1982 FJ40 Restoration

[rover67]

where did the new tub get damaged?

The front lower parts of the rear fender wells are kinda caved, the front where the kick panels weld to it are bent in, and they drug it around on it's sides and took off the galvanized coating in spots. It'll need to be straightened and refinished prior to paint, not huge I know... and would have needed it anyways no matter what.

The most frustrating one for me is where they drug it around and damaged the coating on it. I was really stoked to have nice galvanized metal to work with, but now the coating is compromised in some of the most visible areas. I was just looking to treat the welded areas for rust prevention prior to paint, but now will just do the tub as a whole. I know I'll have to do body work to fit it all and make it smooth and good looking anyways, but the tubs that didn't come out of the crates look virgin with no surface rust compared to this one. Maybe the shippers can pay to have it re-galvanized or something. I know I'm being picky.

Also, I got some more parts from Paul (Fender, apron, kick panels) and those are dented and scratched from being thrown around after having been removed from the crate. They showed up tied together with bailing wire literally sitting on the floor of the 18-wheeler.

All in all, it is not a lot of damage, it's just frustrating to know it could have been perfect in the crate like the others. If I can get the shippers to toss some $$ my way It'd be nice but I don't have my hopes up. I know that a lot of the work I'd be doing on it would be done anyways, and I have time to work with the shippers to see what I can get since priorities have moved around a little and I won't be getting to this until the winter time.

Paul has been great through this so far and is the one that actually got me motivated to file a claim... alone i probably would have never done it and just moved on. He can't afford to have tubs coming un-crated halfway through shipping.

 

[wesintl]

that sucks. I know what you mean though. I got a 4 core rad from a toy dealer in calgary. They didn't repack it and it came in a sloppy box with a couple of dents in the tanks. After trying to deal with both fedex and the dealer I just gave up.

 

[rover67]

that sucks. I know what you mean though. I got a 4 core rad from a toy dealer in calgary. They didn't repack it and it came in a sloppy box with a couple of dents in the tanks. After trying to deal with both fedex and the dealer I just gave up.

yeah, that's exactly it... we'll see. Not too bummed about it since I have some down time anyways.

 

[Hulk]

Paul who? Just curious where you ordered this. Was it a group buy or something?

 

[rover67]

Paul Pilgrim from Costa Rica. No group buy, just bought one straight from him

http://toyotona.com/

 

[Hulk]

It's interesting that there suddenly seems to be so many options for new FJ40 sheet metal. For example (in addition to the one you purchased from):

Pacol Online (who was at Cruise Moab this year)

Heritage Sheet Metal, sold by Iron Pig Offroad

I wonder if all these vendors are getting the sheet metal from the same place?

 

[gr8fulabe]

Paul has been great through this so far and is the one that actually got me motivated to file a claim... alone i probably would have never done it and just moved on. He can't afford to have tubs coming un-crated halfway through shipping.

Hey Marco,
We met on the road once, my wife & I pulled up next to you in my 65 galaxie & she asked if your Great Dane was named Marco (my fault for not being more specific)...

So anyway, I work in Intl. Supply Chain Management & my wife is a licensed Customs Broker. So what forwarder/broker did you use? If it is one that we have connections with, we might be able to help with the claim. Also, how were the frieght bills signed off? Were they all signed off, "clean" or did someone note the damage to the crate at some point? Lastly, how do you know the crates were damaged in-transit, rather than detsroyed by U.S. Customs? Did Paul, or his forwarder in Costa Rica provide an ISPM cert when they shipped? Was the wood stamped with the official ISPM (Intl. Standards for Phyto-Sanitary Measures) brands? If not, Customs might have removed/destroyed the crates themselves, & you/Paul or the forwarder might end up getting a bill for that.
Anyway, if I can help with insight or connections, don't hesitate to ask.
Best,
Abe

 

[rover67]

finally got around to pulling the manifold off. Confirmed that the remflex gasket had basically split in half and started to leak a ton.

Got the manifold machined at Spitfire Automotive in Denver... the only place that I called that was willing to hit it with a belt sander. I called like 6 places including Gunn. I am really happy with how it turned out.

I think it's gonna do the trick.

Picked it up today.

 

[rover67]

Ha! sorry that threw me for a loop!!! That was a sweet ride BTW....

Yeah this shipper thing is turning into a weird deal... I may contact you to see what you think...

Hey Marco,
We met on the road once, my wife & I pulled up next to you in my 65 galaxie & she asked if your Great Dane was named Marco (my fault for not being more specific)...

