The Truck of Doom: An Occasional Build Thread

[ArdWrknTrk]

For me there are two lists:

 

1. Must Do For This Trip: I usually create a list for any trip of 100ish miles or more and check the truck over. But for a trip as big as Matthew's, or the trip from OK to DE & back with Dad's truck a few years ago, there are many things that need to be done to ensure a safe and enjoyable trip.

 

Want To Do Long Term: This is my "when I get time" list. For instance, I want to get Big Blue painted some year and all the rust fixed. Plus the headliner needs to be recovered and re-installed - with some sound deadening above it.

My truck is stone reliable locally, and I beat it like a red headed stepchild.Cruising on the highway is never an issue, so I don't worry.The only time I had a problem was coming back from Florida one time when the fan clutch seized up in Virginia.Luckily, I found a NAPA right off the exit and was on my way in 40 minutes.

[Dorsai]

For me there are two lists:

 

1. Must Do For This Trip: I usually create a list for any trip of 100ish miles or more and check the truck over. But for a trip as big as Matthew's, or the trip from OK to DE & back with Dad's truck a few years ago, there are many things that need to be done to ensure a safe and enjoyable trip.

 

Want To Do Long Term: This is my "when I get time" list. For instance, I want to get Big Blue painted some year and all the rust fixed. Plus the headliner needs to be recovered and re-installed - with some sound deadening above it.

Funny, I have the same two lists...All the interior work (seats, floor, painting) at the start of this thread was from list 2. Everything else is list 1...and that's the one I hope to get done by the end of August, so I have time for any problems to show themselves before I hit the road. List 1 currently looks something like this:

• Ignition system refresh DONE
• Carb rebuild/engine tuneup
• U-joint replacement
• Rear diff oil change
• Engine oil change
• Coolant change
• Transmission oil change/pan replacement

The new starter, relay, and belts weren't part of the list, but I'm happy to have replaced them now instead of on the side of I-40 somewhere. Still a lot to do, and only six weeks or so to do them in...

[ArdWrknTrk]

Fortunately today seemed to be Counter Girl's day off, so I didn't have to worry about keeping a straight face while turning in the old starter and picking up the new belts.

The old starter is gone and the new belts are on the truck - and since I replaced the air pump belt just a couple of weeks ago, that means all my belts are new and freshly tensioned. I wish I knew why that belt snapped - I couldn't find any damage to the pulleys, no sign of impacts, and the surviving belt was in near-perfect condition.

The test drive went perfectly - no weird noises and the A/C was quiet and cold. So I'm ready for the Scout project this weekend, and after that it'll be time to tackle those U-joints.

Did you pick up some wiper bushings?

You probably don't want to see what the caulk inside your cowl looks like.

(at least you have a garage)

[Dorsai]

Did you pick up some wiper bushings?

You probably don't want to see what the caulk inside your cowl looks like.

(at least you have a garage)

No, that's all list 2, I'll worry about it after September. I know my caulk is going bad, I've got some sealant for it whenever I get up the nerve to start fiddling with the hood and cowl.

[ArdWrknTrk]

It's not going to be quite that bad here, but it won't be pleasant, either...90 degrees and a chance of thunderstorms all weekend. I'm just hoping we don't get rained out.

Well keep an eye on those guys, and keep hydrated.

Heat stroke (hyperthermia) is no joke!

 

[Gary Lewis]

Funny, I have the same two lists...All the interior work (seats, floor, painting) at the start of this thread was from list 2. Everything else is list 1...and that's the one I hope to get done by the end of August, so I have time for any problems to show themselves before I hit the road. List 1 currently looks something like this:

• Ignition system refresh DONE
• Carb rebuild/engine tuneup
• U-joint replacement
• Rear diff oil change
• Engine oil change
• Coolant change
• Transmission oil change/pan replacement

The new starter, relay, and belts weren't part of the list, but I'm happy to have replaced them now instead of on the side of I-40 somewhere. Still a lot to do, and only six weeks or so to do them in...

I love ticking the boxes to show I've done something, so have a running list on both Dad's truck and Big Blue in the first post of their threads. (It is an embedded Word document, which is lots easier than HTML, although I see you are good at the latter.)

