Topic: Project "GB" 84' Toyota Crawler

[lostbuckaroo]

Hey guys I'm completely new to wheeling and the entire Crawler scene... However I saw a Truggy for the first time in person about a month ago and I was instantly hooked!! I've been obsessed ever since... Reading, researching and obsessing. I'm the kind of guy that will enjoy the chalenge of the build just as much as wheeling it. 

I originally started a thread here in the build build ups section "1980 Toy Truggy Build". After adding up the $$ and cents. I found this little gem and the deal was too good to pass up. I do eventually want to do a truggy type build but for the cost this little green truck will get me started on a more "budget friendly" basis. As I said before I'm a newb, so I would appreciate, constructive comments, help, and suggestions!

First off the name, why the name "GB"?..  USMC Major "GB" Tucker is my late grandfather. Although he passed about a year and a half ago, he's my hero. This man tought me so much about life, work ethic and not to mention sold me my first pickup at the age of 16. A 1978 Chevy 1/2 4wd Shortbox. He allowed me to make him payments at the time. I bought for $1,600, it had a 350 engine that he had converted it to run on propane. I learned a bunch on that truck and to this day regret selling it.

Active album of all the pic on photo bucket: http://s428.photobucket.com/user/maciastrio/library/Project%20Major%20GB

Ok back to the truck. It's a 1984 Toyota Short box. Here's what has already been done:

The Good

-G52 5speed trans
-Complete Front 5" Trail Gear Lift w/Bilstien Shocks
-1/2 Ton Chevy Spring swap in the rear (it's got the double shackle setup not sure I like it)
-5.29's
-Spool In the Rear with and Open front
-Dual Cases installed and  TG Trans Case Cross Member/Skid
-Hi Steer & IFS Steering Box
-Wider Rear Axle Swap from 86 Runner
-Diff Armor Front & Rear
-35" Tires (Not much tread left but what the heck)
-Super cool seats from some kinda Mazda sports car
-Bobbed bed
-Lengthened and built rear drive shaft
-Square tub front shaft

I think that's about it..

Ok for the bad, (not really bad just an opportunity to build/repair/improve)

--No Engine the guy a got it from blew rod in the other engine and it was toast. But I look at it this way, now I can choose what I want to put in it. And I'll know what I'm working with

--Some of the welding on spring hangers, and brackets is questionable... Not sure what he was using for a welder, and not saying I'm an expert welder but... I'm gonna clean things up and give everything a once over.

--I noticed on the dual cases and crossmember theres a spot for two TC mounts however there's only one mount installed on the crawl box? Isn't there supposed to be two mounts on a dual case setup??

--The parking brake cables are just coiled up and hung on the rear axle.. I guess the guy was planning on getting a driveline P-brake or didn't know how to adapt the 84' to new 86' rear axle /parking brake setup. Maybe somebody can give me some guidance on this?

The Plan

First let me say I'm planing on building in phases. This will be a strictly offroad rig. No registration, SMOG or any of that. I'm planing on running the 'got propane' setup for fuel delivery.

Phase 1

-Engine Build - I'm planning on building a 20r/22r Engine I've got a 20r donor I'm pulling from the 1980 pickup and I've got a trade pending on a good 22r engine. I'm gonna break everything down and do a fresh rebuild. I'm not looking for high hp numbers, I just want a simple and reliable engine. (this will be my first engine build as well)
-Hydro assist steering (why not)
-Internal Roll Cage
-Rock Sliders
-Seat Harnesses


Phase 2

-Front and Rear Bumpers
-Winch

Phase 3
-TBD
-Front Selectable locker?
-Tires?

Ok how bout some pictures



Rear P/Brake Cables - Need to hook these up.. Anybody got some info on this? 84' Truck rear 86' Runner Axle


Double Shackle Setup.. Not sure I like this. Why not just put a rear crossmember in and shackle hanger? Opinions on this?


Not sure you can see the spotty welding on there but needs a once over for sure.


Lift Blocks

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

Took some more pics today during lunch.



