Here is our planned event list for this year (of course depending on weather, time, and such):
July 4th, 2009: Raymond, NH 4th of July Parade, 9AM, Raymond Town Common
July 10th, 2009: Raymond, NH Town Fair Fireman's Parade, 7PM, Raymond Town Common
August 15th, 2009: Deerfield, NH Old Home Day Parade, Deerfield Center
August 29th, 2009: Candia, NH Old Home Day Parade, Moore Park
September: Manchester, NH Fire Prevention Parade
Litchfield, NH Fire Prevention Parade
December: Hampstead, NH Christmas Parade
Monday, June 22, 2009
Monday, June 15, 2009
Crossing items off my list!
Things to Still Do Before Parade!
On another note, I took apart the remainder of the old engine that's been sitting on my dad's trailer since April. I harvested spare parts out of it (heads, valve train/lifters, timing gears, pulleys, etc.) and took out the crank and camshafts. I'm going to be scrapping the block in a few days as there is no hope for repair, and at least I'll get a little money out of it, unless someone wants it for some reason. If anyone does, let me know it's all yours!
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Parade Preparations
Almost a month has passed since the last update, and honestly, not much has changed. The truck is now registered and insured, but not inspected as of yet. I haven't had the time or energy to take the truck in for inspection since I've been wicked busy at work again (summertime, so the overtime opportunities have increased!) Some things have happened though:
Completed Items!
Completed Items!
- New License Plates! We're now registered as an antique with the plate "62IHC"!
- Truck is now located in Raymond, NH where I live, but will still be called the East Candia Volunteer Fire Department.
- We've entered our first parade: The Raymond 4th of July Parade. Come down and see us during the parade! We will then be in the Raymond Town Fair Parade the following Friday!
- Fuel gauge was repaired (faulty ground.) Fuel tank was also resealed.
- Pump was run from the tank....still flows water, but not well. I think it needs to be greased.
- All hose was removed, the hose bed was cleaned out, and the hose was repacked (all 1500' or so!)
- Booster reels were rewound.
- Pacific Pump (bumper mount portable) was finally repaired and now runs. Tested and it pulls a good draft, flows water very nicely!
Things to Still Do Before Parade!
- Oil pan will be dropped this weekend for cleaning, and an oil change will be done (hopefully all the crap in the block has fallen down into the pan!)
- AC generator is still down, but will be remounted for parade (requires a new carburetor.)
- Flasher units for front, rear, and side lights need to be replaced as they don't flash right. They are both turn signal flasher units, so the should be easy and cheap to replace.
- Throttle linkage needs slight adjustment.
- A few bolts are needed to secure bottom of grill cowling as it vibrates like crazy!
- New fuel filters (2) need to be installed. (One pre-pump and one pre-carburetor.)
- Another wash and wax, along with an interior vacuuming.
- Pacific Pump needs to be remounted on the bumper.
There is quite a laundry list of things, but it will get done over the next few weeks no problem. I've also been climbing around the truck to see how it's constructed for my future restoration I want to do in a few years. I'm planning (or at least when I get my house and garage that I want) to strip the truck to the frame and completely restore it myself (yes, just me, no professional help!) I think if I take a welding class, get a welding unit, and study my project I should be able to do it no problem. What I would like to do is take the truck body off of it, replace all the diamond plate and bad metal, remove the cab and replace the cab floor, sandblast the frame and paint it black, rework the pump and all the plumbing, then put it back together and get a new paint/lettering job. It will be a long project when I'm working on it, and I figured it will take me at least three to five years to complete. But with a full restoration like that, the truck will last a very long time with some TLC. Someday.
Monday, May 4, 2009
Getting things rolling even faster.........
Well a lot has happened since the last post about Engine 1. No, it didn't die in the driveway, and no, the new engine hasn't blown up. In fact, things have only gotten better!
With the truck all back together, hood and all, we've been doing idle tests on the engine in the driveway. After being concerned that the truck was overheating, I installed a combo temperature, oil pressure, and voltmeter gauge into the cab. We found that at idle speed, the truck heats to about 210, and when at 1000 RPM she drops to about 170. So we at least know the water pump is working. I'm not too crazy about 210 at idle....I think she's getting way to hot, but my father seems to think it's ok. I'm debating if I should change the water pump pulley to the smaller ones I have laying around. It would cause the pump to turn faster at an idle speed (right now the pump pulley is the same as the crank....the newer one is about 2/3 the size of the current) and hopefully lower her idle water temp. Seeing as that the truck is going to be doing a significant amount of idling at parades, it might not hurt to do it.
