Ford Blitz Restoration/Rebuild

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Jacques Reed

May scratch build that bracket later when I get the urge to do a bit of metal working. Should be relatively easy as the original brackets are made of lighter gauge steel than the Dennis Carpenter repro's.

I'm fast coming to the same conclusion Jacques, ie. easier to scratch build than try to modify the very thick repros, which appear to be way too small in clamp diameter. I suspect you may be right about the Chinese manufacturers - they got their IDs mixed up with their ODs! Maybe the Mac's ones will be closer to original but I'm not hopeful.

[Private_collector]

Guys,

The bearing shop guys believe the modern sealed ones are best. I think this is because the sealed units are obviously pre packed with grease and that grease cannot be lost. I suppose they are saying grease is better for bearing function than oil splashed from the gears?!?!

When I get the clutch shaft bushes, i'll have them do a search for other substitutes. Will also take them to the local hydraulic shop for same thing. The have a wide range of stock bushing material. There might be a generic unit available there too.

I had a package slip in the mail yesterday, indicating two items a post office for pickup. Judging by their stated sizes, I deduce one is a six pole junction block for the wiring terminals. Theo other package is about the right size to be the new wiring loom! If that is so, it will be a very exciting day I will know this afternoon, when I pick up those on the way home.

[Grant Bowker]

Many modern bearings are available in 3 series: open, shielded and sealed - otherwise identical.
When rebuilding my Chev transmission I chose to go the open route, either by using an open bearing or removing the seal from one bearing. I'm not qualified as an engineer to have a technical basis for this but felt that since it had taken 60+ years to develop a bit more roughness than I was willing to tolerate I didn't see a problem with using an open bearing again as I won't be needing the truck in another 60 years.
One other thing to consider is whether any of the seals on input or output shafts need a bit of oil through the bearing to help them slip on the shaft as running dry might cause wear.

[Private_collector]

Yes, that's a very good point.

I think there is such an item which may require lube, on the input end of MDG, under throwout shaft. I will need to look closely at this tonight. From memory, it is a brass collar. May be able to do without it now that bearing is sealed? In fact now that I think about it, that collar nay have been output end. I'll see tonight. All the parts are layed out on floor, in an exploded diagram way.

Is it difficult to remove the seal from a bearing? Just in case I have to do it for whatever reason.

[Tony Wheeler]

Further to Tony's earlier post showing news reports of first CMP shipments to Australia in November 1941, this article from May '41 shows how desperately these vehicles were needed.

[Tony Wheeler]

This Canberra Times report gives a more detailed description of the new trucks, which were Cab 12 Fords delivered fully assembled (Australia never received any Cab 12 Chevs, only Cab 13 Chevs a year later as CKD chassis). Evidently these new trucks made the same impression then as now: "distinctive rugged appearance".

Interestingly these reports all mention US involvement in the CMP program, can't imagine where that notion came from.

[Private_collector]

Finished the gearbox today. At least, internally finished. I am still awaiting the following, to complete entirely: clutch rod bushes, rear MDG seal, pilot bearing, locking wire (found enough for the shift forks), and the throwout grease hose. Thanks to Jacques, I contacted Ajays in NZ, and am waiting to hear if they can purchase more of the grease hose. They had run out some time prior and had none in store. Fingers crossed!

Worst part of the whole thing was keeping one of the thrust bearings in place while installing the quite heavy gear cluster that it mates with. I ended up holding it in place with a layer of masking tape around the ID, making sure no tape went anywhere I couldn't take it off again. I was fortunate that all gaskets came off in a single piece, and had no problem making new ones, with the exception of a few minutes searching for the correct thikness materials which were ....somewhere.

Thoroughly checked the shifting pattern, and everything works FINE! Just one little irritance, the reverse lockout rod sticks a little more than I would like (which is NO sticking). That would be my fault, I put the normal amount of paint coats on the shift lever etc.. A little bit if fine sanding may be in order if the graphite grease I applied doesn't work well enough.

I cut the unwanted portion from the gear lever boot, and did a trial fit. Looks OK, so it will stay in place, and I will attach it propper at a later date, when I need a 'time-out' from soething else. You know the Time-Out scenario? That's when you have to stop whatever you are doing that isn't going well, or you risk bringing a 12lb sledge down onto it.

