Kell's Two Cents - 1946 build

[gokellurself]

Originally Posted by solidaxel

Great progress, you have a vision and are following it
Take a look at your brake arm and steering column, ours is VERY close to your foot when applying the brake, now is your chance to look at it!
You have covered many of the hard parts and are making great progress, keep up the good work

Hey thanks a lot, badass truck you have as well. You're absolutely right, brake pedal comes up almost exactly where the steering column is landing... Took a look at it and I'm gonna give the steering precedence then should be able to cut weld and MacGyver the brake arm over. Good call man thanks

[gokellurself]

Hey guys, I was trying to wait for a bigger update but it's been a while so I'll hit you with a couple sneak peaks

First off, it was way back when, I only had the perches on my rear end tacked in as back then I was verifying my pinion angle and wasn't looking to overly commit.. I wanted to get the thing coated so I pulled a couple measurements and confirmed the axle was center and that everything was good to go. It was. Then suddenly I was completely thrown off, as with the driveshaft installed I could really tell that axle yoke wasn't centered

I'll cut to the chase, cause all the OG's already know where I'm going with this... Turns out Chevy 12 bolts are in fact not centered. I did all my head scratching, double checked all my measurements, did all my research and finally figured out that this was normal and I was good to go. The axle came out of 70's something Blazer some guy was parting out on Craigslist. Everything was in really good shape but the only catch was he wouldn't let me take it without the Dana 44 front end too. By the time I sold the front end though I ended up getting away with what I'd call a hell of a deal. I finalized the perches, coated it, filled it with gear oil, and all is good to go but now the yoke seal is leaking, so I'll have to get to that... The axle seems to fit perfectly into my rear fenders so I don't believe I''ll have to shorten it

I also changed the oil pan gasket (confirmed, cannot remove pan with V8 crossmember), transmission pan gasket and filter.

Sorry I always have such crap lighting






Dashboard's been at the body shop... I used to work for this guy back in high school, he's just a one man shop operating out of his property and has been for 30+ years. I have the dash back now but here's a sneak of the color, GM Bermuda Blue Metallic. I've always been a huge fan of the color so I'm glad I finally get to use it on something. It really only pops in the sun, changes from dark blue to green





Be smart and always let the Paintman do all the drinking and thinking for you! My radiator support fix looks like his throwaway rough draft but it's done, thanks brotha!





Doors are just about ready to go back together



That's about it with the minor update, there's more to follow. Thanks for stopping by, I'll catch you guys later

[paintman]

Be smart and always let the Paintman do all the drinking and thinking for you! My radiator support fix looks like his throwaway rough draft but it's done, thanks brotha!

I will take no responsibility for any problems that may occur because you copied from someone who doesn't have clue what he is doing.
You also have a PM in regards to your questions. paint man

[gokellurself]

what's going on fellas

It's been a few months so I wanted to get a few updates up. I got a few big items checked off so I'm really trying to make a push as we're back into spring and summer now.

I don't have it pictured but I have the cooling system all finalized, fan mounted. I had a local hydraulic shop make some power steering lines for me. I used some washers to get the power steering pump to line up just right on the serpentine. One major item I need to face soon is finalizing the steering linkage









I've got the windows in, all except the windshield. They fit well but are little stiff cranking up and down. I need to grease the channel where the crank slides, but beyond that I'm not sure what else I could do to help it. I still haven't bit the bullet and purchased the new windshield frame, but I don't think the two old ones that I have are going to be worth the work to make either of them work. If anybody is interested in them let me know, or they'll end up on Craigslist or something

[joedoh]

what a great project, glad you are back on it.


my advice: buy the windshield, seriously. I did some math, figuring that I needed new glass, new hardware, new center bar, new glass tape, new gasket, it would have cost me around $400, AND still need to repair the rust in the lower channel, AND drill out and tap all the rusty hardware, AND put it all back together. for double that I could bolt it in and put my not very rusty one with broken glass on craigslist.

bowtie bits is local to me though, so no expensive shipping. jeff is a dynamite human being too, I got a bunch of stuff from him when I stopped in last, and I will get some more this week.

