Speed

Well,I got the module swapped to a GM one-no joy. Pulled the module and went to EVERY shop in town to get it tested-no luck. Nobody is equipped to terst one. Finally found Konakis Automotive has the official tester,and my used module was toast. bought a new one at NAPA,installed it,still no spark. RE-checked my wiring,it is all correct. I've concluded my problem is either the 2 wire harness from my module to the distributor is damaged,the plug at the distributor isn't connecting or the pick up IN the distributor is smoked. I'm going to disconnect that harness at both ends and check it for damaged wire,then replace the plug with different connections and swap in the distributor from my '82 engine. I believe that'll cover all the likely culprits,and it should be a runner. That'll be a good thing-I have at least two truckloads of trash to haul. BTW-I decided the axle swap won't be an option until Spring,if then. Once I have this truck operable,I'll bring my '74 Chevy one ton flatbed in to swap a small block 400 into it,that'll take a while for a variety of reasons. (Broken finger,Flu,Taking care of my 77 year old housebound Sister with Dementia) In the meantime,I'll change the alternator on the '54 GMC and put some 100W headlights on it,and install an under-bed box below the Left Front corner of the deck,and,if I can get the materials I need,I'll build a truck crane a bit bigger than the one on my Chevy one ton,lift capacity of 1/2 ton extended,reach of maybe 12 feet extended,8 feet collapsed. Every day's a new adventure.➰ Speed

I think whatever parts I get will have to be from a Ranger,since many of them were equipped with the drivetrain I want,while I OWN the only Explorer I've ever seen with a manual transmission and I've never found one that didn't have electronic Four Wheel Drive/automatic hubs. Speed

I originally found the conversion on Marlin Crawler's website,seems several people have also done it and there's quite a lot of diversity on the methods and the parts used. I'd been looking for a discussion that covered some other conversions as well,the one I wanted was the Ford Blue-Grommet module,but I didn't find that one. The GM one is pretty simple-the two wires from the Distributor go to one end of the module,the terminals marked W and G. (If there's no spark,I can reverse these two wires and all should be fine.) The other two wires to the module,one of which is marked B,for Battery,goes to keyed 12V, (I'm going to use the same wire as the ignitor did,out of the OEM plug.) and will also connect to the + side of the coil,and C,for Chassis ground, would go to the - side of the coil and any other grounds I want to use. They say I can ground the Module case through one of the mounting screws,plenty of good grounds makes everything happy. I got some di-electric grease and built a heat sink/bracket from aluminum. For the mount,I screwed the module to the beam of an aluminum air compressor connecting rod with a heat sink sandwiched in,and plenty of grease in between. The rod was bolted to the inner fender,with the rod cap on the outside of the inner fender.;I've seen some people use the original Toyota coil and the ignitor bracket to simplify the mounting. So it's only four wires and a mounting plate to make it work,if you don't mind using used parts. ====================================================================================================================== On that carb,I think I'll just drive it awhile and see how it acts-I MIGHT not even have to change anything. ====================================================================================================================== This cab is the same one that got tumbled down a mountain. It wasn't too straight when they put the new windshield in it-it already had a half circle crack in it right behind where the rear view mirror would have been if it was still there. ====================================================================================================================== The proportioning valve is still there and connected-not sure of the adjustment,I don't know what the link is supposed to look like-it looks to ME like it's all pulled out of shape. It has a shallow "S" bend in it,but it must be close to where it should be or it wouldn't reach from here to there. I feel like the "mechanic" didn't adjust anything before calling it DONE. ====================================================================================================================== I have the tools,sort of a place to work (Outdoors,slanted driveway that looks like it was used to test explosives),a book (An 80's vintage Haynes repair manual-and some internet) etc. I mostly don't do a lot of the work anymore because my health has been screwing me up. Messed up shoulder,Arthritis in my hands,lower back damage,etc. All were the residuals of doing stuff I shouldn't have done,back when I was young and invincible...There's also the feeling that I don't know as much now as I did back when I knew ALL about EVERYTHING. 🤡 I wouldn't have been so upset with the half-assed brake work if I hadn't paid a premium price for it. When I have someone doing work for free,or for a six pack,I know I'll be getting pretty much what I paid for,but there's no way,by ANY stretch of the imagination,THIS would be worth $600.00! THIS was supposed to last for a pretty long while. I shoulda taken it right back and worked 'em over about it,but like I said,I was without a running vehicle and with a lot of stuff still to move,so I made a (BAD) executive decision. THEY made a BAD decision by releasing my truck without so much as test driving it across their parking lot to see if the brakes even WORKED.😠 I probably coulda OWNED their shop,but they were already closing and retiring-would it have even been worth the fight?