Getting back to the discussion on sealed VS open bearings. I have decided to leave both of mine sealed. At the front, oil will still get past the bearing, Just in a much reduced quantity. The grooves in the slinger will hold some, and friction should be minimal there anyway. I chucked a handful of light grease in there for startup.

[Private_collector]

With the gearbox work done, I attached a couple of parts that arrived in the mail this week.

This NOS junction block is a perfect fit, despite being from another type of MV.

The post-office pickup slip description which I thought may have been the long awaited wiring loom, actually turned out to be these two brake hoses, in a very well packed (and somewhat enlarged) box. This pair of hoses are the ones that go to front & rear axles. They were custom made in USA, and cost $50.00 including shipping, for the pair. They even came with the locking clips and copper washers. Now that I have seen the quality, i'll call the supplier and order a new pair for the front axle to wheel cylinders.

I had initially offered the local brake repair shop the job of making these (and two others), and I left a sample hose with them so they could get the right ends. That was 7 weeks ago now............Their loss!

I should actually have gotten more done this weekend, but we bought a new ride-on mower on Saturday, and I decided to tidy up the place first. This one goes a number of times faster than the previous, lethargic one. That includes in reverse too!! Naturally, when Gympie finally secures the Hardie Ferodo 1000 (or whatever Bathurst is called now), I shall enter immediately. In the years BC (Before Children), my wife & I took a detour to Bathurst while on a driving holiday, for the purpose of trying our new sports-car on the track. Well OBVIOUSLY I didn't make too much of a point of the track trying bit. As it turned out, I was saved from a very expensive speeding ticket by another motorist who flashed his lights to say there was a police radar set up on the downhill straight! For you foreigners, the 'Bathurst 1000' is a 1000km race on a closed public road that then becomes the racing circuit. Keep your NASCAR, our vehicles can turn right, as well as left!

[Private_collector]

It's here!

[Phil Waterman]

Hi Tony

Tell us more about your wiring harness supplier, there are so few of them around that actually can or will duplicate CMP harnesses.

Please, as you get into laying out the harness and installing it take lots and lots of pictures.

Look forward to seeing this major step in your restoration process.

Cheers Phil

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by Phil Waterman

Tell us more about your wiring harness supplier, there are so few of them around that actually can or will duplicate CMP harnesses.

Hi Phil,

See Sources for wiring looms for a listing of suppliers, including vintage wiring harness in Australia
Note: when clicking on the links to the related threads, please substitute .net for .org in the URL.

HTH,
Hanno

[Private_collector]

Will do, but first I have to find more information on the exact positioning for each wiring section.

Some time ago, there were some photos posted by Keith, with regards to wiring running along the chassis, and that is the only part I can be sure about for now.

Should have some photos that help. Just a matter of sitting down & looking through them for clues. Then of course there are the various manuals I have bought over past 2 years.

I had a good look at a number of the individual sections of the loom last night. They are best described as WOW! Fantastic quality and excellently built. You no doubt already know I have no time for poor quality service or materials. The guys at Vintage Wiring Harness are very easy to talk to and certainly know their stuff. The build quality is superb. Everything is just so neat and tidy. At less than $600 for the harness (before GST/VAT) they are also very competetive.

http://www.vinwire.com.au/

[Bob McNeill]

Tony All the wiring harness that Vintage have supplied to us for several vehicles have come with instruction sheets, and the best deal we got was to send "old harness " and they rebuilt it to new condition at about 1/2 cost, admittingly they were post 1960 vehicles but still cotton wrapped. highly reccomend.

[Private_collector]

Originally Posted by Bob McNeill

Tony All the wiring harness that Vintage have supplied to us for several vehicles have come with instruction sheets, and the best deal we got was to send "old harness " and they rebuilt it to new condition at about 1/2 cost, admittingly they were post 1960 vehicles but still cotton wrapped. highly reccomend.

Maybe I should clarify. A set of instructions was sent with the wiring. A photo of that is in my post of 1900hrs, yesterday, 4th pic. That information relates to the assembly of the individual components of the set into the complete wiring harness. Each wire package is labelled as to it's purpose. This can be seen in the 3rd photo of same post. Each individual wire is numbered. The number labels can be removed without problem or residue. Though i'll test that in practice, at a much later date!.

There was no possibility of me supplying an original harness. There was very little of the original one to salvage, and it was heavily caked in oil and mud. The new harness is reproduced from an original harness that the company obtained years ago. I have no fear that there will be errors, but should an issue arise, there is support from them to rectify. This is one of those times when I was glad to spend such a sum of money, in order to get the finish I want.

