2012 at the Hammond Barn

[Gunner]

Annual Review?... and I thought all those people marching about in uniform were there to celebrate my birthday!

It was a great parade and the cadets did a bang up job. Their drill was quite good and none jumped when the 6 pounder minute gun barked out!

Unfortunately, Rob, who commanded the Corps a few years ago, couldn't stick around for the post parade birthday beer (after the cadets were all gone, of course!).

For those who are wondering, our CCKW is painted up as a Royal Canadian Horse Artillery gun tractor in Korea.

Mike

[RHClarke]

Guess what Bob is up to with this slab of concrete located at the entrance to the barn.

Photos
1 - Slab east end
2 - Slab west end
3 - The boys at work

[peter simundson]

.......someone under the slab!

I can think of 3 or 4 candidates.

Peter S

[Bob Carriere]

.... they are still looking for her......

....... I just could not afford the postage to ship her all over the country !!!!!


Or is it an ALTAR.......

.......will be offering sacrifices to the CMP GODS.....


,,,,,, was going to do the whole barn but 8 bags was all I could afford !!!!


It will be the corner stone....pun fully intended.... to sorting out the twist in my frame.

I went to an old guys who assesses cars that have been declared "total wrecks" and later rebuilt for the road. It is a costly deal but if one finds the right damaged car that has been written off and fix it.... he will certify that it has been repaired according to specs and a new registration tag can then be issued for licensing and street use.

I explained the twist in my cab 11 frame..... the fact that the front cross member and middle engine support cross member had been remomved and replaced.....yada yada yadda.....

He told me two things..... I can fix it for you but it will cost you over $1500...... or I can tell you how to do it. Being cheap and loving a challenge ....... I izz gunna do it.

The whole process is 90% labour, 9 % sweat and one percent common sense.

I can always borrow common sense from Rob and Grant,,,,, 0,5 % each should not be toooo much.

I first need a suitable....almost perfectly level surface to work from.......


........ therefore the cement slab wide enough for the front axle.....

Plans are as follows....

Position the frame centred front axle on the slab.

Jack up rear axle on axle stands and level as necessary

Remove the front tires and position the front axle on small/low axle stands perfectly level the stands using sheet metal shim if necessary.

The concrete slab serves as a reference point for all vertical measurements.

Set a level on the frame and record amount of twist
.....left side...pass side from the front is high by 1.5 inches

Measure everything twice and record measurments
....front most frame horn to the floor

....spring to the floor

....axle .... each side to the floor.

Once everything has been measured and photographed.....

Plan "A"
remove spring packs and switch sides

Measure, record, photograph

if changes are positive leave as is.... or reverse if the twist is worst.

Plan "B"
Loosen all the grade 8 bolts to the front cross member and to the mid section engine support cross member..... also remove the bolted floor plates.... may need to loosen engine motor mount bolts as well....

Observe, measure, record and photograph

Plan "B -1 ..... optional to get drunk if it has not partly self corrected by now.

Plan "C"

The old guy says with the weight of the engine tranny it may self correct or at least visibly improve and noticeable in the measurments.

OR..... I may have to impose a reverse twist in the frame and see if by over correcting I can slowly relax the frame to a near level.

It will take time....... and tie up the barn for quite a few weeks/months.

My goal is to get within 1/4 inch level across the front frame horn....

Then I will have a reasonable straight surface to bolt on the sheet metal.


Way back when I took the frame apart for sandblasting and to replace the rusted cross members I did have difficulty getting the new crossmembers back in place..... pry bars were used to line up the bolt holes.

When the bare frame was resting on large saw horse stands there was a noticable twist in the front half part of the frame ...... I assumed wrongly that all the weight of the engine, etc. would bring it down.....dum !!!

Original pictures of the truck BEFORE disassembly showed that it was much more level than now......

So it will be a learning experience to try.... measure....tweak....measure....
swear some...... measure..... tweak some more...... and retighten real fast before the wind shifts.... !!!!!

.... it will keep me out of the local bars for a while.

As usual will post my progress .... or frustrations.

Bob

[RHClarke]

Not much to report - Bob picked up another 216 engine. He can't complain about the going rate for used engines in Hammond! Grant spent Sunday working on the front clip. He installed a new side panel and then wrestled his clip back into reasonable shape by attaching it to a handy body. Bob and Grant used the torches and the hydraulic ram to bring the nose back into true. The HUP got a new door handle. Too hot to work, so we drank some beer. Can't wait for winter...

Photos:

1 - Clip "art" - The Boys mounting the clip prior to bending it back into shape - note newly installed side panel
2 - Hammond's most prominent nose surgeons hard at work

[Bob Carriere]

The nose job is a bit tricky...

Grant;s truck had been partly converted to left hand drive.... then they quit and we got it home. He did a nice job of filling in a missing side panel with a Mig butt weld...... but he nose has been twisted.....

So we dragged a spare truck..... the parts truck from Port Colborne... and used that as a working platform..... body jack and heat did manage to correct the slight push in on the passenger side.... some more tweaking is still in order. Grant is very meticulous..... it will fit well by the time he is finished.

