Rat repair.

[swamp rat]

I finally got my lines from Inline tube now i got to find the time to get back to working on the truck, hoping the cold weather snap will subside but we are getting some light snow now, went from low teens to 29.. I was really hoping this would be done by now so i can get the truck back under cover.

[DWilbur]

And I thought I was sniveling about the cold weather in Ca. low of 30 and high of 60. good luck installing the lines.

[Vintage Windmills]

sorry no sympathy from here its 2 below zero right now with the sun out at 1pm.

are you going to wait until spring to start on the rust repair? What else do you have to do soon on the truck?

[swamp rat]

Originally Posted by Vintage Windmills

sorry no sympathy from here its 2 below zero right now with the sun out at 1pm.

are you going to wait until spring to start on the rust repair? What else do you have to do soon on the truck?

LOL! At least your in a garage tho. Our cold snap has subsided thankfully. I put in a 12 hour day last night so just getting up and moving and not enough time to do the brakes. I talked to Truckseats this morning and need to return the seat cover so will be standing in the post office line pretty soon. And Ok I'll fess up, i have been taking a short break from working on the truck

My plan right now is to hopefully get the master bench bled, installed and brakes bled ether tomorrow or Friday then get the truck back under the car cover. ( behind a locked gate )

Once that's done i have to finish what i started a couple years back, long story short i did a gas tank install in the back of the frame and run the lines up to the engine bay, then i ran into some health issues and stopped working on the truck, fast forward to the beginning of this build thread when i was able to get back at the truck.. I'm also debating on leaving the cab tank in or not, then installing a mechanical fuel switch in the floor of the cab so i can switch from the cab tank to the rear tank, this would mean re routing the rear fuel line to the driver side of the frame up to the cab and having both tanks share the stock line from the cab to the fuel pump.

I need to get my gas fill door and filler tube installed in the bed, i got one from an S10, debating on if i should cut and do a butt weld or go buy a flanging tool and bond it in place. Thoughts?? Also need to find out a good place to buy some sheet steel so i can make a filler tube enclosure for inside the bed. Plus i have a dent to pull right next to the area i want to install the door.

Then i'll give my hand a try on rust repair and i'm not a body man at all so i figured i'd start by removing one door and gut it out and start on it, if i do well i'll continue, if i flounder i'll try and find another set of doors and then give up and find someone to replace the panels, i have 2 leads already just in case.

[jaros44sr]

I have a flanging tool you could borrow, if you have a compressor

[DWilbur]

Swamp Rat
I found a link surfing the site another member found a disk break that mounts on the back of NP205 transfer case. http://www.tsmmfg.com/np205.html

[freakshow108]

That is exactly what I will be doing when the money " surfaces."

[swamp rat]

Hi guys, just popped in after seeing an email notification,

My plan of finishing the reinstall got side tracked pretty badly, after we hit a deep freeze and it subsided, i ended up working the last 3 weekends in a row before the holiday and said to hell with progress for a bit so i could concentrate on Christmas, i'll do it during my Christmas break.

Eight days ago i and my entire shop got slammed with a really bad stomach virus right after a pot luck, I thought it was food poisoning at first but this lasted 7 days! i have never been so sick in my life! Food poisoning only lasts 3 days at best so this had to be a flu virus Today is my first day of feeling normal but I'm still dragging my ass resting up. I wouldn't wish this on anybody!

jaros44sr, I appreciate the offer but i also have a flanging tool, and were on opposite ends of the country so kinda difficult to ship a compressor that far

DWilbur, Yes i have seen that link and am leaning toward that as well, i think its a great solution but keep in mind that without a locker or at least a limited slip if your in slick mud or ice its not going to be a 100% solution, still its a lot better than nothing. I'm pretty sure i have also seen another manufacture out there but i cant recall the name off hand.

Freakshow! Hey Randy nice to hear from you! If your interested in giving me a hand bleeding my breaks the second time around I'll take you up on some help and am willing to repay the favor. Tentatively planning on doing it this Sunday.

My seat cover is returned to Vendor Truckseats, it was delivered on the 18th if i recall correctly, i hope to hear from him sometime soon, they are looking for a better material that hopefully won't stretch as badly as the black velour on the old cover.

[swamp rat]

Reinstalled the replacement master and short jumper lines to the proportioning valve today, also broke down and bought a Mighty Vac bleeder, it works! the other POS I bought will be trashed. The only thing i don't like about vacuum bleeding is that air is pulled thru the bleeder screw threads so its difficult to tell if the air is actually coming out of the lines or thru the bleed screw threads.

