The Stovebolt Site Forums The Parking Lot Big Bolts Preparing big bolt for The Great Race

I plan on entering The Great Race in 2016. My daughter will be graduating from high school and I like to do neat things that my kids will remember for ever. I have a 1941 1 1/2 ton stake bed. Since I have about a year and a half to get the work done, what can be done to make my big bolt as reliable as possible.

Thanks
Andy

Go through brake system, new hoses, cylinder kits and also lines and shoes if needed.

Good fuel filter; preferably pump with glass bowl filter on top, easy to see, flush, and keep going.

Belts and hoses. Also check V-belt pulleys for wear, the groove should be pretty much straight sided.

Spare ignition parts, and or consider a HEI conversion for the original distributor.

Remove, replace or clean and oil or grease as appropriate the generator bearings.

Get plenty of driving in the previous year to work out any bugs and think about small issues that might grow.

Grigg covered it, especially that last one.

Only thing I'll add is: I don't know what the rules for the Race are, but today's gas is quite questionable in many respects. I would be concerned about vapor lock being an issue. Careful fuel line routing and shielding is important, and if an auxilliary electric fuel pump is allowed, I'd sure have one. I'd also consider a return fuel line to the tank with a gated "T", which could allow cool fuel to constantly circulate through the lines, preventing vapor lock.

CarbKing has recommended this in the past. Something to think about. That being said, my '41 ton and a half fire truck has been ultra-reliable since I rebuilt it. Only problem has been the driver, who tends to run it out of gas!!!

-Michael

We are doing the same thing with a 55 T-Bird and our approach is if it moves inspect it, rebuild/replace it, clean it and lube it. If it's rubber replace it and carry a spare. If it requires or produces electricity carry a spare. If it has the name "bearing" replace it no matter where it's located. Radiator and heater core tested at double the radiator cap pressure rating. Inspect, clean, and tighten every electrical connection, especially grounds. We put a phosphorescent additive in every liquid in the car, ran until hot, and then put it up on the rack and aimed the UV light at every seam and seal. The man has spent a lot of money but even more than that we LIKE him and want him to have a flawless race.

As above. Also try to enter one of the shorter races like the Northeast Rally Club has. Look them up and see if that is something you can do. If you want, I can get you info. My dad is one of the organizers. These rallys are run VERY close to what the Great Race does. Did our first one 2 years ago and had a blast!
Jim

My dad has also done the Great Race a couple of times and always brags about how helpful everyone is. Usually can get parts that you don't have very quickly.
Jim

If you want it to be reliable for the race the most important thing to do is drive it now....a lot.

Obviously going though everything that has been mentioned in important, but get some miles in....like thousands of miles between now and then. Anything driven regularly will end up being reliable so long as parts are replaced as they are noticed wearing/going bad...really hard to ID these things when rarely driven. Get a feel for the truck, learn what isn't the best and fix them. Does it not start reliably/easily when cold, when hot? Do window seals leak in the rain, how do the wipers work in the rain, will it start in the rain(cracked dist cap, etc). Does the heater work(if you will need it to). A wiper motor that turns on fine may be weak/overheat/die under longer use. Can you drive with headlights on for extended times, does the switch get hot when you do? Are engine seals going to hold up to actually getting some miles in?

You can spend thousands upon thousands of dollars rebuilding replacing parts that are perfectly serviceable for many thousands of miles or test them out by use and only repair/replace what is needed. I opt for the second, I can't afford to replace parts that don't need to be and it's more fun to dive it anyway.

