47-55.1 55 years ago I was given this USAF 54 3100

[vintovka]

Back to fixing stuff. The shift indicator illumination bulb was burnt out so a quick trip to autoparts store was in order. Like everyhting today the cost of the bulbs was up to a whopping $15.99!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (you has to buy a pack of two for some reason. Uh, NO! Anyway way too much for a tiny bulb and ever use the other. Gave it some thought and realized i had a whole pack of small led panel lights (3 for $0.99 on ebay). After some fiddling the panel was attached with its own sticky back tape and some leads were soldered on. Whole thing was encased in some unshrunk for now) shrink tube and run down the side of the column. Already wired the truck so all the dash lights come on when key is on and had taps ready. I need the extra lights in the day and night, Pics say it all.

[Dan in Pasadena]

^^^ Awesome!

[vintovka]

Well went to alignment shop down in Brookings OR (80 mile round trip). Shop said whoever installed the brand new Pittman arm installed it wrong and was not seated properly. They tried to fix it, but no and wouldn't align it. (Tell me again about how wonderful pothead mechanics are) Anyway, and more importantly I noticed the automatic electric fan wasn't running and barely made it home without stopping (all 40 miles!!). At home it went up in smoke when shunted around circuit breaker.

I posted for help picking a new fan and got some good advice. The best being replace with same type and kind!! Got a brand new OEM 1995 Taurus fan. Copied some small relief cuts i made in back in 1996!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!. And installed. Due to memory loss i finally remembered the guys saying this was the best hod rod fan ever!

Heres a short video that says it all. So if youre looking for a fan to fit a OEM AD radiator this may work for you:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HSN42EOTC_o

Its a two speed but run it on high with a 60 amp relay. With its built in shroud it sucks hard and will blow your hat off!! Best part was under $60 shipped, from a private seller who only had the one. Also cheep on rock auto Can highly recommend this one as it served me well for 25 years and really does the job. Forget that other junk. Thanks all.

[vintovka]

Well i played with the old fan. I cleaned both the ground and the positive contact that links the high and low fan functions. For fun I bypassed the fancy 2 contact clip on plug to a single contact that runs it on high only. Guess what ?? it works!! About took off like a drone cause it was face down on the bench. Amazing!! All that and the 25 year old fan works as new. Guess my grand kids will have a spare. Again these beat the h--ll out of those new chinese aftermarket jobs.

[vintovka]

With the 2019 Oregon Rainy Season opener scheduled for this next week i thought i would accelerate the major issues left on this build. This included having the exhaust run out past the rear bumper, Getting the windshield sealed and the front end aligned. When the first part of the exhaust system went in they said the under bed tank was too big and not possible. The glaspacs exhausted down in front of the axle and created a loud headache inducing drone. Thanks to some very talented guys at Mufflers and More in Brookings oregon the drone is gone and i have very cool "TWICE PIPES"!!! Not bad work for a 75 year old muffle man and his almost geriatric assistant.

[vintovka]

I'm finding doing the small stuff is now a challenge due to age. I also figure i better get it done while i still can. Tasks today included an annoying alternator belt squeal and a dead backup light. The Belt was really easy. Dumbass pothead mechanic used a belt that was 3" too long. grabbed a shorter one from my belt array and Volia!. Alt belt changes are super easy with no Fan blades in the way.

Second issue was the dead backup light. Only 1 year old and dead. Moisture got in. Bought a new set just like the front fog lights and rewired it all. Used soldered joints and shrink tube. Made some "L" brackets up and mounted lights off the back of the existing bumper bolts. Now "hella" bright and very necessary as eyes are going and there are no street light for 10 and 20 miles in our area.

FWIW i wanted to see how bring the existing front ones were. Going down a dark (pitch black) HWY all by my lonesome and switched the existing Halogen Headlights off and the leds on. WOW!! They are 10x brighter than my brights and can see 1000' feet ahead. That just created another project. Hooking these up so they come on with the regular brights.

These are good:

Nilight 60001F-B Bar 2PCS 18w 4" Flood Fog Road Boat Driving Led Work Light SUV Jeep Lamp,2 Years Warranty

These are bad:

Willpower 2Pcs 6 inch 18W Spot LED Work Light Lamp off Road High Power ATV Jeep 4x4 Tractor off Road Light Fog Driving Bar Rree Truck SUV Car


Some pics

[vintovka]

Mine serves a number of purposes plus with age i need all the "visible" help i can get. Next battle (with loose steering) is coming up later this week.

[vintovka]

Next fix is the sloppy steering. Column is from a 87 c10 van. The steering shaft is a jury rigged two piece affair done over 20 years ago and was about worn out before that. The lower column bearing is shot as well.

Marked the shaft when fully installed, pulled it and drilled 3/8" hole. Test fitted a 3/8" bolt and painted the whole thing. Yes, I know all about the column thru the chest danger by eliminating the sliding column thing. Too old to care.

