restoration Diamond T 980

[brianthesnail96]

Fantastic

[Adrian]

Well here it is, this is the corrected colour. I was a little shocked the first time I saw it on the cab as the colour was lighter than I expected, despite going back to the paint shop to have an additional 12g per litre of black added to drop it down a shade. However, close up shows a better colour as the fluorescent lights tend to make it look a bit lighter than it is in reality.

 

The finish of the fleet polyurethane is evidently tougher than the previous enamel and there is less sheen (10% sheen, classed as matt-satin). The manufacturers have called it Desert Rats to accompany the application, which I thought was a nice touch. As previously mentioned I have saved the formulation so if anyone wishes to copy the colour PM me.

 

The close up of the door handle is the best picture to illustrate the colour and texture. The combination of fluorescent lights and my flash conspired to produce pictures which bare no resemblance to the actual colour.

 

Anyhoo, as promised, on with the pictures;

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cheers,

 

A

[supertrack]

the cab is perfect :shocked:

[Adrian]

the cab is perfect :shocked:

 

Thanks! Not a cheap or quick job but the cab has no corrosion whatsoever. The last picture also shows a superb gap and alignment with the door which we strived for.

 

Forgot to mention in the last post that I have asked Allied Forces to make me a canvas cab cover. This will be thick canvas with a low abrasive inner liner. This should act as a heavy duty storm cover and be durable enough to act as a deterrent to anyone who would want to vandalise the inside of the cab. I thought that if you were going to spend that much time and effort on restoring the cab a little more to prevent it from deteriorating and keeping mindless knobheads at bay was a must.

 

More soon,

 

A

Edited December 12, 2010 by Adrian

[Adrian]

I thought I would add in a quick piece on the windscreens. Stripping was not difficult as a process but the screws holding the framework together were right sods to remove. In some cases the only option was drilling them out as 70 years have achieved what the best locking compounds could not.

 

Both frames were equal in terms of corrosion and as I have no replacements restoration of the originals is the only route.

 

The early design of the Hi-Hat cab windscreens (the roofline on the earlier cabs, as used on the pick-ups were lower by some 4”. The Hi-hat was introduced for reasons obvious in the title, in that it gave more headroom if you were partial to the more elevated of available headwear) have the seal which sits within the windscreen frame, the latter being split into two major sections. The inner vertical section is secured by four machine screws which attach to an internal threaded bar, running inside the detachable section. These four screws were in some cases impossible to remove, but where they were able to be extracted whole the best method was to use an impact driver (takes a bit of courage considering the windscreen is still in place).

 

Where they were drilled out the frame and the internal threaded bar took a bit of a battering. The pictures below illustrate this;

 

 

 

 

 

Elongation to the screw hole by my drilling can be seen in the RH of the picture. Thankfully this section will have to undergo extensive replacement for the corrosion so nothing lost.

 

 

 

 

 

The other side was more co-operative.

 

 

 

 

 

Tap gently with a hammer to break the bead

 

 

 

 

 

And slide out the glass

 

 

 

 

 

This is going to be an awkward job. Much corrosion here.

[Austin]

Superb!

 

Keep on rollin'!

[Adrian]

In case the screens are not repairable does anyone know of any better ones knocking around?

 

Cheers,

 

A

[Adrian]

Just a quick question for those Diamond T experts out there – how thick is the rear cab mount cushion (part # N-4371) which sits on the rear cross member? Mine was pretty much non-existent and I obviously want to ensure the cab sits flat. I have a pad but the hole spacing is about ¼” short to fit over the bolts.

 

Cheers in advance

 

A

[diamond-t-steve]

Hi Adrian

 

I've had a look in both my 980 parts list book and my ordnance supply catalog and found your part number listed in both, but unfortunatly there is no dimentions given. it just says cushion, mounting, cab, rear. :-(:-(:-(

Have you managed to source replacement rubbers for the windscreens ? I managed to sourse a roll of nos rubber for the screens a few years ago, together with a Diamond T instruction sheet on the cutting and fitting of the replacement rubbers. Would the instructions be any help to you?

 

Steve...

