Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Ben, if you have any kind of garage, I heat it up with whatever kind of heater you can get while you prep, Epoxy needs a 30 min kick off time. Git 'er good and warm, kick the door open enough to get a fan under it, and shoot. Let it air out, fire up the heaters and close the door. Works great especially if you're priming. Good luck!

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Chip (it is Chip,right?)
I tried using a propane heater, the wife and kids complained of the fumes, so doing this at my place probably won't happen. I'm looking at priming it at my Uncles place, if he will allow it. I'm sure he some reservations about over spray, masking,etc.....guess we will have to wait and see.
Thanks for the advice.
Ben:metal:

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

That's me- the salamanders are some fumey things for sure. I use the Mr heater types, only notice a thing when they've been on several hours. Love em. Good luck at your uncle's!

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Vic,
Just pulled the trigger on my rotating assembly, 383 stroker (Scat 6.0 rods) I opted for the better rods, 7/16" cap screws, more clearance especially for the lumpy Cam shaft:lol: Should be here Friday, then it's off to Clay County Engine rebuilders for Machine work! Yeah!:metal: My block is a standard bore, so .030" over, probably going to have them align hone the mains just to be sure. so, truckin' right along.....now to find a shop to primer my cab and other sheet metal and get this rolling!
Have a good one!
Ben:metal:

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Sounds great, Ben, ought to be a thumper! I'd only have the machine shop align hone if it really needs it, as is the case sometimes when you sleeve a block or upgrade to four bolt mains. Generally speaking it doesn't require it and often causes the timing chain to run a little loose ...even with modern methodology. I'm sure CCER can advise you on whether it's needed or not. Good luck and post some pics after the primer is laid down.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Vic,
I talked to them this morning, they said they would do a check, and advise first. gonna have them balance everything, as well as do the stroker clearancing. I can handle the rest. ordered my 2200-2500 Rpm stall converter today as well, now If I can only get my brother in law to finish my 700R4.......:banghead: he is supposedly bringing it with him for Thanksgiving..... we'll see.
Have a good one!
Ben:metal:

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Woohoo! Congrats!

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Vic,
Any updates on your CRLS ?:metal:
Ben

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Not much, Ben, just blocking the most recent coats of 2K primer. It's amazing the tiny little places that jump out during this process. Working filler and Slick Sand down only gets you about 50% of the way to a basecoat ready surface.

Last weekend, Mike Myers (texasld) dropped in on a visit from Dallas and showed me a photo of a slick wooden beam he built to pick up the cab with a cherry picker. After the bodywork is finished, I'm going to rig one up to drop the cab on the frame. Makes it a one or two man operation instead of a neighborhood deal.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Vic,
That sounds very interesting, can you share the plans?;) glad you are making strides in the body work.
Have a good Day!
Ben:metal:

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Vic, you are truly talented in your work my friend. I thank you for the hospitality this past weekend. (His wife made us lunch!) The truck is really awesome. The air ride setup location is super slick. This is going to be one H3!! of a truck. Thank you for the bodywork pointers too! Gave me some courage to get started in on.

I only have one picture of the cab lift piece. I got the ideas from here on the board. Here is a shot of it pulling LEON out of the Yoda! I'll try to shoot some more pictures if anyone is interested. I built mine out of some 2x10's I had laying around. 2x6's would work just fine. The entire cab isn't that heavy.

Attachment 1326780

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Thanks for the post, Mike. A picture's worth a thousand words!

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Weekend Update: Bodywork on the cab shell is pretty much complete. Had to remove the doors to finish out the front door pillars, but all my lines and gaps are good. With the scribe and punch marks around the hinges, doors should go right back on after bodywork ...in theory. I wiped down the cab shell inside and out with warm soapy water and dried it with a clean towel. Then taped off next to the places needing seam sealer.