I bled it for a while to where i think i got the air out, but i was out of daylight so didn't take the time to fire the truck up and give it a test drive.

I'm convinced that i need to make a pressure bleeder if i'm gonna do this by myself ever again, someone posted a thread on making a home made pressure bleeder out of a sprayer he bought at Harbor Freight, i need to find that thread and see about making one.

And yes i enjoyed my time off, got to spend it with my wife, being a shift worker we don't see a lot of each other, especially when i'm working a lot of OT.

[swamp rat]

Test drive was successful today, the brakes are leaps and bounds better than the last time and thankfully with the 2 new lines between the prop valve and master no leaks, Geeze the lid seals like it suppose too! Still kicking my azz i didn't see the lid problem before i installed the last one.

The pedal does come up a little slower than i would like, not sure that's pointing to another problem or just cold diaphragms in the booster?

Looks like I'll be moving on to the gas door install pretty soon, and unfortunately i may have to pull the intake manifold and replace the intake gaskets again too, i tightened the bolts again in the mean time, posted a thread in the engine section with more detail on that..

[freakshow108]

Oh dang, that's purdy!

[jaros44sr]

Originally Posted by freakshow108

oh dang, that's purdy!

x2

[swamp rat]

OK, starting to get the bug to get things moving again, i have my gas door out of an S10, it has the 1 1/2 diameter fill tube, i need to check into how I'm going to modify the filler tube, i know i'll have to cut it and rotate the lower portion to hook up to the hose off the tank, you cant see it well but the bottom is curved up so by cutting and rotating i can make the outlet point toward the talk inlet, but i'd also like to possibly pie cut it hopefully above the vent tube to increase the down angle at or close to the filler cap to minimize the intrusion into the bed, I'll have to build a metal box cover for inside the bed but want it to be as small as possible. If anybody has a subscribed thread on this I'd be grateful. There is also some prior damage to the driver side rear bed panel adjacent to where the door will go, i need to work on that a bit before i weld in the door.

I also ordered repair lower skin and lower inner tub for the passenger door from Wes at Classic Heartbeat, i have never done body work so i figure I'll try in the passenger door first (after the gas door and trying to repair the damage to my bed panel) then if i gain confidence I'll do the driver door as well as re bush the door hinges. By that time hopefully i'll be ready to try my hand at rocker kick panels and floor repair ect..

Still need to install my new 5/8's rear U bolts, stock was 5/8's but BDS sent 1/2 in there kit, then said they would send me 5/8's replacements which never happened so my local shop stepped up and ordered these for me and gave them to me free for the trouble i had with BDS.

Called Truckseats, guess they located a tougher solid black material than the Velour for my cover so i think i should be getting a new cover pretty soon.

[swamp rat]

Didn't have a lot of time on my hands early today but decided to get a little bit done anyway, I bought these Imitation TriBar headlamps at a swap meet last summer for about $30 but didn't find the time to install, i got them because you can replace the H4 bulb and leave the housing in place, i'm hoping that this along with my headlight relay install i did last year will make a difference over the halogen sealed beams i have been running.

You can see looking at the back of the bulb housing how much bigger they are and in order to install i had to cut the innermost part of the bucket out, then i sanded them down to remove burrs and painted the bare metal with a little satin black. also because one of the screw tabs were broke off the chrome retainer ring i bought a new set for my year truck, as shown in the picture they are not exactly accurate but better than not having the 3rd tab.

[swamp rat]

As i mentioned in the first post of this thread i stopped working on my truck due to some health issues and having to concentrate on my house for a bit, crap time flys!, i lost track of this thread, and finally found it today, started by Dieselwrencher, it shows my driver bedside damage and what i'm contending with before i start the flip door install, I still have a bit of body hammering and dent pulling to do before i cut the opening.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=426756

EDIT, Post 23 shows the origional damage, posts 17 and 18 show where i stopped.

[Dean'smeanmachine]

great build

[swamp rat]

Originally Posted by Dean'smeanmachine

great build

Thanks Dean, not too bad for someone who's not been a gear head all his life, the scary part is body work, i'm even less of a body man LOL!