The information I need to find is the physical routing of the wires themselves, not how they go together. Vintage Wiring Harness has taken all the angst out of that.

[Private_collector]

Today was the farm clearing auction for my late friend, Paddy.

There were several of the very incomplete CMPs included in the sale, but others were not included, and remained in there original locations around the paddocks. Probably because they were too far gone to be of ANY use. The three that were included are sorry wrecks that could provide some minor parts, but not a real lot. The exception to that rule is the doors, which are still quite restorable. I had left before the trucks came up for auction. It was so bloody hot there, we were melting, and no point hanging around for something I wasn't gonna bid on anyway. I'll phone Paddys brother in coming days to enquire of prices paid.

This Morris Cowley was a vehicle Paddy intended to restore. So he said. Can't help but think that even if he were in good health, he may not have got it finished in one lifetime.

While wandering around, I noticed a Ford CMP front end that had the lifting attachment points on the wheel hubs. I need a set of these, so I hope I can do a deal for those before the remaining steel bits go to the scrap merchants. I fully expect that the plans are already made for the disposal of the remaining salvagable scrap.

On the way to Paddys farm you travel past this Harrier Jet, made almost entirely of corrigated iron sheeting. Made a point of taking a photo.

[Private_collector]

After leaving the farm sale, we went for a drive to Maryborough, and made a visit to the Military Museum there. Quite a good attraction. Small in size, but large in exhibits.

I drooled over this Ferret last time I visited, and today just increased my desire to buy one some day. This one is in very good condition, inside & out.

Nice motorcycle!

I want to borrow this setup for my front yard.

These are the medals of Keith Payne, VC.
How that poor man must suffer on ANZAC Day, with all those to wear on his jacket. I assume the ones on display here are copies.

[Private_collector]

This wooden bust has the most amazing detail. You can't help but admire the craftsmanship of the carver.

The closer you look, the more incredible it gets!

Look at all the edges and seams on the tunic. See the collar pin behind the tie?

How's the realism of the pocket flap! Even the button under the sam browne has the appearance of being pushed into the tunic by the leather strap.

[Private_collector]

I finally got back to disassembling the front end. Driver side steering end is off the axle/diff, but I have failed to pull the upper pivot pin out. Bottom one came away OK, but despite a number of approaches, top one wont budge. There is evidence of corrosion around the edge, so no secret why its firm. May call on the bearing shop in town. If I can lift the bloody thing into the car first! Both hubs are off. The wheel hub nuts were in perfect condition, not butchered by the dreaded cold chisel removal in past. So far, the bearings and cups I can see look to be in good shape. They will get replaced regardless, so long as replacements can be found. One part that I am worried about is the large grease seal that sits inside wheel hubs. Its about the biggest seal I have come across thus far. They are worn and cannot be trusted to do their job.

Driver side brake backing plate is welded, as I think I had previously stated. If I fail to remove the upper pivot pin, I may consider total replacement ot the entire assembly on that side. That will save me ages of work grinding ofr the backing plate.

Passenger side backing plate thankfully NOT welded, but I found something very interesting when I had gone over it with a bit of steel wool & petrol. One one side was stamped RF. I gather they are 'sided', so this should really say LF. Curious! The hub had the L stamped wheel nuts and bolts. Thought I had got the whole thing Bass Ackwards for a little while. Petrol fumes must have dulled the brain a bit.

Was informed of two sources for replacement felt seals for steering knuckle. Will order these on Tuesday. All going well, the sandblaster will be doing alright during next week too.

New wheel cylinders are sitting on my parts shelves. New front wheel brake hoses should arive in coming days. The brake shoes I have should be OK to use as is, but I recently bought a second set to send away for relining, in case I get picky. Probably will.

Transmission is now finished, with the exception of new grease hose for throwout shaft. I had enquired to Ajays in New Zealand, and they were out of stock at the time, but said they would contact their supplier and let me know if they could get any more. I was expecting an email by start of last week...............not heard from them yet, so I will continue to search until I get impatient and contact them myself. The new clutch shaft bushes were a super tight fit and driving them in caused slight deforming of one edge which was remedied with a slight honing. Clutch shaft is a perfect fit now. To think I nearly tried to get away with the original, sloppy ones.

