Pretty quiet in here... what are you working on?

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Finally got the overhang painted, nice to have the shop all one color again, big thanks to @DC470 for the assistance

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Recently:

- Installed a rebuilt early 80s Warn 8274 from forum member
- Replaced battery cables with 2ga kit
- Removed and had blasted/refinished radiator support, fan cowl, grille, and associated parts
- Replaced (dry rotting) radiator hoses with OEM new and OEM clamps
- Reinstalled new OEM radiator
- Ran (maybe too short?) PS lines to new, relocated PS pump (still need to remove head bolts and remnants of previous PS pump bracket)

Running well except for that I cannot seem to 'burp' the thing and the T-stat is not opening. I have done coolant before on it and it has been a royal PITA compared to modern cars, but never this bad.

Temp will climb above where the t stat would open before I shut it off before it gets too hot. Have tried jacking up the front, and also filling from the (bypassed) heater hose. Could actually be the thermostat...







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Nice work on your rig! I haven't worked on one of these yet, but know how frustrating some cooling systems can be. When I had my Audi, the common way to deal with this is to vacuum the system out using an air compressor and special tool, and then release it to suck the coolant out of a bucket and into the system with the vacuum created. It's weird to see all of the coolant lines collapse with the vacuum, but nice to have it pull the coolant into every nook and cranny of the block and head.

Maybe this could help...I have the Schwaben version, but basically the same:

 
@mgrs i agree with @CrabCake i have one of the vac systems and they are worth their weight in gold. but it does sound like you are having failing Tstat
 
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Thanks to @TRDdrew for snapping this pic and helping fix it. After a trip to Costco to mount the new wheels, my "squeaking belt" ends up being a parking lot fix with a new belt and tensioner pulley.
 
@TRDdrew and @CrabCake good ideas. I do have a vacuum bleeder that runs on a compressor and may look into one of the universal kits.

I've done this truck before flushing it and when replacing the lower outlet hose to 'T' pipe. It has been frustratingly hard to get everything good again with coolant circulation and the Tstat, then it just works after the first "go".

I am thinking that I will do the following:
- Drain coolant enough to disconnect radiator inlet hose and check for rags (to be sure)
- Open up Tstat housing (will go slow to mitigate bolt breakage)
- Remove Tstat; test in pot of water
- Close up Tstat housing; run truck to see if water at least gets to radiator and eliminate other blockages as problem

If Tstat is bad, will just buy a non-emissions Tstat and housing kit. My truck has been desmogged and has all the BVSV ports in the housing that have been plugged with some kind of rough looking cement filler.

Not losing much as I will have to open it up again when I finally put a heater that I restored in the thing. Just looking for a set of in-cab heater pipes that don't have the "T" union for the rear heater, which I don't think I will put in. Cleaner without it.
 
Also working on a Coleman 424 that was free saved from the trash.

I like picking up cheap or free coleman suitcase liquid stoves and repairing them to give to friend or donate to keep rebuildable stuff in circulation. This one is only a 2005 but was a home for mice for a while.

I plan to clean it up and repaint this one in flat dark earth with a chalk clear coat over top. I might do the drip plate in silver with the FDE case. The manifold and tank I will leave factory color w/ patina. The stove case will end up with scorch marks anyway as all the small 424/425 models do.

These typically don't need much to work unless bugs have nested in the burner manifold. Usually all they require, if anything, is a new pump cup and graphite valve packing after cleaning the generator assembly. This one works as pictured, but smells like mice.
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Pump/tank assembly after cleanup, rust removal, and clear coating the tank:

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Small project I knocked out last night hanging in the shop. Ever since I relocated my powertank to the swing out I had to move my hi- lift to the opposite side of my Jerry cans. Well in doing this the latch mechanism for the jack swings right into the water tank. It worked but was kind a PIA, as I found out at fall crawl last year. Those with a keen eye will be able to tell that the mount is a rugged ridge mount for the tailgate of a jk Jeep that I modified to work. I decide the easiest way to fix this issue was just to cut the latching mechanism off the mount, flip it and reweld it. Went ahead and welded a few more areas to stiffen it up. Wasn't the prettiest job in the world but it's not coming apart a can guarantee that :beer:

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Well here is a little update on something new....
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I really wanted to know what coolant temp was actually running at on the 3FE 80, I decided to go with the koso gauge. The small digital read out is perfect for a quick glance.

Install was pretty straightforward. I used a 40mm glow shift rad hose adapter for senor. Bought a new upper rad hose ( one in the truck was a little swelled) and cut about an 1.5" out of it for the adaptor. I installed the gauge itself directly to the left of the steering wheel for a clear view with out having to really look down. I will say if you are installing one get yourself a good quality double sided tape like 3M, the Velcro that comes with it is worthless.

Findings:

The truck has always run fine, I've had no cooling problems to mention. Now with that said I finished the install and let the truck warm up in the shop for a few, all while waiting the numbers rise on the gauge. Took it out for a 30ish min drive and the hottest it would get while driving 169*, this is moving at 60 mph with the ambient temp around 56*. Drove it home and proceeded to let it run in the driveway at idle for another 20-30 mins, hottest I saw was 174* So it running cool ( better than hot ) I'm starting to wonder if the thermostat is stuck open but again this is kinda a case of "creating a problem out of nothing"

What do y'all think?

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mgrs said:
Also working on a Coleman 424 that was free saved from the trash.

I like picking up cheap or free coleman suitcase liquid stoves and repairing them to give to friend or donate to keep rebuildable stuff in circulation. This one is only a 2005 but was a home for mice for a while.

I plan to clean it up and repaint this one in flat dark earth with a chalk clear coat over top. I might do the drip plate in silver with the FDE case. The manifold and tank I will leave factory color w/ patina. The stove case will end up with scorch marks anyway as all the small 424/425 models do.

These typically don't need much to work unless bugs have nested in the burner manifold. Usually all they require, if anything, is a new pump cup and graphite valve packing after cleaning the generator assembly. This one works as pictured, but smells like mice.
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Pump/tank assembly after cleanup, rust removal, and clear coating the tank:

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Click to expand...
Love those old stoves
 
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