Mike's 1973 D22 Complete tear out. From the Roof down!

[eXodus]

And Pic 4 shows the hole I drilled waiting for a 5/8 Grade 8 bolt for it

On my later model GM product the front shocks came with the 5/8 bolt and are just mounting in a hole in the frame.
You upgraded to a newer manufacturing method   Great job by the way on all the metal work.

I need to learn welding at some point.

[RockwoodMike]

I need to learn welding at some point.

You can start cheap with a flux core wire setup. Where the shielding gas is created with the flux that is in the middle of the wire..As you weld, it releases the flux making the weld correctly.

Or more expensive with a bottle of Argon/CO2 mixed gas..It has MIG wire to use..

Welding tips and tricks on YouTube and a bunch of others channels will give you the basics..

What I want to really dive into is TIG welding..!!

[RockwoodMike]

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/p3sCWg5PUt0

This is the engine that is going into my creation!!


Just kidding..But you never know!!

[RockwoodMike]

Pic 1..There is plenty of clearance between the shock tower and the master cylinder..No problem there.

Pic 2 and 3..After cutting the original welds for the brake pedal arms, the hole to hook up the master cylinder fits now

Pic 5..Then it was all welded back up i the new position To some people this looks like what would come from the aft end of a cat, but it is very strong.

[RockwoodMike]

Pic 4..Now that everything is rearranged, the stop light switch doesn't fit..That bracket that hold the switch is 1/4 inch plate !!

Pic 6 and 7..To bend it, just cut it but not all the way through with a cut off wheel creating a slot..Then it is thinner and can be bent to position to make it fit properly..

Pic 8 shows the cut that make bending it easy..

[RockwoodMike]

Now just weld the slot back up to restore the strength..

[RockwoodMike]

I am working on the port wall now..There is a section where the black tank and the table with the seats are located..About a 5 foot width..Other than the plywood, nothing held that area up and it really sagged of the 50 years..

Inserting a piece of 1.5 square tubing at the edge where the wall and floor meet should add a lot of strength to it..

Pic 10..shows the straight metal with the sagging floor in comparison.

Pic 11.. about a 3/4 inch sag..It will all be strong and straight soon..

[RockwoodMike]

This thing has the original 12V converter..PC-301-A-2

I wanted to get it out of the way while I am working on the walls..Yea, I think I will replace it ..

[eXodus]

I need to learn welding at some point.

You can start cheap with a flux core wire setup. Where the shielding gas is created with the flux that is in the middle of the wire..As you weld, it releases the flux making the weld correctly.

Welding tips and tricks on YouTube and a bunch of others channels will give you the basics..

What I want to really dive into is TIG welding..!!

Thanks, I never heard about flux core wire before. 
I was at a welding demonstrations and got the chance to work about 2 minutes with TIG welder - that was a neat experience. Like a micro torch which just melts the two sides without adding much material. And no or little sparks.

Pretty cool

[RockwoodMike]

Pic 1..Master cylinder and Booster installed..Needs new brake lines now..After the engine is out..

Pic 2..New drivers side floor board in..Need to fill it up with 1.5 inch foam insulation.

Pic 3..Access opening to the master cylinder..Need to make the cover.

[RockwoodMike]

got the chance to work about 2 minutes with TIG welder - that was a neat experience

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axxwX3DO8Mk

Here is a very recent video that welding tips and trick just produced. Excellent Video!!

[Mlw]

I'm really admiring your work my friend. Your skills are pretty impressive.

 

 

As for the power converter, I replaced it with a charger of Victron Energy (made in USA, no China Junk )

 

I really wanted this one, but at that moment I didn't have the funds

 

https://www.victronenergy.com/inverters-chargers/multiplus-12v-24v-48v-800va-3kva

 

so, I started with this setup

https://www.victronenergy.com/chargers/blue-smart-ip22-charger

https://www.victronenergy.com/battery-isolators-and-combiners/argo-diode-battery-isolators

 

together with a 225amps VMF-calcium battery it does an awesome job, but the good thing about these chargers is that when you are connected to shore power the main task is to charge your batteries, and the remaining amps up to 30A can function as a power supply. This means your batteries function as a buffer, and you always have enough amperages to feed your power consumption unless you are over exceeding it of course.

