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Racinbob

Suburban 400 Find in Florida

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VinsRJ

You are correct you need the gaskets in order to provide clearance, also you want the bushings to be a little on the tight side IMO, lube them with engine assemble lube so you know you they will not get washed out, run the tranny in 1ts and 2nd gear for a little while to allow everything to break in...

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Racinbob

I was pretty sure I would get some binding with no gaskets but for the sake of what I was trying to resolve it didn't matter. The axles were binding whenever I snugged up on the case sides. Even if the differential housing was bound up tight the axles should still rotate. Steve and I have been racking our brains trying to figure out what's going on. Apparently there is a slight misalignment that shows itself when the sides are snug. Basically, the axles aren't perfectly parallel. It's slight but enough to cause the binding. It was fine before I installed the new bushings but the old ones were worn bad. Now that I've resolved that the gaskets will let the differential free up. With the left side plate installed with a gasket the right end of the differential housing is about .020 below the edge on the transmission case. My hold up now is that I only have one 1/32" gasket left. More material is coming today. I need both gaskets so I can calculate the thickness of the arbor shims needed on the input shaft and the mushroom gear end of the brake shaft. Everything is getting coated with Syn Power as it assembled.

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stevasaurus

Is it time for a :woohoo::happy-jumpeveryone:   or are we still crossing our fingers??? :)

Edited by stevasaurus

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Racinbob

OH GEEZ!! NOOOOOOOO!! With all that's gone on I don't want to be too quick with the woo hoo. Let's just say I've got the mouse courser pointed to the emoticon. :eusa-shhh:

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Racinbob

OK....NOW!!!!! :woohoo::happy-jumpeveryone::banana-tux: The new gasket material arrived, got them cut and slapped everything together. With all the practice I've had I think it takes me about a minute to get all the parts in place. She's spinning free!!! Finally, I can move on to actually accomplishing something. Another big :thanks: for all the help. Steve, you're the man! Time for a beer or 6 and go watch a transmission spin.

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stevasaurus

:woohoo::orcs-cheers::banana-linedance: :banana-linedance: :banana-linedance: :banana-linedance: :banana-linedance:

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shorts

stating with it until you succeed  is the sign of a true mechanic/technician,  congradulations on your success

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Racinbob

I've been tied up with a couple other projects but have found some time to play a little. I completed the choke/throttle controls. I made the levers using the one that was on the tractor as a pattern. Installed Glens knobs and Terry's decal with the little modification and I'm happy with it. I don't think that roll pin behind the choke lever is supposed to be there. I can't figure why it was installed. It will pop out easily enough. The levers pivot on 1/4" SS bolts with nylon washers and ny-loc nuts which will let me fine tune them once it's installed.

The transmission is all painted up with a couple of little tweaks I wanted to do. I'm waiting on two little items that will arrive next week then I'll post pictures of that. With all the issues I had with that it sure feels good to see a complete, working transmission sitting there.

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Edited by Racinbob
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stevasaurus

That throttle/choke thingy looks great Bob.  :)

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Racinbob

Thanks Steve. When I talked to Terry about the decal he mentioned that he might make several like that so if somebody else who's doing a 400 wants one he may have them printed already. Having the serial number would have been nice but it was completely gone and I really didn't want a random number on it. The plate was pitted pretty bad but the bottom wasn't so I just flipped it.

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19richie66

Looks good Bob. Nice work on the levers.

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Racinbob

Well, with just a couple of tweaks left to do on it here's the transmission. The frame and many of the attaching parts are primed but I'm not sure if I'll get them sprayed red for a while. I really pushed it on the transmission and there's a couple areas I'm not 100% pleased with. It's just too hot and humid. I haven't decided if I'll respray the sides yet. Maybe with time I'll just tell myself "that's fine". I know the body parts won't get any red until summer is over.

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19richie66

I would be happy with that. With being in Florida,orange peel,bugs and sweat drippings are normal. :)

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Racinbob

No bugs :) and I think the sweat drippings missed. The finish on the case turned out great but there's a couple spots on the sides and on one axle. It will be an easy fix but with this being Rustoleum I want to let it dry for at least a month. Maybe by then I'll just decide to let it go.

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Racinbob

Yea, I know. Can I possibly go any slower on this project? Actually, I’m pretty happy with the progress.  My problem is that I have too many other projects as well. Gotta keep the Mrs. happy.

 

I bolted up the frame to the transmission this morning. I’m leaving painted parts alone for at least a week to minimize damaging the paint so that’s another excuse for the slow progress. I’ve got several parts ready to mount like the pedals, lift arm, rear hitch, etc. The drag link was welded to the steering sector and it was a bear trying to save it. The weld was tearing up bits. I torched the weld and got it to lose some of its temper and finally got it drilled and tapped.  The old drag link was history so I made a new one. I cleaned up the hood stand enough to start working on it. The ‘ears’ are messed up (mainly the left) and I ground the bird poop weld off to break loose the bottom flange. I wanted the frame to this point so I can trial fit the hood to make sure I position the ears properly when I patch her up.