After our drive up the street we decided it would be best to check the timing with a timing light. We discovered that my hand timing when we put the dizzy in was about dead on....off by a degree or so. After a quick adjustment to be at zero degrees TDC, we were playing with the carburetor and noticed that we couldn't get it to adjust right. After a little diagnosis with starting fluid around the gaskets, we found that they were leaking pretty bad. We took the carb off, and found that I had also put a gasket on backwards, covering the intake holes about half way. DOH! After a bit of permatex gasket sealant, and putting the gaskets back on the right way, we were able to adjust the mixture screws properly and set the idle. A new throttle return spring was added as the old one had "lost it's spring" and was not returning the engine to idle after a stab of the accelerator. She now idles at a purring 500 RPM without a hiccup.
Last Thursday was spent changing the front tires. The original tires cracked pretty bad while sitting out in the sun for the last year or so, and were no longer road worthy (although they were saved as "emergency spares"). After a search, I found a pair of new Power King 750-20 bias ply tires for $148 each with tubes and flaps. I ordered them Tuesday, picked them up Wednesday, and the were mounted Thursday. After borrowing the 3/4" drive socket set from the Candia VFD, I was able to jack up the front with a 20 Ton bottle jack and take the lug nuts off with the 18" ratchet and 4' PVC cheater bar :). Worked like a charm, but my back was screaming after lifting 120 lbs tire/rim assemblies into my Jeep. Brought them to Stratham Tire in Brentwood, NH, where they did both tires in about 30 minutes! Back to the house, put the new tire/rims on (PITA when you have no help around), and we were done! Now we're cruising on new rubber!
Today we went out for another drive around the block. Wow, what a difference timing and a full-flowing, adjusted carb can make. After pulling out of the driveway, the truck was in second gear 1/4 of the way up the hill, and in third about 3/4 of the way up, without so much as a cough! Much much better than last time, when we cruised in first all the way, lacking power, and couldn't get above 20 MPH in third on the flats! After hitting the top of the hill, I was able to pop her into fourth, and we cruised down the street at 40 in a 35 :). Around the block, and back, no problems to report!
Tomorrow (or today, rather, now that I looked at my clock) it's off the the town clerk for registration, and then to the inspection place down the street for a sticker. After that, to the gas station, and hopefully off to the car wash for a bath (because she's gross- you would be too after a year and a half under a tarp!).
Almost there!
With the truck all back together, hood and all, we've been doing idle tests on the engine in the driveway. After being concerned that the truck was overheating, I installed a combo temperature, oil pressure, and voltmeter gauge into the cab. We found that at idle speed, the truck heats to about 210, and when at 1000 RPM she drops to about 170. So we at least know the water pump is working. I'm not too crazy about 210 at idle....I think she's getting way to hot, but my father seems to think it's ok. I'm debating if I should change the water pump pulley to the smaller ones I have laying around. It would cause the pump to turn faster at an idle speed (right now the pump pulley is the same as the crank....the newer one is about 2/3 the size of the current) and hopefully lower her idle water temp. Seeing as that the truck is going to be doing a significant amount of idling at parades, it might not hurt to do it.
After our drive up the street we decided it would be best to check the timing with a timing light. We discovered that my hand timing when we put the dizzy in was about dead on....off by a degree or so. After a quick adjustment to be at zero degrees TDC, we were playing with the carburetor and noticed that we couldn't get it to adjust right. After a little diagnosis with starting fluid around the gaskets, we found that they were leaking pretty bad. We took the carb off, and found that I had also put a gasket on backwards, covering the intake holes about half way. DOH! After a bit of permatex gasket sealant, and putting the gaskets back on the right way, we were able to adjust the mixture screws properly and set the idle. A new throttle return spring was added as the old one had "lost it's spring" and was not returning the engine to idle after a stab of the accelerator. She now idles at a purring 500 RPM without a hiccup.
Last Thursday was spent changing the front tires. The original tires cracked pretty bad while sitting out in the sun for the last year or so, and were no longer road worthy (although they were saved as "emergency spares"). After a search, I found a pair of new Power King 750-20 bias ply tires for $148 each with tubes and flaps. I ordered them Tuesday, picked them up Wednesday, and the were mounted Thursday. After borrowing the 3/4" drive socket set from the Candia VFD, I was able to jack up the front with a 20 Ton bottle jack and take the lug nuts off with the 18" ratchet and 4' PVC cheater bar :). Worked like a charm, but my back was screaming after lifting 120 lbs tire/rim assemblies into my Jeep. Brought them to Stratham Tire in Brentwood, NH, where they did both tires in about 30 minutes! Back to the house, put the new tire/rims on (PITA when you have no help around), and we were done! Now we're cruising on new rubber!
