I'm finally starting to work on Bella.

[mcbassin]

Originally Posted by Pick

It is a cool job most days! (now)

Up until a little over a year ago, my job for the past 10 years had been primarily fixing broken stuff or mechanic's mistakes: removing broken bolts, broken taps, stuck parts, broken/stripped borescope plugs, heli-coils, etc. but I got tired of standing on my head or hanging off of a ladder trying to cut a stuck inconel bolt out of a $250,000.00 engine case with a pencil grinder and a dental burr.....without dropping anything inside the engine that would require a tear-down and without touching anything except the offending bolt......while someone else told me that they NEEDED the engine done yesterday and that I should hurry every chance I got. (seriously!) That got to be no fun anymore.

Some days I miss just cranking handles.....

Dang! if I had a dime for every broken screw, tap, helicoil I've removed I have enough money finish my project plus some. I have been using the Tig weld a washer method for as long as I have been in a machine shop....1989...long time anyway.
I can relate to the "need it tomorrow" statement too. Sounds like some interesting work.

Originally Posted by Low Elco

Wow! I did aerospace stuff but nothin' like that! Old School Trick: Get the bolts good and hot, the take just a plain ol' kids birthday candle and jam it into the threads and watch it wick it up like solder. Then take 'em apart. The liquid wax penetrates, then lubricates. Works like a bandit. I liked the Front end work description, my favorite suspension work tool is a 12# sledge head on a standard hammer handle. Is it sad when you ask for the BFH, your kids know exactly which one to grab?

I appreciate the tip about the wax, I have never used it but I will in the future.

[Pick]

Originally Posted by mcbassin

Dang! if I had a dime for every broken screw, tap, helicoil I've removed I have enough money finish my project plus some. I have been using the Tig weld a washer method for as long as I have been in a machine shop....1989...long time anyway.
I can relate to the "need it tomorrow" statement too. Sounds like some interesting work.

My favorites were the taps broken while someone tried to "clean up the threads" in a heli-coil...especially a locking heli-coil...

It was (still is) interesting work!

[Pick]

Originally Posted by Low Elco

Is it sad when you ask for the BFH, your kids know exactly which one to grab?

My kids know which one it is too!

I'm going to try the wax trick too!

[jlsanborn]

x3 on the candle bit! We usually lick the frosting off and just chuck them. Not any more!

[Pick]

So.....there is was, grinding out the welds holding the steel plate on top of the original wood floor. (that, incidentally, hasn't seen the light of day for 45 years or so.)

Grinding dirty, rusty steel has its own odor, but this strange new smell started really getting strong. Then my wife came outside to complain about the smell.....and the smoke. Old wood floors burn fairly easily apparently.

I had to get pictures before i put it out. It wasn't much of a fire but it made the afternoon interesting.

[swamp rat]

LOL! Good thing the wife was there huh??

[Pick]

Originally Posted by swamp rat

LOL! Good thing the wife was there huh??

No doubt!

[Pick]

I finally got some more done...after not quite a month!? Ugh! Between holiday stuff, a sinus infection, and a string of 9 straight days of rain, it hasn't been a good time to work outside. I shoulda built a shop first I guess.

Anyway, the rear end and truck arms are completely out now. The next step will be to strip, clean, seal and paint everything before doing the rear discs and putting it all back together. I will probably run a few beads of weld on the arms and will definitely replace the bushings while I've got everything on the ground. The shock relocation mounts and maybe a new panhard bar will happen somewhere in here as well. As usual.....baby steps.

Sorry for the sad cell phone pictures in the dark....but here they are.

[swamp rat]

Originally Posted by Pick

I finally got some more done...after not quite a month!? Ugh! Between holiday stuff, a sinus infection, and a string of 9 straight days of rain, it hasn't been a good time to work outside. I shoulda built a shop first I guess. :lol

I feel your pain, rain rain and snow, plus working my 3rd weekend in a row, if i can get a day of no rain after Christmas i may get somewhere again.

[Low Elco]

Any progress is good progress!

[jlsanborn]

You're over the hump back there. I'm sure it'll be tidy just like you've done in the front. It's going to be a big upgrade once you're done!

[Pick]

Originally Posted by swamp rat

I feel your pain, rain rain and snow, plus working my 3rd weekend in a row, if i can get a day of no rain after Christmas i may get somewhere again.

I'm hoping I can get back to a more normal (for me) schedule of working on the truck now that Christmas is over.

