What have you done to your square lately??

[El Camino Man]

*** Exact fit for your vehicle

HAHAHA!!! Not

 

[HotRodPC]

The hood was a real pain in the ass to fit. I had to move the mounting holes for the rear hinges by drilling new ones then welding up the originals. Then had to take a 2x4 and a hammer to the edges of the hood to get the contour to match the fenders. Still need to fix the right side of the bumper. The outer bumper bracket on that side has the bumper pushed up too high. I see some cutting and welding on that bracket. I just love fitting aftermarket sheetmetal.

Sounds like one of those Certa-Fit, uhhh I mean Sorta-Fit pieces.

 

[MrMarty51]

Well, Yesterdays mail I got the "Speedometer Drive Keys" from FoamyPirate, now, I`ma gonna get out My cardboard creeper an go out, install them into the angle drive an see if My speedometer in the 79 works.
It has never been hooked up since I have owned the pickup.
Will report back in about twenny minits.

 

[MrMarty51]

Thank You FoamyPirate The speedometer works likea new.

 

[GTME94]

Fixed my driver side gas gage (bad ground to frame).

Threw on a quick coat of wax.

Tried to fix electric window switch. Pass side window doesn't work from the driver side switch but does work from pass side. Ran out of time to complete that job.

 

[foamypirate]

Thank You FoamyPirate The speedometer works likea new.

Sweet, glad to hear it!

 

[dhamp]

Got tune up completed (followed by a little peg-leg burnout in my culdesac), pressure washed the engine & bay, and gave her a fresh coat of Carnuba.

 

[foamypirate]

Started tracking down my starting problems. Had a loose main ground at the alternator bracket, so it tried to pull all of the starter current through the 14ga wire going to the core support, which got a little toasty. Still wasn't starting, so checked the battery voltage, and it was at 12.35 which is just about dead. Threw the charger on it, and it said it was charged within about 5 minutes, which definitely isn't right. Hotrod was on to something when he called Wal-Mart batteries "NeverStart".
In any case, I got it started with the boost mode on my starter and discovered that my alternator is charging the battery at 14.6 volts, which is pretty high in my book. Right now, the voltage sensing wire is at the junction block, so it sounds like I need to move that to the battery like my 87' originally was. I hate to do that, because the current location keeps the cab power nice and steady at 13.8 volts even under load, but I can't afford to keep cooking batteries.

 

[travisr1988]

Honestly the most common issue we have with everstart batteries isn't the batteries themselves. I agree that they aren't great batteries, but typically people bring them in, they test good on all testing systems and don't present any issues whatsoever and we warranty them anyway when the customer throws a fit...and then brings the brand new one back the next day with the same issue....and again....and again...until they finally do a proper diagnostic. Usually the problems described originally indicate a bad starter or loose connection. And typically the new battery doesn't solve their issue. Unfortunately warrantying good batteries raises the prices. All because people assume the battery is the cause of everything.

 

[foamypirate]

Honestly the most common issue we have with everstart batteries isn't the batteries themselves. I agree that they aren't great batteries, but typically people bring them in, they test good on all testing systems and don't present any issues whatsoever and we warranty them anyway when the customer throws a fit...and then brings the brand new one back the next day with the same issue....and again....and again...until they finally do a proper diagnostic. Usually the problems described originally indicate a bad starter or loose connection. And typically the new battery doesn't solve their issue. Unfortunately warrantying good batteries raises the prices. All because people assume the battery is the cause of everything.

Yeah, I definitely want to do my diligence before I do anything with the battery. I do have all new ground/power cables from the battery. Going to try swapping in one of my other batteries and see what happens, since I know they are good. My guess is I'm boiling the electrolyte out over time by overcharging it. In a way, I'm hoping it's the starter, so I can swap in a mini-starter.

 

[HotRodPC]

I always ASSUME the battery is the LAST thing that can be wrong. Yes, NeverStart batteries suck, but seems to me Wally World could do the same AZ does. They do a 2amp trickle charge on the battery and then load test it. If it fails, replace it, if not then give it back and so what if they throw a fit. If they're to stupid to realize there are many other components to a starting and charging system, then that's their problem.

 

[travisr1988]

I always ASSUME the battery is the LAST thing that can be wrong. Yes, NeverStart batteries suck, but seems to me Wally World could do the same AZ does. They do a 2amp trickle charge on the battery and then load test it. If it fails, replace it, if not then give it back and so what if they throw a fit. If they're to stupid to realize there are many other components to a starting and charging system, then that's their problem.

We do a trickle charge and load test our batteries. We have a midtronics handheld tester and a midtronics load tester/charger that we use. Problem is people want there issue to be the battery because a battery under warranty is cheaper and easier to replace than a starter or alternator or even wiring. It's laziness for the most part. It's the fact that someone working for walmart is telling them they are wrong that most people have an issue with, it's that whole I'm better than you and I say the battery is bad because my lights and radio and everything else all work fine but my starter doesn't make a single sound at all when I turn the ignition.

 

[foamypirate]

Looks to be the starter in this case. I pulled the 800CCA battery out of my car, installed it in the truck, and it still went "chug chug chug chug start". Checked the battery voltage while cranking, and it dropped down to 9.3 or so volts. It seems like the starter is almost "binding", and then occasionally frees up and cranks normally for a bit, then binds again. Ordered up a brand new AC/Delco from RockAuto.

 

[HotRodPC]

We do a trickle charge and load test our batteries. We have a midtronics handheld tester and a midtronics load tester/charger that we use. Problem is people want there issue to be the battery because a battery under warranty is cheaper and easier to replace than a starter or alternator or even wiring. It's laziness for the most part. It's the fact that someone working for walmart is telling them they are wrong that most people have an issue with, it's that whole I'm better than you and I say the battery is bad because my lights and radio and everything else all work fine but my starter doesn't make a single sound at all when I turn the ignition.

And even then it can be a dirty cable connection, corroded cable. I have seen where starter is good, alternator is good, battery is good, and still wont start. Cables and connections LOOK great. But, you cut that cable cover off, and it's full of nasty green powder and the copper is like paper thin and all broke up. Cables will go bad and look just fine. Rare, and usually happens in only the right type of climates and conditions but yes it's certainly possible that a good LOOKING cable can be your starting or charging problem.

 

[travisr1988]

Try telling that to the people who bring in batteries insisting it's the only possible problem, they usually state that there car is a "make" and is only "x" years old (usually 5 or more) and has never had any starter or alternator or even wiring issues and because it's a "make" everything is perfect and it must be the battery. Yet they'll continue to buy our batteries for all there other cars. I actually had one guy tell me that it must be the brand new battery because his 1964 ford had no issues when he parked it 10 years ago. Why did it get parked? Did you flush all the fluids out and put fresh fluids in? did you replace the rubber seals and lines? did you check the cables for corrosion? is the starter rusted out? does it have gas? "It's a ford, nothings wrong with it except this cheap battery!" ok here's a new one, see you tomorrow.