Update:
I haven't really started putting things together on this truck since last update, but I am making small steps. Mostly, I'm sorting things out and accumulating parts along the way to get ready for assembly. This 'catch up' update will be mostly pictures. Everybody loves pictures.
First, the long block was ready a few weeks ago. I went to Htine and picked it up one afternoon. While I was there I fetched some Ford wheels for a farm truck. I found some on FB marketplace, seemed legit, tires had a little life left in them, and I didn't get robbed. So that was good. I had been told the engine would be black, but I guess the upgraded head studs and stuff deemed it 'performance' and they painted it Cummins Apex Red like the ISX. I ain't mad about it; I'll just lean into it.
You seemed to like the engine stand. So I revisited it. If ya'll recall I said the Harbor Freight worm gear I robbed off the winch was the most jiggy think in my setup. Now that the engine was home I wan't about the balance this new pricey mill on that POS. You can see how it flexed under the weight, plus, I missed the gear engagement height a bit and it was all hangin' on about half a tooth or less at times.
I re-engineered it but I had to use a longer shaft; so that meant starting with a 1/2" bolt and the worm needed to be opened up a bit from the original metric size. This was the most worrisome step because the worm was the one thing I could't make. I played around with the lathe and I couldn't make threads that course. The lathe may do it, but I couldn't figure it out.
I made new bushings for each end of the worm and milled a new shaft for the crank. (which has yet to swing and catch me in the cajones, thankfully)
I used some old cultivator shank for the frame and drilled them for the bushings.
The guys would say 'es bien macizo' and they wold be right. No more flexing.
If you recall in the OP I said this all started because I was poking around FB Marketplace looking for a skirted flatbed for another truck. That truck is a 2001 single cab truck I bought in a surplus auction. If you are from cotton country you will probably suspect this is an old Texas Boll Weevil Eradication Foundation truck, and you would be right. That's a 2001 with 35,000 original miles when I bought it in 2021. It's a 5.9 gutless gasser with an automatic transmission. They used these duallys to pull out stuck trucks and haul their little mist sprayers; so they never got many miles. What they did do was sit outside for 20 years and get exposed to chingos of malathion so the paint was crap and the flatbed was rusted off. I bought it because I originally had designs of doing a cummins swap but learned real quick that I'd be better off with a native diesel truck - so instead I put it on the farm pulling a nurse trailer for the sprayer.
I bought the Catastrophic project and had plans to just keep this Gooseneck be on it. Well, that plan changed, and it happened kind of quick-like. First, I priced a bed for the second-gen a little over a month ago but shied away from buying it because it was a little pricey for that ride. Then it rained and I had a glut of help around the shop; a good opportunity to fix stuff up. I also went to get the license plates for the Ford that I was putting the wheels on and was treated refund check for a mistake they'd made calculating taxes, ALSO, a check for the pickup bed we sold off that truck to put a service body on it. It all added up to over half the price of a new skirted flatbed, so I decided to roll with it and spoke up for new CM skirted bed for the Catastrophic Cummins.
That meant I had to throw the guys into sanding and masking the second-gen after we jerked the rusted out flatbed.
$350 worth of base, clear, reducer, and hardner. A few runs because it's hell throwing clear on white in a poorly lit barn. Never mind a couple overspray spots and the loose bumper; we straightened all that out. I also had to spend a day working on fitment of the bed because the runners weren't for a second-gen, so it took a little customization and time; but at least my original goal of fixing this truck up nicer is done.
While this was going on I put the long block in the engine stand. I am much happier with the way it performs now. It doesn't flex and the motion is very positive with full tooth engagement between the worm and gear. I keep it under a sheet in the machine room in the air conditioning.
Late night Ebay and beer really go well together. A few days later cool stuff shows up at my house. I bought greasy ones with dogeared pages so you know they're legit.
Remember when MrsCP went to Harbor Freight for the winch and y'all thought that was so cool? Now, I have REALLY tested the limits of 29.5 years of marriage. I had a put some cash in her purse when we went on a trip a while back *just in case* some wheels popped up somewhere along our route. They didn't on that trip, however, she was in College Station last week helping CPjr move out of his townhouse so he could start his extended COSC internship when a set of wheels were listed on the right side of Houston. She did tell me that this earned her a gold star because it was a little sketchy... but, got wheels, so I owe her now.
I've put off starting to assemble much because I think I'm kind of nervous. I organize parts, re-organize parts, wipe parts down, and just about everything in between to procrastinate. I guess way down deep inside I'm kind of apprehensive about putting it together; but I'm about out of exercises and excuses. Harvest will start soon, but I can get a lot done before that if I put some effort into it. Today, I painted the oil pan and timing cover. I better get me another 1 or 2 cans of that red. It goes fast to get good coverage. That beoch is going to be R. E. D.
One more thing, since it's Memorial Day; I had thought about sharing this here anyway at some point, but today is quite fitting. CPjr is interning in Dallas and today he went and picked up his Grandmother to drive her to the National Cemetery and visit her son, his late uncle, Matthew Worrell '94. Matthew was MrsCP's only sibling. It made me really proud that he wanted to day that today and he sent this picture.
Here is why it matters, Matthew was killed on 14 May 2006. When I bought this truck and looked in the door post I was immediately struck - it was built in May 2006. The engine valve cover is dated 18 May. To me, everything in that decade is categorized as before or after 14 May 2006. If I knew the exact day this truck was built I could probably tell you exactly where I was and what I was doing or feeling - especially if it was after the 14th, Mother's Day that year. What an unexpected connection. Anyway, today, remember those who made it possible for the rest of us to enjoy these hobbies. Sorry for rambling.
