53 Surburban "Family Truckster"

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by layinrocker65

Which US Mags did you go with?

I haven't pulled the trigger yet but I'm strongly considering these.

I plan to powder coat them fully to de-bling them.

That's where my head is at currently.

Marc

[layinrocker65]

Those would look really good.

[rollinrooster]

Originally Posted by youngrodder

A little more progress on the exhaust. Next up installing o2 bungs and finish welding. We (Josh) have most of the heavy lifting done. The rest will be pretty straight forward. I ordered up a few more SS isolators. I'm digging the placement of the mounts. I will snap some pics once in place. I also worked on finalizing my driveline angles with the help of Nate from Porterbuilt. I used Delrin for my trans
and carrier bearing spacers which is a dense very hard plastic. Its easy to drill and lighter than a hunk of metal. I have been focusing on a bunch of little stuff like painting up the driver shaft. Just stuff that is needed prior to the body going on.

My friend/coworker Vic stopped by to check out my project. Vic has about 9-10 cars and trucks. All varying conditions/styles. He drove his (real) patina 55 BBW truck...

Thanks
Marc

Hey man... Vic has to many cars / trucks. Have him sell me the 55

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by rollinrooster

Hey man... Vic has to many cars / trucks. Have him sell me the 55

Funny when I read your comment, I thought How does he know Vic..I forgot about my earlier post....I'm trying to talk him into bagging it with a GSI chassis. I'm great at spending other peoples money.


Marc

[youngrodder]

I have been putting in time on Coopers OBS Blazer so I have not been working on my the Suburban. Plus I'm still waiting on my buddy to glue my block back together. I did go out last night to work on it a little. it is funny how you have a plan when you are constantly working on something. Step away for a bit and you loose track of what's next....

One aspect of my last build that I was not fond of was the wiring (which I was responsible for). That truck had SO MANY circuits. I figured a little better preplanning will go a long way. I installed a removeable panel to mount most of the circuit boards to. I drilled a hole and inserted a grommet for a wire pass thru.

I also ran out at lunch an grabbed a small section of SS 1.5" tube to complete my cooling hoses. I will paint it satin black at some point. For the lower hose I was able to use a 1.75" - 1.5" 90 degree elbow. It worked great.

Thank you
Marc

[oldman3]

Looking good...Jim

[youngrodder]

I worked on finishing up my gas tank vent. I purchased the vent off eBay. I had to build a small bracket to attach to an existing bolt from my Porterbuilt set up.
I like how it turned out, tucked up and out of the way.

Marc

[mongocanfly]

Nice vent Marc ...do you have a link to it?...I've got one for mine but I'm not liking it..

[8man]

The vent looks good. Much better than the PVC one I built.

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by oldman3

Looking good...Jim

Thanks Jim

Originally Posted by mongocanfly

Nice vent Marc ...do you have a link to it?...I've got one for mine but I'm not liking it..

Here you go. This one is sold out but other people are selling them

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Holley-Perf...53.m1438.l2649

Originally Posted by 8man

The vent looks good. Much better than the PVC one I built.

Thank you. I'm picky. I looked at a bunch of different ones before buying his one.

Marc

[youngrodder]

I worked on my AC condenser. You ever notice that when you move one thing, three things down the line then need to be modified. This is where we are at with mounting the condenser. Since I pushed my radiator forward for more clearance with the front of the engine my brackets that held the condenser and dryer would no longer fit.

I added to horizontal supports. I installed nutserts to bolt the condenser to. I also chopped up the Vintage Air brackets so I could repurpose it to mount the dryer to my modified core support. It all turned out great. A little touch up paint and we are in business.

Thanks
Marc

[mongocanfly]

Thanks Marc..!...for the link..

[Tempest67]

I enjoy seeing your work, very nice and clean.

Keep it going, and thanks for sharing

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by Tempest67

I enjoy seeing your work, very nice and clean.

Keep it going, and thanks for sharing

Thanks, I try....much appreciated!!

