GRIZZ’s ‘79 - 2WD BLAZER Challenge over in London, England. “~It’s not a Project~”

[Grizz1963]

Great advice from @jamesd1972 to add a coat of underbody protection in stead of a lump of rubber thats liable to hold water in place and promote rust.

So during a work meeting, I went and painted it quickly.



While doing another little job today, I also crawled under the truck to take a look at the exhaust system.

Seems we have a lot more Magnaflow stainless parts under the truck.

Someone in the past spent a lot of money on this truck.

I guess I am also doing the same, spending chunks of money on seeing it right as my long list of fixes continues to grow,



I continue to be pleased with the truck and what it is proving to be.

The extras and upgraded parts on the truck when added up are approaching 60% of the price I paid, crazy man maths.

[Grizz1963]

More haste, less progress.

I wanted to do the side glass windows tint today.

FAIL FAIL FAIL.......

I was not patient enough to wait for Saturday till Sally could help me by holding the films one side.

So I cut a piece to size



Then I laid it out on the film on the outside of the door, remembering to place it so that once cut to shape, it could be stuck to the inside of the glass.



Then proceeded to removing the backing film, and using water (should have been soapy water) to place it, out in the sunshine with a very gentle breeze.......

Guess what.....??

Massive failure here. As the wind twisted it, alongside static pulling it about.

So I removed it.

Laying what was left of it, once removed, on the counter top, in order to copy it.





Thought I could copy a second one, then called over the hedge for Mickey to come hold one side........

And cut a copy of the failed item.

BUGGGERRRRRRRRR !!!


Cut it about 8mm short.


Close up.





So I removed and binned number two


So the outcome of the window tinting was good though, and this is the before ad after pcs.


Soon to be corrected.










Ordered some more film tonight after work, £10.99 wasted on education I guess.


Maybe I can fit the battery tray and radiator cowl over the weekend.


Little jobs we said.

[Grizz1963]

2004 Chevy Silverado truck came in for a gas tank strap to Dennis’ body shop





Looking good.

Hardly abused.



And of course, bed off to repair said straps.





Anyone looking for a 5.3 LS with only 144k miles on it.

[Grizz1963]

Some days start good.

Today started a lot earlier than I wanted, but hey ho...... sleep when we are dead ehhh.



So had breakfast then drew the truck down to the shop.



Battery out.

Wonder why these trays rust so badly.......?

Water access is easy from the front.

And putting a rubber mat under the battery, not ideal I would think.



Holes and probably more out of sight.



Old n new(er)



Battery back in.

Then removed the radiator cowl.

Old vs Replacement



While in there, I also noticed the new radiator that I had been told by the lady who owned the truck before, had been fitted.



I also dismantled the underside of the dash to look at the fog light switch..... completely broken, possibly kicked at some point.

So I just put it all back together. I will fix it another day.

It was time to head out to the shops for food etc.

Silly grin, and a distinct difference in response since I cleaned up the air filter and breathing system.

Headed home, Sally chuckled and said I looked really happy, which I was.

I have to keep reminding myself not to drive like an idiot, but it feels and sounds so nice.

She somehow sneaked a pic in while I was driving.





It was a good day.

[68Timber]

I thought the center caps turned out great. Are they not nice enough to use with the refinished wheels? I'm sure you know, but those plastic lug nut covers are fairly cheap if yours don't clean up as well as you'd like.

Great progress and pics.

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by 68Timber

I thought the center caps turned out great. Are they not nice enough to use with the refinished wheels? I'm sure you know, but those plastic lug nut covers are fairly cheap if yours don't clean up as well as you'd like.

Great progress and pics.

Evening John,

Yes, the caps are cheap, even once shipped and taxed by the queen, with the price pretty much doubling. I only have 11 of them, so will pretty certainly buy a full set if none come up for sale over here.

The centre caps are good enough vs the $140 they will cost to land a set of 4

And I am happy to use them.





My SKY internet and WiFi was down for 24 hrs, and where I live, my mobile signal is 2 bars on 3G and intermittently 1 bar of 4G

So a struggle to work from home.

However, by 08.00 I got onto this.........





Then late afternoon, well, just after 4.00pm I got out the Poorboys wheel wax.

The stuff is sooo frugal.

You hardly use any.

I did both the fronts and rears of the wheels.






Once it dries, after 10 plus minutes, you buff it all off with a micro fibre cloth.





Hard to believe it makes a difference, and I tried to feel if it felt any smoother, no idea.

But happy to believe that it will aid maintenance.



Once I was done, looking at how little of this stuff I had used, and that is on both sides, I was amazed at just how frugal it is.

