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Looking good Tom! . Wow, +9C. That must be unusual for mid January.Jim
Thanks Jim.
Yes, +9 C is a nice day this time of year. Tomorrow is supposed to be colder at - 15C,
I had the shop loose assemble the springs so I could disassemble, paint and reassemble them myself,
Well my shackle mounting hardware should arrive today. I hope to start hanging front and rear springs on the weekend. That will then allow axle installs, which in turn sets up brake installation., and steering.
i am at the "to spend or not to spend" crossroad again. I have access to two 8BA long blocks both seized, that I thought about tearing down to see if I have a buildable block. I phoned around for cost estimates. Prices range from off the shelf rebuilt short blocks starting at $4k or long blocks for $5.6k. Rebuild would run sround $4k, kinda nullifying using a block I have. i have a reman 5.0L that has only 564 miles on it. I could sell it off, and apply the proceeds to going back to 239 cu.
Decisions, decisions...lol.
Those prices are HIGH to say the least! My engine rebuild came in at something like $2,300, which at the time, was a bitter pill for my wife to swallow. She soon calmed down though and was a good sport about it. Parting with $4-5,000 would have entailed a longer cooling off period for sure.
It's mid-winter now in the frozen north, but here you are still working away. Good for you. It was -27F here a few days ago. I would imagine you are experiencing some brutal temps as well. Good luck with your decision. My experience is that wives can be surprisingly resilient when comes to old trucks they don't care about and spending money--especially so if you remain "flexible" when it comes to things she needs and wants.
Those prices are HIGH to say the least!
It's mid-winter now in the frozen north, but here you are still working away. Good for you. It was -27F here a few days ago. I would imagine you are experiencing some brutal temps as well. Good luck with your decision.
Jim
Yes Jim, high prices, low temperatures. The justification is that cost of parts has risen. The mains alone are $900 ? I figure the more I spend now, the less the tax man gets at the end. My story sticking to it.
I droppedy my front axle off at the machine shop first thing this morning to have the king pins installed after they reamed the bushings.
I figured while it was there I would have them press on the spindle adapters for disc brake conversion and ball stud on the steering arm. I got a call late this afternoon to pick it up. This was work I initially was going to do but instead focused my energy on rear spring shackle bushing removal. Who knew the old king pins would make a perfect drift to drive them out. Tomorrow I will start installing springs. I noticed the rear shackle bushings have a detent groove across them internally about half way through. I haven't read the manual yet but I wonder if there is a set direction they are installed in? Edit: I pressed in the bushings this morning prior to picking up a froze flathead V8.
I had a couple hrs of time today to start the leaf spring reinstallation. I had to spend a bit of time to familiarize myself with the shackle hardware for both front and rear. The DC kits are not quite the same as the exploded drawings I have. An example would be the front pins 6 in total two of which are longer than the other four. I think they may go to the back on front spring but drawing shows all being the same part number. That burns up some time. I needed to hone the bushings so I thought I'd use the brake hones I have nope too big. I phoned around to tool suppliers but no luck. I happened to have a conversation with an older gentleman who suggested I make my own using a cut off bolt. I modified his advice a bit by using one of the old pins cut it off, and slotted the end. You then insert sand paper or emory cloth depending how aggressive you need to be. Great hack, works a treat!
I need to make one for the front bushings tomorrow, same proceedure.
I also spent an inordinate amount of time looking for the pins, the garage is way too crowded and needs a good cleaning.
Nice hack on the hone!! I did something similar awhile back with a wooden dowel. It worked all right but wouldn't have held up for this task.
My shop is completely out of control. I can barely turn around in it, I can't even see the surface of my bench. I had to work on the floor on Sunday....ugh. I can't seem to get it cleaned up.
I had some time in the garage this afternoon.
I installed front and rear springs, and mocked up the rear axle. I need to waIt to
set the pinion angle but I can still plumb and install brakes.
I will install the front axle tomorrow, then brake work.
I managed to install the front axle this afternoon. It's one of those jobs where the human body does not have enough hands. I used some bar clamps and my floor jack, and after some time elapsed have the axle bolted in place. Little by little.
I started installation of the front disc brakes this past weekend. I don't work on the truck as much as life has rearranged my priorities for now.
I still go out to the garage to stare at things but don't make much progress.
Started rotor installation today. I torqued the caliper brackets and started to grease and install the inner bearings and seals. The rotor would not go back far enough to get the hub nut started. The Speedway kit comes with a spacer that goes against the outer bearing before the washer. I need to contact Speedway tomorrow to see if using the spacer is optional. The quality of the bearings is not the best (read China) so I am going to look for better quality replacements tomorrow.
Got a little time today to work on the truck. I have been redoing the rear brakes and parking brake this week. I have a back order on a brake cable, so started prepping the rear axle by cutting off the spring perches.
I bought new perches and they are slightly wider than the originals. I will have to modify them so my U-bolts will clearance them. I hope to be ready to set the pinion angle before end of April.
Ready for fit and bolt up.
Baby steps forward.
Looking good but she's definitely going to ride like a truck with that stack of springs . lol
😄 Yes it definitely will be a "firm" ride. It would ride like a buckboard if I would have kept the overloads.
As soon as I get the 3rd member back from rebuild,, it will roll on all 4 wheels again.
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