Our barn find

[nlped]

This would solve any & all steering, suspension & traction issues

http://www.artmorrison.com/55-57chev.php

[davischevy]

Not that it matters Daddy'O but I'm watching.

I can't help with the electronics, mine is carbureted.

With a 5.3 and highway gears I can't imagine needing traction bars.

Art Morrison is definitely the way to go.

If you are moving the springs anyway, and concerned about wheel hop, I would look at a four link coil over set up.

[davischevy]

We need an update Wayne.

[Daddy'O]

You're right Larry. We've been really busy and I haven't had time to post. Hope to be able to early next week.

[Daddy'O]

Sorry for the lack of updates - been a busy guy the last few weeks.

We got a lot of parts ordered and delivered. Got most of the interior stripped out. We will need some floor pan and toe board repair. You can see in the pictures someone was here before me.

Next step is to remove the headliner and windlace then I will start the floor repair and add seat belt anchors to the B pillars. Then I will separate the body from the frame and get working on the chassis.

[Daddy'O]

More pics -

[Daddy'O]

And finally, our motivational parts - 5.3/4L60E -

[flashed]

That is quite an update ,lots of parts and a great looking engine .The floor pan dont look all that bad and you got plenty of room to work in there .

[Dieselwrencher]

Nice parts collection! The floors look great other than that. That's good news!

[Advanced Design]

Moving along really well! You all have been busy and engine is looking good in orange.

[davischevy]

The good news is there are some good floor patch panels available. I replaced most of the floors in my Nomad and I actually enjoyed it. It was rewarding seeing all that rust gone.

Charge on.

[Advanced Design]

Originally Posted by Daddy'O

I’ve seen others in this location too but for some reason it concerns me. Have you had any issue with the elements, mainly water? Would you mind posting a pic? Thank you Doug.

Wayne, I didn't forget your request. Yesterday I finally got the 56 out an on the lift. I didn't pull the close out panel down as it is a real bugger to get in and out. Basically we made a couple of straps and strapped over the PCM, bolting the PCM down to the panel. Nothing fancy, just functional. There was one PCM failure at about 1,500 miles. Now up to 5,000 miles with no problems.

I also took a couple pics of the oil pan too. The Holley pans weren't out yet so I modified an F car pan. The deep cut back on the sump is because the center link moves back almost that much when turning. Yeah, I know the drain sticking straight down is a risk and kinda goofy.

So, I had a used Holley 302-1 pan and checked for fit. If the engine was up in the front another inch or if I notched the center crossmember a bit it will work. Pretty sure the 302-2 pan's sump will contact the center link when turning.

Hope you all are doing well! Any wagon updates?

[Daddy'O]

Hey Doug!

I’m still not sure where I’ll located the ECU and I appreciate the photos as they do help.

We are making progress on the wagon. We decided on wheel/tire comb and even tried to match the body color with some powder coating. It didn’t work – the color mismatch was too much for me and for Dee. So, we’re going to keep it simple for now with a satin black wheel and dog dish hub caps. Got a few more parts in…our loft is looking like a storage area for a big disassembled Revell model kit.

Working on rust repair on the inner tail gate skin now and will move to the floor pans next.

Sorry for the lack of updates. The last two months or so have been crazy. Dee had a minor fender bender in the Expedition – no one hurt – except for Dee’s pride. Some good friends in Howe Texas suffered severe damage/loss from a tornado on April 26th – so we’ve spent some time helping them. May brought a trip to the Vicari car auction in Nocona Texas and a trip to Rogers Arkansas for a niece’s graduation. The end of May through June brought a lot of visitors to the ranch – kids, grandkids, and even a mini family reunion – all of Dee’s cousins on her Dad’s side came to visit – her Dad will turn 88 in August – so it was real nice to see them able to visit.

The main reason for no updates is a lightning strike from a severe thunder storm killed the internet access at home. Work allows minor personal usage but is mostly frowned on…so not much posting for me . We live in a lower area and cannot get service with area wireless companies due to no line of sight. No cable, no DSL through the phone companies either. So my only choices are with satellite or dialup – Yuck! So we share wireless service with my buddy who lives up on a hill with line of sight access to wireless services and use a radio and antenna on his tower to bridge wirelessly to a radio at my ranch. It’s less than a mile as the crow flies and works very well. Well, I had to replace all that equipment and that took some time and money. But we’re back on line as of last week.

Sorry for the long post……I’ll try to get some progress photos of the wagon posted up soon. Got my brother, the kids and grandkids here this weekend.

