Customs finishing off my pre-war cheveee project

ill probably make a straight version of the black arm reusing the black trick lock nuts .but the cranked arm might work out once i get the dash reinstated with the steering column and the column mounted tacho.theres the mirrors to make and the windscreen frame to dismantle to straighten a twist out of it.windscreen will be a pita to take apart as the glass is stuck in with black mastic.i can see it being soaked in petrol and making a tool to prise the halfs apart .loads to do ,looking forward to it though.

 

first installment of 2023.auto electrician arrived to do a little job.the high beam indicator is too bright.its a led item.didnt come with the resistor at time of purchase it arrived weeks later.so tonight we installed it.a much calmer light now.fitting the dash by suspending it with tie wraps worked a treat.instead of the mounting bolts i used loose wraps and did the same in the centre hanging it from the mirror.this allowed access to the wiring without carrying the weight of the dash .we also trial hooked up the under dash courtesy lights.they worked out very well.will be connected up next time around.also went through wiring up the tacho.should be straight forward enough.good to be back working at it.would like to keep going but ive two enterance piers to build.to keep bouncer in,neighbours dogs and kids out.ive started so ill finish.

 

Well ya ol Irish Nut - hope the New Year is better for you - good to see ya still piddlin away - keep at it - still piddlin on the A
Take care and stay safe Brother Flea

 

expecting Basil to arrive soon for some wiring.hope he can make it

 

the wiring wizard arrived but got called away to an electrical emergency.arrived the next evening .we are getting near ,allmost there.on the home straight .underdash courtesy lights wired.battery charged all electrical fittings located.column mounted rev counter allmost completed .need to move it under its own power to clean the floor

 

well its up to me now to tidy up,put some motion lotion in it,start it.the under dash courtesy lights are looking great.but they are 21w,need to swap them out for something that uses less power.might source some LED bulbs,similar light with less draw and less heat.top job basil worth waiting for.

 

well made the 16 mile round trip to the motor factors.had a choice of 5w or 10w bulbs same fittment ,i settled on 2/10 w bulbs smaller glass than the 21w but shud do the job.

 

made a start on making a bracket to mount a breather catch can to the firewall.had some 5mm aluminum so used that.prefer it to steel easier to cut,and with etch primer it holds on to the paint well.ill be using m6 stainless coach bolts to fix to the firewall.hose from the valve cover will go to the filter in connection and the outlet will travel to the airfilter base with the fitting in the photo.ill be deleting the breather on the catch can and using a blank provided.anyone else using a catch can ?

 

countersunk screws mount the bracket to the breather.instead of using fiddly m5 screws i drilled and tapped a piece of 20x40 to m5.stuck the 20 x 40 to the bracket. using 2 pac adhesive to stop it moving around .much easier install now have had this for ages about time i used it ,hoping for a good result.
uprated from m5 to m6 on all the nuts n bolts,stronger

 

today finished spraying and assembling the breather catch can.it mounted on the firewall.i had being using a k+n breather in a shrouded grommet.i think the filter was not restrictive enough and it allowed a mist to pass through it.hence the catch can. my good friend mick turned up a 90^ elbow to fit into the grommet from black nylon.hope to get some new gates 10mm hose tomorrow and plumb it all up. it was great to see it being machined up in front of you.hey presto a new fitting that fits perfect,keeping with the blacked out chrome free theme for my truck.thanx again Mick.good as it gets

 

hose wasnt gates unlike previous purchases.but a lighter version that bends easily.ill go get some more tomorrow to connect it up.i have some 10mm elbows stashed somewhere once i locate them it will tidy it all up.

 

i travelled to get more hose it turned out it was gates after all.enquired about where i could get some m10 elbows .and they had a box of fittings under the counter.great stuff straights elbows and tees, in various sizes in stock.my previous purchase was from the uk and not the same quality as these gates connectors.i had 3 sets of connectors with the catch tank to suit m8,10 and 12 hose.looked like i could merge the m12 tank fitting with the gates m10 elbows .i filed the barbs from 1 side of the elbows intil they fitted into the m12 tank fitting and shortened the aluminum tank fitting.got to get to meet mick tomorrow to turn into a top of the range fitting.ill be using 2 pac adhesive to bond the aluminum to the nylon m10 elbow .hoping it will work out well..a typical job 2 trips to the supplier and another 2 to mick to get to get a top job sorted rome wsnt built in a day.designing something and improving it as u go.

