LJ70 Build Thread!

[Beau]

Do you run any spacers on those wheels?

By the looks of it, you can probably get away with running 30mm spacers and you'll wheels will still be inside the arch. At the same time this will increase your offset and it may help your issue front and back with touching the body.

At the same time it will look cool!

 

[Scott]

That's a nice large meaty set of new boots you've got there Ben They have pretty deep tread on the side wall lugs as well. Hope it isn't too much work to get them to clear the bodywork on full articulation.

On a different point, both of your sets of wheels have quite a large offset on them, especially the set with the Marshal's on them. It's this large offset that is causing the outside edge of the rim to be so vulnerable to impact damage. The centre face of the rim is what gives the wheel it's strength (along with the material thickness), and with that being set so far back from the outside edge, the leverage on the rim is greater, leaving the outside edge with less support and more vulnerable to distortion when impacted.

I wonder if the stiffer carcus of the Fedimas will help to protect the wheels, and absorb the impacts?

Have fun with the new boots, they certainly look good value.

 

[Ben]

Fedimas are heavy because I'm told there formed on lorry carcasses

Good point is there strong
But
My mate was running them on his challenge landy and had issues with breaking updated CV's and shafts, we think it was due to the lack of sidewall flex. Problem went away went he fitted real simex's

But they look sweeeeeeeet

interesting Mike.

in the description they say

The unique combination of tread design, sidewall flexibility and rubber compound makes this tyre unbeatable in a wide variety of terrain including heavy mud.

so i wonder if they changed them since your friends problems.

will find out once there on and dropped down to 10psi, and given some abuse!

Do you run any spacers on those wheels?

By the looks of it, you can probably get away with running 30mm spacers and you'll wheels will still be inside the arch. At the same time this will increase your offset and it may help your issue front and back with touching the body.

At the same time it will look cool!

no spacers fitted yet.

these are my wheels:-

http://www.silverlinewheels-tyres.com/4x4/wheels/steel

theyve got -32mm off set.

i am thinking of getting some spacers for them, as it should make it a bit more stable with the tyres being so tall.

That's a nice large meaty set of new boots you've got there Ben They have pretty deep tread on the side wall lugs as well. Hope it isn't too much work to get them to clear the bodywork on full articulation.

On a different point, both of your sets of wheels have quite a large offset on them, especially the set with the Marshal's on them. It's this large offset that is causing the outside edge of the rim to be so vulnerable to impact damage. The centre face of the rim is what gives the wheel it's strength (along with the material thickness), and with that being set so far back from the outside edge, the leverage on the rim is greater, leaving the outside edge with less support and more vulnerable to distortion when impacted.

I wonder if the stiffer carcus of the Fedimas will help to protect the wheels, and absorb the impacts?


Have fun with the new boots, they certainly look good value.

thanks Scott.

shouldnt be too much work. going to take the sliders off and modify them slightly. also need to [strike:rdhs8pbp]angle grinder and hammer[/strike:rdhs8pbp] carefully adjust, the front inner wheel arches, and adjust the rear exhaust section slightly.

interesting idea about them protecting the rim more.

will have to wait and see!

is it nearly Lincomb time yet?

 

[Paul_Humphreys]

They are remoulded on 255/100/16 Michelin XZL cases. So ask anyone with Michelin XZL how much the side walls flex and take about 20% off as the side walls are even thicker. I did know someone who to run them at 4-5psi, but with bead locks fitted. They are a good tyre, but come out at about 37" tall when new. They seem to last a little longer than Simex or Silverstones, but tend to break more bits!!

Paul

 

[Ben]

interesting, thanks Paul.

maybe they will finish off my clicking CV's then.

looking forward to getting them fitted now!

waited a long time to get twin ARB lockers and 37"s on my 70, so looking forward to seeing how it goes off road!

 

[Ben]

my journey to and from work consists of a mile of tarmac back lanes, and a mile of un-surfaced bumpy farm tracks through fields.

theres quite a few poppys out around the edges of the field now and i thought it might make a nice pic.

shame the camera im using is so rubbish.

 

[Gav Peter]

Yah big wuss

Wrong thread dude - evocative picture of the day non ?

