'46 Chevy Shorty

[Tango]

Hey Jack...are you talking about the "Carcajou"? It is/was about as elegant as they get. Just outstanding. And state-of-the-art for that era. For the Skoolies to drool over, here is that link too...

http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2...-the-carcajou/

[GreyEagle]

Hey Tango........ What happen to the door pics ? That was you that made the swing away door wasn't it?

[Tango]

Hey GreyEagle --- Yep...I have all the bits & pieces of the door just haven't had any "quality time" to spend with my girl in months. I had some light gauge sheet metal cut to fit the inside and will bond some Formica to it. Still need a couple of custom made spacers for the mongo sized Art Deco hinges too.

Just got the word that the project I've been working around the clock on for the past seven months will be picked up this Tuesday morning for the ride to Dallas. Will be there for a day or so to oversee the installation, then...finally...I'll be able to get back to doing a little work on the bus. Will start with the engine/tranny install which is going to be ...interesting, to say the least. Just hoping a buddy comes through with the promise of some assistance from him and his diesel mechanic friend. I swapped the good running Chevy 350 I pulled out of it for their help. Just about everything else will be on hold until the Cummins & Allison are in place and functional so it may be a while before anymore door pix are forthcoming but I will post any "other work" as it moves along. Also need to deliver and chop up the 195" frame I just bought for a hundred bucks. Figure the 6 wheels and front & rear axles are worth more than that as spare parts and the scrap from the frame will likely net my $100 back. But I will put a note on a couple of forums before I chop it just in case someone can use just the frame. Not likely since most people (like Trunt) are sensible enough to go with transplanting the old bodies onto newer frames & brake systems. Only idiots (like me) try to work around all the issues that the original chassis come with.

Onward!

[Tango]

Hey Dognose, Welcome to Skoolie Madness! --- Thank you for the kind words and you are more than welcome anytime you're in town. I'm not sure how well I can live up to the "artistry" thing but I did just deliver an eight-month long commission project up to Highland Park in your town on Wednesday and I just posted a few new pix on my art & craft forum. You can see them here...

http://www.thegardenartforum.com/php...r=asc&start=80

Been going around the clock on that project for so long my poor bus must feel neglected and forgotten. Hope to pick up my engine & tranny this coming week and get it over to my shop so I can start the installation process.

I just walked in the door from visiting a 195", 1942 Chevy rolling frame I bought for a hundred bucks for parts at another bus builders "shop" here in town. Man...talk about being blown away. I met him at his place, which turned out to be a large accounting firm he owns. Swank offices very tastefully done. When I asked where the frame was he just said "Come on...it's in back". Then he opened the doors into what looked like an airplane hanger. For 747's! Probably well over a hundred feet square with a 24' high roof and polished concrete floors that were spotless. And it was filled with what must have been 50 or more vintage vehicles of every type. Old Caddies, a mint condition '46 Ford Woodie (complete with a surf board on top, of course), Corvettes, Low Riders, Euro cars, trucks and more toys than I've seen under one roof in a long, long time. Plus a hydraulic lift that could probably handle most modern city buses. All that and seemed like a great guy too. He is re-doing a '42 Chevy Skoolie with a Superior body that will be a killer party wagon when done and doing a really spectacular job. He's transplanted the body onto a very late model, long wheelbase Dodge PU chassis with a Cummins motor, PS, PB and all the newer bells & whistles. And the body on his has some really sweet rear wheel cutouts which he generously offered to make a template from. All in all, a really good day today.

And turning dreams into reality just takes a little patience, some study and a fair amount of work. You'll find much more talented builders than me here on this forum, just read up and don't be shy about asking questions. The folks here are pretty great about sharing their experiences and "lessons learned the hard way". Just do it your way and most of all...have fun! Keep us posted as you move forward.

[ol trunt]

OK Tango, you've had the best part of a week to rest up after your 7 mo project and now its time to pay some attention to the old girl! Get crakin!

[Tango]

Hey Jack...Roger that! --- Can't wait to get back to my baby. But my plan through the weekend is to play catch-up on a gazillion other neglected things first...relax...drink a lot of rum...then, get a fresh start on Monday. And somewhere in there I probably need to attend to the eight months worth of laundry that has piled up. Nah...I'm a bachelor. It can wait a while longer.

Thought of you yesterday when I saw that '42 Chevy Superior. That chap also has one of the uber-cool, 3-piece chrome"Superior" bumpers on the back just like the one you recently acquired. Without a doubt the best looking bumper ever put on a skoolie.

