Pete Ashby

Yes I have a few in stock, they work very well and your right about not attacking the base metal. I found that they would ware down fairly quickly if used on heavily pitted surfaces but are excellent and very fast for paint removal on large flat surfaces leaving an excellent keyed surface for paint adhesion if used in conjunction with a etch primer they produce a very good base for top coating. Pete.

I started off with the front scuttle those of you who have followed this blog will remember it needed a fair amount of work replacing the vent section, areas around the inner windscreen moulding and a section on the right hand side So a quick recap this is how it ended up after all the chopping, welding and grinding And after a fair few hours of paint stripping now looks like this finished in etch primer Pete

Well it's been a while, so what's occurring?? . Progress on this project has slowed a little, the arrival of a 1932 Plymouth Coupe in the autumn was an interesting diversion, followed by a bitterly cold run up to Christmas -10c for 5 days consecutive days then not above freezing for fortnight. A huge dose of man flu over the New Year didn't help, but things are back on track now with the D15 project. The original intention was to media blast everything as sub-assemblies, however the young chap who did my mobile blasting and was very good at what he did ceased trading after lockdown. Consequently, I had to find another blast firm and transport the various sub-assemblies to them, not a problem, but an added complication and cost. Also they would be an unknown quantity with regard to competence and care, blasting a container skip or a stone house is one thing media blasting a 80 year old pressed steel cab is something different. Long story short I bit the bullet and decided to do the job myself by using traditional methods of paint removal. After previous work ( see blog posts on the cab restoration) there was virtually no corrosion left it was really only surface preparation that was required. It does take considerably longer, is messy and dusty and involves you in putting in the effort but you are in control of the job and it is a bit easier on the wallet. As in previous blog posts I'll show the tools and equipment with a brief description. I received a number of positive comments from people when I used this approach for the engine build, so for those who have not tackled this sort of thing before but may be contemplating having a go I’ll continue the same theme, it's not definitive but a system developed over many years and works for me . If your an old hand skip this post and have a look at the photos in the follow on post to this one as this is all a bit wordy. Tools I use to remove paint: Various rotary wire brushes for drill and angle grinder, various flap discs and bristle brushes (more about them below) and rotary scouring pads look on google and read the specs regarding grades and what they are meant for. Various hand scrapers some homemade ground up from old kitchen knives and screwdrivers for getting into tight corners. Heat gun, use this with discretion on large flat panels due to a risk of distortion. Small air powered die grinder ideal for tight corners and mouldings. I run this with a 100 litre 14cfm compressor, it's just man enough but a bigger volume compressor would be optimal and give more duty time. Angle grinder you need to keep a tight grip on this beast and be aware at all time of the lead. There is considerable kick back and bounce when using the larger wire wheels, I haven't shown it in the photo but use the side handle in fitted and never lean over the work piece or tool. Two speed reversible drill. You get increased cutting life out of rotary wire brushes if you use them after a period of work in reverse. The wire bends against the direction of rotation, so the scouring action will become impaired. Reversing rotation gives a new cutting angle, not possible of course with an angle grinder but turning the whole tool sideways can help. Chemical paint stripper, in days of yore Nitromors was the go to standard. It did just what it said on the can. In our brave new world it was considered too dangerous so a whole new generation of Gloops purporting to be paint strippers appeared none of which do anything at all to old paint except empty your wallet. The one I'm showing here is the one I now use, it comes from Frost Autos here in the UK marketed as Frost Gel Strip C227........ it is not cheap......... Is it as good as the old Nitromors? Nearly but not quite, but it's better than anything else I've seen and used in recent years. Used in combination with a cling film covering to prevent evaporation it will do most of the job but you'll still have to use an array of the other tooling above. Correct PPE: Face mask ( anything over 30 years old and it's lead paint you are turning into fine dust), goggles or face shield these items are a must. Tight fitting overalls with the cuffs done up you don't want to be getting up close and personal to a wire brush at 20,000rpm it’s not something you need. I don't use gloves with rotary power tools, I knew a bloke who had a finger yanked off when his glove got wound into the brush, ........ your call ........but I don't fancy it, I grow more skin regularly but haven't yet mastered the art of re-growing missing digits and appendages . A word on the new to me at least, wonder tool for removing paint, the rotary bristle brush made by 3M for either air tool or angle grinder. I was sceptical to say the least, nylon bristles impregnated with abrasive powder. Game changing for removing paint lasting many times longer than the wire version requiring far less work pressure so less heat build-up. They don't throw off wire shards either so you won't end up looking like Sonic the Hedgehog after a session. Google them, they are not cheap by any standard and be aware, you will destroy them instantly if you hit a sharp projection or sharp edge, but excellent for flat panel work. Right next post is back to the job in hand with less blather. Pete

