WTHIJ's '87 4Runner

[WhereTheHellIsJames?]

Good call. Cleaning them up yourself isn't too bad. Here are a couple threads I found useful for the same.

A lot of good actual tips and disscussion here.
http://www.yotatech.com/f116/rebuilding-manual-hubs-what-s-involved-127956/

The thread above also contains these 2 useful links.
http://forum.ih8mud.com/79-95-toyot...ng-aisin-locking-hub-locking-hub-rebuild.html

http://personal.utulsa.edu/~nathan-buchanan/93fsm/suspensionandaxle/14freewhee.pdf

Thanks for the links! I took the hubs apart yesterday, and they're pretty straight forward. I cleaned them up pretty well using a parts washer tank with a brush, and they came out pretty good. They are far from cosmetically perfect, complete with a couple of big dings from rocks on the flange, as well as scuffed up cover plates, but I got on them with a file and cleaned them up pretty nicely. I'm actually thinking about maybe blasting the hub bodies and painting them along with the cover plates and dials.

So far, the biggest pain in the butt has been:

a) I dropped the little spring and it took me 20 minutes to find it.

b) Filing down the 'chunks' on the flanges.

c) Sourcing new gaskets and o-rings. I tried to order this kit (5th item down on the page) from Downey, but they are no longer selling them due to availability. I called my local Toyota dealer and they were able to order the gaskets and o-rings, and will have them for me on Thursday.

After giving it a bit of thought, I decided that I liked the bolts that Downey sold with their kit, but they told me that much like the rest of the kit, they can't source the bolts for now... strike out! I figure I'll swing by Fastenall later today and pick some up.

I'll get a picture up of the torn-down hubs later today.

 

[WhereTheHellIsJames?]

After a tear-down and a bit of cleanup, here's the worse of the two hubs:

All said and done, I think it looks pretty good. Now I just have to wait for the o-ring and gaskets to arrive from Toyota.

I was also able to order some stainless allen head metric cap screws from Fastenal, which should arrive tomorrow. I'll use these in place of the 10mm bolts that came from the factory to hold on the cover and dial. I'm doing it this way so that I'll still be able to get an allen wrench in the protected cap head of the bolt if I rub up on a rock or other hard object, unlike the 10mm bolt where if I hit a rock, I could possibly destroy the head of the bolt, limiting my ability to get a socket on it for field servicing.

As a note: If you are servicing / disassembling your Aisin hubs, do remember to consider the small ball bearing and spring when separating the dial and faceplate. The best way to do this is to place the selector dial in the 'lock' or 'free' position (whichever detented position on the faceplate you like- look at the back of the faceplate, you'll see what I mean. After you've removed the gear and spring assy., remove the retainer clip that holds the dial in the faceplate, then with the faceplate pointed away from you and the indicator arrow on the dial pointed vertically, gently separate the two parts. once separated, keep your eyes on the little ball bearing sitting on top of the dial portion of the assy. set down the faceplate, and over a safe surface, place your hand under the dial and turn it upside down- the ball bearing and spring should fall right into your hand. You can thank me later for reminding you to do it this way.
:sombrero:

 

[dms1]

Hi James, nice truck. Just wanted to add that if you need any parts for the hubs, Marlin Crawler has them for sale on their web site.

Also, what did you use on you fiberglass shell to brighten it up?

I have an 85 4 Runner and last year I rebuilt the engine, when I was done I decided to polish the paint and now it looks almost new.

Take care

Dave S

 

[WhereTheHellIsJames?]

So I've gone through the new Aisin hubs and they are now working super smooth... at least on the bench. For the time being though that's where they'll stay- on the bench. The reason for that is because of the latest mod to my 4Runner... a fair sized stack of crisp green bills in my pocket, and a new owner. Yep, it's gone. The joy of classic-yota ownership was sweet, but someone made me an offer on the rig that I would have been foolish to refuse.

Back to the drawing board I guess. If anyone has a clean Taco they're considering selling, please feel free to PM.

 

[kcowyo]

Huh.... you might have actually beat my record with an '87 4Runner. Three weeks in the driveway and then on to something else, same as me. That was fast...


Get a FJ60. That will fill the void. Worked for me.



.

 

[WhereTheHellIsJames?]

Huh.... That was fast... .

Yeah, I feel the same way. The good news is that I was having second thoughts about being a "4Runner guy," and that the sale felt right. It's kind of like I got paid to do a 3 week test drive of the rig.

 

[FourByLand]

Crazy... that was a good run, kinda feels like when should close this thread out of respect for that sweet 4-Runner... Hmmm what should we get next!

Truck shopping is fun!