The start of a restore/rebuild

[Dodgehemi7]

So I found my first truck and it is in rough shape. Doing this rebuild so that I can give it to my daughter as her first truck. I am starting by removing whats left of the motor (Valve cover and various parts removed before I got it back). My goal is to get the engine bay redone first, then rebuild or replace motor, then work on tranny/transfer then tackle axles/drive shafts. After all power and drive train then will come interior and body. Any advice on a quality rebuild kit and complete head? I am assuming that it needs a rebuild and head to be safe considering the items tore off of the motor. I will have block fluxed and take it from that point on the block.

88 Dodge D50 2.6 Manual

[noahwins]

There's a guy in Auburn, CA with a complete G54B long block sitting in his garage. Might be worth the drive.

[Dodgehemi7]

Nice, thats not to bad of a drive. Do you know what he wants for it? Or is it a craigslist type of ad?

[BradMph]

Be sure to post photos as you progress in your build. :coolphotos:

[Dodgehemi7]

I am trying to but windows 8 hates my scanner. My original photos are before digital era. Once I can get my scanner working i will post old and then start posting current through the whole process.

[tink]

Oh right on! Agreed with the posting of pics as you go along :) Looking forward to hearing more :)

[Dodgehemi7]

The truck is in poor shape right now. Looks like it was used as a mud truck so I have alot of time and money but when finished will be awesome to see my daughter driving my first pickup.

[Dodgehemi7]

So here are some pictures before I sold the truck.
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[Dodgehemi7]

Well now for the current condition. By the way I paid $200. Would have never bought a truck in this condition if it wasnt the first truck that I owned. This is what it looks like now. I found the truck 100 miles away and on 3/6/2015 went with a trailer and this is what i found.
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[Dodgehemi7]

So the good is that it is the same truck that I parted with. The bad is that it is barely a truck and I have motor, body, interior, paint and power train to replace/fix. The factory KC offroad lights and fog lights are a real bummer to not have. The factory rims are also a bummer. Somehow the grant steering wheel stayed so that cool. Let me know how crazy you guys think I am. My wife doesnt see the truck the same as I do.

[tink]

To people who don't "get" how amazing it is to find a 1st car & be able to restore it for yourself & family, that's about oh 9 of 10 on the crazy score. It still has the glass ;)

To other crazy people, it's probably 2 of 10 on the crazy score. Unless it came with the tools that are on the seat, then it's 1 out of 10 lol.

[Dodgehemi7]

Tools are mine. But I definitely was happy to get it back. Now the real fun begins with removing whats left of the motor.

[Dodgehemi7]

So I went to the U-Pull it yard and found some treasures. Pictures soon.

[Dodgehemi7]

This was my treasure. Door panels just forgot to get the actual handle so it is still blue at the moment. I also found the seat and it is in like 8 out of 10 condition. I paid $45 for the door panels as a pair with the arm rest, the inside cover of door handle, the top corner piece and all hardware.
The first picture is of the original driver door panel. The second is the picture of the new door panel, and the third is a picture of the original passenger door panel and the last is of the new passenger. Ran out of time for the passenger install tonight.
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[Dodgehemi7]

The door panels are off a 94. So a little different shape but fits the bill. I am getting the seat tomorrow after work.

[ragragtimetime]

i'm amazed the license plates were never changed (when it was sold or when the new owner took posession)...can you register the same plates again...that would be cool...especially that plate.

[Dodgehemi7]

Yeah I can register it with the same plates. Its is alot cheaper if you reuse the plates that are on the vehicle so I am sure thats the only reason why they stayed

[pennyman1]

Your old / new truck will surely be a labor of love on many levels - the fact that you got it back, guilt for selling it to some a-hole that tried to kill it, and the father / daughter project it is now. The truck looks as sad as the shape it's in right now, but soon it will be smiling again, now that it is in caring hands again. Keep the pics coming.

[Dodgehemi7]

I sure will pennyman1. I almost have the head off, then I will pull the rest of the engine. Once that head is off and the engine is out then I can get to work on the heart of the truck. Hopefully block is in good shape.

