The WC53 Carryall thread .

[Bruce in BC]

"CRUNCH" that did not go too well.

Yep I crunched up a piece of the darn thing.
I wanted to test out the rebuilt alternator and get some fuel because the fuel tank was pretty empty and the lower the level in the tank the more the gauge bounces around.
So I am backing up the truck looking over my right shoulder and I hear the sound of branches breaking. I stop and find the door has popped open. I hooked a branch and the door handle opened the door, once open in folded itself clear to the fender and beyond. It sure does not close or look like it used to. Sad thing is there was about a grand worth of work in the door.... I popped out the dent but have yet to attempt adjusting the door to latch. I am not sure how much the hinges got bent.

The alternator? Lets just say it is no better than when I started, a few hours of research and I managed to dig up a few examples of folks with the same issue.
The cure varies- new alternator, longer or shorter sensor wire, different source for the exciter wire.....

What fun.

Take care
Bruce

[Bruce in BC]

Alternator part 2

The sensor wire was removed from the battery 2 connection at the fuse box. This connection also feeds something in the truck and may have contributed to the problem of the climbing voltage. Ran a test wire to the battery and the charge was pretty much 14.5 volts, ran the same sensor wire to the junction block on the fire wall and got the same result - a steady 14.5 volts. The sensor wire now connects to the junction block and the old alternator was replaced with a high output alternator.
60 amps at 600 engine RPM
126 amps at 1000 engine RPM
151 amps at 2000 engine RPM
The Carryall was used at another search this week. A bit of driving using night vision and heat detecting equipment. the 4BT fired right up with the temps a few degrees below freezing. No fuel heater or glow plugs.

take care
Bruce

[Matthew Welcher PWA]

That is a streak of both good and bad, I am glad to see the charging issue is resolved.
The folding of the door....I did cry a little and cringe and shake some while reading that. But as my grandfather once said it is a long way from its heart.
Thank you again for sharing all of your build with all of us.

[Bruce in BC]

Thanks

If I was doing another one I would add some drains at the bottom of the front window. No matter what I do water collects there and as I am driving down the road and going through a corner a blob or dollop of water will pop out of the corner of the window. It is kind of funny when it happens because it comes out the same every time and looks alive. It is a distraction while driving. It does have to be raining quite a lot for the blob to form though.
That article I wrote meet your criteria? tempted to do a part 2. Also contemplating a " Favourite tools" article, there are a couple of hand tools that I have found late in life that I love to use and wish someone had pointed them out earlier. Kevin's articles fit right in and are a delight to read.
Fighting an infection right now, otherwise I would be out in the garage attempting to mount my chains for the first time.

take care
nice to hear from you
Bruce

edit - the door will get repaired, these trucks are never done and I am actively using mine and active 4x4ing even gentle, carefull, driving tends to increase the maintenance by several factors.....as you well know.

[Alxj64]

Its not directly WC53 related, but it is for the benefit of my WC53... I joined your Colchester Lathe Club there Mr. Bruce. A little beat up but quite functional and very very heavy, Triumph 7.5 with the big 5 HP motor. Has a standard and metric gear box on it.

[W_A_Watson_II]

Very nice tool add!

[Kaegi]

nice

handy to have. my buddies dad has one that size and I can go use it when needed. you wont be needing the metric feed because it is banned from use on dodges. ;/)

[Alxj64]

handy to have. my buddies dad has one that size and I can go use it when needed. you wont be needing the metric feed because it is banned from use on dodges. ;/)

Ha! Tell that to all the metric threads on that British made Cummins of mine... guess only appropriate that its a British made lathe.

[Kaegi]

brit cummins

I dint know they made some there. I know some of the commercial level engines are made in china these days.

[Bruce in BC]

working on my chains

Went down to my tire store and got an extra cross chain added and I need to add more links to the each side of the chain. The chains were just a bit short. I will only run them on the front, chains on the back would contact the wheel wells. The truck will need some spacers machined up for the rear wheels before I can chain up all four wheels. I am looking forward to see how deep of snow I can drive in. What I find interesting is how much easier it is to drive in the dry snow as compared to the wet slop. The dry stuff compacts and creates a surface a tire can get a bight on, the wet stuff compacts and creates a surface of ice with snow that acts and feels like lubricant.
That is a nice lathe. I made a wood bed out of plywood , it sits under the chuck when the chuck gets changed. The chuck never touches the machined lathe bed.
If you flip the board upside down the chuck can sit on the board and not touch the floor. A dual purpose chuck bed. There are two boards glued to each end of the bed that make a lip, looks like a C channel.

