More stuff! I installed the engine and trans in last weekend and so far, so good. I threw the headers on to check a couple areas around the brake lines to see if I had any clearance issues. I'll paint the exhaust system and bolt it back on shortly.
While I was painting motor mount brackets and some other odds and ends chassis black, I stripped the column down so I could paint it too
Now me being a bit quirky, I couldn't just leave it alone. I took both the signal and shift levers off and bent them inboard away from the wheel (I heated up the shifter 'cuz it is pretty heavy duty) and then cut them down to where they were out to about the edge of the wheel. I had the old red metalflake shift knob
and knew it had a home! I proceeded to grind the end of the rod down to about 7/16" in diameter about 3/4" inboard. I needed to run a die on the and it was the biggest I had, hence the grinding. I put threads on it about 1/4" in (it's all I really needed) and then got creative! I rubbed oil all over the threads and about an inch up the rod. Did the same thing around the outer edge of the ball away from the threaded area. I mixed up some 4 minute JB Weld and put a big glob of it in the shift knob (I mounted it in the vise with hole facing up). I then pushed the threaded end of the rod into the knob end and wiping off the excess before it kicked off, held it vertical 'till it kicked off. Once it did, I let it dry for about 15 minutes and then CAREFULLY unscrewed the knob from the shaft! I did the same thing on the blinker side, but used an old truck toggle extension that was also metalflake.
After cleaning the oil off the rods, I painted them Hi-Heat flat black and then polished them up with just my hands and it gives them a nice burnished, grey look. I then put everything back together, screwed on my new knobs and on to the next project!