[Dodgehemi7]

I did not make it to the junk yard after work. So I was unable to get the seat today. Hopefully I will find time this week. Would hate to see that seat gone.

[BradMph]

Door panels are a little shorter like that? hmmm never noticed anything like that before. Glad your getting rid of that blue. My Toyota MR2 had blue interior, had....now its all black and much better.
Your truck was very nice when you sold it, your right about it being mistreated too I think. I'm sure you feel good to have it back.

If you can't find some parts for your build to interior, try this stuff. Best stuff I have ever used that came from a can. Great wear factor and looks beautiful when it dries.
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[Dodgehemi7]

The dash will be the hardest to get rid of the blue. That will have to come later on. I didnt notice they were shorter until I got home from junkyard. I also didnt notice that the arm rest were different until I got home either. I like the original arm rest better but they were in bad shape.

[noahwins]

About the G54B, he wanted like $500 or something but he seemed more interested in bartering. Get in touch with him on Facebook, he's David J. Verdugo of Carmichael CA. I'm going to have a more or less complete early style blue vinyl interior with mint panels and armrests soon. Want me to put stuff aside for you? Need a blue dash?

Did the Incredible Hulk get angry and punch a hole through your hood?

I would kill for that custom fit light bar. Can't find stuff like that anywhere.

[Dodgehemi7]

Noah i will message him once I get the engine out and see what I am dealing with. I dont think I will need any dash pieces, but I will let you know. Some of the models back in the day had some cool little features. I really like the dash clock as well, so I got to go find me one.

[Dodgehemi7]

So i am gonna need a new head. From what I can read on here the clearwater head seems to be the way to go. So without having the engine removed yet, if I need to replace crank which one do you guys think is gonna be the best. I have no clue if I need to just trying to figure out rough cost.
Thanks

[R.L.]

This is going to be a great build, good luck with it.

[Dodgehemi7]

Thanks it is going to be an adventure for sure. I just need the wife to keep letting me spend money HAHA. I didnt realize there were lower bolts to the timing cover. So i got to drop the oil pan. On a 4x4 is there enough room to drop it and access those bolts? Or do I need to raise the engine some?

[Dodgehemi7]

I got oil pan bolts out and was able to take timing cover and head off. Had coolant in oil but no sign of a bad head gasket. Wont know condition of block or head until I clean them up. Will post pics.

[BradMph]

Maybe a hair crack in the head, and depending on your location if freezing weather exist and your anti-freeze was not up to par, you could crack the intake and allow antifreeze to flow through it.

Anyway, coolant in the oil and not oil in the coolant makes me think you have a crack in a water jacket or the head gasket has been breeched on a water port to oil port.

[Dodgehemi7]

Yeah that is what I am thinking. We do freeze here and I noticed that one of the freeze plugs blew and someone used the rubber style so I am sure that is why the motor was tore down that far when I got it.

[Dodgehemi7]

Here are some pictures of the head and pistons. I included head gasket but I havent cleaned everything up yet or got the rest of the block out. Beware it is pretty nasty.
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[BradMph]

Well, strangely your head gasket looks nice. Examining the head, It looks like the issue beginning to clean the #2 & #3 cylinder valves. Decarbonizing them. Were you getting water loss as well as water in the oil? Did you happen to do a compression test before the build? It does not look like it has been doing this very long at all and doesn't look real serious either. Most the time with our engines , after over heating they acquire hairline cracks between the valves or if installed...MCA jet valves. Might be also a good time to install the MCA jet valve removal kit. For about $20 it can take that problem out of the picture for a possible later return of trouble.

Sure looks like you have some cleaner and brush time ahead...keep us posted on your findings


Rubber plug? oh great...I had that happen once and it blew out the entire bottom on intake in that circle weld. took 3 freeze plugs out and cracked the radiator top from seal. My first year in WA state and anti-freeze is my best friend now, lol.

Should of pulled engine, if you had a stand available. Save your back.

Grab a manual in our library if you need one also.

[Dodgehemi7]

I picked the truck up with the valve cover off and most of the head bolts undone. Have no previous info on why it was like that from the guy. So everything right now is just a guess and mystery to solve. I am assuming it has been sitting for about 2 years or so judging by tags. I didnt do a compression test cause it was partial torn apart by previous destroyer (owner).

