Project "My Happy Mess"

[litew8]

ty va

It doesn't look as shinny in these pictures (as it does in older pictures) because it's been sitting outdoor ever since I had finished it. But, yes, I removed the anodizing first with Easy-Off oven cleaner. Sprayed it on and let it sit for about 10 minutes, then rinsed. Having stubborn areas was expected, where the anodizing didn't lift easily, so extra sanding had to be done. And since spraying oven cleaner on aluminum itself is "bad" (discoloration can occur), I didn't reapply. There were a lot of scratches that took a while to sand down and remove also.

Starting with a rougher grit sandpaper and working your way up to finer (I used 3 or 4 different grits, 4,000 being the finest if I remember right), once you get to the really fine grit, it's super easy to get scratches (again, just from sanding). So it did take a while to get it to where it'd shine, without scratching (read patients ). Then once it's done, it's super easy to scuff/scratch it - if it hasn't been coated/protected (which mine hasn't been yet).

that explained it

[oldman3]

Fitman of fenders looks good, grill turned out great....Jim

[litew8]

ty Jim, now we take them all off. Can't fit the bedsides/tailgate etc... because we don't have the wood finished/here. I've got Key Parts AM bedsides from Top Banana, so I'm not too concerned with them, and they didn't come from the body shop.

Just an fyi, everyone - posting of all these pictures is more work than the truck!

[Dieselwrencher]

Wow, you're making great progress!

[VA72C10]

Nice progress!!!

[mightymouse]

truck is looking good .keep-on-truckin.

[Joah_from_Alber]

Nice to have as much heart as you have money

Cheers,

[litew8]

ty DW, VA, MM and Jim

Originally Posted by Joah_from_Alber

Nice to have as much heart as you have money

Cheers,

Not sure what you're implying with that comment Johah. Posting all this information takes time, and it's for others benefit - so that's a give rather than receive ideology requiring "heart" as you say. The brain is a terrible thing to waste.

Money - believe it or not, the labor I've put into this is saving me a ton. It's all in how you manage. This isn't a financial thread so I won't go into detail. I'll just say I'd rather fix this truck (which has survived 40 years of Iowa weather) than to purchase a new truck that would prob. only last one decade. A rather simple formula.

Cheers,

[Joah_from_Alber]

Maybe I'm a little envious, heh heh-- you're doing a fantastic job. Meanwhile I might as well be doing my project on the moon with regards to my location and resources.

You're right though that it is how you manage, or rather what you do with what you got. Your choreography with this thread is superb, I can tell that you are an artist at heart.

It's good to have money and to use it wisely! I commend your gentlemanly choice of project. Keep it up the good!

(I've requested the admin edit my alias to Joah fr Alberta and once this is done (or not) I will post a thread that will make you smile.)

Cheers,

[Dieselwrencher]

I can't see the issue with him spending his money where he wants and fixing up an old truck. Look around on this board, he isn't alone. Litew8, I'm right there with you. I'd rather dump $20k into an old pick up, know what I have, build it the way I want it, and have no payment in the end. Keep up the great work!

[litew8]

Joah needs to take his envy and art elsewhere. DR, thanks for the support, but you're off mark in your estimate, and in all honesty, I don't want to have this conversation with either of you.

[Joah_from_Alber]

Originally Posted by litew8

Joah needs to take his envy and art elsewhere. DR, thanks for the support, but you're off mark in your estimate, and in all honesty, I don't want to have this conversation with either of you.

Ah the humility,

[Dieselwrencher]

Originally Posted by litew8

Joah needs to take his envy and art elsewhere. DR, thanks for the support, but you're off mark in your estimate, and in all honesty, I don't want to have this conversation with either of you.

I wasn't saying you have $20k in your truck. READ what I typed. Geesh.

[hgs_notes]

I've had that same fitment problem with the repro fenders I had, which was why I worked hard to find OEM parts that just needed some massaging. I've seen more than a few of these trucks at shows with that gap on the grill surround. I traded my repro fenders for a 72 parts blazer, even up. Best deal ever.

Overall looking real good though. Doing something almost everyday does really add up and it's how I tried to do my build.

