Gifted an 80

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Well not really any further along. I did finally get to changing the oil, and I installed new bulbs. Pretty happy with the result.

I’ll work on the sway bar when the new bushings come in.

I’ll have cont. bleeding the brakes. Still very soft.

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man…. We’ll, I flushed the coolant system 3 times tonight. I was tired at the end and forgot to burp after draining the block. Long story short, steam came out the overflow. I immediately shut off the vehicle. As soon as possible I filled the system with the remaining water needed. I’m really hoping I didn’t **** my my head. I can’t believe I did that… jeez. This isn’t the first time I messed up working tired.

Here’s hoping all is well.
 
Nice work so far bringing this truck back from the land of neglect!.
 
Exciting news, the new OE exhaust is on, and no apparent leaks. Im going to wrap the cross pipe where it crosses the transfer case. I might put another hanger in there as well. There is little to no clearance between the pipe and the TC.


I had 3 codes on the dash: I cleared them, then the 22, 51, came back on. But then the went away. Not sure what’s going on with that.

22 - engine temp sensor.

28 - #2 02 sensor, the sensor was broken off in the bung.

51 - not sure what that one is. I looked it up in my book, could be a variety of issues.

I am pumped! The majority of this LC is sorted.
 
Drove the LC today, confirmed the CEL’s are still off. Small win, for now. I live in CA, and will be registering soon. Hope they stay off for the time being.

It so awesome driving this thing! It’s only been on a few school pick-ups, and one grocery trip, but this thing is so cool!

It’s super sloppy steering, creaking, and weak braking, but so much fun! I’m looking forward to getting out there!
 
mudgudgeon said:
You've still got some work to do then . . .
Click to expand...
That’s not just how the LC feels? I figured it just drove/steered like a 30+ year old vehicle. I know I’ll need to freshen up all the bushings at some point. The brakes are all new, they stop, just not like my 2021 Sierra at4. That’s what I have to compare the LC to.
 
You should be able to drive the cruiser with one finger on the wheel.
A lifted 80 is not gonna steer like a sports car, but shouldn't be "super sloppy:

Brakes should be decent, stock brakes won't be equivalent to a brand new vehicle with bigger rotors, but they should be decent.
You should be able to be fully confident in them.
 
mudgudgeon said:
You should be able to drive the cruiser with one finger on the wheel.
A lifted 80 is not gonna steer like a sports car, but shouldn't be "super sloppy:

Brakes should be decent, stock brakes won't be equivalent to a brand new vehicle with bigger rotors, but they should be decent.
You should be able to be fully confident in them.
Click to expand...
I have about 5 degrees of steering wheel movement in either direction before front wheels turn.

The brakes definitely stop, but it’s drums in the rear. Just an adjustment. 👍🏻
 
Installed new wiper pumps. Although, the rear washer tubing has a blockage at some point past the foot well. I put 65psi on the line to try and blow it out. Only thing that blew out was a fitting. Lucky I was able to find it. Blew it from the opposite end as well, nothing.. I’ll have to track it down, but for another day!

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JonChimpo said:
I have about 5 degrees of steering wheel movement in either direction before front wheels turn.

The brakes definitely stop, but it’s drums in the rear. Just an adjustment. 👍🏻
Click to expand...

FSM Specifies max 30mm free play, measured at the rim of the steering wheel.

Suspension bushes make a big difference.

Also, check front wheel bearings have no play. Even if you just did wheel bearings.

Steering box wear can contribute, as can tie
rod ends
 
mudgudgeon said:
FSM Specifies max 30mm free play, measured at the rim of the steering wheel.

Suspension bushes make a big difference.

Also, check front wheel bearings have no play. Even if you just did wheel bearings.

Steering box wear can contribute, as can tie
rod ends
Click to expand...

All of this plus worn knuckle bearings and old tires.
 
JonChimpo said:
I have about 5 degrees of steering wheel movement in either direction before front wheels turn.

The brakes definitely stop, but it’s drums in the rear. Just an adjustment. 👍🏻
Click to expand...

This is not unheard of for a vehicle that's been wheeled, but you can definitely tighten it up. Have a helper wiggle the steering wheel back and forth (If the slop is 5 degrees each way have them wiggle it 6-8 degrees each way to put some load on everything after taking up the slop) while you go through the whole steering linkage and find the sloppy joints.