 

been thinking if i have issues with the breather returning to the base of the air filter then ill blank the hole in the base and reroute the return to the top of the air filter over the carb and it should be sucked straight down into the carb. hopefully i wont need to do that .

 

some progress today.i shortened the fittings on the catch can and mick cleaned them up on the lathe.they were looking very nice so i shot them with etch primer and satin black.picked up a new 2 pac adhesive today.just need to bed the elbows in tomorrow. the cover on the PRC rad cap came loose last year.i sprayed it with vht rust converter yesterday and follower it with etch primer and satin black.hope to stick the cover to the cap tomorrow.dont think ill use the vht rust converter again too many cancerous warnings on the can..should be able to post some pics tomorrow..not much to see i prefer things understated

 

set the fittings with 2 pac adhesive and assembled the hoses.i hope i wont need any hose clamps.cleaned the rad cap and drilled some dimples on the cap and under the cover.better leave for another 24 hours before i stick it together .

 

because of the depression in the rad cap i marked where i need the adhesive,so i wont make the same mistake again.next jobs will be to set the spark timing.ive an adjustable timing pointer and an adhesive timing tape.need to have the timing set with a timing light.i know the very man for the job just need to convince him to walk down the road some day.

 

stuck the cover to the rad cap .seems stuck hard.was disappointed it came away in the first place wasnt stuck too well from the factory.then used a brand i thought would do the job this time i used another 2 pac adhesive ive had good results with in the past this time cant remember the brand off the cuff.its holding up for now.ARALDITE was the brand that left me down ,wont use it again,very brittle .
i ordered up pol stealth latches allmost 2 years ago. the reciept says sept 2021.
a little tricky to fit as the rolls on the tailgate are welded shut .it is possible to push the latches through and have great difficulty removing them.im working on a plan to hold the body of the latch to stop it falling through until i screw in the locating screw. some pics wonce ive worked it out not rocket science just dont let it fall in.ordered on ebay.worked out circa 100 bucks inc shipping and taxes.not cheep.kit to suit47-87 chevy gmc truck but will fit the 38 im sure could be adapted to most classic trucks.gotta get back to my beer its getting warm while i type.

 

the adhesive i used is Versachem.now im working on the stealth latches im not too impressed.instruction are non existant and incorrect.they suggest a 3/16 slot in the tailgate wont work because the threads in the knobs are too short.1 latch has the threads loctited into the body of the latch it will have to come out to install the latch into the body.ill be making up new new knobs so i can get it all to work.on the second slot i made a 7mm slot the knobs are alloy next time they will have to be steel or black nylon that wont wear out.also the knob is hitting the stainless screw that secures the latch into the roll.

 

moved on to the knobs .i had a set of mini pool balls i purchased for this kind of thing.they were solid and could be drilled and tapped.threads that came with the kit were 3/16.tapping drill size is 4.1 mm.not available here easily .could be tapped to m5 with a 4.2 tapping drill size and i had plenty stainless ones in stock .tapped them all to m5.after consulting with mick we decided on using a threaded spacer between the knob and the shaft mick filed to length so the numerals were upright.replaced the stainless screw holding the latches with black metal ones that will take paint.thats a change normally im looking for stainless.overall very happy with how it turned out.mick put the finishing touches on a tricky little project.

 

.used the 8 and 13 balls.the sides need to be drilled out another 1/16 to accept a grommet.the grommets would not work .the sides of the bed are double thickness at the latch. the grommets wouldnt fit.maybe some day it will get a black nylon bushing installed. as it is the latches fit well.the shafts are tapered and sprung loaded and quiet at the moment all it needs to finish is an injection of grease.done for the present .everything locktited with pink 222 locktite.finishing up i noticed the left hinge was a little out of shape .i did that lost grip of the tailgate and stressed the one hinge holding it .ill try to reshape it but if it doesnt work out ive another set of hinges i got from mike odom.thanx mike never knew id need them.https://oldchevytrucks.com/blog/2020/05/1938-chevrolet-threequarter-ton/ .

