Thanks for the encouragement. Still a long ways to go and a lot to overcome but the folks here are inspiring. Onward!

Howdy All --- been away for awhile (computer croaked) but just added a few more pix to the "progress" album. About ready to begin the engine & tranny transplant, which is gonna' be interesting. Trying to stuff a Cummins 4BTAA & Allison 6-speed auto into that Art Deco front end is going to be a challenge. In fact, if I can find a good custom builder in these parts, I will gladly pay for some expertise.

Tango, you've definitely come a long way. I don't think an engine problem will stop you know. I'm sure you will go from "can't to Can" !!
I have a friend that was told he couldn't put a mercede's disel in a 71 model truck. Well, he did. He chopped and cut and welded and in a few days he drove it around the block!

....this is interesting. Keep us posted.

Dangnabbit! I had a zero-mile, 2012 Allison 2200HS 6-speed auto lined up and a different salesman at the dealership sold it out from under me! Oh well, the Allison tech I'm, working said he found one with 100 miles on it. We'll see if this one makes it home. I really need to get started on the engine & tranny install.

Just gave away the good running 350 Chevy today to make room for the Cummins 4BT. Gave it to a friend who runs the Art Car Museum here in exchange for some labor & installation assistance. The rebuilt diesel is ready for pickup. Still waiting to hear the price on a new Allison, double overdrive, six-speed tranny. Got a feeling it's gonna be scary. Will try and post some updated pix this weekend.

Meanwhile, for anyone not familiar with the Art Car thing here in Houston...

Art Car Museum http://www.artcarmuseum.com/

Ar Car Parade http://www.thehoustonartcarparade.com/photos/

New and slightly narrower intercooler arrived yesterday. Working out the piping is going to be interesting. Needs to be routed through the inner grill panels, into the wheel wells, then back into the engine compartment via the inner fender panels. Biggest concern is engine movement. These little Cummins "Paintshakers" are notorious for thrashing side to side on start-up & shutdown by several inches and can pull any fixed electrical, fuel or air lines loose as they do it. Even considering mounting a couple of shock absorbers to the motor to limit the movement. We'll see. The Chevy comes out this weekend...and then the fun begins.

Well Crap --- the new intercooler is actually wider than the stock set up. The angles are all wrong and won't work. Now to deal wit the dreaded "return" and get the right sized unit.

OK --- the 350 Chevy is out of the way. I just hope the hole that's left is big enough for the Cummins. Gonna' be tight, especially with the Allison six speed hanging off the back. BTW...I gave up on finding a used one and called Stewart & Stevenson to price a new one from the factory built to my specs. Guess what...the new one should actually be cheaper in the long run. By the time I bought a used (unknown) unit, had it gone through and set up to work with my two-wire motor, it would very likely have been at least a grand more! And the brand new unit will come fully tweaked from the factory set up exactly for my rig. S & S uses a computer modeling system called "iSCAAN" that analyzes tons of input (weight, drag coefficient, gearing, tire size, various road surfaces & on & on) then spits out a 17 page print out that predicts performance across the board. Even the fluid temperature at various RPM's in different gears. Best part is that my original personal calcs had indicated a need for something around 4.11 gears in the rear. Turns out my stock 5.43 gearing is perfect with the double overdrive so I won't have the ha$$le of swapping the whole rearend! Outstanding!

It will take a month to build but I still have a lot to do before I drop it in. Will get a few updated pix tomorrow.

Oh yeah...and if anyone is looking for a nice, tight original 4-speed tranny, I will be putting a note about it over in the classifieds shortly.

Onward!

Don,

If you want to pitch your rolling classroom near the DC area, let us know. We are 90 minutes south ... but have family closer up. Plenty of Bolters in the Washington - Baltimore - Annapolis area.

The work you do looks awesome ... both the art and the truck! You head this way with the bus, we'll bring the gang!

Peggy M
Stovebolt HQ

Thanks for the invite & kind words Peggy --- can't wait to get this old girl rollin' and covering ground. I teach one of my classes near Nashville and I'm talking to some folks right now about starting up another in the Catskills. You'd be right on the route and I'd love to drop in and say Howdy.

And many thanks for all the hard work that makes this such a great forum & gathering place. It has been a terrific source of both inspiration and hard to find information. Just outstanding. Can't imagine what rebuilding this rig would be like without it and the many fine folks who gather here. Thank you.