ArdWrknTrk Posted July 21, 2019 Share Posted July 21, 2019 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... Okay! . Satisfaction! Glad your truck did well and the kids have more facilities at camp. Building things is always an experience in cooperation. Two thumbs up Matthew! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dorsai Posted July 23, 2019 Author Share Posted July 23, 2019 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. So today I had a few minutes between work and school to fiddle with the truck, and I decided to pull the air cleaner housing in preparation for carb removal. I got the housing off and something didn't seem right: Yeah, shouldn't there be another screw there? Now, where could it have gone? Oh... That could have been bad, but disaster was averted: I see threadlocker in the carb's future. At any rate, over the next few days as I have time I'll get the carburetor and valve cover off, and then after exams are complete this weekend I should have about three weeks to really get stuff done on the truck before fall semester kicks into gear. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted July 23, 2019 Share Posted July 23, 2019 So today I had a few minutes between work and school to fiddle with the truck, and I decided to pull the air cleaner housing in preparation for carb removal. I got the housing off and something didn't seem right: Yeah, shouldn't there be another screw there? Now, where could it have gone? Oh... That could have been bad, but disaster was averted: I see threadlocker in the carb's future. At any rate, over the next few days as I have time I'll get the carburetor and valve cover off, and then after exams are complete this weekend I should have about three weeks to really get stuff done on the truck before fall semester kicks into gear. That certainly could have been bad. I'll tell you how I know...... On my '58 Impala w/a 348 and a Will Carter Four Barrel (WCFB) I read in some hot rod magazine that the thing to do was to drill the seat out larger so it would pass more gas at WOT. And then, to ensure the hole was smooth, you were supposed to lay a small ball out of a ball bearing in there and strike the ball with a hammer. I did as described and put it back together. The car ran fine but with no more power. However, when my date, named Janey, and I parked it later that night (I chose the wording carefully) it didn't want to start after it had set for an hour or so. Turned out it was flooded - yep, the needle didn't like the seat. So, having pulled the aluminum tab off the end of the secondary lockout mechanism so it would open them at any point (please don't ask) and having laid it on the intake manifold, I thought I had the perfect tool with which to block the choke open. And it did work perfectly until I pressed the throttle to the floor. (Some of you are thinking "NO! Don't do it!!!!") Yep, the choke kick mechanism opened the choke even further, dropping the tab through the carb and into the engine - which started about then. Clank, clank, clank........ So, I flagged down a friend who, oddly enough, happened to be nearby and he/they took us back to the dorms. The next morning I got a new head gasket and pulled the head off - with the 3/8" ratchet I still have. Sure enough, that tab was much wider and thinner than it had originally been, but there weren't any marks on the piston, so all was well. I say all that to say that I like your plan to use threadlocker. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dorsai Posted July 23, 2019 Author Share Posted July 23, 2019 That certainly could have been bad. I'll tell you how I know...... LOL...good story, and you got to keep the girl. Too bad you didn't keep the '58 as well, those early Impalas were sweet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted July 23, 2019 Share Posted July 23, 2019 That certainly could have been bad. I'll tell you how I know...... LOL...good story, and you got to keep the girl. Too bad you didn't keep the '58 as well, those early Impalas were sweet. Yep, I loved that car. It would ROLL! When we bought it the seller told us that he went for a trip to Wyoming with his MiL. (Doesn't everyone travel with theirs?) They'd been driving for a while and he was sleepy so climbed into the back seat to take a nap and left her to drive. When he woke up the scenery was going by rather quickly, so he peered over her shoulder and saw the speedo setting above 100 MPH. No muss, no fuss, just roll....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dorsai Posted July 25, 2019 Author Share Posted July 25, 2019 Yep, I loved that car. It would ROLL! When we bought it the seller told us that he went for a trip to Wyoming with his MiL. (Doesn't everyone travel with theirs?) They'd been driving for a while and he was sleepy so climbed into the back seat to take a nap and left her to drive. When he woke up the scenery was going by rather quickly, so he peered over her shoulder and saw the speedo setting above 100 MPH. No muss, no fuss, just roll....... Since I've been very happy with how the interior plastic painting turned out, I've decided to try my hand at painting underhood components. Air intake before: And after: I like the color just fine (Duplicolor DE1621 'Old Ford Blue'), but I'm not sure about the gloss. Maybe it will dull a bit as it dries further, but this isn't really a high-gloss kind of truck. Do they make a low-gloss variant of this paint? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
salans7 Posted July 25, 2019 Share Posted July 25, 2019 Since I've been very happy with how the interior plastic painting turned out, I've decided to try my hand at painting underhood components. Air intake before: And after: I like the color just fine (Duplicolor DE1621 'Old Ford Blue'), but I'm not sure about the gloss. Maybe it will dull a bit as it dries further, but this isn't really a high-gloss kind of truck. Do they make a low-gloss variant of this paint? It dulls out. Trust me. Haha. I did the same thing on my old 300. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArdWrknTrk Posted July 25, 2019 Share Posted July 25, 2019 It dulls out. Trust me. Haha. I did the same thing on my old 300. X2 Though my air cleaner is black, it looked 'too new' with fresh Duplicolor. It doesn't stand out now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dorsai Posted July 25, 2019 Author Share Posted July 25, 2019 X2 Though my air cleaner is black, it looked 'too new' with fresh Duplicolor. It doesn't stand out now. I did get a low-gloss black for the air cleaner body - I think that will look nice, although it will clash a bit with the shiny intake as well as the valve cover until they dull a bit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Lewis Posted July 25, 2019 Share Posted July 25, 2019 I did get a low-gloss black for the air cleaner body - I think that will look nice, although it will clash a bit with the shiny intake as well as the valve cover until they dull a bit. Can't wait to see it, Matthew! It is going to look awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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