My products of choice for sealing pinch welds and etc. are 3M self leveling seam sealer, 3M sealing strips and an Oatey Fix-It Stick. I mainly use the fixit stick in places where I need a rock hard epoxy that stays put. For example, before mudding up the underside of each upper door jamb, I rolled out some lengths and worked them up into the drip rail pinch welds and so forth. Then after it set up, I used an air angle grinder with a 2" disc to grind it smooth. Makes a perfect base for the plastic filler and will resist cracking better than just filler alone. The self leveling sealer is runny to start with so it oozes down into the pinch welds for a better seal. After about 10 minutes, it's setting up, so if you need to trowel it, better work fast. The 3M sealing strips work best in those hard to get to places like down inside the cowl.

Tomorrow, the cab shell will get a final coat of 2K primer inside and out. Then I'm going to build the wood beam to pick it up with the cherry picker and set it down on the frame. And thus I'll reclaim some much needed floor space.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Woo hoo! Nice work Vic! If I'm off tomorrow I can swing by and save you from having to build the cab lift.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Thanks, Scott, but the cab will need to go on and off more than once, I'm sure. Last time, it took four hefty amigos lifting and Kathy directing traffic to set it in place. I figure Mike's wood contraption will make it an easy two man job. So I'll PM you when I'm ready and we'll work with your schedule.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Sounds good. It's raining so I might not work tomorrow.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Vic your truck is really coming together... I have a question for you... The slot in the interior roof where the mirror would mount, why do you have that cut open there...

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

It's for a map light, Dan. Everybody's got to have map lights and cupholders, right? You can see it at post #398 (and a few previous) on this thread. ;)

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Progress lookin' good!

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Like what you did in the door jambs up top! Anxious to see the drip rails, gotta re-do mine.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Thanks guys! Scott D. came over this evening and helped me set the cab down on the frame. Had a ton of clearance around the transmission, but the tall valve covers with the centerbolt adapters and the chrome ring on top of the HEI were just touching the firewall. Pulled the cab back off and dimpled those areas for some additional clearance. Not wanting to go overboard, I kept the hammering to a minimum and the second fitment was much better; we could now slip a piece of paper between the valve covers and f/w. That won't be enough, however, so we pulled the cab back off. Scott offered to stay later, but I sent him on home and will engineer a solution tomorrow. Standard height valve covers and a non HEI distributor would fit with plenty of room but I'm not willing to go that route. The one bright spot is the wood beam we used to pick up the cab worked like a charm.

:waah:

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Vic, I'm still amazed at how the cab lift works so well. It sure makes it a lot easier on a back.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

I had the same problem with my K20, i bought an HEI and Edelbrock tall valve covers and couldn't use them, come to find out the K20 uses the rear bolt holes for the engine mounts, the C10's and probably the C20's use the front bolt holes.. Go figure. Thats why i ended up with the Mallory unilite.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

From what I've been able to determine, Mike, rear mounts were used for all six cylinders and small blocks with manual transmissions (on C10s at least). Front mounts were used for all big blocks regardless of transmission type and small blocks with automatics. Not sure if this is 100% accurate, but a good rule of thumb.

I made the decision to use the rear mounting holes because I like the look of the engine set back and the improved handling. I modified the firewall / floor to accommodate my automatic transmission. I did the same to my silver '68 and had no issues with the HEI or the valve covers, so I assumed a repeat performance would be okay. I neglected to take into account the added height of the finned covers, plus the added thickness of the adapters that convert the center bolt Vortec heads to a perimeter bolt pattern. Then I added a chrome spark plug wire cover to the top of the HEI which I didn't have on the '68.

