Thanks for the suggestion Ralph, I’ll consider it. Want to try again today with a different shape of shim, as knowing my fibreglass work, the shim will look a lot better. LOL
I’m a bit spooked about cutting the doors so the windows and rubber will fit correctly...those cuts seem a lot more irreversible than the work I’ve been doing so far.
So I spent a chunk of today on ( no surprise here...) the doors.
I think I’ve come up with a better way of getting them more or less right. My drivers side door I fibreglassed plus 3/16 steel on the lower inside. I had only fibreglassed the inside of the passenger door. I tried a couple of different shims between the door and the hinge, not getting much further.
After more frustration I took it all apart again. Today I cut the front door bracket, bent it so it fits the front of the door correctly, welded it back up and bolted it all back together with my thinnest shims between hinge and door. Passenger side door works quite well now!
Front passenger side door bracket before modification:
I couldn’t handle working on the doors two days in a row, particularly after a nice box of parts from Summit arrived this morning. LOL
So instead I installed the heater core that arrived, wired it and installed my defroster vents. I think it was the weatherman’s fault as he’s been telling us we’re down into the minus 30’s C by the weekend.
Once I had the hinges in alignment by this method, the passenger side door evolved quickly to fit well. The drivers side...ahem, I tried playing by the rules to no avail. Finally fabbed up a roughly 3/16” spacer between the lower hinge and the door, reinstalled it, loosened the hinge attachment points inside the cab, gave everything a shake and retightened the hinge attachments. It’s an 80-85% fit now. Good enough for me to move onwards. I can tweak in a year if I feel like it.
Pat, I used a long threaded rod to slip between my door hinges to line up (yours looks like a wooden dowel), same principal. We struggle, but come up with similar ideas.
I may go out to the garage today to think about my doors. I have been letting them "simmer" for the past two weeks, hoping they will straighten themselves out. I like your idea of waiting a year to finalize. You have to get to the other assembly items.
Keep us advised.
Ralph
I did a random item on the truck that has been bothering me for a long time, making supports for the rear fenders.
Photo below.
Yes, they are pop riveted to the fenders...for now. When I remove the box next time I’ll fibreglass them in, drill out and fill the pop rivet hole.
On the bright side, the fenders are much more solid now.
I’ve decided the time has come for me to build my Big Block and Powerglide. I’ve had the components for a while now...it feels like time for a (FUN!!) change.
Will be about 2 weeks in total, plus the rest of my turbo kit.
Then out it came and on to the engine stand. I had the block fully machined previously and have an Eagle rotating assembly plus a full Trick Flow 280 cc top end kit. Hopefully everything plays nicely together and this part of my build will progress quickly.
My reasoning is that everything, except the block, will be aluminum and I’m using a Powerglide trans which is far lighter than 700R4,4Lxx and 6Lxx transmissions.
My guess is my big block combo will weigh in similar or less than an iron small block (or iron block LS) with the much heavier transmission. I have a scale for my chain hoist so will have accurate weight once the engine is assembled. Ill post its weight here in my build thread.
A couple of decent days building Mr Big Block. I think I’ll be done tomorrow other than installing the oil pump pickup tube and final bolt up of the pan. Waiting on Amazon for delivery of the tool for that job... Setting up the valve train in the morning. Hopefully on to my transmission the day after.
So on to the transmission.
I’m going to take a day or two off to allow my garage ( and me) to de-fumigate from all the solvents used to prep my engine build.
The chain hoist was used up as I couldn’t move my big block out from underneath it so had to get a bit creative and lift the transmission by myself onto the engine hoist.
Wow, sometimes the aftermarket gives, and all too often it takes away. Today was definitely in the latter category.
Tried installing the flexplate today but there was a bolt that fought me. Had to run the 7/16” NF tap through a brand new, $900.00 crank to get it to fit. Then the flexplate didn’t have enough radius for my ARP flexplate bolts, so 20 minutes of radiusing and cleaning everything up later it all fit correctly. Brand new parts...
Then, I fully opened my nice new (brand name deleted) shift improver kit, only to discover there is a ‘servo spring’ listed in the “what this kit contains” list and of course included in the kit...but nary a word of instruction OR the required gasket for the cover to replace the one that will inevitably crack when I remove it.
What the heck?!
Are these people Neanderthals??
Thank goodness it’s Valentine’s Day and I can take my wife out for dinner, a drink and conversation not relating to car stuff.
On to the actual shift kit. I hit the point in the instructions where I’m supposed to drill the separator plate at locations marked ‘B’ but no where in the instructions is something that tells me where B is!
Wow...
I’ve emailed the manufacturer after finding my instructions are basically the same as, and newer than, what is online. Hopefully they get back to me soon. If not I’ll do some research and just make my own shift kit.
Two reasons; first, to install my new longer lower suspension hinge points (longer tabs), and second, to install a QA1 bump steer kit.
I’m doing this because the ride height of this truck will be higher than recommended. I used a Foxbody Mustang kit as a lot of the front suspension in the truck is simply is bass ackwards compared to a Mustang, so it’s perfect.
Those boys use this kit to fix bad suspension angles when they lower a car, I’m using it for correction because I’m raising mine!!
It looks so far like it will work as planned.
I know I may be wrong doing this but my hunch-o-meter tells otherwise to going to give it a shot.
Last edited by Pat Landymore; 02-27-2020 at 09:47 PM.
Thanks: 
Likes: 
Reply With Quote
) tailshaft seal. 
