Penny

[cwcarpenter98]

Some good progress was made over the past two days. I started to pull the bed yesterday morning and proceeded to spin the first bolt I touched without loosening it a bit. Decided to fight with that another day and pulled the leaf springs instead. Got the old bushings removed today, new ones should be here tomorrow.

I think I will still pull the bed off, but I’m going to get the rear suspension back together first.

[Shifty One]

It's too late to help now, but I just soak the bushings in gasoline, set 'em afire, and walk away. After they burn-out, the rubber is brittle, and comes apart easily.

Good to see the old beast coming along though!

[Getter-Done]

Great progress

I have learned a Few tricks over the years about bed bolts.

Especially the Later model Square body has 2 bolts that are (Long).

1st thing I do is Drill a small 1/4" to 5/16 hole in the center of the Top of the bolt that is spinning / about 1/2 to 1 inch deep.

If you have someone to hold the bolt from the bottom while drilling (If Needed) it helps.

Then take an angle grinder and very carefully cut and X in the top of the bolt.

Tack weld the bolt lightly to the bed.

Then try your luck breaking the nut loose.

Only put penetrating oil on the nut not the bolt.
Ask me how I figured that out.

If this does not work or the bolt breaks the welds.

You have several options.

Reweld the bolt then drill the top of the bolt with a drill bigger than the Diameter of the bolt, (1/2 ") maybe use a 9/16 or 5/8 drill.

This will separate the head from the shank of the bolt.

An undesirable option would be to drill the bottom of the bolt or grind it off.

I prefer to do the grunt work on the top (Less sparks, shaving and dirt in your eyes and stuff)

Hope this helps.

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by Shifty One

It's too late to help now, but I just soak the bushings in gasoline, set 'em afire, and walk away. After they burn-out, the rubber is brittle, and comes apart easily.

Good to see the old beast coming along though!

That's a good idea. I was surprised with how well the ball joint press did in removing the inner sleeve and rubber, so if fire isn't an option, the press definitely is. Also great for installing the new bushings. Did that in just about an hour this evening.

Originally Posted by Getter-Done

Great progress

I have learned a Few tricks over the years about bed bolts.

Especially the Later model Square body has 2 bolts that are (Long).

1st thing I do is Drill a small 1/4" to 5/16 hole in the center of the Top of the bolt that is spinning / about 1/2 to 1 inch deep.

If you have someone to hold the bolt from the bottom while drilling (If Needed) it helps.

Then take an angle grinder and very carefully cut and X in the top of the bolt.

Tack weld the bolt lightly to the bed.

Then try your luck breaking the nut loose.

Only put penetrating oil on the nut not the bolt.
Ask me how I figured that out.

If this does not work or the bolt breaks the welds.

You have several options.

Reweld the bolt then drill the top of the bolt with a drill bigger than the Diameter of the bolt, (1/2 ") maybe use a 9/16 or 5/8 drill.

This will separate the head from the shank of the bolt.

An undesirable option would be to drill the bottom of the bolt or grind it off.

I prefer to do the grunt work on the top (Less sparks, shaving and dirt in your eyes and stuff)

Hope this helps.

Thanks for the tips, I might have to give that a try before resorting to slicing from below. I wonder if cutting a slot in the bolt head and using a large screwdriver to hold it would be enough to break it loose. Might give that a shot as well since I have a really large flat head screwdriver

[LT7A]

I have read from some guys that they just go right to tightening the bolt from underneath and snapping it off. I'm assuming that we can get these bolts either at the hardware store or from one of the reproduction suppliers, but I haven't looked into it. Kind of makes sense, just tighten it til it snaps.

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by LT7A

I have read from some guys that they just go right to tightening the bolt from underneath and snapping it off. I'm assuming that we can get these bolts either at the hardware store or from one of the reproduction suppliers, but I haven't looked into it. Kind of makes sense, just tighten it til it snaps.

Yeah, that does make sense to just tighten till it snaps, but I would still be concerned that the bolt will just spin instead of getting tighter

[cwcarpenter98]

A lot of progress has been made over the past two evenings. Some late night wrenching had to happen, but the rear suspension has new bushings and is back together and torqued to spec. I got the new u bolts and new shocks on yesterday and wrapped up torquing the leaf spring bushings just about 20 minutes ago. I’ve been sitting and staring at it since.

On top of fully rebuilding the suspension system, I decided to finally do what I’ve wanted to do to a truck for a long time. I didn’t have the money to do it to Frankentruck, and then went a different direction, so this was the perfect opportunity. Yup, Penny is no longer stock. I ordered up some 2.5” drop spindles, and a 2” drop spring up front, and a flip kit for the rear. She’s sittin’ real fine nice now. Yeah, I still need to pull the bed off and install the c-notch, but I wanted to get her mobile again to maybe put her in the garage so I can work on the wiring and brakes over the winter months. I would like to be driving Penny come spring time, but I’m not counting on that just yet.