[Bruce in BC]

chains fit

I made a dooh hickey that helps install the chains.
It is a piece of flat bar that is bent to sort of grip the tire on each side. On each end of the bar are clips to attach the chain to.
(step 1) hall the chains out of the bag and breath in a big lungful of rust dust as you shake the chains out to take out the tangles
(step 2) lay out the chains on the snow and flip them around to get them positioned for lifting on to the tire
(step 3) pick up the chains and get covered in snow, mud and look for the dog poop that you can smell but can not see.
(step 4) drape the chains over the tire with the end hanging about 1/2 way down the front of the tire, wrestle with the cross chains and attempt to take out the slop and get the chains as tight as possible without the tire lugs getting in the way.
(step 5) lay the trailing edge of the chains out in such a manner that they line up with the tire
(step 6) snap the dooh hickey to the front edge of the tire and clip each end of the chain to the dooh hickey
(step 6) drive forward 1/2 of a wheel revolution, the dooh hickey will keep the chain tight against the tire and the ends of the chain are now ready to be clipped together.
(step 7) remove the dooh hickey and tighten the chains, then repeat on the opposite side. After that wash your hands remove your jacket, tuck the cam wrench in a spot that makes sense at the time ....but not later when you need it, climb in the cab and have an answer for why you smell like dog pooh.

Caution note - I tested this installation on a clear day in the driveway..... following these directions should not be attempted at home or by an untrained individual. Dooh hickies are not OEM and take special training or a cup of hot chocolate to be certified for use.

[Bruce in BC]

The dooh hickie works great

But the snow was nasty. Frozen boiler plate on top and icing sugar underneath. The truck would get on top and then break through, even after we turned around the truck would lose traction while running in the old tracks. We are talking low range , 1st gear, idle, even then the rear tires would slip every once in awhile.
So we went farther in the snow than any one else had this year, but the truck was working hard to chew through the stuff, so I chose to park and go for a hike instead of beating on the Carryall.
I did learn a couple of tricks. It is possible to hook up the chains without laying in the snow. All it takes is getting the chain ends to the front of the tire. Those flat fenders and big tire openings make connecting the chains a much easier and cleaner process than laying in the snow. Graham who was traveling in the copilot seat was kind enough to point this out as I was about to lay in the snow.
I need to learn not to drive over big branches and fallen trees without removing the branches. The branches seem to flip up and get caught on brake lines , power steering lines or someplace you do not want a branch the thickness of a broom handle to be. And because the branches are green they are ten times stronger than a broom handle. I did destroy the front license plate driving over one tree.
Driving over logs or trees that have fallen across the road is ok, but take the branches off first. Been driving 4x4s for 42 years and I still have things to learn and bad habits to break.
take care
and do something fun every day
Bruce

[Bruce in BC]

Carryall to the rescue! More fun off road.

So I am sitting in the loo reading an old copy of PWA and the phone rings. I get out of the loo to answer and it is the Dentist. I return to reading the PWA and darn if it does not ring again, this time it is the Doctors office. I start reading again and darn if the phone does not ring a third time, this time it is someone I do not know but had met a few days ago while out for a walk. "Can you rescue Peter?" Peter is a world class climber in his 70's who i have climbed with over the last 2 decades. He has got his truck stuck, walked out, found a phone and some how or other the message got to me. I honestly have no clue how many people were in the phone tree, but three or four sounds about right.

So I head off after loading the truck with a shovel, tow rope and my emergency ready pack (which is never ready) I have to drive about 30 miles and go through a restricted area before heading up the road. Right after I go through the gate and get in the restricted area I run into Graham coming off work. The same friend who was with me on the Carryalls first chain up. He asks if he can tag along. This is a no brainer, I know I need a hand and things may get messy, and having company will make the job more entertaining than annoying.

It turns out that Peter drove up the tracks that we had made the previous Friday and gotten stuck where we had decided to turn around. Driving in to where he was stuck took some technical driving, some family had used the road as a toboggan run and a few tire tracks seemed to head off the road and not follow the Carryall's old ruts.

After a bunch of back and forth transmission action the Carryall was positioned to winch the stuck truck back on the road. The last time - and only time- I used the winch it did not work properly and I replaced a solenoid. Looks like the right solenoid got replaced because the winch worked great. Ended up doing six to eight pulls up to 100 ft in length. The winch did not miss a beat. The best part was having someone who knew how to give hand signals on winch operation and the two of us worked together really well. A bit like a choreographed dance. So what would have taken at least 3 hrs took a bit over an hour. So the Carryall came to the rescue and worked as you would want it too, I got to help an old friend and i got to work with a good 4x4 buddy who is great company while doing things a old 4x4 hand can do. I rate that little outing a 10 out of 10.

The punch line to this? On Friday someone in the Carryall said " you know someone will attempt to drive up your old tracks....and get stuck"

[Chewie]

Good story, Bruce. Thanks for sharing it. Send it to Matt. That would be nice a couple pictures..

[Alxj64]

Good story, Bruce. Thanks for sharing it. Send it to Matt. That would be nice a couple pictures..

Heres one! Bruce, you're Insta-famous! Look at those likes! You've got 6500+ fans! And our buddy Fred Williams with Dirt Every Day is one of them.