Thanks to everyone for helping me with my first restoration. My father-in-law purchased this 1929 1.5 ton LQ truck in the late 80's as his retirement project. He never touched it and I inherited it 2015.
I did not remove the springs, axles, drive shaft/tube or diff, but pretty much everything else was removed from the frame for restoration. A local automotive machine shop with 'vintage engine' experience rebuilt the engine (after I tore it apart!) and I found (after a lot of searching) a body shop willing to paint the unassembled fenders, running boards, body panels, etc. (after I had cut out the rust and welded in new metal on the body panels). I replaced much of the cab's wood frame and I fabricated the bed based on pics I found.
Its been driveable since July. (Downshifting is impossible! I realize its not syncronized and I've read about 'double clutching', but still its not pretty.) I've since added turn signals for safety and I still need to add the interior door panels and trim.
Shifting is a learned talent. Your transmission is like the passenger with and added very low gear. Pay attention to the sound of the engine (engine speed) when you shift out of any gear. That is the sound that should be heard when downshifting.
The only gear that I never mastered on a downshift was Low. Have to come to a stop for that one.
for me on downshifting, i paid attention to the speed i was going when i shifted from to get there. if i shifted at 10 from 1 to 2, then in order to go from 2 to 1 i would have to be going less than 10 !! also speed and sound of engine gotta match.
with a four speed, never really use 1st or low or granny as i call it. only need it on a heavy load or crawling up a steep hill. I mainly used 2-4 like I do 1-3 on the car :)
AACA - VCCA - Stovebolt - ChevyTalk Love the Antique Chevrolet's from 1928-1932 The Beauty, Simplicity, History, and the Stories they Tell
That is a great looking truck! You can be very proud of your results.
I agree with Chipper. Shifting a non-synchro box is a learned talent.
One trick that I assume you have learned with upshifts is to do them sooner rather than later. If you wind-up the engine speed you will probably need to double clutch without hitting the gas pedal on the up shift.
Downshifts do take patience and detail attention to engine speed. Here is one technique that I use to learn to match engine speed for the lower gear. I only do it a few times to “learn” a particular vehicle.
In a large empty level parking lot I drive at a speed of maybe 20 mph in a higher gear. I release my foot slowly off the gas to eliminate the load on the drivetrain. Then I can slide the transmission into neutral.
This is the tricky part! I then gradually increase engine speed and put light pressure on the gear shift lever to engage the lower gear. When the engine speed is correct you should be able to slide it into the lower gear. Don’t force the lever. It will probably “ crunch” a little due to the straight cut gears.
What you will learn from this is that most likely the engine speed to match the lower gear needs to be higher than what you expected. So the throttle “blip” when double clutching on a downshift has to be pretty agressive.
