Cowboy Cruiser Build

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GMC_YA_L8R

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If you're gonna vise grip it, anywhere will work, but use an eyelet terminal or something similar so you're not just mashing the individual wire strands. And don't forget about the ghetto rig either, or else you'll be back here in a year or 2 trying to troubleshoot a no start.
For sure. I was mistaken on which ground it was that I'll need to hook up. It was actually the filler neck ground and not the pump ground. But, yes, it will only be temporary as I'm hoping to get this all done over the next week and have it back together by next Sunday.
 

GMC_YA_L8R

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Well, progress has been slow. I own a small business so that consumes most of my time and garage time is limited. I don't schedule any work on Mondays so I got in the garage this morning and knocked a couple things out on the truck. Nothing major but it's a step in the right direction.

I pressure washed the rear half of the frame to knock off the dirt and any loose rust that I could. I then coated as much as I could with Rust-Oleum Rust Reformer. No need to wire wheel or sand the frame for this stuff. The Rust Reformer works best when there is rust present. Luckily, my frame is still solid as a rock with just some surface rust present. No rusted through spots that I have found thus far.

I installed new Husky U-bolts and new GM Genuine leaf spring plates. The factory U-bolts were rusted down to essentially nothing with one bolt already snapped.

Pics below of current progress. Need to pick up another can or two of Rust Reformer to finish a few spots. I'll give this a couple weeks to cure as I'm going overseas this weekend for a couple weeks on vacation so I'll pick back up on it when I get home.

As my favorite YouTuber says--"Sitting on your ass won't finish your project!"

One step at a time.
 

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GMC_YA_L8R

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Goodness, it's been a minute since I've updated the Cowboy Cruiser thread so here we go!

This weekend's project was one of necessity. The truck has been plagued with hard starts, random stalling, terrible performance, and horrible fuel mileage since the day I got it running again. It was in dire need of a tune-up.

I installed a new United Motor Products 9366 distributor, a set of new AC Delco CR43TS spark plugs gapped to 0.035, a set of new AC Delco 618V plug wires, and a new Delphi GN10048 ignition coil. The new temperature sensor should be here tomorrow as well but I went ahead and timed the truck and took it for a spin. It's incredible how well this little truck runs. Super quiet, plenty of get up and go (for a beater with a heater) and so much smoother without the rear end being held in by hopes and dreams!

Also went ahead and replaced the rear pinion seal, fresh gear oil, and new gasket on the housing cover. Now, my next project is to get a rearview mirror, replace the driver's side mirror and rebuild the front suspension and some steering components and then I think it would probably pass inspection and be good enough to beat around town in this winter. And that's pretty awesome to me.
 

GrimsterGMC

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Those rear axle U-bolt are an accident just waiting to happen, ma lot people have never replaced them as they rust where you can't see into and look fine on a quick inspection. We have 6 monthly "Warrant of Fitness" checks down here and mine were rusted through and never got picked up on the inspection.
 

GMC_YA_L8R

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Those rear axle U-bolt are an accident just waiting to happen, ma lot people have never replaced them as they rust where you can't see into and look fine on a quick inspection. We have 6 monthly "Warrant of Fitness" checks down here and mine were rusted through and never got picked up on the inspection.
It's funny, when I bought this truck the guy told me if he put a fuel pump in it he could probably get $5k for it. As he said that, I was staring right at a snapped U bolt and just thought to myself that whoever bought this truck would probably die the first time they sent it down the interstate. Feels much better knowing they are solid now.
 
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