Gratuitous G-Body Goodness

[Buford T. JuSStice]

Got some more work done on the car over the weekend. Got a one week vacation coming up, hoping to at least get close to getting it running by the end of that if not close enough to get it running a following weekend.

Made myself a dashboard from scratch. Never done it before, and I'm sure some of the more well versed/experienced here will notice all sorts of mess ups and uneven/not straight parts (I notice them because I spend so much time measuring and double measuring) but overall I'm pretty proud of the work. I used a piece of birch wood, and finished it with boiled linseed oil. Simplest way I could think of to do it.

Where the messups come from I think is lack of experience in this. I didn't have the right size hole saws and couldn't find them at the hardware store, just the next size down. As a result I had to hog out the rest with sandpaper and a sanding wheel. I will say though, I am absolutely astonished with the strength of the birch. It's less than a quarter inch thick (about 5.5mm) and I was sanding the edges by using a piece of 150 grit sandpaper just going back and forth like a madman in between my armpit and thigh to balance and hold it. It took some wicked torsion stress as well as bending stress and didn't break. Very tough!

In the end, it fits so well, I could practically leave it in there friction fit.

 

[Buford T. JuSStice]

Some of the more astute or otherwise observant among you may notice two other things as well:

No tachometer. Don't worry about that. Got it covered. That's the piece de resistance. 😉

One of the gauges (not saying which) looks a little older than the others. That's a gauge that my grandfather installed into the original dashboard years ago when he was losing his eyesight and feeling in his fingers due to diabetes. He got it to work as far as doing what it was supposed to do, but he was never able to wire up the light and it was in a spot that you could barely see it when you were driving straight because the steering wheel would block it. Other than that, they're a matching set of period correct Stewart Warner deluxe gauges. One is just a little more period correct than the others 😉

 

[Buford T. JuSStice]

THANK.
GOD.
THAT'S.
OVER!

Made the connectors with a Painless (IT ISN'T) Performance 12 pin connector kit, realized a couple of times that I'm not as smart as I think I am (got a couple of connectors mixed up) and then got it all fitted in nicely (it isn't moving anywhere, it's held in by friction, the headlight switch bezel, the connector, and the speedometer cable) and went to do a systems check.

No ammeter light, no blinkers, no hazards. Everything else worked fine. I was scratching my head for a good 20 minutes until I realized "DUH, MORON!" I disconnected a connector under the column before I dropped it to prevent damaging it. Reached around the back of the dashboard and adjusted the flimsy friction fit ground on the ammeter casing... and voila! Everything works now!*

*Disclaimer: "Everything works now!" is a temporary statement, and is subject to change at any time for any reason at all, including but not limited to, "no reason whatsoever".

 

[fleming442]

Painless (IT ISN'T) Performance

Been saying that for years. I have no idea how they got so big. I guess if you're first to the market, no one questions the other options (American Autowire, etc.). The dash looks great! Ammeters are kind of a hindrance, though. I wouldn't put it directly on the alternator charge lead.

 

[79 GP 4 speed]

Is that a vacuum gauge on the bottom left side?

 

[Buford T. JuSStice]

Been saying that for years. I have no idea how they got so big. I guess if you're first to the market, no one questions the other options (American Autowire, etc.). The dash looks great! Ammeters are kind of a hindrance, though. I wouldn't put it directly on the alternator charge lead.

Well, too late for that. If it doesn't work I can always pull it out and change it later though.

Is that a vacuum gauge on the bottom left side?

It is! My grandfather installed it in this very same vehicle years ago before I got it. Comes in handy when trying to diagnose engine issues as I've come to find. Very useful gauge to have.

 

[Buford T. JuSStice]

Today I got the brakes bled, radiator filled, and tried starting it in vain.

Keeps sputtering and backfiring, sometimes with violent fireballs through the carburetor. Checked the timing, and it isn't 180 off, though at first it WAS extremely advanced. Fixed that, still wouldn't fire up. Next I checked for spark, and it's getting spark. All the plugs and wires are where they're supposed to be.

Next step tomorrow will be to pull the fuel line off the carb and see if the fuel pump is doing it's job. If it is, then it's time to drop the tank, clean it out, blow out the lines and put newer, fresher fuel in. I thought the fuel in there would still be good, and what I've pulled out of the tank so far with a vacuum pump seemed alright, but I guess it isn't.

I even tried putting a small amount of fresh fuel into the bowl directly, and it still wouldn't fire up.

 

[Buford T. JuSStice]

I will say this though, the big clue that the fuel is no good is that the backfires REEK bad. It smells just like trying to start up a lawn mower after letting it sit for the winter in the shed.

 

[CaliWagon83]

Awesome job on the gauge cluster housing. Looks great! 👍

 

[Buford T. JuSStice]

Awesome job on the gauge cluster housing. Looks great! 👍

Thanks!