First Series truck, order of repair advice

[mpreston14]

In 24 hours I will be in possession of 66 Series IIA 88. She is going to need a little love to get her roadworthy...

1) I already know I need a new chassis, both the front and the rear are rotted through.
2) The footwells are shot as is center kick panel but the bulkhead itself is solid though surface rusty
3) The engine moves but hasn't started in a decade+
4) Clutch sinks and stays to the floor
5) Door frames rusted and door tops are holding the glass in (magically I think) despite being bent over outside against the door skins..

My question is what is the logical work order? Do I swap the chassis only to take the bulkhead off later to repair? Do I take her apart and reassemble on the new chassis, fixing rot and rust along the way? Get the engine running first and address clutch etc before bodywork?

The good news is that she is low mileage(25k), body is in pretty good shape minus one tear in the right rear panel that I think I'll keep, all glass is perfect, and the interior is original and almost perfect.

You may ask why I bought this for my first...well she was only $900, don't find many for sale in Rhode Island, and the thought of her being parted out didn't sit well with me :)

I appreciate any assistance you can provide!

Mike

[superstator]

If footwells are rotten and you see "surface" rust elsewhere, be prepared for the bulkhead to be much worse than you expect. If you can get the engine going and drive it around a little, you'll get a much better feel for what else may need attention mechanically.

[cedryck]

My personal view is, a chassis is one of the best things to do, if you do not have to drive it for a while, it is not too much $$ and then you never worry about that part for the next generations, then you can assess the bulkhead, and take care of all those other annoying little things wrong with a truck that has been sitting long, like poor not functioning clutch and brake pedals, my 2 p

[LaneRover]

I go along with both get it running to see what needs attention and the chassis. But be warned, doing the chassis first means doing EVERYTHING - or at least touching everything even if it is to just unbolt from the old and then bolt it back on the new.

By seeing if you can quickly get it to run you can assess what may need deeper help rather than just unbolting and bolting back on.

[cedryck]

LaneRover, I agree with your assessment. I chose the longer, (read more expensive) route to driving my beloved ex-mod 88. I will say and suggest that by doing what I did, frame, rebuild the trans myself, purchase a used good engine, rewire with new harness, make all plumbing, and many other new parts, rebuilding the drive train where needed that when you are done, if and when things break or go wrong, you will have more knowledge, and experience to fix these wonderful and tough trucks. Cheers lads,

[mpreston14]

Thanks for the advice, I have a full set of gaskets ordered and will tackle the engine first. Fingers crossed!

[TravelinLight]

Have the fuel tank dipped no matter what you do or replace outright. No need to flush crud into the new system you may not be able to see in the tank.

I am for rolling restorations as if you take it apart you are more likely to lose interest when hitting a tough spot.

Brakes
Fuel
Engine
frame
4x4
Electrical

[cedryck]

Like and agree with your finding Travelin light, do all of those things, chassis, metal, electrical, plumbing, and hydrolics, fuel, brakes, and drivetrain, drive down the highway without issues,,,,

[westcoastkevin]

Congratulations. The price was right.

From your description, and as LaneRover said, you will be touching everything on this because of the chassis swap.
You may as well get the engine to turn over and try to start it and do a compression test / leakdown test on it
If it runs you can check it for leaks and check the oil pressure. Otherwise, you will not be able to do that until it is all going back together.
Good Luck.

[mpreston14]

Thanks again everyone.

One more thing I forgot to mention is that I need a key...I know I can't pull the cylinder out without the key, but can I pull the whole assembly out and take to the locksmith?

[TravelinLight]

You can replace it without a key, call RN and they can get you all set up.

[Les Parker]

The key # should be on the face of the barrel in the ignition.
Moss Motors and Triple C offer cut keys by number.
Alternative is to fit new barrel and keys.
Look for the small hole in the ignition switch, there is a brass detent, depress with a small screw driver and the barrel should slide out.

[lumpydog]

From Ike's site: http://www.pangolin4x4.com/reference/how-to-guides/late-siia-siii-ignition-switch-barrel-lock-removal/

Illustrates exactly what Les described

[mpreston14]

Good news! My cylinder had the key numbers on the face so the locksmith was able to punch the number into the computer and cut a pair of keys and they turned! Now if only the other locks work off this key...

She should hopefully start in a few days :)

[warrenperkinson]

If you have the patience, you can make the door locks work with your ignition key.

The door locks are extremely simplistic are are easily pulled apart (and probably just as easy to break into) - just be very careful of all the small springs and parts inside.

All you need to do is take the door locks apart and then move the barrel pins around until they work with your ignition key. There are only a very limited number of barrel pins - once again, watch for the very small springs in there.

In my case, I had a different key for every lock on the truck, so I purchased 2 new lock barrels and using the existing locks and the new locks I was able to get 3 complete locks that all worked with the same key.

Good luck...