1985: FrankenBurban 3/4 ton 4x4 grassroots hauler

[454Sub]

Yea Im talking about the underhood one first in there. 6 screws if memory serves. And my squirrel cage came off and went back on easy. But that was just mine. Mine grinded and made all sorts of weird noise, I washed it out in a soapy bucket, then brake cleaned it out, then soaked it in waterproof grease on the bearings and it hasnt made a noise since. Actually I noticed my volt meter drop less now that they are all fixed.

 

[fidelity101]

Yea Im talking about the underhood one first in there. 6 screws if memory serves. And my squirrel cage came off and went back on easy. But that was just mine. Mine grinded and made all sorts of weird noise, I washed it out in a soapy bucket, then brake cleaned it out, then soaked it in waterproof grease on the bearings and it hasnt made a noise since. Actually I noticed my volt meter drop less now that they are all fixed.

Okay that makes more sense, regarding the washing the motor statement then haha. If whack the blower motor (or the plastic housing it bolts to) while it is running I can get it to act up/make noises.

 

[454Sub]

I thought I priced them and there were not as cheap as I wanted. So I tried that and it worked great for me. I ended up doing my Windstar fans as well with the same method and now they spool up quicker and are much more quiet. I only got the idea for all the fans after my first set of Windstar fans locked up and I took them apart and experimented with them. Now I did them all and its much better for the time it took to do it. Not to mention I live out and about and mice like to make Motel 6s in ductwork of anything that isnt moving constantly.

 

[fidelity101]

Yeah I just checked rock auto. I'm not sure I understand the differences in the motor with impeller differences between the trims but the prices sure do change. At least the blower motor resistor is only 11 dollars.

I may try your method and then if all else fails I guess I can always purchase a new blower motor.

 

[fidelity101]

So some more updates:
Well I gave up on the washing it idea because O-Reillys had the blower motor from VDO for 26 bucks with wheel! Hard to beat that.

Basic stuff:
Blower motor resistor and new blower motor.

Less Basic stuff:
1. The food mechanic! (it fixes hunger)
2. Retrofitted/installed a modern windshield washer system


This is the food mechanic, it is an idea we had while at pikes peak this year because we got hungry wheelin around the woods.

There are bolts welded onto the front bottom corners. the front are bolted to that flat piece of metal you can get at the local hardware store and bent to fit the curvature of the inner fender.

The other mounting provision is hole that is by the hinge that is upward in the ammo box to the wall of the inside of the fender structure (or whatever it happens to be)

Still not sure what it is? let me open it for you...

Basically we interupted the heater core to have a U bend pipe that is in a sealed ammo box to act as an oven. This is only slightly classier than using a tin can and shoving it on the exhaust manifold. Obviously you are not going to roast a turkey in this, meerly grab some easy microwavable meals (and tin foil) or canned soup and shove it in there!

Just set it and forget it! (WARNING DONT ACTUALLY FORGET IT!)

and #2. the windshield washer system....
Problems with current.
1. pump motor is bad/dead
2. washer tank is small
3. small washer tank has many cracks in it and a small hole
4. switch only provides 5v to the motor (the trucks wiring is a mess)

I work for a company that is a supplier to vehicles for headlamps and occasionaly headlamps require cleaners and those washer tank cleaners are integrated into the windshield tank system/assembly. So I retro fitted a 2013 Toyota Highlander washer system for a cost of less than 8 dollars.
Tank assembly with motors was free.

I just had to buy an inline fuse and some new washer tubing then junkyard pick the right electrical connector with pigtail. Luckily Toyota uses alot of the same provisions for pump motors and connectors so a quick swap was easy and grabbed some backup ones just in case (and I was already there)

Here is it next to the food mechanic, the new tank is not fragile and has easy mounting points for easy fab.

The new tank holds about 1.5 gallons, much better if I should happen to run into a mud pit or driving on snowy roads (sno*drift is coming in 1.5 weeks...)