The Toyota developed a NEW issue-no spark. It died on the road,suddenly,just like I turned off the ignition. Plenty of cranking power,but NO spark. After having the coil tested and found okay,popular opinion is that the ignitor is the problem. I now have the parts to convert to a GM ignition module,I just need to make an aluminum base plate to mount the module to and get some di-electric grease,and grow some warm weather to do the install and it should be a runner again. I bought a fuel pressure regulator and installed it,set to 2-1/2 psi to start with,then I went through and re-set the carb to the specs listed in the installation papers. Once I have it running again I can go through and fine-tune it a bit. Following that,my only urgent task will be figuring out where the water is getting into the cab and dripping onto the stereo,the CB and the seat on both sides. It's getting pretty annoying. Now that you mention the brake booster,it reminds me-the brakes have never felt completely right since the "Car Doctors" shop "rebuilt" them. I had to extend the push rod between the master cylinder and the booster about an inch to even HAVE brakes. The truck stops well enough,but I suspect the rear brakes aren't playing. As I stop,the brakes are quite good,but as I roll down to a stop,it feels like the front brakes grab hard enough that it feels like the axle "winds up",bouncing the truck backwards slightly. I think the rear brakes just need adjusting. I have 2 of the 3 cables needed to fix the E-brake,so I'd like to try fixing that,if I can sort out their weird cable routing. That also was supposed to be done in the brake "rebuild". Since it wasn't possible at the time for me to do without the truck,I fixed what I had to,to be able to drive it,and by the time I had alternate transportation it was too late to claim their shoddy workmanship in a Court case. Speed

The Clark is a heavier gearbox than a 465,and is completely non-synchro. The MAIN attraction I have for a 465 is it's QUIET,and having some synchronized gears is also a good thing. I feel like the powertrain through the 465 is probably more efficient than the Clark,so less power is lost and better gas mileage is likely. I'm okay with no synchros,but the gear noise of a Clark (I'm pretty sure it's straight-cut gears,which are inherently noisy.) is pretty deafening at road speed,especially when it's singing in harmony with a 3 speed Brownie,which I WON'T give up. (I suspect there are some tired bearings in the Clark too,as it seems inclined to drop out of 5th under light compression braking. The main BENEFIT of the Clark is the strength of it and how unlikely it is that I could overload it. I also kinda like the weird shift pattern. I hope this shows up as I drew it. 2 5 1 3 4 R Speed

What's the market looking like for a Clark 5 speed w/Overdrive? Maybe there's a full sized rock crawler out there that can use a break-proof box with a built-in "higher gear".I'm REALLY not sure it's worth the expense to convert it just for a set of synchro's... Speed.

Yeah,the instructions for the carb conversion say SEVERAL times to try to keep the fuel pressure below 3.5 psi,and I figured the stock fuel pump wasn't likely to run significantly more than that. Saturday I had a guy at the Garage (working on his own truck,off the clock) make some adjustments, and while I don't think it runs BETTER,it certainly runs differently. I KNOW I need to re-adjust the choke,he messed with it a lot,and he found a couple of adjusters (?) that don't show on any pictures/diagrams I've seen. I'll set the low speed mixture screw back to specs and try to get the idle screw adjusted again. It WAS idling a little fast,even with the adjustment screw backed all the way off,which indicates an issue according to the instructions. I was going to try another couple of degrees of advance and see where THAT leaves it. Running it as it was delivered,it initially ran right up to 70 mph,but then developed a miss;I kept backing out of the throttle,but it didn't improve much,so I stopped. it idled okay so I drove on over to Carlin,trying different speeds,but was marginal at best. Coming back to Elko,I discovered it'd run pretty good at about 60 in 4th. I upshifted to 5th and EASED it up to 70,which it ran fine at,but any more throttle and it'd start to act up again. Even with all that,it gor 20.7 mpg. This carb seems pretty touchy,but I hope it'll tune in without re-jetting it. So it'll be: re-set the choke blades re-set the fast idle set the low speed mix within specs, set the idle speed to around 750 rpm if possible-if it won't idle down enough,advance the ignition timing a couple of degrees. THEORETICALLY,that'll make it run well again,right? Speed

I'm told the 700R4 was GM's first 4 speed OD automatic,meant to replace the old T350,and eventually replaced the T400 too,then came the 4L60 and the Heavy Duty 4L80 series. Since it's a '90 Heavy Half,it was,I think,the first year of the 700R4 replacing the T400 in the heavy duty half ton models. I agree,the mechanics of the conversion,while likely expensive ,won't be that hard,but the electrics will be a nightmare. Speed

As it stands,I've installed a Weber carb on the engine,which seems to have improved the running markedly,though it still has the "tugboat" sounding idle,to a lesser degree. I'm looking at checking the compression next (I can't believe I haven't checked it yet-maybe I DID and it was okay....)followed by adjusting the valves. I ALSO changed both 22R engines over to 10si one wire alternators that make 105 amps,though the kits I used require mods to the adjustment brackets. The one on the '82 truck I'll be eventually swapping my axles into required offsetting the "J-bracket" outward an inch away from the alternator to clear the cooling fan,but works fine otherwise,and the one on the '81,which I'm driving now,would have the adjuster running into the power steering pump,so I engineered an a spring loaded arrangement that connects to the fenderwell. Both alternators/mounts work fine. Next project is installing new 100W. H-4 headlights,as I'm getting tired of driving by feel at night. Speed

