Working Man's Burbon

[HO455]

I got my gate lock back from LockDoc. He converted the lock to the original key style and along with that I have a new ignition and door locks all keyed to one key like it came from GM originally.

I ran into the same problem with the gate lock mount installation on the WMB's gate as I did with the spare gate but to a lesser extent. The interior sheet metal on the gate is pushed down and that prevented the lock mount from fitting. Fortunately I was able to grind a little bit of the mount and get it to fit, just barely. (See photo) My gate is in pretty decent shape compared to the spare gate. It appears that it doesn't take much deformation of the sheet metal to cause problems with the lock mounting.

And the rebuilt lock works great, warm butter smooth. Thanks Doc.

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by HO455

I got my gate lock back from LockDoc. He converted the lock to the original key style and along with that I have a new ignition and door locks all keyed to one key like it came from GM originally.

I ran into the same problem with the gate lock mount installation on the WMB's gate as I did with the spare gate but to a lesser extent. The interior sheet metal on the gate is pushed down and that prevented the lock mount from fitting. Fortunately I was able to grind a little bit of the mount and get it to fit, just barely. (See photo) My gate is in pretty decent shape compared to the spare gate. It appears that it doesn't take much deformation of the sheet metal to cause problems with the lock mounting.

And the rebuilt lock works great, warm butter smooth. Thanks Doc.

No problem on the locks.

What is all that black stuff? Looks like undercoating. I would think that would make all if the pivot points on the latch hard to move.

LockDoc

[HO455]

Originally Posted by LockDoc

No problem on the locks.

What is all that black stuff? Looks like undercoating. I would think that would make all if the pivot points on the latch hard to move.

LockDoc

It's POR15 I sprayed in the void spaces way back on the first page of the thread. Man, that seems like a long time ago. I forgotten about doing it

It hasn't affected the latch operation as far as I can tell.

['68OrangeSunshine]

I had an automatic choke on a Carter AFB on the 454 BBC in my '67 K/10 Suburban. It kept kicking in when I didn't want it. One time I was in Pinetop, AZ [Elev. 6800'] on a ski trip. In the Safeway parking lot, for no reason, the choke suddenly cut in. A friendly local cowboy showed me a trick of stuffing the handle of a Craftsman screwdriver into the carb flap to keep it open.
The engine was tuned for my home of Tucson [Elev. 2700'].
Another time, I was working on a movie that used the Anaconda pit mine in Sahuarita for a location. While the local surface elevation was about the same as Tucson's, when I had to go down a couple levels, I lost about 2000', and the choke went crazy again. I remembered the screwdriver trick and got out of the hole.
After that, I restored the OEM Choke cable and put a manual choke adapter on the Carter AFB.
My Stepside always had manual choke on a 292, but when I made performance modifications like an Offy intake, Clifford headers and a 4-bbl 390 Holley, I altered the Holley for manual choke. When I rebuilt the 292 -- 25 years later, the Holley was shot. I got an Edelbrock 1404 with manual choke. [Carters had become history.]
Likewise when I re-engined my '71 Jimmy with a crate 350 and put a Carter Performance Series AFB [625 CFM] I got a manual choke carb and added a factory style choke cable to the '71 dash.
Now the choke doesn't go in unless I pull it.

[kev2809]

nice! im going to have to see if leon can match all mine too. was digging into the tailgate any pain at all?

[3757chevy]

Originally Posted by kev2809

was digging into the tailgate any pain at all?

Go back to post 970 he explains it in detail. I'm going to have to do it, 'cause my Burb has 1 key for the ign. 1 key for the doors [both code C] but no key for the tailgate . but code E is the only key that slips in.

[HO455]

Getting the lock out is pretty easy in good straight gate. My spare gate was more difficult due to how much the interior sheet metal was pushed in. It had the lock mount pinched and I had to pry it loose with a small pry bar. I don't have a photo of the spare gate to show how bad it is pushed in. You should be able to get an idea from the first photo if you look at the top edge. It's similar to what we've all seen on badly abused tailgates. The good gate shows what looks like something heavy got dropped or slid into the gate where the circles are and the sheet metal is pushed in. (2nd photo) When I removed the lock mount the sheet metal dropped about 1/8" and that was enough to keep the mount from popping back in place.

