Halfbreed - GMC Z71 + IH Extd Cab

[sparkydog]

Originally Posted by ERASER5

What are you going to do for defrost vents?

I've saved the GM plastic ducting system as well as the IH plastic defrost diffusers. I hope to McGuyver some kind of hybrid merge between the two.

The wiper linkage, HVAC ducting and the subtle blends between IH and GM sheet metal up in the cowl intake area are probably going to be the hardest part of the whole cab merge. It's going to get tricky.

[ERASER5]

Originally Posted by sparkydog

I've saved the GM plastic ducting system as well as the IH plastic defrost diffusers. I hope to McGuyver some kind of hybrid merge between the two.

The wiper linkage, HVAC ducting and the subtle blends between IH and GM sheet metal up in the cowl intake area are probably going to be the hardest part of the whole cab merge. It's going to get tricky.

Tricky? From what I have seen, you are a magician.

[sparkydog]

Did the B pillar/floor blends.

Got one of the two mid-cab mounts re-welded. Boy do I NOT enjoy overhead welding. (Not helped much by the unclean metal down there...) I just keep chanting "die-grinder, sealer, bondo" over and over again!

But it (and the other 15 feet of floor welding) will hold until the day off in the future when I pull the cab and do a proper clean and re-weld.

I also started cleaning and prepping some of the light housings. I was trying to figure out why the IH designers thought it was a good idea to paint the interior of the brake/sig lights black. Eventually I decided they weren't thinking so I'm going ahead and painting them gloss white on the inside because I want the energy from the light to get OUT of the light housing.

[sparkydog]

Finished redoing the middle cab mount welding. That is the last significant "on my back getting sparks and grind slag in my face" that I will have for awhile.

I fished out the wiper gear from both models of truck and started looking at them more seriously. I know I must use (and want to use) the GM wiper motor. I had hoped to be able to adapt the GM wiper posts into the IH cowl wiper station thingys - but after closer inspection that is not going to happen. So the basic task ahead is to adapt the GM motor into the IH wiper posts.

But wait, there's more! The IH wipers are "out of phase" by that I mean they work toward and away from one another, whereas the GM worked "in phase" moving the same direction at the same time. And... the IH are not exactly 180* out of phase but something more like 140* or so (just based on guessing while looking at the "disk/cam" thing on the IH wiper motor.

But wait, there's more!. GM connection linkages have neater sockets that look like they wear better, were meant to deal with intermittent pulses and might be somewhat replaceable. IH sockets more primitive - so I need to try and adapt the GM sockets into the ends of new custom linkages then into a motor cam that mimics the timing and phasing of the IH setup.

And - I have to route this into a cowl area with too much excess sheet metal still in it. I think I will be faced with some real tight cutting/clearing. Maybe I will get to blow up a few dremel disks!!!

Edit: Not to mention that on the IH, the linkage is all on the interior side of the firewall but below the cowl air inlet - but on the GM the linkage is all on the exterior of the firewall up inside the cowl air intake. I'd say that wipers are the only official downside to the decision I made to go with the GM firewall and floorpan.