Re: Rat repair.
 

I've found that price is not necessarily related to performance when it comes to air tools, as is evidenced by some of the other comments. The one thing that does play a big part is the weight or "heft" of the air tool. The heavier the tool, the more likely it will perform well. As the air spins the motor, the higher centripetal force will keep it from bogging down when you lean into the material. I have two 90 degree air grinders that couldn't be more different. I use the heavy one with coarse grit discs for fast material removal. The lighter one works best with fine grit or scotchbrite discs because it requires a softer touch.

Your gas filler cover turned out great. Mine is welded to the bedside, but I only plan to use seam sealer where it meets the floor. Just in case something happens and I need to take the bedside off. Probably won't, but you never know.

Re: Rat repair.
 

Thanks for the comments Vic, my only experience has been that the brands my work buys (Ingersoll Rand and Chicago Pneumatic) seem to last forever, the stuff i buy from Harbor freight does not, but i do have one straight HF brand (Central Pneumatic)that has a lot of heft and it is super smooth compared to the same brand of light weight 90*'s and 45*'s. :)

EDIT: Oh, if i had to do it all over again i'd probably not flange the cover and just make one with 2 bends or a large radius like you did and tack weld it in place, the flanging was a LOT of time and effort that could have been spent elsewhere. But my original thought was that this is my work truck and i wanted something solid that i wouldn't knock loose if i loaded the bed with whatever i throw in the bed and also give me a way to have a quick look at the filler tube if need be to make sure its not seeping gas.

One thing i really do need is a better air compressor, i have one of the red Sears 26 gal single stage pieces of junk, have been debating if i should be looking for another 115V compressor (dual stage compressor?)that might fit my needs of running die grinders and also sanders, or if i'm gonna have to step up to 220V (single or dual phase?) and have an electrician wire it into my circuit breaker, that said i don't want to drill my garage floor for lag bolts..

Any advice on brands and or places to look would be appreciated.

Re: Rat repair.
 

My $.02 worth... two stage cast iron, 80 gallon upright, 220V single phase. No need to screw it to the floor. Mine's on casters and I have it plumbed into the condenser line with a flex hose and a union fitting. When I need to drain it, I uncouple the union and roll it over to the floor drain so water doesn't run everywhere. Sears and Ingersoll Rand are both good, but I'm sure there are others. My 5HP Sears is 28 years old and has never had the compressor head overhauled. The electric motor needed a tuneup three years ago, but other than that and a few minor parts (belts, filters), it's been trouble free. Spend a few bucks on a decent water separator and you're in business.

Re: Rat repair.
 

I have an 80 gallon horizontal. i dont even remember the HP rating. i am thinking 5. it is 220 single phase. its a big mean old monster that was NAPA brand. i have no idea how old it is, probably at least 15 years. i got it free from a divorce/moving out deal several years ago. IMO, if you are buying a compressor, buy one you will like for years to come.

IR makes good stuff, and last time i was at Tractor supply, they seemed to have fair pricing on pretty manly units. my advice, buy the most compressor you can afford and fit in the available space. when/if this one i have dies, i will be looking at an upright as well. since free is a strong motivating factor, i made do with the horizontal, but in any shop/garage floor space is at premium, so upright is best in my opinion.

Re: Rat repair.
 

I'm a bit of an air compressor geek. I burned up several in my shop over the years until I stepped up to my current one and did many hours of research to make my choice.

All I can say is the game has changed. You need to be educated on current models rather than relying on a trusted brand name. As an example, I once bought a nice Ingersoll Rand compressor based on their reputation. I had tons of problems with it and during the course of repairing it multiple times I learned that modern Ingersolls are almost all made in China. Real poor quality. Grandpa might have used his old Ingersoll for 40 years with good luck, but you won't get that service out of a new one. Grandmas Kenmore refrigerator may have lasted her entire adult life, but the one you buy today will go 10 years or so.

I chose Champion for my compressor after about a year of research. Low pump speed and 100% made in USA content were the main factors. Quincy builds a good one too. I'd have bought a Quincy, but I wanted an unusual configuration and Champion was more responsive to building it for me.

Re: Rat repair.
 

To correct my last post my compressor isn't a 26 gal its a 33 gal.

This is my current setup, I normally have a 25' hose coiled up in place of the yellow retractable bench hose to allow the air to cool, but i needed to string it out outside for a while and it will be back in place soon, thru a moisture trap/filter then to my home made manifold water trap with drain valves on the bottom, thru another water trap/filter then to my hose reel.