The spare gate dropped in about a 1/4" and that was too much to alow me to reinstall the mount. I will have to figure out a way to pull the sheet metal upwards before the lock mount will fit back in place. In the 2nd photo see the yellow lines and arrow that indicate the minimum distance between the interior and exterior sheet metal that will allow the mount to fit. I'm pretty sure if I am unable to get the interior sheet metal to pull up on the spare gate I can elongate the mounting holes and grind the lock mount (or the tab it sits on) enough to allow me to reinstall the lock. It may also require that the top edge of the mount be ground down so the cover plate will sit flush.

I guess that I'm saying that you should take a close look at your gate to see if it's been pushed in before removing the lock. Mine looked pretty good (Last photo) so I didn't think there would be a problem even after I took the spare gate apart.

After writing this it also seems that before removing the 2 lock mount screws completely it would be a good idea to loosen them two turns or so and the see if you can wiggle the mount. If not and it looks like the screws are hard against the lower edge of the holes in the lock mount you should expect the sheet metal to move down when the screws are removed.

Once again a long winded post but hopefully I was able to convey the idea.

[CG]

You guys that are having your locks done by Leon (I have a set too) you should get a locking glove box button and have it keyed too.

[HO455]

Nothing to report here since I broke my foot.
Dhooo!

Some friends and I did drive up to Dufur Oregon and watched the Oregon Trail Rally. It was really dusty even with a steady 20 mph wind. The WMB was covered in so much dust at one point I watched it flowing off the truck like water. Unfortunately it didn't photograph well.

There was one other noteworthy item. On the trip up the Gorge there was a strong tail wind and lots of trucks to draft behind. And for the trip from Portland to Dufur and then back to Hood River where I filled the truck up again we got 16.8 MPG. Woohoooooo! New record.

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by HO455

Nothing to report here since I broke my foot.
Dhooo!

Some friends and I did drive up to Dufur Oregon and watched the Oregon Trail Rally. It was really dusty even with a steady 20 mph wind. The WMB was covered in so much dust at one point I watched it flowing off the truck like water. Unfortunately it didn't photograph well.

There was one other noteworthy item. On the trip up the Gorge there was a strong tail wind and lots of trucks to draft behind. And for the trip from Portland to Dufur and then back to Hood River where I filled the truck up again we got 16.8 MPG. Woohoooooo! New record.

Ouch! That doesn't look like fun...

That is good MPG for a Suburban. I will have to look up the Oregon Trail Rally and see what it is.

LockDoc

['68OrangeSunshine]

Originally Posted by HO455

Nothing to report here since I broke my foot.
Dhooo!

Some friends and I did drive up to Dufur Oregon and watched the Oregon Trail Rally. It was really dusty even with a steady 20 mph wind. The WMB was covered in so much dust at one point I watched it flowing off the truck like water. Unfortunately it didn't photograph well.

There was one other noteworthy item. On the trip up the Gorge there was a strong tail wind and lots of trucks to draft behind. And for the trip from Portland to Dufur and then back to Hood River where I filled the truck up again we got 16.8 MPG. Woohoooooo! New record.

I used to get 6 City and 8 Highway MPG with White Fang, but it had a very thirsty 454, and was a 4X4. Also I kept every tool I'd ever need in the voluminous back, and a tailgate gas grill.

Get well.

[HO455]

I should have posted this link. And if I can figure out my camera I'll post some pictures.

https://oregontrailrally.com/

We got to see this guy run but I missed out on a chance to talk with him.

https://youtu.be/iMS6o3zE4Rk

For days after we got back the truck smelled of the dust. Then 2 days later I went to the feed store and picked up 2 bales of straw, 2 bags of manure, and 2 bags of potting soil for my better half. Now the WMB smells like the Dufur feed store.

As far as broken bones go it hasn't been too bad. Wearing the boot has been more painful than the actual injury.

[Beach-Burban]

Originally Posted by HO455

Nothing to report here since I broke my foot.
Dhooo!

