Filed under: brakes, toyota chinook | Tags: 1976, bleeding the brakes, brakes, chinook, pickup, toyota
after driving the chinook around for a couple months the brakes started to loose pressure, till the brake pedal went all the way the floor! the brakes still worked, but they weren’t working till the brake pedal was on the floor and they were really sensitive. so i figured there could be some air in the system.
i made a bleeder bottle drilled some holes in a water bottle cap and got some clear hose.
just like i read in the books, i started with the wheel farthest from the master cylinder and worked my way from wheel to wheel. rear right, rear left, front right, front left.
the back bleeders on this 1976 toyota chinook are 8mm, mine still even had the rubber covers on em.
so i started bleeding
there was some air, but not really, mostly just dirty brake fluid.
there’s plenty or room to bleed the brakes without having to jack the truck up. the front wheels you can just turn to get access to the bleeder valve
the front bleeder valves are 10mm
so after a lot of bleeding, the entire system had new brake fluid and no air
this unfortunately did not solve the problem. the brake pedal still when to the floor! it was exactly the same! so it must be the master cylinder. that would be the next logical conclusion. i went online and got the cheapest one i could find on ebay. stay tuned to find out what happens next in part 2!
Filed under: cleaning, toyota chinook | Tags: 21R-U, 21RU, chinook, cleaning, dirty, engine, rv, toyota
the chinook engine runs great, but it was a bit dirty.
so i got some foamy engine degreaser
then after a lot of foam and water and scrubbing . . ..
and i discovered that i have a 21R-U engine! i thought i had a 20R, but i got this one. maybe i’ll take the air box off and repaint it black. that would really make the engine look a lot cleaner too.
Filed under: chinook camping, chinook travels, inspiration, toyota chinook | Tags: 1976, baja, beach, california, camper, camping, chinook, rv, toyota, trip
here’s the plan. this is the map. from san francisco to san felipe and back. Aftan and me. Aftan’s got spring break from school. it’s about 9 days. stops in LA, stops in San Diego. then on to mexico.
the goal: to take this photo. down a ways south of san felipe there’s a beach. like this one. we’re gonna drive down there, back the chinook up on the beach and take this photo. and then whatever adventures we encounter on the way down and back. we will see.
Filed under: new parts, toyota chinook | Tags: 1976, boot, camper, chinook, mr gasket, rubber, rv, satisfaction, shifter, toyota
shifter boot. it’s ripped and broken. it makes it louder in the cab when driving + exhaust fumes can get in a little. so i’m gonna get a new one.
4 screws release the boot and retaining ring. and you can see how orange the carpet used to be.
there’s another smaller boot below on the shift mechanism. mine was just sitting there, not connected on the bottom. so you gotta work it around. and finally it goes on. it’s a bit of a pain cause you can’t get to it at the right angle.
here’s the mr gasket shifter boot. it’s a generic shifter boot you can get online or at any auto parts store.
there’s the original larger screws next to the mr gasket little screws.
and the mr gasket retaining ring is much too shinny. too chrome. it could even cause someone to have and accident from being blinded if the sun catches this thing. i’m not gonna use it
the original has a lip around it. making it a much better piece. i’m gonna clean up the original one with a wire wheel and use it again with the original screws.
next i had to trim the rubber boot around the outside so it would fit under the lip of the retaining ring.
and there it is, all done! it’s really quite beautiful. an easy job that offers loads of satisfaction! I feel very accomplished.
Filed under: sealing, toyota chinook | Tags: calking, camper, chinook, damage, leaks, mini, rain, rv, sealing, sun, toyota, water
the only major leak in the chinook is in the front over cab bunk area. the water must be oozing in around some of the old calking around the front of the pop top, or the sides of the two front windows. when it rains a few drops of water drip in and over the years + the sun, this is what’s happened. eventually i’d like to replace all this with new wood and upholstery.
here on the sides where the roof of the truck meets the camper, there’s also some openings where water can get in. so some more calking will work for now.
this is kind a funny. a garden hose wrapped in white plastic or something is the cushion between the camper and the roof of the truck. you can see it where the plastic’s broken off.