Having used it this way i know i need to move my first moisture trap behind the other in front of the hose real as i over load it and still get a lot of moisture at the drain valves on the manifold.

I think if i had one more requirement besides keeping up with sanders and die grinders (this one runs constantly with a die grinder) it would be (hopefully) a little more quiet than the Craftsman 33 Gal, probably asking a lot......

EDIT: I have had the cover off this compressor and was shocked to find a piston of about (if i remember correctly) 1.25" diameter and it moved about a 1" stroke. Pretty skimpy..

Re: Rat repair.
 

Can't go wrong with Chicago pneumatic in my opinion. Worked as a Chrysler mechanic back in the '90s... And they're still going. And I'm hard on tools. I made brackets for my compressor and mounted it up off the floor on the wall. Smaller tank... But ran an air header around the shop with drop downs/blow out valves on each wall. Extra air storage. Real nice work so far.

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I ordered this from Amazon last night, thought i'd give it a shot, if i have trouble with it i'll give the Husky a try next.

Ingersoll Rand 302B Air Angle Die Grinder - Power...


Still looking at compressors on line, hoping to stay around $1500, cant justify a $3000 compressor. One problem, if i have to order one i am sure i cant have freight delivered to my house. also need to search locally. Looking at models like Quincy, Curtis, BelAir, Industrial Air.

I know an 80 gal will be fine, but i am wondering if i could get away with a 60 gal as space on my garage is at a premimum also, even vertical as i have shelves on every available wall space possible, i do want to get a blast cabinet sometime down the road

Re: Rat repair.
 

Nothing done this weekend but spending time with my wife, being as I'm a shift worker i don't get to see her all week. she did add a job to my honey do list tho, I have new lights to put up in front of the house this week, plus I told her i'd get the weed eating done as i have been neglecting the yard a bit.. as in all spring LOL!.

Re: Rat repair.
 

Good call! I too put projects on the back burner this weekend. Got some handled but there's always tomorrow. :lol:
Oh loving the fab work!

Re: Rat repair.
 

Yup, same here.... Got the weed-wacker out for the 1st time this season. I've been concentrating sooo much on the truck and letting everything else slide.

Re: Rat repair.
 

Guilty of spending too much time on the truck here too. I figure there is always next weekend to spend with the family. :lol: Just kidding

Re: Rat repair.
 

Swamp Rat how's it going. checking out your build tonight or is it this morning. I'm stuck working grave yard for the next 6 weeks. Been grave in it for 4 week now and I hate it. can't seem to get much work done on my 71. I noticed you were using HF grinding wheels. I use the 4.5" grinding and cutting wheels on my Milwakee grinder and they have worked good for me so fare. I use the ones with the green label for metal. The spruce Goose is one big air plan it's sad that I only flew once and it was by mistake. I rebuild my air compressor using HF pump and motor. had a problem with the shiv size on the motor went to 4" from 7". the motor was turning the pump to fast.

Re: Rat repair.
 

You could always add in your 33 gal tank from that compressor to boost the volume of a new compressor, too, so you can maybe not spend extra money for a bigger tank. I'm planning to do that with my old 20 gallon horizontal tank from my dead oil-less compressor. Just need to be able to drain it. I think anything that's not an oil-less compressor will be much quieter than the oil-less one you are running now. I was almost happy when mine died.

I need to make a water trap system like you have. I run a hose straight off the compressor now with a cheap tiny water trap right after the regulator, but it's really woefully inadequate.

Re: Rat repair.
 

Humm. Maybe just reply the compressor unit altogether but I still think having more volume would help. I donno that its worth the hassle. One guy here has a 60 gallon compressor and says it keeps up with his Sanders and die grinders, being as space is premium that may do the trick. Oh, trying to move a 80 gallon compressor is a concern for these old bones too. :)

I got my honey doo list done and spent 3 days detailing my dirt bike to put it up for sale, and working again this weekend. Hope to get back to the rat starting tomorrow.

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Ya know every time i turn around its something else i missed when it comes to the tank :) The good news is i was able to install the tank without removing the bed support or a major modification for the filler tube, but...