 

And I sometimes cheat a bit by editing the document to split out the thing(s) I just did so's I can tick them off. In other words, if the list originally said "R&R ball joints" and the only thing I got done that day was one of them, then the list would suddenly have entries for both left and right. Not only that, but when I do things that weren't previously on the list they magically appear, only to get ticked off.

 

I think Mick & the boys were missing something when they couldn't get no/any satisfaction. They just didn't know how.

[Dorsai]

It's not going to be quite that bad here, but it won't be pleasant, either...90 degrees and a chance of thunderstorms all weekend. I'm just hoping we don't get rained out.

Well keep an eye on those guys, and keep hydrated.

Heat stroke (hyperthermia) is no joke!

Nice thing about Scouts (and our troop in particular) is that they’re all about outdoor safety and first aid. It’s rare for someone to get in trouble in the heat, and it’s always mild and quickly taken care of when it happens.

Fortunately, today went well - they got all the tables built for the camp with no difficulty. Tomorrow we haul them up (that’s where the truck comes in), and once that’s done I’m free to work on my list.

 

[Gary Lewis]

It's not going to be quite that bad here, but it won't be pleasant, either...90 degrees and a chance of thunderstorms all weekend. I'm just hoping we don't get rained out.

Well keep an eye on those guys, and keep hydrated.

Heat stroke (hyperthermia) is no joke!

Nice thing about Scouts (and our troop in particular) is that they’re all about outdoor safety and first aid. It’s rare for someone to get in trouble in the heat, and it’s always mild and quickly taken care of when it happens.

Fortunately, today went well - they got all the tables built for the camp with no difficulty. Tomorrow we haul them up (that’s where the truck comes in), and once that’s done I’m free to work on my list.

Glad it went well. And I'm sure the truck will shine tomorrow.

[Dorsai]

Glad it went well. And I'm sure the truck will shine tomorrow.

Mission accomplished - the Eagle project was to build four benches for a mountain camp for troubled urban kids, and my task was to deliver two of them:

If you're thinking that's not much of a load, you're right. It never occurred to anyone to ask me how big my truck was; they didn't realize I had a real bed and could have hauled all four benches without difficulty. They had located a second truck, so no big deal.

After stopping for some good north Georgia BBQ (Bigun's BBQ - recommended if you're in the area), we made it to the camp in good order:

I'm happy to report the truck ran great - it actually seemed a little smoother and quieter than before, so I'm wondering if something had been going on with that belt I lost that I hadn't realized. The trip was an hour up into the mountains (well, 'mountains' - our tallest is less than 5,000') and an hour back, so I'm declaring all the work done to this point a success.

I don't have any more obligations lined up for the truck, so now it's time to get to work on my list in earnest. Sometime this week I'm going to try to get those U-joints out, and while the truck is immobile for that I might as well pull the carburetor and introduce Dominic to it. And if the carburetor and air cleaner are going to be out of the way anyway, now would be a good time to put that new valve cover gasket in, and maybe even do that valve stem seal replacement job I've been putting off...

[Gary Lewis]

Glad it went well. And I'm sure the truck will shine tomorrow.

Mission accomplished - the Eagle project was to build four benches for a mountain camp for troubled urban kids, and my task was to deliver two of them:

If you're thinking that's not much of a load, you're right. It never occurred to anyone to ask me how big my truck was; they didn't realize I had a real bed and could have hauled all four benches without difficulty. They had located a second truck, so no big deal.

After stopping for some good north Georgia BBQ (Bigun's BBQ - recommended if you're in the area), we made it to the camp in good order:

I'm happy to report the truck ran great - it actually seemed a little smoother and quieter than before, so I'm wondering if something had been going on with that belt I lost that I hadn't realized. The trip was an hour up into the mountains (well, 'mountains' - our tallest is less than 5,000') and an hour back, so I'm declaring all the work done to this point a success.

I don't have any more obligations lined up for the truck, so now it's time to get to work on my list in earnest. Sometime this week I'm going to try to get those U-joints out, and while the truck is immobile for that I might as well pull the carburetor and introduce Dominic to it. And if the carburetor and air cleaner are going to be out of the way anyway, now would be a good time to put that new valve cover gasket in, and maybe even do that valve stem seal replacement job I've been putting off...

Well done! I'll bet the Boy Scouts were impressed.

And Dominic is going to be getting some good hands-on experiences. Good plan, Stan.