Waking up a Texas M151A2

A place to post pics and descriptions of ongoing restoration projects

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m3a1
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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by m3a1 » June 9th, 2017, 9:59 pm

Well, the MUTT let me down today.

I came out of Home Depot and it wouldn't start. I found the distributor housing to be surprisingly hot (though we were at over 100 degrees today) even after sitting for a while. Home Depot isn't all that far from my house. More attempts to start, power switch on, plenty of fuel in the tank, fuel filter at normal level - I cranked it, waited for a bit, cranked it, waited for a bit, cranked it and still nothing. There was no indication that it was flooded.

With a ride from a buddy, I got home and scavenged a coil from the Alley Cat and returned with it. I put that in and it still didn't want to start!

So now I was thinking perhaps there was an issue with the oil pressure switch. So again, I scavenged one off the Alley Cat but was somewhat delayed in returning with it (and some starting fluid just in case). Decided to roll the dice and try starting it again before breaking out the tools. Then the darned thing started up per normal, without starting fluid, at the first bump of the starter. Weird.

I think it's just jealous of all the attention being paid to the 6x6.

Anyway I drove it home and parked it nose-into a corner, just to show it who's boss. After tomorrow, I'll put the old coil back in and see if it will start.

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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by rickf » June 9th, 2017, 10:49 pm

If you played with the oil pressure switch and it started then check the sockets in the plug, Mine had one that backed out the other day and it shut the fuel pump off while riding down the road. Took a bit to realize the pump was not rattling like usual and the first place I checked was the oil pressure switch. I always carry a small jumper wire with clips so I can jump the safety switch if I need to get the pump running on the ignition directly. I was getting ready to hook that up and realized that one of the pins in the plug was pushed out.
1964 M151A1
1984 M1008
1967 M416
04/1952 M100
12/1952 M100- Departed
AN/TSQ-114A Trailblazer- Gone

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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by m3a1 » June 10th, 2017, 9:42 am

Nope, I actually did nothing (aside from the coil much earlier in the day) but since we are on the subject I would like to know which leads to jump if I find myself facing that switching issue. I'll snap a pic, post it and maybe you can point out which leads need to be jumped.

As for keeping my MUTT going, I think looking those contacts over might be a good idea.

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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by rickf » June 10th, 2017, 2:11 pm

#77 and 77A
1964 M151A1
1984 M1008
1967 M416
04/1952 M100
12/1952 M100- Departed
AN/TSQ-114A Trailblazer- Gone

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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by m3a1 » June 17th, 2017, 5:46 pm

Thank you, Riok.

Swapped out the rear differential for the one from the Alley Cat after replacing the output shaft seals. Wow! What a difference. That horrible "WTF?" noise is gone. The other differential is going to need some TLC on the inside, to be sure.
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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by rickf » June 17th, 2017, 5:52 pm

m3a1 wrote:Thank you, Riok.

Swapped out the rear differential for the one from the Alley Cat after replacing the output shaft seals. Wow! What a difference. That horrible "WTF?" noise is gone. The other differential is going to need some TLC on the inside, to be sure.

Oatmeal. :twisted: :twisted: :twisted:
1964 M151A1
1984 M1008
1967 M416
04/1952 M100
12/1952 M100- Departed
AN/TSQ-114A Trailblazer- Gone

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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by m3a1 » June 17th, 2017, 8:30 pm

I'm thinking bearings. It's not a problem. It's a project!

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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by m3a1 » August 6th, 2017, 12:45 pm

Thought I'd bring this thread up to date.
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The mysterious problem with the MUTT, where it would run until shut off and then wouldn't restart repeated itself several times, once leaving me to walk home, on a three mile hike, at mid day, in Texas, in 100 degree heat. I needed the exercise but I certainly didn't need the aggravation. Problem has since been resolved by replacing the capacitor. I'm now driving this enough that it's time to put together some spares and tools and keep them in the truck. File that under lessons learned.

Since I have swapped the rear end for the one that had been in the Alley Cat, I find that it leaks but it is such a small leak I'm inclined to tolerate it for a while. What is most bothersome is I cannot get the darned drain plug loose. Some gorilla must have put it in. Because it had formerly been in a vehicle that was not running, I'm hoping just the business of my running it will be sufficient to loosen it up. Stranger things have happened. If not, stronger measures may be in order.
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Since they were taken out with the rear end, the axle shafts from the Alley Cat have had their U-joints removed and they have been cleaned, blasted, recoated and reassembled. After I install new u-joints, I'll swap them into the front of the A2 and refurbish the axle shafts I take out. Around and around and around we go. Where it ends, nobody knows!
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At long last, I have installed the manual throttle. Getting that cable anchor on was a bit of a booger but I managed it. I don't see myself using the manual throttle very much but it fills the hole in the dash. :roll:
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Finally installed the windshield washer pump. I managed to break the nipple off in doing so and ended up carefully gluing it back on and then reinforcing the repair with a plastic epoxy. Had I known it was so frail, I would have reinforced it before installation. If you take nothing else away from reading this, that's the lesson for today. Reinforce the nipples on the back of the windshield washer pump before installation. You'll save yourself some aggravation.