It sounds like his main concern is what he'll need to save out of the wiring to make the gas engine work in a Diesel truck. He also says the Diesel is a 5 speeder,but the gas engine is mated to a 700R4,so is there a way to keep the stick and link it to the 5.7L gas motor? If not,I guess he can use the auto. and whatever wiring goes to it,and change to the gas ECM. I don't think I'd get much enjoyment from doing this kinda conversion on something with all this electric junk to figure out and cross-match. Speed

Since finding the transmission I want won't be so tough,the next issue is the driveline. There's a guy here in Elko who builds/rebuilds 'em,and he usually gets about $250.00 each plus parts to rebuild one or re-tube one. Is that about typical,or do you have a favorite shop for driveline work? I already know I'll need to lengthen the rear section about 4 inches,and I wouldn't mind using a little longer slip yoke,to prevent wobble,since,as heavy as it'll be,it'll be spinning pretty fast at 3780 RPM on the highway. What do you think? I haven't checked transmission length between the Clark and the SM465,but in addition to getting the right tube length,I'll have to find a yoke and new U-joint to fit the 465 I'm also in need of a speedometer cable adapter to convert my standard GM square drive cable to the military/big truck style end,with a dowel pin style with a "blade" on one side. I found one on ebay once,but it was gone before I could work up the $9.00 for it. Speed

I mentioned,in the 90 GMC Forum,that I sold that truck;it made me laugh that the buyer of the '90 was REALLY interested in the '54. Apparently the owner of the place where it's stored has been asked about the '54 several times already. As he tells them, "Everything here is for sale. THAT truck (the '54 GMC)-you don't wanna know the price. If you're SERIOUS though,make an offer and I'll pass it on to the owner." Not sure if I'd sell it or not. I don't use it often,but when I do it's to do stuff nothing else I have can do. Besides-I REALLY LIKE IT! I decided if I DO change the transmission I'll probably go with an SM465,mostly because I know where to find a few of 'em. Speed

I'd been trying to get the previous owner to work with me in getting a Title on this truck,but it sounds like there's a second name on it that belongs to an ex-girlfriend/drinking buddy he REALLY doesn't wanna talk to,so it looked like an alternate method was the only option. I decided to cut my losses and sell it as is,as a parts truck,so I advertised it online. A local rancher bought it for $750.00;he has a Diesel powered one a couple of years newer with an exploded engine and wants to use this one for the Engine/Trans./T/C to swap in,as I understand it. I told him to get logged onto this Forum for advice and information. Don't know how soon he plans to start his project,but hopefully you'll be hearing from him by Spring. Speed

I got a shifter from a friend,but still need the pivot bolt. I have a ball valve handle that almost fits the transfer case,I think with a little careful filing I can make it fit. Then all I need to do is cut it down to the right length,drill a hole for the shift rod end to go into and engineer an adjuster of some sort for the rod,in case the length isn't exactly right. (I suspect this shifter is off a full size Ford truck,so I don't know if it mounts in the same place on the transmission.) I ALSO need to find out what size the threads are for the pivot bolt,I think I'll have to make one to get the right shape. I'll STILL need a set of locking hubs. I was told the ABS and Cruise Control are somehow linked to each other on the Explorer (Through the ECM??) so,if the ABS fails to work,it's likely the Cruise won't work either. Sounds weird to me,but I've seen weirder things designed into vehicles. I'm hoping to avoid the wrecking yards,since the closest one to me is a 100 mile round trip. Speed

I'm adding that 10 psi residual valve to my shopping list. Looking back,with all the gearing this truck already has,I guess it doesn't matter how low first gear is,so that makes the transmission search a lot easier. I'd STILL like to find the transmission mounted E-brake though,but NOT to use on the main box. I just want to use the lever and ratchet assembly,and I'll build a rod long enough to reach from the stock E-brake lever to the brake on the back of the Brownie,to replace the cable operated "on or off" lever in the cab. I'm starting to think,AGAIN,about working this truck;Scrap metal is so low here it doesn't even pay enough to buy the gas it takes to haul a car to the scrap yard in Osino,so I'm looking into maybe hauling 3 or 4 cars at a time up to Idaho Falls,to the salvage plant there-IF the price is high enough to be worth the trip. If I'm getting good info,as long as I'm not hauling FOR someone,I'm just transporting my OWN metal,for MYSELF,so the DOT shouldn't bother me,as long as I don't go over the 26,000 weight limit or overload my truck's safe load limit. (According to my figures I'd have a very generous 18,000 before I'm anywhere close to 26,000.) I know I'd probably eventually end up having to scale it for those reasons,and I expect they'd be doing safety inspections,just because of the age of the truck. I think I can go North to Mountain Home,cross I-84 and there's a side road up to Idaho Falls that doesn't have a scale house,but I need to ride the bike up there and verify my information. Speed