46 Chevy

[enjenjo]

I am making progress, but this week has been cleaning rusty parts. I took a bunch of parts down to be powder coated, most pieces are $3 to $5 to coat.

Tomorrow I'll have some pictures for you. I'll be hammer forming a bracket for the front splash pan, and I'll show you what I have for brake discs

[enjenjo]

Well, I'm back.I had some running to do today. so I got a late start, but it was still productive.

Yesterday I welded brake line clips on the rear end housing, along with a stud to mount the junction block, and installed the new brake lines on the rear end.

I fitted the hub into the new brake rotor temporarily, just to check clearances. It looks like it will fit fine.

I have the front splash aprons that fit to the core support. One was pretty rusty, I was going to try to save the bracket on the bottom, but once I got it off, it was just too rusty to save. So using CAD I made a pattern, and cut a new one out of 16 ga, steel. Two of the sides had to be bent to 90 degrees, but there was a curve in the corner, so I couldn't do it with a brake. I found a couple scraps of HD particle board, and cut them at the correct angle, then sanded a radius in the corner. You might notice that the flange that I am bending gets narrower in the curve. this makes it easier to shrink the metal in that area. I lined every thing up, clamped it in the vise, and bent it a little bit at a time until it was 90 degrees. I used the same form to bend the face piece I made so they were both at the same angle, with the same curve. I pilot drilled the needed holes, I will drill to size later.

After that it was just a matter of welding it all together. I plug welded the flanges through 1/4" holes, and butt welded the lower face piece to the original with a copper backing plate. It cuts down blow through, and warpage.

[kb426]

Good job! Sure am glad that CAD is available.

[idrivejunk]

Thats a really nice patch job :!:    );b(

[39deluxe]

Once again, nice work!

Tom

[enjenjo]

I pulled the engine apart to change the front timing cover plate for one that will fit the mounts in the truck. Good thing I did as I found a broken push rod adjuster, a goobered up pushrod, and a lifter that had disassembled itself. I am having trouble finding the right parts. This is a hydraulic lifter engine, and all I am finding is solid lifter parts.

I got some of the parts back from powder coating. $100 for all the parts you see, plus a few more.

[butch27]

Good prices Frank.  Up here powder coating is outrageous.

[enjenjo]

Nothing went on friday. Saturday I bolted the steering box to the bracket for the last time, using the proper bolts this time. Then there was a bunch of sandblasting done. I did the front axle, and dressed some of the flash off of it with a sander. I also got the oil pan and side cover cleaned up to reinstall when the parts come in.

Today I found the piece of steel I have been looking for right where it was supposed to be, but it wasn't there the last time I looked, so I decided to make the new Pittman arm. The steel is cold rolled steel, 3/4" thick. The Toyota arm was too short, so I cut off the end that fits on the steering box, and turned it round, chamfering the  the outside so there is room to weld. I then laid out the new arm on 3/4" steel with the right length, and pilot drilled the locations. I will cut a hole in the steering box end big enough to insert the Toyota splined end, and that will be welded in place. From experience I know the spline will shrink if there is nothing in it when welding, so I have a cut off Pittman shaft I insert in the hole while welding. When the welding is done, I will heat up the arm to bend it, then heat the whole arm to stress relieve it.

[kb426]

One of my friends had a 6 in a 55 chevy that had the wrong lifters in it. They didn't allow oiling up through the pushrod as I recall. It was a fresh engine and messed up the head. I'm wondering if you will find 2 styles available for that engine? Pittman is looking good.

[UGLY OLDS]

I don't know if this makes any difference, I was recently involved with a '57 Chev 235 6 cyl that was not oiling the rocker arms .  I located an oil feed passage through the head that was located under the rocker arm shaft stand ..
 It fed the rocker shaft direct from down by the oil pump..I was able to verify that it was open by using compressed air .. ( The engine was not building oil pressure as the aftermarket distributor was not fully seated into the oil pump)..
I don't know if the earlier engines are pushrod fed or use the oil passage that I found .....

 The Pittman arm is looking good ....Nice work ...

Bob....

[enjenjo]

There are actually three different methods of oiling the head through the 50s. The lifters have to match the block, and the rocker arms have to match the head. And in some cases you need a special head bolt to make it work.

[idrivejunk]

More beefy fabrication, I can dig it!    I'd say making a pitman arm is a fairly useful skill.

[enjenjo]

I worked some more on the Pittman arm today. I had to cut a 1 3/4" hole in my blank to fit the spline section into, and the only tool I had that would do it was a hole saw. I used an old C9 trick, I drilled the center to 1/4", and used a drill rod in the hole saw rather than a drill bit, the drill rod doesn't wander. I cut with the saw enough to give me a mark, then center punched and drilled eight 1/4" holes through the blank just inside the hole saw mark. I then enlarged the holes to 3/8" which cut away most of the hole saw mark. I then used the hole saw, dry, and cut clear through the steel in less than 5 minutes. I then set up the blank in my Mill, and chamfered the hole from both sides so I just had enough in the middle to locate the spline. I forgot that picture. I then welded it up with the section of Pittman arm in the spline to hold the diameter. I then let it cool, I will do some more tomorrow.

The parts came in for the engine, No one had the adjuster, every one had them on back order. So I bought a 390 Ford adjuster, cut it to the right length, and made a screwdriver slot like the rest of them. Worked like a champ. I still have to put the pan on, but it needs more cleanup. The rest of the sheet metal is on.

[kb426]

Good progress.

[enjenjo]

I finished up the Pittman arm today. I finished the outside shape, drilled the hole for the drag link ball, rounded all the edges, and bent it to shape. After bending I normalized it with heat, and sand blasted it so it can be powder coated. I'm kind of proud of it.

Then I finished making one of the fuel tank brackets, and blasted it for powder.