Cooking With The Crockpot

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The Crockpot had trouble keeping its cool on the last mountain trip I took. I had to stop several times along the way to let it cool down after pulling long hills. I suspected that it was a flow issue. I decided to do a muriatic acid flush on the radiator to see if it helped. I did this "by the book" as far as the acid/water ratio and rinsing with fresh water and following with a mix of water and baking soda. I buttoned everything back up, refilled and all was good. I drove it for a couple of days and parked it for a week. The next time I fired up the Crockpot to go on a 'wheeling / camping trip I noticed a drip coming from the radiator. I pulled the radiator, pressure tested it and found the leak. Took it to the local radiator shop and he was not able to fix it. The copper was too thin and every time he put heat on it to solder it, the split kept growing. I toiled over whether to buy a new Toyota radiator but ended up with this:
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Overall I am happy with it. It is a three core Champion. I have used this same brand and model number before in a 40 and had no trouble with it. I don't expect any trouble with this one. The CP is back on the road and running well.
 
How is that paint holding up on the bezel? I had heard the appliance epoxies would tend to yellow in the sun. I ask because I have considered using the same paint.
 
70fj40 said:
How is that paint holding up on the bezel? I had heard the appliance epoxies would tend to yellow in the sun. I ask because I have considered using the same paint.
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It looks the same now as when I painted it 1 1/2 years ago. I can't see any difference at all. My truck spends much of its life in the garage out of the sun though. Your results may vary. Overall I have been happy with my el cheapo paint solution for the top cap and bezel as well as the flat khaki on the body. They are both holding up well so far. The flat paint is a little bit of a pain in that it likes to suck up greasy fingerprints. Other than that it's good.
 
Another Q:
I used the Champion brass unit and ran into an ugly issue with the drain interfering with the crossmember and being unable to access it - so I built a custom extension to use the original style drain out of ss solid stock , was a total pain . How is the drain on this aluminum one ?

Sarge
 
Weber Sarge said:
I built a custom extension to use the original style drain out of ss solid stock
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Hey Sarge you know Christmas is right around the corner. I reckon "Dave" @roadstr6 and I could probably use a patent pending "Weber sarge" custom drain extension.:)
 
Chungas Revenge said:
How did you "button up" the inlet/outlet? Curious as to your solution as I am about to do the same.
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CR, The trans cooler inlet and outlet appear to be a separate circuit. I am not using it so I left it as is. There are two little plastic plugs in the inlet and outlet that came from the factory. I left them in to keep the passages clean but I could just as easily pull them out. The radiator will not leak from those holes.

Sarge, I was not aware that Champion made a brass unit. I have fitted two of these aluminum ones without issue. The drain may be troublesome to get to but there was no interference on either of the ones I installed. I usually just pull the bottom hose to drain the coolant anyway instead of fiddling with the petcock. I'm always terrified that I will break the petcock and open up a can of worms. I prefer to just pull the hose...plus it drains faster.
 
The whole problem with mine was the previous owners , as usual . When I go this thing there was something akin to "creek water" in the cooling system , no antifreeze . Evidently , it was in there a long time and rusted the block internally pretty badly - plugging the original radiator completely . I need to drain at the bottom of that lower tank to get the residue out , most times the drain is plugged up inside the tube extension so a screwdriver is needed to clear it . I run a Gano filter in the top hose and flush it 3x a year now...so far , so good .

Sarge
 
@roadstr6 - how is the appliance paint holding up on the roof?

I followed your guidance and used it on my bezel and after a year it's still looking good. Am planning to use it on the roof eventually and am curious if you've experienced any durability or UV issues on a large surface area?

roadstr6 said:
Crockpot Update: I was able to spend some time working on the Crockpot over the weekend. The hard top is now completely painted and ready to install. I also purchased and installed a roof rack which will come in handy on my upcoming Hurricane Creek trip with the ONSC group. Again, the top sides are rattlecanned with Rustoleum Flat Khaki and the top cap (and bezel) are Rustoleum Appliance Epoxy in Biscuit. Say what you want about the rattle can stuff but I am actually quite happy with how the whole truck has turned out. I really like the Biscuit appliance paint. It is a beautiful creamy off-white color very close to the cygnus white from the factory. It lays down nice and smooth and thick. Dry time is a little longer with the epoxy than with regular paint but it shines nicely and is rock hard. I'm curious to see how it holds up on the top. It has done well on the bezel these past couple of months.
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joyRidaz said:
@roadstr6 - how is the appliance paint holding up on the roof?

I followed your guidance and used it on my bezel and after a year it's still looking good. Am planning to use it on the roof eventually and am curious if you've experienced any durability or UV issues on a large surface area?
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George,

The appliance paint is holding up fine. The truck stays garaged when not in use so it doesn't see a lot of sun. Regardless, I am happy with it. Looks like it did right after I sprayed it on. Pretty impressive for rattle can paint IMO.

Dave
 
I like details. Details are important to me. This truck has had my OCD in full-on freak mode since day one. Today I took care of another little detail that has always bugged me. The top radiator grille was missing. It seems to happen on a lot of trucks. I don't know why. This is the second 40 I have had and both of them were this way. I decided to go to Lowes and pick up a small sheet of expanded metal and a piece of bar stock. Cut it out, tacked it in and ahhhhhhh....I feel so much better!
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joyRidaz said:
@roadstr6 - crockpot is looking great!

@ oldschool4wheeling - I can't wait to see how you tackle replacing all those panels at once. Very interested in learning the sequence and method. It's gonna look awesome!
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After extensive research, I found a local tech college that has a body shop. I hear they do great work and the kids are closely supervised. So the deal is I buy all the parts and they will install them at no cost. Their compensation is having a vehicle to work on. Im sure their quality of work would be better than mine!!
 
How do you like the rack gutter mounts? I finally have my 40 in my possession and want to put a rack on. Those mounts are appealing for the ease of removal and cost, but I was concerned with having only a cam lock holding it to the roof. My rack will need to carry kayaks or a tent.
 
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