[cwcarpenter98]

So I’ve been struggling for a couple weeks with getting Penny to run. I was getting air, fuel, and spark, so decided to check the timing today. Sure enough, it seems the probably original nylon timing gear has decided to no longer exist. The crank is at TDC in the picture, but the rotor is no longer pointing towards #1. I think the timing has jumped. At a minimum, I’m throwing a new cam and timing chain/gear at it with some fresh paint. Might even go with a full rebuild. Not sure yet though.

At least it’s sitting real nice now.

[cwcarpenter98]

Well, that escalated quickly.
Since I have to pull the transmission for either rebuild or replacement and want to pull the engine for a rebuild, I decided to yank the front end off to make pulling them much easier. This will also give me the opportunity to more easily clean up things under the hood.

I want to convert the factory a/c to 134a and the radiator is leaking, so now is the time to do all that as well.

It might sound crazy, but I’m going to rebuild the original 305. Definitely going to replace the cam with something better, but probably going to keep everything else as is. Maybe some flat top pistons to bump the compression up a smidge.

[Getter-Done]

Great Choice

Sounds like a good plan.

I will suggest at least add a Double roller timing chain also.

I run a Quiet Gear drive timing chain setup years ago.

Would I do it again????

[cwcarpenter98]

The battle was long, but the war was won. Started about 9:15 this morning, took about an hour for lunch, and got the engine and transmission out and split apart by about 8:15 tonight.

Not sure yet which timing chain/gear set up that I’ll go for, but probably whatever will fit under the stock timing cover. I want the engine to look stock but have some more ponies than stock.

Of course, I would love to buy a new 383 stroker motor and tremec 5 speed, but I don’t want to spend that much money on it right now since I’m also trying to save up for a house.

I’ll start getting the engine torn down at the beginning of next week. Trying to get one of the 3 8 point bucks that we’ve seen on our trail cameras tomorrow.

Last but not least, after a hard day’s work, it’s pie time

[LT7A]

Good work. You and I might be the only two in the whole trucking universe that will spend a little money on a 305. I understand the rationale of building a bigger engine when it costs the same. If you already have that other bigger engine... To get the value out of a 305 one needs to understand why it's built the way it is and most people don't take the time to do that. Do you know the specs on yours? Mine is an LE9 which means that it is designated as high torque from the factory. It actually has higher compression, about 9.2. And then the ESC is there to retard the timing if it starts to ping. Kind of cool when you think about it. 305s are long stroke and narrow bore. That allows them to have the mechanical advantage to provide torque to get you up to speed with a load. But then it runs out of air because of the heads and the valves with the narrow bore. So yeah, it's not capable making a lot of power. But if you set it up right, it's a motor that can get you up to speed and keep you there, while burning a little less fuel. Have you looked into the summit cams? An 1101, or an 1102 might take great care of you and are priced well. If you don't need to rebuild that motor yet, I wouldn't. Just putting in the cam and lifters and getting back on your way should be pretty economical and quick.

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by LT7A

Good work. You and I might be the only two in the whole trucking universe that will spend a little money on a 305. I understand the rationale of building a bigger engine when it costs the same. If you already have that other bigger engine... To get the value out of a 305 one needs to understand why it's built the way it is and most people don't take the time to do that. Do you know the specs on yours? Mine is an LE9 which means that it is designated as high torque from the factory. It actually has higher compression, about 9.2. And then the ESC is there to retard the timing if it starts to ping. Kind of cool when you think about it. 305s are long stroke and narrow bore. That allows them to have the mechanical advantage to provide torque to get you up to speed with a load. But then it runs out of air because of the heads and the valves with the narrow bore. So yeah, it's not capable making a lot of power. But if you set it up right, it's a motor that can get you up to speed and keep you there, while burning a little less fuel. Have you looked into the summit cams? An 1101, or an 1102 might take great care of you and are priced well. If you don't need to rebuild that motor yet, I wouldn't. Just putting in the cam and lifters and getting back on your way should be pretty economical and quick.

Thanks for the explanation on the 305. Sounds like it will still fit the bill for what I want out of the truck, and I can still say it has the numbers matching engine. The code on the SPID is LG9, but I'm not sure if that's the code you mentioned. I don't believe that my truck has the ESC system. It is just a 2 barrel carb, but that'll most likely get replaced by a Quadrajet at some point.

I am going to go through with a full rebuild even though I could probably get away with just the cam and lifters. There's a lot of crusty looking carbon buildup throughout the engine. While it's out, I want to just do it all at once. I really don't want to pull the engine again after 6 months to do the stuff I didn't do the first time.

