1996 2 door flareside TRX KILLER!

[Roert42]

What one of your various projects has been abandoned?

They all seem like fairly interesting projects, but this one seemed the most likely to be abandoned. Now I’m curious.

 

[Blmpkn]

What one of your various projects has been abandoned?

They all seem like fairly interesting projects, but this one seemed the most likely to be abandoned. Now I’m curious.

The Caprice wagon drag car.

I had to get myself out of a bad relationship a year or two ago and unfortunately that required selling a BUNCH of big dollar parts I had accumulated for it. Don't even like looking at the car anymore honestly.. bums me out that it's not happening any more AND still really pisses me off as to WHY it's not happening. It is what it is though. Life goes on. Pick your partners better.

I DO have a pair of spare full-size GM axles that COULD find their way underneath the wagon at some point though do some real redneck shit with it..

 

[Blmpkn]

Bought the rest of what I need to prep for corroseal & paint over the weekend..a can of kleen-strip to dissolve the rest of the POS15 that's stuck to the frame here n there, a gallon of degreaser, a pressure washer, some gloves, paint brushes..

Also re-upped on penetrating oil, bought a new torch, some neversieze, and found somewhere to buy all the hardware I need at a reasonable price.


Also sent an email to BoPort concerning the status of my head. As one would imagine.. this is their busiest time of the year... 3 week lead time.. but according to Bo I can expect to get the "your order has shipped!" Email on Friday. Hell yaaaaaasssss!

I gotta say, every time I've sent an email to them asking questions or whatever... I get an *instant reply* Excellent customer service, rare thing these days! If you're in the market (and got the pocket depth) for performance Lima stuff.. do yourself a favor and give BoPort your business.

 

[Curious Hound]

Also re-upped on penetrating oil, bought a new torch, some neversieze, and found somewhere to buy all the hardware I need at a reasonable price.

Updating basic resources is always a good thing.

 

[Blmpkn]

Updating basic resources is always a good thing.

Indeed.. even the simplest of tasks can be brought to a screeeeeching halt without the proper shop supplies lol.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

If your brakes are screeching, don't use neversieze or penetrating oil...

 

[Blmpkn]

If your brakes are screeching, don't use neversieze or penetrating oil...

Oh hell no. If my breaks are screeching THAT bad I go straight for the red-n-tacky.. I find it holds up to the heat better than any of the penetrant oils and even the hi-temp neversieze.

 

[Blmpkn]

Alright, had an incredibly aggravating day working on this goddamn truck.. or rather TRYING to work on it..

Plan was so strip the rest of the POS15 that was still stuck to the frame and then clean & degrease it to get ready for various coatings.. simple right? It SHOULD have been... Just not my day I guess.

I sprayed down the entirety of the frame behind the cab with stripper and then left to get some gas & oil for the pressure washer. Before I even left it had started to bubble & lift the POS15 pretty darn good.. so I was super optimistic that once I got back and started with the pressure it'd come right off. Not quite... It took MOST of it off... But really needed a 2nd spray down. Didn't have 20 bucks to blow on another can though.. so I was starting to hit the rest of it with a wire wheel.. which was working well enough thankfully...

Went to hit it with the washer again... but the washer wasn't able to keep pressure... Wtf. By this point my aunt had arrived home and let the dogs out.. and this is where my aggravation REALLY started. The spigot for the hose is on the side of the house that the dog pen is on... And the GD MF'rs chewed through the hose right at the brass fitting... No wonder the washer couldn't keep pressure assholes! Of course.. no money to buy another hose so.. progress for the day has come to a halt. Half the wind in my sails.. gone.

Thats not it though.. as I was coming out of the garage after putting the washer in there.. I got a good look at the rear of the truck from 50 feet or so.. rest of the wind in my sails GONE and it felt like a big kick in the nuts.

We'll start back during last year when I had to replace a giant section of the web of the frame behind the driver's spring hanger...

I pretty much whacked this hole in the frame and then left until the next Sunday.

I forget EXACTLY why/how it happened but... I came back the next Sunday and whatever I was using to support this side of the frame to obviously keep it straight.. my uncle's lift mabey... Could of been a jack... Idk.. I forget.. front wheels were on the floor though. Either way.. whatever it was over the course of the week had decided to lower itself to the floor... Letting that section of frame sag like a bastard. Not good. I was so pissed when I came back and found it essentially bent in the shape of a shallow V.

I tried my best to straighten it back out.. jacked it up.. eyeballed it from each side.. laid a level across the frame right over the hangers in a few spots.. bubble looked good.. laid it across the back of the frame.. bubble good.. looked at it a bunch more and convinced myself it was straight. Welded the missing piece back in.. plated it.. crossmember.. done.

Welllllll........ It's not straight not even close.

Look at the crossmembers... Both of them are PERFECTLY centered on the frame web top to bottom... that frame obviously has a MEAN twist clearly I jacked the frame up by the drivers hanger a little more than too much or something.. idk.. I just know it ain't straight and it's absolutely wrecked my goddamn day.