Yesterday I took off the blackout light and guard and as they were particularly gruesome (worse than anything else on the truck) I got them apart and put them in the blast cabinet for a make-over. If you're wondering how I managed to blast that clever little opening where the light comes out, well, I didn't! I masked that off and simply touched it up with paint, by hand. Come the day I'm all that concerned about tiny little things like that, I'll simply put a brand new bulb in. I cleaned up the fender top in that area with a light scraping with a dull pocket knife which removed a lot of the little spots of paint that didn't belong, followed by a light once-over with steel wool. Some of this old brush-painted camo seems to be getting ready to come off which suits me just fine. The little spots of paint just kind of chip off if I come at them just right with the knife, leaving the original paint intact. After getting the light assembly into paint and mounting them, they looked so good my buddy thought I had hung new parts on the MUTT. Seemed a shame to make a clean spot but something had to be done about that light assembly. I just couldn't stand it anymore.
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Took the truck to the local car show (Soda Pop's famous Hot Rod Night) and saw some really stellar cars, smoked a cigar, listened to the live music and chatted with people. The MUTT got a lot of attention and everyone always seems to want to know more about it. I even encouraged folks and their kids to climb in and get the feel of it, which they thoroughly enjoyed. Unlike these wonderful machines with beautiful paint and tons of chrome, the MUTT is approachable and everyone loves it which makes for a lot of fun times at the car shows.
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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by m3a1 » August 10th, 2017, 11:45 pm

Update -

Installed new bumpers on the forward firewall and the ding-danged hood started rattling again! Found that gremlin and killed it, hopefully once and for all.

Pulled the rear exhaust manifold clamp off and carefully drilled out the broken lower bolt, tapped the hole, cleaned everything up, removed all remnants of cutting oil and put everything back on. Had to borrow a bolt lock-tab from the Alley Cat as the other one disappeared when the bolt broke so many moons ago..long before I acquired the truck. Checked the manual, checked the torque on the bolts, ran it up to temp and re-torqued. Overtorquing will deform the exhaust collector tube and you'll be right back where you started. As for me, no more Pfhht-Pfhht-Pfhht! Silence is golden. :P
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Still had some time and very little to do so, I removed the front shackles, drilled out the remnants of the anchor nail and installed new link chains by putting the chain on a cotter pin, pushing it through the hole and bending it into a T on the other side. Not mil-spec, but wholly sufficient for my purposes. Then, I trotted the shackles and pins over to the blast cabinet for a make-over; thereby making yet another clean spot! :roll:

Hung a proper center-stud side-view mirror on the truck in place of the round interior mirror (with the offset stud) that had formerly been on there. Quite a difference having the center stud mirror...much less vibration.

Tomorrow we go look over the M38 that has come available, locally. Fingers and toes crossed!

Cheers,
TJ
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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by m3a1 » August 18th, 2017, 10:40 pm

Update -

YES! We did bring the M38 home.

NO! I did not abandon the MUTT for the M38 project (though it is monopolizing my time).

YES! I have done something on the MUTT. CAPLUGS! If you every wondered what those little plastic caps pressed into the series of holes in your cowling inside the engine compartment are, they are called Caplugs and they come in all sizes. Finally, those unsightly holes in my truck have been filled with the right thing!
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Cheers,
TJ
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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by m3a1 » September 12th, 2017, 2:48 pm

The plan today was to start bright and early, hustle over to WW Tire, my favorite local tire place, take the tire tubes over and hopefully get there before they swapped the tube type tires onto the the rims for the M38. That WAS the plan (emphasis on the past tense).

I tossed the tubes in the MUTT and immediately noticed my right rear tire was flat. BUGGER!
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So, I pulled a new wheel and tire off the shelf, swapped it onto the truck and then headed over. I found they had already put the tires on the M38's rims with new valve stems and the fellow said he was pretty sure they would hold air just fine without the tubes so, rather than pay for new valve stems and pay for putting tubes in them, I elected to see if they would hold air without tubes. These are only for helping to keep the M38 mobile while it's under construction.

I left the MUTT tire there, with one tube, just in case they botched it on the dismount.
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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by rickf » September 12th, 2017, 5:03 pm

Damn! He snuch a picture of himself in there. That had to be an accident, or you wanted to see who would notice. :twisted: :lol:
1964 M151A1
1984 M1008
1967 M416
04/1952 M100
12/1952 M100- Departed
AN/TSQ-114A Trailblazer- Gone

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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by m3a1 » September 12th, 2017, 6:28 pm

Oh? You want to see what I look like? (I'd suggest you say - NO.)

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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by rickf » September 12th, 2017, 6:39 pm

Too late, I saw the picture, it is ingrained for life. Everybody apparently knows what I look like, I have people coming up to me at any given show and saying "I know you, you are Rickf on the G". I just cut my long hair so we will see what happens at Gilbert. :twisted:
1964 M151A1
1984 M1008
1967 M416
04/1952 M100
12/1952 M100- Departed
AN/TSQ-114A Trailblazer- Gone

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Re: Waking up a Texas M151A2

Unread post by m3a1 » September 12th, 2017, 6:51 pm

Kenya, 2017
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