67 Patrol semi refurbish

[XploreNV]

I wish I could say that the water jet is mine . The shop I am working at is owned by the same guy that owns the tile and granite shop next door where the water jet is located so I have access to one. They mostly use it for cutting custom granite slabs and stuff. He is trying to get me to use it more so that we can sell water jet work to other fab shops here in town. I am sure the payment on that thing is expensive and it doesn't generate near as much money as it needs to.

[Swerve]

Mate doing a great job, that rear quarter fix was great as without seeing what you done, I would never even think about doing it WELL DONE

[moore_rb]

This project is off to a great start - excellent repair work on the corner.

I think we should send you Faux40's gasket templates, and a stack of fiber gasket material sheets, and have you use that water jet to rip out a couple dozen sets of gaskets ...

[XploreNV]

This project is off to a great start - excellent repair work on the corner.

I think we should send you Faux40's gasket templates, and a stack of fiber gasket material sheets, and have you use that water jet to rip out a couple dozen sets of gaskets ...

Send them, I sent my templates over to my CAD guy, he is going to be drafting them in cad within the next few days. I just need to pick up some material..

I was thinking about doing wood inserts and staining them but I was told I need marine grade wood, otherwise the wood will fray at the cut.
I could use regular old sheet metal, but that is boring...
Aluminum is always an option but I think I like the thought of wood a lot better...

I wonder where I can get this "Marine grade wood?"

[RiverPatrol]

You could probably find marine grade wood at a boat supply shop, like West Marine (there's one in Henderson). I don't think you'll find thin panels in marine grade, but maybe.

[XploreNV]

I was able to get the Patrol on the lift over the weekend to inspect the underside. The rust was not nearly as bad as I thought it might be!!! I was also able to test out the 4wd while on the lift. The good news is that the T-case engages! The bad news is that the left rear wheel does not spin at all. You can't even spin it by hand and the left front wheel turns intermittently. I have a sneaking suspicion that there is something funky going on with the brakes, I think they are binding up. I am hoping I can take them apart some time in the next few days to see exactly what is going on.

If it comes down to needing brakes, what would you all recommend? Just browsing around for the last 20 minutes online I haven't been able to find brake shoes for sale...Or at least not in the U.S. Obviously people here drive these and need brakes at one point in time or another.. I looked at the Parts conversion list and didn't see brake shoes so what does everyone do, convert the drums to FJ drums?

On a positive note, I am almost done with the body work on the rear panel / left quarter panel.. It's not going to be perfect but it will be a lot better than what it was... At least no gigantic rust holes you could stick a fist through. I also got the top put back on which I have mixed feelings about. I am hoping to be able to finish sanding this weekend, get the spare tire carrier mounted back on and get it ready for paint... I haven't decided whether I am going to paint it myself or have it sent out, but it is getting paint one way or another.

[RiverPatrol]

You can always have your brake shoes relined. Check with your auto parts store or find a brake specialty shop in your area.

[moore_rb]

re-lining the brakes is the easiest option -

I took my drums and my shoes to AZ Brake and Clutch and it took them 3 days to turn the drums and re-line the shoes, all for about 130 bucks

[XploreNV]

I have been finishing up the body work over the last few weeks... Body work is not my forte so it has been taking FOREVER. I also took apart the whole dash to tidy it up since it was like 4 different colors. I media blasted it and repainted everything one color - beige - the same color I want to paint the Patrol. When I put everything back together, all the switches in the dash and put the cluster panel back on, it would arc to the other panel! So I had to take everything back apart, sand it down to get rid of the burn marks and then repaint. So frustrating. I need to find some rubber washers or something to keep the cluster panel from getting a charge..

P7310118.JPG

[RiverPatrol]

You probably have a problem in the wiring somewhere if the dash panel is hot. Rubber washer won't correct the problem, it will only spring up somewhere else, and maybe with a fire.