1952 Dodge B3b 1/2 Ton, Cummins Diesel

[1952B3b23]

I got some more done on the front suspension tonight. Installed the drag link, tie rod, steering box and disc brake kit. Obviously i grabbed a hold of the steering wheel and made vroom vroom noises while turning the wheel back and forth It feels good to see the front suspension together, even though it still needs to come off to get the frame blasted.

One thing i am having trouble with is installing the spring clip that hold the pads in place on the calipers. Ive attached some pics of the caliper and clips, does any one know how it goes together? They're calipers from a '78-'87 Chevy Caprice.

Thanks for looking,

-Chris

 

[Old Iron]

Like this on the back of the inner pad

 

[1952B3b23]

Thanks a lot Old Iron, exactly what i needed! I'm guessing that since the brake pad kit came with four of those clips i use two per inner pad?

Heres another question, do you guys know how tight i should make the spindle nut that holds on the brake rotor? Is there a torque spec somewhere?

Thank you,

-Chris

 

[maverickmk]

The clip goes on the pad first then it slips into the piston.
As for the torque on the spindle nut, usually hand tighten then about a quarter to half turn from there to take up any slack but not too tight to cause binding. I will hand tighten it, then give it a small turn of the nut then spin it to see if there is any significant drag. You will have to line up the castle nut to the cotter pin hole in the spindle as well.

 

[Old Iron]

Chris, you only use one of the retainers on each rear pad

 

[1952B3b23]

Thank you Old Iron and maverickmk. Yea ill use that procedure for tightening the castle nuts. I thought since the kit had four of them it needed two a piece, good to know it only takes one.

-Chris

 

[falconvan]

Great progress! This is going to be one killer ride!

 

[1952B3b23]

Great progress! This is going to be one killer ride!

Thanks man. I think I've said this a million times but I can't wait to get the motor and tranny in and have a rolling chassis again. That'll be a huge step for me.

-Chris

 

[1952B3b23]

I got a little more work done today. I was able to get the rest of the front suspension together. Then i took the frame down off of my home made frame rotisserie and threw some wheels on. Those are not the wheels and tires i will be using on the truck, theyre the old ones that came with it when i bought it.

Thanks for looking,

-Chris

 

[maverickmk]

Coming right along, looks good.

 

[1952B3b23]

Thanks maverick

 

[1952B3b23]

Since i now have he front end back together i decided to put the motor in there and see what i was up against. At first i had some serious problems. The starter and steering box wanted to occupy the same space and i had almost no room to push the motor towards the passenger side to gain clearance (pic 1). Plus its a big ole starter off my 1992 12 valve 6bt so gaining enough room for it was not gunna happen. This setup of having the starter on the drivers side is with the adapter plate that mates to the Getrag G360 bell housing that i wanted to use. My main reason for using this tranny was because i got it for free and its a 5 speed with OD so its nice for cruising.

So i grabbed a beer and started thinking about my dilemma. Thats when i remembered that the borg warner T19 tranny that i got with my 4bt had the starter on the passenger side. I pulled the Getrag starter and adapter plate off and put on the starter and adapter plate off the T19. Put the motor back between the rails and she just about fits like a glove. Moving the starter to the passenger side was exactly what i needed. The motor will now be able to be centered nicely in the rails, and along with running a front sump oil pan there is no clearance issues between the drag link or axle. I also wanted to keep it as low as possible without creating problems so i can keep the center of gravity low and close the hood without issue. The only thing i dont like about running the T19 is that its a 4 speed and has a very low granny gear for 1st. It was out of a box truck so thats no surprise. I wonder if i had the tranny rebuilt if they could swap my low first gear for something a bit higher, any one know if thats possible? Ive attached a bunch of pics for your viewing pleasure. Picture 1 is of the starter/steering box problem, the rest are with the starter on the passenger side.

Thanks for looking,

-Chris

 

[1952B3b23]

I got a little work done today. I set the rear end in place using a trick that i learned on this forum. I tacked two exhaust clamps to either side of each of the leaf spring perches so that i could clamp the perches in place. The pinion angle will only be set later on when all the weight is on the chassis.

Then i slapped the cab on the frame and put the motor between the rails to see how things are looking. So far so good, looks like ill have to recess the firewall a bit to clear the bell housing but thats no big deal. Theres plenty of clearance for the hood as well as clearance between the oil pan and axle/drag link. Man the truck looks tall as hell in the front with no weight on the chassis, maybe i should go gasser style haha.

I also worked on the steering column. I cut off the linkages for the three on the tree and smoothed the holes left behind, came out decent. Heres some pics for your viewing pleasure.

Thanks for looking,

-Chris

 

[1952B3b23]

Heres some more pics. The last pic attempts to show the clearance between the turbo outlet and firewall. The firewall may have to be recessed a little for the 3 inch down pipe.

-Chris

 

[falconvan]

Looking great, Chris! You're kicking butt on this thing!

 

[1952B3b23]

Looking great, Chris! You're kicking butt on this thing!

Thanks a lot man! I'm really trying hard to get as much done as I can, basically all my free time is spent in the garage.

-Chris

 

[ratrodney]

Sweet ride buddy! Love the molar stuff.
what kinda horse n tourque numbers does it make? Rr[cl

 

[1952B3b23]

Sweet ride buddy! Love the molar stuff.
what kinda horse n tourque numbers does it make? Rr[cl

Yea she should be pretty damn cool when it's all said and done. Stock it makes 105 hp and about 240 ft-lb. I have some engine mods in mind to turn up the power a bit, I'd like to see around 150 hp and around 300-400 ft-lbs.
I can't go to crazy though cause I don't know how happy the Mopar 8-3/4 rear will be with that much torque. It should be more than enough to push the truck around at a decent clip. It'll never tow/haul anything and it'll be pretty light so all that helps to.

Thanks for the comment,

-Chris

 

[1952B3b23]

I was able to get a little work done this weekend, made the motor mounts that attach to the engine block. It took me awhile to figure out how i wanted them but all in all i think they came out well. They're made out of 1/4" plate, should be plenty strong for the 4bt. I also attached a pic of the hydraulic fluid filled mounts that im using. Ive heard very good things about them for 4bts. They help cut down on the vibrations a lot and thats always a good thing.

Thanks for looking,

-Chris

 

[Dirtyrat]

Looks like you are moving right along!
The hydraulic mounts are stock on a lot of newer cars, should do just what you expect, cut down on vibrations!