Putting in a transmission

So, I took my beast mudding up in the Dells the other weekend. On the way back, I'm on the freeway and I notice my trucks running at a really high RPM. I wasn't going to stop because my luck, it wouldn't start again and i'd be stuck there, so i just kept on my marry way. Once i got back into town, it was shifting really hard, by then i knew my tranny was smoked because i've been waiting for it to go for a while. So i decided i was going to go from my 700r4 tranny to a th400 out of a 1 ton.

Tools you'll need:

• 1/2 Breaker bar w/ sockets
• Wrenches
• Extensions
• A jack w/ jack stands
• Pry bar
• A small flat-head screw driver
• Standard line wrenches
• Hammer

Parts you'll need:

• A torque converter (if the new tranny didn't come with one)
• A tranny
• New cooler lines (if yours are really rusty)

Disassembly:

• Jack up the front end as high as you can go and put it on jack stands, then remove the jack
• If you have a 2 piece drive shaft, remove the bracket in the middle and the drive shaft should just slide apart then pull it out of the tranny
• Disconect the cooler lines
• Disconnect the shift links and the throttle cable
• Put a jack under the tranny and just make it snug, don't jack it up
• Remove the tranny mount
• Start loosening the bolts from the bell housing
• Once the bolts are loose, jack the jack up a little so u can take them out
• Once all the bolts are out, slide the jack with the tranny on it backwards a little bitto make sure its completely disconnected
• Take a flashlight and make sure everything is disconnected, then lower the tranny and put it off to the side

Assembly:

• Attach the new torque converter to the new tranny
• Put the tranny on the jack and slide it into position under the truck
• Jack it up and slide it into the motor
• Put the cooler lines on
• Start threading in the bell housing bolts, DON'T CROSSTHREAD THEM
• Once there all started, tighten them all down really tight
• Re-connect all of the shift links and throttle cables
• Put the drive shaft in the tranny
• If the drive shaft doesn't go in all the way, you might have to push the truck a little bit so the shaft turns and the splines line up
• Bolt the bracket back on in the middle
• Make sure everythings tight
• Take her for a spin  

Running a strait pipe true dual exhaust system

Most people with a pick-up truck not only want it to look cool, the want it to sound good to

Tools you need:

• MIG welder
• Cut-off wheel
• Sockets, wrenches
• Exhaust tube bender
• Muscle

Parts:

• The parts you need will vary depending on what you are willing to spend, and how you want it to sound

For top quality sound, you will need:

• New headers
• Exaust pipe
• Pipe adapters (if needed)
• Hangers
• Your choice of a muffler (glass-pack, welded, turbo) or no muffler
• Cool exhaust tips

Removing:

• First, cut your old exhaust at the "Y" pipe and scrap everything
• Disconnect what ever is left from the minifold, Hold on to that piece
• Take off your manifolds and minifold gaskets

Assembly:

• Take that piece of old exhaust with the "Y" pipe and if the bolts didn't snap, you should be able to bolt that to the new header
• Bolt both headers together
• Now cut the "Y" part off
• Take each seperate header and bolt it to the heads DON'T FORGET THE GASKET
• Now you'll be able to run the exhaust piping however you want, just make sure you stay away from the gas take, drive shaft, or any other moving parts
• When to connect one piece of pipe to another, don't use clamps, just weld it, it will last alot longer
• Yeah, that's pretty much how you run true duals

Replacing a master cylinder

You will know if your master cylinder goes bad because your brake pedal won't get firm and probably go all the way to the floor. This can happen if you leak brake fluid somewhere and run the master cylinder dry, or it'll just happen with age.

