A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

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kw573
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Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Sun Jul 09, 2017 7:39 pm

Hi all,

In preparing to bolt the floor down in the cabin, I realised that I first needed to run the feed wire for the lights on the Holmes cranes.

So I bought a 5m length of 14g (2mm2) black wire and a matching length of "convoluted split tube" and made up the wire and its' loom. First was a terminal . . . .

Image


. . . . and then I routed it in among the wires/air lines running along the inside of the chassis under the cabin . . .

Image


. . . and just coiled the rest on the air tank behind the cabin, waiting for the cranes to be fitted. As I am putting some under-floor sound matting in, I thought I had better isolate it from the circuit breakers at the starter switch. I just cut a sheet of old welding jacket leather to cover it all.

Image


Then I could fit the very second-hand insulation with confidence.

Image


One more job done.
Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.


kw573
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Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Mon Jul 10, 2017 12:54 pm

Hi,

When I put the main floor section in place, it is bit of a struggle as it is full width and I usually scratch a bit of paint off the inside of the cabin. I had to drill a guessed hole so that I could see where to cut the hole for the starter switch plunger to go through. You can just see it in this poor photo. Also, the issue of the attaching screws to the toe board demanded more attention. There was not only insufficient overlap of the two panels to put screws in, but also, the original toeboard does not have any screw holes in it, meaning it has never been screwed to the floor board/panel despite there being holes in the original floor panel and the holes and screws appearing in the parts manual! I'm going to just leave it for the time being and see how it works in operation.

Image


The starter plunger hole . . .

Image


. . . and the plug removed to make the hole, with the guessed hole in it.

Image


Getting there.

Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

kw573
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Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Mon Jul 10, 2017 1:14 pm

Some more pictures:

the damaged paint from repeated fitting of the floor board:

Image


The completed starter plunger. I also fitted a large nitrile washer, (the black just visible through the hole on the floor) to add some weather proofing. That Nitrile is good stuff, very very stretchy, spec is 500%! And oil-resistant.

Image


And the Holmes cranes lights wire stored until the cranes are fitted.

Image

Enjoy.

Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

kw573
G-Colonel
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Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Mon Jul 10, 2017 1:20 pm

The Nitrile washer:

Image

Yes, that small hole stretched over the plunger top without apparent damage or loss of shape.

Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

kw573
G-Colonel
G-Colonel
Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Sun Jul 30, 2017 1:45 pm

Hi all,

Another long time since an update. Again, work keeps me busy, but I have been plodding along. The bonnet (hood) hinges have me a bit unsure how to proceed, so I've been doing other stuff.

One day, I realized that I was ready to fit the cable to the front winch, so I started with this . . .

Image


. . . . and added this.

Image


Easier said than done. It wasn't difficult, just a lot to do.
The drum has two places that the cable can be clamped on. Clearly, that is because the drum can be used in different applications either left or right sided drive, eg. M1A1 Heavy Wrecker. Or to enable the winch to be used as an overwind winch (the cable comes off the top of the drum) or an underwind winch (the cable comes off the bottom of the drum). All the WW2 USA chassis-mounted winches that I know of, both in-chassis and on-chassis, are underwind winches. Makes sense to me.

Image


So, the cable is held with a simple U-bolt, same as a 'bulldog grip', making sure that there is enough cable end past the U-bolt for effective strength should things go wrong in use.

Image


The first layer in place. The wet look is oil.

Image


As I am a resourceful opportunist, I purchased some used cable at a scrap metal yard at less than AU$1/kg. I had roughly measured it at the yard and when I got it home, a careful measure showed it to be barely 4meters short. The correct length is 300' (94m), good enough for me. Although the cable is in good condition, that is, little wear and no broken wires at all, it was dirty and dry. So, as I wound it onto the drum, I wire brushed about 5 m, oiled it, then wound it on. Then brushed/oiled the next section and wound it on, etc. This made the job a bit more bearable than doing all the 90m of brushing first. Also, it is very very important to wind the cable on tightly and without gaps so that it won't destroy itself when being used in anger. The easy way to do this is to winch the cable on up a moderate slope. It is also important to keep the sides of each layer tidy when the cable reaches the side of the drum and changes direction. Each subsequent change of direction becomes less tidy, increasing the likelihood of damage to the cable when used in anger.