Some friends and I did drive up to Dufur Oregon and watched the Oregon Trail Rally. It was really dusty even with a steady 20 mph wind. The WMB was covered in so much dust at one point I watched it flowing off the truck like water. Unfortunately it didn't photograph well.

There was one other noteworthy item. On the trip up the Gorge there was a strong tail wind and lots of trucks to draft behind. And for the trip from Portland to Dufur and then back to Hood River where I filled the truck up again we got 16.8 MPG. Woohoooooo! New record.

Sorry about the foot, but great news on the MPG!!! I love seeing vehicles getting used for their originally intended purpose…a little dirt (or “boot”) is not going stop you!

Woody

[HO455]

Got free of the boot and got the WMB washed! Hopefully tomorrow I can get the interior cleaned up. However I know the old lady wants to make strawberry jam tomorrow so that usually means I get to make jam too!

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by HO455

Got free of the boot and got the WMB washed! Hopefully tomorrow I can get the interior cleaned up. However I know the old lady wants to make strawberry jam tomorrow so that usually means I get to make jam too!

Glad you got to give the boot the boot...

My wife made cherry/rhubarb jam the other day. Luckily all I get to do is eat it.

LockDoc

[pjmoreland]

I'm sorry to hear about your foot! I hope you heal quickly. I drove my '89 K1500 out to Moab, UT a few months ago. There was a big dust storm one day. Now I find stand in every crack and crevice of the truck when I work on it.

['68OrangeSunshine]

Don't think I'd wanna buy a panel truck that the PO used for his Cheese Shop deliveries.

[3757chevy]

Sorry to hear about your foot. I hope it heals soon.

[kev2809]

60 degrees?? so jealous

[HO455]

It's nicer this weekend. They're predicting 94 degrees today whereas 2 weeks ago it was 100 plus. All the whining around here was worse than the temperature.

[kev2809]

lol we have been over 100 plus for like 2 months it feels like...and no rain

[HO455]

Dove into the heater core project today. Once again the PO's have left their mark. To get the box out I went with the fender well method. It wasn't too terrible as I have removed all the fender well bolts at least once since I've owned the truck. Which means no broken cage nuts this time.

The last time the heater box was reinstalled they goobered at least half a tube of silicone to seal the blower to cowl joint. (1/4 tube of black and a 1/4 tube of orange) (Photo #1) Unfortunately I believe that all the silicone trapped water which lead to some corrosion. (Photo #2) UGGG! I will have to figure out how to address the rust before reinstalling the heater box.

In addition to that the heater box has a broken tab on the top next to the blower motor. But even worse the PO cut the end off of the box where the core resides. My guess it was a short cut method of replacing the heater core. To be honest in my younger days living in North Idaho if I was faced with replacing the heater core in 20 degree weather without a garage I too may have used that method too. This does solve the mystery of why the heater box had silicone smeared all over it. (Photo #3) I never investigated it too closely as I knew this day would come.

And one last small issue is the screws that secure inter-baffle plate have been replaced with pop rivets (Photo #4)

After seeing all of the above it looks as I'm in the market for a heater box.

In the interim I made a plate to cover the hole so I can still drive the Burban. Last photo.

[HO455]

Here are photos of the collection of debris that had collected in the heater box. The upside of having all the debris is it apparently absorbed all the antifreeze and none dripped inside the cab.

I'm a little disappointed that the original deluxe heater core was missing. That being said I'm sure getting the 2 inch core recored will be cheaper.

The amount of heat that the heater in this condition put out was pretty good. I guess it will be cooking me out of the cab with a new clean core.

[HO455]

One question about the firewall. It looks to me that the holes in my firewall are are pulled out and need to be hammered down. Or are they supposed to be that way?
Thanks in advance.

[LockDoc]

Originally Posted by HO455

One question about the firewall. It looks to me that the holes in my firewall are are pulled out and need to be hammered down. Or are they supposed to be that way?
Thanks in advance.

I think the pop rivets are stock.

Looks like PO used oversize screws in those holes. I think I would flatten them back out. You might need someone to hold a dolly or another hammer inside to do that.

LockDoc