Lurker OrrieG Progress Pics

[renegade6]

Originally Posted by OrrieG

Great. I use the Ebay search with notification, and have gotten some good deals too. Craigs list too. With the economy it looks like there is lots of project stashes being raided. I've also noticed that the junk yard prices have come down too. Is it one of the mill-balled ones?? White or black face guages? I am flip flopping around on the face color, leaning towards black but also thinking white would stand out as being different.

It is a milled face one with five gauges. I got the white because it was a great deal but, I like the looks of the black ones a bit better.

I could always work a trade if you find a good deal on the black ones...

[50adrod]

Originally Posted by renegade6

It is a milled face one with five gauges. I got the white because it was a great deal but, I like the looks of the black ones a bit better.

I could always work a trade if you find a good deal on the black ones...

I bought theese dolphin gauges on e bay also, they were around $280 with the billet bezel and all senders included. the seller swaped the gauges for me to tan faced ones. you can't go wrong for the price.

[OrrieG]

Originally Posted by 50adrod

how do you do this?

Need to be registered with Ebay. Do a search. On the search page is the option to "Save this search" when you click on that a page comes up that asks what you want to call it and notification options. You can get immediate anytime something new is listed (good if the stuff you are looking for is hard to get and you know others are also looking for it), once a day, or never. There may be some other options too. I do the once a day unless its something I really need and want to check for Buy It Now.

[OrrieG]

Originally Posted by 50adrod

I bought theese dolphin gauges on e bay also, they were around $280 with the billet bezel and all senders included. the seller swaped the gauges for me to tan faced ones. you can't go wrong for the price.

That is a nice set and super deal. Tan faces, something else to think about. Also FWIW Harbor Freight is having a big sale here next week. Good for disposable and seldom used stuff, not so good for production work tools.

[nuke1]

OrrieG, just a piece of advice, on you steering comumn linkage, make sure that the two u-joints are in sync, ie: that the u-joints are inline. your bottom one is out by a 1/4 turn, not trying to make you mad, just trying to help, i do love the genius way of splitting the two shafts and making them wokd though, great job so far.

[OrrieG]

Thanks. They are in the same relative position as stock unless I got the them turned 180 degrees. All of the shafts are "D" type so they can't get turned 1/4 (90 degree turn). I will check it again against the before pictures and see what is up. You question is one reason I am doing detailed posts, I like having other eyes critically looking at what I am doing. I run my office the same way, if we screw up people get hurt, everyone back checks everyone elses work.

Later: I looked at the pictures, I think it might be the camera angle, I'll check tomorrow and let you know what I find.

Next day: Just finished pining the parts together, it is synced right, photo is deceptive because of angle of upper joint. It turns freely with the wheels off the ground with no binding of jerky spots.

Thanks again Nuke for the concern, I do appreciate it. Patrick

[50adrod]

Originally Posted by OrrieG

Need to be registered with Ebay. Do a search. On the search page is the option to "Save this search" when you click on that a page comes up that asks what you want to call it and notification options. You can get immediate anytime something new is listed (good if the stuff you are looking for is hard to get and you know others are also looking for it), once a day, or never. There may be some other options too. I do the once a day unless its something I really need and want to check for Buy It Now.

thanks, I have been on e bay since '99. love that place, and have saved tons of money by using it

[OrrieG]

I started around that time too, when it was little known. For about three years my wife and I made really good money buying at yard and estate sales and selling on ebay. Then around 2003-4 after ebay made it easier to post photos and you could write ads in plain text everyone started doing it. Now you can't find anything good because its already been put on ebay. I have been pulling car parts I have from the 70's and listing them and doing ok. Probably my most interesting story is buying Army shelter halves "pup-tents" at an estate sale that the guy had for painting tarps for $1 a piece. I knew they were at least pre WWII. When I put them on Ebay the bidding went crazy. I got requests for detailed photos of the snaps, stitching and some other markings on them. They had came from the U.S Army Guard unit here in Boise as surplus in the 1950's. A museum in Oregon bought them and told me that they were the only known ones left from Roosevelts Rough Riders unit that assaulted San Juan hill, the buttons and unit markings were unique to that unit and that campaign. They sold for over $200.00!

[OrrieG]

OrrieG's money saving project #1: Shifter Cable.

Problem is shift rod will interfere with brake pedal. Ididit and Lokar have solutions for $145 and $120 dollars. But here is my solution using a B&M 5' replacement cable ($40 at Schucks), B&M bracket and shift arm assembly ($20 online) and my bracket (free!) and misc. hardware ($5 because I like the chrome recessed hex stuff). The trans end is per B&M instructions. Upper required drilling a hole in the original shift arm (all the extra arm will be removed when I pull the column for painting). A nylon sleeve and stainless shoulder bolt give it play). Also, the distance from the center of the steering shaft to connection point has to be the same as the length of the trans shift arm.

