Today I finished patching up the floor boards and sealed it all up. Below is a brief overview of the process. Pictures to follow.
1. I planned.
2. I revised my plan a lot after measuring and checking cost.
3. I remeasured and cut my patch material with a foot shear.
4. I used an air diegrinder with a cutoff wheel to cut a whole 1 inch on all sides smaller than my patch.
5. I used a wire wheel on a drill to remove all of the rust remaining on the floor and rough up the paint for a new coat.
6. With the surface clean I sprayed the exposed surface with rust oleum to stop any rust from reappearing
7. Then I applied a thick line of sealant around the 1" perimeter of the holes. I wanted to use a tar to seal it but I could only find a silicone sealant at the hardware store so I went with that.
8. Starting with one corner I drilled an 1/8" hole and riveted the plate down. I used steel rivets with backing washers.
9. Then I continued around the patch at 2" intervals drilling and then riveting to make sure everything lines up and the holes don't end up moving around as the patch is riveted down.
10. With the patches secure I sprayed the rest of the floor pan area with a heavy coat of rust oleum. I chose a semi-gloss black for the interior because the red looks terrible.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
The biggest 4x2 truck around!
Ok, so I received the new hubs a couple weeks ago and quickly slapped them on and was excited to finally be driving a 4x4 again! To my disappointment though I discovered another problem, the front driveshaft was spinning but the wheels were not!
This could mean two things, differential problems or axle problems. UGH! that sucks. I'm 90% sure it's the driver side inner axle shaft that is broken but won't be certain until tear into the front axle. Why haven't I done that? I haven't started the front axle because I know the project will be a big one and will include a full brake job replacing bearings and seals and I just haven't had the dough to start it. I have been doing a ton of research though about the axle and decoding the tags to decipher what is inside.
This is what I found regarding the rear axle because it actually has a tag on it with the bill of materials and other info. The tag has this stamped on it:
4.10 D5TA LEB
603583 12 LS
I went to www.spicerparts.com to decode the tag and this is what I found. This website BTW was super helpful! I downloaded a maintenance booklet for the Trac Lok and The parts list and complete info for the rear axle. FOR FREE!!! Thanks Spicer! Also, spicer=dana=spicer interchangeable names one makes the other I can't remember which.
4.10= gear ratio: ring gear teeth/pinion gear teeth = 4.10 gears
603583 12 LS = B.O.M. Bill Of Materials, tells ya what is inside, and where it came from. This axle came from a 1975.5 Ford 3/4 ton HD 4x2 Full Float with limited slip aka Trac-Lok.
This could mean two things, differential problems or axle problems. UGH! that sucks. I'm 90% sure it's the driver side inner axle shaft that is broken but won't be certain until tear into the front axle. Why haven't I done that? I haven't started the front axle because I know the project will be a big one and will include a full brake job replacing bearings and seals and I just haven't had the dough to start it. I have been doing a ton of research though about the axle and decoding the tags to decipher what is inside.
This is what I found regarding the rear axle because it actually has a tag on it with the bill of materials and other info. The tag has this stamped on it:
4.10 D5TA LEB
603583 12 LS
I went to www.spicerparts.com to decode the tag and this is what I found. This website BTW was super helpful! I downloaded a maintenance booklet for the Trac Lok and The parts list and complete info for the rear axle. FOR FREE!!! Thanks Spicer! Also, spicer=dana=spicer interchangeable names one makes the other I can't remember which.
4.10= gear ratio: ring gear teeth/pinion gear teeth = 4.10 gears
603583 12 LS = B.O.M. Bill Of Materials, tells ya what is inside, and where it came from. This axle came from a 1975.5 Ford 3/4 ton HD 4x2 Full Float with limited slip aka Trac-Lok.
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
New Hub
Warn Premium Locking Hubs. These hubs are good for a lot of reasons, the biggest though is the metal center dial. They always work... 'nuf said.
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Monday, February 1, 2010
Update: Someone's got a case of the Mondays
It has been a few days since I have written about the project so I figured I should keep yall updated as to what has been happening with the ole beast. Since there are many things happening at once I will use a list to talk about individual parts.
- The new hubs will be here on wednesday sometime so expect to see a post about that soon.
-I also purchased a marker light assembly from ebay for only 10$ including shipping to replace one I had broken while climbing under the hood a while back.
