Dr. Strangelove: or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Crud

Working on a 62 year old truck, that blew an engine sometime in it's prior life, had it replaced, then sat in a field for over 20 years, will be a challenge sometimes.  The level of "crud" that has built up is amazing.  So how do I know the engine blew at some point?  First, the serial number on the block indicates it is a Chevy 235 cu in inline 6 that was cast and assembled in 1957.  So my 1953 Chevy truck came to me with a 1957 235 engine installed, instead of the 1953 216 cu in inline 6 that the factory gave it.  Second, the entire underside of the truck is covered in oil, grease, mud (mud that is made from dirt and oil, not water) and the remnants of the plants that grew up around it while it was sitting in the field.  You might think that so much oily crud would be a bad thing.  In a certain perspective it is a pain in the butt to clean.  But for preserving the metal in the truck, it was a Godsend!

While removing the brake line that comes from the master cylinder to the junction block located on the frame rail, I had to first remove over a 1/2" thick layer of the crud to get to the screws that held it in place.  Here is a pic showing half of the crossmember cleaned of the crud:

You can see the crossmember with the brake line formed to the shape of the crossmember.  If you look closely in the upper right of the pic, you can see the metal tab and screw that hold the brake line to the crossmember.  There is a second tab and screw on the left side.  In the top of the pic, you can see the transmission drain plug.  The shine is that layer of oil that I was talking about.

On the bright side, the metal underneath the crud is completely rust free.  Too bad the whole frame wasn't covered!

I was able to cut the brake lines at the junction block and get the nut/lock washer undone, so that the junction block is now free.  It's been cleaned and is ready to reinstall on the truck.  The crossmember has also been completely cleaned.  The next step is to get the front end onto jack stands so that I can get the wheels off and get access to the rubber brake lines and the last remaining steel brake lines. Once those are off, I can start installing the new steel brake lines, the old junction blocks on the frame rail and the master cylinder and the master cylinder itself.  That will probably have to wait until next weekend.

Also, the parts to rebuild the front brake assemblies are on order and are due to arrive by the end of next week.  This order is similar to the one from Christmas, as it contains new springs, star adjusters and wheel cylinder attaching bars.  To round out the refurb, I'll have to go to NAPA and get the brake shoes and new drums.

All in all, I'm closing in on the end of the brake rebuild...or at least I have a plan.