touched since yesterday.
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The first thing I did was empty out my cooler from the trip. 🤮
yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7
Then I bolted on a new triple drilled output flange with a new output bolt. Then I replaced the u-joints in the rear driveshaft with new Matsuba joints. Then I took it for a drive for the first time since September... Good news is the vibration is gone! The bad news is the grinding noise that is gearbox RPM dependent is still there. I was really hoping it was the u-joints. And it sounds like my throw out bearing is making noise when I disengage the clutch... Woot.
 
Choppy choppy!

Before:

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After:

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Before:

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After:

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Now I just need to do the driver's side... Then build a rear bumper... Then bumpstops... Then, well you get the idea.
 
I had a very productive Saturday! With the help of my buddies Mike and Jeremy, I was able to get my rear bumper built! Now I just need to add the reverse lights and weld it on the truck. I didn't get many pics of the build since we were going as fast as possible, but this is what I got:

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Some old stickers on that fridge. timbercrawlers used to be a fun shit show till it just turned into porn. Haha.

Bumpers looks sweet too!

That fridge has been in my garage for 15 years. LOL! I keep telling my wife that when that fridge dies, I will need to hang the doors on the wall...

I miss Timbercrawler, but I stayed out of the NSFW threads. I met a lot of good people, some of which are still close friends.
 
That fridge has been in my garage for 15 years. LOL! I keep telling my wife that when that fridge dies, I will need to hang the doors on the wall...

I miss Timbercrawler, but I stayed out of the NSFW threads. I met a lot of good people, some of which are still close friends.

I was thinking that I'm pretty sure you've had that fridge since before we met. TC was nuts, but also a great place. This forum has a similar feel though (minus the T&A).
 
I was able to get the bumper on last weekend. I think it should hold. LOL!

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I'm sure I will get to try it out next weekend, then the truck will be down for a while again...
 
Wow, it has been a while since I have updated this thread! Sorry about that guys... I guess it is time for a catch up post!

As I mentioned earlier, my clutch was in bad shape. It disengaged right off the floor and the throw out bearing was making all sorts of not happy noises. Knowing that I was going to replace that, I figured it would be a good time to put 4.7 low range gears in the rear case. After pricing out the cost of the parts and my time to get them in, I had the bright idea to just order new cases and sell the cases out of my truck. I found a great deal on some "in stock" TG cases and pulled the trigger on them. Unfortunately, "in stock" ended up being a bit of an exaggeration...

Two months (!) into waiting for my "in stock" cases, I scored a deal on some used Walker Evan beadlocks. I have wanted a set ever since I first saw them years ago, but they were always out of my budget. I was able to snag a set of five with good tires that I plan on selling.
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I think they are going to look amazing!

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Now remember, I decided to buy cases instead of replace the gears in my current cases because of time... Let this be a public service announcement to anyone with beadlocks: USE ANTI-SEEZE ON THE BEADLOCK BOLTS!!!!!! This is now what I am dealing with:

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So I get two out of the five rings off and decide that I still don't have time for this... I'm going to drop them off at a local 4x4 shop (Bones Custom Creations in Oregon City) and let them deal with it. Now my super good deal isn't such a great deal, but I get the beadlocks I have always wanted. shrug

Fast forward another few weeks and I get a call that my cases are in. Just in case you haven't done the math, I waited almost THREE FLIPPIN MONTHS to get my "in stock" cases from TG. But, I got them!

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And last weekend the real work began. I couldn't find anyone to help me, so I was flying solo. The first hurdle came when I went to remove the shifters off of the cases.

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How in the heck did they get that on! I'm planning on building a new trans tunnel cover and center console, so I started hacking away.

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I have never seen a triple stick setup like this. The closest I can figure is maybe this is an old Dr Smash set-up. If anyone knows, please tell me!

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And with some swearing, balancing, and redneck ingenuity I got the cases out. These will get cleaned up and put up for sale (shameless plug).

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And now onto the trans, which is where the second hang-up showed it's ugly head. After a lot more swearing and an hour of fighting, I finally pulled the backwoods, cobbled mess of an exhaust out with a Sawz-All. I honestly have no idea what the person was thinking when they "built" this pile of poo. Add yet another thing for me to fix...

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And then comes hang-up number three. The trans jack that I borrowed was 2" short of reaching the trans. Remember, I am by myself here! I use two 4x4 blocks to make up the difference and ratchet strap the trans to the jack. Lowered it down enough to get the upper bell housing bolts using every socket extension that I own and started praying... By God's grace I ended up not hurting myself or the trans!

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And that puts me back to... You guessed it, waiting for parts. Hopefully I will have a new clutch, flywheel, and hardware tomorrow so I can do all of this fun stuff again in reverse. Maybe this time I can convince someone to help! LOL!

So all that needs to be done before the first weekend of June is replace clutch, install trans, install new cases, build an exhaust, build a trans tunnel / center console, weld in front bump stops, wire in my accessories fuse block / switches, mount and wire all the lights, flex out the rear to measure for rear shocks and bump stops, order said shocks and hope they come in.... This should be fun...
 
My flywheel bolts didn't come in before the weekend (which is seeming to be par for the course), so I started working on the trans tunnel. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, except for the welds. I forgot how much is sucks to weld sheet metal with .030 wire!

Started out with CAD (cardboard assisted design):
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Then I used super thin angle and cut it to match the profile:
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Took my time and mirrored it for the other side:
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Got her square and welded it up:
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With some cutting and hammering, I got it to fit pretty well:
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Then I booger welded it in... Only one pic of this because I was blowing holes through it like crazy. LOL!
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I then coated the underside with rubberized undercoating. I think that should keep the noise down a bit. I still need to make the cover with the shift boots, but that will get finished once the drivetrain is back in. Luckily my ugly welds should be covered with the carpet... I also need to add the center console box and cup holders, but that is not a priority to get her back on the road.

Oh! I also had time to add my fair warning magnet. LOL!
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Got the clutch and transmission back in place. That pilot bearing was DONE!

Now I need to modify the crossmember a bit and get the new cases up in there... Getting closer!
 
I was able to get a little bit more done on the truck this weekend. Progress is still going slower than I had hoped, but at least I'm making progress. Bonus, my 12yo daughter even came out and helped!

Cleaned up the trans to t-case adaptor and got it installed on the cases.
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Then I set myself to modifying the cross member. Originally there wasn't a spot to access the crawl box's drain plug. Mainly because it was right above the 1" square tubing that was the backbone. With some careful measuring, I figured I could save one side of the tubing and out came the hole saw.

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Then I cut a piece of tubing that would fit and give all of the structure back.

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I welded it all up...

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And gave the whole thing a fresh coat of industrial gray paint.

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It's been pretty warm, so everything should be dry now. I will bolt up the cases to the crossmember and get it all back in the truck this week.
 
Wow, I've been so busy! Looks like I should update this thread...

I got the cases in and everything buttoned up with those. I even got the tunnel finished.
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However, there was a huge issue getting my wheels done. I was hoping to use the truck at an event I was volunteering for the first week of June, but she was on jack stands... So I moved on to other projects to knock off my list. I installed my ham radio:
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And finished up my aux switches and wiring the lights. My air compressor is on backorder, so that didn't get installed. Air lockers will be happening in the future, but I got the switches all set up for them. But my bumper lights, rock lights, and back-up lights are functional.
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And I finally got my wheels and tires back last Thursday. I must say, these ended up being a poop show... That being said, the shop that was doing them (Bones Custom Creations in Oregon City) really bent over backwards to get them to me as quickly as they could. They are stand up guys and I really appreciate all of the hard work they put in... And they look amazing!
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