Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Yes, I will post the root cause once we know for sure....

Thanks, yes we thought backfire but the more I think about it I'm leaning toward a stuck open injector that caused a hydro-lock. I will know more tomorrow when we retrace wiring and test the injectors.

Thank you, of all he things that crossed my mind during the start up this was not one of them....I really took my time an thought I had all bases covered (guess not)...

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Glad you showed that...I've never seen or heard of anyone e having that issue...
If it is hydrolocked be careful...a guy I work with had that happen to him..they took the plugs out and cranked it over...blew the gas out of the cylinder..that immediately ignited and burnt his truck up..

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Nice that you are getting it fixed. I’ve seen this issue more than once. The aluminum mockup block I have was torn down because of the same problem.

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Will do..There will be no cranking it over with spark until two things happen first
1 - The block it fixed so I can remount the starter
2- We determine the root cause.

Yes I felt a little better after it happened and jumping on the internet for some quick research to see it was more common than I knew.

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Update

It was a hydro-lock that caused the issues with my starter. The #7 injector (which I sent out to have it cleaned and tested) is the root cause. It sprays all the time. The #7 cylinder filled with gas causing the Hydro-lock when trying to fire the motor. I does feel goo to know what happened. I'm glad it was not something stupid I did.

The new stater is here. New injector in route. Waiting for my friend to weld my block back together.....Then another test fire. Hopefully with less excitement.

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

wow.....that's crazy....I thought you were gonna be all good by having the injectors rebuilt

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

yikes!

I had that happen on a TBI 4.3 engine where the injectors needed rebuilt, i didnt break a starter mount but it did refuse to turn. sorry to hear of the problem! I hydrolocked a bmw once in a big puddle and the #3 con rod looked like a salvador dali painting. difference between 0 rpm and ~2000 rpm!

glad you got it figured out, especially the block welding!

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Yeah me too. On my 48, I started it with dirty injectors then sent them out to be cleaned later. I thought I was doing a much better job this time around having clean injectors to start with...who knew.

Yes Hydro-locking a motor in full revolution has much a more costly outcome.

Thanks, just a bump in the road...

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

I did make some headway on my cooling system. I got the radiator mounted and the Cooling Components 2 speed fan mounted. All that is left is to make a mount for the condenser. The clearances look closer in the pics than in reality. I have about 1.5" to the closest pulley. Not bad for a 4 core radiator and a sucker fan.

My hose set up will be easy which it nice. My lower hose I can get away with a 1.75 dia - 1.5 dia 45 degree elbow. The upper hose will consist of (2) 90 degree elbows and a piece of 1.5" SS pipe that I will paint black. Similar set up to my 48.

Thanks
Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Hey Marc, looks really good.

Just a suggestion, when I put my new rad in the old cradle, it is a tight fit, so, to avoid running a long bolt into a side tank of the rad when attaching the fenders, I welded the 2 bolts to the rad cradle,so the fenders will slide onto the studs, and then I will add the washers and nuts.

You can see the 2 studs in this pic.

I found that assembling the front sheet metal can be a bit finicky to line everything up, and this made it easier. ..... just a suggestion, as your work looks great

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Thanks, that's pretty slick. I will have to look into that. I will have to repaint my cradle anyway once I complete the condenser mount to the front so if I have to weld studs now would be the time.

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Man that stance with the wheels is killer...Great job!!! Love the patina too.

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Thanks man..These wheels(20's) are just my rollers. I plan to buy a set of 22" US Mags soon...I already have the rubber.

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Big is good, bigger is better, and TOO big is just right! :metal:

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Which US Mags did you go with?

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

I haven't pulled the trigger yet but I'm strongly considering these.

I plan to powder coat them fully to de-bling them.

That's where my head is at currently.

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Those would look really good.

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Hey man... Vic has to many cars / trucks. Have him sell me the 55 :lol:

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Funny when I read your comment, I thought How does he know Vic..I forgot about my earlier post....I'm trying to talk him into bagging it with a GSI chassis. I'm great at spending other peoples money.


Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

I have been putting in time on Coopers OBS Blazer so I have not been working on my the Suburban. Plus I'm still waiting on my buddy to glue my block back together. I did go out last night to work on it a little. it is funny how you have a plan when you are constantly working on something. Step away for a bit and you loose track of what's next....

One aspect of my last build that I was not fond of was the wiring (which I was responsible for). That truck had SO MANY circuits. I figured a little better preplanning will go a long way. I installed a removeable panel to mount most of the circuit boards to. I drilled a hole and inserted a grommet for a wire pass thru.

