Danny Boy is BAACK! w/ '55 Big Window

[Dan in Pasadena]

Ok, thanks guys! And thanks for the kind words too.

Best, Dan

[Kim57]

Truck looks great.
I flipped my bumper because I felt it fit the body better. Was able to get it closer.
Made my own mounting brackets.
Kim

[BAM55]

Dan the truck is looking great.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Wow, I’m flattered. Kim & Bam you have some of the absolute best chops of all the talented guys here. Thank you SO much!

So far it’s about a 80-20% split of paying others (too damn much) vs. me doing any meaningful work so my truck isn’t in the same class as yours but I’m gonna love it.

I checked on her today, they were installing the rear window chrome lock strip but it got messed up. The “chrome” is a foil over the rubber/plastic of the lock strip and it started to separate. I’ll have to R&R it myself later. But I have the special tool and I know how to do it (as badly) as they know.

Front bumper stays as they originally installed it. I think the reason it looked odd is it’s WAY lower than it was before.

Today:

[Dan in Pasadena]

Good news - Bad news - Goodish news.

1. Picked up my truck today. YAY!!!

2. Drove it 2 miles and Dakota Digital HDX indicated no oil pressure, red warning light & buzzer came on. I immediately pulled over, spoke to Mike the engine builder, had it towed home cause his shop is full

3. Once home, Mike asked if it made any noise when pressure dropped? No. Says Ls oil pump is driven off the front of the crank and that if it had really dropped the lifters are very sensitive and would immediately start clacking. There was none of that.

4. At home I started it and the pressure immediately went to 40 psi and went up to 45 psi. I drove it into the garage, no warning light or buzzer.

5. Tomorrow I’ll try to check the pressure using an analog gauge if I can find the port. He says the port is metric but they use a brass 1/8” pipe thread adapter on the top center rear of the block similar to an SBC. Can anyone confirm?

6. Mike says he’s built two more cars with DD HDX instrument panels that have thrown erroneous codes. One pressure, one trans temperature. Fingers crossed it’s just that.
- Yes, it has plenty of oil.
- The oil is as-new appearing
- No burnt smell to it.
- Temp was running near 225 right when I saw the warning light but Mike says the LS does tend to run about that temp. Again, can anyone confirm?

Anyway, she’s currently a beautiful, dream fulfilling paper weight!

[Dan in Pasadena]

Pics wouldn’t load on the post above.

[Scottish58chev]

Trucks looking fantastic. Fingered crossed it’s just a slight electrical/dash fault and you’re back on the road.
Posted via Mobile Device

[Daze57]

beautiful truck dan

[Kim57]

Your truck came out great.
Hope you get years of enjoyment out of it.
Kim

[oldman3]

Dan, truck is beautiful and the wheels fit the look of the truck. LS engines do run to what we call hot, but normal for them. Heck my old V6 Blazer ran 215 from day one brand new. Enjoy the truck, hope the oil thing was just a clitch...Jim

[Rickysnickers]

Very nice Dan! Not used to seeing an engine ran that warm. I din't know that 225 was normal for the newer engines.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Thanks you guys. I feel a little better having other people tell me that the LS engines tend to run hot by old-fashioned SBC standards. Once it got over one 180-190 I was getting concerned.

[dsraven]

here is a good blurb on the cooling system. I know it is talking like the reader is a first timer but it does have some good info on how the lS engine cooling system works. the thermostat is on the coolant return hose but senses engine temp so you need to have things hooked up correctly to sense properly. heater hoses factor into the system.

https://www.pirate4x4.com/tech/billavista/Cooling/

[Dan in Pasadena]

Good article, dsraven. I havent read the entire thing yet but I read enough to ask some questions about the steam ports on my heads being capped.

What I didn’t see was any statement or explanation that LS engines tend to run hotter than SBC/BBC’s. MAybe I missed it.

Any just because I’m giddy about my truck being home I took some pics of it in the same place where it was when it was in it’s shop truck look. What a huge difference. I think I still like looks of the old Torq Thrust knock offs better.