Congratulations, This restoration blog has been a perfect show case for skill, determination and endurance. It's a first class example of what restoration and preservation is all about as your last set of photos bear witness to. What they don't show to the casual observer are the hundreds if not thousands of hours of cutting, grinding, fabrication and welding that happens before a project like yours is complete. Pete

The amount of ware on the left hand prop shaft spline is something else !!!!!! very pleased for you that the axle looks like it's going to come good and the rest of the spares truck turns up a few more useful parts Pete

Congratulations to you !!! from one welder of thin air to another. A real credit to you the successful culmination of a huge amount of effort and dedication. Regards Pete

Thanks for the link useful bit of info Pete

I've not seen a figure ever quoted, as long as you pull them gradually down in four or five iterations across the diagonals each time then finish of at FT but without snapping the stud all should be good. Pete

A few photos to finish of this phase of the restoration as I noted in the previous update it was a case of collecting from the store all the various previously cleaned and painted sub assemblies a number of which have been covered in previous updates. Addition of the sump, bell housing, crank pulley and head completed the work prior to lifting. I fitted a Speedi sleeve (google them) to the bottom crank pulley, I do this as a matter of course now for all oil lip seal surfaces on engines, gearbox out put and axle input flanges. It saves the angst of completing a job putting the oil in running and seeing all the nice clean paint covered in oil in a week or so. Photos below of the major sub assemblies : I chose to lift the engine and gearbox into the frame on the hottest day that has ever been recorded here in the Wild West it was balmy 39'c in the yard and a pleasing 42'c in the workshop more like North Africa 1943 than west wales. First off I lifted the rad and frame out of the way in case it got damaged while installing the engine. I fitted the block first then brought the gearbox up and bolted that on having previously lined up the clutch plate, I haven't covered lining up the clutch as it's not very photogenic, read your manual or look it up on the web I would suggest. I used my lifting frame soft strops and leveling bar for both the block and gearbox installation so not too much of struggle. Note the red rags in the plug holes (you could just put the spark plugs in if you had them I have new ones on order and they hadn't arrived when I did this) in the head to prevent "stuff" falling into the cylinders, you may think "it'll be alright" I can tell you it will happen and it's a mighty pain when it does to say the least. In the photos below the new manifold studs from VPW in the US are fitted into the block after lifting to avoid the risk of bending them with the strops during the lift. Note that on this design of engine the studs are live (go into) the water jacket so they must have some form of thread sealer applied before fitting. There are a number of different ones on the market that do a similar job (same goes for the head studs and bolts) or they will leak coolant up the threads....... a real bummer to see this at first start up. Next was the NoS inlet and exhaust manifold. An incredible piece of luck to find this in Italy of all places. The original one that the engine came with was badly damaged and unusable due to having been fitted at some stage with the incorrect bolts and studs. Canadian long block engines for right hand drive trucks have a very different manifold set up compared to the Left hand drive version which is unique to D15 and D60 range of military trucks . It was pure luck that this one turned up or the project would have stalled badly. When fitting exhaust and inlet manifolds it's good practice to leave the four bolts holding the inlet to the exhaust together finger tight. Tighten the manifolds down onto the block gasket with the block studs and nuts starting from the middle and working outwards in about four or five iterations until the correct torque is achieved. Now tighten the four bolts holding the two manifolds together this way the block to manifold faces should be flush and contact the gasket/gaskets along the entire length of the block From this To this with a few more bits out of store and it now looks like this Pete

Excellent piece of fabrication congratulations. Presumably you had to calculate the additional over all length required to take account of the shrinkage resulting from forming the ribbing ?. Pete

If you've got a flex saw with a fairly course metal cutting blade and all else fails cut the bloody thing round the circumference of the tread then into sections that you can knock off the rim, had to do that on a number of occasions. Don't need to tell you this I know but I will anyway don't be tempted to use an angle grinder real bad karma. Pete

No one needs to hold a gym subscription when they own split rim wheels !! Go for it Pete

This sort of task just burns the time up. It's always doubly difficult with opening screens as they not only have to look right they have to function as well. Good job Pete

