My 1951 M37 build thread....

jbxx · Post by **jbxx** » Wed Mar 25, 2009 4:42 pm

A little off topic here but to someone that's new he may not be aware of options.
There is a disc brake rework that may be now available
Look up Ray Suiter <sp?> It's one of the best mods you can do.
An easy upgrade ( if that is the direction you wish, and do not mind
a few non stock upgrades). This was one of the things that I would consider my faves. Ray moved to Thailand but his kit is still available ( I think_)
All the best to a new addictee.
Also consider a pertronix electronic points kit.( even more off topic, sorry!)
J.B.

chicklin · Post by **chicklin** » Wed Mar 25, 2009 5:22 pm

jbxx wrote:A little off topic here but to someone that's new he may not be aware of options.
There is a disc brake rework that may be now available
Look up Ray Suiter <sp?> It's one of the best mods you can do.
An easy upgrade ( if that is the direction you wish, and do not mind
a few non stock upgrades). This was one of the things that I would consider my faves. Ray moved to Thailand but his kit is still available ( I think_)
All the best to a new addictee.
Also consider a pertronix electronic points kit.( even more off topic, sorry!)
J.B.

Good suggestions. I had planned on the pertronix kit, but how much are the disc brakes? I definitely wouldn't mind having them, but if they are anything like the M715, I'm not ready to drop $1200 on them.

jbxx · Post by **jbxx** » Thu Mar 26, 2009 12:55 pm

I forget how much I paid, but it was about that with all the
chevy bits and a new master cylinder (dual res )
check this out.
http://www.uglytruckling.com/M37%20Truc ... anual1.htm
I don't know if he's back in production yet.
J.B.

jbxx · Post by **jbxx** » Thu Mar 26, 2009 12:57 pm

I just read the first page of the URL I just sent you and I answered my own question.
J.B.

chicklin · Post by **chicklin** » Sun Apr 05, 2009 12:48 pm

Woohoo!! I have brakes.

Finally finished. Replaced four wheel cylinders, the master cylinder and all the rubber lines. I kept the steel lines for now. They look to be in decent shape and all the fluid coming out (old and new) was clean. I will certainly keep an eye on them for the future.

The shoe adjustment on these is a little tricky, isn't it? I got pretty close and it gave me a better pedal, but I still have a little work to do. I can't quite lock them up on dry pavement, which is how I usually like to test a brake system (on my M715's, anyway). Also, it seems like the shoes loosened up a little after a couple trips and jamming on the pedal pretty hard. Are these adjusters known for being sloppy?

One other question. The new master cylinder from VPW doesn't have the fitting for the vent line on the top. There is a vent hole in the screw-in plug. Any problems leaving that vent line unconnected? I don't plan on doing any fording anytime soon. I guess I could get a new plug that and make a fitting for the line.

chicklin · Post by **chicklin** » Sun Apr 05, 2009 12:48 pm

Woohoo!! I have brakes.

Finally finished. Replaced four wheel cylinders, the master cylinder and all the rubber lines. I kept the steel lines for now. They look to be in decent shape and all the fluid coming out (old and new) was clean. I will certainly keep an eye on them for the future.

The shoe adjustment on these is a little tricky, isn't it? I got pretty close and it gave me a better pedal, but I still have a little work to do. I can't quite lock them up on dry pavement, which is how I usually like to test a brake system (on my M715's, anyway). Also, it seems like the shoes loosened up a little after a couple trips and jamming on the pedal pretty hard. Are these adjusters known for being sloppy?

One other question. The new master cylinder from VPW doesn't have the fitting for the vent line on the top. There is a vent hole in the screw-in plug. Any problems leaving that vent line unconnected? I don't plan on doing any fording anytime soon. I guess I could get a new plug that and make a fitting for the line.

chicklin · Post by **chicklin** » Sun Apr 05, 2009 12:49 pm

Up next....winch repair. Then tune-up and fluids (including a carb and fuel pump rebuild). Then paint.

