Hodakaguy M38 Misc Thread

[HodakaguyTom]

Curious --- maybe I missed it (because you usually photograph everything) --- what did you use for anti-squeak material underneath the gas tank?
Seen here: http://willysmjeeps.com/v2/modules.php? ... antisqueak

I don't think I took a photo of the strips before I put the tank in. I cut strips of Buna rubber and put them in place under the tank.

Tom

[HodakaguyTom]

With winter almost past it's time to get a few things completed on the Jeep before spring rolls around. First up is to refresh up the engine bay, although it's generally in good shape there is a bit of rust on the cylinder head from water accumulating there over the years and the water pump is slightly weeping so it's time to fix a few issues and dress it up a bit.

Before pictures






The thermostat housing had some corrosion where the hose mated up, inside look great but I will be replacing this part with a new unit.




I ordered a new water pump from Peter Debella, priming and painting to get ready for install.












Hand sanding and prepping the cylinder head for repaint.










Looking better already.






Chassing the threads before installing the new thermostat housing.












Installing new bypass hose nipples in both the head and water pump, sealing the threads with Indian Head shellac.








I utilize this silicone plug set from Harbor Freight all the time when painting, they are super handy for plugging holes and keeping paint out of threads Etc. When you're done just take your fingernail and scrape the paint off of the silicone and you are good to go for the next time.








New water pump, thermostat housing/thermostat, hoses, hose clamps, new belts and a NOS set of plug wires installed. Was waiting for the new hose clamps for the bypass hose to arrive when these pictures were taken . With the fresh paint it's looking like a million bucks.








And a little before & after side by side compilation.








Hodakaguy

[HodakaguyTom]

Next up...let's fix that leaking steering box that's been making a mess.

The steering box has a slow leak and although it's working good it's time to get it resealed. Pulling the removable floor panels gives access to the steering box.




The box has been running corn head grease.... once back together I will be refilling it with gear oil. Here I'm draining the corn head grease.






Pulling the pitman arm.




Opening up the box.




The lower bearings and race are held on to the bottom of the worm gear by a circlip. To remove the shaft hold the shaft vertical and using a rubber mallet lightly tap on the steering box housing, the bearing/shaft will pop right out.






Installing a new seal in the worm gear retainer. This seal came on M38's as part of the waterproofing/fording setup.




Overkill but here I am putting a coat of Aviation Permatex on the outer edge of the seal before pressing it in.






Parts cleaned up. Bushings and selector shaft are both in good condition so I will be reusing them.




New bearings and races installed on the worm gear.




I heated the housing and tapped the worm gear back into place.




Setting up the shims. I adjusted the shims to have zero play without any binding.






Using copper spray-a-gasket on the shims and mating surfaces to create a leak-free seal.






Sealing the threads with Aviation Permatex.




A coating of ultra slick on the steering gear selector shaft and a light coating of break in grease on the worm gear before reinserting it into the steering box. Didn't get a photo but I've already installed a new selector shaft seal in the housing at this point.






Getting ready to bolt the side cover back in place. Here you can see where the tension adjuster pushes against the steering gear selector shaft.




More Aviation Permatex to keep the housing leak free.








After 24 hours of letting the Permatex set up I wiped down everything and applied a coat of primer followed by a couple coats of paint.










More to come....

Hodakaguy

[Pierre]

Outstanding work as usual and great photography Tom...
Thanks for sharing