Today we went out for another drive around the block. Wow, what a difference timing and a full-flowing, adjusted carb can make. After pulling out of the driveway, the truck was in second gear 1/4 of the way up the hill, and in third about 3/4 of the way up, without so much as a cough! Much much better than last time, when we cruised in first all the way, lacking power, and couldn't get above 20 MPH in third on the flats! After hitting the top of the hill, I was able to pop her into fourth, and we cruised down the street at 40 in a 35 :). Around the block, and back, no problems to report!
Tomorrow (or today, rather, now that I looked at my clock) it's off the the town clerk for registration, and then to the inspection place down the street for a sticker. After that, to the gas station, and hopefully off to the car wash for a bath (because she's gross- you would be too after a year and a half under a tarp!).
Almost there!
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Getting things rolling..........
Things are going well with Engine 1. Now that the engine is in and the front is all back together we've been working on little issues here and there.
We were having problems with the stock oil pressure and temperature gauges not reading, so we took the dash apart and found that the cluster voltage regulator was bad. Replacement from NAPA, with no guarantee of compatibility, was $40 plus shipping. So we skipped on that for now. I was able to take the old one apart and clean up the contacts...the gauges are working, but I don't trust their accuracy. I went to Advance Auto Parts and picked up a set of gauges (three in one unit) which read temperature, oil pressure, and voltage. All good things to know while the truck is running! After getting them installed, we found that the cooling system works fine....she heats up to about 190 while idling, and when revved she drops to 160-170 and stays there. Perfectly fine for me. Oil pressure runs a tad high at cold idle (about 40 PSI), but drops to 20 PSI when hot idling. Really good numbers for an old IH SV engine!! That confirms that the main and cam bearings are all good. Voltage hovers around 13 volts, which is good.
The truck got a new fuse panel as well by using a Seacraft panel purchased from Ace Hardware for $16. We think the old panel was shorting out because we would loose lights, turn signals, and panel lights intermittently. Every time we would try and diagnose the issue the we would find that when we wiggled the fuse panel things would come back up. Rather than dealing with a possible electrical fire from the panel, and having to constantly chase the issue down, we just opted to replace the thing.
Tires have been another issue we had to solve. The current front tires cracked while sitting out in the sun for a year and a half, and the rears seemed to survive ok (there is minor cracking, but not as bad as the front). Being an old truck, it has Budd lock ring rims and 750-20 bias ply tube type tires. What a PITA to find. After a week long search, I found a pair of Power King 10 plys at a local tire shop for $148 each with tubes and flaps. Pretty good price, if you ask me, considering that I found some different ones that were $216 each, without the tubes/flaps, plus I would have to pay for shipping from California ($$$!!!). I'm excited, and tomorrow will be spent getting the tires changed at Stratham Tire in Brentwood, NH.
The truck actually did make it out onto the road Monday night (albeit illegally) for a quick road test. The truck did pretty well, making it down the driveway and a quick brake test was performed.....the brakes held very nicely on my hill of a driveway. Out the driveway and to the right we went, up the Langford Road hill. We stayed in first gear (we could have gone into second gear, but didn't want to push it) and she pulled all the way up the hill, staying in a normal temperature range and good oil pressure. It was a slow ride, but it was nice to know she can pull herself up without issue. Once at the top, second gear was a breeze, and when we got into third we had a little bit of coughing and backfiring. Noted the issue, went to the turnaround spot, and went back home with no problems at all. A good first trip for an engine that hasn't run in a while, and for the truck that hasn't moved in over a year.
After the tires get changed, we're going to double check the timing with a light and make sure that the initial timing is correct, that the vacuum advance is working, and that the mechanical advance is also good. Once the timing is set, if we are still having issues we're going to rebuild the carburetor (I have a kit ready to go). It's won't hurt for it to get cleaned up completely!
Pictures will be coming!
We were having problems with the stock oil pressure and temperature gauges not reading, so we took the dash apart and found that the cluster voltage regulator was bad. Replacement from NAPA, with no guarantee of compatibility, was $40 plus shipping. So we skipped on that for now. I was able to take the old one apart and clean up the contacts...the gauges are working, but I don't trust their accuracy. I went to Advance Auto Parts and picked up a set of gauges (three in one unit) which read temperature, oil pressure, and voltage. All good things to know while the truck is running! After getting them installed, we found that the cooling system works fine....she heats up to about 190 while idling, and when revved she drops to 160-170 and stays there. Perfectly fine for me. Oil pressure runs a tad high at cold idle (about 40 PSI), but drops to 20 PSI when hot idling. Really good numbers for an old IH SV engine!! That confirms that the main and cam bearings are all good. Voltage hovers around 13 volts, which is good.