-I have been pretty disgusted by the interior of the truck and when you see the pictures you will understand what I'm talking about. I had considered buying a seat cover for $30 but decided that I might as well look around for other seating options. I began looking on craigslist for a new seat and found no suitable bench seats for under $300 but did find a sweet set of seats from a jeep grand cherokee that I purchased for 80 bones. They are bucket style tan, leather, power-adjust seats. They are taking quite a bit of fabrication and frustration to mount but I am certain that I will be able to get them in soon. The drivers seat needs reupholstered but thats cool I have ideas about how to deal with that problem. The final setup will be 3 seats across. both nice buckets and one of the rear seats between them. The center seat should fold for storage and will have a console on it most of the time. The biggest benefit to these seats is that they are high-back buckets with headrests that will prevent my head from going through the rear window when someone rear-ends me. I also plan on upgrading from the stupid lap-belts to the safer over the shoulder style. on Saturday I used my time to (instead of working out my blinker issue) play with the new seats, I started by ripping out the bench seat, easy, 4 bolts and its out. Then I ripped out the floor mat or what was left of it and proceeded to sweep 35 years of dirt and junk out from the interior. I had to use a wire brush to get the caked on dirt and tons of rust out from the floorboards. I was hoping to find some change under that seat but only found 5 pennies and some camel cash. Both floor pans are rusted through in places so expect to see a post about replacing rusty floor pans soon.
-Today before I got started on the bucket seat conversion I couldn't help but notice the entire house smelled like gasoline. The stench was coming from the garage and from a small pool of gasoline under the truck. The rubber hoses that connect the fuel pump to the hard lines had finally deteriorated to the point of failure. With the fuel tank sitting behind the seat, higher than most of the fuel delivery system, any leaks will continue to drip. I had the rubber hoses replaced in no time and was able to move on. I expect to replace every single piece of rubber on this truck. if it isn't cracked and dried it is soaked and dissolved.
- The new hubs will be here on wednesday sometime so expect to see a post about that soon.
-I also purchased a marker light assembly from ebay for only 10$ including shipping to replace one I had broken while climbing under the hood a while back.
-I have been pretty disgusted by the interior of the truck and when you see the pictures you will understand what I'm talking about. I had considered buying a seat cover for $30 but decided that I might as well look around for other seating options. I began looking on craigslist for a new seat and found no suitable bench seats for under $300 but did find a sweet set of seats from a jeep grand cherokee that I purchased for 80 bones. They are bucket style tan, leather, power-adjust seats. They are taking quite a bit of fabrication and frustration to mount but I am certain that I will be able to get them in soon. The drivers seat needs reupholstered but thats cool I have ideas about how to deal with that problem. The final setup will be 3 seats across. both nice buckets and one of the rear seats between them. The center seat should fold for storage and will have a console on it most of the time. The biggest benefit to these seats is that they are high-back buckets with headrests that will prevent my head from going through the rear window when someone rear-ends me. I also plan on upgrading from the stupid lap-belts to the safer over the shoulder style. on Saturday I used my time to (instead of working out my blinker issue) play with the new seats, I started by ripping out the bench seat, easy, 4 bolts and its out. Then I ripped out the floor mat or what was left of it and proceeded to sweep 35 years of dirt and junk out from the interior. I had to use a wire brush to get the caked on dirt and tons of rust out from the floorboards. I was hoping to find some change under that seat but only found 5 pennies and some camel cash. Both floor pans are rusted through in places so expect to see a post about replacing rusty floor pans soon.
-Today before I got started on the bucket seat conversion I couldn't help but notice the entire house smelled like gasoline. The stench was coming from the garage and from a small pool of gasoline under the truck. The rubber hoses that connect the fuel pump to the hard lines had finally deteriorated to the point of failure. With the fuel tank sitting behind the seat, higher than most of the fuel delivery system, any leaks will continue to drip. I had the rubber hoses replaced in no time and was able to move on. I expect to replace every single piece of rubber on this truck. if it isn't cracked and dried it is soaked and dissolved.
