ZZ's off for a face-lift

[peter]

Spent the last two weekends stripping ZZ in prep for fresh paint. Poor thing was looking purdy shabby this last year....
I also replaced the intake manifold gaskets in the hopes that I'd cure a vacuum leak. Which would in turn hopefully cure a pinging issue I have when the engine is running at the higher end of the temp scale. Alas, there was no such leak to be found. So it seems that the culprit is simply the fact that the engine rebuilder had milled my heads 10 thou, which obviously bumped up the compression ratio. I know that a cold air intake system would also take care of my pinging, right now I'm sucking air from under the hood. After the Camp-out, I'll be seriously addressing this issue.
Oh, by the way. I hadn't driven ZZ for at least a month. I would look at her with less than the usual enthusiasm and thoughts of selling her off would cross my mind occasionally. My drive to the body shop this afternoon (I left her in the parking lot for tomorrow's appointment) reminded me how much of me is in this truck. My heart, my soul. Countless hours of labour, countless hours of planning and thinking. damn, I love my truck. I love my truck, and I love my Tramper. I love meeting up for annual Camp-outs, I love hanging with the social rejects that are the AS.com & ASV.com crowd. I drive a $53k Dodge Charger SRT-8 which blows the doors off've most anything on the road. Yet I still feel more pride and sense of accomplishment when I take out ZZ. 'Cause she was built by my own hands.

[SafariRob]

Yeah, Peter, I know what you mean about the vans we own. I confess that there have been times that I have considered cutting my losses and getting rid of my Astro...damn, I'm so fed up with the work that so-called professionals have done on the van...but I get behind the wheel and I swear that the Astro talks to me. And when everything seems to fall in place, the van doesn't just talk, it sings.
But still, that transmission front seal leak is getting worse and the idling is getting rougher...

[peter]

Probably







Oh, and by the way. The blackish high-zoot space-age technological material which I mentioned earlier is simply.....primer that's been mixed to a darker colour :^o

[Jboy2]

Man, Peter this is going to be one Hott Van when this is finished

[peter]

Are you going to get that van undercoated and rust proofed? If you don't do something soon all your hard work will be eaten away by Mr. Rust!

Good idea, actually. I'll have her shot with oil this fall



"Petey,,you're too much man."

A line usually moaned by women during the thores of passionate love-making. But I'm sure you meant it in a non-sexual, southern-hick buddy-pally kinda way, huh Larry?



AstroSafari & jboy, the truck is being painted the same colour and it ain't gonna be "hot" anywhere near as much as some of the demons being built and shown on this site lately. The body will be pretty much stock, just with a fresh coat of paint and no rusty spots




Darren, if you'd said anything else, I'd be sure you were under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol I told y'all there was nuthin' to see. Just a run of the mill paint job. The little extras were the rebirth of the forward lower section of the rear wheelwells which I'd sliced off due to axlewrap issues (which have since been resolved). I had the windshield and all windows removed for a proper paint job, they'll be installing a new windshield for me.
I "should" be getting the truck back for the weekend, but I have my doubts.

[mdmead]

Petey, whatever happened to the fender flare plan? Seems like being in a body shop would be a good time to have some custom ones welded up.... Especially before the baby 502 powered van gets painted!

[peter]

The chance of the flares fitting were about as good as my growing a coupla inches. Wasn't gonna happen. So I put up with the local constabulary bustin' my couillons once or twice every year, Could be worse, I could be driving that primered billboard for House of Colors that Darren calls daily transport
Supposed to pick ZZ up Saturday (tomorrow). Gonna start putting my baby back together again.

Hey Matt, how's that swap comin' along, huh?

[e7ats]

Hey Petey, I say us Pacer Flexy Universal Fitting Fender Flares. I'm going to use something like this here.

Here in PA I can not have wheels sticking out unless they have flares up to 2 1/2 inches.

[peter]

If push comes to shove, I'll slap on flares for inmspection after getting a warning, then yank 'em off again. I don't get hassled near enuf (yet) for this to be an issue yet

[mdmead]

Hey Matt, how's that swap comin' along, huh?

Perfection takes time. If I just threw it together, it would come out like.... well.... your ZZ. I'd hate to be forever thinking, "gee, should I have gone with the 572?!"

(Of course I'm already doing that thinking I should be putting in a 6.0 instead of the 5.3.....)

[peter]

Yeah, ain't Matt a scream. My life is richer since meeting Matt. He's taught me so much. Next time I have a swap to do, I'll also get my wife to do most of the wrenching while I stand over to the side sipping iced tea.
Seriously though, Matt. I know your wife was too busy for the swap this spring, what with all the home-made pies & bread she had to make for the school fair. But I imagine she's pretty well caught up with the cooking and cleaning by now. I think it's time you asserted yourself and put your foot down, know what I mean? Like, ferchrissakes, she can't leave your swap unfinished like that. Whaddaya think all the other moms in the neighbourhood are saying. [-X [-X

Got alot done yesterday. Removed the whole interior minus the headliner. Blew out the dust, then vacuumed completely. Power-washed every single interior panel and all the carpeting, started to reassemble it when the items had dried out in the sun. I love power-washing 'cause it gets rid of the accumulated dust stuck in cracks'n crevices. Sorta like a mucleman approach to detailing....
Carpet's back in, all panels rear of the front doors as well. Spare tire carrier is reinstalled, spare's back on. Hoping to continue today, will prolly finish up by the days end.