While it was out i disassembled the column bearing and replaced with a new one. Very easy job. Pull clip spray with wd-40 remove cover, slide off bearing and holder. Old bearing was missing a few ball bearings.

Reinstalled shaft and bolted tight. Steers much, much better but upper column bearing and infamous 4 bolts in the tllt collar need attention. Maybe next time,

Lower column kit is listed as a jeep part but works, Here it is:

Crown Automotive 4487696K Steering Shaft Bearing Kit

Pic are of assembled fix. went too fast tho take before pics.

[vintovka]

The repro original style rear view mirror has been giving me neck cramps. Its either too high or i have shrunk in the past 5 decades. Sadly i think it is the latter. After some quick fabbing i came up with a 2" x 1/2 extension and drilled 4 5/16' equally spaced holes in it. After some tries I used the top and bottom holes Drops mirror about 1.5" inches and no more cramps. Can easily see way back now. The extra length did cause some vibration issues. Split a 1" rubber firewall grommet and placed behind the mount and re tightened screws. You can just see the grommet in last pic. Damps it pretty good and hardly shows. If you have one of these i found the stud thread is roughly 1/4 x24 NF. Not having any handy I re threaded an 1/4 x28NF Allen head and the extra attaching nut. If you having same problem this is a cheap and easy fix.

[vintovka]

Next up is correcting poor headlight visibility. Really dark here and the yellow glow from the low and high beams are not enough (even with my brand new re manufactured eyes). The halogen fogs help but not when lots of light is needed in a hurry. The forward little LEDs ($12) do he job but their dash switch is hard to repeatedly find/reach in a hurry. One wire from LEDs input switch GM column stalk fixed it. They come on with bright but still work with their dash switch. Like a forward lazer array at your finger tips. Pics show it all.

[vintovka]

Still wish this could all be moved to the "build" thread!!

Veterans Day today. Washed her up and touched up the crappy paintjob . We were invited to a free lunch for vets at the "Wild Oats BBQ" here in gold beach or. Wife and I drove truck down there, got to park right in front of the restaurant and enjoy a 3 course lunch with all the fixins. Everyone loved the truck.

They had a "missing man" table set up with an empty plate and a glass of red wine. During lunch they symbolically added some salt to the plate which really drove it home. Made me think back all the F-111 aircrew had ridden with me so long ago. While OT heres some links to one Pilot who rode in it back in 1972. I am just to left in pic but I drew the attack plan shown in the crash pic when they found it like 30 years later,

http://www.f-111.net/combat/coltman/index.htm

http://www.f-111.net/combat/ranger23.htm

[dsraven]

for better lights try some led headlights. some better than others so check around. also, could you install/integrate a light bar near the front lic plate and make it look decent? some of those have a small curve built in so they shine wide as well as far. maybe what you are looking for? check the local regulations first, of course, because some are for off road use only.....

[vintovka]

Originally Posted by dsraven

for better lights try some led headlights. some better than others so check around. also, could you install/integrate a light bar near the front lic plate and make it look decent? some of those have a small curve built in so they shine wide as well as far. maybe what you are looking for? check the local regulations first, of course, because some are for off road use only.....

Thanks for the suggestion. I thought about the LED headlights but way too spendy. The cheapy leds are so bright I really don't even need the old halogens except for looks. As for looks, my current "light bar" is made from 2x2 steel angle bolted to frame and bumper and intended to look "HFS" (hell for stout) and does. Eventually was going to add a row of carriage bolts to it like faux boiler rivets.

As for regulations my immediate neighbors are the cops and they have more "illegal" mods (like leds ) on their trucks than can be imagined. Very few vehicle laws enforced here unless you have a non Oregon plate and then you are a cash cow. Heck even mufflers are considered an "optional accessory" and many are even ripping out catalytics.

My forward LEDS are only on with the normal brights so i can dim them manually for oncoming cars. Working on getting a sensor/system to do that automatically FWIW I think new cars with "projectors" may even be brighter than what i had.

[vintovka]

Heard a distinct crack from under the left fender today while turning into a lot. Steering was suddenly way more wobbly than usual with a clunk. My "trusted" shop found forward steering shaft u joint had broken and, "to top it off", that the steering box was no good. The only good news is that box has a NAPA lifetime warranty. The steering shaft is shot i so ordered a spendy shaft off the net. We shall see.

[dsraven]

What, no pics of the near miss?
Well, warranty is good to hear. Like always though, warranty still costs you.
Good to hear you were low speeding it when it broke. Couldda been much worse.

[vintovka]

Originally Posted by dsraven

What, no pics of the near miss?
Well, warranty is good to hear. Like always though, warranty still costs you.
Good to hear you were low speeding it when it broke. Couldda been much worse.