Hope everyone has a great 4th of July!

[Advanced Design]

Wayne, just checking in on you guys...all ok? Any wagon progress?

[Daddy'O]

Hi Doug – All is good. Thanks for asking.

We’ve been insanely busy this summer. Dee says we better get used to it since we’ve got grandkids now..lol.

Not a whole lot of progress on the wagon. Still working on floor pan replacement. I will admit I’ve gotten a little burned out with this part of the project and need to get back at it.
I have been ordering new parts and getting old parts cleaned up, powder coated, and rebuilt.

I also started working on our 1998 Jeep TJ project again. We bought the Jeep six years ago and it was a basket case. Seems like I would work on it then walk away from it for a few months at a time due to frustration and the cost of parts. Remember JEEP stands for: Just Empty Every Pocket. Well, I ironed out a suspension issue that had been driving me crazy since buying it. Now it handles and drives very well for a lifted vehicle. So this project is almost finally done. We got new wheels and tires for it last month. I will never buy another lifted Jeep. I would only buy a stock one and do the upgrades myself because I have replaced or corrected almost every lift component the PO installed. So much for thinking I was saving money by buying one already lifted.

I also picked up a HyperTherm Powermax 30 for the shop. Wow what a cool machine. Should have gotten one these things years ago.

Will provide updates as things progress with the wagon

[Daddy'O]

Here are a few more pictures -

[davischevy]

But for life and money these projects would be a breeze.

Grand kids do slow things down. We had two of ours all last week and I got absolutely nothing done.

I have done a lot of projects without a plasma cutter, but I cant imagine living without one now.

I cut a couple of bolt heads off the other day, and didn't damage the sheet metal next to them. I also needed a fixture to press a bearing off an axle and had one made in a few.

Carry on Wayne.

[Advanced Design]

Grandkids take the priority here too. You have been busy...getting more done than we have here over the summer.

Hopefully it isn't a large section of floor pan needing replacement.

Thanks for the update Wayne.

[_Ogre]

sweet wagon daddy'o
reminds me of one my mom had in the 60s, it was brown but faded to pink

[Daddy'O]

Thanks Ogre. As for the color change of your old car, I guess its better to go from (see edit notes below).

[Daddy'O]

This is what happens when you start meetin' people on the internet - eventually THEY FIND YOU!!! Ha~!! This is Dee ("Farmerjane") (I hyjacked Daddy'O's thread)! HA! We had such a FABULOUS time gettin' to meet Doug (Advanced Design) & Cindy today! It is so much fun to get to meet people from all over and ESPECIALLY in person! They were kind enough to WANT to meet us and stopped by to say "Howdy" and we were THRILLED that they did! Now we are hopin' to "return the favor" and head up their way one day and see their place! THANK YOU Doug & Cindy for bein' brave enough to stop by~!! Ha~! Great new friends!

[Advanced Design]

Wayne,

We really enjoyed our visit and meeting you and Dee. Spectacular place you guys have there! Thank you for the friendly hospitality and we look forward to returning the favor.

Made it to Austin...

[Paul Y]

Wayne,

I love a tri Chevy. Owned my 56 for 30 years, still miss it and regret selling. As for suspension I would go with the tubular upper arms and QA1 coil overs and dropped spindles, front ARB and disks. I went with a PS set up but converted back to manual as I preferred the feel.

Did go a bit over board with full rose jointed suspension 4 bar with Watts linkage and coil overs all round. Drove really well and handled a lot better than you thought it should.

I really like your 55 - look forward to seeing how it turns out.

P.

[Daddy'O]

Thanks Paul! That sounds nice. Got any photos of that setup?

We are going to use new upper and lower tubular A-arms from CPP with 2 inch drop spindles and new stock height coils with KYB shocks up front. In the rear we are going to use new leaf springs with frame pockets and KYB shocks. All four wheels will be upgraded to disk brakes too. I’m confident this will be a good setup from what I have read and heard from a few people. I need to get back to those floor pans before I can start on other more interesting parts of this build.

[Daddy'O]

It's been a long while since I've provided an update. Life just gets in the way sometimes.

We have decided to go full out on the ride with paint and body work as well as interior. The front clip is at P&B now.

We've been mocking up the engine bay and here is where we're at as of today. Also got a new tool for the shop and it has been a great addition. Here are some pics.....

BTW - Doug, the lillys Cindy sent Dee are starting to sprout. Can't wait to see them bloom.