The following is a list of replacement parts used on the trans rebuild:

Input bearing, MDG shaft
Output bearing, MDG shaft
Rear oil seal, main shaft
Throwout bearing
Throwout return spring
Pilot bearing
Clutch shaft bushes
Oil fill plug
Oil drain plug (magnetic)
1x selector rod detent spring
2x selector rod detent balls
Full set of gaskets
Gear lever lock pin
Reverse gear, lockout latch
Reverse gear lockout return spring
Gear knob
Fresh lock wire to selector forks and rear mount bolts.
New bolts, selector housing cover to gearbox
Grease delivery container, throwout assembly

And hopefully soon; new grease hose, throwout assembly

[Bob Carriere]

Hi Tony

Enjoy following your restoration.

ON the front pins that are hard to remove.... if memory serves me right there is fine thread hole on the centre..... find a suitable....odd size something like 7/16 fine thread and build yourself a puller using the other four bolt holes on the cap...... may need some heat to free it up.... but it will come out.

On the large front hub seal.... there are still being made for commercial application...... do not bother reading the part numbers.... a good bearing/seal shop will have access to a search engine on their computer and they will match dimension ID/OD. Last time I got some the part guy was apologetic for only having one in stock... the second one was there in 48 hours....... all for $19.95 each..... but will be more down under with shipping. Too bad they welded that backing plate... ridiculous really and will give you a headache.
Wonder if you will find stripped bolt holes to account to the welding.

Good luck.

Bob

[Cameron Reed]

Hi Tony
The seal I used in mine was a Chicago Rawhide no 58741, it was the closest my bearing man could come up with only difference was it is a little thinner,
I think it is 3/8" wide as against 1/2". Probaly worked better for me because the spindle was worn quite wide where the old leather seal ran and i could put the new one in a little deeper to be back on the good part on the spindle. They are a modern type twin lip rubber seal.

As for pulling the swivel housing pins out I just used a 1/2" socket with the id bigger than the pin dia and a 1/2" unf bolt (mine were tapped 1/2"nf, had to run a tap down them to clean them up) place socket over and screw bolt down into pin and continue to tighten. The thread is only short so with an assortment of washers and spacers you'll get there works well up until the pin starts to turn, but then you should be able to get it out

[Bob Carriere]

We built ours out of flat plate stock using the existing holes with bolts.... but could not find a picture of it.

Re-installing the NEW Departure bearings we used a large threaded rod and large washers..... worked very easy.....

Bob C.

[Private_collector]

Hello Cameron & Bob.

I had the pivot pin problem again today, on the passenger side. With this one, I think I see what the cause of both sides sticking actually is. I thought it strange that both of the upper pins have played up and not the bottom. Simple answer when I took a close look (with my spectacles on). Both of the caps had been loosened off as if about to pull the pins out, then left loose so water could get under and sieze the pins in place. I had no luck with this one today either. Had made a puller from a chunk of pipe with a nice thick bit of steel across the top. I keep all bolts I replace with new, so there is always something around to fit most sizes. In this attempt the steel puller didnt deform like last weekends thinner steel did, BUT what I thought was the strain on the pin itself, was actually the bolt I inserted hitting bottom of the pin and starting to strip thread from the pin as well as the bolt. Job well done! This is turning into a trilogy in four parts! I'll let this little debarcle sit dormant for a while, and do other axle/diff stuff.

Regarding the welded brake backing plate, negative on the stripped threads! They are all good. I made a point of looking at each one today. Its gonna have to come off one way or another, and I dont have the patience (or steadyness) to sit and whittle away at the weld lines with a die grinder. My big angle grinder is too big to get into that space, and my small one is too small to reach in there. Unlike Goldie Locks, I dont have one that is Juuuust right. On the other hand, if I have a replacement plate, then I can afford to butcher this one from the wheel hub side and cut it away. Earlier in the week I started making enquiries to buy a replacement plate. No luck so far, but not given up hope yet. I forgot to check the welded plate to see if it is stamped RF or LF. The left side one was stamped RF.

I have an ever growing list of bearings, cups, and seals that I want to replace. With removal of the passenger side steering assembly today, I can now see another seal in the distal end of that axle tube. And it looks totally u/s. What a surprise!

Cameron, I'll take down that seal number and see the bearing shop guys on Tuesday........with a fair old list! Thanks for the heads-up. That seal should suit me well also. Same problem as you, maybe a little less severe.