[gokellurself]

Originally Posted by joedoh

what a great project, glad you are back on it.


my advice: buy the windshield, seriously. I did some math, figuring that I needed new glass, new hardware, new center bar, new glass tape, new gasket, it would have cost me around $400, AND still need to repair the rust in the lower channel, AND drill out and tap all the rusty hardware, AND put it all back together. for double that I could bolt it in and put my not very rusty one with broken glass on craigslist.

Thanks man, I know you're right too because all my windows came in a set together so I already have windshield glass that came with glass tape on all the edges, I just need the frame setup that they sell and the gasket. I like bowtie bits too, it's about time I pull the trigger... I've just been stuck on the counter intuitiveness of cashing out on a brand new frame and then soaking it with hydrochloric acid for it to match the patina my heart can't take it!

Hey do you have any more details on how to rebuild the windshield cranks? What size bits did you use? And where/how do I find that copper piece?

[joedoh]

well the shaft can be slightly worn and the wear on the bracket can need a larger sized hole so there isnt a how-to really, I am always sanding with high grit.

the brass is just high copper brass I get from the local scrap yard and turn in a drill press to get smooth.

on a couple I have needed to make a new bushing that the handle shaft rides on, you have to drill out the rivet and put the new piece in. pull on your handle, if you can move it in and out of teh regulator more than a tiny amount, that bushing will need replaced too.

[paintman]

Hey Kell! Can I ask who you bought your gasket from for your window in the back of the cab? Your flange on the outside looks alot bigger then the one I got from Steele. I am having an impossible time getting my glass in. Thanks,the Paintman!
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[gokellurself]

Originally Posted by paintman

Hey Kell! Can I ask who you bought your gasket from for your window in the back of the cab? Your flange on the outside looks alot bigger then the one I got from Steele. I am having an impossible time getting my glass in. Thanks,the Paintman!

Hey whats up Paintman, yeah I had to double check but I found it through Jim Carter. Do you have the old style rear window? I went through the 41 vs 46 comparisons and every sign points to me having a 41 cab

good luck though, here's the link
http://www.oldchevytrucks.com/cart/p...2&i=10930|||||

[gokellurself]

what's going on fellas, I got some updates

I could ignore it no longer so I finally picked up a Lokar E brake the other day on Ebay, got a decent deal on it because he bought it and ended up not using it on his project.

The kit comes fully adjustable but I still added holes to get it exactly where I wanted. This portion of the install couldn't have been easier really, but a bit nerve wracking drilling bolt holes into already painted dash lol I haven't ran any cables yet but here it is

[gokellurself]

I meant to post this a while back, but I came up with a secondary gas tank! Key's stuck in the cap so I'm just gonna leave it there lol







I really just wanted to fill the filler hole, so this was perfect.

I was at the point where my floor, steering, and brake all had to come together at once, so I enlisted the help of a friend for a few tasks because I didn't feel like doing it lol plus couldn't bare to have to own the hack job that would then ensue! After staying in his ear he finally had a few days open up for me and he came and picked it up.



Needed a minor trans hump on the floor. I forgot to snap a photo of the underside but it's super clean with rolled edges and the whole deal. I'll make sure to get it next time, I'm really happy about it.

[paintman]

Originally Posted by gokellurself

Hey whats up Paintman, yeah I had to double check but I found it through Jim Carter. Do you have the old style rear window? I went through the 41 vs 46 comparisons and every sign points to me having a 41 cab

good luck though, here's the link
http://www.oldchevytrucks.com/cart/p...2&i=10930|||||

Hmmmmm, I'm still confused. Your's has the inner trim piece that screws to the cab and holds the gasket in place? Is that why yours doesn't look like it has a seam and is one piece? Yours just looks alot bigger on the outside then mine. Maybe i will post up a pic over on my thread later today. Thanks Well!