[Adrian]

Cheers Steve, yes, that’s all the information I have too. I need to find someone fairly local with a closed cab T and clamber underneath to measure the pad thickness. I don’t think it can be very thick as the cab won’t sit level.

 

As to the windscreens I have obtained two replacement items which are slightly later than the very early frames, which after shot blasting we decided were pretty much beyond repair. I have now learned that there were three designs of windscreen frame. I had always thought there were two, being the early design with the complex framework, followed by the more simplistic variant where the seal arrangement formed the frame. It now appears that there was a much simplified metal frame which was supplied in the interim.

 

They are NOS so just require cleaning paining and some new rubbers. In Jim Clark's bag of seals we found a roll with a profile which appears to fit the frames well so will try this first. However, many thanks for your offer and if we find the rubber unsuitable (which is possible as it is not an exact match for the original) I will almost certainly be in touch.

I will post pictures of the screens and seals in a day or so.

 

Thanks again,

 

 

A

[42 chevy]

Adrian;

 

The pad thickness is 3/4 of an inch, 2 inch diameter and a 5/8 hole in the middle. I had new ones made. On the front pads, I had square blocks made ( 3 inch square) 3/4 inch high and 5/8 inch hole along with 2 smaller round ones to go under the front cab mount. I will post pictures later today. If you need them, let me know. Bodie Cummins (lives in KANSAS) made them. He also makes the windscreen rubber to.

He currently is making molds for the headlight pads, where they mount to the fender. I do not know if the 980 has the same mounting arrangment as the 969.

 

Jim Clarke's repair panels arrived along with the canvas for the seats. He does smashing work.

 

John Gott

[Adrian]

Thanks John, great info.

 

Glad you got the parts from Jim. The cab repair panels are modelled directly off mine. Jim is also making me a cab cover. It is still in the design phase but I will post pictures and an update soon.

 

Thanks again,

 

A

[42 chevy]

Adrian;

I did not get a chance to post photos as I spent the the morning and early afternoon "playing" with my truck. I got the rest of the wrecker frame assembled and then made it home in time to watch the superbowl. I wil post today when I get home from work.

 

John G

[Adrian]

Part 10 - A welcome Lift (pun intended)

 

 

You know when it is said you can wait for a bus for hours and then 3 come along at the same time? Well the Diamond T restoration has seen a similar phenomenon over the past week. After months of preparation work, and with a massive push the cab and winch have been reinstated in their rightful place, which has provided a welcome uplift after what has been a very difficult start to the year due to the unwelcome but outwardly inevitable end of my marriage. So, when you are down what do you do, that’s right, get on with your projects, so enough of the sorry stuff and lets cover what has been achieved over the past weeks.

 

Remaining cab work

 

In early January it was becoming obvious that the cab had very little work remaining before it could be re-fitted. The one stopper was the windscreen frames. The originals, much as I would have liked to have retained them were truly passed it. You may recall from the previous post that the strip of the frames proved that they were in a bad way. Some light shot blasting proved that they were unfortunately not worth saving. One replacement frame was on the shelf at Allied Forces so naturally the hunt was on for a matching item. A number of enquiries resulted in a suitable replacement from a dealer on the continent. This was not as easy as it sounded as I was not prepared to pay what I regarded to be a ridiculous price for both the window, and then an even more ridiculous price for carriage. Now I obviously understand that these items are becoming very rare but it has not escaped my attention (and some of you reading might have had a similar experience) that some dealers are ramping up their prices to ridiculous levels as they have the monopoly on stock. Anyway this was eventually resolved when a more realistic price was quoted. The window duly arrived and with a new seals fitted perfectly.

