What did you do to your truck today? Chapter II

[Hugh Mongus]

Bought a $1 rubber grommet from Ace. Removed the worn/broken bushing tightened it down with a nyloc nut and cured the slop in my shifter.

[VWNate1]

Tacking the upper mast jacket all apart , cleaning then greasing it will make your old shifter work As-New again and also return those loud GM " CLICK - CLICK - CLICK " noises as you work it through the quadrant .

[BugzC10]

Re-worked rag joint i rebuilt the other day (forgot to install lock washers and corrected coller nut i put in upside down), Installed charcoal canister, put truck up on jack stands, removed headers and pulled speedo bullet to change gear. Waiting on vapor lines to hook up charcoal canister, white HVT paint to paint headers, Transgo shift kit and new oring to reinstall stock transmission dipstick/fill tube.

[myyamr7]

Got my rebuilt 402 big block painted and test fitting the new brackets. Got the wrong Alt belt and still need to find a power steering adjuster bracket before it's ready to install.

[Econman]

Called the machine shop and told them I'd really like them to finish the work on my block because they've had it almost 4 weeks! Ugghhhhhhh

[magwakeenercew2jh]

Originally Posted by Econman

Called the machine shop and told them I'd really like them to finish the work on my block because they've had it almost 4 weeks! Ugghhhhhhh

What did you have done? For how much $$$$$.

I'm looking for comps so I'm less stupid than I am
now about the prices of engine machine work.

[Econman]

Just a simple cleaning, magna flux, mic everything, cam bearings, freeze plus and light cylinder honing so far. Plus polished the crank and pressed new pistons on. Not much for it to take 26 days. I added decking the block to their list today.. Might be Memorial Day at this rate..

[Hugh Mongus]

Originally Posted by VWNate1

Tacking the upper mast jacket all apart , cleaning then greasing it will make your old shifter work As-New again and also return those loud GM " CLICK - CLICK - CLICK " noises as you work it through the quadrant .

What is the upper mast jacket?

[myyamr7]

Originally Posted by magwakeenercew2jh

What did you have done? For how much $$$$$.

I'm looking for comps so I'm less stupid than I am
now about the prices of engine machine work.

My bill came to $1,600 at the machine with a few new parts.
..Pistons
..Rings
..Main+Rod bearings
..Cam bearings
..Freeze plug kit

Machine work
..Hot tank the block and heads
..Check the block + heads for cracks
..Bore .030 over
..deck/square the block .007
..mill .020 off the heads
..Multi angle valve job ( i supplied all parts)
..Polish the crank and check for spec
..Clean the rods, check for spec, and press on new pistons

I want to say it was around $500 in parts and $1,100 in actual machine work.
It also took them 2 months, I have yet to deal with a machine shop and had a quick turnaround, unless it was something simple

[Ozzy2013]

Originally Posted by myyamr7

Got my rebuilt 402 big block painted and test fitting the new brackets. Got the wrong Alt belt and still need to find a power steering adjuster bracket before it's ready to install.

Wow im putting a 402 in mine and this is the first time i have seen the brackets they sure put the alt,power steering and alt way out from the block.

[74baggedbug]

Getting it ready to drop off to the shop for a few upgrades

[magwakeenercew2jh]

Originally Posted by myyamr7

My bill came to $1,600 at the machine with a few new parts........
I want to say it was around $500 in parts and $1,100 in actual machine work.

Thanks much, Mark.

[Econman]

Mine is done yet, but here's what prices I know so far...

Cleaning $50
Magna flux $25
Honing (not known yet)
Cam bearings $60
Pistons $90
Pressing (unknown)
Decking the block $120
Polishing the crank (unknown)
Freeze plugs (unknown)

[magwakeenercew2jh]

Originally Posted by Econman

Mine is done yet, but here's what prices I know so far...

That's a big help Econ.
If you get any more prices, I'd be glad to "hear" 'em.

[VWNate1]

Originally Posted by Hugh Mongus

What is the upper mast jacket?

Jason ;

The " Mast Jacket " is the steering column and the upper part is the rotating collar that has the wobbly shift lever hanging on precariously by the roll pin that's prolly 2/3 the way slipped out at any given time .

GM did (IMO) a fabulous job on the design , knowing it had to be cheap yet withstand serious abuse ~ even if the holes in the pot metal collar part are egged out (usually) you can hunt up a small bolt with the part near the head smooth and use that in there , add a nyloc nut and trim off the exposed threads , if you hunt you can find these in button heads or other low profile , I just use the allen headed versions because my truck works , it's not a fashion rig .

Or , get a new roll pin and slip it into place then slide a snug fitting cotter pin through it with a small flat washer on top and deform the cotter pin's head to reduce it's visibility .

Be creative here but mainly you need to remove the steering wheel and turn signal plate and shift lever , then slip off the collar and you'll see some black & gummy old grease and the detents , clean every thing up really well and spread a thin coating of fresh grease before re assembly ~ there are detents at the bottom of the mast jacket too where the shift tube comes through the firewall , I cannot stress how important it is to CLEAN OFF the old grease before adding new grease if you want it all to work *perfectly* no matter how worn out and wobbly everything is ! .

The main thing is to NEVER allow any threads in the holes where the parts move and load .

Once you've played with it to see how lifting the shift lever slides the tube up you'll figure it out quickly .