Better pic of the double shackle setup..


Single TC mount??


Lots of welding/cleanup to do

[zidaro]

nice!   got yourself a project.  get to work
look forward to seeing the progress

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

nice!   got yourself a project.  get to work
look forward to seeing the progress

Thanks man! I'm chomping at the bit hopefully ill be able to pull the 20r this weekend or at least get a good start!

[HogCanyonHopper]

I like them thar seats. theys purdy

[camhays556]

looks good  might wanna lower it a bit though

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

looks good  might wanna lower it a bit though

Yeah I was thinking it was kinda high. What to you recommend?

[tgmaul88]

http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/toyota-truck-4runner/468654-ifs-rear-axle-swap-problem.html

[tgmaul88]

take the lift blocks out IMO,  and maybe a leaf in front. personally not a fan of double shackles, its the cheap way to run longer leaf springs with lots of down travel,  all that welding can be cleaned up,   

yes find another tcase mount

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

take the lift blocks out IMO,  and maybe a leaf in front. personally not a fan of double shackles, its the cheap way to run longer leaf springs with lots of down travel,  all that welding can be cleaned up,   

yes find another tcase mount

Thanks Bro! Yeah I'm gonna ditch the double shackle setup.

[dropzone]

Thanks Bro! Yeah I'm gonna ditch the double shackle setup.

smart man

I would definitely pick up a 2nd transfer case mount.  the extra nuts and bolts on the cross member kind of crack me up, dunno why.

looks you are aware of the sketchyness of the front spring hanger welds...maybe cut it off  and reattach.. p/s front spring bushings look like they were over tightened.  probably would not hurt to replace all of them.  I recently replaced all of my bushings up front and after 6 years it made a big difference in improved handling.. Truck has some potential, just needs some elbow grease and some $$ to reach it

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

smart man

I would definitely pick up a 2nd transfer case mount.  the extra nuts and bolts on the cross member kind of crack me up, dunno why.

looks you are aware of the sketchyness of the front spring hanger welds...maybe cut it off  and reattach.. p/s front spring bushings look like they were over tightened.  probably would not hurt to replace all of them.  I recently replaced all of my bushings up front and after 6 years it made a big difference in improved handling.. Truck has some potential, just needs some elbow grease and some $$ to reach it

Thanks for the advise! Yep some definite elbow grease and a little help from you all this will be nice rig!

[camhays556]

ya i would take the lift blocks out and throw some chevy 63 springs in the back

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

Made a little progress today. Pulled the donor 20r out of the 80'..  And stripped her down to pull the head.

I'm glad I didn't try to run this engine in my truck. The guy I bought it from told me it was a "new rebuilt" engine. Year right theres numbers in grease pencil written on it in a couple places. Came from a dismantler I'm sure. And check out the pics at the bottom... bad head gasket maybe?











Bad head gasket maybe?

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

Gathering up a list of parts for the engine.

I'm going to go ahead and get:

New starter
Alternator
PS pump
Primary battery cables and grounds
Of course a full rebuild kit, oversized stainless valves
Pacesetter long tube header

Questions:

What radiator, initially I'd like to stick with a mechanical fan, but should I go ahead and get a 3-row V6 radiator now?

Muffler- I want smithing that's not too loud and annoying. What do you all recommend?


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[HogCanyonHopper]

I have a new alternator for a 22R, power steering pump from Trail Gear, good clutch/flywheel, a cam from LC Engineering for 20R/22R/22RE and a bunch of other stuff if you are interested.

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

I have a new alternator for a 22R, power steering pump from Trail Gear, good clutch/flywheel, a cam from LC Engineering for 20R/22R/22RE and a bunch of other stuff if you are interested.

I'm interested. I will send a PM with my direct email!

Thank you

[tgmaul88]

look at the doug thorley headers. very titties

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

Little more progress today. I pulled the bed, pressure washed the back half.  and dropped the gas tank. Much easier to get to the back end of the frame. I also ordered some new shackle hangers from Ruff Stuff today. (18% sale) Next I'll start working on replacing that double shackle setup. Also noticed today there's not much in the way of bump stops on the truck.  Oh almost forgot.. the guy installed some rock lights on this thing...

