Penny

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by straight6chevyguy

Well if you put in a new tank a least you wont have to worry about pulling any crud from it.
I had that issue with my 65, kept cruding up the carb and filter. gonna have to pull the tank out and try and clean it out.

I'm thinking a bunch of rust particles have clogged up the sending unit sock because last time I tried to run the engine, it acted like it ran out of gas and then there was a high pitch whistle coming from the fuel tank area. It was weird.

The good news though, I am spoiled by having Auto Metal Direct just an hour and a half from home. We drive by their warehouse almost every time we go up to our family property, so my dad stopped in to pick up a new tank for me earlier this week. Hopefully I'll be able to get that swapped out in the next couple of weeks

[cwcarpenter98]

Well, well, well, look who decided to work on his truck this evening...

Yup, you read that right. I'm back to working on my trucks again.

This evening's activities consisted of yanking the carb off again and then completely disassembling it for cleaning and new gaskets and such. I did make one mistake though. I twisted the head off one of the throttle blade screws, so now I get to figure out how to fix that problem. I'm wondering if it'll be easier to just acquire another throttle shaft if I can't get the remnants of that screw out

[Getter-Done]

Originally Posted by cwcarpenter98

Well, well, well, look who decided to work on his truck this evening...

Yup, you read that right. I'm back to working on my trucks again.

This evening's activities consisted of yanking the carb off again and then completely disassembling it for cleaning and new gaskets and such. I did make one mistake though. I twisted the head off one of the throttle blade screws, so now I get to figure out how to fix that problem. I'm wondering if it'll be easier to just acquire another throttle shaft if I can't get the remnants of that screw out

I would try small center punch if possible.
Then a left-hand drill that Size.

This will reverse the screw out.

A magnified glass will help.

You need to be on center For Sure.

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by Getter-Done

I would try small center punch if possible.
Then a left-hand drill that Size.

This will reverse the screw out.

A magnified glass will help.

You need to be on center For Sure.

I tried some vice grips already, so might have screwed up on being able to use a left hand drill. Going to investigate it more tomorrow

[cwcarpenter98]

Took the day off work today and got a bunch of stuff done. Switched out the gas bottle for my welder, acquired some welding consumables, new screws for the throttle blades, and a bucket of carb cleaner.

I ended up trying to drill the broken screw and extract, but I missed the center just a smidge. Whoops. So I did the next best thing: drilled all the way through and tapped the next screw size up. Thankfully, that worked so I got all the parts dipped and cleaned up. I don't believe the carb had ever been apart as it still had the plugs over the idle mixture screws.

Looks like a somewhat dry morning tomorrow but raining a bunch on Sunday. I plan to try dropping the gas tank in the morning and then finish putting the carb back together on Sunday.

[cwcarpenter98]

I forgot to post this yesterday. Dropped the tank yesterday morning and might have discovered where the misfire is coming from. Looks like years of sitting empty and the fluctuations of the Georgia weather took its toll on the inside.

I'll be getting a new sending unit as well since the float arm was stuck when I pulled the old one out. Thankfully the mounting brackets are still in good shape, just need some fresh paint.

[350TacoZilla]

If you have anyone local with a good size tractor you can clean that tank pretty easy redneck style.

1. flush current junk out with old gas or bit of new gas.
2. strap tank to rear wheel of tractor
3. put small length of logging chain and half gallon of offroad diesel in tank
4. either put tractor on jack stands or drive it around field for few minutes in 1st and then in reverse.
5. Flush tank and repeat

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by 350TacoZilla

If you have anyone local with a good size tractor you can clean that tank pretty easy redneck style.

1. flush current junk out with old gas or bit of new gas.
2. strap tank to rear wheel of tractor
3. put small length of logging chain and half gallon of offroad diesel in tank
4. either put tractor on jack stands or drive it around field for few minutes in 1st and then in reverse.
5. Flush tank and repeat

If it didn't have a rust hole in the bottom center, I would have considered cleaning it up, but it rusted from the inside out. Plus, a new tank from Auto Metal Direct, whose warehouse is just over an hour north east of me, is only a little over $100. Might as well just start fresh with a clean tank for that price.

