The WC53 Carryall thread .

[Bruce in BC]

thanks Bruce

There is a ton of stuff I need to do . A lot of the stuff that one never sees .
Here is a shot of the trans tunnel cover . Looks better than I expected . Almost looks like a skunkworks prototype .

[Bruce in BC]

now for the running board

I am trying to figure out a running board brace . The problem is i can think of several ways to get the job done .
(1) Bolt the bracket to the frame and bolt the running board to the bracket .
(2) Weld the brackets and running board together as a single unit and bolt the assemble to the frame .
Both options will help stiffen the frame . Option 2 would be stronger but it would also mean the part would be more difficult and time consuming to repair.
Mind you with option 2 the bracket could be made from tubing . Otherwise I think I need to fab the bracket from plate .

[Bruce in BC]

I could have sworn it would only take a few hours

But I was way off in that regard . the darn running board mounts are taking longer than I thought . I went with 1/8 th plate and 2 inch box tubing . The problem is that I needed to remove some parts to get inside the frame and gain access to some of the mounting bolts . I can fix this problem when I tear the truck down but not while I am building the thing . Getting all the holes to line up takes a great amount of time too . I am using holes that came in the frame and adjusting my brackets to fit .
I put one board on today . It slopes down but the brackets sit dead level , at least they did before I placed the running board on top. I need to pull the board or install the other board and see what happens before I do any final welding .

Bruce

Got a line on a PW hood for 75 bucks . I think I will grab it . The sides look straighter than mine . Of course some idiot took the emblems .

[Rob S]

Time

Hi Bruce
Tell me how many hours per week do you spend on your vehicles, personally I am lucky to get in 2-3 hours and some weeks not even that. The 1/2 tonner progress is so slooooow at the moment, everything I do seems not to fit right or I find something else that holds me up. bolted the radiator in this week which took hours mostly because the frony end was smashed at some stage and everything was misaligned or bent. The big u bracket the radiator bolts into was about 2" wider at the top than the bottom. To fix this they had bolted the radiator into one side and then made up straps to hold the other side in place. I spent ages getting it straight and even so I was still around 1/4"out of square at the end. However a little brute force at this stage worked wonders.
Cheers
Rob S

[Bruce in BC]

Carryall timecard Oct 6 -

It is weird how a little job manages to become a big one . Your radiator epic sounds like a normal day to me . For a lark I will post my time on this post and edit it over the next week or so .

Monday Oct 6 - 3 hrs
Tuesday Oct 7 - 45 minutes
Wednesday Oct 8 - 1.5 hrs
Thursday Oct 9 - 1 hour
Friday Oct 10 - 45 minutes
Monday Oct 13 - 2 hrs
Tuesday Oct 13 - 30 minutes
Wednesday Oct 14 - 1 hr
thursday oct 16 - zip , i was training at another location
Friday Oct 17 - 2 hrs
Saturday Oct 18 - nothing for the carryall but 3 hrs setting up some gears

[Bruce in BC]

Yahoo I figured out why my boards were crooked .

Lowered the hoist . One side was on the floor the other side was stuck on a Nut . Crooked hoist = crooked truck = crooked running board .

It was not until I raised the truck on the four post hoist and started to get ready to raise the carryall on the passenger side that I found the frame level , I then checked the brackets that I had made earlier and they were level too . I then checked the hoist and it turned out to be level too .The hoist was not level earlier in the day . Then a little light went on .

NEXT TIME SWEEP THE FLOOR before lowering the truck down to the floor.


Bruce

[Jake]

Thanks for sharing LOL

Thanks for sharing that bit of wisdom Bruce, you forgot to mention that you were trying to get the job done, that you were overtired and...

[Bruce in BC]

Nothing earth shattering but there has been progress .

The running boards are roughed in . The supports at both ends are 80% done . The center supports will get built next week . The boards need to be drilled for their mounting bolts and have some small tabs welded on . I would like to use button head bolts but there is no source around here and even the fastener places in vancouver do not stock them .

The battery box needs to be roughed in and I want it strong enough to stand on . Most likely it will be vented .

