A couple of big milestones on my shop truck, Big Green. I cut off the existing leaf spring mounts and shock mounts. They were an inch too wide and at an incorrect angle. I purchased new mounts from Summit Racing to weld on. Next is a mock-up with my measurements from my original rear. I will tack them on, then slide them under to double-check for the correct fit. Then brakes, again, seals including the pinion, then paint, reassemble, and install. I have replacement hangers and shackles. Newer replacement as the completely original style has been discontinued. The bottom bolts are slightly low, the shackles are wider, making spacers required, and finally came with metric hardware, yuck. The hangers will be redrilled; I will weld up and grind the old holes to achieve an invisible repair. I will take that opportunity to repair the hole in my frame and fabricate a new crossmember.

The second milestone is that I removed the water pump and thermostat. The alternator was removed and brought to O’Reilly’s for testing. It is good, I had to stop because I was missing a gasket and wanted to clean it up some. I did one pass with a steam cleaner for minor improvement. It will need at least another cleaning session. Any major cleaning will require a pressure washer, but I will get it a little more presentable. Until next time, new cars are boring, fix something old.