[Private_collector]

Chicago Rawhide (CR) are owned by SKF, and the SKF seals website says:

In response to the demands of an increasingly competitive global marketplace, and to customer requests for integrated solutions, the Chicago Rawhide brand, predominantly known as CR, has transitioned to SKF.The transition is part of the company’s goal to create one global, universally recognized SKF brand. The products, employees and facility locations remain unchanged, assuring customers the same high level of quality and service they have enjoyed previously.

So the CR seals may now be ceased production.

SKF = same number, different Co.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by Private_collector

Chicago Rawhide (CR) are owned by SKF, and the SKF seals website says:

In response to the demands of an increasingly competitive global marketplace, and to customer requests for integrated solutions, the Chicago Rawhide brand, predominantly known as CR, has transitioned to SKF.The transition is part of the company’s goal to create one global, universally recognized SKF brand. The products, employees and facility locations remain unchanged, assuring customers the same high level of quality and service they have enjoyed previously.

So the CR seals may now be ceased production.

SKF = same number, different Co.

Tony,

SKF acquired Chicago Rawhide many years ago. CR seals are not ceased production, it is merely a rebranding of well-known line of products. If I am correct, the numbers are still the same, except for the "CR" bit. Any authorised SKF distributor should be able to help you out.

Hanno

[Private_collector]

Yeah, thats what I meant.

Look for SKF with same no. as the CR.

[Private_collector]

This is embarassing. I have a pair of NTN 33275 bearings that I bought when I was working on the rear end, what seems like decades ago now. I think I bought them especially for when I would be doing the front, I.E: now. Heres the annoying bit. I cant recall WHERE they are meant to go. I looked at the spreadsheet with the modern part numbers, but that says they are Bearing, Front Wheel, Inner 6". Could someone tell me if that is actually these bearings. For some reason I thought these may have been for the ends of the differential set.

[Jacques Reed]

Hi Tony,

Looking at the Timken bearing cross reference catalog online SKF33273 is the same number Timken equivalent, ie.Timken 33275.

Since the CMP Maintenance manuals almost always specify Timken bearings it appears Timken No. 22275 is used as the front wheel inner cone on 6" steering ends according to my manual.

Hope this is of some help.

Cheers,

[Jacques Reed]

Hi Tony,

Sorry, did not want to give you a bum steer. That was a SKF number cross-referenced, not a NTN number. And it was 33275 not 33273. Mondayitis on a Tuesday for this guy!

Could not find any SKF to NTN cross reference on the net but checked the dimensions of both NTN and Timken No. 33275 and they both seem to be the same size bearing.

Cheers,

[Private_collector]

Thanks mate! I have also been enlightened by a fellow MLU'er that it is used on the carrier part of diff assembly. It would make sense to have one bearing fit more than one purpose. I am slowly amassing quite a list of bearings & seals that I want to replace.

I discovered yesterday that the welded on brake backing plate (driver side) is also marked RF. So is the left hand side! That means I already have my replacement for the one I will be cutting off, but will need to find a LF one.

I'll post a few photos of the last couple of days work, later tonight, including the damage I found around several teeth of the crown wheel. Something catastrophic has occured some point in the past, but seems to have been rectified. No obvious issues found by me and my father-in-law yesterday. We suspect a big failure of one or both bearings, causing the crown wheel to smack into the casing in two places. Yikes! Must have made quite some noise when it happened. Lots of metal filings in bottom of the casing.

[Private_collector]

Finally finished all the disassembly I can do on the front end.

This is the bearing from inside the wheel hub. So where does the outer wheel seal go??? I didn't find any other seal apart from the large one around the axle tube, Which I thought was the inner seal.

Or is the inner seal this one from inside the axle tubes themselves?

The steering assembly on passenger side was easy to clean up without that bloody backing plate that's welded to the driver side.

This isn't good. Several teeth are like this. The chunks must have been flying around inside there, doing all sorts of damage, but by the time I got the truck there was nothing bigger than fine filings inside. The crown wheel has hit on the side of the casing, leaving a huge scar and more missing metal. Would this have been as result of a catastrophic bearing failure???? Current bearings are not damaged, with exception of some very mild rust pitting where oil had drained away from during long periods of storage. All bearings & seals will be replaced in the diff and axle housings. The CV joints will be OK as is. No indications of damage there and they look fine as far as I can tell. I flushed the steering ends out with petrol and looked inside with a flashlight. It's gonna take a massive amount of grease to refill those knuckles again.