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stevasaurus

Bob, that trans looks fantastic.  :)

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Jake Kuhn

Looking great bob!

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Racinbob

Thanks guys. I found out something today. It's nice to have a small can of matching paint to touch up spots. I got a couple small dings on the edges while wrestling this around by myself. I had an open quart can of Rustoleum red but I didn't know if it was Sunrise or Regal. The marking was covered with paint but I suspected it was Sunrise. It was. I wanted a half pint can of Regal red but I just can't find it. Sunrise but no Regal. I remember having the same problem when we lived in Indiana which is probably why I had the can of Sunrise. I don't know if they don't sell Regal in the small can or I just can't find it. I was digging through my paint cabinet this morning and found an unopened half pint can of Ace Hardware Regal red. It's probably 6-10 years old but still good. It's a perfect match. I went over the spots I did with the Sunrise and can't even tell it was touched up now.

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Racinbob

Making a little more progress in between the other projects I have going. The steering sector needed a bit of work. As I mentioned, the ball joint on the original drag link had been welded into place. I ground it off and after getting some of the temper out of the weld I was able to get it re-tapped. Because it must have stripped out in the past (hence the weld) I didn’t know if I could get a good threaded hole for the new drag link I made. I think the weld helped me out here. It was a good fit but not perfect. I used Loctite 271 and after it set up it seemed fine but I decided to drill it for a roll pin for added strength. I think it will be fine. The steering pinion roll pin was a bit worn so it got replaced with doubled up roll pins. Then it was on to the hood stand. A picture of what I had is in post #39. I’m not too good at this type of metal work but I had an idea and I think it came out pretty good.  The torched area filled in pretty good. The left ‘dog ear’ for the hood was cobbled up when that section was torched out. I ground the bottom tab free and reconnected it. Both ears needed straightening and that came out pretty good too. I’ve been test fitting everything as I go so I left the steering rod and hood stand in primer knowing I would mess it up some. I think I’m ready to do the final sanding and make it red. We’re leaving on vacation next week and I want to get them painted before we go so they will have dry time without my temptation to mess with things too soon. The other parts (lift arm, pedals, etc.) are ready to install once I’m done with the hood stand. I haven’t done anything to the front axle or the wheels yet. The wheels won’t take much because they are in pretty good shape. Just some sanding and a fresh coat of paint will make them look great. I’m kinda dragging me feet on those because I’m not worried about making it a roller yet and I’m hoping I come across some ags for the rear, maybe even 23-8.50’s. When we get back home I’m probably going to do the tool box and fenders so I can get things put together on top of the transmission.

 

IDEA!! As I was taking these pictures I thought I’d post an ad in the wanted section later this afternoon. There’s a few things I need for this tractor and I’ll list them. This is really for the folks that live in the northern Indiana area. I’ll be up there the first week in August and if by chance somebody has something I need that they would part with I could pick it up rather than dealing with shipping. Details later today in the wanted section.

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Molon_Labe

Awesome job, please keep us updated. Can't wait to see the finished product!

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Racinbob

Thank you. This was the very first time I've used JB Weld. I gotta say I'm impressed with it. It's one of those things that I can no say "Why didn't I try this sooner?" Just don't hold your breath on seeing it all done. I'm fighting the weather to do the painting and I won't even think about spraying the hood until the heat and humidity back off and that will be October.

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19richie66

Hey Bob, that looks great! If you need anything welded, bring it with you if you come to hang out and we can zap it. Have a good vacation, Richie

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Racinbob

Thanks Richie. I appreciate that. I definitely plan on getting down your way. After we couldn't meet up that Monday I ended up getting pretty swamped. This retired life is wearing me out! We'll be back the 11th and then I'll be in touch. 

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Racinbob

No one has ever said I can't laugh at myself. After talking with a couple guys here about my gas tank I couldn't resist pulling it off the shelf and looking at the filler neck. I've never replaced a neck but I knew this one had to be or I would need a different tank. Some things tend to bug me and taking a torch to a gas tank defies anything closely related to sanity to me. Even though I had flushed it out several times it still had a slight gas smell. I finally decided that if it's my time I've lived a pretty good life. So....I fire up the torch and stretching as far as I could I put the flame in the filler. OK, quit laughing at me, you all know it didn't go boom. I was amazed at how easy the neck came off. I may have to do dclarkes trick and raise the new neck a bit but I'll have to see when I start the hood. There's a little rust inside but the tank is really in good shape. It's cooking in the e-tank right now. 

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stevasaurus

Ha...here hold my beer and watch this.  :)  You could kind of fill it with water while you are heating up the neck...that would cut down on the BOOM. 

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