Because I haven't had the crank ground I wanted to check the bearing clearance on each main bearing in turn for my own peace of mind so I did this using the Plastigauge in the manner I detailed during strip down the result was very encouraging coming out bang in the middle of the as built clearance specs for this engine @ 0.002". With a reground crank it would probably suffice to check just one main bearing. Before the big end caps on the con rods are torqued up the end float (end thrust) on the crankshaft needs to be checked just as with the cam shaft (previous posts) the forces produced during operation will try to move the crankshaft backwards and forwards in the block too much is a real problem and too little will lead to seizure so it has to be with specified limits for the design of the engine. The backwards/forwards thrust is taken up on this particular engine by pads on the rear main cap only, other designs may have pads on the center bearing and or front cap for example all are variations of doing the same job. To measure the end thrust the tools I used are below, dial gauge with magnetic base and a small pry bar you could use feeler gauges for this but on this engine there's not much room to get them where they need to be. The photo below is taken at the rear of the block. Using the pry bar on the balance weight move the crankshaft forward until it stops (direction of red arrow)....... be very careful doing this you don't want to damage either the block or the crank if there is resistance STOP and find out why, you really don't want to crack the block casting or a lesser of evils damage a bearing. Set up the dial gauge at a convenient location lock it in place and zero the dial, here I'm using the flywheel flange as my datum point. This photo is now at the front of the block. in the same manner and exercising the same caution as before move the crankshaft back as far as it will go (direction of green arrow) This photo shows the results @ 0.005", I repeated it three time and got the same answer each time so well pleased with this as factory spec is 0.003" to 0.008" Now it was a case of checking each big end bearing clearance with the Plastigauge then plenty of assembly lube on the shell and journal before replacing the cap. The result for all big ends was a very reassuring 0.0015" the factory spec is 0.001" to 0.003" so bang in the middle. This is where the tube of thread lock now appears, Dodge use a early form of self locking nut on the cap bolts other manufactures use split pins, self locking washers or just plain spring washers. The point is after time and taking the nuts on and off a few times the the self locking isn't perhaps as full proof as they could be so as a belt a braces I add a dab of non hardening thread lock to the rod bolts just to help things along a bit. So that about wraps it up for this engine, everything else is just bolting on all the 'hanging on' bits and getting ready to lift it into the frame with the gearbox. Everything that I've covered here regarding the engine and the gearbox(in an earlier thread) strip down and rebuild can be done in an ordinary home workshop with a bench and a vice. There are certain bits of kit that are essential like a hoist for example for moving the lumps around and a type specific manual and factory specs but everything else should really form part of a basic tool kit for owning a 80 year old vehicle and what you don't have can be hired from the tool hire if you don't want to have it sitting on the shelf. Pete

Fitting the block crank journal main shell bearing half's is all about paying attention to the correct positioning. The new ones must go back into the block exactly where the old ones came out, they are not a universal fit, this is where your notes and photos made during strip down come into play also read the specific manual for the engine...... never assume.......... it will be costly. OK with the main bearing shell half's in the block everything is ready to lower the crank into place the tools that I use for this job are shown below. All self explanatory apart from perhaps the little red tube with a blue cap (top right) this is non hardening thread lock more about that later. The crank is a heavy piece of kit on a six cylinder engine so at the very least it requires two reasonably useful people to lower it carefully into position it must go in square and level to prevent damaging the shells. I work alone so I use this attachment to the crane, it's an adjustable leveling bar. This piece of kit isn't a huge sum of money and has a million and one uses in the workshop for lifting and slinging saving hours of messing around adjusting strops and chains to get a level lift. Just turn the handle and move the center of gravity one way or the other until the load sits square or any angle that you require for that matter particularly useful for gearbox and engine installations. I've already got the pistons and rods in the block (covered in the previous posts) and they are all set at TDC out of the way, some people prefer to fit the crank first and then fit pistons and rods it depends on the engine design. I prefer this way as there is no risk of the rod or cap bolts damaging the crank during fitting to the cylinder. I have fitted the new big end shell half's into the rods at this stage. All bearings and bearing surfaces get a good application of assembly lube and the crank is lowered into position, the main bearing caps are fitted paying attention to the correct positioning and location I covered that in depth during the blog entry on strip down so now is the time when that previous effort pays off. The caps are just nipped up by hand at this stage and the crank checked to see if everything moves without binding (that's what the big 3/4" drive socket and bar are for on the hand crank dog) do not try a full revolution at this stage as the the bearings may shift in the caps as they are not locked down. Now start to pull up the main caps starting with the middle a little at a time testing to make sure everything is free at each stage I tend to go up to final torque in about four equal stages across the whole length of the crank. If it binds at any point stop and find out why, it will not get better by just carrying on. Now I fit the the big end caps and bearing shells but only just finger tight at this stage and if everything has gone to plan it looks like this. More to follow Pete

