Penny

[cwcarpenter98]

The previous owners are quite happy that the truck will be put back on the road. His dad purchased the truck in 84, so it's been pretty much on the family farm since then. It did go to Athens for a couple years for college, but came back to the farm and got parked.


I've got some parts to throw at it to see if the engine will run. Should be a fun project!

[Getter-Done]

Nice

I really like both trucks.

So you will be Across the the Board

Instead of in one Section ?

Glad to see you take on another truck

[Corts60]

Wheels look perfect! Glad you got her home.

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by Getter-Done

Nice

I really like both trucks.

So you will be Across the the Board

Instead of in one Section ?

Glad to see you take on another truck

I'm going to have to learn more about squares now! All I need is one 67-72 to have all 3 body styles
I'll be homeless if I try to bring anything else home...

Originally Posted by Corts60

Wheels look perfect! Glad you got her home.

I agree, and I haven't even finished the polish! Got some parts sitting in the garage to try to get her running this week.

[cwcarpenter98]

Got some tinkering done the past two evenings. I replaced the radio capacitor and wiring harness bit in the dizzy that had been chewed by the rodents. Also replaced the cap and rotor while I was in there, but probably didn't need to as they were decent with only a smidge of corrosion. The rotor still has Made in USA stamped in it, so another indication that this truck may only have 57k original miles. I finished up the spark plug wires earlier this evening, went to start it, and proceeded to turn the ignition cylinder to the lock position and I don't have a key.....
Looks like I'll be taking the steering column apart in the next couple days. I can at least clean up the steering wheel a lot easier that way, so I guess it works out

[cwcarpenter98]

Well, I can't believe it, but I guess I have to because I was listening to it. Penny fired off this evening for the first time in 20 years. I got the column apart enough to take the ignition cylinder out and was able to use some pliers to turn the engine over. Sure enough, with a little brake clean, she fired right up. All the gas cans were empty, but we had some 40:1 fuel mix for an old leaf blower that doesn't work anymore. Poured way too much in and she fired right up. Took Frankentruck for a spin to get some gas and some dinner then came back to check the gas tank for any leaks. Poured about a gallon and a half in the tank, haven't noticed any leaks yet, and proceeded to fire Penny up again. Sure enough, that carb idled, although high because of all the vacuum leaks, and pulled fuel from the tank. Didn't hear any valvetrain noise either. Boy, am I happy about that. I'm going to get a new key cut this week, start cleaning up the rest of the rodent poop, and figure out which vacuum lines I need to get the carb straightened out. I also need to change out all the fluids. We will see what I can get done this week while fighting some of the Georgia weather.

[Getter-Done]

Great news.

I used to buy Vaccuum hose by the roll.

That was several years ago.

I wonder how much it has gone up. ??

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by Getter-Done

Great news.

I used to buy Vaccuum hose by the roll.

That was several years ago.

I wonder how much it has gone up. ??

Probably a good bit. I might try to salvage what's not chewed to get just the basic stuff that's needed to make the engine run right. I was thinking of removing a lot of the emissions stuff that probably doesn't work currently. I'm glad it doesn't have a smog pump though!

[cwcarpenter98]

Was going to work on Penny after work today but the rain showed up not long after getting home. Oh well. That did give me a chance to check for any leaks on the floor from the roof, doors, or windows. Fortunately, I didn't see any evidence of water coming in from those areas. Unfortunately, there's a puddle of green in the passenger floor. Yup, I believe the heater core has gone bad. Oh well, just another thing to fix. Hopefully not too hard to do though

[straight6chevyguy]

Glad to see you still working on the trucks Christian, keep up the good work.
Exciting to hear that pennys engine runs!

I just got back to working on my 76 and hope to have it running soon.

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by straight6chevyguy

Glad to see you still working on the trucks Christian, keep up the good work.
Exciting to hear that pennys engine runs!

I just got back to working on my 76 and hope to have it running soon.

I'm always tinkering with something It was very exciting to hear the engine run again. I hope you can get that same excitement soon on your 76!

[cwcarpenter98]

I have the key situation figured out. I pulled the ignition cylinder out to get the code and had LockDoc cut some new keys for me. They showed up today so now I can start the truck with a key instead of some pliers I still need to finish putting the steering column back together, but the local parts stores didn't have the lock plate removal tool in stock. One will show up tomorrow and I'll get it back together this weekend.


I changed the oil yesterday and added some trans fluid today. The engine sounds good and the trans does shift into reverse and drive, but reverse is a little slow. I didn't want to overfill it, so I'll add more if needed once I can get the engine up to temp.