[peter]

Like mine do, huh smarta$$

The (new) windshield cracked on me yesterday while I was attempting to reinstall the cowl grille. Seems they installed the windshield down too low on the frame, thereby interfering with the proper fit of the cowl. They're gonna simply have to change it out again, and I definitely ain't paying for it!

The rear of the truck interior is completely assembled, and the differential has been removed for a transplant. My Auburn (which started slipping last fall) is being swapped out for a Trac-Loc. Bear Performance in Ontario will be taking back the Auburn and crediting me the cost of it. A local shop here in Montreal will be doing the swap.
I'm also having the drive-shaft lengthened by about 1.25". The truck exhibits a strange vibration on "spirited" acceleration. When I swapped in the Ford 9", I was astounded to find that the drive-shaft still hooked up. It was, however, pulled out of the tranny by about 1.25", bring the yoke to approx. half-in/half-out status. Although I don't remember feeling the above-mentioned vibes after the swap, I'm not taking a chance. I'm also gonna have the joints changed out at the same time.

[rlsllc]

Pics?? Stingy Rascal. (poke)

I hope you're not planning on running a stock or FMS Trac Lok. You will be disappointed, I've never seen one work with more than stock power levels. And that was in Mustangs with little short tires. The Auburn is a better dif than the Trac Lok, if that tells you anything. I wouldn't even think of using one in a truck, although the one I installed in my stock Crown Vic does OK for the most part. The Detroit Locker and Truetrac, made by Eaton, as well as the locker and clutch style dif built by Strange are better options. Just my $.02. Not trying to pee in your Wheaties®.

Come on Smurf, lets see some pictures!!

©Copyright 2007 General Mills, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Put that in your Pipe and Smoke it.

[peter]

I hate him........ ](*,)

I was running an Auburn to begin with. As well, I was warned by the diff shop who's transplanting the new diff into my 9" that I had made a major blunder by opting for an Auburn. He had warned me that the Auburn units just can't handle that much diffy, 'specially in a 5,000 lbs truck with fat tires.
I have always run Auburns and love 'em. But in this case, the unit simply cannot cope. I musta put around 3,000 miles before she started slipping.....in the snow. One wheel on Terra-Firma, the other in a snow bank. Very embarrassing, almost as bad as the time-frame for Matt's yet-unfinished engine swap or SoCalli's rolling billboard for primer.
I will confirm that it is indeed a Trac-Loc, I may be wrong. I'm picking it up tonite, will post back then. I also ordered a new set of drums, seeing as I'd warped the crap outta the other ones....long story.
As well, the drive-shaft shop called to tell me that my vibes on acceleration were due to a wasted rear u-joint. I didn't notice because I wasn't the one who removed the shaft and brought it to the drive-shaft shop. In any case, I went ahead and had the shaft lengthened by 1.25 so as to bring the yoke back into the tranny by that same amount. The shop claims that it isn't necessary, but I ain't taking any chances. They're replacing both joints and rebalancing the assembly (obviously).

[peter]

Ok, got the 3rd member set-up and ready for installation. Oh, and the diff unit is in the link below. My shop swears on the bible about this unit, says I won't be back anytime soon. Sure hope so...

http://www.usgear.com/tl_truck.htm

As well, I finally bought another set of drums. Thanks to a tip by Mr Roboto, I was able to order a set of Ford 9" drums in a 5 on 5" bolt pattern. For those who care to recall, seems I'd bent/warped the ones which came with my custom rear end because the axle flange is not supporting the backside of the drum fully. Therefore, when I tighten up the stock wheel center, it causes the drum flange area OUTSIDE the circumference of the axle flange to be distorted. It's impossible to describe properly, but lemme see if I can't find some pics in Photobucket to show what I mean.

First pic shows the actual diameter of the axle flange





2nd pic shows the diameter of the mating surface of the stock AstroSafari wheel center






3rd pic shows the original Ford 9" drums. You can see how the axle flange does not support enuf of the backside of the drum. When the wheel is tightened down, it distorts the drum center






And this is the spacer I had made up to allow more support of the wheel against the drum. This stiffening plate goes between the wheel and drum





The spacer definitely helped, but the drum's already distorted. I had asked the machine shop to turn the drums back in December and they couldn't. The drum was wobbling all over the place. When I first get into the truck the brakes are fine. But after 2-3 applications of the brake pedal, the truck develops a terrible shuddering. I wasn't even sure it was the rears to begin with, I thought the front discs were warped. But while rolling I applied the parking brake ever so slightly and almost lost the fillings in my teeth...That pretty well confirms the problem.
It could be that the drum is prone to warping due to the multiple holes drilled into it. It was originally set up for a 5 on 4.75" pattern, I had them drill the axle flanges and drums for 5 on 5". The axle flanges come as blanks, so there aren't any extra holes on 'em. But the drums are obviously already supplied in what the Performance shop feels is the most popular size....5 on 4.75" (or is that 4.5"?)