Image


That done, next will be fitting the chain and 'splice eliminator'.

Enjoy.
Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

kw573
G-Colonel
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Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Mon Jul 31, 2017 12:48 pm

And here is the drum full of cable . . .

Image


Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

kw573
G-Colonel
G-Colonel
Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Mon Jul 31, 2017 12:59 pm

A while back, I took the Glorifier for a short, but solid drive up my rural road and it blew the hose off the turbo to intercooler pipe. The fix was to replace the pipe with a lighter gauge pipe that I could put a bead onto each end, using a Burring Machine.

Image


Then bought new hose from the local car 'go fast' shop and fitted it. No more problems.

Image


Enjoy.
Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

Ian Fawbert
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Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by Ian Fawbert » Mon Jul 31, 2017 3:45 pm

The easy way to do this is to winch the cable on up a moderate slope. It is also important to keep the sides of each layer tidy when the cable reaches the side of the drum and changes direction. Each subsequent change of direction becomes less tidy, increasing the likelihood of damage to the cable when used in anger.
I`ll never forget 'helping' yourself, Jeff Gordon and someone else wind the cable onto his Diamond T at Canungra a few years back in the afternoon, with a Stude at the top of the incline to winch the T up to. A great, insightful memorable afternoon. As I saw your post and read through it, the joys of that day came back to me.

Great to see more progress on the truck Sam. As always, well done!

Cheers,
Ian.
Australian Jeep Investigator
MB: 131175
GPW: 11730.
GPW: 225290.
Aust trailer: GMH 3- #211
http://www.vintageengines.net

kw573
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Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Tue Aug 01, 2017 12:57 pm

Hi Ian,

Thanks for the reminder. Yes, that was a fun way to spend an afternoon!
I seem to recall that the other person was Peter Gough, a Studebaker owner and MJCQ member. Not sure.

Sadly, Jeff has sold his DT to a casual collector north of Toowoomba, named Steve. I doubt it'll turn up at any events again.

But don't despair! The Glorifier can be expected to be a regular attender starting 2018! (Have you got your HR truck licence?)



I suddenly got excited about making R/V mirror arms. They are very long compared to MB/Dodge/etc.
This is how I made the ends. Below is an original, the stock tube and the press jig I made.

Image


. . . applied about 6000lb (by the gauge) . . .

Image


. . . to it to get this . . .

Image


. . . then some marking out, . . . drilling/grinding/filing and power wire buffing . . .

Image



. . . to get this.

Image


It is even better than it looks in the picture. Sam done goodly!!!

I'll post more about the arms later.
Have a nice day.
Sam
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

kw573
G-Colonel
G-Colonel
Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Wed Aug 02, 2017 12:28 pm

This picture will give you an idea of how long the arms need to be to see past the wide rear body.
I took the picture from in line with the rear body.
I don't have an original unmolested arm to know the correct length, can anyone help with the correct lengths please?

Image


Have a nice day.
Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

kw573
G-Colonel
G-Colonel
Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Thu Aug 17, 2017 2:23 pm

Hi all,
I have still got work to keep me from the Glorifier. But have been making some progress.

I have turned my attention to the bonnets (aka hoods). I have a second set of bonnets from a wreck I found once, but they were no better than the originals for this truck. Mostly, the top piece is rusted at the curved top corner and badly where it is welded to the side piece. I did some cleaning/grinding to assess whether to repair or replace this panel. I've found that a wafer disc (1mm thick) on the angle grinder is a good mid ground between a grinding disk and a flapper disk. But, only light pressure on the side of it or it will quickly break out of the grinder hub. Anyway, replace is the way to go.

Image


I bought a sheet of 1.6mm bright mild steel. This is softer than black mild steel or zincanneal. Marked out the not-so-simple shape.

Image


Then cut it with the wafer disk, that will handle the curves OK.

Image


Image


Then I test fitted it, marked the adjustments . . .

Image


. . and cut the improved fit and tested it. Man, it has a lot of curves for a flat panel!! At this stage, I had also folded the lip that the hinge attaches to and so could clamp it to the centre strip with a spacer. In this picture, you can also see the strip-type hinge that I'll be using. It is sold as a Chev hinge.

