Hey all,
Winters grip has relaxed in the last few weeks, and a couple of good rains have washed the Chevy eating salt off of the roadways. Took Audra on a gruelling steep/curvy run with many switchbacks. She was up to the task but I had to go down to 2nd gear and keep the engine revving high enough to continue pulling the top third of the grade. Can you all imagine when these trucks were used as primary carriers and the they were traversing steep slopes fully loaded?! Gears will get you anywhere but necassarily fast, which is fine as I enjoy hearing the gears anyway.
At the top of the gap, stopping to check brake temperature before making the descent.
Over the winter, I made a anti-freeze expansion tank to catch the occasional "puke" markings the truck makes when driven hard or in hot weather. There is a true GM produced expansion tank for these trucks, but it is quite rare and expensive when they do appear. Instead, I decided to make a collection device that could have been made from local items by an idle mechanic/fabricator back in the WW2 wartime period somewhere on the Alcan Highway or in Europe.
Process began with sourcing an appropriate era bottle. This 1939 12 ounce beer bottle was a good fit. The metal bracket was constructed with common 1/8 inch wire coiled around a spray paint can and then welded. The tabs were random flat stock items that could have been found in any shop.
Bracket was installed using existing holes or fastener mounting points. No alterations were made to the truck. A little felt glued to the bracket rim eliminates abrasion/rattling.
Here is my invention after the long drive. It looks like about half of the bottle is filled so hopefully it can catch the total expansion volume range.
Yeah I know I am writing about an alteration to an otherwise quite original truck, but this one is perfectly harmless as nothing on the truck is altered and it solves a "drippage" issue of expanded anti-freeze. So far I have noticed that non-automotive type people often focus on the bottle and start asking questions as I suppose it looks out of place. The attention is good as it opens the door to talk about history to someone that may not have great interest...yet. Anyway, I had some fun and my "bubbafication" seems to be solving those sometimes embarrassing moments when your truck marks its spot.
Hope you all are enjoying the hobby and are getting out soon.
Paul