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Monday, January 25, 2010
Junk Yard Trip
Yesterday my friend John and I went to the U-Pull and Pay salvage yard in north Denver ( www.upullandpay.com ). They have an online inventory that gives you an idea of what whether or not you will find certain parts. It works pretty well because you pay a 2$ entrance fee and they provide you with a wheelbarrow to carry things in and you can spend as much time as you want scavenging parts. John needed a relay for his cherokee, which he found. I found an idle air control for my wifes Metro and a Brake Light for her brothers Contour. For the Highboy... not as much luck. They had a 1976 f-150 on the online inventory that interested me until I found it. It was destroyed! I think it spent a few too many weekends at the WalMart parking demolition derby. I was able to find a brake light fixture and a headlight mounting ring that were in good enough shape but that was it. I found a battery tray to protect from corrosion and an antenna off of a GM car and an antenna wire from an import suv of some kind. The things I really wanted to find were a tailgate, a bench seat (or buckets), and a spare tire. Next time I guess.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Tires, the WalMart and a random dude
I went to the WalMart yesterday, that's right THE WalMart, to have the other set of tires mounted. I used the WalMart because tire mounting is pretty cheap there and they balance them for the life of the tire. I first called ahead to make sure they could handle 37" tires which they can, what they cannot do is make reservations apparently it is a walk-in only setup. Anyways I got in line behind 2 people at just before 1pm and made it to the front of that line 15 minutes later. They remembered me from the phone call and said they would have my truck done in "about an hour". 3 hours later I drove away with only 2 tires mounted, apparently the other 2 had hard bends in the bead of the tire making it difficult to seal. I suspect the damage was caused by the WalMart but I don't really care because I got the 2 worst tires off of the truck and I'm planning on downsizing tires anyways. The 37's show signs of rubbing and I'm sure 35's or 33's would do just fine for my purposes. Moral of the story: Sometimes things are only CHEAP or FREE if your time is worth nothing to you. To me, time is everything. Especially when I have an awesome wife at home waiting for me to return. The way I see it, if I multiplied my meager hourly wage by the time spent at the WalMart plus the price of the service I would say I was ripped off! Especially since I already worked 40 hours this week and those 3+ hours would put me into overtime. ALSO! I would say spending ANY time at the WalMart on a SATURDAY of all days would warrant some sort of hazard pay. Carts packed with junk whizzing by, kids screaming, no one to help you find what you came for, great prices on things you don't actually need, 2 checkstands open, the parking lot(demolition derby) and the strangest mix of people. UGH. Which reminds me of this random dude I met while pondering a possible seat cover purchase. I think this guy lived at the WalMart, his eyes were crossed- probably from trying to find prices for things he had originally wanted to buy on all the mixed up shelves but had long forgotten what they were or where he found them. He was alone, but looking for someone- I think he thought I was the guy he was looking for. Maybe his family is also lost in the WalMart, or maybe they went home and forgot the poor guy there. He hadn't shaved or showered in quite a while unfortunately. Anyways I hope the random WalMart dude finds what he is looking for at the WalMart, even if it's just a friend.
Email Notifications
Hello to my loyal readers and the random passer by! If you got an email from me regarding my newest post and do not want to receive any more such posts please let me know. Also, if you want an email when I post something new let me know! You can Email me at the address in the bottom-right of the main page or just drop a request in the comment section below. Thanks for reading!
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
New Wheel Studs and Seals
It was a good idea to just replace both wheel bearing seals while I was this far into the project even though only one was leaking. It's a good idea to add some 80-90W to the bearing after you slide it onto the hub especially if you are like me and cleaned all the old stuff out of it while inspecting it for defects. I used a short piece of 1/4" vac hose to extend the tip of my squeeze bottle of gear lube to squirt a little back into the bearing area before sliding in the axle and sealing it all up again.
Rear Differential mud
The fluid inside the rear differential should not look like chocolate milk shake...
Gears looked good so I cleaned it up and sealed it with silicone sealant making sure not to overtighten the cover bolts which squeezes out the sealant and allows leaks to form. And then filled it to the fill hole with 80-90W.
New Shoes?
This was a new set of shoes put on a badly damaged drum. The new drum was only $50. The shoes that were wasted were $20.
Groovy Drum
This is what happens when you continue (for thousands of miles) to drive with that metal-on-metal sound every time you hit the brakes.
Brake drum removed
This is the drum brake system on the rear of the truck, nothing exciting on this side. Leaky seal and detached E-brake cable.
Removing the Axle
The axles were in good shape, there were flakes of rust attached to them and water beaded up in places, thats a bad thing I think!
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