N1VSM · Post by **N1VSM** » Tue Apr 07, 2009 8:40 am

rixm37 wrote:My old lines were full of rusted goo. Dangerous!! and also that would get into my new brake cyls. and wreck them. And like Lifer said they could burst at any time. If you keep the original M/C you don't have the split system and will loose all your fluid at once so there goes your brakes. very dangerous.

This is a good time to consider installing a 2 chamber M/C. Easy upgrade with parts you can get locally. Do a forum search for more info. There was also a good article on this topic in MVM many moons ago.

chicklin · Post by **chicklin** » Wed Apr 08, 2009 6:26 pm

A little more progress. I got the front and side wood racks repaired with new wood. I just used 1x4" treated pine cut down to 2 3/4". Not as nice as the original oak, but it was cheap and looks fine. It will get painted, anyway.

Got the winch out of the back and completely disassembled. Needs all new gaskets, seals, two new bearings, one bearing retainer and a brass worm gear. All in all, it's in pretty good shape, just needs to be rebuilt. The housings, shafts, worm, clutch, shifter, brake, etc. are all in good shape. The PTO works fine, as well.

The wife has the camera or I would have pics. Once I finish the winch, it's time for a tune-up, fluids and paint and I should be in good shape. I'm going to put off the electrical system for a while as it needs completely re-done. There are some minor leaks that I could track down, as well, but nothing to be concerned about.

chicklin · Post by **chicklin** » Wed Apr 15, 2009 6:48 pm

Little update. Changed the oil and tightened down the oil pan screws. Seems to have slowed down my oil leak down there. It is leaking down the back side of the pan not through the flywheel cover drain hole, so I don't think it's the rear main seal, which is good. Still need to get the gasket changed, though.

Installed new Autolite 2455 spark plugs from www.rockauto.com (those guys are great, btw). Seems to run a little smoother. That could be placebo effect, but the old plugs were burnt to hell and rusted, so I gotta believe this helped.

Replaced the fuel pump (that was causing me starting problems, I think) with a civvie pump (M2091). Doesn't have the vacuum, but if I put wipers back on it, I'll do electric ones anyway.

Put on a new fan belt. The old one was pretty crusty. Cracked the generator "ear" in the process. Ugh. It looks like it will hold for now, but it sucks anyway. Anybody got any good tricks to repair this? The metal seemed pretty soft.

Also discovered a little knock coming from the engine (ugh, again). It doesn't sound too bad, but any noise from inside the motor seems bad to me. Are these engines known for making any noise? I have a Chevy 235 in another truck that's noisy, but it's just the tappets and is normal. Not sure about this 230. The knocking is intermittent and goes away at higher RPMs. Could my fuel/air mixture be screwed up after replacing the fuel pump and plugging the vacuum port on the intake manifold? Could that cause a knock? How about timing?

Looks like I'll finally get to the winch. Located all the parts and just need to have a couple bearings and the worm gear pressed on, then reassemble.

chicklin · Post by **chicklin** » Fri May 08, 2009 7:44 pm

Finally have an update. Got the winch rebuilt and mounted back on the truck. Works like a champ and now I just need to re-wind the cable.

The only issue is that things are a little tighter than they should be. I had to replace both bearing retainers and put new bearing races in them. The only thing I wasn't sure of was how far in to press the races. I pressed them in until the lip was flush with outer surface of the bearing retainer, but they could've gone a little further until completely seated into the retainer. Maybe another 1/16 of an inch. Now that I've put it all together, I think they need pressed in further. Fortunately, they are pretty easy to get to even with the winch on the truck.

Has anybody done this rebuild (I'm looking at you, Charles)? I didn't see the races addressed in the online rebuild pictorial or the manual.

Lifer · Post by **Lifer** » Sat May 09, 2009 4:36 am

I've never dealt with a winch, but you should always press your bearing races all the way into the retainer. Time to get the wrenches out of the tool box again...or pick them up off the floor, if that's where you left 'em.

chicklin · Post by **chicklin** » Sat May 09, 2009 7:10 pm

Lifer wrote:I've never dealt with a winch, but you should always press your bearing races all the way into the retainer. Time to get the wrenches out of the tool box again...or pick them up off the floor, if that's where you left 'em.