 

The ‘off the shelf’ frame was without glass, whereas the one supplied from the continent had the screen in place. A trial fit of the glass from the old frames proved that there was a 2mm difference with the glass from the earlier frames being slightly larger. A template for the correct glass size was made and trialled in the old frame before a trip to the local glass specialist. This was quite an amusing trip as I work about 3 miles from the glass shop so during lunch I went down and they were happy enough to make me two (might as well have a spare) for 8am the following morning. However on my return to the office it revealed that I now had a meeting at 8am so I called the shop to ask if they could possibly have them ready for 6pm that day – no problem was the answer. Now for those who are familiar with Bristol will know that at tea time traffic progress can be as slow and as uncomfortable as a chronic bout of constipation so leaving work early got to the shop with less than half hour to spare. On arrival I was informed that the one they had just cut out had a bloody great scratch down in. Worried looks from the chap who said ‘sorry, got to throw this one’, which my reply was ‘no problem’. Five minutes later came a cracking noise followed by ‘****’. No.2 in the bin. Trial 3 was equally problematic so again the worried looking chap came out and informed me that he had given it to his colleague to look at, who duly presented me with one window at five to six, together with cloth covered thumb to stem the flow from a fresh leak. Still, one was better than nowt.

 

Winch

 

The winch has been repainted with the new version of light stone and was ready to replace.

 

Chassis

 

Much of the preparation work had been completed before the snow had come in before Christmas. However, the PTO and area around the handbrake disc was still in need of some serious work. Taking three days off work prior to the arranged delivery of the cab and winch saw the steering column, chassis rails up to the ballast box, remaining areas under the ballast box, and the aforementioned area under the winch being re-prepared after the pre-snow shot blasting and painting in at least on layer of top coat, be it dark green or light stone.

 

 

 

 

 

Saturday 26th February

 

Before we go into details of what was, for me, a monumental day I would like to publicly thank those who turned up to lend a hand, be it to take pictures, hand spanners, or just to give moral support. With these projects it can be very difficult to achieve these on your own. First and foremost my father Brian, who has been a major source of help and advice with his 20 years experience with the marque. Thanks Also to Ed and Hazel for the passing of numerous tools when one was in an awkward position, dizzy-t for his superb camerawork, and finally Matt (brianthesnail96) and Laura for help and encouragement, especially when trying to get the spare wheel into the ballast box.

 

With the lorry delivering the cab and winch due at 10am we go there nice and early go get her fired up. Only the starter motor had other ideas. With numerous attempts all we heard was a bang as the dog refused to properly engage with the flywheel. Turning the flywheel a few degrees did not solve it, only perseverance. Finally, after about 10 mins we got lift off, only for the engine to cough and splutter to a stop. Ok, re-bleed the system and try again. Repeat the previous rigmarole with the starter. Another 10 mins saw the engine running one more, only to stop again. Turns out the temporary pipe work was drawing in air so eliminate the dodgy joint, re-bleed and try for a third time. Thank god this time the motor was a little more cooperative and the engine burst into life with half a turn.

 

 

 

 

 

I drove out from the barn, parked up and waited for the goods to arrive. Only they turned up on a 45 ft. Flatbed. Now the entrance to the farm is a bit tight, and at 25ft I have to take a careful line in with the T or I have to do it in two goes. In fairness to the driver he tried every trick in the book but like trying to stuff wet spaghetti up a cat’s arse it was obvious it was not going to get in. Therefore if the cab was not going to go to the T, the T had to go to the cab. We opted to drive the T to the end of the driveway and with the lorry complete with Hiab parked as close to the verge as possible the unloading began.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The winch was first. This proved to be very straightforward, with the only problem being the slightly sticky spline drive, which, even though well lubricated was a bit of a pain to get in. Then followed the cab. Now the cab was loaded with a forklift and pallet but to unload a timber beam wrapped in foam was placed through the cab, slightly forward in the door way to meet the correct centre of gravity was used. The doors were open, as lifing it with the doors closed would have put undue strain on the door hinges. A slow lift ensued and I am glad to say the cab met up with the rear cross member without issue. We did need to give the cab a bit of a shake to get the bolts all the way through the cab’s cross-member as the threads were catching (and this is where several bodies are useful). By the way the original front mounting pads were retained but I manufactured two new blocks for the rear. Thanks very much to John Gott for the dimensions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With all this achieved in 45 minutes the T was backed into the barn and the bonnet replaced. It was then brought to my attention that the spare wheel, which I was going to ask the Hiab man to lift, it was still out, so negotiating the morass of mud now covering the yard it was lifted in using one strop and 4 bodies. This is to be the ‘cosmetic’ spare, with a second in the ballast box. I have thought of constructing a simple removable jib to aid wheel changes, on the list of jobs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The reminder of the afternoon was spend bolting down, fitting the ballast box hand rails, freeing up the front towing eye, and fitting the front bumper. In short, one hell of a result for one day, however, the months of work to prepare for this stage is usually lost in most people’s minds, unless, of course, like most of those on the forum you have been there.