So fucking disheartening. Here Ive been for the past 6 months or whatever all SUPER PROUD of myself for being able to bring the truck back to straight from being bent nearly in half... Just to find out.. hey... It ain't straight at all buddy. Good jerb

Of course... It's way TF too late now to try and fix it. But the more I think about it.. I don't think it should affect things toooooo much... Right? The location of the spring hangers are dead-nuts.. so the axle will be square and it won't dog walk... The angle of the shackles obviously won't match but... I'm hoping that I'm just stuck with crooked bed at worst... But I could shim it so it's straight(er)


Ugh.


Still.. happy to have made SOME progress anyhow thats what I'm telling myself anyways. Idiot.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

I can't help on the frame.
The hose; carefully grind the outer shell that's compressed onto the hose. Slice the hose back and expose a barbed fitting. Cut bad part of hose off and use whatever hose clamp that fits maybe 4 or 5 to protect the end from the dogs.
Good luck on the frame, whatever you decide.

 

[Blmpkn]

I can't help on the frame.
The hose; carefully grind the outer shell that's compressed onto the hose. Slice the hose back and expose a barbed fitting. Cut bad part of hose off and use whatever hose clamp that fits maybe 4 or 5 to protect the end from the dogs.
Good luck on the frame, whatever you decide.

The hose is one of those scrunchy expand-o jobs that shrinks down to like 20% of its "working length" once the waters off.. I don't think it's fixable. Luckily I have a regular 50 footer at the house I can bring over but.. still annoying can't let my aunt let those damn beasts out again while I'm there though lol.. she did say she's gonna replace the hose though so that's nice moving the dog pen soon too I guess.


The frame though.. that's really really dragging me down man. I haven't been this upset about anything in quite a while honestly. But like I said.. the front spring hangers are exactly where they need to be so.. the axle *should* be square and therefore track straight.. im hoping the shackles will kinda just flip flop forwards/backwards depending on side and keep it level enough. If not... I may have to redrill one of the shackles.. or perhaps put a little tiny block between the spring & axle on one side.. i really don't know I'll cross that bridge when I get there I guess. Either fix certainly wouldn't be optimal.. but either one would be better (for the meantime at least) than having to source another frame and start alllllll over.

I gotta have well over 100 hours in "fixing" it so far.. first time doing this so it takes me awhile lol.. along with no small amount of money invested so... Im gonna keep on keeping on and hope for the best. At this point.. after so many disappointing years of getting a good portion of the way through a project just to sell it off or otherwise abandon it.. this one's getting finished asap. Crooked or not.

Slightly crooked and driving is better than NOT driving.. because not driving means a years worth of wasted Sundays.. and I'm sooooo utterly tired of wasting time.

I know that at least half of my issue was having VERY minimal space around the sides and the back of the truck last year when it was in the garage during surgery... Mostly the back. If I was able to stand back more than 3 feet behind the rear of the frame I probably would've been able to tell that something wasn't quite right before welding the cross members in... But the garage was an absolute mess back then so.. it is what it is.


Just trying to stay positive really.

Were gonna God damn get there one way or another..

 

[Blmpkn]

Feel a lot better about my peyronies frame after a good night's rest. Still not excited but.. it is what it is.. no sense in continuing to beat myself up over it. Chaulk it up to being a whopper of a first-timers F-up and a good learning experience.

Essentially the only thing that matters as far as tracking straight is concerned (most important) is the location of the front hangers... And theyre RIGHT where they need to be.. it'll go straight.

So worst case Ontario is my bed is gonna sit a bit cock-eyed and the axle-to-frame distance won't be exactly the same left to right. Not optimal.. but really not the end of the world or too big of a detriment considering the end-game goal of the truck. If this were to be a 9 second quarter mile truck... Id probably be looking for a new frame.. all I want is a modest 9 second eighth mile truck though so.. it'll be fine

I AM gonna make sure the front sits level at least.. simply measure between the garage floor & the front framehorns with all 4 wheels on the ground. Whatever the difference is.. and I'm sure there will be one.. I'll correct with a shim between the axle&leaf on the opposite diagonal corner. Good enough. I can also fix whatever the potential axle>bumpstop distance difference is left to right by spacing the bump downwards on the side that has the bigger gap so I have an even amount of travel on both sides.

Performance/handling wise.. I should be in good shape. She'll just look a little wonky with a crooked assed bed oh well.. onwards and upwards!

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

I'm not sure but I think the leaves may not be parallel from the factory. There is some rear steering when cornering as the opposite leaves straighen out and curve up. Something to keep in mind.

 

[Blmpkn]

I'm not sure but I think the leaves may not be parallel from the factory. There is some rear steering when cornering as the opposite leaves straighen out and curve up. Something to keep in mind.

I'll finger it out one way or another, best I'm able to anyways.