After that, I started taking the front accessories off to gain access to the remainder of the nest. Turns out I still have the original 305 in the truck. An exhilarating 140 hp. Maybe I should throw in a better cam and a Quadrajet for some more power? Probably should get it back on the road before I do that though.

[cwcarpenter98]

Life sure has been full of activities this month. Took a little time this evening to vacuum up some of the poop on the engine. Already looking a lot better! Still have a bit more behind the dizzy to get though. I did have to take off the ac compressor and power steering pump and brackets to get all of the nest out of there

[cwcarpenter98]

More progress this evening. Mouse nest is gone, front accessories back together, next up is cleaning up all the rotted and cracked vacuum hoses. Just going to start with the bare minimum to get it to run and idle properly, then figure out what else needs to be hooked back up

[Corts60]

Nice progress so far! Yeah I would throw and RV cam in it and just enjoy it. Even the 350 in my 86 only has 165 hp. No big whoop. But I’m never in a hurry.

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by Corts60

Nice progress so far! Yeah I would throw and RV cam in it and just enjoy it. Even the 350 in my 86 only has 165 hp. No big whoop. But I’m never in a hurry.

Thanks! I would love to build a spicy small block for Penny one day, but for now, I'm definitely thinking about a better cam and switching from the Rochester Dual Jet to a Quadrajet. I like Quadrajet noises

[cwcarpenter98]

Well, Penny's radiator is a leaker. Sad now

I had a feeling that was going to happen, so I didn't add any fresh coolant, just some water. The carb is also extremely rich, so I'm thinking I need to clean it out inside. I'll be really digging in after we get some trees cut down around the house next week. Gotta be able to drive it down to the couldesac while the tree crews are here.

[cwcarpenter98]

A big milestone was hit today! Penny drove around the neighborhood without burning down or crashing Power steering works great, brakes work, transmission shifted into 2nd, but the carb probably needs a rebuild. I need to break out the pressure washer and get some of that moss and dirt off.

Also found a vintage hitch ball in one of my dad's old tool boxes. Fits the look perfectly!

[straight6chevyguy]

That's a good milestone, and looking good too!

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by straight6chevyguy

That's a good milestone, and looking good too!

It sure is! Drove it around a little more on Sunday and Monday so that we could get some trees cut around the house.




The carb is dumping wayyyyy too much fuel at idle, so gotta dig into that. Also, the transmission isn't extremely happy at the moment. I'm wondering if that might be why it was parked 20 years ago. I'll be dropping the pan and replacing the filter in the next week or two.
I also need to wash the truck now that it "runs and drives." Tried to clean the windows a little with some Windex today, but that barely did anything. Needs lots of soapy water

[cwcarpenter98]

Hmm, that could be part of the problem.
Popped the top off the carb this afternoon to discover lots of dirt in the bowl. The fuel filter was dirty as well, so not sure if the dirt was from sitting or pulled up from the tank.
I cleaned everything best as I could for now and put it back together so I wouldn't lose any parts.
Penny runs a little better now, but I want to get a rebuild kit for the whole carb and start with some fresh gaskets. Have to order it though since none of the parts stores around here sell it. Also need to get a whole lot of new vacuum hose.

Next task is to drop the transmission pan, replace the filter, add fresh fluid, and hope the transmission works properly

[PowerdbyChevy79]

Originally Posted by cwcarpenter98

A successful trip has occurred

Drove down to Milledgeville this morning with an empty trailer and a set of slot mags.
The wheels fit and look great on the truck. Definitely a good choice. We got the truck on the trailer but had to pause and catch a calf that had escaped the fence. All good with the calf, so got back to strapping the truck down. I missed the dealership sticker on the tailgate until today.

That looks good..

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by PowerdbyChevy79

That looks good..

Thanks! I still haven't washed it yet, so hopefully it will look better after a good bath

[cwcarpenter98]

Dropped the pan and changed the transmission filter this afternoon.

I thought that there was a possibility that this truck only had 57k original miles, but the more I dig in, the more I start thinking it's probably 150k.

Also, I found a small pinhole in the gas tank, so that'll need replacing as well. It's the 20 gallon tank, so good thing the tank is about empty at the moment

[straight6chevyguy]

Well if you put in a new tank a least you wont have to worry about pulling any crud from it.
I had that issue with my 65, kept cruding up the carb and filter. gonna have to pull the tank out and try and clean it out.