[gokellurself]

Originally Posted by paintman

Hmmmmm, I'm still confused. Your's has the inner trim piece that screws to the cab and holds the gasket in place? Is that why yours doesn't look like it has a seam and is one piece? Yours just looks alot bigger on the outside then mine. Maybe i will post up a pic over on my thread later today. Thanks Well!

Yeah man I just read thru that rear window thread we had a while back and sounds like you have a bit of a mystery going on. Post up a pic when you can

For mine the screws pass through the big rear interior piece, through the cab, through the rubber then screws into the outside bezel. I know the 41 window is slightly bigger. Hope this helps

[joedoh]

wow a lot of work in a short time! nice joerb

Originally Posted by gokellurself

I went through the 41 vs 46 comparisons and every sign points to me having a 41 cab

hey we could trade, my serial and title is 1941 but everything points to it being a 46 (rear glass, headliner, turn signals, dash knobs, outside key).

I think a lot of body part swapping went on in the 40s and 50s. I read that, during the war, farmers who were used to replacing their trucks every 2 years (because they didnt last much longer than that in hard use) had to keep these going, wartime production stopped in early 42 and didnt start again until late 45, so a 41 would have almost 5 years work on it by 46 when new trucks were finally available. add to that scrap drives for metal and its amazing anything is left from 41 and earlier.

[gokellurself]

Originally Posted by joedoh

hey we could trade, my serial and title is 1941 but everything points to it being a 46 (rear glass, headliner, turn signals, dash knobs, outside key).

I think a lot of body part swapping went on in the 40s and 50s. I read that, during the war, farmers who were used to replacing their trucks every 2 years (because they didnt last much longer than that in hard use) had to keep these going, wartime production stopped in early 42 and didnt start again until late 45, so a 41 would have almost 5 years work on it by 46 when new trucks were finally available. add to that scrap drives for metal and its amazing anything is left from 41 and earlier.

That's interesting to know too cause getting the truck back from my buddy the other day he's like "hey you know you have a 47 bed right?" I found the specs online and sure enough he was right! The beds are nearly identical with the exception of the tailgate and the 47 bed being an 1 1/2" wider. In practice however it's a PITA because it throws off how the bed, rear fender and running board all come together... I'll post some pics too but I can't switch the bed because it would throw off the whole patina... lol after 75 years it'd be a surprise if any of them were truly all original

[solidaxel]

Have you given any thought of tac welding the 90* adapter for the brake pad to the brake arm. Under VERY hard braking you may be able to twist that pad up and lose your effort on the brakes, just say'n

[gokellurself]

Originally Posted by solidaxel

Have you given any thought of tac welding the 90* adapter for the brake pad to the brake arm. Under VERY hard braking you may be able to twist that pad up and lose your effort on the brakes, just say'n

Yeah man I definitely think that's what I'll be doing once I finalize the rod to the booster. As part of the kit Progressive builds the connecting rod for you once you hit them with a dimension, so I'm waiting on that then I suspect that I'll be needing to trim the brake arm back a little bit once I see exactly where it's going to end up. I'll throw a little weld on it at that point. Thanks Solid, nice catch

[gokellurself]

alright fellas, I was back at it

I got into running all new E-brake cables today. I thought I had a slam dunk with it until I realized that I don't seem to have the right clevis for the hand brake? It threw my off because as I was mounting it under the dash a couple weeks ago I was messing with it and thought that I had everything I needed.. Today I start at the back and work my way forward and by the time I'm in the cab about to finalize the brake lever I realized it wasn't right one. I gotta look around one more time to make sure that's the only one I have, then a call to Lokar's in order. Otherwise the cables went alright

I got a few parts coated, steering column, transmission mount, and got all those back in. The transmission mount really seems a lot sturdier so I'm thinking I'm going to be ok with that. I mounted the gas pedal, mounted and ran remote reservoir for the brakes, installed some seat belts, threw in my battery and installed the driveshaft.