Test fit of my home built grill . I wanted to use the button heads on the outside of the grill . They would mimic the rivet heads on the fenders . I could file the holes square and use carriage bolts but a carriage bolt is a bit flatter than what I want . What the heck after they are on a week I will no longer notice what fastener is holding the grill on .

Visiters this weekend and some serious rescue training coming up in Nov .
Gotta budjet my time.


Bruce

[Bruce in BC]

Got side tracked

It was necessary to remove the exhaust . The exhaust had to be dropped so that it would make it easier to attach and remove the middle running board support . Kinda tight clearances in there . While the front section of exhaust was out I installed a bung for the thermocouple and finished welding in the flex joint . The spool gun was loaded with stainless wire and I figured I may as well accomplish something . Before going any further with the running boards the drivers side rear fender needs to be installed . After that both boards will need to be shifted forward about 1/4 of an inch . I least I think that is the case . Something is out a tad . No biggie . The mounting holes are not drilled in the boards or brackets yet . I need to spend 1/2 an hour bolting the body in place before going much further .
There are too many ways to mess this up. Hopefully I have thought of all the parts that relate to the brackets and boards.

Bruce

[Bruce in BC]

Mess of carryall parts on ebay

apparently the roof is crushed . In one shot you can see the rear 1/4 panel . The truck looks like it was in very good condition and a perfect candidate for a roof swap . Punchline to all this is there was a roof for sale last week . Bet yah you could have purchased the roof for 100 bucks .
Let me know if any of you get some parts from this source . I am tempted to go after the rear window frame . But the shipping could be a hassle.

Take care out there

Bruce

[Bruce in BC]

Working on the battery box

The boards are not complete but I am working on alternate small pieces of the Carryall . I have started to form a battery box cover . Not sure if I will hinge the cover as original or if I will make it a lift off one piece . Part of the box is vented . It would be fun to weld in some raised letters on the front end of the cover but I have nothing suitable. Hopefully I do not need to build a hinge and can find a beefie looking one for the box .
I may hire some munchkins to sandblast some small parts for me .
I bid but did not get the rear window frame for the Carryall . The way the dollar has gone and shipping costs are I was more nervous about winning than not .
Busy times coming up but I am managing to squeeze an hour in here and there.


Bruce

[Bruce in BC]

Nov 2008 PWA has a Carryall on the cover .

Trust gordon to give us 2 pages and enough teaser shots to wet the appetite.
That truck is very complete and I would love to be the guy to wash it down with a high pressure washer . Bet yah i could get most of the old poopy paint off .
My rig ? I have a picture of my partially completed battery box and Gordon just updated my access . Thanks Gordon.
not sure how I am going to attach the box yet .
There are 2 half ton carryalls on ebay .

Bruce

[TK064]

Well I brought home 5 Michelin 11X16 XZL for the carryall today. I got them from the guys in Avon Park FL that bought the warehouse auction lot. I really should have the truck put together first, but....

Now my question, is there any consensus in the painting of the combat rims. You know, bead lock body color and internals black, all black, all body color.

Thanks for the opinions

Tim

[Bruce in BC]

Wheel paint opinions

Is your truck going to be bone stock or modified ? I really like a painted rim with a silver or grey bead lock . Even a black wheel with silver rim looks good to my eye . A solid black wheel and bead lock looks ok when it is clean but it looks a bit cheap once it gets dirty . This may be a hold over from when I was younger and the base , cheapest model cars came with a black rim and no hubcap .
If you are doing a full restoration or close to one I think you have to go with the army green . It is easy to touch up the scratches year after year you just add a bit more paint .
Good to hear from you Tim please keep us posted as to what you are doing. You are going to like the look of those tires on the Carryall .
Have you noticed the number of Carryalls that have come up for sale lately ? 5-6 in the last month .

Take care

Bruce

[Jake]

Hey Bruce,
Your truck is looking great, i would like to to do something similar to my 42 1/2 ton when I finish the 56 PW.
What is the plan for lights and racks?