At £14.00 delivered for the tub, I suspect one could expect to do another 50 wheels or more.



Another step closer to fitting.

[68Timber]

10-4. I forgot about the wheel wax, I was trying to figure out why you hadn't put them on the truck yet. They look great.

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by 68Timber

10-4. I forgot about the wheel wax, I was trying to figure out why you hadn't put them on the truck yet. They look great.

Also, I do want to do a decent burnout video on the existing tyres.

Wish I had a camera drone operator to play along with me, in order to create a nice video clip.

I want all the bits together before I fit the new stuff.

[Hammered 77]

How often do you need to re apply the Poorboy sealant?

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by Hammered 77

How often do you need to re apply the Poorboy sealant?

Hi mate,

Suggestions are 2-3 times, and I will do 3 times, despite having doubts.

Check out the website......

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rc...O85IkT5ok7s1LQ

There could be a lot more information there.

[LT7A]

The wheels look just right on your truck. Good work.

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by LT7A

The wheels look just right on your truck. Good work.

Thanks mate.

Very happy with them.

[Grizz1963]

This week has been slow for the truck progress.

Went for a walk.



Postie came as I got home.



Damaged.

So declined to receive parcel.

Took pics and sent to seller, he has not replied.

Let’s hope he does reply and replace as eBay sent a message email to say I had received my item.




Lodger continues to be a real problem.

Scruffy, dirty, disorganised, drunk, and this morning overslept by 2 hrs, then called in sick.

I see tears, and they will not be mine.

I will be brutal.



However, good news last night from Andy in Tulsa, Oklahoma with the first print section of the RUMBLEGRIZZKIN name that he will be using in casting me a set of new side badges for the truck.

Short video of the magic happening.

https://youtu.be/OvNAUGEaFlk


Result.




I am sure the weekend will throw up some jobs to do.

It is Friday.

[Grizz1963]

A rare thing happened yesterday.

Sally came over by 08.30 for tea and toast and to spend some time, I rarely go to her place, as there are no toys, and she prefers to come here..

So we had brekkie together, the watched some recorded telly, and by 12.00 she went home to see her grandson and son, also to allow me to get outside as by then I was feeling very guilty.

I was chuffed though, that I had managed to sit and do nothing for a few hours.

She is a sneaky photographer and waited for me to start looking for a hole in the trucks bulkhead.





I had two small jobs to do.

Replace the switch on the rear fog light with a metal item and ensure it still worked.

So out with the very broken old red unit. In with the new.

Happy.



Next job after finding a small man made hole in the bulkhead was to thread a wire through there.

That was a mistake, as I ended up removing it, and enlarging the hole with a step drill, and then running two wires in there, finding them snaking in from under the dash.

I also used some flat 3 core household wire to thread through the face of the dash, so that I could connect it to the two wires and then pull them up through the dash.

These modern cars are so compactly made, and even the threading of wires are a bit more complex as there is so much under the dash, blocking access.

Still, got it through and then got the wires back up out the front.





Next job inside was to drill a hole to take the new metal push button for the Klaxon horn.

I hate damaging the cars plastics, and mad as it may seem, I will keep an eye out for a replacement piece to stash with all the other unused parts.

Mate Kevin who is moving house soon, also popped around for a looksee, couple of mugs of tea and a chat.



Once the internal jobs were done, I needed to find a live to draw current from.

As earning was easy via the mounting bolt, and the pigs tail out the horn.



And once fitted, happy with the tidiness achieved.



I forgot to take pics of the completed switches before dark. So good morning.





.

[Grizz1963]

Went to get milk and bread in the truck earlier.

Stopped and checked in on friend Kevin,who,is building the Deusenberg replica.

It is now in paint.

Thought a few random pics up at his place were in order.

Thames river and Essex, when’re the truck was from in the background.



Few more pics.

Kevin’s pond.



Daffodil,time,with the end of winter approaching.





Looking toward the sunset.





Pity about the pole, just struggled to compose more 6han that.



Looks like the weekend is over.

.

[68Timber]

Great pics. The truck is looking great. I like that switch, it's my go-to for aux lights. Those last forever. I saw the gas pedal nearby in one of the pics, is it going in this truck?

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by 68Timber

Great pics. The truck is looking great. I like that switch, it's my go-to for aux lights. Those last forever. I saw the gas pedal nearby in one of the pics, is it going in this truck?

Morning John,
Thanks for the posting.

Regarding the switch, I. Ever cease to be amazed that with a difference of a dollar or two between bad and good quality, why people continue to use the cheap, nasty options.

Gas pedal will go on, sitting at the kitchen back door, it needs firstly reinforcing around the mounting holes, and then drilling and tapping for the fitting straps as they are lightweight.

