Markeb01 Build Thread

[markeb01]

I just got back from a 20 mile trip and was thrilled to find not a hint of hesitation or stalling at any speed or rpm. At a steady 50, 55, or 60 mph it purrs like a kitten, and those are the speeds where the stalling problem had been occurring. It doesn’t completely make sense to me as nothing seemed to be wrong with the previous arrangement, but it appears the changes to the gas tank vent cured the problem.

On the way home I figured it would be the perfect time for a full throttle open pipes video, being the middle of the week and nobody around. So I pulled over at a great spot, reset the camera, switched the cutouts to wide open and blasted off. It sounded fantastic and was much quicker than the previous pass with the old engine. The truck was really flying and hit 80 mph just as I went into 3rd gear. I was quickly approaching a traffic area, so I closed the throttle and the cutouts simultaneously. I was tremendously pleased with myself and couldn’t wait to get home and look at the video.

Until I pulled into the garage and went to shut off the camera and discovered it was still in the off position! I was so busy getting ready and checking to make sure everything was clear and safe I failed to turn the dang camera back on! What can I say – old age sucks! If the video is going to happen this year I need to get it done in the next few weeks as winter isn’t that far off where we live.

Next priority is determining why the cruise control keeps disengaging.

[BOXER957]

Yeah, yeah... seems like a good excuse to go do it again to me

[Ta2Don]

Glad the stalling is fixed, now anxiously waiting for the video...

[chad64chevy]

I agree, I for one would like to see the video!! I know you got the cruise control i'm thinking of getting! does the cruise control have vacuum? i'm no expert but I would look there, just a thought!!

[markeb01]

There are no vacuum connections, making it much easier to install than the older versions. And none of the bead chain and pulley business between the clutch and brake pedal either. I put it in back in 1999 and it worked perfectly right up to the day I placed a heat isolator plate under the carburetor. Apparently it didn’t like the change in angle or cable length. Since then I’ve adjusted and replaced the carburetor connections, replaced the signal generator just in case it was damaged during the engine swap, and ultimately raised the cable bracket to the identical orientation is had before the spacer was installed. Unless I can think of something else to check it seems the next option is to go through the entire system top to bottom and see if something got knocked loose.

If that doesn’t fix the problem the entire cruise control will probably get the deep six. It would eliminate a lot of wiring, and although it’s a nice to have, I don’t really need it that much anymore as the truck no longer covers 400 miles a week like it did before retirement.

This afternoon was spent rewiring the video camera power feed. Most new cars have the “power outlet” connected to the cold side of the ignition. Like everything else mine had to be different because I wanted to be able to leave the camera on when the truck was left unattended. If we came back and the truck was damaged, there would be a chance of capturing the injury on video.

The only downside is routinely forgetting to turn the camera off, and waking up to a dead battery. The power line to the camera was operated by a common SPST toggle switch. That was replaced with a DPDT switch. Cosmetically they look identical:



Now when the switch is in the down position, it appears to be “off” and the camera is powered from the cold side of the ignition just like a normal car. The camera starts up and turns off with the engine. If I need to kill the camera as in setting up the start of a video segment, moving the switch to the center position cuts the power.

And if I ever need to leave it running while we’re away, flipping it up to the top position, provides power from the hot side of the master battery disconnect. When everything in the truck is electrically dead, the camera will still operate.

We’ll see what tomorrow brings.

[likaroc13]

That's a cool idea with the camera! Glad you got your hesitation/stalling issue worked out. Hope you get the cruise control issue figured out soon as well.

[BOXER957]

Originally Posted by likaroc13

That's a cool idea with the camera! Glad you got your hesitation/stalling issue worked out. Hope you get the cruise control issue figured out soon as well.

X2 Looking forward to the video!

[markeb01]

I thought I found the problem with the cruise control. The cable had a pretty severe bend in it where it connected to the retaining bracket behind the carb. The angle got more intense after the carb was raised for the heat spacer. I determined the clamp was no longer needed. Here are before and after photos showing the clamp in place and removed, greatly softening the curve:





I hoped this was the solution, but so far it still kicks off randomly. I’ll be checking into the carb connection next.


