1957 Chevy 3100, meet 1994 Dodge Ram 1500

[Purcell69]

Here’s the latest update.

First, Ethyl now has a front driveshaft. I went and saw the fine folks at Precision Drive a few weeks ago as this whole Coronavirus thing was beginning to blossom here in Oklahoma. In less than 24 hours, Precision Drive replaced the tube with a 3” longer section to accommodate the movement of the engine and transmission, (moved back 3” early on in the build), and rebuilt the double cardan joint and installed a new u-joint at the pinion end. After that, they balanced the whole assembly.

With the the driveshaft installed, I was still without 4wd because I had deleted the vacuum lines that controlled the CAD (Central Axle Disconnect) system in favor of something more reliable. I ordered a Posi-Lok kit for a 2nd Generation Dodge truck and some 3/4” heat shield sleeve from WireCare.com. The Posi-Lok replaces the vacuum lines and modulator assembly and actuates the engagement collar in the front axle via a cable with a pull control mounted under the dash. The unit is simple to use and is reliable as a hammer. The heat shield sleeve was installed over the plastic outer body of the actuator cable, to protect it from engine heat.

Yesterday, I finished the assembly and Ethyl now has 4wd. It is as simple as pushing the button and pulling the control knob out 1”, then shifting the transfer case in to 4wd.

Yesterday was busy all around. I got the AC vacuumed down in the son-in-law’s Jeep before recharging the system. While it was vacuuming down, I removed the damaged condenser core from our 2001 Grand Cherokee and installed a new one, only to repeat the vacuum and charge process one more time. Now both systems are charged and are nice and cold in anticipation of summer.

While I worked on Ethyl’s 4wd system, I did a bit of YouTube video.

https://youtu.be/kiMEdjoMygg

-Joe