 

With this old power-converter power is switched from battery to shore power so all the work is done by the transformer.

 

In short: Power converter - All lights and 12-volt equipment on resulted in a power drop to 8 volts in my case.

Charger/batteries - 13 volts all the time.

[RockwoodMike]

 

In short: Power converter - All lights and 12-volt equipment on resulted in a power drop to 8 volts in my case.

Charger/batteries - 13 volts all the time.
[/quote]

I'm really admiring your work my friend. Your skills are pretty impressive.

Thanks for the compliment..It just seems like I will never get to the end of this!!

That power convertor, I really didn't understand how it worked..There is a relay that clicks shut when on..and you get power to charge your battery and work all the 12volt stuff..When shore power is off, the relay clicks off and direct power from the battery to run everything..

[RockwoodMike]

This entry door has no step to get in and out..I took it out to rebuild everything..And now it is time to put it back in..And it needs to be stronger than it was..Felt like it was going to collapse everytime you stepped on it..

Pic 1..shows the open hole where the step and entry use to be..

Pic 2..Here is the old junk that use to be how you got in..

But I need to have the secondary fuel tank installed to be sure that the framing of the step will work..

Pic 3..If you recall, I cut two openings to clean out the tank full of rust..Welded a patch on top to seal them up.

Pic 4..Primer Rustolium rolled on..Black paint next..then hang it up and start on the steps after that..

[Mlw]

It just seems like I will never get to the end of this!!

Trust me, I know the feeling. And seeing you going at it doesn't really ease my mind     

I guess my luck in this is that I have a C class with a cabin of steel instead of sheet aluminum, styro-foam and plywood glued together and the first owner gave the rv an anti-corrosion treatment. The only thing nagging me in this area is that the roof of my RV is very bad and lots of water has come into the rv, so I really don't want to open up the floor as it is not sagging, but the wood does stand up in the areas where the sheets meet.

There is a relay that clicks shut when on..and you get power to charge your battery and work all the 12volt stuff..When shore power is off, the relay clicks off and direct power from the battery to run everything..

That's exactly how it works. The downfall of this is (or at least I think so) is that the power of the batteries is shut off and the transformer has to do all the work giving me the results mentioned before.

[Eyez Open]

Your gas tank a light color comes to mind, any thing one can do to prevent heat buildup is desirable. Modern gasoline boils at 160 degrees Fahrenheit, gas going upstream needs to be as cool as it can possibly be. Actually your build is so vast you might want to look into routing you gas lines so they don't touch the block in your engine bay area.

Those old steps you have and I have really need to be mounted very tightly. My steps also felt soft until I redid my floor. After remounting them on new flooring securely they are amazingly rock solid...a bit strange as matter of fact.

The enormity of your project is quite fascinating,you are meeting that challenge like a rock star.

Someday you will look back with amazement..yep I actually did that. Ohh you know your close when you hang curtains and realize they really suck. LMAO and then realize you might never be the same guy again...

[RockwoodMike]

Your gas tank a light color comes to mind

I know what you mean by extreme heat. Take a look at the first picture..This is the area directly behind the engine..The paint is just cooked off of it..When the engine is out, I was wanting to install some sort of heat shield insulation ..

But for the gas tank shown earlier, that brown is the rusty metal primer ready for a top coat of flat black Rustolium ..In fact I just got back from Lowe's with the gallon of oil based paint..

Not too worried about the tank getting hot, but it does worry me when  see the kick panel with the paint cooked off of it..

SOOOO....I was looking at this Edelbrock (BWAAAA HAAA HAAA) EFI fuel injection for the 440..

https://www.summitracing.com/parts/edl-35910/make/chrysler..

It has the center throttle body that would take the original intake filter..
And did I mention it is FUEL INJECTED!!!..

But coming back to reality makes me do some research on keeping the fuel cool on a normal carb set up..

[RockwoodMike]

Trust me, I know the feeling. And seeing you going at it doesn't really ease my mind

This is what you must do to keep up the enthusiasm for you project..You must look at it as several small projects to be started and then finished..

