Been chugging along on this, making progress and picking up pieces here and there. Scored a second NOS front drum. The Dana 44 drums seem to be made of unobtanium, but I found one a few months back and scored a second not too long ago. The 9" rear came back from the powder coater, so I finished rebuilding it with a 3.50 Trac-Lok gear set, Nodular case, aftermarket 31 spline axles and new drums and brake hardware. Loving the look of the STA Super Traxion tires on 16" steelies. (Have since found a set of 15" steelies for a stock look, but they'll wait until the tires need to be replaced). Tackling the Dana 44 front end finally (been putting this off for a while). Salvaged and repaired the shock mounts off the broken Dana 44, cut off the extra tabs and brackets that weren't needed and dropped it off at the powder coaters today. Will end up white as well with black brake hardware, same as the rear. I love finding hidden factory part numbers!
I haven't been keeping this thread up to date very well, but things are chugging along. I've been working 12 hour days on average since January, which has put the hurt on my garage time, but I continue to carve out time here and there. To update on the last six odd months: Tracked down a few NOS parts (turn signal switch and Carter fuel pump for Olds. Pulled the garage apart for a good cleaning and re-organization in October. Straightened(ish) my rear crossmember that had been bent all out of shape from years of being used as a mount point for straps. Removed the rear upper shock mounts which had been broken and poorly repaired more than once. Sourced replacements. Stopped in to see the Olds 324 on the dyno. (Pretty much a stock rebuild with the addition of the 2x4's. Blew apart the divorced transfer case and ordered replacement bearings and seals along with a few other trashed parts. Found NOS Unity spotlight mounts for both the Driver and Passenger sides. Undecided if I'll put dual spots on, but I like the idea of functional spots... Blasted and painted all of the leaf springs. Gave the one replacement leaf a little more factory appearance. We had a late winter this year, so this brings me up to right around mid-December. Was nice to still be able to comfortably work outside at that time of the year.
Mid-December I mocked up my super hack rotisserie for the frame and set up my $60 spray booth while the frame was out at the blasters. Stripped the transfer case while I had an empty garage as well. Frame came back from the blasters the first week of January and it was finally type to prep for paint! Wax and grease remover, tacked it, and then shot some PPG. First time shooting primer/paint ever. Definitely a learning curve about overspray, but despite a few drips and runs, it turned out pretty good. Primer! Scuffed, tacked again and then shot final paint. Definitely a better experience than Primer, but still learning. Shot some paint on the transfer case and started the rebuild (I needed the bench space back!) 4x4 specific crossmembers were added to the frame. Originally, they were riveted into the longbed frame, but I went with Grade 8 hardware and bolted them into this shortbed frame. Started running some brake lines. I ran all new brake lines on my previous 60 F100, so I'm familiar with where things need to fit. It was way easier to do this time with no body on the frame. Got the frame halfway to a roller and wrestled the divorced transfer case back into place. (Not a pleasant task without a cherry picker or gantry crane and trying to hold it while also secure the hardware). And finally, a few more NOS pieces came in over the winter, including a real shiny piece that came in last night! That brings us up to today (April 23rd, 2021).
bloody fantastic - all I can say is keep up the good work. Its kinda exciting to see all thre NOS stuff you have found. I have 15 - 20 yr old structural engineering machines/gear at work that is outdated outmoded and almost obsolete and yet we can keep a 60 yr old vehicle going.
Thanks guys! I've been making slow and steady progress on it. Need to get it done so I can get to work on my 29 Phaeton on a 32 frame, but I promised myself I'd get this truck completed (including paint and interior) before I started on the hotrod.
Finally got my hands on another NOS brake drum for the front. These things are rarer than hens teeth. I painted the last full batch of chassis parts to finish assembly, tore down the paint booth and brought the cab back into the garage. Neighbours across the street will be happy not to be staring at it any more I imagine. Started buttoning up the rebuilt Dana 44 front axle. Shop I took it to for the gear swap did a great job of scratching it up during the 5 months they had it, and when I got it back, it still had the same gearing that I started with. This is the replacement housing, so there was a few hours of swapping shims to get the correct kingpin preload of 50-70 inch feet. Also, if anyone sees a 7/16" wrench in these pictures, point it out for me, would ya? Mine is missing...
Not much progress in the last month. I injured my shoulder at the start of July and have been slow to heal. Physiotherapist doesn't seem to understand that I have a truck to build. Lots of selling of parts and ordering parts, but no real progress yet. Hope to get the motor in the frame as soon as I can.
Well, all good things must come to an end. Haven't updated this thread in almost two years, because nothing (truck related) has happened in the past two years. My daughter was born October 2021. She's been my primary focus since then. My partner and I also took possession of a commercial space (originally a service garage in the late 40's) that needed a full gut and reno. That's soaked up the rest of my free time and money. Recently, I've been re-aligning my car goals to fit my current life, and this truck simply doesn't fit. No safe way to strap a car seat in means no family trips. No family trips means it's not a priority. Not a priority means it won't get driven. So... my club brothers are going to help me screw it back together and it'll be going up for sale. My loss will be someone else's jump start on a solid project. I'll update this thread as the truck comes back together.
Sorry to hear this... you've been doing a great job with this rig! But... I sure understand (and admire) your revelations about priorities in life. Spending quality time with family outweighs ALL things with wheels. Enjoy the little one while you can... they grow up way too fast! PS: You're a good Dad for stepping back and focusing on her!
The past year, I really haven't done much on the truck. I was kind of bummed out coming to the realization that it would be a decade before she could really safely ride in it. (Car seats and all that). My wife wanted me to finish it, but I just couldn't see the point of spending another year of evenings and some weekends finishing it so that I could drive it by myself. I appreciate your kind words though! We're making a pivot into a more family friendly old car... something with a back seat. More to come on that soon in a separate thread.
The Jalopy Journal