Took it apart and actually they had sunk into place while they were all bolted up, so in good shape there. I think the bigger issue is that one of the bearing retainers is a reproduction and the depth of the retainer seems to be a hair shallower than the NOS one I have. Fortunately, I had a couple extra gaskets lying around so I stacked those up on one end like shims and that seems to have helped. Things are spinning more freely now and no leaks. Much happier.

My next trick is to roll the cable up. I have a plan in mind. I'm going to attach the cable to my kid's little red wagon full of bricks at the bottom of a shallow slope. That way I'll be able to put some tension on it without have to pull on the cable myself. Then, all I've got to do is guide the cable so it rolls up nice and neat like a fishing rod. Best laid plans....

chicklin · Post by **chicklin** » Sun May 10, 2009 5:14 pm

Got the cable re-wound today. Didn't have to tie anything to it, it was plenty heavy dragging through the grass. The truck looks so much better with everything back in place on the front.

MSeriesRebuild · Post by **MSeriesRebuild** » Sun May 10, 2009 6:13 pm

chicklin wrote:
Lifer wrote:I've never dealt with a winch, but you should always press your bearing races all the way into the retainer. Time to get the wrenches out of the tool box again...or pick them up off the floor, if that's where you left 'em.
Took it apart and actually they had sunk into place while they were all bolted up, so in good shape there. I think the bigger issue is that one of the bearing retainers is a reproduction and the depth of the retainer seems to be a hair shallower than the NOS one I have. Fortunately, I had a couple extra gaskets lying around so I stacked those up on one end like shims and that seems to have helped. Things are spinning more freely now and no leaks. Much happier.

My next trick is to roll the cable up. I have a plan in mind. I'm going to attach the cable to my kid's little red wagon full of bricks at the bottom of a shallow slope. That way I'll be able to put some tension on it without have to pull on the cable myself. Then, all I've got to do is guide the cable so it rolls up nice and neat like a fishing rod. Best laid plans....

Well, still too early to lock up the tool box. The bearing cups must be pressed in all the way in order set the correct bearing preloads. You said they were pressed in when you pulled it back apart. This had to leave a huge amount of end play in the worm shaft assembly. I'm not understanding how extra gaskets helped that out as that is quite impossible. Adding gaskets would make even more end play. Obviously you were not able to detect the end play because the drum shaft & brass gear was already in place. Adding shim to one side would cause the worm to run out of center of the brass drum shaft gear, a BAD set up that will cause you trouble, broken gear teeth. The worm shaft bearing retainers should be shimmed an equal amount on both retainers so the worm is held in a centered position. The amount of shim needed is determined by the worm shaft rotating resistance by hand; when the preload is correct, it will take a good firm grasp of your hand to turn the shaft. This set up procedure must be done prior to installing the worm shaft oil seals into the retainers, seals will make the shaft turn tight, making it impossible to get bearing preload correct. This must be done before the drum shaft & brass gear are installed into the housing. Otherwise you will get a false sense of turning resistance, you need to feel the resistance within the worm shaft assembly only, without oil seals. Once the proper shim pack is chosen & correct preload is established, remove the bearing retainers & the worm shaft from the housing, install the drum shaft with brass gear into the housing followed by the worm assembly. This time install the worm shaft oil seals into the retainers, being sure the correct # of gaskets are placed under each retainer, coat all gaskets with a good quality gasket sealer & do the final assembly. Failure to follow through on all this correctly will cause you GRIEF.

I'm not getting where all this online information about gear box building is coming from; this is the 2nd explanation I've given this week about improper set ups. Both situations were similar, proper procedures for bearing set up was omitted from the build instruction in both cases as I understand it. I think I'd be looking elsewhere for direction. The other situation was with a transfer case build up, that guy would have experienced a catastropic failure in the rear drive unit if he hadn't ask for further instruction. He wasn't even close to doing it correctly. Correct bearing & preload settings at build up are absolutely imperative to long running components, cutting corners just isn't smart, it will cost you in $$$ & frustration.

One more thing, did you align the end housings with each other when you did the final assembly? If not, your troubles aren't even over when you correct the bearing preload issue already at hand. Alignment is of utmost importance, premature wear & oil leaking will be the result of improper alignment.