The Hillbilly Deluxe dually build

[jhama78]

Originally Posted by flashed

Doing what you are suggesting would be very dangerous ,might lose a limb or your life .

Agreed.

[68Timber]

Originally Posted by jhama78

Agreed.

Yeah, that's got 'hey y'all watch this' written all over it.

[Tx Firefighter]

Originally Posted by willy41

I'm new here, but your threads are my guidebook on how I want to treat my truck.

Your wheels are a work of art and I know you did a lot of hand work getting them that way. I saw in an earlier post someone had a machine that would do a lot of work on wheels. With that in mind, please tell me why I would be totally crazy to try something like this:

Put the rear axle on jack stands and run the truck in gear, using the rear axle like a lathe. Use manual or machine tools to apply the restoration steps: sanding, polishing, buffing, and maybe even coating.

I have even further to go than you did, so I'm looking to minimize the elbow grease. Thanks in advance for your help and all your posts.

Personally, I'd do it, and have done it. But I wouldn't openly recommend that method to anyone else. If I booger up a finger, I have to suffer for it. If someone else boogered up a finger on my advise, that would weigh on me.

If you do it, use some kind of a barrier between your finger and the wheel. Maybe one of those sanding sponges. At the least, a thick welding glove.

[aggie91]

Yeah, I know it has been done, but those spining lug nuts could do some serious damage to the fingers and hand...The machines I have seen to do this do not spin the wheel very fast, the motor on the buffing wheel is spinning way faster...

[Tx Firefighter]

This week's update is a bit mundane. At work we get three different size paychecks. So I have a good pay day, a medium pay day, and a small pay day. Well, my small pay check coincided with my heaviest bills, so truck money is short until next pay day.

So, I figured I'd clean and rebuild the leaf springs and paint the rear frame rails beneath the flatbed.

Supplies bought....



I called Champion Spring and they have the little plastic sliders for the leaf springs in stock. I'll try and get down there and pick up a few. Then, disassemble the leaf packs, clean and paint each leaf, and reassemble with new plastic sliders. A lot of work but not too much money.

Will post pictures when I get further along.

[68Timber]

I've seen someone else here blow apart the leaf packs and paint them and put them back together. It is probably the only detail job that I don't quite understand why you would bother to do. It doesn't seem like the paint would last very long when they're back on the road.

[Tx Firefighter]

My purpose is mainly to detail the exposed parts under the flatbed and renew the plastic slider bushings between the individual leafs.

[68Timber]

I guess what you said earlier about replace/repair/refurb all moving parts applies there too. I didn't mean that to knock anyone who does it.

[Tx Firefighter]

What I've been doing is wire brushing each spring leaf, then running over them again with a flap wheel to remove any burrs on the ends. This allows me to check for cracks or issues. Then a coat of Rustoleum and let it dry. Then a second coat and let it dry. Then turn over and repeat.



I'll go down to the spring shop Monday and pick up a handful of these little plastic slider buttons to replace the old cracked originals.



Sucks waiting till Monday, but that at least gives the paint plenty of drying time.

Valerie has been out of the country this week and is coming home tonight. I'll probably be spending a bit of time with her tomorrow rather than messing with trucks.

[Tx Firefighter]

Cleaned, wire brushed, and painted frame rail and hangers.





If I can swing the budget, I'm going to get a couple of cans of sprayable undercoating for the bottom of the bed.

[darkhorse970]

Looking good! I can send some powdercoating work over there if that will help fit the undercoat into the budget...seriously, I would like to pick your brain on some powdercoat ideas when you have a few minutes.

[joe231]

That looks great Kevin!!!

[Tx Firefighter]

Keith, text works best. I can't get phone reception at my house with the ghetto cell phone carrier I use. I can usually get texts though.

[Tx Firefighter]

Originally Posted by joe231

That looks great Kevin!!!

Thanks Joe. I'm working real slow today. I caught some kind of crud from a coworker so I'm spending more time coughing and blowing my nose than I am working.

[flashed]

Dang Tex ,that looks good ,you are making me want to work on my 72 one ton but my budget is going to my 1/2 ton thats in the bodyshop.

[rusty76]

Looking good.

[KrazyRay]

Kevin, Thanks for proving that you can still have quality on a very tight budget. I used your guidelines on my 87 SWB GMC with DJM spindles, Moog ball joints, and having patience to do the work right when the money comes in. Your influence prevented me from cheapening it up and, therefore, being unhappy with the results. I would like to figure out the powdercoating in the oven at home one day.

[Tx Firefighter]

Originally Posted by KrazyRay

Kevin, Thanks for proving that you can still have quality on a very tight budget. I used your guidelines on my 87 SWB GMC with DJM spindles, Moog ball joints, and having patience to do the work right when the money comes in. Your influence prevented me from cheapening it up and, therefore, being unhappy with the results. I would like to figure out the powdercoating in the oven at home one day.

Thank you. It's a wonderful compliment when someone follows my suggestions and winds up very happy with the results.

I haven't done much to the dually in the last few days. I came down pretty sick with some kind of head cold and Valerie came back from an out of country business trip so I've kept pretty much inside. Yesterday, I pulled off and did a few hours works to my stepside to return it to true daily driver status.

Tomorrow morning when I get off work, I'm headed to the spring shop again to get a few little things to finish rebuilding my leaf springs on the dually. Then it will be time to install the new rearend and get it all back together.

[GCncsuHD]

Originally Posted by Tx Firefighter

Tomorrow morning when I get off work, I'm headed to the spring shop again to get a few little things to finish rebuilding my leaf springs on the dually. Then it will be time to install the new rearend and get it all back together.

Uggghhh I remember how fun those were to assemble and put back on the truck. In hind sight I should have bolted the main leaf in first, then used a piece of all thread to line up all the other leafs. Instead I benchpressed the 120lb spring in by my self and did a balancing/acrobatic act to get a bolt in the hanger while holding the leaf.

Why I had to rebuild my pack:

(before anyone says anything, those aluminum blocks were not from my truck, they were removed from a lowered Mazda minitruck)

[Low Elco]

Amazing how nice just cleaned and painted nicely can be. Good stuff.

[Tx Firefighter]

Originally Posted by GCncsuHD

Uggghhh I remember how fun those were to assemble and put back on the truck. In hind sight I should have bolted the main leaf in first, then used a piece of all thread to line up all the other leafs. Instead I benchpressed the 120lb spring in by my self and did a balancing/acrobatic act to get a bolt in the hanger while holding the leaf.

Why I had to rebuild my pack:

(before anyone says anything, those aluminum blocks were not from my truck, they were removed from a lowered Mazda minitruck)

And that's the reason I wanted to take my packs apart and go over each and every one individually with a wire brush. Better now than later. Do it once, do it right, and move on to the next thing.

[KrazyRay]

Kevin, Let me know if you need some parts for your 2500. I have this one going for scrap soon.

[Tx Firefighter]

Originally Posted by KrazyRay

Kevin, Let me know if you need some parts for your 2500. I have this one going for scrap soon.

I wish you were closer. I'd bring a pickup and my tool box and harvest some stuff.

I'm kind of rushing a bit on this dually here lately. I've been hitting it pretty hard all winter and my motivation is waning. I'm getting itchy to start messing with the 4 wheel drive.

[ryanroo]

id have trouble throwing that transmission away. evidence, i have one in my garage already. i have problems

[Tx Firefighter]

Wow, I just caught that. That's a 4L80E isn't it ?