 

The cab cover

 

Now, some time ago I was wondering what could be done to improve the security of the T, after all it is parked away from home in a farmyard. I discussed with Jim Clark the manufacture of a heavy canvas cover, to both cover the glass of the cab and to act as a storm cover. I wanted the cover to fit around the door handles, which were to be secured by a heavy duty chain linking the two doors, and an eyelet at the front to enable a bungee to be attached to the rear bonnet catch. After some discussion Jim came up with a very neat and rugged cover, one piece, double lined with a very soft velvet-like liner to protect the paint. The area around the door handle was reinforces with leather to prevent either wear due to fretting or ease of entry. Loops were fitted to the back to support the security chain (2m Oxford motorbike chain with additional padlock for the far end). This was fitted and so ended a very satisfying day. Off for a beer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

With the good weather and longer nights approaching I hope to capitalise on the good progress and road test in the early summer.

 

GDSF

 

As some of you know this is the 70th anniversary of the Diamond T 980/981. The GDSF is looking to be the birthday bash and by hook or crook 566 XUL will be attending. The official date of manufacture according to the MVT is late August 1941, so the GDSF will truly by my Diamond T’s 70th Birthday.

 

Thanks you for reading my blog, all the best,

 

A.

[ford 369]

excellent stuff,its amazing what can be acheived with the help of a few willing friends,most what not beleive that amount of progress in a single day

[42 chevy]

Adrain;

What can I say, WOW :wow:, alot of progress in one day. I am glad I was spot on with the rear cab mount measurments.

Correct me if I am wrong, but I belive the factory originally put the cowl on first and then lowered the cab and then joined the 2 togather, however, you have shown that the whole unit can go on as a complete assembly. I was going to reassemble mine the factory way, but I might try the way you did. It is obvious the steering wheel has to be removed.

You have proven that thoughtful planning and preperation pays off when it comes time for reassembly.

Again, congrats on a job well done as another milestone is reached.

 

John Gott

[42 chevy]

Adrian;

If you could PM me and pass on your address, I have some "detail items" for your engine compartment for that "finishing touch".

 

John Gott

[AndyFowler]

A fantastic days work Adrian ! I'm well impressed ! Can't wait to see you and the "T" at GDSF !

[Smithy]

Cracking restoration thread and a good days work by the looks of it! Look forward to seeing this one at GDSF.

[daz76]

What a terrific job. The T looks fantastic.

[diamond 981]

Have just reread the whole of the restoration blog having seen yor latest post.What an epic restoration, an inspiration to us all . Cant wait to see it at Dorset if i can get in front of all the other admirers.

Many thanks for what i consider to be the best thread on the forum.

 

Can Jim Clark supply cab repair sections off the shelf as i will be rebuilding the cab on my T during winter 2011-2012.

 

Alan.

[42 chevy]

Alan;

Jim Clarke can. They are made to order. He kept all the jigs used during Adrian's restoration. I belive he has "restored" 5-6 Diamond T cabs to date.

 

John Gott

[diamond 981]

Alan;

Jim Clarke can. They are made to order. He kept all the jigs used during Adrian's restoration. I belive he has "restored" 5-6 Diamond T cabs to date.

 

John Gott

 

Thank you John, Jim"s workmanship as shown on Arians restoration project is first class i will contact him shortly regarding my cab rebuild.

 

Alan

[brianthesnail96]

Despite turning up unfashionably late and missing most the fun it was a pleasure to be there and watch her come together. The cab is a work of art and the whole thing looks fantastic (especially when viewed from the right :-D), 'tis a credit to Adrian.

[Adrian]

Thank you all for your very kind comments :-)