FJ4overland

[Cyouincourt007]

Sometimes, you just need to relax while waiting for parts... here's Buick to show you how its done
​

Lol awesome! was just about to ask you to post more pics of your 4 legged supervisors hehehe :thumbs:

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

he doesn't come in the shop, it's too noisy... but here he is

what's funny is if I started the Corvette, he would come unglued.

carrying on with the last picture, I built a stainless plate in the shape of the stock mount. I'll put o-rings between the column and the tube to seal it, and seal the mount to the firewall


I should grind it to make it pretty, but honestly I simply don't care.


time to start test fitting some electronics. I think I'm going with the Dakota digital dash (especially since I am using an electronic speed sender)... so I don't know how involved I'll get with radio gear. I'll obviously have a CB, a HAM radio, a radio and some kind of navigation (which informs why I needed more room behind the dash).

 

[Cyouincourt007]

:horns:

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

I finally got my roll cage from Metal Tech, I must of misunderstood - when he said Friday, he meant "a" Friday... ah well, alls well when I get the parts - and honestly they were worth waiting for.



bonus post - if you run a LS motor and the 'book' calls for a PF48 filter, this is the interchange that GM recommends now (on the left).


first I thought "okay, I'll cut it out... then I thought "dumbass" why not simply slice the pillar and weld it to the plate? one missing bit was there are not backing plates for this, so I need to solve that before this actually hits the road




so one thing I don't like but I don't think I can change is I wish the bars bent out at the door post.. still, I don't think there's enough material there to actually get my dies on it to push it so I'll leave it...


I will add door bars and a lower-dash bar. I may even run braces to the coil-over mounts from the roll bar... anyway, this weekend will be a fun-filled time sitting in classes to learn how to save people who get in over their heads in the outdoors - so this has to be put back on the back burner for a couple days.

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

Starting to order coatings.... I got Durabak for the under body and KBS paint for the frame, links, etc.... still not 100% sure what I'm going to do on the inside (whether just paint it body color before I put sound deadener on, or I go with something more durable (I'm thinking I'm going to carpet the interior with removeable sections)....

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

roll cage day
floor plates

fortunately, these are right over the top of the body mount so I really don't have to do anything underneath

trial fit


brother did I agonize over where to put this


with the door on, there's an issue.... and I don't think it's actually solveable in a way that I like. I like wing-windows, but it doesn't open with the cage

I could open the door, then the wing window then close the door... I suppose, but even that isn't optimal...


at least there's plenty of clearance for the window crank (which doesn't work so I'll replace it with electric, full width windows


then I thought seriously about this


had I bought a straight cage, I might have done it.... but not here, the bulge doesn't work


so notch

too much gap

and grind


and tack


and center bars


​I may dink more later, but for now... hasta

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

Some decisions have been made

I went with grey suspension seats. Awhile ago, I asked Omix Aida and Smittybilt to donate to Search and Rescue, they did - quite generously - so whenever I get the chance to return the favor, I do... Thus, the seats are Smittybilt - but they only come in grey or black. I'm not doing another black interior on a convertible, so grey it is - but that leaves an issue as it doesn't really match the exterior colors... so I don't know, I may get seat covers or simply have the covers remade in tan or brown. Or I might simply paint the outside some form of grey and call it a day.

I also finally got the Novak 32 spline output for the dana 300. I hesitated on that because, while it shortens the output 2", it also requires an electronic speedometer. Whether I buy it now or when I need it (like next fall), I've got the solution for that as the Dakota Digital dash (it's not LCD, it's analog gauges). I figured that by the time I got the right gauges for the EFI, that I'd be at the DD gauge pod - and they look petty neat too - so why not.

