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first cruiser, fj45 full rebuild

corka

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Joined
Feb 9, 2015
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14
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australia
hey guys,
just picked up a fj. (need to identify the model). Had my eye on them for a few years and just came across one i couldn't turn down, needs a lot of work, fair bit of rust, seats are rooted, bit of panel beating to be done and the engines a bit tired. The bottom of the bell housing fell off on the drive back here, oops, so ahh i need one of those.

the plan - turn it into a factory finish monster, take it to the bush and scratch it.

just started stripping it. got the doors, roof, windshield, and rear upper frame (what ever you call it), getting ready for paint.
also i'm fairly sure shes a 45, i understand its defined by the wheelbase? I measured rough 2940-2950mm

will post pictures soon

*need bottom bell housing F1 engine
*rubber seals for doors and the rest of the body work
*wheelbase 2940-2950mm

any suggestions?
 
Hi there

congrats on getting a cruiser

long wheel base are 45 and short are 40. Petrol are FJ and diesel are either HJ or BJ,, hope that helps. To be honest ebay and gumtree are the best place for parts if you are in OZ,,you can find everything.

don`t forget to stick pictures up for us
 
20150205_113914.jpg
she looks good in the sun
20150214_194545.jpg
close up gives an idea to the damage
20150226_163528.jpg
started stripping the other day,
got the dash seats and petrol tank out yesterday, for a pressure clean.
tank back in today for a service :)

the seats are rooted. does anyone know of any easy bolt in seats that could come off another car?

also from looking at the specs on wikipedia it appears that the 2f engine is just a bored out f block with bigger pistons? is the rest of the engine the same? or do they have slight differences?
 
Hi there

you have a really nice FJ45 there, its Flat door, overhead wipers so its pre 1976. Its worth looking after it,,,don`t put anything but the correct seats back in it, its well worth keeping here as original as possible.

Giles
 
1974

thanks mate

the pictures do her just a bit too much justice. shes been through hell, a fair bit of panel beating to be done and maybe a couple replaced not sure yet.

im torn between turning her into a bush monster or full original...paints coming up in the next couple of weeks hopefully so i'll have to make up my mind soon.
 
Looks good. :thumbup:

I'd keep it original, they are getting rarer now, especially the older ones and you can still go bush and have some fun in it. :think:
 
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nice cruiser mate
try to keep it original as ya can another place for parts is wreckers especialy ones in the bush ive found parts for my bj just driving around an see one in a back yard or in a paddock just call in see if they will sell parts most will some even say you can have it if you tow it away.
good luck and let me know if you have major trouble with parts i will have a look around
av a good one
ikemci
 
Hi that is one good looking 45 love all the 40 have fun with it from Tony
 
hey guys, thanks for the love
still learning and figuring out the 40 series.
just bought myself a set of panel hammers and a gas torch so ahh we're about to find out if i can panel beat...gotta start somewhere.
few quick questions.
i havent looked but whats the general redline for the f engine? the fan looks pretty alright but im still a bit worried about it and dont wanna give it too much.
also there is a sticker on the rocker that says 'f155' can anyone lend any advise as to the meaning of it? if any20150305_194930.jpg
 
got the tray off this weekend. starting to clean everything up for paint.
just noticed the front spring mounts are riveted and the rears are just flat bar brackets....so i'm assuming the usual way to lift em is to put in longer brackets on the rear and leave the front mounts as is?
20150314_110440.jpg
front mount rear leaf
20150315_154443.jpg
rear mount rear leaf
20150315_154433.jpg
20150315_154431.jpg
let us know if you can help a brother out
 
yes mate you can lift with just new shackles if you just want a couple of inches up from stock.
 
cheers mate! any idea how far i can go? an engineer from work was saying if i go to far the leafs can lock up and i should get them shaped
 
yes mate you can lift with just new shackles if you just want a couple of inches up from stock.

I'm posting off the top of my head because I don't know the 45's but in the old days of lifting with longer shackles, I'd recommend going up in the thickness of steel. I had a few crack or bend on me by using the original thickness on longer shackles, and it's not worth the hassle of doing them twice.

Remember, it will make the spring mounting more succeptible to "wag" or sideways movement which you will either learn to live with or do something about.

What about spring over axle, too extreme?
 
cheers mate! any idea how far i can go? an engineer from work was saying if i go to far the leafs can lock up and i should get them shaped


With extended shackles you have to bare in mind that for instance if you want a 2" lift. You would have to extend the shackles by 4". The length of the shackle extension is twice the length of the lift. So you cant go crazy high for safety reasons. . As Mr Horridge has stated above..:thumbup:
 
With extended shackles you have to bare in mind that for instance if you want a 2" lift. You would have to extend the shackles by 4". The length of the shackle extension is twice the length of the lift. So you cant go crazy high for safety reasons. . As Mr Horridge has stated above..:thumbup:

There are other downsides to extending the shackles, too long and they may allow the spring's rear bush mount to contact the chassis, and another is the longer the shackle, the less the spring is retained in its curve on maximum loading. I think this is what your man was referring to.

On extreme flex axle loading, the spring may go flat and even attempt to arch the wrong way. This can be countered with thicker lower leaves or a longer/thicker bottom leaf, there are some other alternatives such as you see on trucks used for towing or heavy loadings, a sort of booster leaf with extensions to put earlier pressure on the upper leaves.

I've also seen shim spacers inserted at the ends of the lower leaves to keep the upper leaves in curvature.

Actually, it starts to get into more complex spring design technology, which I would try to avoid, unless you're getting good professional advice.
 
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thanks for the info guys...might wait till i get it on road so i can get it under a forklift and get a visual on how it handles
 
Your FJ

thanks for the info guys...might wait till i get it on road so i can get it under a forklift and get a visual on how it handles

Id suggest grabbing yourself a cheap set of lift leave or blocks rather than the extended shackles, worth spending the extra on.
 
very nice mate, are you going to keep the original colour? if so let me know the paint code? cheers
 
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