[Accordion]

Originally Posted by Tango

Hey Jack...are you talking about the "Carcajou"? It is/was about as elegant as they get. Just outstanding. And state-of-the-art for that era. For the Skoolies to drool over, here is that link too...

http://blog.hemmings.com/index.php/2...-the-carcajou/

WOW! Thanks for posting that link.

[bansil]

the "yard art" turned out beautiful amazing craftsmanship

[Tango]

Thanks Bansil --- The transporters rolling cart tipped while hauling one of the benches up an incline and chipped a small piece off one corner so it looks like I'll be making another trip to Dallas to repair it. At least it's a paid trip. They are all sculpted Portland cement over welded steel frames and quite heavy. The benches were about 800#'s...tricky to move about, but they will last a few millennia...(or is it millennium?).

BTW...just got off the phone with Diesel Specialists and will be picking up my engine & tranny on Thursday!!! Yee-Haw! Will try to remember to take a couple of pix.

Onward!

[GreyEagle]

Originally Posted by Tango

[b]

BTW...just got off the phone with Diesel Specialists and will be picking up my engine & tranny on Thursday!!! Yee-Haw! Will try to remember to take a couple of pix.

Onward!

CONGRATS..........

[Tango]

OK Folks --- you wanted a pic of the new engine & tranny combo, here it is...

[lornaschinske]

Looks like a fork-lift to me!

[Tango]

Sorry...I just couldn't resist that one --- Here is what it looks likes when not disguised in shrink wrap.


OMG!...I gotta stuff all that into what!?


Have to relocate the engine mounts to the aft position. There's just too much tranny hangin' out in back.


The trans wound up rotated maybe 2 degrees clockwise. Still not sure if I'll align the engine or the trans to the vertical.

Either way, there's a lot to get done.

Onward!

[ol trunt]

Hey Tango, absolutely beautiful! I think I'd split the difference between the engine and tranny--that will make instalation a bit easier and the drive train won't know the diference.

Our trannies look very similar--huge. I wasn't certain if you were saying that there is no support at the end of the tranny and therefore you were moving the engine mounts back or if the move was on general principles. My motor/tranny mounts at the side of the engine and the rear of the tranny but there is nothing in front. Jack

[Tango]

Hey Jack --- I've read numerous reports of issues with the front only mounting of 4BT's. Seems it puts the tranny in a bind since the weight wants to flex right at the engine/trans junction. And with such a long tranny I think I'll put my mounts at the rear, closer to the CG to help balance the load. Another 4BT trick is to set the engine mounts above the centerline of the crank. Supposedly, it makes quite a positive difference in how the vibes are transmitted to the frame.

There's a reason they call'em "paint shakers".

[bansil]

Sweeeet, me likey

[browncrown]

Tango, That new engine is awesome!!!

[GreyEagle]

Totally awesome!!! But why didn't you let the guy with the fork lift set her in the bus??????????
I think it should fly after you get all that in the bus....... did you get your wings yet?

[Tango]

Howdy Folks --- Thankfully, I swapped the good running 350 Chevy motor that was in it to a friend in return for assistance with cramming this behemoth into the bus. Best part is that he drafted his buddy to help who was a diesel mechanic for twenty years and has built about a dozen "Art Cars" from scratch. Personally, I'd be lost but these two should be able to handle just about anything.

As for "Flying"...probably not. For all that weight & mass, this Cummins is only 130hp. Should be plenty adequate, given that the original engine (straight six) was only 90hp and about 180 pounds of torque. The 4BT has 40 more horses (44% more) but at 355#''s of torque, double the grunt (50%). In fact quite a bit more than the Chevy V-8 I pulled out. I could easily pump it up to 250-300 horses but I'm going for mpg and durability. My target is "near 30mpg". We'll just have to wait and see how that works out, but if I can pull off even 25...with my 44gallon tank that would give me a range of 1100 miles on a tank. If I can manage the 30, that would be 1320. Either way, enough wiggle to hold out for the next cheap fuel stop.

As for the actual installation, I first need to find or build a rolling gantry. I have a feeling this package will probably have to go in & out more than a few times before it gets locked down. Craig's List, here I come.

Onward!

[roach711]

30 MPG? If I got that kind of mileage out of my GMC van I'd feel like I'd died and gone to heaven!