I drive my old stuff as much as possible. I've driven my 1951 International L190 wrecker from OH-GA-NY-VA during moves, it's still running on points. I've driven my 1960 International R190 pulling a loaded 45' trailer on the GA-NY-VA moves. The GA-NY trip the generator quit working, cleaned up some contacts and on the way. On the NY-VA move the rear seal went out and the clutch started slipping, had to replace seal and clutch to finish the move. It still is running on points. I fixed the muffler on the '60 R190 before the NY-VA move and ended up overheating an airline and having it blow out because at slow speeds up hills there wasn't enough air-flow for the direction the exhaust was pointing. Not too far from home the R190 starting backfiring, but ran great for the 1400miles before.....but it also sat for a year unused between moves....not my best idea(and yes we've moved a lot). I know some people claim to or actually have had problems with ethanol gas, but I haven't with any of my trucks in the time I've had them. And at 4mpg+/- my big trucks have sucked a lot of gas in that time.

Get to know your truck, what it needs, what it doesn't, learn how to set the timing, adjust the points, check for spark, learn how the brake system works, how the carburetor adjustments work. Get comfortable with the truck now and use it to the point where you have no second thoughts to hop it in and drive anywhere for the time leading up the the race....so you can just focus on the fun times.

And remember, despite what everyone says NEEDS to be updated on these old truck, when they were new they were DRIVEN not babied and they gave good reliable service. Farmers relied on their trucks to work, and they did work. If a family wanted to drive 1000mi to visit family or take a vacation in 1941 what did they dive, a modern car with disc brakes, abs, electronic ignition, electronic fuel pump, etc...of course not they drove a '41 or older car and for the most part would have done so without problems. Have you ever read grapes of wrath? Your truck is modern by comparison.

Tad

I agree, driving is the most important part. How many times have you heard someone say aboit an old truck that something is to far away to drive to, or they never take it out of the county...?

I had driven my 52 1 ton for a few years and never did leave the county, didn't have a reason to. Then we planned a trip headed west. Sure enough it made it out of the county no problem, and then on through West Virginia... And 6 days later we were dipping our toes in the Pacific ocean. Whole trip was 28 days total, about 8,000 miles, a whole bunch of states, and even Canada on two occasions. Only trouble was the fan lost a blade (mush have been previously cracked) and a bad generator bearing. The fan we sawed the opposing blade off to balance and soon enough found a replacement. Generator was NOS but apparently grease was too old, luckely enough we broke down a couple miles from a starter and generator shop and limped in, a $20 fix.

I drove these old things back when we used them to make a living. They were more reliable than most people think. Either that or it was just part of a days work to fix a few things. We didn't carry many spare parts. What we did carry was a fan belt, a spare set of spark plug wires because the old Packard wires burned to a crisp in a hurry. We always carried a match box to use to file the points and some grease for the rubbing block. The main improvement I would recommend is an electric fuel pump. They were lifesavers back in the 50's because even real gas with lead in it would vapor lock. My GMC 550 had Carter pusher pumps inside the saddle tank. They were much like the submerged pumps with modern day EFI. I wouldn't attempt to drive an old vehicle that generates a lot of heat under the hood without an electric fuel pump.

When driving my truck cross country if it was real hot out after a hard run and we then stopped for some time I'd just open the hood, let the heat out. No problem with vapor lock either way really, but it would start easier if it had cooled off some with the hood open.
No electric pump either. If I were to use an electric pump I think it'd be in line with the mechanical pump, only use the electric if it was necessary, most often not.

Grigg

If you do run an electric pump make sure you get one at a low enough pressure, too high and the float won't stop the flow and you will flood.

I would second the pump in-line with mechanical. Rely on the mechanical and go to electric if needed.....in fact you could just bring an electric pump along to plumb in if it fails along the way as well.

Tad

One of the things my old TMs point out is to have PLENTY of extra FUEL and WATER.

Also don't forget the basics: tools, steel wire, electrical tape (will fix a hose in a pinch) and a first aid kit. Also an extinguisher would be nice... a chemical one that can handle fuel/oil fires.

Yes, extra fuel would be good.
In my travels on many occasions I'd use another 5 gallons to get to a fuel stop. On one occasion needed 10 extra to make it to the next gas station (Out in Nevada I think it was). I carried 15 extra gallons, never needed the third can but sure glad to have it on hand.