So anyway, I work in Intl. Supply Chain Management & my wife is a licensed Customs Broker. So what forwarder/broker did you use? If it is one that we have connections with, we might be able to help with the claim. Also, how were the frieght bills signed off? Were they all signed off, "clean" or did someone note the damage to the crate at some point? Lastly, how do you know the crates were damaged in-transit, rather than detsroyed by U.S. Customs? Did Paul, or his forwarder in Costa Rica provide an ISPM cert when they shipped? Was the wood stamped with the official ISPM (Intl. Standards for Phyto-Sanitary Measures) brands? If not, Customs might have removed/destroyed the crates themselves, & you/Paul or the forwarder might end up getting a bill for that.
Anyway, if I can help with insight or connections, don't hesitate to ask.
Best,
Abe

 

[gr8fulabe]

Hey Marco,
The intake/exhaust manifolds look great! Do you think it is a flaw with the remflex gasket, or something to do with your manifolds? I thought the Remflex gaskets sounded really cool, but I ahve seen some others complain about this type of thing, so I am curious if they aren't all they are cracked up to be...
Let me know what I can do to help on your shipment/import. Even if I can't do anything else, I can at least help to give any insight or advise. Plus my wife Erica has deep connections in the industry, and knows more than I do, so that is a big help too!
Best,
Abe

 

[rover67]

The right front hub was leaking goo so I figured it was time to do the front end.

She was treated to a full birfield disassembly, repack, new marlin inner seals, new rest of the seals, some bearings, calipers rebuilt by yours truly, new rotors, new lug bolts, new pads, and some new brake lines.

Also threw on some hubs I had lying around. I totally dig the fact that this is all FJ60 stuff. I get to use my extras on it.

 

[Hulk]

That is super clean. When you're done, this thing should go in a museum.

 

[Mendocino]

Lookin' good Marco!

 

[Caribou Sandstorm]

I just re-read this thread, really nice work man!

Melinda walks up and looks over my shoulder as I am staring at your engine...

She laughs and walks away..she asked what I was doing and I said studying..one of these days...

 

[nakman]

beautiful!! hey are you using stock shock towers? Are you missing a bolt/rivet on the ds?

 

[subzali]

yep, you're missing a bolt for your inner fender support

Looks good Marco! A lot of us 40 owners wish we could swap FJ60/minitruck front axle components with the stuff we have!

Now when you gonna drive it again!?

 

[rover67]

Yeah, I am going to drive it again! Trying to get it where I can work on the 60 for a little while. Yeah, it is nice to have all the same brakes and axle components, i really like the compatibility. And yes, there are several bolts missing on the fender supports and the rest of the body.. I haven't gotten there yet I stuck with the stock shock towers because I went with an OME suspension after all. I am keeping it low and slow

 

[rover67]

Also forgot to mention that the manifold is back on. Worked really well so far with the stock gasket from Toyota and the machined surfaces. Idles really smooth and I am seeing about 17.5-18 inches of vacuum. The Idle mixture screw actually did something when we went to tune it this time

 

[Trapper50cal]

Nice Ride Marco! Impressive level of detail thusfar...

As Corbet mentioned, I did try Remflex twice on my 60 before shipping it off to it's new owner in North Carolina...

both times it failed. The material over the #3 - #4 flanges got pushed up and out. I think the problem is that they state VERY low ft.lb. torque specs...something like 20 ft./lbs and quite frankly an old nut or bolt can hang up well beyond 20 before it's even completely seated. The first install, I know I over-torqued them, the second time I didn't and both failed. It may just be that the specs they require allow the manifold to shimmy around a bit and tear the material, then allowing the manifold to "eject" it slowly upward. Not impressed.

What a shame that Paul's tub got dinged up during shipping...

 

[rover67]

Nice Ride Marco! Impressive level of detail thusfar...

As Corbet mentioned, I did try Remflex twice on my 60 before shipping it off to it's new owner in North Carolina...

both times it failed. The material over the #3 - #4 flanges got pushed up and out. I think the problem is that they state VERY low ft.lb. specs...something like 20 ft./lbs and quite frankly an old nut or bolt can hang up well beyond 20 before it's even completely seated. The first install, I know I over-torqued them, the second time I didn't and both failed. It may just be that the specs they require allow the manifold to shimmy around a bit and tear the material, then allowing the manifold to "eject" it slowly upward. Not impressed.

Yep, mine did the same thing.... pushed up and out in about the same spot. It did make a cool whistling noise through the messed up gasket though. Getting the manifold machined seemed to be the trick, but it was hard to find anybody that wanted to machine it. Most folks shied away from it since it was half Al, half cast iron. They were saying that the cast iron manifold tore up their mills. Anyways, the guys at Spitfire Automotive who were recommended by Gunn belted it down.

http://www.spitfireracingengines.com/

Now I'm glad I didn't try the remflex gasket again..