Yesterday we cranked out a lot of work in a hurry - replacing the water pump, motor mounts and radiator mount, as well as all the rubber, and a few other little things. Since I will not be doing a ton of very involved metal work on this truck, I decided to move it from my friend's shop 2 hours away to another friend's shop here in town so that I have better access to the truck.
I tossed an extra Model A seat in the cab and drove the truck for the first time around my friend's yard, then up onto the trailer to bring it home. Then it fired up again and pulled itself off the trailer and all around the property.
This means... the truck is running, driving and stopping! There is a lot to do yet... but it runs smooth, doesn't smoke and seems to make plenty of power. Not bad for a truck that hasn't run in nearly forty years.
My plan with this truck is to kind of leave it 'as is'. I don't plan to patch the little bits of rust in the cab or repaint it, but I want to stabilize it, conserve it, see if we can get some lustre back in the paint and enjoy it for what it is. I think it counts as a survivor... I don't really want to overdo this one.
The next major project on the truck will of course be the body wood. I currently have the top wood set but the body wood, though paid for, has not yet shipped. I'm pretty anxious about this part of the project... once I hit this point with my coupe I psyched myself out and traded it off for a project that wouldn't need wood. But that car was a lot rougher and I knew much less than I do today.