[cwcarpenter98]

I have the carb mostly put back together now. Unfortunately, I don't have the correct length rivets for the choke, but I'll probably just tap the housing and use bolts to attach the choke.

I also got some new parts for Christmas that I'll be installing once they show up and once the weather warms up some. New grille, headlight bezels, and turn signal assemblies are on the way. New tail light assemblies and front marker lights are waiting on the weather to warm up a smidge before I dig into that.

I also have the correct sending unit now, so I'll be able to get that in the new tank and get that back in the truck. I would like to paint the tank though, but it's still going to be cold this week and when it starts to warm up, rain comes with. Not sure what I'm going to do about that one, I'll figure it out eventually

[gmtech68]

Usually the rivets come in the carb kit but you need a spacer on the pin to space the gun away from the head of the rivet. Most older carburetor choke screws are self-threading and the right size.
Believe it or not, most of the "pollution junk" on the engine is needed. The EFE valve controls the heat riser valve. That needs a thermal vacuum switch. The heat riser valve dictates whether exhaust is directed under the carburetor for faster and smoother warmup. The vacuum motor on the air cleaner snorkel and the pipe that brings warm air from the manifold are important. Warm air is needed to keep the ventures from freezing off in cool damp weather. I learned this the hard way. Lots of smog era engines will ping without the EGR valve working. About the only thing I might try to bypass is the vacuum delay for the distributor.
I can't wait to see this build. I like how you work!

[cwcarpenter98]

The weather was quite nice today, so I took the opportunity to paint the new gas tank. I probably could've been fine with just leaving it gray, but I wanted it black to make it not stand out as much.

Also got the carb back on the engine while waiting for paint to dry. I just tapped the holes for the choke and had some screws here at the house that worked. Once I get the tank installed, I'll see how bad my rebuild went and then either try again, or try to source a Quadrajet and attempt to rebuild that.

New year, same rusty truck projects and same front yard paint booth

[cwcarpenter98]

Well that was a fight that I didn't really win...
I hate the mounting system for squarebody tanks. Unless the brackets are tightened down in just the right spot before trying to bolt to the frame, none of the bolts will line up. Also the hole in the frame rail isn't big enough for a socket to fit through to tighten the straps.

I do have to pull the tank back down to paint the brackets and straps and repair the wiring for the sending unit, but I also need to make sure the engine runs good and the transmission shifts before I spend a bunch of money for wiring

[cwcarpenter98]

Oofta, it's been awhile.
Had to retake my last CPA exam this past Monday, so most of my time outside of work was spent studying. I'll find out the results from that in a couple weeks.

Since I don't have to study for at least a couple weeks, I was finally able to get back to work on Penny. Some parts came in last weekend, so I've now got several boxes of parts that need to be installed.

I picked up a new fuel pump today and installed without a problem, but I've still got a misfire and the engine won't stay running unless it has a little throttle input. The battery hasn't enjoyed the cold weather recently either, so it wasn't happy this afternoon and I threw in the towel on Penny with a little daylight left to do some work on Frankentruck.

Maybe I'll work on Penny some tomorrow, but haven't decided yet.

Enjoy some pictures of the fleet

[Jimbo0076]

Keep it up! Truck is coming along nicely. Love old slot mags on just about everything.

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by Jimbo0076

Keep it up! Truck is coming along nicely. Love old slot mags on just about everything.

I love them as well! Hopefully the weather will cooperate and I'll be able to figure out the misfire

[cwcarpenter98]

We have had a lot of rain lately and with working tax season hours, I haven’t had much opportunities to work on Penny.

However, I’m still collecting parts. My friend went to a junkyard yesterday and found a front sway bar from a 1 ton square. I got a 1.25” front bar on Frankentruck from that same junkyard a couple years ago, so of course I had to get one for Penny. The best part is that the bar was only $20

[kitsbeach]

Its looking nicer as it gets cleaner Chris.!

Regarding the weak shifting it could be the vacuum modulator on the transmission (I think that is what it is called). Depends what transmission it is. Sometimes they need replaced or the vacuum line leading to them is the problem.

Just an idea...keep up the good work.

