Freightrain

Turns out YOU WERE RIGHT!! I got jammed up by eBay once again. Right package, wrong part. Just like the steering yoke I found, it was swapped with a different part and wouldn't work. This clamp was same thing. I think it was bagged but the part number must have been wrong/altered(bag is gone now). I used a VIN given to me by a friend and I stopped at dealership today and asked for them to check the exhaust clamp part number. Part number was exactly what you gave me and BInGO it was the right clamp. I was surprised it was in stock. Fits perfectly, so I can start on the exhaust. Thanks again.

Yes, I saw part of the video awhile back and realized it was AI. Maybe it is mostly true but so many AI videos are just crap and misinformation. But if it gets you to click on it, they get paid. I watched a short video from a creator I enjoy and his concern was this crap stealing his information/videos and gaining profit from it.

I stopped at my friends motor shop after picking up the driveshaft since I haven't made it down to lunch for a few Saturdays. A buddy was there and told me I'm working way too hard and he could never pull all this off. I told him I can't believe I'm even getting it done. It is an endless chore of assembly, fabricating, etc. Nothing like when I bolted the 237 in. Hook up a fuel line and go. Nothing that easy with this. Last night was fabbing up cruise control cable. Bracket is painted and ready to assemble on engine and then hook up cable. Should be good. Much easier with no fender in the way. No way I would get it done if I had to climb over that fender a 100 times. I also got the rear air tank hung back on. It used to feed air steering but I am leaving it for volume. I dropped it off to ease removed of old aux box. I use it to air my tires in race car at track. It has a check valve so it doesn't affect the rest of the system. I hooked the 13 spd air line to it, since it had an open port now with no steering line. The trans does shift ranges, as I confirmed it last night. I just need to fab up a handle. I just did a refresh on my clutch linkage drawing this morning. I think I found a better way and will confirm it tomorrow night.

I put my headlights on relays, so it eases the load on that old headlight switch. With the old halogen bulbs, the brights would kick the lights off. Now I can run them forever. The lights get power right off the back of the alt. with a couple circuit breakers, one for low, one for high beams. Oh, I put new drives on last years, just under $3000. The first set lasted 23 yrs! They still looked new but were way out of date!

I got 10 yrs out of that $300 237. It was time to upgrade. It's just insane the cubic money I have spent to upgrade things. But I know the old adage "spend some today, or spend a lot more tomorrow".

Rube Goldbergs finest hour.... Just some basic math...... 😆

Tired, broke man....

More retirement money spent..... 118" of all new steel. Getting an eyeball on making carrier bearing mounting plate. It needs to be a 12" drop from the existing cross member. Time for so more 1/2" plate. More progress up front also Lots of little stuff. I have the cruise control box apart and bought some new throttle cable to extend the reach as the new backwards throttle arm has a Z bar and I need to get to the block side to make a bracket to attach casing so I can hook cable up. Figuring exhaust out. I have new flange and a 45* SS elbow to cut down to make it go down and hook up to my existing flex pipe that attaches to exhaust. I laid out my clutch linkage on CAD this morning at work. I need to get some plate steel and start that project also. I left it at work, I will post a picture of the layout. I need a few new pieces to correct my AC suction line that is in the way of intake tube to turbo. I bought a new piece of 4" exhaust to make new intake tube to air cleaner. Just a straight shot now, old motor needed a zig zag. I also received my new dry element air cleaner today. That will one of the last additions as it is in the way when working on the truck of it is mounted on the cab. The struggle continues......

My filter was dry and the lines are all new. Took some time to get it all up. My right thumb is still numb from pumping forever. I installed a new primer but it doesn't seem to work as well asy old bailing ring style pump so I swapped it and it worked quickly.

I actually have an air tank from a CCX truck(orange) that friend gave me originally. I got an alum tank from a BMT member. Bob, I had the truck running this weekend after getting the fuel system bled. The only difference was a driver's side mount instead of passenger. I did find my oiler was loose from before and likely why it was taking more air then normal to start from the leakage.