[hgs_notes]

If I'm right, that is a taurus fan and is a 2 speed unit. Interested in how you wired it up because I have one for my Jimmy. Kind of wanted to try and use both speeds with 2 relays, but would either need 2 temp switches (the first would have to cut out at the same start point as the second switch) or a switch with dual set points (not sure of availability). Or I'd just have to pick a speed and go with a normal switch set up.

[litew8]

Jeep Grand Cherokee (2001 if I remember right) fan (mopar # CBG4F250) w/Jegs relay kit (p/n 555-10560). The fan is one speed, two wires. As far as I know, this specific (fan) mod (a variation) originated on these forums (search another cheap electric fan build!). I cut the connector off the end of the fan and soldered (soldering is the preferred/best method for the joining of wires) directly, wrapped in electrical tape twice, recovered using fan's wire sheathing, then covered with cheap plastic loom.

[hgs_notes]

My bad

[litew8]

Not a bad. There were other fan mods I saw. Yours being one. The other was using a MarkVIII (with our shrouds). I tried to keep it as simple as possible. I did buy a connector to replace the fan's original connector I cut off - but what I bought turned out being a smaller gauge wire, so I opted to just wire directly (Jegs wires were the same gauge as the fan's wires). The downside, if I ever go to replace the fan, shroud or radiator - I'll need to cut the wires. I'll prob. add a connector at a later date, by the frame where the wires route.

Not sure you can tell in the above, the relay is mounted underneath the battery tray (The Fixer). I didn't have any black wire for the ground to the fan, so I used the leftover purple wire. Not that it really matters, it goes to the negative post on the battery and is obvious.

[msh7462]

Subscribed

[litew8]

Houston, we have power Got electricity flowing.
Is it normal for an inline resistor to get super hot?
Seeing smoke when turning the ignition key is progress

[Dieselwrencher]

Nice work on your harness clean up.

[litew8]

ty Ryan.

Notice I didn't wrap the "junction" or the three wires (blue/white/red) near the radiator support with the other wires.
That's because I'm waiting until we're certain everyting is accurate (pretty sure the illustration is accurate and that I did wire it correctly).
Using an 8AWG wire from the alternator>"junction">cab/battery Charge wire - insures I will have adequate amps at idle (especially, since it will have plenty of compression to condend with).

- I'll wrap them better/together afterwards. I may get a "junction" block to mount to the driver's fender at a later date and rewire the "junction" to the block instead. like this
- It'd be a cleaner install and allow me to add wires without having to reopen the "junction" to access the wires.

The only thing remaining (that I can remember) is bolting the torque converter to the flywheel. That'll take a few minutes.
Then add oil, fluids, etc... real quick and we should be able to fire her up!!

[JDeere550]

hey i was wondering if thats your orginal junction box or if you know where i could find one? i put all wiring in my truck with new fuse panel for modern fuses but ended up junkin the orginal junction box because it was all tore up. otherwise, this thing is lookin good! thanks!

[litew8]

Oh, you're talking about on the firewall (fuse block)? Yeah, it's all original. Not sure who might sell them. Maybe in a complete wire harness kit.

Originally Posted by JDeere550

hey i was wondering if thats your orginal junction box or if you know where i could find one? i put all wiring in my truck with new fuse panel for modern fuses but ended up junkin the orginal junction box because it was all tore up. otherwise, this thing is lookin good! thanks!

[litew8]

Sorry, the Amazon link above isn't working now.
Our trucks didn't come with a "junction block" on the driver's side.
Chevy just put the wires together (as shown in pic above, a wire "junction") crimped them together and wrapped.
(The only junction block I know of that is original is the tiny one on the passenger's fender, by the battery.)

For the upgrade, I had to cut the original factory wire junction (pic 3 above) clamp/crimp out to upgrade to the 8AWG wires (due to having 100A SI alternator now).
8AWG is recommended. Factory AWG is too small. The black wire is a fuseable link that goes to the cab I believe.

Here's the junction "block" I'm considering for a future upgrade.
Chevrolet-1974-1982-Corvette-Junction-Block
I guess we can't post Amazon links. Just do a search on Amazon and it'll come up.