bkahler

Today I was digging through the various bits and pieces I still need to install and found this hole plug in one of the boxes! After all these years I don't remember having the plug but obviously my truck had at least one when I bought it Unfortunately I only have one but hey, that's a start!

I was kind of surprised to find after reading the manual page that Merle provided that there is no adjustment on the fuel gauge. I had 5 gallons of gas in the tank and the gauge needle hadn't moved so I assumed that either the gauge was bad or the new sender was bad. First thing I did was disconnect the wire between the gauge and the sending unit. Next was to test the sending unit. I believe the sending unit is a 90 to 10 with 90 being empty and 10 being full. The reading with 5 gallons was 70 to 71 ohms. I poured about 1/2 gallon more into the tank and the reading changed to 69 ohms. That told me the sending unit was working (it's new so it should be good!). Next I grounded the sending unit wire to the gauge and the needle pegged at full! Ok, the gauge is good, or at least functioning. I then hooked a 0 to 100 ohm wire wound potentiometer between the gauge and ground and slowly started turning the pot until the needle moved on the gauge. At 63 ohms the needle was just starting to come off Empty. I plan on pouring more gas into the tank In order to determine just how much gas will be in the tank once the needle drops to Empty. The only thing I won't know is how much gas is in the tank before you can no longer suck anymore out.

Merle, thanks for posting the page out of the manual. It would appear there is no adjustment of the gauge. So things either work or they don't Thanks again. Brad

Well for what it's worth the door catch repair is done. From the inside it's not very pretty but I think it's serviceable. I debated for a few minutes as to whether or not to weld the plate in place but in the end I decided it would be stronger and make it easier to replace the catch if it ever breaks again. For the most part I think it's a good repair and should work just fine. The outside opening needs to be smoothed out some and I'll have the painter take care of that little problem. The door is heading to the painter this afternoon. Big thanks to JB for finding a source for the door catch parts, it's kind of hard to repair something if you don't have parts I now have all the parts and supplies on hand to repair the radiator and the water pump gasket. I hope to have that work completed by the end of the Memorial day weekend.

Merle, I realize this is somewhat of an old post but it sort of hits home for a problem I'm having. My B3 Series service manual published in 51 does not have any info on the fuel gauge. It covers the horn, lights, ignition, etc. but does not cover the fuel gauge. Does your service manual have any details on how to adjust the fuel gauge for proper readings? Thanks, Brad

That's definitely an idea worth trying however I have a hunch that I won't be able to get a big enough washer through the rectangular opening on the outside. I'm pretty sure the opening is only 7/8" wide. However after thinking about it for a few minutes a rectangular flat plate might substitute for a washer and I believe a long narrow (7/8" wide) strip with a hole drilled in it just might work I'll report back this week. Thanks!

JB found them at LMC Trucks. The hole spacing is slightly further apart, 1-3/8" vs 1-3/16" but as mucked up as mine was that turned out to not be a problem.

I have ordered gaskets and hose clamps from DCM Classics and I should have them early next week. After doing some research I've decided to try and solder the radiator seam myself. From what I found, using a micro torch with solder will allow me to target the small spot that is leaking. Solder and acid flux is on order as well and I'm hoping to work on the radiator next weekend. This morning I tackled the damaged driver door catch. Whoever made the "repair" was more of a butcher than a repairman. They brazed a small bracket on the inside of the door that the door catch arm passed through. It definitely worked as a door stop but it was crude at beset. From the looks of it he used a large round punch from inside the door and beat the opening until it was bulging towards the outside edge of the door. After removing the brazed in bracket I did what I could to beat things inward and used a small rotary grinder to cut out the old broken pieces. if you look close enough you can see where I've sort of reversed the direction of the bent opening. This will allow me to get the new catch piece inside the opening in the right orientation to work with the door catch arm. What I need to do now is figure out a way to flatten the opening. This will likely require some heat, a bucking bar and some help. The goal is to use the pieces in the picture below to repair the opening. The metal plate will be on the inside of the door and the catch piece will be between the outer skin and inner support frame where it belongs. I plan on using a couple #10 screws to hold the two pieces together, sandwiching the inner door brace and once everything position I'll weld the plate in place from inside the door. Stay tuned......