Its been a long winter, I've been sick and ill more days since November than i have been well, Flu, then stomach virus that hit my entire shop during a pot luck, then somehow i inhaled one of my prescription meds into my right lung, burned like hell for about 4 days, then in 2 weeks that turned into Bronchitus and flu again which zapped all my energy, rough winter to say the least, but I'm gonna try and get back at it, i have been down but i have been collecting a few items along the way to get going again.

[swamp rat]

So i have been collecting some stuff this winter to get going on the truck, first is some Aluminum slot mags,, my existing wheels are 16.5 X 8.25 wide with 4.60 backspacing, the slots are 16.5 X 9.75 wide with 4.4" backspacing, i knew they would sit wider but now I'm wondering if i made the right move or if i should have held off and found another set that are 8.25 wide, they stick out about 2" in the front, 1" wider than the other rims, maybe stick out 1/4" in the back, if i had a taller lift and mudders i probably wouldn't care but if i ever do get this truck finished and painted the road debris would take its toll on it. Guess if i found 2 matching slots at 8.25 then it would be perfect.

The other concern would be getting a ticket for the tires sticking out past the fender wells.. it takes just one cop in a bad mood and ticket city.

The tires are new last summer, i figure i better decide what to do before the tires are a year old or they may bock at changing the rims out..

[swamp rat]

Another item collected is a dash bezel complete with tach and Vacuum gauge, i have it apart on my desk right now, getting ready to put it back together and hope to install it soon.

[freakshow108]

Nice score on that dash!

[swamp rat]

Next on the list is the trailer hitch, With tank install taking up frame space this hitch fits perfectly on the remaining frame without having to run bolts thru both tank and hitch, being as the tank is aluminum i dont want to put that much force on the tank flanges cause it may over time cause a cracking problem.

I have posted here to ask if this hitch is truly heavy duty enough for the intended purpose:
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...2&postcount=23


Right now the truck has a gawdy home made bumper, probably weighs about 100lbs, I was hoping I could just cut the welded trailer ball mount off the bumper but i did some preliminary measurements to my new hitch and the receiver receptacle stops about 3" short of the rear of the bumper. here's a pic showing the width of the bumper. So i picked up this non period correct bumper on the cheap but would still like to find a period correct nice bumper thats a little more heavy duty.

[70stroker]

Love the build.

After I am goin to be running the same gas tank and have been looking for a hitch do you mind takin some pictures of the hitch and tank mounting points in relationship to crossmembers and what not.

[swamp rat]

Moving along to the tank and filler, I also purchased another 10X20 car cover, going to set it up right behind the other one to give me room to (hate to say it) pull the bed off again. Right now the tank is bolted to the bottom of the frame rail, i want to move the tank flanges to inside the rail because the filler is about 1/4" below the top frame rail, I was going to do it way back then but i was in a hurry to get the bed back back then as i needed the truck, and didn't take the time to remove the cross member and move the tank even tho i knew the filler hose would rub on the upper frame rail. So i need to back up and fix the tank before i install the hitch. This pic is about ?? 2-3 years old??

Then once the tank is fixed i'll start on the filler door and tube, and yes because i have never done any body work the thought of cutting my bed side is pretty nerve racking..

I have bought a few items to help with the door install, right and left hand snips and a stud welder gun and puller, plus some mud, high build primer, sanding blocks, ect.

[swamp rat]

Oh, before i forget, the truck does handle way better than it did with the Rancho front springs and 40 year old rear springs and blocks, and the new ball joints and tie rod ends ect, i still think there is room for a new rebuilt steering gear from Red Head, but that's way down on my list. http://www.redheadsteeringgears.com/

And i'm STILL waiting on my replacement seat cover from Truckseats, this has been going on for a real long time.... Yes I'm becoming pretty impatient over this...

About a month ago I ordered a repair inner and outer panel for my passenger door but put it on a stock order thru Classic heartbeat, i figured i have time before i can get to it, if I'm successful then i keep moving forward with sheet metal repair, if not i will need to work a lot of OT and find a body man.

[swamp rat]

Originally Posted by 70stroker

Love the build.

After I am goin to be running the same gas tank and have been looking for a hitch do you mind takin some pictures of the hitch and tank mounting points in relationship to crossmembers and what not.

Here's another old pic

The hitch bolts to the frame behind the rear cross member which is just behind the rear of the tank, the other hitch i have that was off of a 76 Chevy had mount points that extended forward past that cross member so didn't want to use it. The new hitch has 3 bolts per side just as the old hitch but there just closer together.

I'll certianly post more pic's as i progress