Things you need:

• Line wrenches
• Flat head screw driver
• Sockets and wrenches
• DOT 3 brake fluid
• Plugs for the new master (should come with the new one )

Removing old one:





Basically what it'll look like


• First disconnect the brake lines from the master
• Then disconnect the 2 bolts holding the master to the brake booster
• Carefully pull it out
• Dump out the old brake fluid out of the resevoir
• Pull off the old resevoir because new masters don't come with it

Bench Bleeding:

• Once you put the resevoir on the new master, you have to bench bleed it
• Take the plugs that should have came with the new master and screw them in where all the brake lines go, make them finger tight
• Fill the resevoir with brake fluid and leave the cap off
• Find a sterdy bench or tabel
• Take the pointy end of a screw driver and put it in the back of the master where the piston is
• Lean against the screw driver handle and have the master against the bench.
• Push the piston in on around 3 inches
• Keep doing this untill you don't see any more air bubbles
• When you're done, leave the plastic caps in

Installation:

• Take the new master and slide it on the 2 studs on the booster and tighten them down
• Take the caps out 1 by 1 and put the coresponding brake lines in their holes
• Once all the brake lines are connected, make sure everything is tight
• Bleed the brakes
• Add fluid if needed
• You're done

Running Brake lines

What you need:

• Brake line (just spend $20 and get a roll, incase you ever have to do it again)
• Line or open end wrenches (preferably line wrenches because then you won't srip the fittings)
• Double flairing tool
• A torch of some sort, just incase
• Dot 3 brake fluid
• Vice
• Pliers
• Brake line cutting tool

Removing:

If your lines all look like this, i suggest you replace all of them

• You are going to notice if you blow a brake line, because you will step on the brake and nothing will happen. Trust me, it's happened to me many times
• First you are going to want to find the leaky brake line, look and all the lines, fittings, master cylinder and perportioning valve to make sure they aren't leaking either
• Then take off the bad line
• Cut off the old fittings with the brake line cutter
• You are more than likely going to be able to use the old fittings, if not, you can take them to the nearest auto parts store and get brand new ones

Double Flaring:

• Take the fitting and put it on the line before you do anything. or you're going to be very upset
• Clamp in its corresponding hole on the tool and snug it, dont tighten it yet
• Find the dye that matches the size of the brake line
• Use the lip on the dye to see how far the brake line should stick out of the hole
• Once they're lined up, tighten the clamp really tight
• Take the press thing and hook it around the clamp so the point is aimed at the hole in the line
• Tighten it enough so the line flares out a little bit, but not enought to crack it
• Back off the press and put the tip of the dye in the hole
• Now tighten it untill the dye untill the the bottom of it becoms flush with the clamp
• Make sure it bubbles out, not just flat, or it won't work

Installation:

• First, make sure brake fluid is still in your master cylinder, or depending on how old it is, it might go bad if the fluid runs out
• Then unroll the new brake line and put the fitting on, and double flare it
• Thread the fitting end into the master cylinder
• Bend the brake line so it's out of the way of any moving parts and so it doesnt drag on the ground. (Like run run it along the frame)
• Once you get to the destination (either the caliper or wheel cylinder), cut the brake line with some room to spare.
• Put the other fitting on the brake line and double flare
• Bend the brake line so it's hidden and tighten down the fitting

Bleeding:

• Now you want to bleed the brakes, you need 2 people
• Top off the master cylinder
• Have someone sit in the vehicle and pump the brakes a few times and hold it as far down as the can
• Start with the furthast bleeder screw from the master and while dude #2 is holding the break pedal, just crack open the bleeder screw until the brake pedal goes to the floor but DON'T let off the brake pedal untill the bleeder is tight
• Repeat 5-6 times untill no more air comes out then move on to the next bleeder
• Once no more air is in the lines and the pedal is firm, you're done
• If there's no more air in the lines and nothings leaking and the pedal is spongey, you need a new master cylinder

Putting in a new rear axle

So, one of the guys I work with came up to me one day and offered me a full floater Corporate 14 bolt rear axle for $50, it was off of an '87 g30 1 ton chevy van. Like I said before, all chevy parts pre-1988 are interchangeable. So i took him up on his offer, by the way incase you don't know, it is a limited slip rear axle with a 4:10 gear ratio. This means i'll get more torque and acceleration, but less of a top speed. Basically all i got was the rear axle, no tires or rims or anything

What tools you'll need:

• First, you are going to need a few days that you don't need your truck
• An oxy-acetelyne torch
• Sledge hammer
• Wrenches
• Sockets
• Pry bars
• Impact gun/sockets
• These will get you started, you will probably need different tools compaired to what you have access to

Parts you'll need:

• Unless you get lucky, and get a rear axle with tires, you need 8 lug 16" rims and tires to match accordingly
• You will need a conversion U-Joint, just go to your nearest auto parts store and tell them the truck you have and the rear axle the truck is off of
• You need new lug nuts
• Axle grease 80W-90
• New/Used 3/4 to 1 ton 4-5leaf  leafsprings, the shackles you don't need to worry about unless they're visibly damaged
• New bolts
• U-bolts ( just buy really long ones from your nearest auto parts store and custom bend them )
• Depending on your truck and the driveshaft length, you might need a new driveshaft
• Brake line/fittings
• *IF NEEDED* new drums and shoes, if you look and they aren't bad just leave them because they're a pain

Removing:

• First, take the tires off the old rear end
• Remove the brake lines 
• Take the bolts out of the shock absorbers




U-Joint


• Take the U-Joint out with a u-joint tool (any auto parts store will have one)
• Tie up the driveshaft so it doesn't dangle
• Then take the long bolts out of the shackles holding the leaf springs in, you might have to heat these up
• MAKE SURE that befor you take out all the shackle bolts that nothing is underneath it and if you are on a lift, put somthing under the front of the truck so it doesnt tip off the lift
• If it doesn't fall out right away, make sure nothing is holding it to the truck anymore and pry on the knuckles on the leaf springs untill it falls

Prepping new rear axle:

• First, you wanna put the tires on it so its mobile
• Then you want to bolt on the leaf springs to the axle ( look at how everything is lined up on the old axle and try your best to make them look the same)
• With the U-bolts, unless you don't mind spending a bunch of money on legitament factory U-bolts, you're going to want to just go to your nearest parts store and buy genaric u-bolts (get the longest ones possible)
• You are going to want to heat up the U-bolts with an oxy-acetyline torch and bend the u-bolts around the axle untill the holes line up for the leaf spring brackets
• After you get that done, take your new/used leaf springs (if you are putting in a different rear end than beofre the shackles aren't going to be the same so you have to disconnect the leaf springs from the shackles) and bolt them to the rear axle. MAKE SURE that everything is the same way as on the old one
• Hammer on the U-Bolts as tight as they go

Installation:

• With your truck looking like this, roll your prepped rear axle under the truck
• Make sure everything is lined up
• SLOWLY lower the truck onto the leaf springs, MAKE SURE that the leaf spring knuckels go into the shackles, it might take some dicking around because they don't always like to just slide in, so don't give up hope
• Once you get the leaf springs in their designated spots, put new Grade 8 bolts in the shackles and crank them down.

• If your shocks look like this or are just over-all completely shot     

                         BUY NEW ONES

• Or you will screw up your new leaf springs and be really upset
• Bolt the shocks back onto the axle
• Put the new conversion U-Joint in (you might have to pull the drive shaft out a little bit if it's a 2piece but don't worry it doesn't hurt)
• Tighten the U-Joint shackles
• Go around and make sure everything is tight
• Let it down all the way and make sure she holds
• Tie up the breather hose somwhere
• Fill ur rear axle with 80W-90 gear oil
• I wouldn't test drive it just yet unless you didnt have back breaks to begin with, because now you're going to have to run back breaks, i will descuss this in a later post.
• If you drove it without back breaks to begin with, you'll be fine to test drive it
• Hop in, start her up, and take her for a spin

Third project, Oil Change

Okay, oil changes on these trucks are the easiest thing known to man.

