Saturday, Aug.
14, 2004
- Spent the day in the shop today getting the front end put back
together....well, most of it, anyway.
I started out by
installing the PST polygraphite suspension bushings into the I-beams and
connecting the radius arms to them as well. Once I got started actually
installing each set onto the frame, it dawned on me that I'd neglected
to sandblast the coil spring retainers, so I had to fire up the
sandblaster again for a few minutes to get those cleaned up and painted.
Got the two sides pretty much installed, and was ready to hit the parts
store to get the last items I really needed: the rotors. However, I'd
neglected to check their Saturday hours, and both stores in town were
closed by that time.
I did run run by local
farm supply store and stocked up on Grade 5 bolts, nuts and washers. I
needed these for various things, like the front crossmember, the tranny
crossmember and the auxiliary tank mounting brackets.
|
Fig. 1 - These are the
PST polygraphite front suspension bushings. Each bushing set is actually
a total of five pieces.
Fig. 2 - Here's a shot of the front suspension mostly installed.
After this pic was taken I also installed the front shocks.
|
I then got started
doing a final complete mockup of the auxiliary fuel tank and skid plate.
This is the inboard tank that sits under the back half of the cab and
the front half of the box, with the filler opening in the box. I wanted
to completely install it, to make sure I had all the brackets and that
anything that needed to be modified or fabricated was noted. I'd done a
quick mockup a while back, but I wanted this one to be complete. I did
have to make a few changes. Since this tank was originally installed on
a long bed, the rear mounting arm for the skid plate had to be moved
towards the rear of the truck several inches to clear the rear
crossmember. Since this tank setup is used on both long and shortbox
trucks, the necessary holes were already there. I also had to remove one
rivet from the rear crossmember to mount the tank's rear retaining strap
bracket. Here are a few shots of the installation mockup: |