45 MB Project

Stripped block ready to be shipped off to the machine shop.

Amassing the parts.

Eeep.

Bellhousing shows quite a bit of an oil leak.

Frame horn needing repair and fabrication.

The bore was 0.060 over, really don't want to go to 0.080 or sleeve it, but it's looking like I will have to. The Crank was 0.010 under on the mains and rod journals. Machine shop said they sent it off to be ground because it didn't look too good. Cylinders 2 and 3 had mismatched caps with rods from the wrong cylinders. Hopefully it will all work out ok. Not interested in investing in another engine. Looking at getting a new used set of rods this weekend.

Since the previous update, the transmission and transfer case have been pulled, the axles removed, and the frame cleaned. Some grinding and cutting of old steel has taken place, notably removing the aftermarket front bumper, and the mangled rear bumper. The axles were removed and cleaned. The brakes are 11" drum from a CJ5, and all new parts have been procured to get these up to snuff. 

The generator and starter have been sent off to a well regarded auto-electric shop in Oakland, CA. The frame is currently at a body shop getting straightened and some welding done to fix some cracks and fill holes added. The axle shafts, steering knuckles, and hubs have been removed. The front axle shafts are Spicer, so that was a pleasant surprise.

The engine was sent off to the machine shop, and has since returned with 4 new sleeves, a decked block and head, new valve guides, and a ground crank 0.02 under. After the frame gets finished, the engine assembly will be the next big project.

Now, pictures!

11" Drum brakes. The shoes, cylinder, and hardware will all be replaced. A new dual master cylinder is also on hand.

Frame ready for power washing.

Getting soaked during the power washing process.

After the washing, the frame has been mounted on saw horses, ready for inspection.

Removed the rear crossmember, and cleaned up the V brace.

Rear axle cleaned up and ready fro primer.

Axle painted with primer. Getting this far felt like a big accomplishment.

The front axle with original brass bushing and thrust washer. These are made unnecessary by the spicer axles. They do not look to be in great condition.

Engine back from the machine shop.

Lovely crosshatching.

Starter motor prior to being sent to the rebuilder.

Frame is out at the body shop, so I cleaned the shop a bit and piled up some parts to send to the blaster for cleaning and priming.

Once the frame is done at the body shop, it will come back with holes filled, cracks welded, battery tray installed, and new frame horns. After that, it will get sand blasted and then primed and painted, along with the springs, crossmember, and wheels. The goal is to get a rolling chassis by the end of April. Tomorrow will be time to clean the front axle with pressure washer and various implements of grime destruction, before final degreasing and priming.

Primed parts awaiting grey:

Rear suspension construction underway. Rear Diff/axle temporary held in place with a C-Clamp. I wasn't too pleased with the assembly of the suspension parts, especially on the driver's side. A little more persuasion was required than I was really comfortable with on the leaf spring bolt. I attribute this to a bent spring bracket. Also, my grease gun kept ripping the heads off the provided zerk fittings, and some of the zerk fittings did not fit well into their threaded holes. I'll have to investigate this later, perhaps with some higher quality industrial supplied fittings.

End of one night's work.

Final project of the day was to install the hubs. I used Timken bearings and Lucas Oil Red and Tacky grease to pack them with. I learned that it is important to put the bearing in first, and then the oil seal on the back side bearing. D'oh! I then installed the washers and nuts as per MetalShaper's youtube video; tighten inner nut to 50 ft-lb, back off one flat, place lock washer on, and tighten outer nut to 50 ft-lb. I left the lock washer unbent until I get tires on and can get a good feel for the bearings.

The paint is International Paint Co. Haze Grey, which is the same paint used on Naval Vessels, so it should be a good match in finish and colour for a Navy ship, albeit modern. This is what is used on the WW2 ships I volunteer on, so it will be a good match for some future photo shoots.

Pictures now included in previous post.