'34 Dodge Brothers, double build.

[MercuryMac]

I can't brag about this reducer yet, because I haven't driven one. Today I tweaked and adjusted the steering system, bolted it in for the last time, and steered the truck, [on jacks]. The rack and pinion cross steer doesn't let the truck turn very sharp, but it's easy to steer.
[pic one] is the finished steering shaft.
I then did some little things inside the cab, like took the choke cable out and the key switch.

 

[MercuryMac]

I took up the floor boards today and plumbed in the hydraulic clutch, [pic one]. Then came the system bleeding, what a horrible job. I finally got the slave cylinder working, but I noticed the pedal stroke was getting less and less. With all the pumping the pedal, I broke a cast iron weird shaped gismo that drives the master cylinder. I'm making a new iron one now.

 

[MercuryMac]

Here's a picture of the clutch apparatus that I broke yesterday, [pic one]. It is now brazed up.
While I was waiting for it to cool, I thought I'd do some dash work. [pic two], I replaced the ignition switch and 're-knobbed' the choke cable, shortened it and mounted it to the centre carb, [pic three]. The choke actuating mechanism was bent a wee bit so it wouldn't let the choke close all of the way. I snapped the vise-grips on the offending piece and adjusted it ever-so-slightly, and it broke off. So I had to take the carburetor apart and take the choke shaft out and try to weld this little wee piece back on, --- without success. I finally welded a nail on there and then cut it off.

 

[MercuryMac]

The last few days, have been sideways progress, at best.
I brazed up my clutch linkage and had to move the keyway inside the castiron ring. I finally brazed the old key way full and ground a new key in the brass. Now the whole mess is back in the truck and functional, [pic one].
I thought I'd take the black plastic light switch knob off and put on the clear fake glass one that I had. That worked alright until I tried to hook the light switch shaft back into the switch. It didn't feel right at all. I had to take the switch apart and found out that a little piece was out of place. Anyhow it might be fixed up now. [pic two].

 

[BillM]

You are one perseverant MF MM! Looking at your steering u joints though - are you sure you don't need a support bearing or two? I had a heck of a time with the steering on the 46 Ford I just finished and after many discussions with Borgeson, I had add one as well. He insisted that once you go over two u joints, you need a support bearing for every u joint added. I was using two singles and a double and thought I could get away with only one but he insisted I needed two supports.

 

[MercuryMac]

Bill, I almost used a double U-joint in one place and then I would have needed more support bearings, but with singles on there and that quickener in the system, acting as a steady bearing, I should be all right.

I fiddled with my light switch again today, even lathed the dash side of the 'glass' knob in a wee bit so it could go further in and shut the lights off completely. You guys can tell this is going to be a high end ratrod when the dash knobs match each other. [pic one].
Years ago, one of my cousins was working on one of those big dam projects. They would put a thick dense foam pad on the new cement at the end of the day so it wouldn't heal up very fast. Then in the morning they would throw it all away. My cousin grabbed a pick up load of this used foam and brought it home. He gave me a bunch. [Pic two] is me mounting it under the floor boards for sound insulation, dust control and heat suppression. This particular piece of 'elephant hide' was a sound barrier under the floor of one of my tractors for the previous fifty years.