Seems like a bunch of minor stuff on the to do list, gonna keep at it and try to get this thing going. Let me know what y'all think

[gokellurself]

[gokellurself]

ok so I spoke with Lokar today and they were happy to send me another clevis bracket if I just sent them over some batch information off of the box. I stopped by the house to get photos of what they needed but I just wanted to look all through my stuff and confirm I didn't have it before having them send it out. And sure enough I found it at the bottom of one of my parts boxes. I knocked it out real quick so I could finally get the check mark on my to do list

[paintman]

Kell you have pm from the paintman!.....................

[gokellurself]

Hey guys, so I'll be slowly going thru and converting my thread to Flickr... there's just too much work here for me to forfeit a loss to PB so F em. I've started but it takes some time. Now let's hope Flickr doesn't change up in any short time as well

Anyways, I could really use some input today. I have all my windshield stuff finally. I've had my glass for a while and it had some real nice rubber seal around the whole edge, but now that the frame is here I find that it won't slide into the frame along with the seal to save a life. What is the rubber sealant stuff that you guys use? Is there a write up or anything?

The frame is bare metal and I don't know what to do... Get a fresh coat on it? Leave it bare metal for now? Scuff it up and rust it out with muriatic acid? Honestly I was open to getting a good patina on it with the latter option but with a brand new frame I don't know if I can quite bring myself to do it.. Similarly, I'm not sure if I want a nice patina on the truck and then a freshly coated windshield frame... What do you guys think? Idk which way to go

Also Paintman thanks for the wiring info. Looking at all the options I ended up going with American Autowire as well. They were a bit more expensive but it was such a thorough kit that I think by the time I gathered everything else that it came with it really it would have been about the same amount, and it's just so simple how they have it set up. Standby for the wiring walkthrough, I'm looking to spend a good long weekend on it and enjoy taking my time on it

Anyways, thanks guys let me know what you think. take it easy

[CSHADES]

You need to make the frame fit the truck first before anything else. I would suggest painting it. You can always do some fake patina on it if you really want to. I don't remember what color your truck is/was but what I would suggest is spraying some primer on the frame then whatever paint is close to what you want, then after it dries just scuff the paint until you break through to the primer. it will have protection on the frame but still look older than what it is.

[paintman]

Hey Kell! check out post 349 on my build thread before the pics go down. It details how I did my windshield. Originaly I took my frame and glass to a glass shop here in town to see if they would set the glass. They took one look at it and ran for the hills! They did give me some pointers though. First thing they said was don't try and use glass setting tape around the entire piece of glass. You will never get the glass to slide in. Just use 3-4 small pieces to space the glass out away from the frame.

[gokellurself]

Originally Posted by CSHADES

You need to make the frame fit the truck first before anything else. I would suggest painting it. You can always do some fake patina on it if you really want to. I don't remember what color your truck is/was but what I would suggest is spraying some primer on the frame then whatever paint is close to what you want, then after it dries just scuff the paint until you break through to the primer. it will have protection on the frame but still look older than what it is.

CSHADES man thank you, idk how I blanked on the fauxtina idea but that's gotta be the way to go. I appreciate that sir, thank you

Originally Posted by paintman

Hey Kell! check out post 349 on my build thread before the pics go down. It details how I did my windshield. Originaly I took my frame and glass to a glass shop here in town to see if they would set the glass. They took one look at it and ran for the hills! They did give me some pointers though. First thing they said was don't try and use glass setting tape around the entire piece of glass. You will never get the glass to slide in. Just use 3-4 small pieces to space the glass out away from the frame.

Paintman always coming through! I remember when you originally posted the windshield posts and thinking how valuable those were gonna be to me, then I up and forget all about them 11 months later! That's perfect man, thanks so much

Updates to come, thanks again fellas