More pics:

[tgmaul88]

are you going to box the rear of the frame in?

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

are you going to box the rear of the frame in?

Yes sir! Haven't quite figured out how I'm gonna do it but I'm gonna Lol

[tgmaul88]

davezoffroad performance has them at a reasonable cost, but your local metal shop will have it to

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

davezoffroad performance has them at a reasonable cost, but your local metal shop will have it to

Good call I'll take a look.. But yeah I was just gonna go down and buy some 3/16" plate and fab my own.. I have some 1/4" plate but that's a bit overkill. I'll take a look at Davez

Thanks man!

[HogCanyonHopper]

a piece of 2X3" square tube works great. just slide into the c of the frame and weld it up. bfh may be required for proper fitment 

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

a piece of 2X3" square tube works great. just slide into the c of the frame and weld it up. bfh may be required for proper fitment 

Perfect! I think I'd like to weld a receiver tube in there too (just for a recovery point), I could also just weld up some D rings.. Heck I don't know..Until I build a proper bumper... that'll be down the road a ways..

I'm also not sure I'm going to stay with the Bobbed bed... I was thinking of building a custom flatbed/crawler bed.. but again that would be down the road a ways..

Thinkin out loud here..

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

Got a pile of small parts today. Also went down and picked up some 2x3 steel tube and some 3/16" plate.



Saturday is toy day!


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[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

While I'm waiting on engine stuff I decided to tackle the double shackle setup. Worked on the truck all day yesterday. Here's lots of pics of my progress. I'm no professional welder by any means.

It all starts with a pair of "way back" shackle hangers from Ruff Stuff.


All welded up


Next I pulled the shackle bolts and dropped the axle started prepping the frame, and cut off the original shackle hangers.


Cutting the original shackle hanger tabs was the easy part. Removing the factory welds and grinding the frame smooth was PITA!
$##%^&%!*!&^ (cussing these things!)



All smooth and ready on the underside!


Now gettin ready to mock up a rear cross member. My idea was to box in the frame and also add a receiver hitch for a recovery point. The way the guy before me cut the frame, put the shackle mounting point behind the cut. In other words the new shackle hanger was half on and half off the frame. So I needed to extend the frame some... Now I'm no expert but this is what I came up with. I used some 1/4" plate to create a new bottom strap for the frame essentially extending the frame back far enough for a mounting surface for my shackle bracket. This plate is to be welded on the onto the bottom of the frame, then the shackle brackets welded to it. For the crossmember I got some 2"x3"x 3/16" wall Tube.. I also got some 3" wide by 3/16" plate stock for outer reinforcements and boxing.

Mocking up the crossmember.


Receiver tube, drilled and ready to weld in..


I didn't want the receiver tube hanging down so I notched the crossmember and set it in there.. If I were to do this again I would do it a little differently but... it turned out ok.


Receiver tube welded in and ground smooth.


Kinda hard to see but you can see the hitch pin hole in the tube.


1/4" Plate mock up for the shack hanger/frame extender. You may also see the 3/16" side plates in there.






Shackle hanger welded to the 1/4" Plate and clamped up for final welding


I wasn't sure what heat would do the frame so I decided to do a series of welds rather than weld it all in once pass. It also worked good to pre heat the metal


Bottom plate fully welded in.. Since it wasn't one continuous weld it looks pretty bad... but I think it'll hold!


Rear view with crossmember set in place.


At this point it was dark out, and didn't get bunch of pictures of the side plates finished but will post up some more next time. Anyway lots of welding to get to this point.






Will post up some more pics later of the finished product... I plan on welding a few gussets in to support the receiver tube..

[tgmaul88]

super nice, im getting stuff figured out up here

[lostbuckaroo [OP]]

super nice, im getting stuff figured out up here

Thanks man! 

[HogCanyonHopper]

Looking good Carlos. Nice job on that rear xmember