Got a free 216 and possibly another one from a 54 pickup ..... never say no to a gifted horse..... the guy stored his old Fords in my back field and I get free Chev 6 for rent..... what more can you ask !!!!

...and yes it was warm.... and hotter by the glowing metal on the nose..... so the approriate cold beer was well deserved.....

Rob did a bunch of tack/stiching welding with the Mig....

Managed to spread a M101 trailer full of wood chips in the garden to earn wife miles.... and replaced a ceiling fixture in the computer room that went dead..... before I was asked to do it !!!!

Re-organized some of the content of the canvass Winter shelters.... serviced my Ford before going on vacation next weekend..... will be out of commission for the next 3 weekends..... but Rob and Grant will keep you posted.

...and no rush for Winter...would like to sweat for a while longer !!!

When I return will tackle the twisted frame with passion...

Bob

[8threcce]

In the last picture I see you Boys working on the nose, see that the hood is removed.
Just my question, I'm looking for a new hinge on my hood, do you have a good spare or a source for a repro..?

Thanks

Pieter

[Grant Bowker]

When I got the truck it was in many pieces. The hood is one of the pieces, but I have never installed it so far. Would it help if I photograph the hinge to give an idea of shape and size to help you searching for a modern equivalent?

[Bob Carriere]

Back at the barn for some untwisting of steel....!!

Grant has been doing fantastic plastic surgery on the nose of his truck..... replacing panels...... removing years of abuse and twisting of panels.

He worked alone while I was gone so no before, during and after pictures but helped him do a trial fitting on Sunday and was amazed at the corrections he carried out..... the darn things now just falls into place and bolts rigth on.....

Next weekend we tackle my frame.

Took my rolling frame for a ride last SUnday....... last time before I tear into it.... and managed to ride it to the top of the wood chip pile in the back field....but again alone with no pics.....

Wonderful Summer so far.

Bob

[RHClarke]

Today was blistering hot at about +30oC (you Aussies can stop smirking - for us Canucks, the swing from -30oC to +30oC has it effects). Despite the weather, it was a good time for some rust therapy. I spend the morning taking on the weeds that grew in my absence, while Bob spend the best part of the morning in the big field mowing the weeds. The heat and the dust drove him back to the barn in time for lunch.

The hot, sweaty and dirty gang drove to Rockland for lunch at the local bistro- I always get a kick out of the way the locals sneer at us when we saunter in for our repast. Once they get used to the smell, they tend to ignore us. The gals at bistro put up with us as we tip well.

Back at the barn, I convinced Bob to move my pilot model HUP roof over to the door of the barn where I can start working on it. After a careful rigging job, the roof was flown to a set of racks near the front of the barn. There, I surveyed the rust damage. The center portion of the roof skin will have to come off as it has rusted away from the ribs and is quite thin. The good news is that the hand-tooled curved sections are (for the most part) intact. I then started to take out some of the dents along the roof line.

In the meantime, Bob and Grant cleaned out the front of the barn so that Bob could start his science project. In no time at all, Bob backed his truck out of the sea can and into the barn. Grant got back to work on his CMP nose (or front clip). The transformation from the old to the new is quite amazing.

As I was leaving the barn, Grant was setting up for some sandblasting. Bob was preparing to strip down a 60+ year old gal. Stay tuned for updates to the Great Hammond Strip Show.

Photos:

1 - Grant at work
2 - Flying pilot model roof
3 - Setting up the work station
4 - Bob coming out of the closet
5 - Wrapped up until next week

[RHClarke]

The mercury hit +30oC early this morning so most of the activities at the barn were completed indoors. Bob continued to agonize over his 3/4 inch deviation to the front frame rail horns. He removed the floor of the cab (with the help of the lovely Joyce) and was in the process of undoing every nut and bolt forward of the transmission. Bob indicated that the rear rails are aligned and the mid section rails are aligned. The easy by-stander's diagnosis: bent frame rail. I am sure that Bob will have an answer soon.

While he was disassembling his ride, I hauled the 45 HUP outside to do some maintenance. I was surprised to find a puddle of eerie green liquid pooled on the tarp underneath the truck. I had a coolant leak. The underside of the water pump was wet, so off came the radiator and the water pump.

The gasket showed some seepage had occured near the top right bolt - the one I use for the alternator adjusting bracket. Apparently I did not tighten the bolt enough when I last removed the alternator. No worries. I fashioning up new gaskets, and after cleaning all mating surfaces, coated the gasket material with a thin coat of silicon sealant. After drying rapidly in the noon day sun, the gaskets were mounted and the water pump put back into place - with snug bolts this time. By the time I got the rad back in place, it was time to go home. The better half worked early this afternoon. No complaints as the air conditioner at home beats the one at the barn any day.

Bob might pipe up with some more news about his tear-down.

Photos:

1 - The scene of the crime
2 - Cleaned up water pump
3 - Fuzzy pic of Bob pondering his next steps