Chevrolet C8 1940 Cab 11 restoration, The Netherlands

[Alex van de Wetering]

One of the last things to do on the chassis was to remove the "threaded pin" used to secure the left front leaf spring. According to the manual it was just a matter of "unscrew the pin", but after 70 years this was not as easy. As the pin taper towards the ends, it is very hard to grab it with any kind of tool, so after several attempts I used heat to get it going. I heated up the casting and it was actually pretty easy to remove the pin and the bushing (which has actually merged into one after all these years) with slight tapping with a hammer.

I measured the chassis points according to the MB-C1 manual, and even though the C8 is not covered in this manual, the technique is the same. One measurement was slightly off, so I decided to use a strap and see what happened. It only took a few minutes and the chassis was completely within tolerance.

[Alex van de Wetering]

Removing the shock absorbers from the C8 was pretty easy. They even have good resistance when I move the arms up and down, but I have to figure out what to do with one of the links, as the end is broken off.....and will also have to source new rubbers as most dried out.

The wheel nuts prove to be a real pain. I figured it would be wise to loosen them up at this stage in stead of when the axles were removed from the truck. At least I could now benefit from the weight of the truck.
The nuts from three wheels were easily removed, but the left rear wheel was a different case. I used penetrating fluid, heat and a long arm to get 5 of them undone, but that last one.... Well, one of the pictures show a few of the tools I wrecked in the process....a breaker bar was successfull with the first few nuts, but with that last one.....well...what's in a name...it broke. I welded it again and tried, but no luck. In the end I ground down the end and used it as bar to use with another tool and so on, and so on. French army spanner broke. In the end I used the angle grinder to cut the nut of and than finally I could get the wheel off.

The chassis was initially sprayed in a black primer after sand blasting and I brushed another few coats on afterwards and after all repairs. Now all work was done, I sanded down the chassis, removing all paint streaks, hairs of the paint brush etc. I than sprayed on a coat of primer, waited a week or so and than applied a first coat of Khaki Green nr. 3. I hope I can spray a second coat tomorrow.

Alex

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Looking good Alex, I see one of the Generals came round for a brief inspection

H.

[Mike K]

Alex

Those threaded shackle pins and bushes are found on chevy passenger ( solid beam axle ) and light commercial vehicles of that era .... easy peasy to buy new ... they turn up on EPAY too .

Mike

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/SPRING-SH...item19b518b90c

[Alex van de Wetering]

@ Hanno. Thanks......Canadian Camp 2014?
Yes, Monty was quite interested.....not Patton, he was more interested in a mid-day nap.

@ Mike. Thanks Mike. I did indeed find the pins with a few suppliers, so that shouldn't be too much of a problem. Some other things prove to be more difficult, like rubbers for the shock links, the link itself and clips for the leaf springs.

Yesterday was an ideal day for spraypainting....warm, dry and only a little wind. I turned the frame upside down and found few spots that needed a little attention and a thin coat of primer, before I did another run of Khaki Green. I also managed to remove the rear axle with help of axle stands, a jack and a few straps. Somewhere this week I hope I can take off the rear springs. I recon next weekend will be spent cleaning up several parts and giving them a coat of primer.


Alex

[Phil Waterman]

Originally Posted by Alex van de Wetering

...... Some other things prove to be more difficult, like rubbers for the shock links, the link itself and clips for the leaf springs.......


Alex

Hi Alex

If you can not find the rubber parts you are looking for give these people a try http://steelerubber.com/ I've used them when I could not find a bit of rubber anywhere else. Not always the cheapest source.

Cheers Phil

[Alex van de Wetering]

Thanks for the tip, Phil! Sometimes rubbers are so simple in design....finding a company that makes them is the hard bit!

Alex

[Louis Skebo]

Originally Posted by Alex van de Wetering

One of the last things to do on the chassis was to remove the "threaded pin" used to secure the left front leaf spring. According to the manual it was just a matter of "unscrew the pin", but after 70 years this was not as easy. As the pin taper towards the ends, it is very hard to grab it with any kind of tool, so after several attempts I used heat to get it going. I heated up the casting and it was actually pretty easy to remove the pin and the bushing (which has actually merged into one after all these years) with slight tapping with a hammer.

I measured the chassis points according to the MB-C1 manual, and even though the C8 is not covered in this manual, the technique is the same. One measurement was slightly off, so I decided to use a strap and see what happened. It only took a few minutes and the chassis was completely within tolerance.

It seems that my frame is off a bit as well - do you have a picture with the frame dimensions/measurements?

Cheers.

louie

[Alex van de Wetering]

Hi Louie,

I am afraid I don't have any chassis measurements for your C15A. The MB-C1 manual just describes the technique of measuring the chassis diagonally and comparing left to right....along with the acceptable deviation. Attached are the relevant pages; I hope this helps you with your Chev.

Alex

[Louis Skebo]

Originally Posted by Alex van de Wetering

Hi Louie,

I am afraid I don't have any chassis measurements for your C15A. The MB-C1 manual just describes the technique of measuring the chassis diagonally and comparing left to right....along with the acceptable deviation. Attached are the relevant pages; I hope this helps you with your Chev.

Alex

Thats great thanks!

[Alex van de Wetering]

I had been looking for a CMP toolbox for some time, when Maurice offered me one with the lid missing. So, I had to fabricate a new lid, handle, get a new latch and replace the hinges.

Hanno offered his toolbox to use as a template.
The first lid I made was around a wooden form, but sadly the lid was slightly too small. The second lid I fabricated was done using the forming tools that can be clamped in the vice. This worked OK, but this lid was too wide in one direction and too narrow in the other....even though I had made a small test piece before starting on the lid! I didn't fancy making a third one, so I cut the lid diagonally and welded it together again after lining it up with the box.

[Alex van de Wetering]

I bought hinges at the local DIY store and found a new latch at a musical instrument supplier....The latch is spot on, and presumably used for a violin or guitar case. It was so spot on, that I ended up only using the top half and re-using the original lower half. I sand blasted the plating, so paint would stick.

I decided to make a handle from a piece of tube.....maybe next time I will use a piece of sheet metal, but it was a nice experiment. I took a lot of bending, grinding and a bit of welding, but I am happy with the result.

[Alex van de Wetering]

I didn't have much luck with solid rivets, so I used a mix of roofing nails and welds to fix everything and still look close to original.

Thanks to Maurice for the box and Hanno for the template toolbox

Alex