Last week those nice chaps from UPS delivered a small brown package from Vintage Power Wagons in the US along with a large import tax invoice. After I'd recovered my composure and applied a fire extinguisher to my wallet I opened the box to find the engine bearings and manifold stud and nut set and various other small bits and pieces to finish the engine rebuild. If you have not dealt with VPW for Dodge related parts I can recommend them, it's just a pity they are on the wrong side of the pond. Anyway to the task in hand, this piece is about fitting the crank, the photo below shows the crank journals when removed from the engine during strip down. This photo makes them actually look worse than they were the marking is staining from standing unused in dirty oil. Below are the same journals after I've cleaned them up. You will see all sorts of miracle methods for doing this, frankly if there is any physical damage to the surface there is only one option, it's off to the machine shop to get the journals ground and then fitted with new oversize bearings to match. Here the journals were in good condition so I used a 6"long by 1/2" wide strip of medium grade Scotch Brite wrapped around once and pulled backwards and forwards across the width of the journal a few times. Then a thin film of Auto solve is applied sparingly (try to keep it away from the oil ports) then polished with a similar sized lint free rag, denim is very good for this I find . Auto solve is very mildly abrasive so after doing the whole crank everything is sprayed down with gun cleaner including the oil ways then a smear of assembly lube added to each journal to keep flash oxidation at bay then re-wrapped with clean rag.. More to follow Pete

OK Adrian it's yours, I'll PM you. Thanks Pete

Bump still for sale guys, Matt has never come back to me on this item so it's back up for sale Pete

Bump still for sale guys Pete

Fitting the completed piston and rod assemblies into the block: Tools for the job, the black collar is an expandable piston ring compressor (this is the traditional style click ratchet type), the socket ratchet drive with 1/4" attached is used to adjust the collar more about this in a minute. First off the rings need to be arranged around the piston so that ring gaps do not all fall in the same plain see photo below. Like this there is a direct compression leak path out of the cylinder and into the sump...... not good news. Rings will move around the piston groove during operation, they are not spinning like tops but forces involved during piston travel will induce a degree of movement so the idea is to try and limit the point at which everything lines up. There are whole engineering papers written on how to set rings on a piston, suffice to say try to set the gaps as far apart from each other as possible it's good practice to try not to have a gap over a piston pin, piston side wall, relief split in the skit (if present) or on the thrust side of the skirt easy to say not always easy to do particularity on small diameter pistons so do the best you can is the word here I think. this is how I have arranged my gaps see photo below, a degree of compromise from the ideal here due to the construction of the piston. Purple = top and second compression rings, Green = oil scraper top and bottom rail, Yellow = oil scraper support spring Once the rings are spaced around the piston apply a little assembly lube to the rings, the ring belts and piston skirt. Apply assembly lube to the inside of the ring compressor place it over the piston crown carefully so as not to shift the rings around and tighten the clamp up tight this now acts like the wall of the cylinder closing the gaps on the rings flush with the piston wall, The bore in the block must be thoroughly cleaned now before inserting the piston and rod assembly, I use a lint free rag and gun cleaner for this then a wipe of assembly lube around the entire bore depth. Check the piston is facing the correct way forward and the correct piston is going into the correct bore Carefully slide the assembly into the bore making sure the rod and (cap bolts if fitted) doesn't score the bore wall on the way down. Seat the compressor collar just into the top of the bore, most blocks will have a degree of relief tapper right at the top to facilitate this, It is vital that the compressor bottom lip just fits into the top of the bore and stays there. Check that it is and check again. There must be no gap anywhere around the circumference. If there is it will get very expensive very quickly a broken ring or rings at best or at worst a ruined piston and broken rings will result. That all sounds a bit dramatic but this next operation is key to proper assembly, everything that has gone before regarding pistons and rings could be wasted if this goes wrong Take a heavy weight ball pein hammer and using the handle push down hard on the crown of the piston while holding the collar firmly in the top of the bore it needs to go all the way down out of the collar and into the bore in one go you can't fanny about at this stage, if you can get a second pair of hands to hold the collar in place so much the better. If there is sudden resistance stop pushing a ring has most likely jammed going into the top of the bore. You have a chance to save the day by removing the collar checking there is no damage or reason for the jam re lube everything and try again. Some people give the crown one sharp tap with the handle and in it shoots..... well most of the time........ I've done it that way too but I prefer the pushing method. I think you stand a chance of feeling if a ring is going to catch and there is a chance to rectify the situation before it all goes to rats. And if all goes well it's time for tea and biscuits or perhaps a cheeky beer or maybe two before 6pm and stand back and admire the job Pete