Example: That differential..Just getting it out without damage and up on saw horses..That was a small project that was accomplished..Stand back and say to your self.."Well Done"..

If you are looking at the whole motorhome seeing EVERYTHING at one time that need work and seeing a very long list..It gets you down..

But just do one item at a time and zero in on that one item till it is done..Then check it off your list..

Each check off of the list will have "Well Done"..

Looking over you project, you have a long list as you have shown in your posts..But you did a Great job on the rear brakes..check.."Well Done"..Next on the list...on and on..

It is like assemble of a 5000 piece puzzle..Each piece one at a time..Don't look at the big pile of pieces..Just look at the individual pieces..

Time to step down from the soapbox..Hope this gets you enthusiasm back..

Mike 

[RockwoodMike]

Charger/batteries - 13 volts all the time

I have been looking round for one of these converters..Plenty to choose from..And Expensive!!

But why not just an ordinary battery charger from Autozone?? Thay have inverter style chargers that put out 30-50 amps..Just have it plugged in to shore power, use the 12 volt leads and hard wire them in to the 12 volt system..
Every time you you plug in to the shore power, it comes on..like any other battery charger would
And some chargers have built in trickle charge to them..

Seems like a cheaper way to go..

[RockwoodMike]

Pic 1..The secondary tank all painted up..still needs to dry..tomorrow it will be ready to install

Pic 2..I opened the floor a little more to reveal the mounting brackets that hang the tank..Just 2 angle pieces..They are 1.75x1.75 angle. If they had used 2 inch angle, it would help support the floor too..

I will get this tank in tomorrow and start working on the entry steps..

[eXodus]

Pic 1..Master cylinder and Booster installed..Needs new brake lines now..After the engine is out..

Pic 2..New drivers side floor board in..Need to fill it up with 1.5 inch foam insulation.

Pic 3..Access opening to the master cylinder..Need to make the cover.

Nice work,  with all the heavy metal you are putting in - are you going to upgrade to Hydroboost?

I've switched mine to a modern Diesel Pickup Truck unit:
https://www.classicwinnebagos.com/forum/index.php?topic=16339.0

and it brakes like a dream. I have to be actually careful to not slow down to fast - otherwise all the things in the cabinets start moving lol

[RockwoodMike]

Nice work,  with all the heavy metal you are putting in - are you going to upgrade to Hydroboost?

There is a vacuum boost on the master cylinder..My Rockwood motorhome has a hydroboost on it and I was thinking of taking it from the rockwood. The problem is the pump for the hydroboost..Mounting it to the engine and setting up a fan belt for it..

The only pump that is on the 440 is the power steering..
On the Rockwood, that is on a John Deere chassis (1988), it has a separate pump for the steering and the boost..

So to fit the pump to an engine that was not designed for 2 pumps would have been a tremendous undertaking..

As for the heavy metal..It is not that heavy..16 gauge steel..Not heavy gauge ..

[eXodus]

I'm not metal person.

My RV has only one PS-pump.

First it goes into the hydroboost from there it goes into the steering rack. Both the Hydroboost and Rack have a return-line going to the reservoir.

[RockwoodMike]

I always thought that 2 pumps were needed..1 for each system..Anyway, I went with the vacuum booster setup as shown..It matches the same set up as my yellow Ryder moving van..And I use to load down that thing with all my tools and building materials when I was doing my general contractor work..

Pic 1.. Here is the aux gas tank installed..I put tape on the open holes on top of the tank to keep anything like dust or shavings from falling in..

Pic 2..Installed this front piece at the edge of the floor to hold everything up.. It had nothing before and the whole floor felt like it was going to fall through..Now it won't!!

Pic 3..Everything tack welded and clamped in place..The pullout step feels stronger even with just clamps and tack welds..

I am 6'-2" and weigh 240..And before I felt I was going to collapse the floor in places..Replace all the rotted floor and better support will fix all that!!

[RockwoodMike]

Working on the port wall now..The area below the floor line..

Pic 1..Start of the lay up using plenty of clamp to hold it all in place before welding it up..

Pic 2..Added middle pieces and started to weld everything..

Pic 3.. Same thing but from a different view