Hi
I am starting to work on my 1956 C600 with a yblock in it. It has been sitting for about 4 years and I need to start it up. I am in need of help. I am totally new to this and have little clue what I am doing, I know I am over my head before I start! But I figure I cant do too much damage. Anyway is there anyone around Vallejo that I can buy lunch for on Saturday to help me out? I am not asking them to do everything, just advice and point me in the right direction as to what to do. I am 49 and my 21 year old son thinks I am nuts.
I know it needs a new battery and a fuel filter, then I will put in some new gas and see what happens.

Help
Thanks
Jeff
925-639-7436

 

Here is my beast C600 COE 1956

 

If I was not about to tear into my own project this weekend I would come give you a hand. I do not know a lot, but I love these old trucks.

 

Hey Jeff, there's some thing you need to know about these older beasts, but it get's real simple once you start tinkeing.

My suggestions (for minimal start up)

Change the oil
Drain and flush the block...and refill with water only...this way if you have a leak or two, you're only out a little H2O, and it cleans up much easier than antifreeze.

Find the points/dwell spec...points nees to be cleaned, a quick rub with a metal fingernail file, then while they are open, blow them off/out. I'd guess the pint gap to be around .018, if you have a dwell meter, should be around 32*'s.

I'd be careful about the tank though.....ou might be better off pulling the inlet line to the fuel pump, and running some hose to a gas can...you just don't know what crud might be in the tank.

Don't be suprised if you have to work on the carb...but kits for it at NAPA are about 10 bucks or so (without a float)...a can of sray carbv cleaner and little bit of know how, and you'll be good to go.

SUre wish you were closer, that truck is about a spitting image of our '54 we use to use haul a D4 Cat with a Dozer blade on it..IIRC, the engine was a 292...but one of the heads was from a 312.

Do you have an electric two-speed rear? We did, sure was nicer than the '46 Chevy we upgraded from

 

Also, the Y-blocks were notorious for having that 1/4" oil hole in the block plug up,
if the oil was not religiously changed, and often.

It transfers oil through the head, to the rocker arms.

Make sure that oil is pumping into the rocker arms.

My old 239 Y-block had no oil going to the rocker arms, and I had no money at
the time, so I had an old oil pump can behind the back seat, and would, every
few days, pull over, pop off the valve covers, and squirt oil onto the rocker assemblies.
Good for a few days, then do it all over again.

Good luck.

 

Do you have an electric two-speed rear? Ok your scaring me now, Wha tthe heck is an electric 2 speed rear end? I have a rear end, I am sitting on it but I dont think that is what your talking about. Yes it is a 2 speed but I do not know if it is electric? When I look in the cab there is a stick shift for the tranny and another shifter with a push button on the end I think is what I remember. Would that be it? How does it work?

 

If you have a **** along side the shifter, it's electric...if you have two gear shifts...it's manual.

Manual you have to double clutch(well, at least we always did in ours), electric you just flip the button, and feather the throttle...our '54 had a 5speed tranny with the electric 2speed rear...easy to use once you get the hang of it.

 

Well there are two shifters I think, tell me how this 2 speed rear end works? Is it like an overdrive? When do you shift the rear end? It has been a long time since I double clutched, oh boy the fun will begin.
Thanks
J

 

It could be considered OD I guess, I don't recall...but we always drove on the "low side", then once in high gear, flipped to the "high side". The only time we'd ever use it to split gears is when the truck was loaded (about 4-5 tons IIRC) and we we're in the hills.

You'll get the hang of it soon enough.

It sounds like yours is a manual two speed, the "switch" you're referring too...is it just a lever on the side of the main/taller gear lever? That could be the reverse lever, you have to pull it up, then slide it inot reverse.

Another thing comes to mind...if you have two levers down there, and also an electric switch...you could have an electric two-peed rear, and the other lever might be for an auxliary tranny (like a brownie) or for a PTO.

 

Hey, maybe snap and post a pic of them.

 

Sounds like a lot of fun! First, the second gear shift could be the emergency brake - some trucks had a lever that stuck up through the floor like a shifter that controlled a brake band mounted at the front end of the drive shaft.

Second - a two speed rear end has two ratios - like maybe 6 to 1 in low end, and 4 to 1 on the high end. You would use the lower ratio to get things moving and then shift to the higher ratio for going down the highway.

There was two main ways of shifting the rear end - a vacuum diaphragm on some, and an electric motor on others. I never saw one that was shifted using a lever and rod - but no reason why that wouldn't work. Mike has a lot more experience with those trucks than I do.

The main thing to remember is that you are shifting gears in the rear end without a clutch - so they have to line up to shift, and should not be under a load when you do so. Both the electric and the vacuum shifter would not work until things were right.

The other thing is that you do not need to fool with it now - whatever gear it is in will work fine while you work out the other bugs in the truck. I would check all the gear boxes before you drove it - make sure there is grease in there, and that it is not full of water.

As to the oil up onto the rocker arms - it is a common problem with the y blocks. Mostly the cam bearings wear and you lose oil pressure on the top end of the engine. There is a kit you can buy that adds a copper tube up the side of the block and, through the valve cover bolts, oils the rocker arms. My dad did several engines this way, just using a drill and hardware store items.

Good luck, and keep us posted on your activities!

 

***** B you are right,
I was checking it out last night and that second shifteris the emnergency brake. I talked to the guy I bought it from and he said it was the brake. No 2 speed rear end.

 

You have some things figured out now...how'd the work go on it? Make any progress?

 

Progress is slow, as all of you know how it is.

I am picking parts and working on it. The truck is 30 minutes from me and is a pain in the butt working on it away from my garage. I really need to haul it home and work on it daily.

I was first just going to fire it up but I am taking a much slower approach and doing it right. Dropping the fuel tank and cleaning/flushing it, and fuel filters replaced. Cleaning the exterior of the motor and carb a little. Adding mystery oil to each cylinder. Changing the oil and filter. Plugs, points, condenser, rotor, wires and distributor cap. Flushing the radiator, and lastly a new battery.

The previous owner assured me it will run and run fine so I figured I should not take any chances and do it right at start up. About the only thing I will not do is pull the distributor and pre oil the engine before starting.


J

 

That really is the best way...take care of any potential problem first