[Dodgehemi7]

Bradmph, I didnt pull it cause its in my backyard and my garage is full of bathroom remodel items. I told the wife I would wait to start the truck until after the bathroom, but I am a guy and the truck is just way better to work on.

[Dodgehemi7]

Picked up cleaner and wire brush. Wont be able to do any work until this weekend. Will post some clean pics here in a few days. Got to tackle the shift kit in my ford as well so depending on how long that takes will eat up some D50 time.

[noahwins]

Please take pics of your progress as you clean. Interested to see how this comes out.

[Dodgehemi7]

On hold for a couple days. Tried installing a shift kit in my ford and B&M put the wrong separator plate in the kit. So the daily driver has to be back on the road before I get a chance to press forward.

[Dodgehemi7]

Finally got the shift kit done. So I will be able to get back to work on the Power Ram. Head cleaning is where I am at the moment. Will post pictures once I get it cleaned.

[Dodgehemi7]

So I am cleaning the head with a brush and noticed it leaves little lines. Is that normal and when all done you polish it or am I using to stiff of a brush?

[pennyman1]

Stop using that brush! It is way too coarse if it is leaving marks. If they are deep enough, they could cause detonation due to hot spots from the uneven surface. Work out the marks with some 600 or 800 grit wet / dry sandpaper until smooth like the uncleaned ones.

[BradMph]

Use a soft wire brush on a drill can help speed things up too. I used one for my 302 heads and it did amazing on the combustion areas. I would even put the drill in a vise and lock it in ON and use it on the individual valves. It tends to not leave those wire brush strokes because they leave gouge marks. Little wd40 loosens the material to help remove carbon deposits and keep scratching to minimum

[Dodgehemi7]

Penny and brad, thanks for the advice. I will switch it out and see what happens. I have never cleaned a head just replaced the old ones with new. I switch to doing the intake manifold last night since I couldnt harm it. I have a softer brush so that is what I will continue with.

[Dodgehemi7]

I have been using a dremel for all those hard to reach places in the intake manifold. Had no idea the dremel would ever come in handy! HAHA

[Dodgehemi7]

Here are some pics of the intake manifold so far. A little more time and should look close to new.
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[Dodgehemi7]

Thanks for the advice on the WD40 and the softer brush. There are only a few scratches on one cylinder so I once all clean i will then sand them out. WD40 is working wonders and I switched to a brass bristle brush so I wont scratch. Will post pics here soon. Lots of deposit's and just plain old gunk.

[Dodgehemi7]

This is of the cylinder that I scratched. Looks like it should all come out and that they arent too deep. Let me know what you think. I only had a tiny bit of WD40 so I will get more tomorrow and finish up the head. The scratches are in the upper left so if you click on the pic to make it bigger you can see some that dont follow the normal swirl.
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[Dodgehemi7]

Here are the other cylinders. Ran out of WD so I didn't get that far but they appear to be cleaning well.

[Dodgehemi7]

Any reason why the pictures arent showing and there is only a link?











Response from Bradmph
You took too long posting and the system flushed them probably

[Dodgehemi7]

Well, spring and summer came and this truck took a back seat. Now that fishing and camping have stopped I am ready to start back at it. So I left off with head work and intake. That is where I am picking back up. I will post some more once I get everything back on track. Got to find a place for my boat this winter so that I can use the garage for the truck.

[geezer101]

Are you going to strip the head down and send it off to a machine shop? It's probably due for some new valve stem seals, so now would be a good time do some light port work and round off the sharp edges in the combustion chambers. A little bit of a clean up will make the engine run smoother. Getting a head checked, refaced and the valve seats recut isn't cheap but is important. btw if the head is warped make sure the machine shop will press it straight and not just run it through the mill - this is a really bad thing to do to a cylinder head...

[Dodgehemi7]

I am gonna finish cleaning it up some and then take it from there. It will either go to the machine shop or I will have to pick up a new one. I found a nice looking d50 in a guys backyard that I am gonna try and make a offer. So I might have a better engine to work with.