Markeb01 Build Thread

[markeb01]

Thanks Mike, I was wondering! I'm pretty good with military acronyms, but there are so many it's hard to stay current.

[TJ's Chevy]

HOLY MACAROL Mark!!!!!! That looks dang good! I'm a gonna have to barrow your imagination one day! LOL! Nice work!

[1963c-10]

bumper bullets....now that's interesting. Very cool idea!!

[markeb01]

More progress again today. I haven’t been feeling all that good for a few days, which clouds my ambition. I found myself stuck in a loop about how to proceed. I couldn’t align and mount the bullets independent of the bumper because they shifted when removed. And on the bumper I didn’t have access to work from the rear, preventing development of the mounting brackets. So after taking a break to clear my head, it occurred to me to simply remove the bumper and work on the bench!

So with the assistance of my lovely bride we pulled the bumper this morning and that solved the dilemma.



With the bumper facing forward, I spent several hours trying different designs of brackets until I came up with a combination that worked perfectly. I failed to take any pictures, but essentially one bracket attaches to the 1/4x20 bolts in the nose of the bullet, and another bracket connects that to a 5/16x18 bolt that extends through a hole in the bumper guard and pulls it into position. Attached to the bumper, they can be clobbered pretty hard and don’t move at all. I will have to be careful though. They do stick out pretty far, and years ago I nearly dislocated my hip when I ran into the nose of a 68 Firebird in a dark garage. These stick out further and are just as solid.

They were measured repeatedly until the forward alignment, bullet level, and left to right level were perfect. Then the bumper was turned around and JB Kwik was added from the rear, between the bullets and bumper guards:





The Kwik will be cured by 8 pm tonight, after which the bumper bullets/guards will be pulled and the bumper reinstalled on the truck.

More JB Weld will be introduced inside the bullets to eliminate any remaining gaps, after which the real body work will begin finish shaping the Rage filler to the level that primer and paint can be added. The last step will simply be to bolt the new one piece bumper guard/bullets back on the truck. Since the paint on the bumper and Buick propeller are relatively new and in great condition, they won’t be needing any attention. I think this may also be a good time to pull my spare/mint grille out of the basement and replace the existing grille with a perfect version.

[markeb01]

I pulled the bumper guards at 8 pm, and reinstalled the bumper on the truck:



The bumper guards came in the house, and after taping up the joint between the bullets and the guards, four complete packages of JB Weld were introduced through the back between the bumper guard vertical sides and the bullet shell on both sides:





I wanted to apply the JB Weld directly to the gap and force it up inside, but the gap was so tight I couldn't get anything in that way.

JB Weld takes over five hours to set up, so I used that time to position the assemblies in different orientations to insure the epoxy flowed into the areas I wanted. This will both completely seal the gaps, and bond the parts together. With the addition of the mechanical fasteners these things are going to be solid as a rock.

[Ta2Don]

Just got in my morning fix of Awesomeness by looking in on your continuing build thread...

...Never noticed this before, maybe I have too much or maybe not enough coffee in me, but the pic of the bumper re-installed without the guards reminds me of the USMC Bulldog...

[markeb01]

It's a small world that's for sure. I used to work with the guy that was the wrangler for the actual Marine Corps bulldog when he was stationed at Headquarters Marine Corps.

[markeb01]

Just a short update tonight. This morning I applied Rage body filler to the bumper guards/bullets. I finished shaping the noses of both bullets, and filled any remaining gaps between the two parts. After shaping and sanding, they were covered with two coats of catalyzed U-Pol high fill primer:



If one round of block sanding completes the job, they’ll be ready for paint tomorrow. If not, I'll slap on a couple more coats of primer and repeat the process until they are done.

[TJ's Chevy]

Man Mark! Really looking nice! I'm excited to see the finished product!

[markeb01]

Thanks! Me too! I'm hoping I can get them painted and back on the truck tomorrow or the next day so I can get some nice shots with all the spring colors available.