 

[Ben]

so.........................needed to get the huge tyres fitted.

this first issue that needed sorting was the exhaust, as there wasnt enough clearance in the rear wheel arch.

jacked it up.

and took the wheel off.

i needed to adjust these mounts to allow the exhaust to move back as much as possible.

after unbolting the 2 sections of exhaust, i managed to adjust the rear mount enough to allow me to move the exhaust back by about 50mm.

much better.

need to cut the end off now.

i ordered this at the beginning of last week, and hoped it would be here for the weekend, but it hasnt arrived yet.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/110904518443? ... 659wt_1357

but i wanted to get my tyres fitted this weekend, and wasnt going to let the fact a part hadnt arrived, get in the way of that.

i went and picked up some 2.5" clamps.

and worked out where best to cut the exhaust.

couple of minutes with a reciprocation saw later and the exhaust was cut!

ive never been very pleased with the exhaust. the place i took it to in Brmingham didnt do a very good job.

one day im going to take it beaudesert and get them to build me a complete new system, as im fairly confident they will do a good job!

http://www.beauexhausts.com.au/

so back to my exhaust......................................................

what i did next is the biggest bodge ive ever done on this truck.

but it is only temporary until the bit ive ordered arrives.

bush mechanics anyone?

did a bit of flex testing, and it clears the exhaust and everything else.

so with the back end now sorted, i could turn my attention to the clearance issues on the front.

so out with the prayer mat and 9" grinder.

strapped the slider in place, to prevent it falling on my head.

and cut it off.

id already cut one end on an angle, to give me more clearance.

but i hadnt done the other end.

marked it.

cut the end off, and then cut a piece of 4mm steel to cap the end back off.

welded it on.

and ground down the edges.

i then repositioned the slider in places, and used blocks of wood and plastic packers to get it just right. i moved it towards the back of the truck, by about 20mm.

and tack welded it back onto the brackets.

i then unbolted it and fully welded the brackets back on.

quick lick of paint.

and re-fitted it.

much better.

just the inner arch to adjust next.

which was easily sorted with a pair of tin snips and a hammer.

so one side done i was onto the next.

needed to cut both sides on this slider.

no sooner had i come out of the workshop after cutting and welding the ends of the slider, it started raining.

i thought this is great!!! we havnt had any rain for ages.

try everyday for the past 2 or 3 weeks! meant to be the middle of summer.

damm i hate the weather in this country!

ok rant over.

wasnt going to let something like torrential rain stop me doing what i wanted to do!

so out with the big tarp.

slider positioned.

as soon as id finished welding the sun came out.

other side done.

i can only just lift the spare into the back.

if i get a puncture off road, i wont physical be able to lift the punctured wheel back in if its got an extra few kg's of mud on it.

winch rope over the roof, through the sun roof, through the back doors, and attached to the dirty heavy wheel?

so some flex testing................................

at full articulation the front wheels will catch if on full lock.

the only way to clear these 37" tyres would be to either cut a huge amount off the wings, which i dont want to do. or lift the suspension more.

ive been meaning to change the [strike:edepblxk]cheap, crap, rusty, sagging[/strike:edepblxk] ironman suspension lift anyway. so i might stick a 4" lift on it.

but i dont want to lift it anymore until its registered and on the road in OZ.

more testing.

i thought i may have to adjust the rear bump stops to stop the tyre from hitting the inner arch. but it clears perfectly.

ive got just the lane to test the new tyres on.

ive never managed to drive up it without winching.

hopefully with the aggressive, huge new tyres dropped down to 10psi, and with both ARB lockers engaged, i might now stand a chance!

 

[ModelMakerMan]

That exhaust bodge reminds me of one similar we did to a mates car when we were at uni, pretty much the same thing but with a Lilt can! Lasted for 2 years and passed 2 MOTs like it!

 

[Scott]

Excellent work there Ben, especially considering the British summer we're having! The rock sliders adaption looks really neat The trucks a credit to you, and looks very good on the new rubber. I'm looking forward to seeing it in action at Lincomb.

