sluggish01

So my front clip setup is set to arrive next week and I’ve been kind of stalled and unmotivated until then so now I’m getting excited. Quick question. I have the original front axle setup that a guy is interested in buying. What is a fair selling price for something like that. It has all new king pins, bushings, ball joints etc and has been blasted and primed.

Decided to order an independent front suspension setup from TCI so that should hopefully be here within the next month. Got the rear suspension and axle cut out last night and the SRT rear cradle slid into place. Still need to secure it into place but the ride height is where I like it. Going to hang a fender on just to double check before finally securing cradle in place. Will get more pics when I have the box and fender temporarily hung on there.

Well the engine has been purchased and will be coming home for mockup on Friday. Sorry to offend any purists on here but I ended up purchasing a 6.4 Hemi from a wrecked car. I'm sure it has created a pile more work for me but I couldn't pass it up. My question is this. What kind of work do you guys figure I will need to do to the frame to keep it from twisting like a candy cane, or is it pretty stout from the factory. I gotta think that going from about 100hp to 470hp, some mods will be required to the frame. Will I need to box the whole thing, part of it, none of it? Some words of wisdom from the experts would help here.

Can't believe it's been so long since I was here but thought it was time to update. The plans have change a bit over the last several months and progress is slow(COVID made me crazy busy at work) but here goes. It has been completely disassembled and body and chassis have been blasted and primed. hopefully get some paint on the chassis in the next week. Everything is in great shape with very few surprises once stripped down. A couple minor body repairs needed but no rot anywhere so that was very lucky. Found a painter for the body who does nice work. Hopefully I can piece it all back together without ruining his handiwork. The motor has been cleaned and painted, only to decide that it is not going to be used. I've decided that the truck needs a hemi so I'm now on the hunt for that. I picked up an explorer rear end so that needs perches welded on and then installed. I will get a few pics this weekend when I get back in the shop.

Has anyone looked into removing the leaf springs and putting coilovers on these trucks? Just curious if it was worth the effort or the cost. Since mine won't ever be used to haul loads and it's really not heavier than a car, thought it might be an option.

Funny you mention that. I made the decision yesterday not to pull the head. It’s not leaking, oil and coolant are clean so I’m just going to clean up the rest of it and put it back together.

I would love to see your power steering setup and get some details a well. My email is mjloston@gmail.com. Thanks in advance

Got much of the engine cleaned up tonight and some parts into the varsol tank. Got a list of goodies I plan to order in the next couple days, hopefully I can get some of it shipped during this COVID-19 era. I searched through tons of build pages on here and scoured the internet for a power steering conversion/setup but came up empty. There must be someone who has put power steering on one of these trucks. Can anyone chime in on this?

Well that's good news, thanks for the info. It was running good with no issues, just ha some oil leaks. According to the number on the block it is a 1954-56 engine, although unknown at this point whether it is a 228 or 251. I'm assuming it's a 228 but will confirm when I pull the head off and measure the stroke I guess. Once I determine the engine, I will order the gaskets I need. Rustoleum overhaul here I come.

Makes sense since brake rotors are smooth too. I’ve checked with local hot riders about getting the clutch resurfaced and they all directed me to the same place, which is the one I contacted with no luck. I’ll order a new one if the vendor won’t help me out. next question. I want to clean and paint the motorand change some leaky gaskets. It runs fine so I don’t want to rebuild. Am I opening a can of worms to pull the head off or is there really nothing in there to concern me. I’ve read that all components are in the block except the plugs obviously. I don’t want to pull the head If I’m going to have to do a bunch of internal work as I am not a motor guy and don’t want to mess anything up.

The one they sent me accepts a much smaller shaft diameter than mine. I only noticed last night when I got the old clutch out so I will be contacting the vendor Monday to see if he can help. I'm doubtful though as I bought it quite a while ago. I checked locally and it seems there is nobody that resurfaces them, at least not the smaller one like this, only for big rigs apparently. If someone else knows of one local to me in Ontario, I would be open to that, I just couldn't find one. Related to the clutch, should I get the flywheel resurfaced? It is pretty damn smooth like a brake rotor. I don't know if they are supposed to be like that or not but it doesn't seem like the clutch would grab it. Or maybe a new flywheel is a better bet?

Yup did the same. Problem now is that I was sent the wrong clutch. Now I have to try and find the right one. Anyone got a line on clutch Suppliers?

Paint has lots of cracks and some bingo cracks too since that pic was taken. Paint definitely needs love.

Wasn’t expecting a hiccup at this point but here goes. I’m trying to remove the bell housing from the engine. All bolts are out and I can move it back until it hits the flywheel, I’m assuming it lifts vertically to be removed. The problem is the 2 locating pins in the housing, they don’t appear to be clearing the block in order to remove the BH. Am I missing something here or is there a trick to removing it.

Since I have to tear into it to do the clutch and a bunch of the wiring is garbage so I figured this was a good time to tear it all apart, and added some modern safety components. Plus I get the quality time with my daughter before she is a teenager and I am not cool at all.?