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by kitsbeach

Its looking nicer as it gets cleaner Chris.!

Regarding the weak shifting it could be the vacuum modulator on the transmission (I think that is what it is called). Depends what transmission it is. Sometimes they need replaced or the vacuum line leading to them is the problem.

Just an idea...keep up the good work.

Yeah, that vacuum line is probably shot. I've got a whole roll of new line, so I should be good to go, just need to actually get out there and do it. It's a th350

[cwcarpenter98]

I did a compression test on the numbers matching 305 today. Happy to report that I have fairly consistent numbers. The lowest cylinder was 145, the highest was 160. Most were around 145 to 150.

What I can infer from that is the misfire is probably not from any stuck valves or piston rings, but rather from something in the ignition system or carburetor related.

Before I did the compression test, I started the engine. It started up ok after a little starter fluid (haven't tried to run it in several weeks) and did seem to want to idle even with the miss, but after maybe a minute of idle time without any input from me, the idle kept slowing down until the engine completely cut off. Not sure what's going on there, but wouldn't be surprised if it's something wrong with the carb that I rebuilt

[cwcarpenter98]

I've been working more on getting Frankentruck's transmission rebuilt, but the weather was really nice this afternoon, so I decided to work on Penny a little bit. Double checked the spark plug wires, found them to be good, cleaned off the plugs a smidge, and backed the idle mixture screw off some. Finally, the engine idled, and actually idled fairly well. I definitely still need to do some more tuning, but actually can now that it will stay running for longer than 5 minutes. More progress sooner rather than later hopefully

[Greenlee]

Nice work and nice score on the wheels!

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by Greenlee

Nice work and nice score on the wheels!

Thanks! The wheels are my favorite part. I've always wanted a set of slots, but never had the opportunity to acquire a full set for my 63. Since I needed two wheels for the 81, it made sense to find a set of slots

[cwcarpenter98]

Spent all afternoon trying to make the truck run better with no success.

Replaced lots of vacuum lines, still didn't help. Noticed that the accelerator pump wasn't returning quick enough, so took the top of the carb off to attempt to fix that. The seal was too tight and keeping it from going back up. Put it back together, started running again, and then it died.

Well, apparently, I messed up bad by not putting the distributor hold down clamp on properly. Yup, the distributor popped out of the hole and now my timing is royally screwed up. Tried to get it back together, but I can't find TDC on plug one. My attempt at it failed and now the truck won't even fire off.

Throwing in the towel for today and I'll try again next weekend if the weather is nice.

[cwcarpenter98]

Spent all afternoon trying to make the truck run better with no success.

Replaced lots of vacuum lines, still didn't help. Noticed that the accelerator pump wasn't returning quick enough, so took the top of the carb off to attempt to fix that. The seal was too tight and keeping it from going back up. Put it back together, started running again, and then it died.

Well, apparently, I messed up bad by not putting the distributor hold down clamp on properly. Yup, the distributor popped out of the hole and now my timing is royally screwed up. Tried to get it back together, but I can't find TDC on plug one. My attempt at it failed and now the truck won't even fire off.

Throwing in the towel for today and I'll try again next weekend if the weather is nice.

[cwcarpenter98]

I know what’s wrong with it, it ain’t got no gas in it!

Yup, once again, I didn’t have enough gas in the tank. Finally got the timing set right and played with the idle mixture screws. Still need to mess with the fast idle settings a smidge, but I was able to cruise around the neighborhood this evening. Dad’s old Sears timing light helped bring the 305 right back around. Currently seems to be running decent with 10* of initial timing and I have all the vacuum lines hooked up except for the charcoal canister as some of the plastic vacuum parts were chewed through by the rats.

Also tested the emergency brake and it worked! All the brakes work even after sitting for 20 years in a field. Didn’t even have to bleed the brakes!

Unfortunately, I believe I know why Penny was put out to pasture so many years ago. Reverse has a fair amount of slippage when any decent amount of throttle is applied. Now I have to decide to either have the th350 rebuilt, or swap to a 5 speed manual (either s10 5 speed or drop the coin on a new tremec tkx 5 speed). Decisions, decisions

http://youtu.be/dd6LK8zkC60