 

[Ben]

thanks guys.

couldnt resist nipping out and having a few hours laning in the sunshine today.

didnt do anything too extreme as i was on my own, but still had a great time.

new signs on this lane, which is one my favourites.

and a nice new foot bridge.

this one has been chained down, so hopefully it wont get swept away like the last one.

some of the lanes were very tight.

another one of my favourites.

did 12 lanes in total, and everyone i met was polite and friendly. came across about 50 ramblers in total and they all smiled and waved, and some even opened and closed gates for me.

really pleased with the tyres.

 

[Victor]

Hi Ben!

Finally done reading your whole topic, *Phew* was a long one, and i am mighty impressed with the work you have put down in your toyota
And congratulations on your move to Oz, and your progress to do so, seeing photos from over there have made me wish i lived there a couple of times aswell, looks to be amazing scenery, and routes to go 4x4'ing on!

Anyway, i got myself one of these little bad boys couple of weeks ago, after i sold my mk1 pajero, and now i am looking for service manuals etc, and i did notice that you had some in PDF files, which i really would like to take part of, i already have one for the engine though, but anyone else you have for the Lj70 i'm interested in!

Best regards, Victor, Sweden

Email: eklund.victor(at)hotmail.com

 

[Ben]

Thanks Vitcor, and welcome to the club.

i bet that took ages to read the whole thing?

i think another 100 pages and my truck might be finished.

[strike:f9avywfq]have you got any pics of your truck?[/strike:f9avywfq] (EDIT, just seen your other thread. )

i will get all the manuals emailed across to you.

 

[mudlux]

in case its of interest...heres a pic of my lj70 exhaust. i re-routed it inside the chassis rails and out the side in front of the rear wheels.
at the moment the prop just catches so it needs moving across slightly..in reality this doesnt happen on the ground, only on the ramp

great write up by the way!
you mentioned plans to put discs on the rear...any ideas whats involved?
im hoping its not to hard as some lj70s have them standard?

 

[Ben]

thanks.

thats similar to how i had the exhaust made for mine, after the 3 litre engine conversion, apart from mine goes straight out of the back.

havnt really thought too much about the rear disc conversion yet.

its the LJ78 that had rear discs fitted, and possibly the KZJ70?

i actually bought a set of LJ78 axles from a scrapyard for a few hundred pounds, for a mate of mine, who was building a challenge truck.

he decided he didnt want them, so i sold them on. wish id kept them now.

i dont think it would have been too difficult to swap over the discs and callipers etc.

might keep my eye out for another set of axles.

 

[Ben]

finally after waiting over a month for the parts to arrive, ive got a removable steering wheel!


from this:-

to this, in about 3 seconds:-

its as easy to remove the steering wheel as it is to take the key out of the ignition.

so from now on if im not in the truck, neither will the steering wheel be!

ok it might not stop the determined thief, but should hopefully stop the opportunist.

i do prefer the look of the original steering wheel, but security is more important to me than looks.

still need to finish fitting the horn.

 

[Victor]

Ben, i noticed something i gotta change asap on mine, the bearing on the drive shaft going out from the transfer box to the front diff is shot, i can move it up and up about 3-4mm inside the transfer box, do you know if this can be changed from the outside or do i have to drop the transferbox+gearbox and tear it apart? :/

 

[Ben]

there was 4 toyota factory service manuals i hadnt got, and luckily these wernt the ones that had been discontinued!

they took a month to get here from Japan, but Simon sent them over to me this week.

so ive now got 9 genuine manuals that cover my truck, which should come in very useful.

Ben, i noticed something i gotta change asap on mine, the bearing on the drive shaft going out from the transfer box to the front diff is shot, i can move it up and up about 3-4mm inside the transfer box, do you know if this can be changed from the outside or do i have to drop the transferbox+gearbox and tear it apart? :/

I had a similar problem, but mine was the rear output bearing.

just had a look in one of the new manuals, and its not good news im afraid.

according to the manual the old bearing needs pressing out and the new one pressing in.

but in theory it could be done without stripping the box, if you made/bought a tool for pulling the old bearing out.

if you remove the front prop, youve then got:-

lock nut
washer
front companion flange
oil seal
snap ring
bearing

 

[Victor]

Well, we'll see i guess, picking up parts for it at a tyota dealer tomorrow.. Bearing, oil seal, oil seal for rear diff, oil filter and diesel filter.

 

[Maverick]

I'm struggling to believe that Ben hasn't done anything to his Toyota since 13th July ???