I originally planned a 3/8 burp line when i last repositioned the tank, then i modified my S10 filler and it has a 5/8" burp tube on it so i bought the 5/8 hose and fitting for the tank. I never realized the 5/8 hose won't fit between the tank and bed support after i repositioned the tank like the 3/8" hose did, gonna have to pull the bed off one more time and drill a hole thru the bed support, I have a piece of 1 3/4 pipe i can fit in and weld into place for strength, also found some PVC fittings to line it with if necessary for abrasion resistance, or i can get away with cutting the 1 3/4" pipe in half and welding in a 1/2 section..


I swear I'm about ready to call this project Ground Hog Day, i'm stuck in the middle of it and cant seem to get out.. Now i got to dig my cherry picker back out..

EDIT: Well if i ever do another tank I'll have all the bases covered, Hopefully!

Re: Rat repair.
 

Got my 90* die grinder and gave it a go today, must say I'm a little skeptical at this point but we'll see how long it lasts, it seems a little wimpy inside. Couldn't find my little grease gun so bought another and more oil too.

I also ordered a set of Nerf bars for the truck, the only ones available that i'm aware of, unfortunately bolt to the cab mounts but it was that or nothing and i really need to replace the side boards with something as they are falling apart. Aries part number: 204036. in Black. 204036-2 for chrome. from Stylintrucks.com is Pt# ARS204036.

http://www.stylintrucks.com/parts/ar...RINE44227.aspx

In my haste to get a hole drilled in my bed support last week i totally screwed up and didn't think about how close the fill tube was on the back side of the support, until i drilled the hole of course, then realized my error and took a couple days to chill out.

So never one to totally give up i spent today drilling and welding in a pass thru in thru bed support and i had to make a couple plugs for my screw up and weld them back in. admittedly it was a bit of a rush job (relative term with my air compressor) and my legs were complaining to me the entire time i was under the truck hunched over the rear axle.

I know it seems like a lot of effort for a burp tube but i want to ensure that there is no low spot on that tube for fuel to collect blocking the tube from air flow.

Re: Rat repair.
 

i know that feeling. there are several parts and modifications that i have done twice on mine. either do to my mind changing or because i ended up with parts i did not originally plan for. it is probably easier to figure out what i didnt end up building twice... haha

looks like good progress!

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I hate having to do things twice or buy things twice.... Grrrrr.....

Re: Rat repair.
 

Thanks Ryanroo, it helps to read that I'm not alone in dealing with this stuff. :)

Oh, I forgot to add something from yesterday, before i got started on my truck i was cutting some tarp material out in the driveway, and i came back on and shuffled some stuff around on my work bench to make space for my brass eyelet install tool, right after that i thought i felt like one of my lower eyelashes turned under my lower eye lid so i used my finger to try and fix it, i must have had something on my finger that reacted on my eye very quickly and the lower 1/2 of my eye became very red and the white part actually swelled up sticking out past the iris, it was a bit of a scary moment and i called the emergency number of my eye clinic and had the on call Dr call me. I stopped what i was doing flushed it with eye drops about 10 times and relaxed for a couple hours and the swelling started to subside a bit so i went back to work and thankfully it did subside on its own after about 6 hours. I never had a swollen eyeball before, kinda freaky.

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Yikes!

Re: Rat repair.
 

Wow! Glad it's better. Did something similar, only turned out the drops they gave me had sulfa in them which found out I was allergic to! The more irritated it was the more I squirted it. Duh lol. My eye was a swollen red and white disgusting mess. A bad 3 days. Lol.
Good progress on the truck.

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Well my eye is back to normal thankfully, i just wish i knew what actually caused it.

Re: Rat repair.
 

So nothing ever seems to go fast with me, so because of this and the sun being in my eyes i couldn't see going into work today.. ;)

I spent today getting the bed on, hoses routed, filler tube reinstalled, all the bed bolts on and tight ( including the two that are obstructed by the tank that i can barley reach) and then got the rear cross member installed.

After that i drilled some holes and installed my filler cover in the bed.

2 days ago i dragged out the plates that were used to mount my old bumper and ground off all the weld and metal left behind from using my plasma cutter to cut them off the old bumper. Today I bolted them up and dragged out the old used bumper i bought to mount up... sat it up on the plates and its not looking like the old mounting plates will work, plus its pretty apparent that if i'm gonna save this bumper I'm gonna have to go buy a torch setup to cut new brackets which need to be thicker that my plasma cutter can cut and a rose bud to do some straightening, Of course buying one large enough that can use a rose bud plus the gas, plus the cart will add up quickly $$$$ I can have a dream bumper made for about $1100 by a fabricator in a neighboring town, but for the same money i can have a much needed tool i don't have.