I would never have thought of looking there good call thanks Pete

Interested to know what type of wood you used for the cross member replacement. All looks very good in primer in the last photo. Pete

Agreed this clutch set up really is a very nice piece of New New Stock, as opposed to the NoS we all try to hunt down or the tired 80 year old rebuilt options that we have to make do with sometimes. The wartime jeep market is well catered for in this respect at (mostly) sensible prices. It's a pity more attention isn't paid to the likes of the WC Dodge and GMC range of trucks, world wide there must be a market for off the self NnS mechanical parts. The US seems better organised in this department certainly with regard to Dodge with a number of outlets offering new made kit, it's the import and carriage costs that make it a painful exercise to purchase for UK collectors. Anyway not withstanding all that here's a really nice clutch pack, shipping is at cost with tracking it's only sitting on the shelf gathering dust and taking up space. Pete

Joe's Motor Pool multi finger clutch pressure plate (gives lighter pedal operation) and friction plate fits all 3/4 ton WC series Dodges. Bought for a job last month now surplus to requirements, both items brand new never been fitted still in wrappings as received just looking to recoup purchase cost, £155.00 for the set plus p&p at cost item Sold Thanks Pete

The logical close to this section on pistons is a word on fitting the gaped rings to the pistons. On a three ring square edge set up like the one here it's not difficult however some pistons may have more compression rings each may have a different profile and width and there may be an additional scarper ring system on the skirt of the piston as well. In short you need to set out the rings prior to fitting in the correct order, if you do get it wrong and it's easy to do on some set ups then it really spoils the day to break a new ring after all the effort put in so far while trying to take it off. A photo that I forgot to post in the thread about measuring rings is this one below here I'm measuring the side clearance between the ring and the groove using the feeler gauges (red arrow). This is another key measurement the ring has to be able to move in the groove however, too loose and you run the risk of breaking a ring or even a piston belt, too tight and the ring will size up when the piston heats up and cause excessive bore ware and/ or size the piston in the bore..... more tears before bed time. Once again there is no size fits all, you need to know what the specs are for the various ring/piston combinations you are working with. Here top and second compression ring is 0.002" to 0.004" and the oil scraper pack is 0.001 to 0.003" So to recap, the photo I posted previously showing the order for fitting these particular rings. I do this every time I have to ring a piston. I'm not doing it every day and it easy to forget/get confused even though on this set up it's pretty straightforward. A word about the ring pliers on the right of the photo, these hold the two ends of the ring and by gently squeezing the grips you can open the ring up just enough to feed it over the crown of the piston and down to the relevant groove. I've had these years and they are a very cheap pair but I'm used to them, there are much better ones available now that better support the ring. This is how they work you mustn't open the ring up any more than is absolutely necessary to move it down over the crown, note with this type of ring pliers the flat side of the jaws faces up towards you when in use. Some people apply assembly lube onto the rings and grooves at this point then fit the rings. I prefer not to I find it's hard enough without having the things slipping and sliding all over the place.......perhaps I should unchain my wallet and buy a better set of ring pliers.....another reason for not oiling them is that I do not intend to fit the assemblies immediately so the oil may attract unwanted dust and grit even though they are stored away in a closed container out of harms way until called to duty. So the finished job looks like this below, a whole truck load of words to get here I'm afraid, but there really are some key points and issues to be aware off. This blog is by no means meant to be definitive, go read a book,...... several books, .... look at a few U tube vids, read your manual then have a go, there is nothing here that can't be done in an ordinary domestic garage with a bench. I'll say something about arranging ring gaps on the piston prior to fitting when I actually fit them to the bores in a later post. So until my main bearings and rod bearings arrive from the US that's it for now. Pete