Blue Mule resto in Malawi (7 Viewers)

[M5driver]

Dan - I hope this thread isn't dead - I and a lot of others are really interested in seeing you overcome your problems. We all want to know what magic solution your panel beaters have for painting silicone sealer.

Wayne,
Hakuna matata! The thread's not dead, but I'm kinda beat. "magic solution" = sandpaper! Well, not really - or at least entirely. See more below...

We just completed our 3-day gyration with the congressional delegation. That went smoothly, and I scored a little time in the right seat of a nearly new mil version of the 737 Very cool!!! Flying a glass cockpit is kinda like cheating, tho. I'm used to steam guages and paper charts.

I had yesterday off (Malawian holiday), so got a bit more work done on the engine clean up. Also checked out the work at the panel beater today - it may turn out OK in the end. They cleaned up the silicone pretty well, but failed to wait for me to show them how to apply the acrylic sealer, so that got mucked up. "We" decided to just take all that stuff out of the seams, make sure we have another coat of RB applied, then prime it up and paint, without any seam sealer. I figure if I need it, I can do that work once back in the US, and in touch with a good paint shop. With luck, I'll have the main panels and tub back home by end of the month.

Work continues at home on the engine clean up and chassis. Hope to post up a few more pix this week.

Went by the Toyota dealer to inquire about gaskets - nothing. (Well, they DID laugh! ) Then went to the indie who maintains my out-of-warranty motor pool vehicles, and sure enough - he had a complete gasket set for the 2F engine. Cost me $70 equivalent, and is not OEM, but should work. I'll have to take pix of that, too. It's a rebuild kit, so it has pretty much everything.

More soon!

to all and thanks for the encouragement!

 

[jvazquez53]

I am an ex 40 owner and all I can say is WOW!!!! Very impressive rebuild. I'll keep an eye, since I might get me another 40.

 

[M5driver]

I am an ex 40 owner and all I can say is WOW!!!! Very impressive rebuild. I'll keep an eye, since I might get me another 40.

Thanks, Jose. It's not been without some low points...

Time for a short update. Since the congressmen left, I was able to get stuck back into the project.

Just before the visit, I collected the silver parts from the panel beater. Moustaffa is one of the two good shooters. He does nice work.

 

[M5driver]

Back at the ranch, I have been able to get back to work on the engine clean up. The leak at the rear of the engine has hopefully been resolved. Now I'm going after the timing gear cover leak and an exhaust leak.

 

[M5driver]

The manifolds are actually in decent shape, but the carbon tracks on the gaskets and the side of the engine show a lot of exhaust leakage - between the manifolds, at the head, and at the EGR pipe connection. This can all be resolved with a little sweat and some new gaskets & sealer.

 

[M5driver]

The ring seals on the exhaust manifold ends were completely compressed. They came out easily, and the ends and grooves cleaned up nicely with some emery cloth. The new seals went in easily.

 

[Fast Eddy]

The manifolds are actually in decent shape, but the carbon tracks on the gaskets and the side of the engine show a lot of exhaust leakage - between the manifolds,

What are you using as a spacer between the manifolds? I'd recommend a solid piece of stainless steel like SOR sells. You could fab it up easily. It may prevent the heat from the exhaust manifold from someday cracking your aluminum intake manifold.

 

[M5driver]

The manifold ends went back in easily, and are once again a nice tight fit. I wanted to do this in a semi-gloss black, but the only high temp aerosol I could get without waiting for months was the aluminum variety, so silver it is...

That air rail from Eddie cleaned up nice, too!

 

[M5driver]

Gotta get some gaskets since I pulled everything off the engine to clean up the rust and get it painted. The owner of the independent shop I favor had told me several months back that he had a gasket set for a 2F engine. I went there today while doing all my other running and sure enough - just under 10,000 Malawi kwacha (about $70) for a complete set. I don't need most of these, but it can't hurt to have some spares on hand. A few of the gaskets won't work with my '78 (10/77 build) engine, since the kit was for '80 and later, but the kit has what I need.

 

[amaurer]

am i seeing things wrong, or is that one flimsy lookin head gasket?

 

[M5driver]

And just for a laugh - here's a couple of pix from the panel beater's. I shot these when I went to pick up the silver bits.

 

[M5driver]

What are you using as a spacer between the manifolds? I'd recommend a solid piece of stainless steel like SOR sells. You could fab it up easily. It may prevent the heat from the exhaust manifold from someday cracking your aluminum intake manifold.

Hi, Eddy.