Growing up a friend lived a block over had a big base station. Cobra 139 with a VFO, a Varmint 850 watt linear and Moonraker beams. We'd stay up all Friday or Saturday night talking all over the place. His mom worked nights/dad divorced, so we had no one to watch us. I bought my first base from him, Navaho 23 ch that had been tuned up. It would push that Varmint harder then his Cobra. I put a Starduster ground plane on the roof and we had fun. Back then the neighbors would let me know if we were breaking into their TV shows. 😆. No cable back then and neighbors TV antenna was pointed directly north into my antenna. The Navaho died about 15 yrs ago and I found a President Madison and bought it. Don't really use it anymore. I have Unidens in my trucks. A 66 and a 68. I do have an old Realistic 23 channel radio-fone. I thought they were cool growing up so I found it on eBay for a few bucks and bought it. The plug is worn and headset won't stay plugged in tight, I tried to use it in the Mack but took it out. Sad their is not many talkers anymore.

The race car got away with just an oil change this winter, so it a cheap job this year.

😆 Karen asked a few weeks ago about had I had in this project. I laughed and said "you don't want to know". She is demanding to help pay. I always say "she's a keeper".

I came across this on FB marketplace. They want $250. Was this a real factory deal?

Yes, all new driveshaft with carrier bearing. When it had the extra box it had two separate shafts. Now with no aux, I have to get all new made. Should be the last big purchase.

The engine is sitting in stock location, with about 3* down angle like the original was. I was going to maybe lay out mounts before installation but figure why. This was easy and was much simpler then I imagined. The 1/2" plate is about all my old Millermatic has in it. I had it in the big hole and wire at WOT. She's melted in good. Once I notched the corners to clear things, I laid out the holes for the mount bolts, then I leveled the plates 90* to the transmission and marked their height on the trans plates. Removed plates, squared them up and welded and added the gussets(corners I cut off for clearance). I was expecting a worse scenario of odd angles and offsets. Now I can start on clutch linkage. I know the arm needs 23* of rotation, so that will really help with ratio and arm lengths I need to build to make sure it gives me free play on the clutch and works the clutch brake.

I can do "ok" but not like a buddy of mine with his perfect "dimes". 😆

Thanks. For a blind guy with a band saw and an old Miller welder they turned out okay. Like I typically say...." Not always pretty but not going to break".

Today's update. I took a. 1/2 day off to get material and work on trans mounts. I think they turned out nice. Just need to dress them up and get some paint on them. Be nice to get transmission off a jack stand. Just something scratched off the long list........

Thanks anyway. I'll use Geoffs chart and come up with something. Like I mentioned, I went through this with the 237 downpipe but I used a firetruck VIN. I have another VIN to ask at dealership and see if they have something different or bring me the same clamp.

I need to investigate what the exhaust pipe flange look like. I received the clamp but it has more than a 1/2" wide groove which means the downpipe has to be super thick to make this clamp work. For reference the clamp that holds the hot/cold side together is about half as wide as this clamp. This was my concern with these v clamps. Seems there are so many variations.

It happened! It's in there. Let the fun begin.....all over again.....ugh. It went well. 1.5 hrs from friend backing into driveway until he pulled back out. Took a little finesse, wasn't perfectly engineered, but it got set in place. I can't post pictures of friends truck because it is a Cat service truck and it will get him in trouble with corporate. We just back from lunch and it just started pouring rain.

Well, the magic moment may come Saturday? It may be getting installed. My friend has been busy and I told him if we can't get together by Sunday that I was going to order a telehandler for Monday delivery. I need to get this moving, time is wasting away and it has been two weeks already waiting for him to break loose from his schedule. He told me he was busy, but could do this for me. The $1000 rental for a day is just a drop in the bucket at this point. $500 for the machine, the rest is delivery and fees. I told him I m not mad at him, I just can't continue to wait for "the day".

I got the lid off my pump and find this.. Little different from my old 237 pump rack. My wandering mind wants to tinker but I'm holding strong.....☹️. "I just want a little more..."😉

Bingo! eBay has 4.5" clamp with that old part number. Should have it here in a couple days. Thanks again!