[Woogeroo]

This is gonna be insanely cool... even for the markeb01 build thread.

-W

[Ta2Don]

Meticulous Attention to Detail...

[TJ's Chevy]

Originally Posted by ta2don

meticulous attention to detail...

x2!

[markeb01]

As of this afternoon, the modified bumper guards are completed. Now I just have to leave them alone long enough for the paint to cure:





The lighting isn't very good in the pictures, but the color is the same Rustoleum bright white as the rest of the front end. They’ll be installed by tomorrow, and see if I can’t get some decent outdoor photos to post.

[markeb01]

I figured out a way to mount the bullets without touching the paint. I used my transmission alignment studs to position the guards on the upper holes, and then started the lower bolts by hand until snugged up. The long studs were then removed and replaced with the correct bolts and all four were tightened.

Here are a couple of snapshots until I can take some decent pictures in a different location:

[64shortbox]

Looks FANTASTIC! They look factory. Now you have to pull peoples legs and lead on that they were a very rare factory option back then.

[markeb01]

My wife has already suggested I should add a Buick trunk lid emblem on the tailgate and tell everyone it's a rare Canadian Buick!

[likaroc13]

The bullets turned out great, & I'd expect nothing less from you.

[Ta2Don]

Very Nice Sir! Great Job!!!

[markeb01]

Thanks to everyone for the feedback. This has been a fun project and didn’t really require all that much work.

We decided to take a trip over to Idaho to celebrate the truck being back together. We discovered some wonderful advantages of having bumper bullets. They pierce the air in front of the truck reducing wind resistance and improving mileage, they direct more air into the radiator causing the engine to run cooler, they act as stabilizers holding the truck tightly to the road, and apparently just the sight of them scares the bejesus out of deer. This feature allowed us to narrowly avoid a high speed collision tonight.

The following are snapshots taken off our dash cam tonight. I know the quality is very poor, but it’s the best I can get off my Chinese dash cam:





The oncoming headlights bleached out the area when the deer first appeared, but he was standing just inboard of the white line on our side of the road. He bolted and ran away from the truck in about a second, just as we passed his location. If he had darted in any other direction we would have clobbered him at about 60 mph. It was very close and rather alarming.

In truth the bumper bullets had nothing to do with the near miss, I’m convinced deer don’t like my noisy gear drive. This is the third time I’ve had a deer spin 90 or 180 degrees and run away, within inches of a collision. The truck emits a loud mechanical scream at speed, and I’m very thankful they find it offensive.

Okay so the bullets don’t provide any measurable benefit, but they sure look cool!

[Ta2Don]

Glad you were able to enjoy a road trip...
Maybe no measurable benefit… but the Cool Factor (in my opinion) is

[piratexpress1369a]

that looks awesome

[truckswede]

First of all, you have one heck of a nice truck there, sir! And one of the most organized shops i've ever seen. I wish mine were half that nice.
I have been following along for a while now and enjoyed your journey with all the improvements you have done, and i am truly impressed with your skills.
I am about to change all the wiring in my vehicle, and that perticular section in your build thread will give me lots of help, so i thank you for sharing that.
You are doing a superior job with your photo documentation and your precise explanations. And now, with summer just around the corner, you can start enjoying your truck out on the roads again. Well deserved, and i would like to pass on something i read somewhere: May your journeys be grand and free of crosswinds. Thank you again for sharing, sir!

[TJ's Chevy]

Mark....WOW!!! Looks really nice!!!!! Just don't get to close to the rear end of another car.

[markeb01]

To TruckSwede and others that comment regularly, thank you so much for your kind comments. There was so little information available when I first started on this truck (1992), I’ve been very thankful for all the helpful answers I’ve received from this forum. I figure if each of us document what we have learned along the way, we’ll build a legacy of data that will assist many new enthusiasts for years to come. Thanks again and have a great weekend!