1959 Pickup

Those engine parts are beautiful! :cheers:

I always thought putting a motor together was relaxing.

Fun watching you guys work. Also fun to read. You have a bit of writing talent!

I'm not trying to knock ya, but I would love to see some better images. Is that a cell phone camera? Does it have a flash function?

scramboleer said:

Those engine parts are beautiful! :cheers:

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Agreed. We've learned through trial and error to return to the shop we used for this work. Timeframes haven't always been met, but the quality has always been consistent.

His preference admittedly leans towards working on the mechanicals over working with rusty sheetmetal. And like Metalguy, you can see he's enjoying himself when assembling some well-machined pieces that will one day operate in close (and somewhat authoritative sounding) harmony.

When you find a good machine shop you have to stick with them. I recently drove a fair bit to use a shop my dad and I frequented years ago. I was less than happy with the end results. Will have to try another.

I too prefer the mechanical stuff. This time I am trying to leave it all till the end. My wife has asked that I not torture her with another primered mechanical gem.

Great to see your progress.

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Speaking of Relaxing

Friday while he was in school, I thought I'd get a little creative:


I started with two of these. This one is original to the donor 4.0 engine:



I cut some pieces from the second manifold. The piece shown here is the front tube, evidently 'adjusted' by the previous owner to allow some unknown accessory to fit. We'll just adjust it back.





The back view shows the opening left from its #6 primary tube (same as the current #6 connection). It has since been blocked-off by a piece of matching tube but isn't seen as such in these images of one of the test fits.




Since #3 & #4 share a mounting flange, I wanted to get the second (front) flange on first. There will be more room to weld at the more-distant ends of the #4 bend than there would have been to get around the lower part of #3 once everything is together.



I expect I should get it done the next time I step aside from the more pressing priorities of the project. I was just kicking back for a little.

I like your header idea.

i hate to see you put so much work into that header. The 2000-2006 6 cyl jeeps came with a split header just like you are building. It's a popular replacement for all years as the single header is prone to cracking.

Gojeep said:

I like your header idea.

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Thanks, but it's not my idea. It's way old school from a time when folks didn't just go out and buy whatever they needed.

cj847 said:

i hate to see you put so much work into that header. The 2000-2006 6 cyl jeeps came with a split header just like you are building. It's a popular replacement for all years as the single header is prone to cracking.

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Well aware of the close-to-acceptable, commonly used HO exhaust. It's not work and I don't think I can explain to you why.

Dig the old school approach to headers. Looks like something my dad and his brothers would have done

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Time for a Little Primer

Today he took a break from the bodywork to continue reassembling the engine:



It was time well spent.




The color looks orange in the pictures but he went with the purest red we could find. This is where we left off for the day.

Nice Work! Don't ya wish that this motor would stay this clean and good looking forever? I live on a dirt road, and it's near impossible to keep vehicles and motors etc clean. Your Motor sure looks Nice! Pivnic

Great work fellas! Motor turned out beautiful. Can't wait to here it start up.

^^ Us too!

Pivnic said:

Nice Work! Don't ya wish that this motor would stay this clean and good looking forever? I live on a dirt road, and it's near impossible to keep vehicles and motors etc clean. Your Motor sure looks Nice! Pivnic

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Thanks John. He's sixteen, going to be 17 in July. If the engine stays that clean for any length of time, either something is wrong or he's not using it as intended. Wrenches will be taken to the freshly painted bolts. Modifications should be made over time as he uses it and his wants and expectations change. Maintenance and repairs will add their own character.

As you, I, and many of the builders on this board are aware, the pretty paint is only the superficial result of what went in. We could have left most things "as found" but then we would have missed some things, the cracked thermostat housing being just one:



It wasn't leaking prior to the engine's removal from the donor vehicle, but had we not sandblasted part, the painted-over crack surely would have revealed itself at a most inopportune time later. He caught it now.



More important - to me - than the looks are the habits being developed by a young man entering into industry. The time spent cleaning & inspecting parts, chasing threads prior to assembly, etc. won't prevent every surprise down the trail, but it should help to minimize them. The investment-of-effort made here adds to the pride of ownership, the knowledge of a job done to the best of one's ever-expanding abilities, furthering valuable experience.


Speaking of gained experience: If/when you meet him, ask about the hardware-store quality bolt he was using to fasten the cherry picker chain to the block while lifting the engine off the stand. I wasn't there as he was working towards hanging the engine from the hoist to bolt the flywheel on, probably thinking "clutch, pressure plate, transmission, in the truck, down the road, girl at my side."

You can tell someone all day long that bolts really do break... but until they have something the weight of an automotive engine almost crash to the ground at their feet, our words just don't have the same impact.

While we were re-securing the dangling engine back to the hoist, it hanging precariously from the build-stand by 2 of the 4 bolts that had not yet been removed, he recounted watching that cheap bolt just give way under weight... almost quicker than he could move, bending like butter, it snapped. Up went the chain and down went the engine; fortuitously, just not all the way.

When I asked, "Which way did you move when you saw it going?"
"Like this!" he replied, motioning hands-up and backwards, adrenaline still not fully dissipated.
"Good!" I said, "Do you know how many people would have instinctively reached for it and tried to save that stupid hunk of metal? We can always build another."
Invaluable.


And then there's the little things, the creativity that makes something our own, the things we do with our own hands because we can, things that will acceptably go unnoticed by the casual observer, like making an adapter for a carbureted air filter so the finished product fits with the rest of the vehicle:



I mean who would really care, right? The plastic square box from the donor would fit right alongside the wheelwell and do the same job. Why bother? You can probably buy a nicely fabricated communist one cheaper online somewhere anyway and have it delivered right to your door with little-to-no effort.

Bother because you can, son, and that gives you exercisable options.





What we're building here is much more than a truck.

Options?

Man that thing needs a rear!




Good thing we have the one from the donor Cherokee. But, among other modifications that need to be made, the spring pads are the wrong distance apart and they are too wide for the Willys springs.



And no sawblades in stock for the sawzall and I'm currently out of O2 for the torch. What to do? What to do?



Well he could just go to the couch to whine about what he's not being handed while he eats us out of CheezyPoofs and plays video games, or he could get after it with what we do have and work at accomplishing a goal. Either would be a choice.

This is what I saw on my way out at 4AM. The other end matches this one:


That ain't easy stuff to cut by scratching.


More as it comes.
Thanks for checking in.

Yikes! I think I woulda went in and watched TV:]

Specially if there were Cheesy Poofs


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