This was by far the easiest motor/tranny removal I have ever done. Of course that's not counting the work to remove the cab and front clip. All I had to do was position the hoist, attach the load leveler, and lift out the motor and tranny as a single unit. I highly recommend using a load leveler when doing this type of work. It allows you to change the center of gravity to keep everything level. Without it, you end of with a pool of tranny fluid on the floor of your garage. Once I had the motor/tranny free from the chassis, I lowered the tranny to rest on the leg of the hoist. I then unbolted the tranny from the motor while balancing it on the hoist. I slid it to the side once it was free. Btw, I made sure to unbolt the torque converter from the flywheel while the motor and tranny were still on the chasis. Next I bolted the engine stand to the motor and lowered it to the floor. I then removed the load leveler and pushed the hoist out of the way so I could begin tearing down the motor. It didn't take long to tear the motor down to a bare block. In doing so I found the #1 cylinder had spun a bearing which explained the knock. Next step is to find a good engine shop here in Austin and have the block prep'd for rebuild.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Tuesday, April 7, 2009
Cab Removal Time!!
With the passenger side rocker complete, I decided to remove the cab to make room for the chassis and motor work. Those two items are the biggest part of the LWB to SWB conversion. The mounted cab prevented me from making any real progress on the chassis. With it removed, I can work on all three.
All the work is happening in my two car garage since my neighborhood HOA forbids working in the driveway. The garage has two separate doors. One side has an opener which sits too low to lift the cab. That confined me to the other side. After thinking it thru I came up with the following plan. At this point the cab is bare except for the empty gas tank. I heard the cab was front heavy so I left it in place. I doubt it made much of a difference.
First I built a cab dolly out of 2x4's. Cost$65. I considered welding a steel frame but felt it was overkill for something I'd use once.
Next I positioned my lift between the wall and cab then setup a 4x4 on wood blocks left over from the cab dolly. I made sure to position the 4x4 as far forward as possible.
With the cab bolted down, I raised the 4x4 to the cab to see where to cut the notches. I used a sawzall to make the cuts.
I then unbolted the four cab bolts and slowly lifted the cab. As the cab came up I expected it to tilt forward but it stayed level. The cab is suprisingly light. Only about 300 lbs.
Once the cab was high enough, I pushed the LWB chassis sideways until it cleared the cab. Tireskates made this easy. I then lowered the cab onto the dolly.
Once the cab was on the dolly, I moved it into the corner of the garage. That gave me enough room to angle the chassis back in place and prepare to remove the engine and tranny.
All the work is happening in my two car garage since my neighborhood HOA forbids working in the driveway. The garage has two separate doors. One side has an opener which sits too low to lift the cab. That confined me to the other side. After thinking it thru I came up with the following plan. At this point the cab is bare except for the empty gas tank. I heard the cab was front heavy so I left it in place. I doubt it made much of a difference.
First I built a cab dolly out of 2x4's. Cost$65. I considered welding a steel frame but felt it was overkill for something I'd use once.
Next I positioned my lift between the wall and cab then setup a 4x4 on wood blocks left over from the cab dolly. I made sure to position the 4x4 as far forward as possible.
With the cab bolted down, I raised the 4x4 to the cab to see where to cut the notches. I used a sawzall to make the cuts.
I then unbolted the four cab bolts and slowly lifted the cab. As the cab came up I expected it to tilt forward but it stayed level. The cab is suprisingly light. Only about 300 lbs.
Once the cab was high enough, I pushed the LWB chassis sideways until it cleared the cab. Tireskates made this easy. I then lowered the cab onto the dolly.
Once the cab was on the dolly, I moved it into the corner of the garage. That gave me enough room to angle the chassis back in place and prepare to remove the engine and tranny.
Rocker Replacement Part 2
So it's been quite a while since my last post and a lot has happen. For the most part the passenger side rocker panel is complete. I still have some finish grinding and a couple small floor holes to weld up.
When I left off in part 1, I had just finished removing the rocker panel. The metal underneath had some serious surface rust. I grinded away the surface rust and painted it with POR15.
Next I made my first there-is-no-going-back cut. I cut off the rusted A-pillar just above the lower door hinge bolt holes. I then cut out the inner kick panel. In the photo below you can also see where I welded in my first floor patch.
With the floor patch in place, I then welded in the new kick panel. It was a bitch getting it to align with the bottom shape of the floor. Mainly due to the shape of the floor patch. I ended up removing the first floor patch and redoing it a couple times before I was satisfied with the work. Sorry I don't have photos of the kick panel prior to installing the A-pillar. I then took the replacement a-pillar, bolted it in place, scribed a cut line, then cut it to fit and welded it in place. As you can see there is a big improvement of the rusted out piece.
Next I mounted the new rocker panel using sheet metal screws. Then one-by-one, I removed each screw and plug welded the hole. When I was done I grinded down the welds.
When I left off in part 1, I had just finished removing the rocker panel. The metal underneath had some serious surface rust. I grinded away the surface rust and painted it with POR15.
Next I made my first there-is-no-going-back cut. I cut off the rusted A-pillar just above the lower door hinge bolt holes. I then cut out the inner kick panel. In the photo below you can also see where I welded in my first floor patch.
With the floor patch in place, I then welded in the new kick panel. It was a bitch getting it to align with the bottom shape of the floor. Mainly due to the shape of the floor patch. I ended up removing the first floor patch and redoing it a couple times before I was satisfied with the work. Sorry I don't have photos of the kick panel prior to installing the A-pillar. I then took the replacement a-pillar, bolted it in place, scribed a cut line, then cut it to fit and welded it in place. As you can see there is a big improvement of the rusted out piece.
Next I mounted the new rocker panel using sheet metal screws. Then one-by-one, I removed each screw and plug welded the hole. When I was done I grinded down the welds.
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