Well, I think it's pretty conclusive that the gasket between the water pump and the block is weeping. So it's time to drain the coolant system again and then pull the radiator and the water pump. So far the closest radiator shop I've found is about 2 hours away

Well the news just keeps getting better and better..... The radiator shop that has done all of my radiator work for years is out of business Aside from this one small leak they always did great work. So now I have to try and find a shop somewhere in the region that can fix it. While checking for leaks yesterday I found one between the head and the water pump just on top of the block. I wiped it clean thinking it might have been from when I replaced the thermostat housing. Fresh coolant showed up overnight so that tells me either the head gasket is leaking or the the back side of the water pump is leaking. I'm going to have to keep wiping it down until I find find out from which direction it's coming from. I've built and installed a lot of engines and have never had this many issues with small leaks before. Starting to get frustrating!

It would appear I'm going nowhere fast While poking around looking for more leaks I noticed this one on the top front of the radiator. It appears to be leaking right at the seam. I guess the next step would be to pull the radiator and take it back to the shop to be fixed. I'm not sure yet but I think I might have missed putting sealant on the threads of the bolt holding the generator pivot bracket to the water pump. I'm not 100% convinced it's not residue from previous leaks from above so I'm going to watch it for a little while to see if it progresses. As far as the fuel system leaks I'm beginning to think there is nothing wrong with the front carburetor gasket. I pulled the top housing off of the carburetor and the bowl wasn't filled entirely which tells me fuel hadn't reached the level where it would be forced through the gasket. The other reason I think that might be the case is because the top surface of the carburetor housing was damp and it wouldn't have gotten that way from fuel seeping past the gasket. I think what happened is a mist or very faint stream of fuel is/was coming off the top of the fuel filter housing. You can see in the picture below that the top of the filter housing is wet but there is no fuel around the fittings or around the edges of the filter. It's coming through the top! I'm not going to pull the radiator until I'm sure I've spotted and fixed all of the other coolant system leaks. Once I'm convinced there aren't any more leaks then the radiator can be fixed. What fun

What's that old adage, fix one leak and two more show up? Well that's what just happened on the fuel system today. I replaced the tube going from the front carburetor to the rear to due to the mucked up fitting. That leak is now gone. One of the two new leaks that are now present is where the top housing of the carburetor bolts to the carb body. Back when I rebuilt the carburetors I spent a lot of time getting the two mating surfaces flat using a thick piece of glass and sand paper. I'm actually surprised that it's leaking there. I'll have to pull the cover off to see what I might have done wrong. I'm wondering if that could that be a symptom of a leaking float needle? I believe the second leak is actually the result of a cheap porous filter housing casting. The leak seams to be coming out of the top of the casting and not at any seams or joints. I bought it new and I'm sure it's a cheap Chinese knockoff which means I get what I pay for I also started filling the coolant system today so tomorrow we'll know if that problem is fixed. Assuming I can get the fuel system leaks fixed and the coolant system doesn't leak the engine is 100% ready to try and start. All I need to do at that point is turn the key and stomp the starter

Sorry, didn't mean to post on this thread

I did see that paragraph in my shop manual on page 247 earlier today while trying to find what I was looking for. For whatever reason I was thinking the reference I had read about in a post had to do with how the mounts were assembled. This paragraph makes more sense and is something I'm going to have to remember to do. Thanks!

Just checked again. Nothing in the B3 Shop Manual that discusses or shows pictures of the engine mounts. I've noticed in the past that that B3 manual isn't as detailed as manuals for other years and models.

Quite some time ago I ran across a thread that discussed something along the lines of "follow the procedure in the service manual for tightening the rear motor mounting bolts". At the time I told myself that before I start the engine for the first time I would look in the manual to make sure I installed them correctly. So last night I looked in the manual and couldn't find any reference to the rear mounting bolts. Did I misinterpret the thread I had been reading (sorry, I can't find it again either!) or did I miss something in the service manual? Inquiring minds want to know......

Put the seat back cushion in last night so I could measure for lap belts. I forgot just how comfortable the seat actually was to sit in. Much better than I remember. Interestingly I found the truck seems taller than I thought it was to climb into. I took a measurement and found from the ground to the very top edge of the bottom cushion was 43". That's more than I expected.

Practice? Who has time to practice?!! That's an interesting looking product. I'll have to keep it in mind for future projects. I talked to the painter and he suggested welding as well and would fix any damage I might cause to the currently finished product.

