Put the gas tank in and the old big steering wheel on and secured the column to the dash. Hooked up the 50 plus year old fuel line to the new flex hose and fired it up. Guess what???? The 50 plus year old fuel line has a crack in it. Duh!!! Well the leak was slow enough that I decided to let it run with the fire extinguisher nearby and the truck outside the garage of course. Up to operating temp. Adjust timing again and idle speed. Hop in and TOOK IT FOR A DRIVE!!! No brakes, so it was just granny gear forward (hit the brakes out of habit naturally), reverse to back it up, granny gear , reverse, granny gear, reverse. could have done that all night but the leaky fuel line was getting me worried. How cool to finally DRIVE the truck (if that's what you call it). Having a little trouble with the carby, I think. Carter YF, auto choke. Brand new, not rebuilt. Engine bogs and backfires through the carby when accelerator is stepped on hard from idle. Must be mixture adjust I guess. Anyone got some tips on setting proper mixture without a vacuum gauge? I don't have one. Or maybe other issues??? Can't tell you how impressed I am with the truck however. Oh my, it drives like a TRUCK!!! Clutch is VERRRRY smooth. The kids won't have any problems learning on this thing. I admit I did try starting off in second gear as well. Geeze, these trucks have POWER and torque. Itchin' to get it road worthy now for sure. Andy
Just wait! If YOU think that's fun, just wait 'till your kids- anyone of them get behind the wheel and experience that thrill!!! A 50 Chevy truck is what I first drove. I've (obviously) never forgot that. I'm happy for you. I hate that mine is apart. Next time I drive mine, though, it'll be shiny and new! The carby. It sounds like you want, "VROOM VROOM" not "vrrrrrrooooommmmm vrrrrrrooooommmmmm". Me too. It'll be interesting to see what advice you get. Good luck, Andy.
Yeee Hawwww !!! Way to go Andy ! a chip off the old non OSHA Approved block there ! . About that flat spot ~ assuming you've allready gone back and re-checked the HOT valve gaps , timing & dwell , stop the engine and remove the air cleaner , have a kid press the acellerator whist you peer down the Venturi with a flashlight ~ as soon as the throttle linkage begins to move , there should be a steady stream of fuel coming out , if not or the stream dies out , let the carby soak in fresh fuel a day or so as the acellerator pump leather may have dried out from sitting too many years , give it some time to wet up and swell up . Oh and remember : STEEL lines for the fuel pipes ! no copper !
Thanks Nate for the input. I did NOT re-adjust the valves. As per you the engine needs to be at operating temp meaning taken for a DRIVE for a while to get an accurate adjust. Should I bring it to operating temp in the driveway, let it run a while and then adjust the valves and then adjust them later on again when the truck is on the road? Took the carby apart before I put it on as it came with the exploded diagram and found accelerator pump to be intact and in good shape. Was intending to put a couple drops of Marvel on the pump leather but it turned out to be rubber??? As least it looked and felt like rubber. Funny though, it certainly does act like an accelerator pump that isn't working too good. When you say soak it in fuel do you mean remove it from the truck and immerse it in gas? You want me to give my carby a gas bath? And if the pump is made of rubber, should I soak it as well? Andy
Andy ; Get it up to operating temperature (fast idle in driveway is O.K.) then remove the rockerbox and have at it ~ . Just leave the carby in place , it should be full of fuel from you running it.... If you take it aprt , you should be able to manually shove the pump plunger into it's well and gauge if it's pumping or the fuel is whooshing past the rubber's edges , if so , kits are cheap , don't forget the tiny steel check balls (valves) ! .
Had the kids today for a brief visit. Replaced the leaking fuel line at 6:00 am this morning. Got the kids home this afternoon and told them we were driving the truck today. They were so excited. I drove it with all of them in the cab with me (a tight fit for sure) whilst giving specific instructions as to safety and procedures. Each one of them drove the truck by themselves except for my daughter who is to small to reach the pedals or see over the dash. She sat on my lap when she drove it (no small feat with that huge steering wheel). The boys each sat behind the wheel, started the engine, depressed the clutch, put it into gear, released the clutch and drove it down the driveway and then stopped and backed it up. Did a couple of three point turns and the like. You should have seen their faces!!! got a couple of pics, but my digital camera is still lost and ran out of film. You all will have to wait on developing till I post the pics. Comments from: Number two son, "After all this work we finally get to drive it!"...My daughter, "I'm SOOOO happy, daddy!!!"...Number one son, just the biggest shite-eating grin. What a sense of accomplishment for him. He was by far the most interested and involved of them all. Number three son, "Can I drive it again...PLEEEEEZE?" Needless to say, most of the visit was just tooling around the driveway, then putting it back into the garage only to start it up and bring it out again. Number one son drove it out of the garage. Number one and number three sons actually shifted from first to second. Should have seen the look on their faces when they realized that second gear is a whole 'nother animal than the granny first gear. Had to hit the kill switch a couple of times as they got a little too close to the decline that leads to the busy main road the house is on, but they were instructed VERY thouroughly about how we were going to stop the vehicle and they all listened extremely well and followed directions when behind the wheel, especially when we needed to stop it from going into the street. Unusual for kids to listen so well and follow directions so exactly. They did great and are very proud of themselves. They can't wait until we get the brakes done and then put it all back together and on the road. Next we teach them how to adjust valves and redo antique brake systems. I'm pretty proud myself BTW, not just for myself of course, but mostly for them. Thanks everyone so much for the invaluable help and encouragement. I know there is lots more to come. Engine runs better each time I start it and run it. Getting the cobwebs out. Andy
A big high five! Andy, keep up the excellent work. It makes me proud to hear "Disney" type endings! I'm still pi$$ed over them putting down 'ol yeller though! Seriously, give yourself a pat on the back! You're the second best "Dad" I know (Mine will always be the first)!
Awesome, Andy! All I can say is, "I told ya!" I'd say don't drive it again until the brakes are fixed. That will do two things. A. Drive them crazy over wanting to drive it. B. Ensure that you won't have to worry about them missing a step and having a disaster.
No doubt. The brakes are next. I have all the parts. It's just a matter of finding the time to do them with the kids. I don't want to do them by myself as they really need to learn how to do drum brakes. They have all redone the discs on my SUV with me, but those are easy. Rebuilding a drum setup is a lost art. Andy
Way To Go ! Most excellent Grasshopper ! You're setting your children on a good life path Andy , keep up the great work ! . Kudos to you my freind .