Humm, i just bought a new Stihl weed eater yesterday that between it and oil ect ran me just past $400, maybe it wasn't such a good time to go buy one :p

The pic shows the burp tube going thru the hole (1 3/4 pipe) i welded into the bed support.

I had planned on getting a couple gallons of fresh gas for the tank then swapping fuel lines at the fuel pump and firing the truck up via the rear tank but ran out of time today, hopefully tomorrow but i have a busy day ahead, we'll see.

Re: Rat repair.
 

Hi swamp rat. I've popped in on your thread many times, but just finally read it through. I can really appreciate how you've pushed through the many set backs and kept pushing forward. Your truck is coming along great! I've had the same IR die grinder and used the heck out of it for a couple of years now with no problems - I think you are going to be happy with it.

Re: Rat repair.
 

X2 on the IR grinders, I've had pretty good luck with mine too. Glad to hear you are getting the tank ready for service. Keep plugging along.

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good work

Re: Rat repair.
 

I vote for the torch. Craploads of uses for it. I bought mine many moons ago, with a rosebud, but I don't think I paid anywhere near $1100 for it. Is that what they are going for now? Ouch

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Thanks for the comps, can say its been a learning experience for sure!

Glad to hear you had good luck with the same Die grinder too.

I know i need to start on cab repair soon..

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Its been a busy week, too much on the plate, hopefully this weekend, tomorrow perhaps.

Re: Rat repair.
 

Thanks Dean, that was a rush job, and a bit sloppy one too, i deliberately left the pipe a little long in an attempt to not have any burn thru's and it worked.

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The $1100 was for a custom fabbed bumper


I should have typed "tools" I'll give you a run down.

One Smith torch kit including rose bud $239
Cart $99.
#75 Acetylene bottle $149.
Gas given free (refill)
#125 Oxygen bottle $199.
Gas given free (refill)

Miller folding welding fab table $257
2 Miller table clamps $39. each

How? I sold my dirt bike ...... :)

Re: Rat repair.
 

I received the step bars today from Stylin trucks, the box was in a Fed Ex war, ripped, taped and taped some more, there was a hole in it that got taped too, inside surprisingly all the powder coated parts look fine even tho the small parts were floating around with little to no packing, just in plastic bags, No instructions or owners paperwork at all. The hardware bag had a tear in it and I've accounted for everything but (4) 3/16 spacers, no picture of what these spacers look like..

There units are heavier than i thought, but they look pretty nice.

I found the install PDF on line but not enough detail.

Their call center is in Cuba, had no fun calling the first time so we'll see how that go's. Guess that's the price you pay for finding the lowest price on the net. :)


I know i need to order the cab metal too and really need to get that taken care of before i install these, maybe i should have waited but was afraid if i waited too long they may quit making them.

Re: Rat repair.
 

I did get gas in the tank, swapped the fuel lines at the fuel pump and now i have it running on the tank! i hooked up the sending wire and it appears to be working as well, it went from 1/4 tank to almost empty when i fired it up.

So the rat was starting to run pretty badly for a while now, i thought it was bad gas in the old tank as we have 10% ethanol, i was hoping the new tank and new gas would be a cure all, but it was not to be. It had a pretty bad miss and wouldn't idle so i decided it was time for new plugs and wires, the plugs are probably 5 years old, the wires were installed when i built the engine back about 1995.

I bought a set of Accel cut to length wires because i need to use the fiberglass heat wraps at the plugs. I gotta say i absolutely hate when a plug wire set has the 90 degree boots for the distributor but they supply a straight crimp terminals, if i can find a set of 90 degree crimp terminals i'd buy them and do the wires over, what a pita!

I have used x-acto knifes to cut back the sheathing on plug wires in the past but I had a Bob Vila moment and grabbed one of my "Handi cut" cutters from sears, after cut to length I was able to twist the wire and it did a pretty good job slicing the sheath and not cut the center electrode.

I'm also in serious deliberation on if i should keep these headers or not, i love them and they perform great, but i'm a little tired of having to buy short plugs because the headers are too close and also make changing plugs difficult, i had to make a new plug wrench as i guess i lost the old one, had to cut an old deep well socket and weld a handle on it, I have to access 3 of the plugs from the fender well using a long extension, the rest require my home made wrench to change them out, 2 of them i have to access from under the truck. It would be nice to be able to get all 8 from the top side again. I could use some suggestions on replacement headers that i can access all the plugs from the top and just use a common ratchet, I'm tired of all the climbing in and out of the engine compartment.