[cwcarpenter98]

Got the engine torn down to the long block this morning. It’s got 416 heads and the block is 14010203.

In the process, I figured out that the nylon timing gear was not the culprit, however there was still a noticeable amount of slack in the chain.

When draining the oil, I almost overfilled my drain pan. I drained about 6-7 quarts out of a 5 quart pan. What probably really happened was that the carb kept flooding out real bad and kept dumping raw fuel straight past the piston rings. That oil sure was thin coming out of the pan.

With the sludge that’s in the top end and since it’s already out, I think I’m still going to go for a full rebuild. Hopefully won’t have to do any extensive machine work since that aspect seems ok at the moment.

[cwcarpenter98]

Pulled the cam out this evening. Seems like I might have found the misfire that was happening. Cylinder 2 exhaust cam lobe and lifter are not happy with life. I marked the lobe with a red line in the last picture.

[LT7A]

That does seem to have a bit of a relaxed profile...

I snagged some of the links I have saved that pertain to the mighty 305. These might be interesting. the crankshaft coalition one mentions a couple times that the 305 doesn't have a fuel mileage advantage over a 350. That is a surprise to me. I want to see if I can find the EPA estimates for our trucks back then. Your LG9 is different than an LE9, but does have good torque numbers which is the number that really counts in my book. The 416s are good heads to have. The other two links are 305 engine builds.

https://www.crankshaftcoalition.com/...evy_305_engine

https://www.motortrend.com/how-to/cc...Cx87PGLphGsT5c

https://www.firebirdnation.com/threa...-owners.15985/

[Getter-Done]

Yeah,
You caught that early.

Before the block got filled with grinding and shavings.

You are on the right track.

[cwcarpenter98]

I think I’m leaning more towards rebuilding the original 305. Haven’t fully decided, but I did pull the lifters out last night. Three of them were not happy. This was the worst one. Also checked one of the rod bearings. Seems like typical wear for a 157k mile engine. I know it’s sideways, it’s the way I took the picture, but this morning I picked up an electric choke Quadrajet. Hopefully I’ll have better luck rebuilding this one than I did with the 2 barrel. Or maybe I’ll just send it off to be rebuilt.

[Getter-Done]

The Old soup bowl lifter issue.

Do you know someone close to you,
That has Micrometers?
Or do you have a set?

You can check the crankshaft and replace the bearings With Std if they are not to bad?

You are probably not going to get that lucky.

You never know till you check it though.

I may get Beat Up by the 2 Engine Guru's on here.

That Okay Though.

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by Getter-Done

The Old soup bowl lifter issue.

Do you know someone close to you,
That has Micrometers?
Or do you have a set?

You can check the crankshaft and replace the bearings With Std if they are not to bad?

You are probably not going to get that lucky.

You never know till you check it though.

I may get Beat Up by the 2 Engine Guru's on here.

That Okay Though.

I don't think I want the soup from that bowl

[Shifty One]

I know it's already past, but another trick with bed bolts is to well a wheel nut to the rounded head, so you can put a wrench on it. I say wheel nut, because they make big wrenches/impact sockets, etc...and they are cheap.

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by Shifty One

I know it's already past, but another trick with bed bolts is to well a wheel nut to the rounded head, so you can put a wrench on it. I say wheel nut, because they make big wrenches/impact sockets, etc...and they are cheap.

That’s a good idea, thanks! I will still be pulling the bed off at some point, but right now the focus is to get a working drivetrain back in.

[cwcarpenter98]

I had a tough time making a decision, but I picked up a used 350 tonight that runs great, 40psi of oil at idle, and compression tested at 125 on all 8 cylinders with all 8 jumping above 100 on first compression stroke. It’s probably only an 8.5:1 cr engine, but that means I can run 87 all day long with no worries. It was pulled from a 71 Blazer about 5 years ago when the owner decided to have a 383 put in. The 350 has been sitting inside a shop since it was pulled. Fired right up with no problems, well, except for the one spark plug wire that wasn’t connected at the dizzy. Needs a little cleaning from sitting and probably going to change up the color in the process. Since it sat for as long as it did, I think I ought to throw a gasket set at it. It is a 2 piece rear main seal, so that’s really the driving point for new gaskets.

[cwcarpenter98]

Once again, Frankentruck goes on a parts run for Penny. Today’s grab is a clutch pedal assembly! Since the TH350 was very sad in reverse, I’m doing the right thing and just swapping over to a manual. I still haven’t nailed down exactly which transmission, but with the 2.73 rear gear in Penny, I need something with a somewhat steep first gear. The current top two choices is a Saginaw 4 speed with the 3.50:1 first gear and an s10 5 speed. I think that either will work, but I’m more concerned that the T5 will not handle the 350 too well. I don’t know for sure though, so I need to do some more research.

[Shifty One]

I like the manual-swap!