Follow Up to Last Saturday

In the aftermath of shifting everything around in the garage on Saturday, I've spent a good deal of time this week starting to clean up and organize the garage. Again. As those of you that know me well can attest, I've got my hands into a lot of different things. And of course with those things come, well, things. Parts, equipment, tools, and just stuff. And you also know that I have a hard time throwing stuff away that might still be of use. It just seems wasteful to get rid of something for the sole reason that i just don't need or want it anymore. Now being married has forced helped me to start to see that this really isn't always optimal. Now, maybe if I lived in a huge house with a six car garage and a dozen sheds and a barn, or something like that, It wouldn't be an issue. Though it probably would. It doesn't take long to expand enough to fill the space you occupy.

That being said, I've started talking a good hard look at some of the things I've got in the garage, on the porch, and in the house. And not just truck stuff, but all sorts of things. If I'm going to get serious about this project, I'm just going to have to make some changes and try to gear toward that. Of course I need to hang on to all my tools- most of them will (or might) come in useful for the restoration, but I also still have a house to maintain and improve, boats to build annually, and I'll be moving on to other projects if when the restoration is done. I also sort of need clean clothes, and since the garage is the only really suitable spot for the appliances that make that possible, I guess those won't be going anywhere. I've got a large amount of wood- scraps, boards, panels- that probably should get sorted through. How much lumber am I ever going to use? Always more, since I seem to keep having to go to the store for it, but I digress. I guess it's just a case of having the size and shape I need. The same is true for the pile of metal I've accumulated.

Enough about that. Suffice to say, I'm rearranging the garage and storage areas to prioritize the restoration project.

So let's actually talk about the truck. I spend most of my available Sunday mornings searching craigslist for truck parts, before the wife wakes up. This week, I struck gold. Check it out:

I picked up this brand new, never used replacement gas tank and sending unit for $75! Those were some of the parts I had on my list that I've shopped around for, so I can tell you that I would have paid $200 for this setup from the different parts vendors. The tank still had the coating of rust-protectant oil on it from the manufacturer! I'm going to maybe toss some of those silica gel packets in it or something and probably put it in the attic for safekeeping.

A lot of people that restore these trucks mount aftermarket gas tanks under the bed and block off the hole where the fuel neck was. I'm sure a lot of folks do it for the convenience of the extra space behind the seat. Other people are scared to be riding around with up to 20 gallons of volatile liquid in the cab with them. While the extra space might be nice, I'm not afraid of the gas tank, since it's been there all this time (in my truck and so many others) with no problem. That being said, that may make unloading my old tank a bit difficult, since replacements are readily available and people like to move them. If any of you are interested, though, let me know.

The same guy who sold me the tank also had this:

If you take a look at my last post in September, I show where the louvered cowl piece behind the hood had some damage. This guy had one that came off a '60. Two of the little dividers are a bit bent out of shape, but that's a much easier fix then what I was looking at before. I'm pretty sure you can't even buy these aftermarket, so I was pretty happy to come up with one.

I told myself I wasn't going to mess with the truck until I got the garage cleaned up (and a list of other household projects that have been waiting for me). But yesterday I went out to try a little test. If you'll recall, Saturday when I tried to roll the thing out, I could not get the truck into gear. I haven't crawled up underneath to pull the flywheel cover and take a look, but I thought that maybe, just maybe the clutch plate is just stuck to the flywheel or the pressure plate.** So I thought, maybe I can break it loose by putting the truck into gear, holding the brakes, and hitting the starter. I put the truck in first and turned the key. Then I put it into reverse and tried again. I rocked it back and forth like that a few times. Sadly, it didn't work. I guess that means a trip underneath. Fortunately, in cleaning up I assembled my new creeper. It was still in its box from a few Christmases ago, but I needed the shelf space for tarps, so I decided to hang it on the wall instead.

So, sorry to ramble on about more personal kind of stuff, but I thought it would give you some insight into where the project is at right now. Hopefully my next post will have more actual content.

Oh, my Christmas list went out to my family this week, can't wait to see how that works out!



**- If you have no idea what I'm talking about, rather than re-invent the wheel, there are several videos on YouTube that explain the components and workings of the clutch. I recommend these three:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BaECAbapRg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfjGohWy-OU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qd-XHCTS0iY