I also ran out at lunch an grabbed a small section of SS 1.5" tube to complete my cooling hoses. I will paint it satin black at some point. For the lower hose I was able to use a 1.75" - 1.5" 90 degree elbow. It worked great.

Thank you
Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Looking good...Jim

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

I worked on finishing up my gas tank vent. I purchased the vent off eBay. I had to build a small bracket to attach to an existing bolt from my Porterbuilt set up.
I like how it turned out, tucked up and out of the way.

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Nice vent Marc ...do you have a link to it?...I've got one for mine but I'm not liking it..

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

The vent looks good. Much better than the PVC one I built.

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Thanks Jim

Here you go. This one is sold out but other people are selling them

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Holley-Perf...53.m1438.l2649

Thank you. I'm picky. I looked at a bunch of different ones before buying his one.

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

I worked on my AC condenser. You ever notice that when you move one thing, three things down the line then need to be modified. This is where we are at with mounting the condenser. Since I pushed my radiator forward for more clearance with the front of the engine my brackets that held the condenser and dryer would no longer fit.

I added to horizontal supports. I installed nutserts to bolt the condenser to. I also chopped up the Vintage Air brackets so I could repurpose it to mount the dryer to my modified core support. It all turned out great. A little touch up paint and we are in business.

Thanks
Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Thanks Marc..!...for the link..

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

I enjoy seeing your work, very nice and clean.

Keep it going, and thanks for sharing

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Thanks, I try....much appreciated!!

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

My fabricator friends made it over on Sunday to glue the broken starter tab back on the block. He ordered some special rod and it worked great on this repair. It had lower melting point so we didn't need to heat the area so much. I'm purposely not grinding the welds smooth as I want as much material as possible. I think the repair turned out great (all things considered)

Last night I re-tapped the starter bolt threads, installed the new starter, hooked up a bunch of misc. wires and pulled the plugs. I cycled the motor without any plugs to push the gas out of the #7 cylinder which caused the hydro lock. Gas shot across the garage. I was not prepared for that. Now I know why they say make sure you have no power going to the coils as it could easily cause a fire.

Later this week I will attempt to test fire the motor (again)

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

that shooting gas is what got my coworkers truck burnt to the ground...glad you didn't have any sparks...

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Marc, repair looks great, hope next start will fire right up and run...Jim

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

nice repair, a coat of paint and no one will ever know.

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

I can believe it. Yes. I made sure to unplug the main feeds that power the coils.

Marc

Thxs, I hope so...I just have to get my nerve up to try it again. I didn't want to rush it last night. I made some good progress.

Thank you...

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Hi Marc. Really like your build.

Just wanted to make a comment about the hydro lock in your engine. Check your oil before you fire it up. I had that happen to me years ago while I was at work one day. Forgot to switch off electric fuel pump. Pulled the plugs and cranked the engine and gas shot out the #7 cylinder also. What I want to say is that enough gas had gotten past the rings and drained into the oil pan. It was an hour drive home so I had to get new oil and filter and change it in the parking lot at work. Made for a long day. Your oil might be ok but I would check for gas before starting.

Earl

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Thanks Earl. I don't think it contaminated my oil. We did check the dip stick and we also stuck noses down the fill spout to see if we smelled any gas in the oil. Did you drain your oil to check it? How did you know your oil was contaminated?

Thanks
Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

As much as it pained me to drain $40 worth of synthetic oil with no run time, it was the right call. The oil did have a gas smell to it when I drained it. After everything I went thru with the first test fire I wanted to take all precautions.

Test fire #2 coming this weekend.

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Good luck..!!

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

Thanks Greg..hoping for the best.

Marc

Re: 53 Surburban "Family Truckster"
 

I wish I had a successful test fire to report.....but I don't. I'm closer. It sounds like it wants to fire off but something is not quote right. Not sure what the deal is. I will trouble shoot and I will call BP Automotive tomorrow to make sure I have it wired correctly....

I did make some progress on a design for a tranny cover. I didn't need a really tall one but it needed to be wide enough to mount my custom shift boot billet trim ring to. I will powder coated or paint the trim ring satin black at some point. I'm happy how it turned out. I started with a paper board template. Then I transferred to metal and bent it up (by hand). I just need to bend the top to match the radius of the sides and welded it up. This piece will be bolted to the floor and firewall. I will body work and paint this the satin color that my interior is painted. I figured it would be different than most plus it will aid in laying the carpet as I wont have to go up and over this cover..

Marc