Whats next?
Sourced a 2" aluminum carb adapter (needs to be cleaned still)
Exhaust gets repaired/replaced this week.
Radio for summertime when windows go down for "A/C"

 

[fidelity101]

Here is a quick shot of the food mechanic installed next to the new and improved washer system:

The food mechanic is very secure and its location makes for a great seat when working on things in the rear of the engine bay such as a distributor. Which I gave up and replaced. I have always been fussing with the ignition in some way or another and I Just gave up. I should have bought a new one when I got the new engine. Replaced the coil while I was at it, starts better, runs better and runs smoother.

Its an accel brand, installed pretty easy and picked up a tach/battery pigtail for easier installation and connectivity.

I had barn finded (sp?) a throttle body spacer at my co-workers place, his father had passed away few years back and left him all this SBC stuff, there were at least 5 OEM rochesters BNIB with the carb wrapped in plastic, some were pontiac and one or two performance manifolds or carbs, I wil have to check out his garage later he said because there is even more parts.

So I gave it a quick polish and cleaned the surface a tad.

close up shot of the new hotness (blurry)

Now the air cleaner fits much better in the engine bay too, carb adjustment is easier to get to as well.

Exhaust is too loud, I'm getting boring mufflers installed now. I'll upload a youtube link for the hillbilly exhaust. Sounds good its not to bad idling or low throttle but as soon as you get mid throttle it is LOUD, not so much in the cab but everyone around me.

 

[COCHEV]

Looks good! Are yo going to put the factory air box and snorkel back on?

 

[fidelity101]

Looks good! Are yo going to put the factory air box and snorkel back on?

Snorkel/inlet tube, yes. Air box no. I like the look of the edelbrock chrome filter cover.

I just haven't decided how to exactly affix the snorkel back on in a non janky way yet.

 

[fidelity101]

I forgot to mention the carb spacer is 2"
also here is a sound clip of the billy exhaust:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHQqjty2DWU&feature=youtube_gdata_player
IMCO mufflers, true duals, hooker comp headers 2.5" all the way through.
At least the tips look good, but I need the truck to be quieter so some lame boring mufflers are going on instead.

 

[fidelity101]

Got the muffler to a much more quieter and normal sound then took it up to sno*drfit rally (finally some action shots) and hauled the party around from stage to stage.
Drove one of saturdays stage before the run started, gave everyone there a good show.


This was good prooving ground for the food mechanic, it was a bust. the piping is too thick and doesn't shed off enough heat. Going to have to re-think that one but it was a great idea for being REALLY high, I mean 14,100 feet up high at pikes peak summit giggling over donuts and chilli.

Its hauling a sno*ped, Part moped, part childs' snomobile and part briggs and straton but all sorts of fun!
No I did not create it but my old college roommate did.


Last weekend did 3 ice racing events over the duration of the weekend and ended up having more fun with the truck.

Even the tow vehicle got some action!

When I wasnt driving I was working by pulling people out. I look forward to pulling suckers out at the next snow rallycross and ice race event, pretty much my prefered worker assignment now.


However because I was pulling people out I was rolling down the back window a lot, I decided to roll it down all but .25" and tossed a shovel in, the handle hit the glass and it being 0 outside it just shattered... so I need a new one of those right now...

 

[M1A1D]

I read this thread and about spit coffee all over my desk thinking I'd finally figured out where my truck came from. Nice work man!

 

[fidelity101]

That it came from flint? The plant is still there its just east of the i75/69 interchange. Your truck does look very similar though lol. I wish I had those fender flares...

Not much updates, fixed some wiring issues and corrected some unessecary ones. It turns out there is a detent in the light switch when turned all the way to the left, I thought I had a short to power but really the switch was doing its job and I'm a moron, go figure.

I had to replace the rear window and wound up getting a whole tailgate with glass for 150 rust free. Bonus is that the glass is heated and power window however the motor was dead and part of the structure that the window regulator was mounted to is rusted. Maybe a rainy day project but rockauto has those motors for a pretty penny...

The truck is going back to white in the summertime and I have already sourced better condition chrome exterior trim to replace the chipping paint fadded tirm pieces that are on there now. Also a custom roof rack will go on to accomodate 3 kayaks or whatever gear I plan on using for said adventures.

Pics soon to come.