Filed under: inspiration, scale model, toyota chinook | Tags: chinook, model, rc, remote control, rv, scale, toyota
if you’ve ever searched for toyota chinook online, i’m sure you’ve seen this. this amazingly detailed scale model remote controlled chinook. there’s lot’s of photos and descriptions on the scale builders guild forum. and take a look at the videos below. it’s hard to tell if it’s a real chinook or a model!
Filed under: 4x4, chinook camping, chinook guru, inspiration, toyota chinook | Tags: 4x4, chinook, guru, Lance Ogden, toyota
another chinook 4×4 guru. Lance Ogden. this guys got tons of photos of his chinook project here + check out his videos. he’s got a video of the 4×4 chinook conversion and a video of the finished 4×4 chinook out exploring the wilds of canada
“I originally bought my Chinook in march of 2003 and could not pass it through a safety inspection so it sat till mid march 2010. For the next three weeks ( afterwork and weekends) I switched the Chinook over to a 1980 Toyota longbed chassis , upgraded the suspension and set off on a 5 week vacation around BC s interior and coast. I had a few repairs to do during this time but after that its been all good and I have had a few great adventures in it without incident .”
Filed under: 4x4, chinook guru, inspiration, toyota chinook | Tags: 1975, 4x4, blew, chinook, guru, motorhome, nolan, rv, timeline, toyota
Blew 4×4 Custom 75 Toyota Chinook Motorhome
This is another one of those projects that started with an idea and slowly progressed. Its a 78 Toyota truck with a 75 Chinook body, with all 82 Toy 4×4 running gear, sports a 7″ lift, power steering, AC, power windows, the rear camper section will have the roof mounted permanent (no pop-top) the small rear door will give way to a single large swing up rear door, all the side windows and compartments will be removed and finished out, and the rear interior will be just an upholstered open shell for hauling stuff. The old saying turbochargers are fine but I’d rather be blown applies, it will run a built 22R with a side mount supercharger. Just another play toy to keep me occupied.
When I bought it, worse shape than an abandoned crack house
Off comes the shell
old cab was trash, not many parts worth keeping
I had this truck patially done so figured it was a good candidate for the shell but need the frame lengthened
frame cut off
rear half rolled out of the way
lengthening the frame
welded together, now just needs filled to make it the same all the way
rolling chassis again
the shell back on
starting on the floor replacement
grinding off all the old glass connection
what the original floor constuction looks like under the top layer
removed the stock wheelwells and built smaller ones
rear step up area was boxed in and made into storage compartment
working on rear door
paneling walls, you can see the steel frame work on roof area, has similar in walls
door hinges built and gas shocks mounted
door fits and body lines look the same
moved gas filler down below floor level and added door lid
filling holes
cut the roof lip out
glassing in the roof and molding it to the same profile as body
building door panels
finished door panels
rewiring
wires, wires, everywhere wires
built a new fuse panel with blade fuses to handle all the added electronics, more fuses under the hood along with many relays
seats
some of the gauges plus quick release steering wheel
more gauges and flat screen monitors for tv ect.
rear door finished
rear interior
dual rear shocks and axle torque arm
front dual shocks and remote oil filter setup
fenderwell cutout to fit supercharger
motorvation
says it all 
oil cooler
fuel filter canister and transfer case
dual mufflers
wrapped exhaust system to help noise
no more hood rod holder upper
headlight upgrade, got lotsa light now
out Chinookin
out rock digging
out rock digging again
more rock digging
and again, another rock digging trip
spiffed up for car show
brownie & blue
Filed under: chinook guru, inspiration, toyota chinook, Uncategorized | Tags: paul marino, the chinook, thechinook.com, toyota
this guy Paul made some funny videos, his own reality tv show about living in a chinook. check out his website here www.thechinook.com. and watch the episodes below!
Filed under: inspiration, repair manual, toyota chinook | Tags: 1977, chinook, manual, owner's, toyota
the 1977 toyota chinook owner’s manual! everything you ever wanted to know about how to operate and enjoy your chinook! did you know there was an option of fold out bunk beds? i wish my chinook had those. be nice if there was a higher resolution scan of this manual, but this is all that’s out there right now. enjoy and download it here.
