84 Crewcab...AKA..Patches

Been working on the main bathroom reno's, and put down some mud so decided to do a little work while waiting for it to dry. ;)

Pulled out my spare tire holder and hit it with the knotted wire wheel on the 4.5" grinder.



The holes where the rods run through were wallowed out...figured I'd weld on a couple washers.





And washers welded on.





It's in the garage now getting a couple coats of Tremclad paint.
 
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Also dismantled and started cleaning up the rusty and crusty T-Case shifter I bought for a twin stick set-up.
 
First off, I love the inverted speedo.. It's so optimistic! I'd get way fewer "driving awards" with one of those (Yes, I know you live in Canadia).

Secondly, Twin stick? That's a Jeep and AMC Marlin thing. What transfer case are you running? I've got the NP 208 in my '86, and I swapped out the doo-doo vacuum actuator for a cable shift, and locking hubs because overkill. How do your twin stick work? How big of a hole will you have to cut in the tunnel?
 
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I'm running a NP205. If your careful with your fabrication you don't need to open up the area the shifter comes through now by much...an extra 1/2" on each side?

Here's a thread a guy on another board posted up about his twin sticking his 1st Gen....starting about post # 387

http://www.dieseltruckresource.com/forums/1st-gen-ram-all-topics-93/1990-d250-w250-314771/page26/

Here is a pic of a how the twin stick set-up works....

picture%5C149255165612.jpg


Be a while before I get to the twin stick part of my modifications...just tired of looking at the dismantled crusty parts. ;)
 
So I needed to install the water temp switch for the electric fans...so decided I would tackle a couple projects while I was in there.

Saw a 1st gen'er post up about using a funnel to drain the rad,....so i used his idea.







Once rad was out of the way thought I'd pull the T-stat and check it...not that it hadn't been working properly.





Looked a lot different then the one I pulled out of my 89 motor.
 
Gave the T-stat housing, lift hook and alternator bracket a quick cleaning, and a few coats of paint.



And figured since I had the rad out I would use T-mans idea on flushing the rad.

Post #1197

http://www.dieseltruckresource.com/...o-your-gen-1-today-316652/page80/#post3281488

Couldn't find any oxalic Acid (Wood Bleach), so decided to try some CLR type cleaner. Boiled a gallon of hot water and mixed the jug in 50/50...thinking now I should have gone full strength?

Cores Before...





Then Neutralize with pool PH up...



And after...





Not much of an improvement.
 
Pulled out the nipple down below the T-stat housing on the block...required some big vice grips, and a bunch of heat to get it out. Then a 1/2 NPT to 3/8 NPT adapter.



Switch is on at 200* and off at 185*.

Then reassembled everything.

 
Figured I'd make a new air dam for the top of the rad. My original is cracking and very brittle. I've had this stuff kicking around for a few years now...thought it would work perfect.





Then used the original to trace out a pattern.



Cut out the new piece with a sharp exacto knife, and used a leather hole puncher to make the holes.



And installed....think it turned out alright. ;)

 
Popped the plug out of the top of the head by the T-stat and filled the rad and motor with coolant, then went for a drive. Well the friggin T-stat is stuck open! Motor will only get warm...and the needle on the gauge...which has always worked, and I never touched it...only get just off the cold side.

When I had the water boiling for the rad I tossed the T-stat into it make sure it opened and closed properly...seemed to from what I saw...but clearly something didn't work right, or I did something wrong. :(

Let it sit tonight, and go for a drive tomorrow morning and hope it starts working. If not guess I will be pulling it and swapping in the T-stat from my 89 motor.
 
Well had to go out for some errands this morning...seems the T-stat is back to working properly. Must have been a small air pocket in/around the T-stat...or something?
 
Cows, I'd love to stick one of those in my '86, but that would involve swapping transfer cases and spending money I don't need to. Surprisingly, the main sticking point would be messing with more 4x4 parts, which are heavy, cumbersome, and are designed with the sole purpose of crushing fingers and ribs.. Also, I don't off-road enough to justify it. I'll just be jealous of yours instead..
Click to expand...

