John-T-53

Originally, (ast least on half ton springs) the fronts have a threaded bushing pressed into the eye. You can easily press this out and install a new one in a large bench vise. Screw your old pin into the bushing part way to press it out. The rear eyes are "threaded" when you screw in your new shackle bushings. The bushings are very hard material and will cut the steel of the spring as they go in. You'll probably have to screw them in part way, then back out, several times, each time getting in further. I had a tough time with this but at least I know they are in there tight! They must be extremely snug so they don't rotate. Same goes for the frame bracket. Check out Rare Parts for new shackles - very high quality and American made. EDIT: I see the NAPA link has these in their "Rare Parts Chassis" line, so looks like RP now makes them for NAPA. Nice.

All good ideas here. Falconvan, sure, put a pic of it up here! Thanks...

Easiest to paint it - silver to match the engine. You could also just clean it up with some steel wool and CLR or Jasco prep n' prime, and clear coat it, or oil it. Old zinc/cad plating can be brought back to its original shine this way, however won't offer the same protection as when new.

Is the 2.5 a diesel? The shorter input shaft is what works. The longer is too long for the truck setup. Ask the seller what the ratios are. He prob won't know, so then ask for the tag number on the tranny and then you can look it up! Good luck.

Yup....going strong, two years and 10 k miles on it! I like this idea. It would be nice to find one thats "plug n' play", but I may be able to have it made locally.

So my battery has always been held in place by gravity and the cables, and I think it's about time to get a proper hold down, now that a new battery tray has been installed. The main thing needed is the frame to fit over the top of the battery....anybody know of a source? I think I'll use threaded rod, if I can't find extra long carriage bolts, for the hold down bolts. Thanks,

Good thing I broke down before starting over the San Mateo Bridge....no shoulder! It was a sticking valve that time...but on the way back the rod bearings started making noise again, which prompted the second rebuild :-( This year all is runnning strong and looking forward to the drive again!

The NAPA box said "Made in USA" for both pumps.

Jeff, Which shop is doing it for ya?

Interesting...I just replaced a 3 year old NAPA pump with about 7k miles on it because of pin problems too. The pin wasn't coming out yet, however was loose and leaking a lot of oil out the end. The NAPA pumps are made by carter, and this replacement looks a little better in construction.

Good to know about the pucks! I'll have to look for strays next time I'm at the "shark tank" in San Jose. As for the LF cab mount being solid, I think they did this because the steering column and foot petals attach/come through the cab in this area, and you can't have too much movement by way of soft mounts. The cab basically pivots on this point, so the driver gets the roughest ride.

Do hockey pucks have any metal cast in them or are they solid plastic?

I recently bought a Roberts set and they are fine....I think just a little softer than the originals. You'll have to reuse the hard rubber mount at the front left as this is not included. Mine compressed down a little when installed, and now the floor boards rub on the frame slightly, so now looking for some spacers...I think some Simpson square washers might be the ticket.

Merle - with your tall gears you should be able to do the drive for less than that, no? Otherwise, have you found any rental agencies that rent out Dodge B-Series trucks?? Maybe Tim can get something set up with the local Enterprise....lol.

I thought those were 5/16-24 (fine) thread, like all other 5/16" body screws and bolts on these trucks? But yes, no one makes (that I've found) a 5/16" fine u-nut. All are coarse threads.

After cutting the seats with a blade type tool (especially a lil' hand jobber), they should to be lapped in to check contact area. Even when seats are cut on a big heavy seat and guide machine, they still need lapping. If you use stones, lapping isn't usually necessary. By the way, where you located at, Looz? From your driveway pictures I would guess south OC or somewhere in San Diego area.

You can adjust spring tension by loosening the screw at the clamp and sliding the spring in or out, just make sure the copper conducting strap behind it isn't drawn up tight against the spring. According to the shop manual, this could cause the copper to break. Where'd you get the scale at? These are hard to find from my experience.

Since you're the guinea pig, post some pics of the cables (sans knobs) when you get 'em....curious to know what the control end looks like and how it might work in our trucks. It doesn't appear the knobs they have are that close to our originals...but their website images aren't that detailed either. Thanks,

Tod, Thanks a bunch...this helps. There was definitely a solid pin on this distributor, not a rivet. I'll have to check the end play....008" is quite a bit, I think I'm less than this.

Welcome to the ol' forum! Nice panel indeed. Front seat upholstery looks like it was inspired by a Corvair van. Post some more pics when you can...

Thanks Jeff. Might be a good source to bulk cable too!

Update....went for it and drilled out the pin (it wouldn't budge with a drift and hammer). That was the ticket. The retainer collar slid down and the shaft could then be removed. The bushings were pounded out and now all parts can be cleaned. The shaft cleaned up good with red scotchbrite and WD-40. Now just awaiting parts...

Jeff, What's the site/company? Post a link...

I have a spare dizzy (IAT-4011) that I've decided to rebuild and install on the new engine, since the old unit has never been touched except for tune-up parts here and there. For this one the plan is to install new bushings and outfit with a Pertronix eletronic ignition unit. Also sent the vacuum pot down to Terrill Machine in TX to get rebuilt. New bushings are on order, but other than that I can't find any resources on how to do the rebuilding. Right now it's all apart except for the shaft and body, and I'm not sure how to take it from here without damage anything. Does the shaft just press down and out? Is the pin supposed to come out on the lower shaft (below the body)? If anybody's gotten this far before, please help. Also, if you got specs (end play, bushing clearance, etc.), that too! Thanks,

Good info. I can see the front fender extension in Paul's pic below! Looks like it's about 12" long at least. Are the big blocks that much longer than the little 23" flatties?