Things you need:

• 10W-30 SAE motor oil, DO NOT run synthetic, cast iron motors were not ment for it
• If it's been sitting for a while you are going to want to buy an extra 3-4 quarts but other wise you only need 5 quarts
• Oil filter, go to your nearest auto parts store and get the cheapest one, they are all the same, I'd prefer FRAM because thats what I use
• Drain pan
• Old rags
• Wrenches

First:

• Underneath your truck is an oil pan

• You Take out the drain plug and let the oil drain into a pan
• Let it drain untill the oil slows to a drip then SNUG the drain plug when u tighten it, you don't wanna strip that
• Next to the oil pan is the oil filter, unscrew that and let the oil drain out

If your truck has been sitting (Over a year):

• Put the new filter in
• Top off the oil (5 Quarts-ish)
• Start it and let it run for a while
• Turn it of and drain the oil again
• You don't need to replace the filter
• Tighten drain plug and re-fill with oil

Finishing up:

• Write down some where, preferably a sticker on your window, how much milage you have on your truck when you did the oil change PLUS 3,000 miles, because that's when you want to do it again
• Make sure you are at the full line with oil
• You're done :)

Disposing of the oil:

• Take it to your local dump, they sould have a facility for used motor oil

Second Project, Putting in a radiator

So shortly after I bought my truck, my 1987 radiator sprung a massive leak and sprayed coolant everywhere. So I bought some "Stop Leak" and it worked great for like 20 miles.

Things you will need:

• You will need to buy a radiator, you can get a used one from your local junk yard for around $70. But i would suggest just buying either a brand new one, or a re-cored one. A new one goes for around $120. NOTE! When you get it make sure it's the right one, I made the mistake of buying the radiator for the 350ci motor, not the 305ci motor. But it's not that big of a deal because pretty much all chevy parts between 1973 and 1987 are interchangeable for all small block motors.
• New Radiator hoses, they can get pricey, just get the cheap ones tho because the more expesive ones aren't any different, just a waste of money
• More than likely get some hose clamps
• Buy a new thermostat and gasket
• Buy STRAIGHT coolant, not pre-mixed, straight will make 2 gallons of 50/50 for like 20 cents more

Starting out:

• Drain what ever coolant is left by taking off the lower radiator hose
• While it's draining, start taking off the fan shroud and radiator brackets
• Take off the upper radiator hose and overflow hose
• Disconnect the transmission lines and drain the fluid out of the radiator
• Once everything is disconnetcted, pull out the radiator (it might take a little wiggle-jiggle to get it out) 
• After the radiator is out, disconnect all the old hoses from the block
• Now pull out the thermostat, there should only be like 2 bolts

This is basically what you're looking for

Installing the thermostat:

• Clean off the thermostat housing where the gasket goes
• Go out and buy a thermostat and gasket
• Put a little RTV sealant to hold the gasket in place
• Put the thermostat in the same way it came out or it won't work
• Put the housing back on and tighten the bolts

Flushing:

• You are going to want to flush your system to prevent any clogging in your block/motor components
• First you take a garden hose and  put it in the upper radiator hose hole
• Turn the hose on and start the enigine (this is gunna make a mess)
• let it run for a minute or 2 with the heat on full blast
• Shut it of
• *CONGRADULATIONS* you just flushed your motor, you are going to want to do this every 20,000 miles or the coolant gunks up and it isn't pretty

Intallation:

• Basically do everything in reverse
• Put the new radiator in place
• Put the brackets back on
• Put the hoses on and clamp them into place
• Re-connect the transmission lines
• MAKE SURE everything is hooked back up before you put coolant in

Bleeding the system:

• With the motor off poor 50/50 coolant mix in the radiator
• Keep pouring until it doesn't fill anymore
• Start the motor
• Turn the heat on full blast
• Wait for the coolant level to go down
• Squeeze the upper and lower hoses to force out any air
• Keep pouring coolant in until air bubbles stop completely
• Check your temp guage periodically to see when it hits operating teperature (the needle is on the first line)
• If it's at operating temperature and no air bubbles are comming out anymore then you are good
• Fill up the coolent resevoir to factory specs
• Then when you are driving around the next few days keep a check on your temp and coolant level to make sure everything is good

And this is how you put in a radiator, it's pretty much the same process on all American vehicles. And like i said, if you get the radiator for the wrong engine size on your 1987 and lower chevy, they all are interchangable so don't panic.