Looking good!

 

Your dash looks great Joe. Nice work!

 

The parade is September 20th. Getting closer! I need to get the truck out one weekend, hook up the trailer and drive around for an hour in first gear. Well maybe second with this gearing.

I also got to thinking, if I'm going to put the fenders on, it would be a good idea to move the solenoid from the frame to it's proper position on the cab. Well I started on that and got to looking at my cables. I knew they needed to be replaced but the solenoid to starter cable looks dangerous. Looks like I'm making a trip to Napa at lunch tomorrow.

I also decided I should clean up the steering column support while the instrument cluster is out. It's much easier to get to the bolts while that is out. Oh yeah, I tested my starter button and it works fine. Time to wire it up...maybe I should call in sick tomorrow. Shoot, I have a new employee starting tomorrow....oh well.

Transmission cover is cleaned and painted too. I also got the speedometer cable in the transmission. Lots of progress this weekend.

 

Thanks guys, it's been an exciting weekend....except for the rim.

 

Don't wear yourself out! Slow and steady. Good idea to run it for a bit and see if it's going to over heat or anything (remember you just have water in the radiator). Did you get the Ebrake hooked back up? Are you going to change the tires before the parade? You don't want to get too deep into another project and not be able to use it in the parade. The hood will take you a bit to get back on too.
OBTW Probably ought to clamp those hose caps so you don't have another over rev water leak.

Lookin good

 

It will be time to exchange that water out for a anti-freeze mix. I thinks it's time. I did get the ebrake hooked back up and it's working fine. I was going to get new tires on the 9th, but now that I have a bad rim, I'm going to do some searching before I lay down cash on tires.

Here is my plan for the parade.
Get the battery cables and move the solenoid to the firewall.
Install inner fenders and fenders. (I will most likely remove them again after the parade to clean up the underside of the fenders.)
Hook a heater hose from the water pump to the top heater line to remove the caps. The inner fenders have a clamp to hold that hose in place.
Replace the top heater valve. I have a new one from midfifty now.
Install the choke cable I just got. (When I was driving it this weekend with my oldest, it died a couple of times. Having the choke might help.)
Install the instrument cluster with the speedometer cable hooked up.
I would also like to wire the starter button in and install the ignition switch in the dash. That should be a quick job.

Wow, that's quite a bit of stuff to do before the 20th. It's all pretty straightforward though. On weekends I tend to get up a couple of hours before the rest of the clan and this work isn't as noisy as grinding rust, so I should have some time to work on it.

 

I have found that if I have ten days worth of work to do on the truck, I will only need 20 days to get it done. But it sounds like you have plenty of time left before the parade.

Good luck with your parade prep. We want pics AND video please...

 

Looks like the truck is moving along nicely and it's looking real good too!

 

Now you got me thinking. I'll bet we didn't tighten down the bolt to the distributor. Maybe it moved a bit. I can't believe at 80 degrees plus (F) you'd need the choke.

 

Well I'll be darn, I was able to move the distributer slightly. I guess I need to reset the timing again. Another chance to practice that skill.
Boy that bolt is much harder to get to now that the cab is on.

 

You betcha! you won't have to reset the dwell just block the vacuum and check/set the timing. Then tighten the bolt and check it again.

 

Joe, the instrument panel looks great! Tell my what shade of your wife's nail polish did you use? (just kidding!) The trim ring color looks spot on just like the original argent. But be careful when you put the unit back in. I scratched my trim paint by attempting to get it in the hole...

Also, if you are buying new battery cables make sure you buy '0' gauge. The 6 volt cables, Pos to ground and Neg to starter, etc have to be thicker. Don't buy the ones off the display rack, they are for 12 volt. I had mine made at the local auto electric shop buy the guy that rebuilt my Gen and starter.

 

I just used a red she had on her shelf. I just checked and couldn't see a color name on it.
For the trim paint I just used Rustoleum Wheel paint.

For the cables, I've had a 12 volt battery and coil. I'm leaning heavily toward going with 12 volt. My only concern with that is the generator. I want to keep the generator look. I will check to see if I can get my 6 volt generator converted to 12 volt. There is a motor guy in town that does some really good work. I need to check with him at some point. Currently it's not an issue since the only thing running off the battery is the starter and coil. I still have second thoughts about going 12 volt, but I think it will be best in the long run.....maybe.

 

Your new employee should catch on to working on the truck in short order.

 

Getting a 12V generator for you truck should be really easy, any 1956 or later Ford generator will be 12V. Most will bolt right onto a Y-block. That said, unless you are adding A/C, I see no need to switch to 12V. 6V is easier on a restoration since you don't have to worry about compatibility with your temp, oil pressure, and gas gauge.