So effectively, I could fix the problems by removing the spark plug cover and going to a lower profile set of center bolt valve covers ...or just beat the crap out of the firewall. Well, maybe not that, exactly. But I can put some smooth pockets into the affected areas that will provide the clearance I need without looking too out of place. In for a penny, in for a pound as they say.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

One step forward- two steps back. I'd like to see your process on the dimples. Torch and move the existing metal? Muffin pans? English wheel? I'll be heating up the bacon grease for the popcorn.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Well, I started by making a couple of candidates to graft in where needed, but didn't like either one. So I switched to brute force. I have a modified tool I use in my air hammer. It can move metal with much more precision than a body hammer. I'd already used it to create the initial small dimples so it was just a matter of expanding and deepening the areas. You can see the results below. The deepest one on the left was moving pretty easily towards the last which indicated the metal was borderline overstretched. Or as engineers like to say, "The material was about to exceed its modulus of elasticity and suffer permanent deformation."

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Smoothed out the dimpled areas on the firewall and dropped the cab back on the frame. This time I had an adequate amount of room around the valve covers and HEI, so I left the cab on for now. Need to shim one corner very slightly and then torque the body mounts down before assembling the front clip. With the cab now in place, I could see the stance was not where I wanted it, but that's easily fixed with the air suspension. I let some air out of the back and got the rockers sitting closer to level. No use programming anything in right now until all the weight is on and I can get the truck on level ground. My workshop floor is sloped to a drain in the center, so there's precious few level spots. If you squint real hard, it almost looks like I'm making progress. ;)

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

looks good.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

And this is why i wish i was an experianced gear head! :) I love the valve covers too!

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Looks really good with the cab on it...

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Thanks, guys. Still a long ways to go, but it's getting there.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Mmmmm, bacon flavored popcorn.
Outstanding work as usual, you make it all look so easy while I struggle to do anything on mine.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Vic! YOu have done it agian. Glad to see the lift worked out for you. Your's looks better than mine, though! ;)

Glad to see the cab on the frame. I may steal your idea about painting the drive shaft. I'll be painting mine red, but you get the point.

Cab looks great setting there. Almost like it was made to fit on that frame... Oh yea. :mm:

Wish I was closer so I could lend a hand more often.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Looks suspiciously like a truck! Good show! Wonder how well an assortment of crowns on that air hammer setup would work in a shot bag? Hmmm.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Believe me, there's plenty of struggling going on behind the scenes.
Thx, Mike, appreciate your sharing ideas. And, fortunately, I have several forum members close by that are always ready to lend a hand.
I bet they would work great. I had a HF planishing hammer setup that had several tools with different radii crowns. Never used it so I peddled it at a swap meet awhile back. I reckon you could find just the hammer heads somewhere online. Air hammer really gets after it, though, Have to be careful to not overdo it.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Looks fantastic! How'd you figger the cab needs a little shimming? Where are you pulling those dimensions?

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Hey John, when I set the cab in place the left rear bushing had about a 1/16" gap between the support and the bushing. That's the one that was rotted out and I replaced, so it's possible it's off. I'd prefer to have all four bushings contacting the supports evenly before tightening. Won't really know what it needs until I get the bed and front clip on. I've got the front clip assembled and it's ready to set in place. But Thanksgiving dinner has interrupted the progress.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you! I know I have much to be thankful for.

:flag:

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Happy Thanksgiving to you also Vic. I have a lot to be thankful for too and your really the first one my list to be thankful for.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

Happy Thanksgiving Vic! I count my blessings every day.

Re: Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step
 

With another turkey day in the books, I continued with the front clip assembly. Scott got off work a little early today and came by to help me lift it onto the frame. Slipped right into place, and after bolting it up, the fit looks fantastic for the first go around. I have an excessive gap between the inner fenderwell and the Z support on the firewall. I think (hope) the fastener will draw it up, but don't want to get it into a huge bind since the gaps at the cowl and rockers look so good. If I have to, I'll shim it, but my immediate focus is on getting the leading edge on both front fenders looking better. The repro dies did their usual subpar job and those areas will require a lot of massaging.

Scott and I had some fun putting the air suspension thru its paces. We decided it would look even better by modifying the rubber stops on the rear to give the suspension about another 1.25" of travel. Useless for driving around but will look good parked at a cruise in.