Running.

Thanks Mr. Clean!

Update: Saturday morning, Evil Mr. Clean and I took a brief jaunt out to Crazy Ray’s in Mt. Airy to see if we could find a radiator for Heavy D. What we found was much better pickings than the Jessup location, which is geared more towards later-model cars. Mt. Airy has late-model stock too, but they have rows of 50′s-era iron and some trucks I never thought I’d see at Jessup. We found a 200-series truck of the same vintage as his and had the radiator and shroud out in ten easy minutes. I pulled the washer bottle for the motor mounted underneath. Behind that was an 800 with a V8 in pretty poor shape, from which I swiped the speedo dial. I wanted to stop and pull two more, from a 50′s Chevy pickup and a flat-fendered Willys Jeep, but we were pressed for time. (I did grab a replacement dome light for the Saturn, which made me happy).

We headed back to the house to swap out my starter with his spare. It took a little doing; the top of the starter doesn’t allow for a thick box-head wrench to get a bite on the bolt. Once we’d wriggled it loose, the whole unit came off pretty quickly and we had the replacement bolted in in minutes. After taking some time to clean the electrical leads with some sandpaper and patch up a bare patch of copper with some tape, we reconnected the whole unit and turned the key. Success!

After lunch and a parking lot comparison of the two trucks, EMC left and I had a little time to spare. I tested out the new wiper bottle I’d scored and then used some spare hoses and fittings from the Wheaton Scout to connect my windshield washer nozzles. Success!

In Progress on 9 April 2011 with 1 comment

Starting Blues.

I’m suffering some new starting woes this week, which have me in the dumps. I swapped out the positive battery cable on Sunday thinking I might be able to fix my intermittent starting issues, but when everything was hooked up and ready, I got no juice to the starter at all. I’ve been getting loads of help from the Binder Planet from guys who have much more experience than me, and I’m slowly making progress on a diagnosis. Tonight I’m going to try jumping the solenoid to see if that might be my issue, and the troubleshooting will continue.

In Repairs on 5 April 2011 with no comments

Plug Update.

I did a dumb thing the other day. I ordered a box of plastic vacuum plugs from Amazon before going downstairs and doing a little more investigating on my gas tank. I got fixated on covering the preinstalled brass fittings without considering the obvious: remove them (they’re all threaded, of course) and find threaded brass plugs to replace them. $10 at the Home Depot and I’ve got five 1/4″ square-head plugs that will cap off all the unneeded ports with no fear of disintegration.

It appears, though, that I’ll most likely have to buy a new set of J-hooks for the tank straps I’ve got; the advice I’m reading on the Binder Planet says the OEM nuts will most likely snap off the ends of the bolts.

Now, I just need a warm, free weekend day to pull her out of the garage and drop the tank.

Update: Here’s one of the plugs installed.

In Progress, Purchasing, Repairs on 29 March 2011 with no comments

Small Updates

I ordered a set of vacuum plugs from Amazon on Friday to cap off the unused ports on my poly gas tank. I think I’m going to try wrapping the ports in something like aluminum foil first in order to keep gas fumes from melting the plastic (it seems like there’s no good alternative to plastic or rubber that I can find) and then put the caps over top of them, then zip-tie or use a small hose clamp to fasten them completely. I also ordered a pinstripe removal wheel for my dashboard veneer; it came this afternoon via UPS. So I know what I’m going to be playing with this evening.

* * *

Finn and I did a quick recon trip to Arbutus on Sunday to look for a truck Mr. Scout showed me several years ago: a topless yellow Scout that looked like it hadn’t moved in a couple of years. When I finally remembered how to get where it was, we found that it had been replaced by a shiny, mildly lifted Wrangler.

In Uncategorized on 28 March 2011 with no comments

Undersea Cable.

Last week, when the weather was getting warm and sunny, I was itching to get the old girl on the road. I was foiled, however, by an intermittent starting problem. Specifically, I could get her to start easily, and an hour later I’d get lights and radio but nothing from the engine—no click, no grind, nothing. Putting the battery on an overnight trickle charge gave me enough juice to get her started Friday morning, but I was wary when I got in her to drive home.

A little research points me to the battery cables, which have been problematic since the day I bought this truck. On Thursday evening I stripped about two inches of insulation from the terminal side of the cable and found green corrosion inside, so I’m going to need to find a new cable and a way to seal it up tight. SSS sells a positive cable for $80, which is pricey. Rock Auto sells one for $12 but I don’t know what gauge or length it is. I think i need to see if Evil Mr. Clean can hook me up with some of the cables like he’s got.

In Progress, Repairs on 21 March 2011 with 1 comment

Dangled Mash.

Armed with a little knowledge from the Binder Planet, I’m going to see if I can save this dash panel this weekend. The plan is to cut a clean DIN9 hole around the mangled part, sand the decal off, repaint it black, and use it to install a better head unit.

(Or, alternatively, I may just see if I can clean up the one that’s already installed and cut that one down. We’ll see).

In Uncategorized on 15 March 2011 with no comments

Small Victories.

This weekend I took advantage of a free hour and some sunny weather to address some small problems:

1. Took the driver’s door apart to figure out why the scissor mechanism was binding up when I tried to roll the window down. It turns out the circle clip had popped off the bottom of the front window track, which knocked the linkage out of alignment. I popped the clip back on, shot everything with more white lithium grease, and buttoned it back up. Problem solved!
2. I pulled the speakers out of the sidewall and installed foam baffles behind them (Thanks, Mr. Scout!) to improve acoustics—HA—and protect the cones and magnets from flying crud and water below.
3. Next, I rigged together a temporary battery holder from the collection of bolts, wires, and threaded rod the PO left behind, and added a bungee cord for good measure. I’ve got to look at how they did it from the factory and see if I can come up with a permanent solution.
4. I also got underneath and shot the bolts holding the gas tank on with some PB Blaster (this is when having a 4″ lift comes in really handy).

In Progress on 14 March 2011 with no comments

Sender Sent For.

I’ve been doing a lot of pick-up consulting work lately, which means there’s been a welcome dribble of extra cash coming in the door. Which is good, because the Scout STANK of raw gasoline last week when I drove it to work. The main source of the fumes were from the rear, and because she was parked on a slight incline, I’m inclined to believe the top seal is bad. So I ordered a new sending unit yesterday from SSS, and when the weather gets warmer I’m going to finally drop the old tank and replace it with the new one.

Update: The sender’s in, and it looks like the proper gasketry is intact on the tank. I’ll have to unscrew the round metal retainer ring in order to get the sender in properly, then screw everything back into place. The next issue is figuring out a good safe way to plug off all of the vent tubes.

In Future Plans, Progress, Purchasing on 22 February 2011 with 1 comment

Staying Warm.

So I think that this year I’m going to get serious about finding a viable steel hardtop for Peer Pressure. I’ve seen them on Craigslist for as much as $500 and as little as $200, but money and time have been short lately. The softtop I have is good but not great; the rear flap doesn’t seal, so riding inside is sort of like sitting in a moving wind tunnel. The top I have might have been viable had I not accidentally run over the corner one distracted afternoon—and it still might be, but the liftgate hinges are toast and the liftgate I have is toastier.

So, add that to the list.

In Future Plans, Purchasing on 16 February 2011 with 2 comments

Quick February Trip

I got Peer Pressure out of the garage, down to the gas station and around the ‘Ville this Saturday while the weather was somewhat warm. The motor ran smoothly and everything felt just as loose and wobbly as it had when I parked her in November. The forecast is for low 60′s this coming week, which means I may try to do an early-morning dump run before work.

In Inspiration on 13 February 2011 with 1 comment