Let me tell you how my last 3 weeks have been.
It all started a few days before Xmas, I got a tax bill from '97 stating I
owed $1600.00, damned if they weren't correct. Cha-Ching. This is just
after the wife does all the Xmas shopping. Cha-Ching.
A week later I'm driving home from work in my IROC, and fart, sputter,
SERVICE ENGINE SOON light comes one, trace it back to the MAF sensor (about
260 bucks) and say, heck, I'll just get the '59 back on the road untillall
the earlier Cha-Chings wear off.
I'd had my '59 at my Dads place for the past 6-7 months, I set up a new
rear for it (Dana-44, 3.54 posi) and early in December stuck it under the
truck. The truck has been on jack stands over the pit since then, I decided
I'd just put power brakes in it and be done with it, so I ripped out all the
wheel cylinders (pitted) brake lines (gunky) and the M/C (salvagable).
So, after muddling around gathering new wheel cylinders and getting some
brakeline, I figured, ah, spend a a Sunday, miss a few playoff games and I'll
be back on the road, forget about the PB's for now.
Well, a week and a half ago on Sunday night, getting ready to install the
last rear wheel cylinder, I find out it was the wrong one in the correct box.
Delay, where do you find a new WC for a '64 GMC rear at 8:00pm on a Sunday
night? You don't.
No problem say's Mom, take my Buick home for the week and get your truck
next week.
Cool.
Two days after having the Buick, spit, sputter, SERVICE ENGINE SOON light
comes on. Damn, what do iIknow about a '89 Buick witha Quad4 in it? Not a
damn thing, I say to myself.
Well, I get to digging in, figure out what's wrong with the Buick (bad ICM
module and coil tower carbon tracking) cost about $170.00 in
parts....Cha-Ching.
So I take the day off work toaday to get the Buick back up to her and
finish my truck (The WC came in), and get it all together, bleed'em up good,
throw on a old set of coil over shocks on the rear I had kicking around, put
a set of gas shocks on the front (have NO idea where I aquirred those at) eat
a quick bite and prepare myself for:
1. Driving a 40+ year old truck that I haven't driven or started up (other
than into the shop) for 6 or 7 months.
2. The 90 mile drive back to my place on a fresh rear that I setup, and
haven't even got to test drive.
So after a quick bite to eat, I fire the '59 up, the ol 235 sounds normal,
seems to be running a bit rich, I set the idle speed up to about 1400 rpms
and let'er run for about 20 minutes, still a bit rich, but what the heck,
I'll deal with it when I get it home.
So I back it out the shop, get it headed toward the gate, and she dies.
Got gas? yep, got spark? Nope. Got emery board under the seat for cases
like this? Yep. Buff the points with the emery board, wife's probably been
looking for that for awhile:), point it out the driveway and take off. Stop
and fill'er up, and off I go.
Runs like a top, no whine in the rear, covers the 90miles like it hasn't
been parked at all.
As my my subject title says, seems like the old iron is the best iron.
See ya, gotta get over the "giddies" about her running home so well.
Mike
oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
|