Start with the steering column, look for slop in the u-joints.
Move to the steering box, make sure the input from the steering column is moving the same as the output sector shaft
Move to the pitman arm, any slop?
Look at the frame around the steering box, and cracks or flexing? You may need to degrease and clean the frame to see the cracks.
Move to the drag link, any slop in the steering box rod end? any slop in the passenger side steering arm rod end?
Check the steering arms, any slop between the arms and the knuckles?
Move to the tie-rod, any slop in either rod end?
Move to the track bar, any slop in axle side bushing? any slop in frame side bushing?
Look for cracks or flexing near the welds of the track bar axle side mount
Look for cracks in the frame or flexing in the track bar frame side mount
Check the frame brace that runs from the steering box and track bar bracket to the passenger side frame rail, any cracks or flexing near the welds?

Sloppy steering is an early symptom, death wobble or more serious cracked frame or steering linkage breakage can follow.

This is all normal wear and tear on a wheeling truck, and if you catch it early and keep up on maintenance you can keep it driving tight.

It is a solid axle truck with crossover steering and big tires though, so it will never be as tight as a new vehicle with IFS, factory tire size, and rack and pinion steering. You might go through this whole list and not find any slop or damage to speak of, which means the level of slop you have is relatively normal and is probably a stack-up of imperceptible slop/play at every point mentioned above.
 
BucketEighty said:
This is not unheard of for a vehicle that's been wheeled, but you can definitely tighten it up. Have a helper wiggle the steering wheel back and forth (If the slop is 5 degrees each way have them wiggle it 6-8 degrees each way to put some load on everything after taking up the slop) while you go through the whole steering linkage and find the sloppy joints.

Start with the steering column, look for slop in the u-joints.
Move to the steering box, make sure the input from the steering column is moving the same as the output sector shaft
Move to the pitman arm, any slop?
Look at the frame around the steering box, and cracks or flexing? You may need to degrease and clean the frame to see the cracks.
Move to the drag link, any slop in the steering box rod end? any slop in the passenger side steering arm rod end?
Check the steering arms, any slop between the arms and the knuckles?
Move to the tie-rod, any slop in either rod end?
Move to the track bar, any slop in axle side bushing? any slop in frame side bushing?
Look for cracks or flexing near the welds of the track bar axle side mount
Look for cracks in the frame or flexing in the track bar frame side mount
Check the frame brace that runs from the steering box and track bar bracket to the passenger side frame rail, any cracks or flexing near the welds?

Sloppy steering is an early symptom, death wobble or more serious cracked frame or steering linkage breakage can follow.

This is all normal wear and tear on a wheeling truck, and if you catch it early and keep up on maintenance you can keep it driving tight.

It is a solid axle truck with crossover steering and big tires though, so it will never be as tight as a new vehicle with IFS, factory tire size, and rack and pinion steering. You might go through this whole list and not find any slop or damage to speak of, which means the level of slop you have is relatively normal and is probably a stack-up of imperceptible slop/play at every point mentioned above.
Click to expand...
Thank you so much for the detailed list! That’s super helpful. I appreciate it man. Looks like have quite a bit left to do!
 
Solid list above, but also a list that you can probably deal with with less urgency if you're comfortable with how it drives.

enjoy driving it for a while.
 
mudgudgeon said:
Solid list above, but also a list that you can probably deal with with less urgency if you're comfortable with how it drives.

enjoy driving it for a while.
Click to expand...

Hell yeah. That’s the best advice yet! I’m loving picking the kiddos up from school. Once I shake a few more issues out, I’ll take it to the OHV park and put it through some paces before wilderness with the family.
 
JonChimpo said:
Hell yeah. That’s the best advice yet! I’m loving picking the kiddos up from school. Once I shake a few more issues out, I’ll take it to the OHV park and put it through some paces before wilderness with the family.
Click to expand...
The main one to check now, before you start putting on miles are the (4) knuckle studs on the bottom of the right front knuckle. Make sure those are tightened to 71 LB-FT. If those come out or are broken off, that knuckle comes off and rolls under and wrecks a bunch of other stuff, not to mention the danger it places you in at highway speeds when it happens.

This is what we talk about when we says "check your nuts"!

This is something that needs to be checked immediately.
 
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