I already have that stainless plate from SOR I'll have to trim the flapper a bit to make sure it clears but I think it's worth that bit of work to have the stainless piece in there. I figure that will help some of that leakage and keep the intake manifold from being as susceptible to cracking. I'll also be using the high temp copper sealer there and at the manifold/head junction.

 

[M5driver]

am i seeing things wrong, or is that one flimsy lookin head gasket?

Might be. It's about 1/16" thick, and the metal rings seem decent enough, tho. I can't use that on my engine (and don't need it ) right now, but if it was right for my '78 and I needed a gasket, I'd use it. All the others seem to be decent quality and good materials. The manifold gaskets appear to be metal clad asbestos. The set is made in Japan by a company called "Stoner". No - really !

 

[M5driver]

Visited the panel beater briefly Friday - just in and out. Making progress.

The mucked up sealer has been removed from the tub seams. I decided to just have it painted without sealer, since we can't get the right stuff. The paint work should be decent, and I can take the mule to a shop once back in the US and have the seams sealed and some touch up paint work. Not the ideal solution, but sometimes ya gotta go with what ya can get.

The second photo is Francis, my "minder". The shop here has generally been good about allowing me free access to the entire shop, as long as someone brings me in and out. Works for me, and Francis is an amiable fellow.

The high fill primer was put on over the Rust Bullet after the bullet had been wet sanded. Then the high fill is smoothed, the final primer applied and we're ready for paint. Should start the blue paint this week

 

[M5driver]

At home, the work goes on, albeit slowly. I'm still waiting for several small parts to get here. They are probably sitting in Nairobi, waiting for a flight with enough cargo room for our mail bags. Maybe tomorrow or Tuesday ;p

While waiting for the bits I need, I work on other things. Fortunately, there is plenty to do, and a lot can be done without getting in the way of access to the engine. I got the side cover and timing gear cover painted and the side cover installed. I put the timing gear cover on temporarily, to take the photos, but the crank pulley isn't ready to go on yet, so that cover is still to be completed. I stole the color scheme from Keith Richardson (of BJ42 to FJ40 conversion fame)
Looks great!

 

[M5driver]

Cleaned and polished the valve cover while waiting for paint and Rust Bullet to dry.

 

[M5driver]

Yep - more Rust Bullet

Those are new taillights. After seeing how bad the originals had rusted, I decided even with the yellow zinc coating, a little RB is cheap insurance.

If the parts don't get here this week, I'll test fit the rear wiring harness, maybe install some brake hard lines along the frame rail and the axles. I can also start work on the front brakes, since I need to replace the rotors, and clean up & paint what needs it there, install the rebuilt calipers, and new hubs. The old, original Warn hubs got pretty nasty and jammed up with silt in Bulgaria, so it's tme for new hubs. No shortage of things to work on

 

[zebedee99]

moni. muli bwanji

i'm loving this thread. i have a cruiser restoration project underway here in NZ (only 2 years and $15,000 over budget, oops - and it still looks like your pics when it was all spread out on the workshop floor, stripped and disassembled) AND have spent some time living in Zambia, so i feel your pain!! the god old zambian toolkit, a 5 pound hammer and a selection of chisels - any job, same tools it seems. as for 'we'll nod when the mzungu tells us what to do and then when he's gone we'll do it how we think it should be done. just now, not now now' - don't get me started..!!

from memory it's not a huge expat community in LLW - say hello to charlie and dorothy clark if you run in to them?! (I went to university with their daughter Lindsay, and attended her wedding at club makokola!). Have played a round at LLW golf club too, in my time. From memory we hired two extra caddies to carry the case of greens, but only got told off by one of the members for 'inappropriate footwear' ha!!

good luck with it, looking forward to seeing finished truck!

jake

 

[M5driver]

Ndili bwino, zikomo kwamberi!

just now, not now now' - don't get me started..!!

And "morrow" (tomorrow) dosen't mean "tomorrow", it just means "not today".

...club makokola!).

Nice place. If I ever get this truck rebuilt, hope to go back there at least once before we're done. Also need to make another run to Mulanje, Thyolo, Zomba south and Nyika north. Whether those trips happen or not, we absolutely must make one last foray into South Luangwa!

good luck with it, looking forward to seeing finished truck!

As am I! And my wife... - she looks at it and asks me how long until she can drive "her" 40 again

 

[M5driver]

Whoo hoo! Blue!

Finally had a few minutes to run by the panel beater today. Francis was anxious to show me how the work is going. When we rounded the corner next to the paint booth, here's what greeted me