Great welding. Please move next door to me. Really.

 

thanks man! welding is my job! and i really like it!

this is me being stupid wile i was doing some tig welding on some stainless steel beer brewing equipement for my best buddy










i was having trouble shifting into first gear and reverse and there was a bearing noise coming from the tranny so i decided it was time for a new clutch!


the clutch was the oem one! it was shot! began to grind the rivets! pilot bearing was fine but the trowout bearing was crunchy! i still changed both with the one that came in the exedy kit! my trick to remove the pilot bearing was to machine a steel rod so it would slide tight into the bearing and i welded the center of the bearing on the rod! then i welded a bolt to the steel rod and threaded it into my slide hammer! BAM! the bearing was off!


i made an adapter to put on my floor jack so it would grab the tranny securely! i removed the tranny all by myself so i wanted to avoid any injury

 

while i was in there i changed the rear main seal even if it was not leaking! the seal is cheap and i had it in my face lol same thing for the tranny's input shaft seal... changed it!









had the flywheel machined for the new clutch! they did an awesome job on it for 40 bucks! in one pic you can see the mount i made for the diff















before installing the flywheel i changed the fuel filter since i had it in my face from under the truck! and it looked like it was the oem filter on it!








noticed that i had a pretty good leak at the valve cover! removed the valve cover and i noticed the lip on the rear half mood was all squished under it and the leak was from there! so i ordered a valve cover gasket kit and called it a day!






new clutch yayyyyyyyy!












i had a friend of mine help me put the tranny back in and i finished putting the parts together and replaced my rubberless tranny mount with one with rubber in it haha! then i went for a test drive and WOW the clutch was deff shot haha! grabs very nicely now and i can get into first and reverse like a hot knife through butter! BUT! the bearing noise is still there AARRGRGGHHH!!!! probably a bearing in the tranny.... tranny rebuild to the planning next spring! but it shifts really smooth with no binding so i think i'll be fine for a while! i hope!


next! i had a hole on the corner of the cab that i wanted to repair before winter to keep the slush from entering the truck lol... when i removed the carpet (1'st time since i own the truck) i went FFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu the floor was in really BAD shape! keep in mind that i greatly enlarged the holes with a screwdriver haha

















soooooo i went






















so here i am now! wating on a shipping quote for a rocker panel and tomorrow i will begin welding in a new floor pan and a new mounting panel for the rocker!

i also have to go take pictures of the new exhaust i did on it along with the polyurethane engine mounts!

 

love the build so far, really wish i could find a 4runner like that around here.....

 

well one that needs work for cheap anyways, minus the rust

 

haha thanks! but i have a solid plan for the frame rust! frame swap! lol i am currently waiting to have a frame delivered to me! i scored a near mint 88 frame for 200$! so next summer i'll swap the frames and finish eliminating the rust on the body! i plan on sandblasting the new frame entirely and then send it out for powdercoating! i want a solid base to build on!

oh and next mod is to get rid of those dam harley mudflaps! lol i'll cut myself some new mudflaps in a semi truck mudflap and i might paint TOYOTA 4X4 on them

 

yesterday i began fabricaring a new driver's side rocker support/body mount

keep in mind i have no idea what i'm doing LOL its the first time i'm doing some heavy bodywork! now i'm waiting to order a rocker panel so i can continue!

i aslo put in a new air filter and changed the valve cover gasket and both half moon plugs... i used black rtv on the gasket and plugs so no more vc leak for a while haha!


after that before winter i want to change a couple of crappy looking wires and anchor the battery properly in the engine bay. also i'll re-check my ignition timing and check/adjust the TPS. gonna take a look at the plugs too . it would not hurt to do a little seafoam treatment

 

the floor looks killer man! if you do the rame swap are you planning SAS? or keeping it ifs for driveability? i know SAS would be alot easier if you had a frame to do it on then power coat it all at once for clean finish

 

as much as i would like the SAS i think i'll keep it ifs for now since i plan on doing more road than trail with it and also i just rebuilt the whole front end!

but i might start collecting parts if i can score a deal on a front solid axle...

 

Just went thru your thread and you are doing some great work from mechanical to welding. I am really impressed, great job!! Looking forward to your build. Keep up the great work. I like seeing someone taking on a challenge and your whipping right thru it.

 

solid axle is fine for daily use it just has to be setup right. 3in springs, a good shackle angle, hysteer, with a good steering stablizer and nice shocks you can ride nicer then most ifs rigs, its also most surable then ifs if taken care of, things to think about i suppose, floor is looking great man!

 

Thanks guys i appreciate the comments! also i have the sas idea in my heas since i began reading about these trucks lol and usually when i have an idea i go for it! So i will keep the ifs until i can afford all the components for a nice sas and take my time to rebuild a front axle!

Ordered my rocker panel should have it this week! Cant wait to weld it in!

 

holy picture mania. very detailed thread. looks like your really tearin into her!! you must keep your shop more organized than me...seems like if i had all that tore apart id misplace stuff and never get it together again. looks like your making alot of progress. that bodylift seems a little excessive. im currently buildin a 89 auto. rust too, might just get some flares to hide it for now. looks like you have fun with it too, after hard work in the garage it pays off to go out and play.

 

Thanks! well my garage isnt the mostg organised ever but i try to not dissasemble too much stuff at once! I kinda lack space too! Its a 20x22 garage and i have a AE86 shell on a rotisserie taking half of it! Lol yeah the bodylift is excessive but it was installed by the previous owner! I really dont know why he installed such a big bodylift (3.5“) for stock tires lol it looks like ass! Nex summer when ill swap the frames ill install a much more conservative bodylift to fit 33“ tires! One thing i like the huge bodylift for is that everything is exposed and easy to acess on the engine lol the 2 rear bolts on the tranny were a piece of cake to remove haha!