'70 Sport Custom Rebuild- She's been adopted!

[Fordnatic]

Good project.

[sargentrs]

Thanks! Slowly but surely she's coming together.

[sargentrs]

Sandblasted the rear end and u-bolt brackets, 2 coats POR-15 and topcoat gloss black. After I got it blasted, went to get the camera and realized I had left in my other car which my stepson borrowed. Then went to get the house camera and found out my wife loaned it to the daughter-in-law. Trust me, it looked great after blasting! Here's the finished paint job. Next up? I think I'll clean, blast and paint my power steering gear box from the '71 donor truck.

[hivewax]

Wow, taking the leaf springs apart must of been a chore! Some questions:

1. Are you sandblasting outside, not saving the media?
2. What media are you using and what's the cost?

I'm looking to purchase a media blaster.

Thanks.

[sargentrs]

Dug out the p/s gear box and went at it next. Before, blasted and 2 coats POR-15 pics. Going to pick up some silver engine enamel tomorrow and try to get it coated this weekend. I chose silver so I could see any leaks if they occur. Besides, I think it'll look good against the black frame. The condition of the gear box looked pretty good. Didn't see any heavy gunk buildup that would indicate leaks, just a light coating of dust and road grime. When I took the hoses loose a little red fluid came out. I'm assuming the PO used AT fluid instead of power steering fluid. But the fluid looked good with no indication of water in it so I think the gear box may actually be OK. I put the hoses on it before blasting because I didn't want to take the chance of getting sand or paint inside. I can always replace hoses. Not sure what I'm going to do next. The 'ol "truck fund" is exhausted. I'll probably just blast and paint miscellaneous parts with the last of the POR-15 and gloss black until I can afford to buy something. Thanks for all the encouragement!

[Fordnatic]

I think there is a re-coat time limit on POR-15. Paint may not stick if you exceed it?

[sargentrs]

Hmmm, interesting. I didn't read that anywhere. Here's the "application" notes from the Eastwood website.

"First, remove loose rust, scale, and paint with a wire brush. Also remove any dirt, oil, or grease. The coating is dry to the touch in 20 minutes and thoroughly dries in 3 to 4 hours at 68 degrees. A second coat can be applied 1 hour after the first. Allow 6 to 8 hours after the last coat of Rust Encapsulator before applying top coat. Can be used over or under body fillers. Can be top coated with lacquer, enamel, and urethane coatings."

I try to wait about an hour between coats of POR-15 and next day on the Chassis Black. Seemed to work OK that way on my frame. I'll check it out with the silver top coat on the gear box. I'll probably find out the hard way after I pressure wash the frame before I put the cab and bed back on. That would really put a damper on my day. Thanks for the heads up!

[sargentrs]

Just so ya'll know I haven't been idle. Ordered leaf spring bushings, axle u-bolts, misc hardware and blasted, POR-15 and painted engine perches, tranny x/m and radius arms. Reassembly to begin soon!

[forrestbump]

Looks Great Randy!! Thank YOU for the updates!

[sargentrs]

Got my polygraphite leaf spring bushings in yesterday and put them in today. I called Energy Suspension first and was really impressed by their tech/sales rep. The guy was VERY knowledgeable and knew his product catalog front and back. He helped me pick out the right ones for my truck with the Flex-o-matic brackets. I started telling him I had the Flex.... and he said Flex-o-matic immediately. Then I called p-s-t and was sadly disappointed by their rep. He sounded disinterested and was short and to the point with no discussion. I didn't get that warm fuzzy that he was telling me the right thing or even knew what I was talking about. I wound up ordering the Energy Suspension. Have to go through a dealer so I ordered them from Summit Racing http://www.summitracing.com/parts/ENS-4-2139G/ Here's how they looked...

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I spread a little of the supplied lube around the edge of one of the bushings and slid it into place with a little squeeze. Just enough resistance to make you feel good about the fit. Lubed up another one and pushed it in. It was a little tighter and needed a bit more ummpphhh.

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[sargentrs]

Then lubed up the sleeve and pushed it in a little. It didn't go in but about 3/4" and I ran out of a$$ so I broke out the clamp and squeezed it right in.

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Nice and tight. No problem!

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Finished putting them in the shackle and that's when I hit the first snag. The old OEM bushings have that metal sleeve pressed in to contain the bushing. These have a shoulder all the round clear out to the outside edge. This causes a little interference with the bushing and the hanger which won't let the bracket seat all the way down and causes interference with the bolt sliding through.

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[sargentrs]

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Not too bad though. A little squeeze with a C clamp and the bolt slid right through.

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Got the rest of 'em seated and mounted the springs.

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[sargentrs]

Reassembly has officially begun! Just gotta get the nuts on and torque 'em down then do the other side and I'm ready to hang the axle housing.

[67mann]

Nice job Randy.....great feeling when ya start re assembling

[whiteblur]

Reassembly has officially begun! Just gotta get the nuts on and torque 'em down then do the other side and I'm ready to hang the axle housing.

Just tighten the bolts up, don't torque or do a final tightening on any of the suspension bolts until its completely assembled. If you do it wont allow the suspension to relax. Just a general rule