Last night was an adventure. Just as the sun was setting we decided to take a short trip to pick up a DVD. A few minutes away from home I noticed the dash lights were somewhat dim, so I attempted to turn them up. The adjustment didn’t seem to make much difference so I tried turning the knob all the way to the top and the dome light came on. I set them as high as they would go and figured I’d have to look into maybe having a bad ground.

About half way to our destination I noticed the headlights were getting dim and I could no longer read the volt meter. I grabbed the flashlight and took a look and only saw about 8-9 volts showing. I quickly pulled into a left turn lane and headed back toward home. It immediately became obvious we were running on battery only and it was rapidly running out of juice. About a half mile from home the headlights were reduced to glow markers, and as were pulled into the driveway they were completely out.

I’ve been having dead battery trouble over the last few weeks and assumed it was my fault for leaving the camera on. Turns out it wasn’t. For the second time the expensive Powermaster alternator died. I bought a chrome 100 amp version in 2001 and six years later it went berserk. It took weeks to determine what was wrong as the symptoms were very unusual with the lights going up and down randomly, and causing engine problems when the heater was switched on. It was replaced with a standard finish Powermaster 70 amp model. Not quite six years later it’s completely burned out, and ever smells toasted.

This time I went to Napa and bought a brand new (not remanufactured) 63 amp standard finish version with a lifetime warranty. I keep all that paperwork so this should be the last time I need to buy an alternator.

[BOXER957]

Hey look at the bright side, you weren't 20 miles out in the middle of nowhere. I believe in Lifetime Warranties! Especially if you plan on keeping the truck, which I just get this feeling for some reason you might be. It may or may not be a cheaper item , but you'll never have to pay for it again.

[piratexpress1369a]

dam i will take the lifetime warranty too but what is the fine print on it ?

[BOXER957]

Originally Posted by piratexpress1369a

dam i will take the lifetime warranty too but what is the fine print on it ?

Buy anything that has a warranty through Autozone. They will take your phone # and it will be in the computer under whatever vehicle you ordered it for as long as you own the vehicle it's covered. Get the rewards card, try and keep your purchases at a little over $20 when you can. Every purchase you make that comes to $20 or more you get a point. 5 points you get a $20 credit. If I'm passing by I'll stop and pick up 3 cans of cleaner or paint or a part that comes to $21 and get my point. I've had my credit up to $180. I let it build up until I have to buy something expensive, then it takes some of the sting out. It's a pretty good deal.Also if you need a battery ,ask if they are getting ready to zero any out. They have pro series batteries in the back they can only keep them back there for so long and then they will sell them to "preferred " customers like myself for a deep discount.

[markeb01]

In spite of rain much of the day, I managed to get the truck washed up for tomorrow. The car show may be a wash out, but at least the truck will be ready. The Corvette style crossed flag hub emblems showed up today just in time. I previously picked up a set of 3 bar spinners for the 5 spoke mags, but took my time deciding on emblems before installing them for the first time:







I’ll probably run the standard caps most of the time as the spinners are labor intensive to keep clean, and would make changing a tire in the field a real pain. I’m hoping they add a bit of sparkle at car shows anyway. The standard caps are so timeless I’m not sure any changes are an improvement, although I really like the addition of the red detail. The new emblems have the same sun burst style as the USMC sticker in the back window, although that detail doesn’t show up well in photos. Hopefully I’ll get some decent overall pictures of the truck tomorrow.

[Ta2Don]

Spinners and Emblems are Spot On!!!

[BOXER957]

I like the spinners! I noticed you put moon decals back on, I think it looks better with them myself. Looks Good!

[MisterC]

Love me some spinners! Excellent taste, as usual.
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[markeb01]

What a great show this afternoon. It’s a local charity event for active military and their families. By my count there were a little over 100 cars and trucks in attendance. It provided lots of space on a huge park like lawn. No shade trees unfortunately, but several participants brought shade tents (including us). Rain threatened all afternoon but never materialized.