The truck got a new fuse panel as well by using a Seacraft panel purchased from Ace Hardware for $16. We think the old panel was shorting out because we would loose lights, turn signals, and panel lights intermittently. Every time we would try and diagnose the issue the we would find that when we wiggled the fuse panel things would come back up. Rather than dealing with a possible electrical fire from the panel, and having to constantly chase the issue down, we just opted to replace the thing.
Tires have been another issue we had to solve. The current front tires cracked while sitting out in the sun for a year and a half, and the rears seemed to survive ok (there is minor cracking, but not as bad as the front). Being an old truck, it has Budd lock ring rims and 750-20 bias ply tube type tires. What a PITA to find. After a week long search, I found a pair of Power King 10 plys at a local tire shop for $148 each with tubes and flaps. Pretty good price, if you ask me, considering that I found some different ones that were $216 each, without the tubes/flaps, plus I would have to pay for shipping from California ($$$!!!). I'm excited, and tomorrow will be spent getting the tires changed at Stratham Tire in Brentwood, NH.
The truck actually did make it out onto the road Monday night (albeit illegally) for a quick road test. The truck did pretty well, making it down the driveway and a quick brake test was performed.....the brakes held very nicely on my hill of a driveway. Out the driveway and to the right we went, up the Langford Road hill. We stayed in first gear (we could have gone into second gear, but didn't want to push it) and she pulled all the way up the hill, staying in a normal temperature range and good oil pressure. It was a slow ride, but it was nice to know she can pull herself up without issue. Once at the top, second gear was a breeze, and when we got into third we had a little bit of coughing and backfiring. Noted the issue, went to the turnaround spot, and went back home with no problems at all. A good first trip for an engine that hasn't run in a while, and for the truck that hasn't moved in over a year.
After the tires get changed, we're going to double check the timing with a light and make sure that the initial timing is correct, that the vacuum advance is working, and that the mechanical advance is also good. Once the timing is set, if we are still having issues we're going to rebuild the carburetor (I have a kit ready to go). It's won't hurt for it to get cleaned up completely!
Pictures will be coming!
Tuesday, April 21, 2009
Video of the First Engine Start in 15 Years.
So here is the video from Monday when the truck started up for the first time. The truck it's self hasn't run in over a year. The engine, on the other hand, was removed from an old International Scout about 15 years ago and sat on an engine crane in someone's garage since. I picked up the engine in early 2008 to replace the bad motor.
(Ok, so this isn't the first time it's fired. We did fire it with starting fluid on Sunday just to be sure we would even fire. This is the first time she really started and ran for any length of time.)
That's my girlfriend Katherin holding the camera and making comments about things. She was the motivator for me to finally get the truck back on the road. Thanks, hunny! (But I think it's because she 1.) wants to ride in it and play with the lights/sirens and 2.) she wants to drive it.)
We were having some problems keeping her running (stale gas), and a few problems with the battery jumper while trying to get her running. The smoke you see cleared up soon after we stopped recording, and I'm thinking it was just oil in the cylinders and the exhaust buring off.
After a carb adjustment later in the day, she was running like a champ and actually moved under her own power down the driveway, into a 3-point turn (always fun without power steering), and back up to a different spot so we could clean up the spare parts and tools.
Pop some popcorn and enjoy the show!
I've also decided that when we go to parades we're going to set the camera up on a tripod on top of the truck behind the cab. I think that would be a pretty cool video!
(Ok, so this isn't the first time it's fired. We did fire it with starting fluid on Sunday just to be sure we would even fire. This is the first time she really started and ran for any length of time.)
That's my girlfriend Katherin holding the camera and making comments about things. She was the motivator for me to finally get the truck back on the road. Thanks, hunny! (But I think it's because she 1.) wants to ride in it and play with the lights/sirens and 2.) she wants to drive it.)
We were having some problems keeping her running (stale gas), and a few problems with the battery jumper while trying to get her running. The smoke you see cleared up soon after we stopped recording, and I'm thinking it was just oil in the cylinders and the exhaust buring off.
After a carb adjustment later in the day, she was running like a champ and actually moved under her own power down the driveway, into a 3-point turn (always fun without power steering), and back up to a different spot so we could clean up the spare parts and tools.
Pop some popcorn and enjoy the show!
I've also decided that when we go to parades we're going to set the camera up on a tripod on top of the truck behind the cab. I think that would be a pretty cool video!
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