EDIT: Looks like I need to park it a little further back and take the shot from the sidewalk to truly get comparable pictures.

[bobinbc]

Looks great Dan. That red is juicy! Getting the bugs out can be scary (no oil pressure yikes!) but is just part of it, glad there was no damage and just a gauge glitch.

[MIKESAD50]

Dan, truck looks really great. LS along with most newer vehicles run "hot" but that is normal for newer engines. hope the Oil PSI issue is just a electrical problem. Enjoy driving it.

[Dan in Pasadena]

Yesterday Mike loaned me an old fashioned manual oil pressure gauge with plastic tube that carries the oil to the gauge instead of using an electronic sensor. I’ll hook it up and drive it around awhile - assuming it shows normal pressure. The warning went off after a couple miles and reaching full temperature.

I want to make sure the pressure “failure” (IF there really is one) isn’t real but intermittent.

Also, there’s a whole calibration process for the DD HDX cluster I haven’t done yet. Cluster says Speedo & fuel gauge require calibration. Maybe more things get calibrated in the process too.

[Black_Sheep]

Your truck looks amazing Dan! There's bound to be some bugs to sort out on such an extensive build, just keep after it and before you know it the truck will be done.

[Dan in Pasadena]

FYI - I put these little green felt dots between my tailgate and bedsides to hopefully prevent marring the new paint. You don’t see them when it’s closed. I have some thicker white ones I may use if these aren’t effective.

The blue tape holding chains up was just temporary to get her home without scratches. I slid some tight fitting “roadie” bicycle tubes over the chains temporarily as I’ll have some guards sewn up to match the upholstery later. Clear tubing looks good but I've always seen it turn cloudy or yellow. But I may reconsider.

[Black_Sheep]

Dan you can get clear self-adhesive bumpers dirt cheap for the tail gate, they are commonly used on cupboards and cabinets. They would probably do a better job than the felt pads.

https://www.wwhardware.com/3m-clear-...0%7C%20%240.81

[dsraven]

black sheep, good call on the clear rubber bumpers. I was thinking of one of the door stop bumpers because they push into a hole and would stay in place well, that would require a hole though. the clear cupboard door style are also self adhesive so they stick pretty good. different sizes as well, diameter and height. I would say maybe stick a clear dot over the bump area where they contact the other body part as well, like the protection stuff they use on hoods etc. anybody that installs that would probably be able to give you a little piece of scrap.
love the color. looks wet all the time

[dsraven]

Dan, what size tires are you running?

[Dan in Pasadena]

Tires are 235/55x17's

The green dots are kitchen cabinet project leftovers. I felt (no pun intended) I had to put SOMETHING in immediately to avoid wear/chips. I have thicker white ones but agree the clear would look best - though no one will really ever see them.

OTHER THOUGHTS:
I need to get over to AAA today to renew the registration.
I have new inside door handles & window cranks and of course I couldn't find them, DOH!
I also am missing the glove box door lock retainer thingy. There are probably a few other things so there's another trip to The Car and Truck Shop.


But before everything else I have to determine if there's really an oil pressure issue. I'll make a run at that tonight when I get home from work.

[BAM55]

Truck is looking great.

[dsraven]

there is a cover/plate on the side of the oil pan, above the oil filter, held on with 2 bolts ,called the oil cooler block off plate, that can be used to tie in an oil pressure fitting to supply a guage. the plate is easily removed, drilled and tapped for whatever thread you want (within reason). a small copper line would be better than a plastic line in this case because the plastic may end up touching the exhaust. fire hazard, leak to clean up at least.
check this link for a pic of the oil pan with the cover attached above the filter. mayber easier than getting to your oil sender behind the intake manifold. there are also predrilled/tapped covers sold as well

https://ls1tech.com/forums/conversio...-oil-pans.html

https://paceperformance.com/i-814627...eaded-cap.html

https://ls1tech.com/forums/generatio...off-plate.html

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=493630