Right now the truck is getting more child/slave labor work performed on it at another school's auto shop. Brake fluid flush, front pads and repack front wheel bearings. I'm not sure how many decades old the fluid is but it is the only fluid that has not been repalced yet.

 

[jekquistk5]

The food mechanic is a good idea. Copper pipe would work better for heat transfer. For hunting camp before we dropped a trailer on the property, we would always rig up a rack under the headers with some small chain and bungee cords. Drive around for 10 minutes and have lunch/dinner. Idling never got it hot enough. Now its just easier to carry around my coleman camping stove.

 

[fidelity101]

The food mechanic is a good idea. Copper pipe would work better for heat transfer. For hunting camp before we dropped a trailer on the property, we would always rig up a rack under the headers with some small chain and bungee cords. Drive around for 10 minutes and have lunch/dinner. Idling never got it hot enough. Now its just easier to carry around my coleman camping stove.

The new idea is to run some copper pipe to a small heater core at the bottom with a fan attached blowing upwards and insulate the inside of the box. Ultimate foodbox and convection oven


(maybe)

 

[jekquistk5]

The new idea is to run some copper pipe to a small heater core at the bottom with a fan attached blowing upwards and insulate the inside of the box. Ultimate foodbox and convection oven


(maybe)

Insulate the outside so you do not get heat loss due to outside temp.

 

[Blue85]

g

next up:
Get rid of the nuts! (ASAP)
windshield! (next week)
bilstein shocks (september)
body mounts (TBD)
radio (september)
thinking of painting it back to white...

Fixed your to-do list for you

 

[jekquistk5]

fixed your to-do list for you

yup

 

[fidelity101]

Ahh yeah I forgot about those, yeah those have been gone for a while now lol.

Slave labor reports a stuck wheel cylinder and the passenger side shoes are saturated with brake fluid

Might be time to do rear brake job while there in there. Tires are making me a bit cautious too. According to the date code they are 12 years old and are/have been showing some weathering. I do not feel comfortable towing with them this summer and I know I will be using them for that.

Right now they are 285/75/16 all terrains. I'm thinking 315/75/16 will still clear without a lift. Id like to lower my highway RPM a bit, I don't need drastic change and a new transmission is too costly. I may only go off roading once or twice a year so some 33s mudders would be a waste.

This is current idea is this 315/75/16

General Grabber AT2, a friend of mine works for continental so I can get screaming deals on general or conti tires.
Then put those bad boys on these:

I've always loved this style of wheel, I could not find an 8 lug picture but you get the idea.

16x8" 0 offset, 4.5" back spacing with 315/75/16 A/Ts, looks like it would clear anyone have any suggestions on this?

 

[fidelity101]

Slave labor fixed the brakes and re-packed my front wheel bearings. The truck is tight once more, did some summer maintanence over the weekend, air filter and oil change. I did notice some more clunking in the front end and took a look when I was under the truck for a LOF that the terrible Michigan roads have shaken my poor truck apart! All of my sway bar bolts were loose.

Also some of the bedliner is flaking off in spots and I found some rust poking through on the hood. Its going to be time for a sand and paint soon but right now house stuff is taken over so everything is on hold but should it go right I will be moving into a garage with a detached house! I will finally be able to park the rig indoors, hopefully have enough left in the budget for a lift. so far, so good...

In other good news we have discovered that my truck is not stock height, I always thought it sat high due to having the HD diesel suspension with the "lightweight" gas/mt combo. It turns out it has add a leafs installed already. I'm hoping to bump up tire size to improve my highway RPMs but I don't want to hack up the fenders and fender flares are just out of the budget right now.

Tires do need to be changed though ASAP, not comofrtable towing on them anymore. I'll post up pictures of the weathering tomorrow to show you what I mean. Also the ammount of tread left for a 12 year old tire is pretty neat. Probably why the chassis is in such overall good condition too.

 

[fidelity101]

Here are better pictures of the rot that I am talking about. This is the general condition on all 4 but its a shame since it has such great tread life left.

I also noticed while changing the oil that my air filter had gotten pretty dirty so I decided to get a new one that was much larger and still fit