Marc

[youngrodder]

My fabricator friends made it over on Sunday to glue the broken starter tab back on the block. He ordered some special rod and it worked great on this repair. It had lower melting point so we didn't need to heat the area so much. I'm purposely not grinding the welds smooth as I want as much material as possible. I think the repair turned out great (all things considered)

Last night I re-tapped the starter bolt threads, installed the new starter, hooked up a bunch of misc. wires and pulled the plugs. I cycled the motor without any plugs to push the gas out of the #7 cylinder which caused the hydro lock. Gas shot across the garage. I was not prepared for that. Now I know why they say make sure you have no power going to the coils as it could easily cause a fire.

Later this week I will attempt to test fire the motor (again)

Marc

[mongocanfly]

that shooting gas is what got my coworkers truck burnt to the ground...glad you didn't have any sparks...

[oldman3]

Marc, repair looks great, hope next start will fire right up and run...Jim

[Tempest67]

nice repair, a coat of paint and no one will ever know.

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by mongocanfly

that shooting gas is what got my coworkers truck burnt to the ground...glad you didn't have any sparks...

I can believe it. Yes. I made sure to unplug the main feeds that power the coils.

Marc

Originally Posted by oldman3

Marc, repair looks great, hope next start will fire right up and run...Jim

Thxs, I hope so...I just have to get my nerve up to try it again. I didn't want to rush it last night. I made some good progress.

Originally Posted by Tempest67

nice repair, a coat of paint and no one will ever know.

Thank you...

Marc

[Clarance J]

Hi Marc. Really like your build.

Just wanted to make a comment about the hydro lock in your engine. Check your oil before you fire it up. I had that happen to me years ago while I was at work one day. Forgot to switch off electric fuel pump. Pulled the plugs and cranked the engine and gas shot out the #7 cylinder also. What I want to say is that enough gas had gotten past the rings and drained into the oil pan. It was an hour drive home so I had to get new oil and filter and change it in the parking lot at work. Made for a long day. Your oil might be ok but I would check for gas before starting.

Earl

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by Clarance J

Hi Marc. Really like your build.

Just wanted to make a comment about the hydro lock in your engine. Check your oil before you fire it up. I had that happen to me years ago while I was at work one day. Forgot to switch off electric fuel pump. Pulled the plugs and cranked the engine and gas shot out the #7 cylinder also. What I want to say is that enough gas had gotten past the rings and drained into the oil pan. It was an hour drive home so I had to get new oil and filter and change it in the parking lot at work. Made for a long day. Your oil might be ok but I would check for gas before starting.

Earl

Thanks Earl. I don't think it contaminated my oil. We did check the dip stick and we also stuck noses down the fill spout to see if we smelled any gas in the oil. Did you drain your oil to check it? How did you know your oil was contaminated?

Thanks
Marc

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by Clarance J

Hi Marc. Really like your build.

Just wanted to make a comment about the hydro lock in your engine. Check your oil before you fire it up. I had that happen to me years ago while I was at work one day. Forgot to switch off electric fuel pump. Pulled the plugs and cranked the engine and gas shot out the #7 cylinder also. What I want to say is that enough gas had gotten past the rings and drained into the oil pan. It was an hour drive home so I had to get new oil and filter and change it in the parking lot at work. Made for a long day. Your oil might be ok but I would check for gas before starting.

Earl

As much as it pained me to drain $40 worth of synthetic oil with no run time, it was the right call. The oil did have a gas smell to it when I drained it. After everything I went thru with the first test fire I wanted to take all precautions.

Test fire #2 coming this weekend.

Marc

[mongocanfly]

Good luck..!!

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by mongocanfly

Good luck..!!

Thanks Greg..hoping for the best.

Marc

[youngrodder]

I wish I had a successful test fire to report.....but I don't. I'm closer. It sounds like it wants to fire off but something is not quote right. Not sure what the deal is. I will trouble shoot and I will call BP Automotive tomorrow to make sure I have it wired correctly....

I did make some progress on a design for a tranny cover. I didn't need a really tall one but it needed to be wide enough to mount my custom shift boot billet trim ring to. I will powder coated or paint the trim ring satin black at some point. I'm happy how it turned out. I started with a paper board template. Then I transferred to metal and bent it up (by hand). I just need to bend the top to match the radius of the sides and welded it up. This piece will be bolted to the floor and firewall. I will body work and paint this the satin color that my interior is painted. I figured it would be different than most plus it will aid in laying the carpet as I wont have to go up and over this cover..

Marc