"Adhesive is made to create permanent adhesion between dissimilar and non-porous materials such as plastic and fully cured painted automotive surfaces" It doesn't really seem to be suitable for metal to metal applications. I've never used the stuff so I don't know how hard it gets. Gotta admit, that was a good one ? After reading Mark's reply and looking closer at what needs to be done welding will likely be the answer. I have a TIG welder although I am nowhere near proficient at it. I also think wrapping it in wet rags and using the MIG welder to do quick spot welds might do the trick. Worst case is I can have the painter touch up any spot that I damage with heat. I'll ponder on the situation for a day or two and let y'all know what I end up doing.

I wish it would have been lack of sealant on the bolts! I did use sealant, just used the wrong gasket....

I plan on working on the door this weekend. I had to ordered some small cutoff wheels and an arbor. This should be an interesting challenge

So you're implying that 48D is human.....and here I thought he was the God of IWOYTD

Well crap. I'm starting to gather the bits and pieces together for assembling the front cowl and I noticed there appears to be two mounting holes in the cowl and only one nut plate in the parking light trim piece, both trim pieces are missing the nut plates Years ago I sourced right and left replacement pieces because both of my originals were damaged. I'm thinking the only thing I can probably do is fabricate a couple of little plates and JB Weld them in place. I would think once the pieces are bolted to the cowl even if the JB Weld cracks the trim would still be held in place. It seems nothing ever goes smoothly on this rebuild.

IWOYTD + 1 This morning I finally took the time to install the ID tags on the generator and starter. I had to remove the starter to install the tag but I looked at it as practice for when I have to remove in the future! The next task was to pressurize the fuel system. I poured 5 gallons of gas into the tank and turned the ignition on. After about 5 to 10 seconds gas started showing up in the fuel filter at the front carburetor. A few seconds after that it was obvious the fitting at the rear carburetor was leaking badly I tried tightening the fitting with no real change. After pulling the copper tube that runs from the front carburetor to the rear it looks like the flare I made on the rear fitting was not very good. I'll be making a replacement tube to see if that solves the problem. The other reason I wanted to put gas in the tank was to see if the gas gauge worked. Unfortunately it didn't. So I disconnected the sending unit wire from the sending unit itself and took a resistance reading. The reading was about 79 ohms. I then started adding more gas to the tank and the resistance started dropping which tells me the sending unit is functioning correctly. The sending unit is new and purchased from DCM. Classics. So now I need to check the voltage reducer I installed on the gas gauge. Worst case is I use the NOS gauge I have sitting on the shelf One last thing. The drain cock pictured above turned out to be a piece of sh!t. The handle came loose and you can't close the valve. I've got a replacement on order, the same one I used on the radiator which seemed to be well made. I should have it tomorrow.

IWOYTD Overall it was a pretty good day working on the truck. I ended up having more time available than originally planned due to a mower deck power switch going bad....bummer Yesterday I figured out why the t-stat gasket was leaking. Yours truly for some reason used an exhaust flange gasket instead of the correct gasket Don't ask me why I did that, I don't have a clue. So first up this morning was to install a new correct gasket on the t-stat housing. I created a huge mess while draining the block but the cooling system is now ready to refill. There is no direct path for the coolant to flow without splashing on something down below. So, while I had the coolant system drained I replaced the block drain cock with one that had a nipple for a hose to fit onto. The next time I have to drain the coolant I can put a hose on the valve which will allow me to direct the flow where I want it to go. The radiator drain cock had a nipple so draining the radiator was a piece of cake. After completing the installation of the t-stat gasket I moved on to the cab interior. First up was to apply the sealant at the bottom rear edge of the cab. This was one of those areas that would have been a super highway for rodents. I used this same sealant to stick the rubber sheet to the floor where the filler next pokes up through the floor. The rubber gasket is the original gasket and was still soft and pliable. Next I installed the seat tracks and seat frame. At this point I just HAD to install the lower seat cushion so I could sit in the truck I won't be installing the seat back cushion until I get the seat belts installed and the round cover over the gas tank sending unit in place. The cover is being painted so I won't have it for a few days. All said, I think IWOYTD pretty good day Ok, got a little more done this evening. Pulled the running boards out of storage, hosed them down and installed them. The bolts are just snugged up. I'm assuming once I start installing the fenders they will need some adjustment.