oliver foster

The man in brown just showed up with my complete Diamond Eye 4 inch exhaust system WITH stainless muffler.
I have to get a few more 4 inch band clamps and wait for him to bring me a rear turbo wastegate housing gasket to have all my parts ready for my exhaust hanging party!
I want to take my daughter out to Carlisle in the RC if I can find the time to keep on top of this project.
Time to grab a bite to eat and head back to the shop and test build a rear spring pack!

freight train

Looking good Oli

oliver foster

Well the first test hybrid spring pack where I just added the first spring down from the main leaf from the W-250 to the complete existing RC rear leaf pack only netted me a strong 1/4. That is basically just the thickness of the spring itself. I will add the third leaf down from the main leaf of the W-250 next making it a 7 leaf spring pack and test that out.
I would like a fairly soft ride for the rear, but need to add about a 1 1/2 to the rear ride height to get it to sit where I want it. I don't want to just add a bigger block as I fear axle wrap...
More testing will ensue later, but it is time for dinner now.

thrashingcows

I will be putting the tubing in the floor for radiant heat....I've been convinced that even if I don't get it hooked up right away, I will regret not having the system ready to go.

Good to know about the spring packs.....I was just planning on tossing the 1st Gen rear springs in and hope for the best.

oliver foster

I just sent some more pictures to T-man of last weeks progress.
I am done with work for the day and headed out to the shop to work on the hybrid rear springs.
The girlfriend is starting to really hate my devotion to this project...

NJTman

Photos.....

oliver foster

The pictures above show the transmission install.
The cutting on the shifter holes using an old 4x4 5 speed transmission hump as a template.
There is also a picture of Tyler and me at the end of a long day of wrenching in front of the RC.
A couple of pictures show the cowl cracks that are typical of most 1st gens, and the welding I did to piece it back together.
If you look closely in the one picture that has the white crew cab clearly pictured in it you can see my daughter hanging out in the Mopar loft as we work.
The last picture shows the '70 B body pistol grip shifter we got to work with the old Getrag...It feels totally at home after heating and bending an old Getrag shifter lower stub to get the right lean, angle and twist. We had to pull it and heat it up with the oxy/act torch several times to get it to feel just right. I now smile every time I get in it. I have wanted a pistol grip Power Wagon or RC for almost 20 years, this seemed like just the right rig for the big fancy chrome shifter.

Tonight I think I have come up with a hybrid rear spring that I like the ride / height of.
It includes adding the 2nd spring down from the main spring and the 4th spring down from the main of a W-250 12V to the RC spring pack along with all the RC rear springs. It makes for a 7 leaf spring pack that still seems fairly soft, but has the needed height to get the rear end to not sit low of the W-250 front suspension package and still use the factory '89 3 inch spring blocks. The real test will be road time that I hope to see in a month or so once the roads clears up and the salt is washed away.

BHD

Awesome progress!!! Dude that ride is super clean!!! I am green with envy.

NJTman

Uh, its not that clean. There's a leaf on the passenger floorboard. Totally ruins it for me....

jrmcleod78

Really coming along Oliver and looking good. Can't wait to get mine started.
You have a fantastic work space there.
Seeing that bendpac hoist has me rethinking the 4 post 12,000 lbs I have to install. A 2 post may be more helpfull. I may have to sell the 4 post and re-invest
Really like your ideas on the rear springs, looking forward to see how it rides.

Cheers

JR

BHD

I see it now!!!! My head was still swollen this morning and I missed that detail, good eye!! Those leaves on the floor will rust it through in a matter of hours Ollie, you may as well just haul it to PA, I'll add it to the row out back.

oliver foster

Yeah I need to vacuum out the Arizona left over foliage and give it a good bath one of these days.

Thanks JR! I am glad you like the new shop space, it is the main reason I have not had the time or cash to work on the Gauntlet.
I spent most of the last two years saving cash, then ALL of last summer and fall building the new shop. It was basically a two man job, that I pulled off with a friend. We did it ALL, from cutting the trees, stumping, ditching, grading, all the foundation, radiant heat system and concrete work [I dragged in a few extra friends for the concrete pour day]. We did all the framing and built our own trusses using 2X4s and 2X6s milled off my own land. I set the trusses myself using a lift, followed by strapping, tin roofing, most of the insulation and all of the interior and exterior siding. My daughter helped with painting a lot of the OSB I used for the interior walls and ceiling.
I wanted to go with that 2 post lift to save as much floor space as possible to play musical Mopar in the shop. I finally put down the tool belt and picked up the wrench again a few months ago, but the new lift only went in 3 weeks ago.

Yesterday my buddy Walter and I swapped around some more leaf springs in the rear and I am supper happy with the end results. I ended up using the 2nd and 4th leaf down from a W-250 spring pack and retained all the RC springs and the factory 3 inch block.
I looks great, and stiffened up the rear end enough that it should still have a good rake when loaded with friends / family, over 400#s of English Mastiff or gear. We then "stole" a clean rear bumper off my '78 2wd Ramcharger project that is a few year out and cleaned it up. We had to tweak / hammer out a a small dent and then installed it after doing some custom wiring on the plate light. We also got the factory RC front bumper hung as well. After that we just hung out in the shop drinking beer and looking at the awesome job we did.

NJTman

Mo photos

NJTman

Even mo photos

oliver foster

The first round of pictures are of the Hydro boost mods.
I cut down a threaded bolt and the stub of the hydro boost rod and welded them together. I did this so we could use a nut to attach it to the threaded rod on the hydro boost that was existing on the RC when I got it. After starting it up and trying the brakes I discovered that the brakes went to the floor and they stayed there.
We discovered after taking it apart that after the PO did his work on the hydro boost unit, he did not re-assemble it with a return spring or the push rod that goes to the master cylinder. He painted it up nicely but didn't remember to install very key parts... This made it push to the floor and lock up. We dis-assembled a spare hydro boost unit I had on the shelf and we mix and matched parts and re assemble it all to save the day...more like night.

Then there are some pre fender install pictures and one of the custom bent up mid shifter stub for the pistol grip.

T-man you are awesome for adding pictures to my otherwise boring thread.