No near miss. Took a direct hit to the u joint!. LOL. Drove it home but needed both lanes. about 4" wobble in steering wheel. Reminded me of tacking in a sailboat. Should have all the parts this weekend and maybe a new mechanic to go with,

[MiraclePieCo]

Eagerly awaiting the next installment of the Oregon pot-head mechanics saga. Always entertaining!

[vintovka]

About the size of it. Would be really funny if it didn't hurt so much to think about it or wonder what else those bozos did.

[vintovka]

For your continuing entertainment. Pulled the old broken steering shaft and compared to the nice new one. Another fine job by the previously mentioned narcotic enhanced workers, If my new mechanic guy shows up tomorrow he hopefully will replace the box and i will have the all new steering system i thought i had already paid for. The steering box was bad right out of the box BTW. The new shaft is a Borgerson 0935 and looks like it will fit w/o cutting shaft. Bad news is i spent 2 hours filing/grinding column stub to get it to fit. Also the "D" shaft on these is harder than hell and ruined 3 bits drilling for retaining screw.

[vintovka]

Well i waited all last Sunday for a "respected" mechanic to show at my place. No calls no nothin. Gave up, drank the beers and ate the roast beef sandwiches i promised him and got to work. Pulled and replaced the defective steering box, installed the fancy steering shaft, got fluid all over me and the floor went in and took a 2 hour nap. Pics next time after i recover. Post 70 heavy mechanic work is tough on the bod.

[joedoh]

you have the upper joint upside down (or maybe just the set screws), the long screw goes through the one side hole in the column D, locking it two directions.

you dont need to drill all the way through the shafts, just a small divot is fine. my experience with exactly those same parts is that they are mild steel and easily drilled and cut, so your drill bits may be dull or need oil.

if that is the length you are working with you will want to shorten the collapsible shaft about 3-4 inches, otherwise its not going to be collapsible, right? also the benefit of a collapsible shaft is with install, you can collapse it then extend it to install. to cut the shaft I use a die grinder.


nice work, keep plugging away!

[vintovka]

Borgeson requires you to drill all the way thru one wall of the the d shaft and tightened hard against the opposite. Think they got sued and now they provide a 1.5 " all thread allen head with locking nut and explicit diagrams and instructions. The surface of the hollow D shaft was soft but halfway in it went to rockwell off scale. Ruined 3 new tin drill in floor drill press despite low speed and coolant. Heaven help the guy with only a hand drill and one bit. Sent them a nasty note and promised i would post it here and on Amazon for not replying.

Borgeson also requires you to grind a flat spot of the steering box stub for the set screw. Mine fit fine with 4" of collapsible length. that part of install was easy. The really bad part is grinding about 0.10 off the diameter of the steering column hub. Royal PITA for a $200 item so heads up. Pics next time after i recover from the install. Even the titanium rods and 29 screws in my rebuilt right arm are complaining.

[joedoh]

Originally Posted by vintovka

Borgeson requires you to drill all the way thru one wall of the the d shaft and tightened hard against the opposite.

yes, and that is already possible with the GM steering column, it has a hole in one side of the D stub that sticks out, so you can insert that one long set screw in that position and tighten it like borgeson requires against the undrilled side. I have used that exact same u joint and collapsible shaft on 6 trucks. I dont think I have gotten it wrong yet but anything is possible I guess.

the reason for it at the top joint is because if a set screw falls out the direction the shaft will fall away is down, away from the column. a through shaft adds a measure of safety, you will hear that long set screw clattering around long before it falls out and the joint falls off.

when I look at your side by side with the old one, it looks like the collapsible shaft is fully collapsed and the right length.

[vintovka]

There was no hole in column stub and may have to drill one. The grinding of the column stub took forever stopping to mike it every time. I did get it together just now and used a suggested method of jacking up front wheel and cranking wheel back and forth (engine off) to bleed system. it burped a lot then quieting right down as air was expelled. This method supposedly prevents frothing and air entertainment usually seen with engine on bleeding. Also took time to increase clearance cut for hoses as they were rubbing fender skirts. Now rerouting the "fecally terrible" brake line job done by the aforementioned narcotic addicted mechanics.. FWIW local auto shop now up to 20, fired, would be mechanics, who may never be able work in the industry again. Some were certified. All that tech school money down the drain. Promise pics when done.

[vintovka]

Well after a semi-nightmare the 54 is up and running again. If not mentioned earlier am now embarrassingly too old to lift a heavy steering box with one hand and bolt it on with the other. l took a long bolt (with same thread as box) cut head off and used it as a pilot to lift, place and rotate box into position. Had misfortune to nick a copper brake line and spent much time learning the joy of line bending and skill of double flare creation. All subsequent to having bleeding fits due to a stuck proportioning valve. Was all worth it. All new steering is great! No longer need both lanes! Currently adjusting steering wheel to be straight and repainting everything that got soaked in brake fluid. Pics soon. While under truck with wrench i'm thinking this all looked SOOOO EASY on TV!!!