NOTE: In the photos below the arm on the trans needs to be 180 degree, rod attacked on the top. See later posts.

[OrrieG]

Money saver #2: Master cylinder door.

These are $45 at most of the reproduction places, my cost was $3 (piano hinge would have been $6 but I had a piece). Tricks are rounded corners for hole (squares cut set up stress points to crack) and thumb screw with capture fitting. I will finish the hole with a piece of split vaccum hose to act as a gasket. Also a picture of my trans cover, square hole is old trans shifter location.

[JML55]

Very nice work.

[solidaxel]

Thanks for the tip on the shifter cable.

[OrrieG]

I switched out my avatar for an older picture. This one was taken in 1985 right after the first 4wd conversion. Wife was cute is that 80's perm. It also still had a shine to the paint. heres a bigger version

[sgtusmc]

Hats off to ya OrrieG. That's some very clean work there.

[discodadee]

I really like those original wheels Orrie, am I correct in assuming those are the factory '59 rims on the '70s axles? And did you have to modify the fronts to fit over the locking hubs at all? Or did they just bolt right on? And what size tire is that? I have a '57 GMC I'm working on sitting on an eighties chassis and love the look of those old-school wheels with the tall skinny tires!!

[OrrieG]

Here is one 23 years later! I used it for a second spare. I wanted the knarlly stock look I remembered from the stock 4wd trucks the logger drove in the 60's. I think they are the wheels that came with the 74 running gear. The codes on the wheel is K-1-2 and CZ. The first is November 1971, 2nd shift. I couldn't find the CZ code online. I ran them because they are wider than the stock wheels. I tried 9.00 x 16 but had clearance issues in the front. The tire size on it is 7.00 x 16 Zenith Ultra Traction Lug. Lots of traction, but lots of noise and they were the old bias not radials. When they wore out I got 225/75/16 all weather tread which are about the same height but no noise or thump when cold. They have the center raised cap retainer, not clips. I was going to run dog dish caps but never got around to it, just tuned up the white paint with Rustoleum every few years. There were no fit issues since they are the same year range as the axles. I just noticed this one has tube, but that was so I could repair them back in the sticks if necessary. The ones with radials mounted fine without tubes.

Later: I have some stock 59 rims and can check them on the 74 axles if you want me to.

[discodadee]

Don't bother! You more than answered my question and hit that '60's logger look perfectly! Not too mention getting my hands on some early '70's rims should be much easier than original style fifties rims...right now I'm rolling some el cheap-o '80's chrome rims that are more rust than chrome and look super generic (but not in a good way...)

[OrrieG]

Lazy weekend. Worked on the trans cooler. In 85 I got a cooling condenser out of a small HVAC unit and had a contractor friend braze on some barb fittings. I ran high temp hoses to the trans, it worked fine. I decided to move it to the frame rail under the passenger floor well, I figure it is large enough to work there. If it heats up I left room for a fan. Took about 2 hours to straighten out all the fins, a couple more to decide how to plumb it (flare vs. ??) ended up decidiing to extend the 3/8" copper and use the barbs with short hoses at the trans. That will give me some flexibility. I made up the frame mounts, it will mount to the top or the frame when I pull the cab for final blocking.

[OrrieG]

Spent Saturday making a cardboard mock up of box for behind the seat only to confirm that it would be useless, 5" wide x 18" deep. Now looking at just matching the curved line of the cab and portable storage or speaker boxes. Bolted on the radiator support and inner panels, cut out for the ps lines and steeriing column. Also started mocking up the shroud. The "new" radiator is out of a 1.5 ton truck. Its 1" thicker and 24" wide, much larger than the old 1/2 ton one.

[OrrieG]

Attacked the front clip, got everything stripped, rust welded up in the driver fender and a few other small parts. Cleaned the garage so I can shoot some etch prime and chassis black. Tedious but progress.

[GRIMSS]

Looking good, wish I was at that point.

[renegade6]

Originally Posted by OrrieG

More photos....last one is of the shop and my daily driver...

Where did you buy your front shock mounts?

[OrrieG]

Originally Posted by renegade6

Where did you buy your front shock mounts?

I fabbed them out of 1/8" angle. Got to do it twice, the first time the geometry was wrong and they would not compress correctly with the suspension travel.

[mylow53]

doing it twice been there done that i just call the first pass R n D.... i love that you would rather "fab it" than "Buy it" makes your truck yours!
GT

[OrrieG]

Originally Posted by mylow53

doing it twice been there done that i just call the first pass R n D.... i love that you would rather "fab it" than "Buy it" makes your truck yours!
GT

Fabbing is the fun part for me, goes back to my millwright apprentice days. I just wish I had better equipment, a 4' metal brake/shear would be heaven for me. I finally broke down and got a 12" metal chop saw with a good blade, makes a big difference time wise!