2017...what a year!

It's been almost two years since I last posted, and what a year it has been!

And although it seems I say this every year, each brings its own victory's, struggles, epiphany's, and surprises.

The Coles Notes version of 2017...

1. Got a new to me 1989 Landcruiser BJ74.

2. Sold my restored 1983 Landcruiser BJ60.

3. Bought Wifey a 2009 Honda Pilot.

4. Said goodbye to my Dad and laid him to rest...RIP.

5. Got news of my boss's resignation (with a generous exit strategy towards a clean succession).

6. Took our youngest in for his final Leukemia treatment for A.L.L!

7. Celebrated being parents of our first teenager!

8. Enjoyed working with not one, but two Maintenance Assistants over the summer!

9. Had one Assistant stay on into the fall (essentially one semester)...So helpful!

10. Celebrated camp's two-board system moving to a single board system (technically took place late 2016 and into 2017) :-)

11. Enjoyed turning 40!

12. Celebrated 16yrs of marriage.


Yup.  Quite the year indeed!

 Family picture by jon-mark photography.  Prisma filter added later.

Top doc for Jaxon's treatment...we nicknamed him "Lord Business" after the lego movie.

A local lady created this custom cake for Jaxon's celebration of treatment completion.

One of my last pics with my Dad...RIP.

Wifey's new ride.

The restored and now sold BJ60...

My Dad when he was younger...apparently he used a bit too much dynamite to get rid of a stump!

My new BJ74 Landcruiser...almost ready for expedition exploration of Vancouver Island with family!  Front bumper design very similar to the BJ60 I sold...why re-invent what works?

Road Worthy

Well folks, with only a few minor details left to bring this to "completed," I offer these pics as the last for awhile.

Since October I've put in around 1000hrs into this restoration and it is high time to gather up the family and take 'er for a road trip!

I had thought earlier that the winch was going to block the "Toyota" sign but apparently the old googly eye 7" round halogen driving lights did that...they will be replaced in short order, but without the wobble so the wifey doesn't get wigged out.

All in all things turned out quite well. I've taken it for a couple test drives and it's noticeably quieter, smoother, and even has a bit more power since I replaced that IP vacuum bladder.

ONE MORE THING THOUGH...

I cannot express enough gratitude to John @ RADD Cruisers in Duncan for not only donating the body and letting me steal numerous used parts from his storage container, but for his patience with me as I would call or text or just show up with questions along the way with this project and he was always super helpful, encouraging, brilliantly knowledgeable, generous, understanding, and just downright awesome.  Thanks again John for supporting our family in this unique way and for giving me the opportunity to do something I thought I might be able to do much further down the road and making a dream a reality for me.
If any of you who read this are looking for a mechanic in the Duncan area, please consider using John as he (and his team) not only work on 4x4 vehicles, but all makes and models.  You can find him under either "E4Auto" or "Radd Cruisers" (http://raddcruisers.ca/) as he has combined both companies under one roof to offer a diverse automotive repair experience.  His rates are fair, his work is top notch, and his professionalism is something he takes very seriously.

And now, without further ado...

Underlay

Picked up some underlay from Mastercraft Flooring in Duncan the other week and finally had a chance to instal it!

For those Landcruiser buffs out there, can you spot the addition in the last picture which is not available on the BJ60's but was on the HJ60's?  Hint: It's not underlay ;-)

Sealed, dashed, and badged...

Sealed...

That means the windows are in!  Unfortunecookie, the windshield cracked within the last 2" of the company installing it, so I'll be taking the truck into their shop early next week for another try.  According to the owner of the company there is a certain way to install that type of windshield and he assumed his guys knew this...apparently not.  No big deal, they'll take care of it and all will be good.

They were able to install the two rear side windows and the back hatch window quite successfully and where my chrome trim was removed (and destroyed because it was super brittle) I bought some black "welting" which they kindly installed with the help of an amazing tool which probably saved me hours and hours of finicky time and the potential of breaking a window...so I'm stoked.

Not really windows, but the side view mirrors and rear view mirror are also in their place.

Also, in relation to things being sealed, all the lights are on and working as well as the door handles and inner door panels.


Dashed...

I was able to get the dash, gauges, cluster, wiring harness, etc...all nicely back together.  Outside of the brown steering wheel (which will eventually change colors once I order my leather wrap cover for it), all the painted parts and pieces which used to be brown are now in their happy place.

Badged...

It's officially a Toyota Landcruiser again...at least that's what the emblems say.


This weekend I'm aiming for underlay, carpet, and seats to be installed.

Black Out

Tested the headlights, taillights, brake lights, signals, and horn...all work dandy.

Seeing the blacked out chrome cleans things up and is nicer than peeling chrome so I think it will stay.

First time out of the shop for a couple pics between rain today.

Good from far...far from good :-)

Got a few coats on the entire truck today.

Besides a huge gust of wind which blew open the shop doors and a bunch of dust into the shop, my inexperience with a spray gun, a less than professional body-work job, and splashing paint thinner into my eyes...it was a great day!

I will say that my respect for those who do this kind of stuff for a living has increased a great deal through all this.

I will also say that although my personal expectations for how a $300 paint job should turn out were likely much higher than they should have been, the results are positive in that (1) the truck is sealed and (2) one single color.

Here are a few pics from inside my shop with poor lighting (for this kind of thing anyways) which gives different hues and darks/lights.  Can't wait for it to cure so I can take it outside (when the weather is better) and see what it actually looks like.

Roof Painted

We'll see what it actually looks like in the morning.  Rachel reminded me that she's comparing it to the Camo color so pretty much anything is going to look good :-)

This is two coats.  I will likely do one or two more if it looks half decent tomorrow.