Loadmaster '47 COE

[mr incredible]

sweet, love the schematics

[47 Fasttoys]

Now we're cooking with grease!! Got the new control card in today, replaced the diode I burned up (they don't like 5 volts), wired in the new card and presto we have correct operation. One more thing crossed off the build list. Have a look see at the video and you get an idea of how it works.

Rob

[Billys68SS]

Very nice!

[Kim57]

That was real slick.
Kim

[47 Fasttoys]

Well, no new updates on the truck but....I gotta date, after 3 + years working my ass off in China I will be done here at the end of October. Yes, the wife and I are happy campers. And due to this news I have a prediction: I will drive my C.O.E. before the end of May 2015.
Rob

[Kim57]

Glad to hear that.
Kim

[99 to Life]

thats really nice to hear. congrats, can't wait to see this finished.

[Advanced Design]

Good for you guys! Looking forward to more build progress this fall.

[47 Fasttoys]

OK, so a bit off topic here, but I get a call at 4:30 AM (South Carolina time) my daughter tells me a branch has broken off the tree in front of the house, landed on the peak of the front. Tree 1, house 0. Damage is minor and insurance will cover most of it. I just had to vent.
Rob

[Advanced Design]

Glad the house doesn't have much damage. We had a similar issue last year and were lucky with only a bent gutter.

Difficult being far from home....and dealing with maintenance.

[Billys68SS]

Yeah, it's some weird weather we are having here this year. Glad only minimal damage.

[mud.man.rj]

Don't get this forum at times, I post a pic of my Chevelle when asked and get in trouble but a house can be posted...Weird. Sorry about the house though.

[Billys68SS]

Mud.man, don't know why anyone on this forum would give you grief about posting pic of your Chevelle! A lot of us have posted pics and stuff about our other tinkerings. It'd be different if you posted a thread about it in the truck section, but just a pic... Idk. I sure wouldn't and most of the guys I follow here have done the same.

[mud.man.rj]

It's all good Billy, not a big deal, life goes on, at least i hv a kicka$$ Chevelle SS.

[Billys68SS]

Originally Posted by mud.man.rj

It's all good Billy, not a big deal, life goes on, at least i hv a kicka$$ Chevelle SS.

I'm with ya! I have a Chevelle SS. It ain't kick ass YET, but I got one. Lol
Between my 68 and my brothers 71 we have the 2 and our family has owned well over 10. I've had 7 myself.

[mud.man.rj]

Nice, cool to have more than 1 in the family. Just love mine, especially the 4 link. Fun all day.

[Billys68SS]

Awe man... A 68! I would love to see a better pic of it. Sorry for high jacking your thread Rob!

[mud.man.rj]

Gonna get me kicked of the site yet..

[mud.man.rj]

Sent you a pm.

[47 Fasttoys]

It's all good, there is life other then hot rods..... it's just not as important. I wish I had more to report about the COE. In time my friends, in time.
Rob

[Dieselwrencher]

Rob, I'm glad to see the house damage isn't worse. It looks like if the tree fell back a little it could have been much worse.

[Eric Q.]

Hi Fasttoys

I just stumbled across your thread and we have similar projects although yours is much further ahead. I just recently acquired my donor vehicle. Similar to you, I bought a 2002 GMC Sierra with the 4.8 to go under my '50 GMC COE.

I read your post about modifying the LS wiring harness and have a question. It appears that a lot of folks modify the wiring harness or get a very basic harness to simplify the installation but doesn't that render all the cool features of the driver information center non-functional/absent?

Similarly, the aftermarket gauges that I've seen use their own sending units vs. the ones that come with the LS engine and send information to the ECU. Are folks disabling the ones that go the ECU or running in parallel and ignoring the factory signals?

My goal would be to use as much of the modern functionality as possible while making it not look modern.

Thanks for your input on these questions and can't wait to see your progress when you return to the states soon.

Eric Q.

[47 Fasttoys]

Hey Eric, To answer your questions, yes the typical mods to the wiring harness eliminate the the information center function. I did look hard into retaining it, as it does do a lot of neat things. In my case, and maybe yours, I could not find a good way to incorporate the donor dash into the '47 dash and make it look right. I tried photo shopping the gauge cluster in my dash but just didn't like the look. The donor cluster (with info center) has a complete printed circuit board lay out which would have to be completely modified and re-engineered to use the info center only. You would also have to keep the the body control module, lock system and column along with almost all of the stock sensors. Now the other option is to use one of the aftermarket info centers which have most of the same functions. These units plug into the OBD II port. I plan on using one of these and a flip down speaker grill mod. As far as retaining the factory sensors goes, some you need to keep. Temperature sensor is required, oil pressure is not, oil low level is not (hot rodders check their oil just because they can) Tach signal is required for the ECU, but ECU also has an output for an additional tach. For a basic 5 gauge lay out you would need only to add a second temperature sensor to the engine, swap the oil pressure sensor, use the VSS signal for the speedo (using an electronic speedo), swap the fuel level sensor and wire in a volt gauge.
I sure you will find there are lots of little challenges in building a COE but that's where the fun is. Post up some pictures of what you got. And by all means ask a ton of questions, we all have a lot to learn from each other. 62 days left, and yes, I'm counting.
Rob

[sparkydog]

47 Fasttoys - nice project! I encountered this same decision on my build and ended up striking a compromise. I was able to graft the backlit idiot light graphics out of the donor cluster but I too could not figure out a viable way to migrate the logic chips for some of the more advanced functionality of the donor cluster. If you want to study what I did (a lot of work) it starts at post #705 on my build thread which is linked in my siggy.

Looking forward to your return to the states and the progress on your build!

[47 Fasttoys]

OK, so I will be back on the truck in 3 weeks and I'm trying to come up with a basic plan of attack. Here is a list of the major work to be done. What I would like input on is in what order would be best. Below is my guess.
1. Final location fitting of the cab and mounts. It will be removed later for frame work.
2. Front sheet metal mounts and test fits.
3. Steering column choice and fitting.
4. Brake pedal choice and fitting. Early 70s Dodge van with 90 degree mount looks to be promising.
5. Seat choice and fitting.
6. Radiator location choice and fitting.
7. Seat choice and fitting. Late 80s Chevy bench is the goal.
8. Floor mods and access covers for engine maintenance.
9. Electrical component location and enclosure mock up.
10. Bed mounts and final decision on which type of bed. It will be a flat bed with fold down sides but it may also have a tilt function.
I'm thinking after these tasks are complete I can tear it all back apart for final frame welding and clean up, I will also be cleaning up the bottom of the cab and undercoating it. So what did I miss?
Rob