Projects 26 T Roadster Pick Up build Thread

I mentioned that transmission pan gasket leak earlier and it is still leaking another thing that’s my fault

I know that the chrome stamped steel pans typically leak.
Heck even the stock steel pans leak eventually.

I installed one because I couldn’t find a stock depth aluminum pan anywhere.

No extra depth pan for me to hang down on a already low car

So I decided that I’ll take matters into my own hands in typical hot rodder fashion and order a deep pan and cut it down to suit my needs.
( Stock depth and capacity )

A little bit of aluminum Tig welding and away I go.

Searching lead to a pan I think will be perfect made by LPW Racing (USA made)

I also picked up a Moroso silicone pan gasket.



I’m also installing the new fan once I get the 1” fan spacer machined down to 3/4”.

 

This is an example that things can be overlooked at the best of times.

I had a small weeping leak in the 29/32” core plug on the rear of the passenger side head near the distributor.

Couldn’t get it to stop. Looking closely it appeared to be leaking at the bottom of the inside of the cup not around the edge.

So, I drained a jug of antifreeze and pulled it out.

What I found was a thin rusty old plug that when pulled out revealed the pin hole leak when a piece of rust popped off.



So I ordered up some more core plugs which of course aren’t available locally.

In the meantime I took a larger (1”-1 1/8”) rubber expansion plug and spun the diameter down on the belt sander to fit the hole snugly.

The small one was too small and the big one was too big

I know some people don’t like them but I’ve used them with good success in the past having had one installed on a old daily driver for over 10 years.

It’s in place and not leaking and I’ll keep an eye on it and if’s it’s ever a problem it’s easy to change.

 

I was gonna' say dance a dremel stone across that chrome pan lip for gasket sealing ... but I'm looking forward to what you do to that aluminum pan.

Cal Custom "custom" look ? Or whatever ... will be nice. You do good work.

This whole build is so sano' & thought out. Super clean everything, & everywhere.

 

Look pal, I can clearly see this car is going to be a serious source of stress for you in the coming years, what with parts failing and the mistrust you'll develop in the car, you probably won't want to take it much further than the end of your street. I can help with that......
If you want to retry the stock pan, try "the right stuff" for a sealer. My transmission guy uses it, never leaks, I wanted a gasket for my 8.8, and he wanted to seal it with that stuff, told me the gasket would weep, well, guess who was right. It does weep.
Looking good pal, hope that first long ride brings the smile I think it will. LeRoy.

 

Those rubber plugs can be your best friend when on the road. My son and I replaced a leaky steel one some where in New Mexico on a trip from Nevada to Texas in his '54 Studebaker. It was in a spot that would have called fo some major dismantling to get another metal one in. It's been working for years. And yes the Right Stuff works but sometimes not fun to get things back apart.

 

That rubber core plug is going away sooner rather than later as I got a package of new steel core plugs and decided to install one.

I made a special tool to install it.

I also installed the new fan and spacer after having the 1” thick spacer machined down to 3/4”. ( You can’t buy a 3/4” mechanical fan spacer)

Still waiting for the transmission pan to arrive, probably this week.

So as usual progress is slow but it’s not like I can go for a drive anyway.

 

Larry,
Sure you can. Put on your Big Girl Panties and a scarf. Show 'em what Canadians are made of.

 

Shit gear head if he drove the damn thing what would he have to do in the garage? This things gotta last him at least another year of fine tuning and specialized fixtures before it hits the street.

 

If you could see the toxic mixture of crap that they spread on our streets and the resulting brown to black mush we lovingly refer to as oatmeal you’d change your tune on that one
If it was just a little cold and some clean snow then it would be less of an issue although frost bite can be a little painful

 

I've never done a full build, so I've never been where you're at right now, Larry. So close. But I've tried to imagine it. Any time I see any of you guys get real close to finishing a big project, I can't help but think the the excitement and emotions must be very high... along with some worry and stress of course. I feel it sometimes even with minor milestones on my stuff.

And progress can be slow and a source of frustration. I'm the king of slow progress. Often, no progress LOL. Hard to find the time sometimes.

But I'm actually kind of glad to see that you have another whole winter to finish up all the little details of your meticulously built hot rod. It deserves to be fussed over to the nth degree. You deserve the time to do that. And you'll head out next spring with full confidence and pride in a job well done.

Enjoy the process.

Still... can't hardly wait!!!

Everybody have a good Sunday.

Sent from my VS835 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

I just want him to get done and drive off into the sunset. That makes my crap look like crap!

 

Transmission pan is here and very soon will be cut down and ready to install.

Goodbye rubber core plug and hello new steel core plug.

 

Larry
We just thought that was reindeer doo doo!

Boy, that's going to take a big piece of aluminium rod and the top plug on your buzzbox.
Curious, do you plan on preheating the pan to weld it?

 

Looks awesome. Nice work.

 

I won’t be preheating the pan, but I have prepared a 12” square piece of 3/4” steel plate that I drilled so that I can bolt the pan down tight to it with the 11 bolts.

That way it will keep the nice flat machined gasket surface.

I’ll cut it down with Walter Zip Aluminum blades.

I’ll be welding it with my Tig machine.

 

Merry Christmas! Thanks for that Aluminum disk tip, never knew they were out there. Bob

 

The Walter line of cutoff discs are premium, when I ran the toolroom I got no whining unlike some other brands.

 

I knew that!
Good thing you are doing it now rather than after being saturated with ATF.

 

Will you V out both sides, and weld inside and out? Belt & suspenders thinking I know. Bob

 

I’m thinking that I’ll fit up the bottom (after cutting it down) using a corner joint all around.

After welding I can just fuse the inside corner with a quick fusing pass with the Tig

 

That would be tough. I’m only doing the cut down because I couldn’t find a stock depth aluminum pan.

This LPW pan is very nice and the design lends itself well to cutting down to stock depth and capacity.

 

Ok, I had it pictured cut in the center and a section cut out, like a body top chop. Bob

 

That would be one way to do it. I think I’ll have better success cutting the bottom off and then taking a section off and then putting the bottom back on because the pan has a very slight taper to the sides that you can barely see.

 

Reminds me of the old days when I could Heli Arc stuff, maybe 2020 is the year I can fund a TIG unit. Bob

 

Do those discs leave any abrasives in the cut or is it left clean of any contaminants that could effect welding? Vaguely remembering some problems we had when building aluminum block beds.

 

No abrasive residue or steel contamination like you’d get using a steel cutting disc.

The aluminum discs don’t load up like the steel discs do.
Nice clean cuts ready for welding.

 

Did some measuring and went ahead and cut the pan down.

Welded it inside and out and then used a flapper disc and smoothed out the outside welds.

That allowed me to take the pan to the blasting cabinet and make it look like it was never cut down.

It’s now stock depth and capacity.

Ready to install.

 

^^^^^^^that's pretty darn slick.

 

I decided that since I have it all blasted and clean that I should paint it.

First I went out to the garage and leak tested it with a little solvent just to be sure. As expected no leaks.

Then a nice coat of etching primer (It dries to a dull flat finish) before the coat of black.