[Chaparralman1974]

7/1/2023 - 7/31/2023
Engine and Chassis Small Parts Cleaning and Installation
Now that the heat and humidity have arrived, I have been stuck in the garage (fortunately my garage has A/C) so I have shifted focus to the cleaning up and restoring of smaller parts that attach to the engine and chassis.
I started by doing a full rebuild / restoration of the distributor. My original plan was to go with either a Pertronix or HEI setup, but ultimately opted to just rebuild the original distributor that came with the truck. After doing a complete teardown and cleaning, I ended up ordering all new internals including a new vacuum advance, points, condenser, cap, rotor and distributor shaft bushings. The end result is a totally rebuilt distributor.
I also cleaned up and painted the exhaust manifolds, alternator, pulleys, and starter. The waterpump however was replaced with a new unit along with a new fuel pump. I was able to track down a NOS clutch inspection cover and got that installed as well.
My original intention was to reuse the brake lines, but upon further inspection I discovered that the lines were collapsed in some locations, so I will be replacing all the pre-bent lines with aftermarket components.
Speaking of brakes, I sand-blasted and painted all of the frame clips that attach the lines to the chassis and also cleaned up the parking brake components. I will be working on installing the parking brake cables next.
The front drums bear a little bit of discussion. I had a member of the 67-72 Chevy truck community reach out to me about a suitable replacement for the front drums. Specifically, Raybestos 2008R drums were a match for the original Dana 44. I ordered a set of these from Rock Auto and they were a perfect match for the front of my existing drum brake setup. The only issue was the size of the lug stud holes. I believe that these were originally for a 50’s to early 60’s setup with what appear to be 7/16” studs. The center bore and all other measurements were a near perfect match to my existing drums. I reamed out the lug stud holes to ⅝” and they fit like a glove!
I have a few odds and ends to still perform on the chassis, but I am now getting close to turning my attention to body work.