Re: Rat repair.
 

Here's my old plugs, i noted that 3 of them under a magnifying glass appear to have developed a space between the insulator and electrode, don't know if maybe this was part of my problem. The truck runs great in all areas of the throttle, but i question if maybe I'm a little lean at cruise throttle setting?

I also did some Ohm testing on my plug wires, A Mallory cut to length set (with 90 degree crimp connectors by the way) I didn't record the readings but some of the short ones registered higher ohm readings than the long ones, kind of allover the place so i figure the heat over the years probably took its toll.

The lighting isn't that good but the darkest were 7 and 8, 5 is the whitest so took a good closeup of that one. All of them had both dark and light areas.

8 degrees advance with the vacuum line pulled from the carb, carb port plugged, idle set at 830-840, it does jump a little.

Note: back to my last post about the headers, i have no way of doing a compression test unless i remove them.

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So a few posts back i mentioned getting a torch and fab table by selling my dirt bike. so the first oxy/acct cart i got seemed too small for the oxy bottle, so i called the welding supply place and told them i thought it was a little small, the guy said i should have gotten the next size up, so i take the cart which i assembled back and they give me a different cart in a box, i take it home and assemble it and this cart appears too big for the acct bottle.. sigh.. I know i could cab up some brackets but really? Maybe i should have checked out that cart at HF for 1/2 the price, its last day of being on sale is tomorrow.

I pic of my new fab table, its a folding unit and has a couple wheels in the frame to allow for moving it when folded, no casters for when its set up. Nice solid 3/16 top so should be pretty flat. kinda heavy but I'm sick and tired of trying to weld stuff on top of an step stool while sitting on an egg crate. Not shown is the two clamps that work in the slots on the table.

Re: Rat repair.
 

Nice looking torch setup and welding table.

Re: Rat repair.
 

Here's my HF cart. Your oxygen tank looks taller than mine. I don't know if they are still carrying this one or not, but thought I'd throw the pic on here in case it helped.

Re: Rat repair.
 

Thanks for posting the pic. That bottle is one size smaller, I asked the welding supply place today and they said that for cutting and rose bud work the cylinders I have are a close match. For brazing and gas welding your set is a closer match as far as lasting about the same time.

I showed them both pictures and said I totally understand why they gave me these size bottles but I need a cart that works. Then I mentioned that if I had to modify a cart to work I'd rather it was a $50 cart and not a $100 cart, plus the HF cart has big pneumatic wheels. He refunded my money and I got the HF cart. I'll put it together tomorrow and figure out how to mod it.

Re: Rat repair.
 

Famous words.... I should have kept the second cart! Funny how what should have been a one day deal ends up being a week long ordeal.

I looked at the HF display cart and it looked fine, nothing stood out as being bad about it, so i bought one and brought it home, opened the top of the box and grabbed the wheels and axle out of the box, not one tight spoke in the bunch, way out of true ect, so i spent 2 hours pulling the tires and truing the rims as best as possible, got to say these are some cheesy rims!

The next morning i pull the rest of the cart out of the box, i could not believe what i was looking at, nothing looked square, nothing looked symmetrical, it leaned to one side, i debated on returning it but after spending 2 hours with the rims and tires i said to hell with it i can work with it. almost regret that decision, but after a couple days of work (about 5-6 hours) i got it into a usable state.

I had to cut the bottom plate out, square the main frame, reposition one of the front tubes on the main frame and bend the front tubes to be somewhat close to each other. The bottom pan was warped and also oil canned, i was able to get the oil canning out and massage the to 90* bends to get it somewhat flat but it still has a bit of a crown, weld the pan back in and then get all 4 legs so it sits flat on each leg. add a piece of square tubing to support the acct bottle, the re slot the axle mounting holes on one side..

The handle had not one bend close to each other, wouldn't even bolt up without bending it, i ended up removing 1/4" from the center of the handle, then massage all the bends to make it fairly square then weld it back together.

Tomorrow I'm going to take another piece of square stock and cut a couple curves into it and put a hole in the center, take a piece of ready rod and make a bolt to screw the bottles tight.

Hopefully i can get to that rear bumper pretty soon.