 

once we fire up there will be a tidy up.

 

yep it figures ya would use the 8 & 13 ball ya Irish nut - are ya gonna use the cue ball as the shifter knob?
ya must stay up in the wee hours of the morning figuring this out - love it - take care and stay safe

 

allrite mike the balls are only 15/16 diameter so a shift knob is out of the question.anyway used the cueball for a trial run and it worked oK

 

.basil arrived yesterday .we made a start on finishing the wiring.now we have the dash bolted back in.while i was waiting for him to arrive,i had a few hours i tidied up the dash wiring some. rerouted the oil pressure line ,and made a bracket that i bolted to the dash frame that i can suspend some wiring from.this tidied everything up.dropped the column in place .the wiring to the tacho needs to be finalised.expecting basil to arrive back the next day to test everything but i had to cancel.ive a really heavy cold ,respiratory infection.so wont be at it the next few days.since the motor hasnt run with months im going to drain the oil to check the oil for condensation.if theres any present ill just drain it off.the oil hasnt done too many miles after all.theres a small coolant leak and a tiny one from the trans where the speedo cable should be.a blank with an o-ring will fix that.4 wires to the tacho power in ,signal wire from hei.light wire and an earth.shouldnt take too long .!

 

connected up the wiring to the tacho,just need to give it a start to check its all working and reinstall the steering

 

went through the switches on the dash to check all was working but no high /dims and no indicators working.i stopped at that,waiting for basils return.he arrived tonite he didnt do anything but the light and indicators were working .this guy is good.we tried to fire it up used some easy start it tried but took a while to pump the fresh fuel through.poured some juice down the carb. after a few tries we got her firing up.and ticking over after a while.at 900 rpm.never knew what speed it was idling at till now.had drained the oil to check for condensation in the oil.there was none present i put it back in.once i get some miles up and the motor warmed up ill change the oil and filter have oil and a wix filter in stock.been trying to get a litre of dex merc trans fluid with a while but the local dealer have it in stock must make a trip for some tomorrow.its been a good day today next is to connect up the steering .yeehaw.

 

ill just add that im very happy with the BOSCH retro tach.good steady needle on it when its running,the gauge light is just the right brightness.it was costly but its worth it now. (costly plus shipping plus taxes).think of the dollar price,multiply by 2 and a bit in euros thats what we pay for everything.

 

ok collected a litre of the correct ATF to suit the trans .30 mile round trip but its the correct stuff.theres a small leak at the speedo drive i thought , a tiny leak but the plan is to get it sorted sooner than later.truck fired up straight away today.crying out for a trip.after the steering is connected up of course.

 

after further inspection with a clean cloth im hoping the oil at the trans was from the breather on the valve cover and running back along to the speedo cable drive .fingers crossed.
i hope to have the breather issue solved

 

went for a spin to the local bike meet tonight.the truck was well recieved and got loads of compliments from the bikers.one guy commented i can hear that from my house every time you start it up.turns out he was living local.had a couple of teething issues .the battery is on its last legs need another .thing is its a side pole one i imported.costly local and have to be ordered and wait wait .new front brakes are bedding in and will need another look to see how things are .not too impressed with the wipers.motor and linkage work ok but the wipers themselves are not up to the job very flimsy.glad i went for the intermittent though.i have a cunning plan for the wipers.it was very overcast heading there it got dark early and rained.interesting spin home.im allways a bit nervous driving in the dark/wet.the lights are a little too far from the edge of the truck for night driving a friend who was heading the same way drove in front for the spin home .just like old times elbow out the window in all weathers.enjoyed the drive.i had reassembled the steering yesterday only to find there was a problem .some tight spots and some noise fron the linkages.i checked to see were they out of phase .this was not the case one shaft was sticking into the steering joint a little too far and was rubbing on the joint.solution was more carefull assembly .its running smooth now loctited and everything..the intention is to machine some flats on the shafts sooner than later.one problem solved another 2 to go