Originally Posted by Low Elco

Any progress is good progress!

True.....I just tend to get impatient when I can't make it happen!

Originally Posted by jlsanborn

You're over the hump back there. I'm sure it'll be tidy just like you've done in the front. It's going to be a big upgrade once you're done!

It will be a big improvement! And true, now that it is finally apart I can tackle the stuff in pieces.

I'll get there! Eventually.

[diver]

hi,nice job i am doing same thing on 67 step if you want to sell your 6 motor after 350 install let me know.good luck BUTCH

[Pick]

Originally Posted by diver

hi,nice job i am doing same thing on 67 step if you want to sell your 6 motor after 350 install let me know.good luck BUTCH

Thanks! I will most likely get rid of the 6 when I get that far, but as you can see, progress is kinda slow at the moment so it will be awhile. Time and funds and weather all have to cooperate at the same time. (and for some reason they all aren't playing well together lately!)

Since the last update, I have managed to get the rear end alittle cleaner and slid the axles out long enough to get the backing plates off. I buttoned it back up afterward since it's sitting outside and it still has a bunch more cleaning and prep to do before I put new parts in it or on it.

That's been about it.

[diver]

You will get it done in time,ga. Weather has been bad for working outside.
You found a gem.the people on this board is very help full.i lived in fayetteville on hood adv.long time ago.nice talking.butch

[Pick]

It was 61 degrees yesterday so my neighbor loaned me his pressure washer and I managed to get the rear frame and rear end clean(er), much more quickly than my previous methods.

It didn't make for a whole lot of visual progress aside from the river of reddish brown water running down the driveway and into the yard......but it will make it much better going forward.

Of course, if the weather guessers are correct, we're supposed to get snow this afternoon and through the night...

Oh well.......baby steps......

[mcbassin]

Nice progress.

[Pick]

They were right......61 degrees yesterday and snow today! Gotta love Georgia weather!

[swamp rat]

Looks like you could use one of the 20X10 portable poly car covers..

[diver]

the cheapest way to cover truck is order from pegs 1 3/8 pipe corners and go to home depot and buy 1 3/8 top fence rail and make your own portable truck cover any size then from pegs order cover and bungy cords. in ga. they last about 4- 5 on cover but you have frame and recover/tarp it.good until you get garage built is what all south fl.home owners park there boats/cars under under 200.00. http://www.pegscanopy.com/

[Low Elco]

Just hope you don't have to go near the ATL!

[Pick]

This really isn't much of an update......at least not much of an update on Bella. I have managed to get the rear end bearings and seals replaced and gotten a coat of paint on the rear end but that's been the extent of it at the moment.

I'm sure we all know that help comes in handy and most, if not all of us have most likely figured out that GOOD help is very hard to find.....so I've been the help for my neighbor and he's going to be some much-needed GOOD help when it comes time to do more tough stuff on Bella.

If you want to check out some updates on his work, check out his Facebook page here: Jo Daddy's Garage or watch some videos here: Jo Daddy's Garage.

The latest facebook update even includes a cameo appearance by yours truly.....with a paint gun in my hand for the first time in about 20 years!? (I don't know that I was much good at it then and I'm sure I'm very rusty now....so it wasn't great work, but it actually turned out better than I expected it to.)



Anyway, he's the master at major restoration projects and I am mostly the strong back and weak mind that lends an extra pair of hands once in awhile and I've been helping more lately.

[swamp rat]

Nice to see ya posting again!

[Pick]

Originally Posted by swamp rat

Nice to see ya posting again!

Thanks! I'd really like to be able to post with some good progress on my truck.....but helping out next door is going to make future progess much easier and better!

[Pick]

What I've learned working next door: I'm not a body man.....not yet anyway. My neighbor is committed to teaching me what I need to know (because it helps him and me as well), but it isn't going to happen in a couple of days.....and not nearly as quickly as I'd like. I'm getting closer with every pile of filler dust I leave in the floor........but (I think) I'm leaving way too many piles of filler dust in the floor. (it's that whole perfectionist thing.....) I get close enough but can't bring myself to stop there..........and then go too far..........and then repeat a skim coat...........and then...........well, you get the idea.

I know, those of you that have been there or are there right now are laughing with me....or at me. (I'm OK with that.)

The good news is that the paint work where I jambed out the doors actually turned out pretty well......so there is hope on at least one front.

Once we get caught up over there, work will continue at a better (hopefully) pace on Bella......and it should be a better result as well, I think. (I hope!)