| New Weekend project - The dashboard. YIKES!!! [message #69071] |
Thu, 31 December 2009 09:51  |
jwillard
Messages: 118
Registered: May 2004
Location: Silver City, NM
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Well, After my three week trip I had quite a punch list as one might imagine. With some of the recent threads about HVAC (on the list) Speedo lenses (on the list) and references to insturment lighting (on the list) I decided ot start tackling some of those, starting with rebuilding the HVAC control head.
To make a long story short, two hours later I had the entire dashboard out and laying on the shop floor. (Pictures will be forth coming) I never saw so much plastic doing apparently important stuff, in my life. Geez... I had no idea!I always knew there wasn't much between me and being the first at the scene of the accident, but wow!!
The level of PO wiring is also truly amazing an scarry. I particularrly loved the three ground wires attached to a plastic Dash board with a 4th wire going to a "real" ground. 
Today we'll rip out all the PO wiring and start getting the HVAV actuator working. It looks liek the Defroster is stuck "Open". I guess thats the No Dash AC problem. More later.....
Jeff Willard
Silver City, NM
1973 ex-Glacier
[Updated on: Thu, 31 December 2009 09:52] Report message to a moderator |
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| Re: New Weekend project - The dashboard. YIKES!!! [message #69079 is a reply to message #69071] |
Thu, 31 December 2009 10:19  |
Bob de Kruyff
Messages: 4260
Registered: January 2004
Location: Chandler, AZ
Karma: 1
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""It looks liek the Defroster is stuck "Open". I guess thats the No Dash AC problem. More later..... ""
Your going to have fun on this one--don't ruin your New Year 
Although the defroster door can stick in the open position, it usually means there is a vacuum or lack of vacuum problem. The system defaults to defrost when there is a vacuum loss.
Bob de Kruyff
78 Eleganza
Chandler, AZ
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| Re: New Weekend project - The dashboard. YIKES!!! [message #69082 is a reply to message #69079] |
Thu, 31 December 2009 10:41 |
jwillard
Messages: 118
Registered: May 2004
Location: Silver City, NM
Karma: 0
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Well that explain the "whistling" I used to hear fairly regularly. The HVAC control head was a mess of petrified white lithium grease and general yuck. It's all like brandy new now. The clear tubing connections on the vac lines a quite hard and are probably the source of the leaks. I got some 1/8" vinyl tubing and I'm going ot replace all those connections.
I'm going to get some fittings and rig up my AC Evacuator pump as a test rig so I can pull it down and listen for leaks and the like.
Jeff Willard
Silver City, NM
1973 ex-Glacier
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| Re: New Weekend project - The dashboard. YIKES!!! [message #69085 is a reply to message #69071] |
Thu, 31 December 2009 10:56 |
Larry C
Messages: 1168
Registered: July 2004
Location: NE Illinois by the Illino...
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The last time I was going to go after the HVAC, the GMC stopped running over 30 mph..... guess it did not want me to do that.
Since your dash is taken apart, LOLOLOL, you might want to consider new gages.
another gMCer used Dakota instruments. said the 1955 instrument cluster ( if I recall right ) was the one that connected with no additions.
http://www.dakotadigital.com/index.cfm/page/ptype=product/product_id=163/category_id=420/home_id=-1/mode=prod/prd163.htm
I like the florescent look but this is way down my list, I have to get my trust back in the old girl before I proceed with much more.
LarC ( Liking the look of the florescent displays very much )
Gatsbys' CRUISER  08-18-04
74 GLACIER X, 260/455-APC-4 Bagg'r
Remflex Manifold gaskets
CampGrounds needed, Add yours to "PLACES" />
http://www.gmceast.com/travel
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| Re: New Weekend project - The dashboard. YIKES!!! [message #69087 is a reply to message #69082] |
Thu, 31 December 2009 11:05 |
Bob de Kruyff
Messages: 4260
Registered: January 2004
Location: Chandler, AZ
Karma: 1
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""The HVAC control head was a mess of petrified white lithium grease and general yuck""
A common spot for leaks is that round "wafer" where the various ports are re-directed as the mode lever is moved. Many times some lube between the wafers will stop leaks at that point. You may be seeing some old remnants of that.