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

onward
body off




a small hole

a few marks


a slightly bigger hole


time to fill in the hole




​

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

didn't have much time tonight, but I got a bit further




hmmm


that's better


tomorrow's marching drill is there

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

new part, 32 spline output from Novak - I had to decide, either easy emergency brake or 2" more room for a rear driveshaft...


that said, I have an idea now how it's going to go together with an e-brake

looks like I went backwards, huh? I like to post the middle steps, and the middle step was even up the top of the tunnel then build a new, upper panel (this time out of 16 ga since it's permanent)


and there we go, tacked in place


and yeah, I know you all think I'm nuts to do all this work for 2" more of foot space and a bit more room behind the dash, oh well.

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

so I got a bit of welding done... a ways to go, but since I needed to get the Corvette back in the shop, I put the rig back together to double check fit... it fits (yay)






it will look, hopefully, like Toyota then bought the rights to produce the SBC and installed it in the FJ

 

[4speedfunk]

So can you pull the distributor up out of the motor with the body on?

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

oh yeah, with plenty of room to spare.

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

so I didn't get a lot done today on this, I helped the guy who bought the s-eff ten replace ball joints and burned a tree that fell during the winter... but still, a bit

welded


ground


I saw a Jeep on Friday that was pretty close to the color I was thinking I'm going to paint this.... hmmm, I'm thinking no, maybe a bit more red... you know, like my dog


a friend pointed out that it would, effectively camouflage Buick in the FJ40 - I'm not thinking that's a bad thing

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

not much progress, but I need to ponder how I'm going to support the body while I flip it up on its side

hmmm... Hummer lights


so mostly I've been welding up holes for the moments when I can work on it.... but tonight, I need to make a bench to roll it outside so I can clean the underside then paint it.. but I've not come up with a clever solution - but I did get my frame bench pieces out


​

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

got my seats



need to get some DOM tubing to make the rest of the cage and the seat mounts... but today was spent in other activities so not much really happened with this

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

there were some who were worried that I couldn't remove the other distributor.... plenty of room, and now I think I have all the pieces I need to make it EFI


power windows


next up - weld the differential and deliver to get the pinion and carrier installed.... then order shafts
​

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

front axle
a bunch of welding left to do


pile of parts on the table


a few welds


and a lick of paint
​

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

well, starting to paint various bits, but it's not going as smoothly as I imagined it would
for some reason this jammed into the adapter...


and I removed it, it welded to the inside....


tig'd and painted the steering bars


​

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

not much done tonight
pulled the rear axle out and stripped the running gear from the frame

one thing I need to fix is this - these are too short, no, it'd probably never be a problem but it's so easy to fix now...

'

took the front axle to have the gears installed... ever onward

In things to come... rear shocks - King 14" (so tempted to do 16" since at least 1 1/2" is safety margin)
and this

A Dakota digital dash. The reason behind this is several fold - but the biggest one is by shortening the output on the transfer case, I'm committed to an electronic speed sensor...

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

for those who think I'm perfect, let me dispel that notion right now



same number, right? yeah, wrong side of the post..... yet that wasn't the worst of it
notice how I have the center just to the left of the yoke? it's 3/4" off... oops


so my day was redoing this

you can see where it was, now where it is... and yes, I'm boxing this and triangulating it a bit more



and finally to what I started out doing - which was finish welding


and a bit of a start on another table


​

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

I know this doesn't seem LC related, but it is... I need a way to move the body - and I also need a fabrication bench that has a lower height then the 36 or so inch height on my current table


these came from my brake - I don't do stamping, and I needed to be able to swap dies so I took these off and bought a bed for my brake... of course, throwing away 400 lbs of flat, steel plate simply isn't in my genetic makeup.
so here's the basic shape...

​

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

back to a bit of work.... a reminder




at least they were cheap


so... there will be some rebending...


ah well, eventually they'll also be blackened.

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

tonight's fun
bent tube


for door bars


the decision point is do I then bend the tube down in front of the fuel tank? thinking that those would then work well as seat supports... but then I'd have to pull the cage to get the fuel tank out...

 

[SuperBuickGuy]

a bit more accomplished
so here's where I was a couple nights ago


went to this last night


and this tonight