I actually have three of them, all cast as Grizz.

The one is for the C10 when it eventually is done.

And the other is mis-cast, missing some toes, and will go into a “Ratrod” type build.






Got a question on another forum from a friend.

Surprised he missed it for so long.

Originally Posted by sparkplug

Pic of arial topper in detail please :rob

You can't keep additions like this from us and expect we won't notice

Originally Posted by Grizz

Appropriate?

Originally Posted by sparkplug

Love it

This seems to be a continuation of this.

The Blazer that was not a project, actually had a load of baseball gear in the back for display purposes

[Grizz1963]

Decided to spend some cash on the truck

After the effort and cost put into the wheels, I did not manage to find another 9 used caps needed, and to be honest, new will be a lot nicer.

Interesting, as always the cost of a purchase in the USA doubles by the time it lands here.

So $19.99 became $41.00 on my driveway.



Original GM parts are even more costly before taxes and shipping.



Sally’s sons car got hit in November in a non-fault accident etc.

The repair was massively delayed and he was unhappy with the finish, so I offered to see if I could trim back some of the runs in the clear (Ended up shaving them back with a sharp blade then hand buffing followed by machine) and also a load of Matt finish, orange peel and overspray.

Masked as much of the black parts as I could get to, then spent 2 hrs at it after washing and drying the side.








Not easy to see, but it both looked and felt a lot better after all the runs with the DA Mop and G3 Compound.



And all that was left when he left was a big grin, and a white stripe.



Now when wants to buy a mop, going halves wit his brother.

Did I create a monster?

[LT7A]

Good work on dialing in Sally's son's car. Too bad they applied the clear coat, or lacquer, with a brush and roller. Good for him to find out that you can fix things like that. I have watched friends live with flaws like that on cars for the entire duration of their ownership. I help when they let me but more often than not shake my head that they leave it that way. Not that my rides are anywhere near perfect. But a little attention to detail makes a big difference and is rewarding. I like the pictures of the truck out and about. Particularly in front of the stately old three story house, probably of stone. There is an elegance in the simplicity.

[Grizz1963]

Originally Posted by LT7A

Good work on dialing in Sally's son's car. Too bad they applied the clear coat, or lacquer, with a brush and roller. Good for him to find out that you can fix things like that. I have watched friends live with flaws like that on cars for the entire duration of their ownership. I help when they let me but more often than not shake my head that they leave it that way. Not that my rides are anywhere near perfect. ut a little attention to detail makes a big difference and is rewarding. I like the pictures of the truck out and about. Particularly in front of the stately old three story house, probably of stone. There is an elegance in the simplicity.

LOL.... It is sally who knows I am prepared to give things a go.
Just cannot believe that there is much I cannot do or give a go.
Just took a bit of effort and forcing myself to go slow.
You are right though..... people who live with flaws screw with my head.
Truck out was a nice ride.
And yes, all the homes around here are brick built.

[Grizz1963]

Amazon delivered today.

Lug nut covers ordered on the 8th, extra postage paid for delivery by 12th so delivery by 10th........ great.

Opened and unpacked after completing some online work.



Can you see anything wrong?

Yup.

Ordered 22mm or 7/8” caps, but delivery was 25mm or 1” items.



Delivered items



Ordered items.



GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

So onto Amazon Helpdesk for 40 minutes, AI vs Man

Eventually get told they will refund my account, collect the items and no, they cannot resend the correct items.

It is an Amazon “Seller” whatever that means when you are passing the buck.

So I have messaged the seller (Chinese like on EBay) and asked if the can supply the correct item.

Fingers crossed.


I actually only needed 9 of these caps.

[Grizz1963]

May have had a little accident today.

Flip Flop slipped.......

Oooops




Practice run for the real thing.

[Grizz1963]

With the list of tasks actually getting shorter and some of the things left to do, only dependant of shipping, couriers and also finding a drone and pilot.....

I took some time to go drive and waste fossil fuels to day, Sally was off to see her eldest son and grandson so I could be ultra random.

Eventually only liked two pics.

More another day.








Tomorrow, who knows, maybe some smoke.

[Grizz1963]

Went out and messed with the truck today.

Took a few more scenic pics too.

If you guys are interested, I will post them up on here.



Dennis started the 850bhp NASCAR motor for the first time last night.

Fired right up.

Sooon.


https://youtu.be/-IAJCo3DlfI


More soon.

[Grizz1963]

WEEKEND PICS


AND IN A BIT.......


GUILT FEELINGS AS RESULT OF PULLING IT THROUGH MY XXXXX



Thames and Essex behind the truck.






Juiced up again.