Bob de Kruyff
78 Eleganza
Chandler, AZ
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| Re: New Weekend project - The dashboard. YIKES!!! [message #69090 is a reply to message #69085] |
Thu, 31 December 2009 11:23 |
jwillard
Messages: 118
Registered: May 2004
Location: Silver City, NM
Karma: 0
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Cool looking gauges. I bookmarked the site. A few years back I leaning towards the fiberglass MAC dash and sort of building my own system around that. Nows, not the time for all that. We'll just make everything I have now work leave the new dash on the "Wish List"
Jeff Willard
Silver City, NM
1973 ex-Glacier
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| Re: New Weekend project - The dashboard. YIKES!!! [message #69092 is a reply to message #69087] |
Thu, 31 December 2009 11:27 |
jwillard
Messages: 118
Registered: May 2004
Location: Silver City, NM
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I actually did tear into that. Turned into more of an ordeal than I thought. It's a rivited assembly with a wave washer/clip for tension. I ended up drilling out the special stepped rivet cleaning and lubing it all up and putting it back together with a screw and locknut. It was fairly gummed up inside and could have had some blocked passages. Remains to be seen if I created a leak though.
Jeff Willard
Silver City, NM
1973 ex-Glacier
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| Re: New Weekend project - The dashboard. YIKES!!! [message #69166 is a reply to message #69090] |
Fri, 01 January 2010 00:23 |
Larry C
Messages: 1168
Registered: July 2004
Location: NE Illinois by the Illino...
Karma: 0
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Cool looking gauges. I bookmarked the site. A few years back I leaning towards the fiberglass MAC dash and sort of building my own system around that.
______________________________________________________________
As I recall, the guages fit in the OEM dash panel.
I think it is in the archive somewhere, I have little luck with the archive I'm afraid.
LarC ( Liking the digital gages but have to count the pennys for another project first )
Gatsbys' CRUISER 08-18-04
74 GLACIER X, 260/455-APC-4 Bagg'r
Remflex Manifold gaskets
CampGrounds needed, Add yours to "PLACES" />
http://www.gmceast.com/travel
_
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| Re: New Weekend project - The dashboard. YIKES!!! [message #69230 is a reply to message #69071] |
Fri, 01 January 2010 15:48 |
jwillard
Messages: 118
Registered: May 2004
Location: Silver City, NM
Karma: 0
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I seem to have found my AC not blowing problem. There was a fire at some point in the past, at far right corner of the dash. Not sure why since there isn't any wiring over there but it must have been a good one. Anyway, the duct connecting the Defroster vent assembly to the dash vents was totally melted and the hose connection to te servo was leaking because they didn't clean all the melted rubber off the servo tube. sigh....
I also found that while the defroster vent is working, it never closed all the way. It's about 3/4 inch from the sealing surface. I think someone put the flapper in backwards.
I know also know why it's so cold in the winter up front. The entire firewall is uninsulated aluminum. Talk about a heat sink!! Whatever insulation was on there is all crumbled and turns to dust when you touch it. It's also full of unplugged and unused holes.
I got all the old PO wiring out of there and things are quite a bit cleaner already. I think I'm going to un-attach all the wiring harness', plug all the holes and then completly cover the firewall, windshield to floor with the aluminized, foam backed insulation I have. I'm also going to add a couple of terminal blocks next to the existing fuse block, so they're accessable, and wire one for "switched 12volt" and one for "Un-switched 12 volt". It seems that most of the "rats nest" of PO wiring was simply to get to the outside of the firewall for power or Grounds.
I'll post photos later. I'm taking them. 
Jeff Willard
Silver City, NM
1973 ex-Glacier
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| Re: New Weekend project - The dashboard. YIKES!!! [message #69254 is a reply to message #69230] |
Fri, 01 January 2010 19:55 |
Bob de Kruyff
Messages: 4260
Registered: January 2004
Location: Chandler, AZ
Karma: 1
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""I seem to have found my AC not blowing problem. There was a fire at some point in the past, at far right corner of the dash. Not sure why since there isn't any wiring over there but it must have been a good one. Anyway, the duct connecting the Defroster vent assembly to the dash vents was totally melted and the hose connection to te servo was leaking because they didn't clean all the melted rubber off the servo tube. sigh....
I also found that while the defroster vent is working, it never closed all the way. It's about 3/4 inch from the sealing surface. I think someone put the flapper in backwards.""
Wow--this sounds like the infamous nichrome wire overheating!
Bob de Kruyff
78 Eleganza
Chandler, AZ
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