Thanks...the twin sticks and stuff is a luxury I "might" get to one day. ;)
 
Next time you're looking for something effective to use in your radiator, find some Permatex 80030. It shouldn't be used in an aluminum core, for those of you playing along at home, unless you really know what you're doing (the bottle just says it's not for use in aluminum at all).

Also, hull "brightener" (cleaner) for aluminum boats is slightly-diluted acid.

Both products will burn your skin. Much like Selsun Blue, the tingle lets you know it's working! :D
 
Dr.Jass said:
Next time you're looking for something effective to use in your radiator, find some Permatex 80030. It shouldn't be used in an aluminum core, for those of you playing along at home, unless you really know what you're doing (the bottle just says it's not for use in aluminum at all).

Also, hull "brightener" (cleaner) for aluminum boats is slightly-diluted acid.

Both products will burn your skin. Much like Selsun Blue, the tingle lets you know it's working! :D
Click to expand...

Thanks for the tip Doc...will look for that locally and see what I can find. Have it on hand for next time the rad comes out.

Ohhh that is what that tingly sensation was....:D
 
Built this today for my electric fan conversion that is coming.....eventually. ;)

Don't like drilling, or cutting holes in my factory dash, or related parts, so thought I could use the ashtray...since I don't smoke, nor does anyone who rides in my truck (regardless if they smoke or not...;).

So I grabbed one of my spare ashtray assemblies and started getting to work.



I first cut out a bit of the plastic to make a bit more room, and allow the switch to be close to the opening.



Then I made a template out of cardboard, then measured, and transferred the dimensions to some sheet metal. Then hammered it into shape in the vice.



 
Then I had to finesse the new plate a little to clear and fit nicer...love the flapper disc on my 4.5" angle grinder!



And marked out where the switch will go...



Then rough cut the hole for the switch with the cutting wheel, finished cutting it with a hacksaw, then hand filed the opening to the right dimensions.

Held in place while I drilled holes for the 3 screws I used to hold it in place.





And pretty much all done and ready to go...

 
Just placed it in the old Ashtray housing so you can see what it will look like.



The electrical connections are a bit tight against the front of the ashtray. Actually had to flip the switch around or it would hit the front trim piece....so the switch now will work backwards....forward for off, backwards for on.



I painted up the new bracket and got it in the truck, but was dark and stormy so I didn't grab a pic this evening.
 
So today I spent a few hours putting the electric fans in....finally. I have only been planing this for at least 4 months....;) The plan is to run the fans in the fall to spring, when max cooling is not required, and I am interested to see if there is any MPG to be gained by this. ;)

OK so here what I did.

First I was going to run a fan from the Junkyard. I grabbed a fan from a 3.8L Ford Taurus, but when I tried to put it on the radiator I did not have enough room...thank my Fluid damper for that. ;)

So I measured how much room I had...about 3.5" from the face of the rad, before I hit the engine accessories. So next I was going to run a single 16" electric fan...slim design...they are about 2.5" deep. But I couldn't find one I liked, nor the CFM I wanted. So eventually I did some measurements and figured I could make two 12" electric fans work.

After ordering the electric fans I first thought of making a plate tight shroud that would use the factory mounting points. But after a bit of math I found that the amount of open surface area for the air to move through was significantly less then the opening in the factory shroud.

Next idea was to make a frame work from 1" angle iron and still use the factory mounting points. This seemed to be the way to go.



Once the fans were in place I used a very small drill bit to make holes through the fan mounting points...they were already there just didn't go all the way through. Then through the frame and secure with a bit of wire.



Mounted up....





I used 4 screws and nuts on the outside edges...2 on each side...to secure the fans. (never grabbed a pic of this, but you can see them in later pics). I also positioned the frame on the rad, and cut 4 legs so that I could mount it in factory shroud location.
 
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