Image

So far, so good.

Enjoy.
Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

kw573
G-Colonel
G-Colonel
Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Thu Aug 17, 2017 2:41 pm

A couple more pictures . . . .

At the front, the gap seems quite large, but is not too different to the 'Homebush' truck. I don't like it. Dunno what I'll end up doing about it. The 1/2" box spacer is about the width of the hinge.

Image


The gaps are not real consistent, but the originals aren't perfect either. These jobs force very close scrutiny which shows up just how ordinary some of the original work on these trucks (that were not mass produced) really was.

Image

Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

kw573
G-Colonel
G-Colonel
Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Wed Aug 23, 2017 12:28 am

More on the bonnet repairs.

I had put some old bonnets in place to see how it all goes together before I marked out and cut the steel sheet.

Image


Then I cut the sheet according to the measurements of the original bonnet.
Wrong. :(
I used the less reliable method - a tape measure. More reliable would have been a large sheet of tracing/dressmakers paper. Anyway, I found that after rolling the top corners . . .

Image


. . . the fit was a long way out in places. . . . :oops:

Image


Not only did I have to go back to the rollers at my friends place twice, the sheet 'grew' so that I had to cut a long thin wedge shaped piece off the outside edge then clean it up with a hand file. This edge is clearly visible (just above the bonnet flutes) to anyone walking past the truck. So the slight irregularities of the grinder cut had to be . . . um . . . dealt with!

Image


While doing this, I had to be very careful to not touch the burred edge while filing along it as it would have opened up my hand quick smart.


Getting there.

Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

kw573
G-Colonel
G-Colonel
Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Wed Aug 23, 2017 12:55 am

It was time to cut the rusted panel from the fluted panel. But first, I had to detach the support brace at its' spot welds adjacent the hinge position. The brace is also spot welded at the other end, just below the flutes. But, to my surprise', it is not connected to the bonnet anywhere else. In the background can be seen the rusted strip just above the flutes.

Image


Then, using the trusty wafer disk on the angle grinder, I cut a straight line along the upper end of the flutes, following a carefully drawn line done with a liquid paper pen and a straight edge. I'm not looking forward to the day I weld the new strip onto that and try to make the weld disappear!!!

Image


Many years ago, I had replacement fluted panels made from 1.6mm zincanneal, but now feel that it will be more trouble to fit the wired edge and bonnet catches to it than to use it to repair flute sections if I need to in the future.

Image

So far, so good.

Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.

kw573
G-Colonel
G-Colonel
Posts: 1232
Joined: Mon Aug 11, 2008 10:48 pm
Location: Near Bundaberg, Australia.

Re: A 969 rebuild from Downunder.

Post by kw573 » Sun Aug 27, 2017 7:58 pm

Hi,
I found some 3/8" rod, for which I had been on the lookout for a while, and became distracted with a set of front bumper clearance markers. The holes were already in the bumper. As I have seen pictures of several types, I just designed my own type.

Firstly, how high should they be? I used a spring clip to find a height I was happy with . . .

Image


. . . cut them to length, them cut a 3/8"UNC thread on one end of each marker . . .

Image


. . . then bent them around a pipe in the vice . . .

Image


. . . drilled a hole for a small split pin . . .

Image


. . . to be an anchor to tie down a small flag if I want to put one there . . .

Image


. . . then painted them olive Drab.

Image



When that had dried for a couple of days, I painted from the split pin to the top in gloss white and let that dry. Then fitted them. Looks a bit out of place without the mudguards behind them, we'll see,

Image

The white really glowed on the flash of the picture-taking above.

Still playing with bonnets - pretty involved.

Enjoy.
Sam.
1942 Script GPW (Daily driver).
MB-T trailer.
Diamond T 969. ('The Glorifier')
Diamond T 969, rusty, complete, for sale.
Kenworth M1A1 Heavy Wrecker x 2.
M2A1 white HT. ('Clarrie')
Light Recovery Trailer (Ford?).
3ton GS (Blitz) Trailer.
150gal water tanker trailer.
Air compressor trailer, 100c.f.m.


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