All clean , greased and re assembled ? good now comes the fun part :

The round shift rod leading from the column to the tranny has bushings in it , these are usually worn out too , easy to make new ones out of cut up PCV or other plastic piping that slips into place , then shim it all using super thin flat washers from the " HELP " section of your local Hardware Store so they're not floppy but twist easily with _zero_ drag - this is vitally important .

I've used both nylon and steel thin washers on the tranny arm to cure the floppy bit .

The rod is attached to the shifter with a simple pinch clamp , loosen it and hand shift both the tranny and shift lever into the " D " position then snug up the clamp , if all is well you'll feel the column lock into the Park position just after the tranny clicks into Park .

Then test to insure the starter lockout works only in Park or Neutral and the reverse lights still come one without you needing to lift the shift lever that last 1/2" or so .

It's funny , this loud " CLICK , CLACK " noise Chevy's made when new , at the time it was often said that's because they were so awful and cheaply made but to me , it is music .

BTW : lifting the shift lever and racing it from Park to Drive as fast as you can , is a very bad practice and is why most of these columns are worn out and wobbly .

I checked a few junked trucks before finding a decent shift lever , they're available new these days .

Remember : PARK BRAKE SET AND WHEELS CHOCKED ! .

My borhter's legal blog had some comment about watching me struggle with the filthy , grimy and un co operative shift linkage across Texas thusly " Nate's struggles to get his old Chevy pickup out of park remind me that truly , White Men Can't Dance " .

I am loving seeing the care and details taken in engine painting here ! . GOOD WORK Men ! .

I see a 402 engine was decked and the heads shaved .020" , what's the final CR going to be ? will this engine run on pump gas ? be able to hit the cruise night or is just for those incredible tire shredding 1/4 mile blasts ? .

[Hugh Mongus]

Thanks Nate. I will add that to my list of things to do.

[BugzC10]

Installed a Transgo 350-1&2 shift kit. I must be getting old...what a pain in the ars! Before I got the kit I looked up the installation on YouTube. It was a Transgo video. Watching YouTube makes you think it is a DYI. Well when I read the instructions that came with the kit it states "not for DYI" kit is or professional installer. I thought Oh crud...i'm in trouble. Dd I buy the wrong kit. The instructions where minimal. If it had not been for the YouTube video I would have need the deep stuff. Ran into a glitche with the valve body changing 2-3 spring, but got it installed. The tranny was pretty dirty on the inside. I was expecting the kit to at least have a new filter in it....NOT. Have to go out and buy one this evening. Once I get the pan back on and topped off and after I put my headers back on I'll take it for a test drive. I'll do a search on what sealant to use on the pan.

[VWNate1]

Originally Posted by Hugh Mongus

Thanks Nate. I will add that to my list of things to do.

Yer welcome Jason ! .

It's just one more fiddly m dirty job that anyone can easily do to make their vintage GM product work ' As-New ' again .

In spite of crappy raw materiels , GM really did make good things back in the day .

BTW : THANK YOU to ALL Veterans ~ America would be a sorry place without you .

[2 Far Gone]

Put the mirrors, signals and marker lights in. New chrome inside the door above the door panel.


Repurposed a couple of steering wheels...

[BugzC10]

^^^ truck is comming along nicely! Like that yellow. How much of a lift do you have? Also like your hose hangers. Would like to see how you did that. I have a steering I could do that too.

[2 Far Gone]

Originally Posted by BugzC10

^^^ truck is comming along nicely! Like that yellow. How much of a lift do you have? Also like your hose hangers. Would like to see how you did that. I have a steering I could do that too.

Thanks
The yellow is a Skoda colour. Found it when I was looking for canary yellow. I like it was brighter but it has an almost green undertone sometimes.
The truck has a 4" suspension lift with a 1.5" body lift.
The hose hanger is made from an 18"x18" piece of 1/8 plate(so I could screw it too two stubs when mounting). A 4" x4" piece of tubing. I ran a carriage bolt through the center. bolted everything together and replaced the horn button. Painted for beautification. No welding just used some scrap left over from previous projects.

[ole dollor]

Originally Posted by 2 Far Gone

Thanks
The yellow is a Skoda colour. Found it when I was looking for canary yellow. I like it was brighter but it has an almost green undertone sometimes.
The truck has a 4" suspension lift with a 1.5" body lift.
The hose hanger is made from an 18"x18" piece of 1/8 plate(so I could screw it too two stubs when mounting). A 4" x4" piece of tubing. I ran a carriage bolt through the center. bolted everything together and replaced the horn button. Painted for beautification. No welding just used some scrap left over from previous projects.

good color for your truck. and I may also steal your hose hanger idea....very good idea.

[magwakeenercew2jh]

Originally Posted by ole dollor

good color for your truck. and I may also steal your hose hanger idea....very good idea.

Great minds think alike. It just that, well, some of us are sloppier
than others.



Nailed it down with a couple of big screws and washers.
And, every little bit of left over hose...of any kind known to man!!!!

[ole dollor]

Originally Posted by magwakeenercew2jh

Great minds think alike. It just that, well, some of us are sloppier
than others.



Nailed it down with a couple of big screws and washers.
And, every little bit of left over hose...of any kind known to man!!!!

now that's a all kinds of hose hanger ...

[rd237]

I put Paint on my cab today!