They even provided a professional photographer to capture free images of your vehicle in print or on a CD. They were taken on acres of lawn. I’m looking forward to their arrival:



Here’s the only shot I took of the truck showing the new wheel spinners. The pro shots should look much nicer since the hood was closed and all by itself:



And here are a few shots of the various trucks participating. There was quite a variety:







I spotted this 1963 out in the parking lot:



It had some type of add on hood scoops I’m not familiar with:



And here are shots of other cars. There was something for everybody from dead stock antiques to the new stuff that youth often prefer:

[Ta2Don]

Awesome Pics...
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[likaroc13]

I agree, great pics Mark. I like the one with the lineup of trucks.

Glad it turned out to be a great show & that the rain held off. Looking forward to your professional shots. I like the new spinners/knockoffs. That red center does add a bit of detail, as it ties in with your taillight lenses as well. I have a set of knockoffs/spinners on the BOSS 338 wheels on my Tahoe. Gives my newer school ride a bit of old school flavor, IMO.

[piratexpress1369a]

great pics again wish i was there to see all the great rides

[markeb01]

In ongoing pursuit of discovering why the cruise control randomly disengages, yesterday I reconfigured the throttle connection from the cable to the carb, and it didn’t make any difference. The day before I readjusted the brake switch, with the same result. This morning I caved in and started on the official troubleshooting process.

I pulled the glovebox liner for access to the cruise control module, and spent another half hour repositioning the module so I could see the LED test light with a mirror. I ran through every test and every level worked perfectly – until the last one. The final check is functionality of the tach wire, which is suppose to produce a blinking light, with a higher blink rate as rpm’s increase. The light never lit up meaning the module is receiving no signal at all.

I started at the source, the tach connection at the HEI distributor cap. I went ahead and removed the cap and discovered a weak connection at the tach terminal, which actually broke off during replacement. A new coil I had on the shelf was installed, and it didn’t fix the problem either.

It’s now down to a bad wire or connection, which isn’t going to be easy to find. Over the years the truck has received numerous electrical modifications leaving multiple zip loomed individual harnesses that have to be opened up to find the specific problem. And with my back I can’t lay on the floor to find it. Removing the glove box and clock panel wasn’t enough, so I’m heading back out in the garage to pull the steering wheel and instrument panel for better access.

Hopefully I’ll have this fixed today. It’s a big relief just to know specifically what needs to be corrected.

[markeb01]

Final analysis - the cruise control module is shot. New one is on the way and should arrive Friday. I thought about eliminating it altogether, but removing it is just as much work as installing a new one since so many wires have to be traced down and disconnected. Since so much of the dash is apart I'm just going to leave it that way until the weekend:

[Ta2Don]

Just Curious... Do you have a write up in your thread about this set-up, I am interested in adding Cruise Control when I get that far into mu build. I am a bit partial to that convenience. Thanks...

[markeb01]

Actually it's one of the few topics I failed to cover. The cruise control was installed years before I started the build thread, and somehow I simply overlooked reporting on the details. I'll do what I can to do collect some photos and information when I start all over on the new installation.

I began installing cruise controls back in the late 70's or early 80's, and the biggest advantage of the new model is being completely electronic. The early versions had vacuum connections and operating controls, and they were really a nightmare to plumb compared to the new stuff. Out of maybe 6 or 8 installations this is the only one I've ever had fail. I can't help thinking it was caused by something I did or changed, but I can't imagine what it could have been, since the only related modification I made was to install a heat isolator under the carburetor.

I seriously thought about eliminating it, but the truth is I use it very often. In addition to normal road travel, it's also helpful holding a steady 35 mph if you're being followed by a cop.

[Ta2Don]

Thanks Mark! I look forward to the info...

[BOXER957]

Good luck with that Mark, I know how hard it is chasing down electrical gremlins. Hopefully your new system goes in and there's no further problems.