FJ40 Nut

The NOT-SO-FINAL Update

So, it's been a couple of years and it's great to see that a few of you have continued to find my blog and learn about this restoration. I thought I'd send you some updates as time goes by...

WHEELS AND TIRES

In the late summer of 2017 I hooked up with Nick and his guys at GARDNER TIRE CENTER in Dighton, Massachusetts (Gardnertire.com) for some badly needed rubber. Seeing that I don't really four-wheel anymore (and frankly have few options for doing so here in the Northeast), picking a tire took some careful forethought. After considering the vast majority of on-road driving I do, we selected BF Goodrich All-Terrain T/A KO2 in the 33x10.5-15 LT size. They fit nicely on my freshly powder-coated stock rims and give me the look I wanted, while giving an absolute fantastic ride. Not too aggressive, but fully off-road capable.

From the beginning of the restoration, I intended to model my truck after the COOL CRUISERS OF TEXAS example shown in their advertising and on these two posters I received as gifts. They've been hanging from the back of my toolbox as inspiration the entire time. The BFG Mud-Terrain tires in the 33x9.5-15 size (affectionately called "pizza cutters") were deemed a hazard and were recalled by BFG long before I was ready to buy. Probably a good thing that I procrastinated!

THE NEXT STEPS?

I'm giving some thought to going up onto the summit of Mount Washington this summer, though the long drive has me thinking... Check back later!

Raisons d'être

First I'd like to thank everyone for reading this sometimes rambling nonsense. I've kept you waiting for the final installment long enough, tonight I complete the installation of the hardtop (roof).

If there is one take-away from writing this blog, it is how the internet has brought me into the lives of so many individuals of foreign influence. I use the word "influence" because it is impossible for me to know if the page views from Indonesia or from Venezuela are actually natives of those nations or perhaps ex-pats from the ol' US of A. I've traveled enough to know that there are plenty of Americans sprinkled around the world. What I can say is that the stats show more foreign readers than USA readers, so... gracias, grazie, danke, and je vous remercie!. Oh, how I would love to know who you are! Contact me with your comments, and make my day!

Well, if I make the assumption that there are a few of you who check back frequently to see what I have on my mind, I have certainly let you down. My sincere apology. Over the past year, I have moved on to other pressing matters and heck,

I've been out driving!

Let me simply say that it tickles me (in ways I cannot describe) that there could possibly be this many people interested (if only briefly) in what I've accomplished. I am very proud of the results.

Thanks! And now...

The Hardtop!

So, if you've been a loyal follower, you know that in my last installment I revealed that "MyYota" reached the milestone called "completion" but STOP THE PRESS!!!!!!!

It is true that this formidable vehicle became a "driver" (cum-trailer-queen). If you page back a few

posts you will see that I did, in fact, complete the truck as a real road-worthy specimen (after a few life-or-death test drives). Well, I survived and so did "MyYota" (a name chosen by my favorite supporter, Kimberly).

Well, no Land Cruiser FJ or BJ vehicle is complete without that crazy looking bubble-of-a-compartment... known as the hardtop. Once installed, long gone are the greetings at the gas pump, "Nice Jeep!". The hardtop, (or "roof"), makes this truck unmistakably a Land Cruiser!

Begin: If there is any doubt in your mind, affixing this particular appendage to said vehicle is anything but trivial, think again. That is, if you start from scratch. Yes, I (and many others) have backed up to our storage location. picked up our complete hardtop and deposited it onto our waiting "tub". I did this numerous times with my '71 and again for my '74 and never once considered the collection of parts I was depositing. There are more parts in an FJ/BJ40 hardtop than there are pages in the most recent edition of the Websters Dictionary (if you include the hardware). So, while you all thought installing the top was just the last trivial task of a rather complicated restoration, I beg your attention.

There are four doors ('75 and later), all with a copious collection of strikers, gaskets, hinges and locks, along with windows, wipers, regulators and seals. Good Lord, that alone would discourage the bulk of you from starting a restoration! Then the hardtop itself is made up of a fiberglass top, (with a 20 foot-long serpentine gasket to align during assembly!), two side panels (each with one fixed window and one hinged window, each with a gasket). Add to that seven attachment rails and a collection of seals, gaskets and brackets and you have an FJ40 hardtop! Consider that each of these parts has either been meticulously restored to like-new or replaced (at great expense) and you have the capsule that allows for cruising after Columbus Day!.

Installing the headliner

I actually covered this at an earlier time, but it's worth the re-do. The headliner is a reproduction available at any number of restoration houses. I bought mine at SOR.com. With a few minor alterations and some patience, especially using the time-sensitive 3M headliner glue, I got pretty good results. (I noticed last week that there are some visible air pockets in areas, so maybe not so good after all.)

The perfect paint is not an illusion. Before installing the headliner, I sanded the frame to bare metal, sprayed a metal primer and then coated it with several coats of the stock off-white paint known as
"Cygnus White", which is also used for the other white parts such as the grill bezel and spoke'r wheels.

Front Doors

Each of the doors has the expected windows, regulators, wipers, seals, locks, and hinges one might expect. Too complicated to cover in any detail here. Some pics:

The Top

The Land Cruiser is unique because of its crazy hardtop. Honestly, it comprises several city blocks in whatever city you happen to be traveling at the time. I've offered it to my two daughters as an alternative to some crappy Holiday Inn (not all Holiday Inns are crappy) for a wedding reception. It'll hold a hundred, I'd bet.

So, if you spot a vehicle lumbering down the road and you aren't sure if you're seeing a rare Japanese vehicle or a taping of a lost episode of "Lost In Space", I assure you it's probably a taping of the lost episode! Toyota Land Cruiser vehicles are pretty rare. If you are too young to recall the classic 60's show, "Lost In Space", I feel your pain.

Okay, now some tidbits about my installation of the top... If something can compete with the challenges of child-rearing, this was it. For ten years, that flimsy fiberglass top was stored as safely as possible, but it was impossible to avoid storing it resting on its side, propped up against other junk in my "ambiently uncontrolled" tool shed. I assume the years of rest skewed it out of alignment because it became the bane of my existence during the assembly. After all the major components have become sub-assemblies, you begin by setting the gaskets on the back end of the "tub".

The side panels are installed first:

And then, the rails that tie everything together are installed with various gaskets and sealant:

And that is when the top is installed, with a gasket that runs the entire perimeter of the side panels and rails from the windshield on the left side to the windshield on the right side. This was a trick, given the top slightly askew. With the rear bolts snugged (where they aligned), I used a ratchet strap (attached to the post of my basketball hoop) to coax the top into position. There was quite a bit of coaxing, but eventually all the bolt holes lined up and everything was tightened. Some RTV was used to seal up the various gaps and OEM gaskets were glued into their respective positions to ensure an airtight seal with the door gaskets. The rear doors were then installed using custom made hinge gaskets:

Finally, the front door hinges were installed using oilite bronze bushings (complements of my late buddy Russ Boynton) and then the doors were hung using cooler-than-stock stainless pan-head bolts (spares from the windshield). With the regulators attached and adjusted and the final adjustments to fit done for that just-right thud upon closing, the top was complete! I challenge the factory to get it better!

Finally, I proudly present... MyYota!

(sans the tires and wheels that are on my Xmas list)

I sincerely thank all of you loyal followers for keeping me psyched to type this nonsense! More than anything, the knowledge that others are taking an interest in my restoration work has kept me motivated. Thanks everyone! Happy Cruising!

Don't give up on me, yet... Stay tuned. An epic journey is in the works.