Thread: I just picked up another "project"...

Tweet

The cab and hood are in excellant shape. To bad everything else was rusted off...
I am still planning to run the verticle stacks behind the cab, sorry. That's how I "see" it though. I have the truck pictured in my mind as it will be finished and that is how it is... Patina'd red cab, verticle stacks, flat bed and I am using my pro street tires and wheels to give it a "dually" look...
I have been puttering on it after I get home in the evening. I have cleaned up the front brake corners and painted the spindles, rotor hats and calipers. I also started installing the front springs last night while the paint was drying and decided to pick up a single action spring compressor. I tried drawing down the springs with a piece of 1/2" all-thread rod through the spring pockets but didn't like the "geometry" the rod was seeing... Too much power there to mess around with.
Thanks for looking
Mark

Glad to see you excited and intrested in finishing the truck , I just went through the whole thread . Looks great to me .

Thanks gregster, believe me the desire has been there, I was lacking in energy and concentration. Being on short hours (50) this past summer has helped recharge me plus I have lost over 50 lbs so I am sure that has helped also.
The single action spring compressor is a no go. Could not get it to seat on the spring square enough to draw it down. Unless some one has a suggestion as to where to pick up a good spring compressor I will be building one. 3/4" all thread and a fabricated plate to capture the spring. I will draw them down in the chassis just far enough to install the spindle on the ball studs.
Thanks
Mark

I hate installing coil springs!
Saturday morning I borrowed an internal type spring compressor from my local auto supply... It was not up to the task. It would only draw the spring down about 3 inches before it would start to stall. (You know how you can tell when the threads are getting ready to go?) This is what I felt when trying to draw the spring down past a certain point. Then, trying to back the compressor off, it let go of the spring so then I had a projectile flying around in the shop. Luckily it only left a divot in the floor and missed my left foot by about 6 inches...
Anywho, after a bit of a break Sunday, I hit it hard Monday night. A friend brought over is external spring compressors (two piece, one on each side of the spring) for me to try. I ended up using BOTH of them. I used the ext. to pull the spring down initially then I used the internal to hold the spring in the frame AND help pull it down with the externals... The Driver side took about two hours to put in Monday night, I was pretty gun shy, and really took my time. I just put the rh side in tonight in about 45 minutes... Once I figured out the process with the lh side this one went quick.
Thanks for looking...
Mark

Looking good, I always like the Mus II look, especially when its as clean as yours. Going to put a sway bar on her?

Astroracer
Nice thread. Can't believe I missed this one! Have you located front fenders yet? If not Bebops has about the cheapest good quality fiberglass ones that I could find. Fortunately mine steel fenders are solid except one lower piece which I bought a fiberglass replacement from bebops.
How did the TCI rear suspension go? I've been looking at alternatives to the stock leaf springs.
I like the fact that you've made all the tools to work the frame and cab yourself. I wish I had space to remove my cab, and attack everything like you did!
Anyway hang in there and keep posting. Also think the American Autowire Hwy 15 is the way to go. I bought the Hwy 22 which is a bit of overkill! Where are you mounting the fuse panel?

Thanks guys, I appreciate the positive response.
Brickman:
I will probably pick up a sway bar from TCI. It didn't come with one when I bought the truck but I feel it will be a good addition.
stovens:
I stopped and looked at a few trucks tonight. A friend has a small scrap yard with all kinds of stuff in it... It's like another world.
We worked out a deal and I will go pull the fenders Saturday morning. Mind you, these things are pretty tough, but with a little patching they will be servicable. I'll get pics when I get them home.
As far as wiring goes I haven't really thought to much about it. I may put the panel in a box under the seat but I will have to get that stuff all situated in the cab before I decide that.
Mark

Haven't got a lot done on the truck in the last month. Back to working weekends and getting stuff done around the house for winter.
I decided to pass on the junk yard fender deal. Those things were just to far gone to bother with and were literally falling apart as I was taking them off... Not worth the effort.
I have decided to go with 'glass fenders. The old Fairlane Products company is not far from me and he is making a set of front fenders and lower extensions for me. In fact he just called as I was writing this update and said he will have them ready this week. I will try to get them picked up next Saturday.
I have done some junkyard crawling and picked up an S10 booster and M/C along with the brake pedal and under-dash bracket. I also grabbed the throttle pedal and the whole front of the firewall. I will have to do a little fabbing to get the bracket to work with the cowl vent lever but it is do-able and about 500 hundred dollars cheaper than an aftermarket kit...
I also ordered a good flaring tool from Classic Performance Products. The next task on the truck is running the brake lines and I don't want to have any problems getting this done.
Thanks for reading...
Mark

Keep posting Mark. Progress of any sort is progress. In the winter, I do my parts acquisitions and hunting, then try to do the physical stuff during the dry months. I'm envious of everyone who has enough indoor space to work year round! But I shouldn't complain, I'm fortunate enough at least to have garage space to keep my truck dry in the winter!
On a side note after epoxy priming the hood and rear fenders, it rained here Saturday. I got up from working late Saturday night to find everything soaking out in the rain. At least it's epoxy primer!

Thanks Steve, I appreciate the kudo's. Having a shop with heat is definetly a plus here in Michigan. I wouldn't get much done during the winter without one.
I got a little bit done yesterday. When I bought the truck it had no drivers side door handle. Using a screw driver to try to open the door was a no go. Had the turning motion but no latch actuation. The inside handle worked fine.
I dug out the latch mechanism I harvested from the donor truck and got it lubed up and working smooth. I then pulled the broken latch out of the truck and replaced it with the donor latch and door handle. Works great and was an easy fix
The bad latch had a broken pawl which had worn away the tang on the actuator. I took the old latch apart and may fix it so it can be used again. A little welding and some grinding will add the missing material back to the worn parts.
Mark

Well, I bit the bullet and bought some 'glass fenders for the F1 today. Got a good deal and was able to save some more cash by picking them up myself. They were made by Mike Schnieder of M & K Fiberglass in St. Johns, Mi. Mike bought the old Fairlane fiberglass Co. last year and seems to be doing well.
The fenders look great! Very smooth gel coat and the inside is very consistant with no huge globs or chunks. I like them.
Thanks for looking.
Mark

they look great astro.

Hi Mark and you will have to forgive some of us older folks for been to slow in showing interest in your build,I'm sorry...
Great looking truck, I will digress here as I find it hard to refer to pickups or what we down under call ute's (utility) as trucks as I drive large semi's for a job pulling either 4 axle or B train trailers.
Man you were so lucky to start with such a sweet looking cab that will speed up the completion date.
I will add my 2 cents worth too, exhaust stacks are for trucks.

Great job Mark. What a nice truck you found to begin with. Up here it'd be rare to find one as clean as that. If it wasn't sitting inside it'd be eaten up with rust. Great job engineering and building the rotissaree (sp). Perley

I love these trucks ... keep me posted.

REGS