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Work Parties & Maintenance

Slideshow

~ Apparatus 12 ~

Replace Main, Rod and Cam Bearings

Standing in the engine compartment

Crankcase ready to go back in frame

Cylinders and pistons ready

Small parts cleaned, painted and ready to re-install

Oil pan, flywheel, clutch, connecting rods, manifolds and accessories

Crankcase re-installed in frame

Cylinders, lifters, valves and springs re-installed

Adjusting valves

Almost finished - install 18 spark plugs and it's done!

Job completed - showing intake side

Job completed - showing exhaust side

~Apparatus 12 ~

Regular "Preventive Maintenance"

including radiator repair & brake reline

~ Apparatus 119 ~

Rod & backflush radiator

~ Apparatus 126 ~

Grind valves & seats

and paint engine

Cleaning parts in preparation for re-assembly

Valve lifters cleaned and ready for painting

Valves cleaned and ground

Valve seats ground

Engine painted and ready for re-assembly

Valves, lifters and springs installed

Job completed

~ Apparatus 128 ~

Complete ground-up restoration - 1976-77

Prior to restoration - 1971

We say good-bye to the old deteriorating paint with its nicks & scratches, and various shades of red

                               Rig disassembled and chassis up on blocks in our "spray booth"



                                             Getting ready to apply the first coat of primer

                                                       First coat of gray primer applied

Next will be the new high-gloss finish coats

Red and white finish coats are completed on frame, fuel tank, firewall and wheels

Rig is towed out of spray booth and repositioned in Shop

Hosebed being prepared for painting

Hosebed being re-installed on chassis

After a lot of hard work, it's beginning to look a little like a fire engine again

Hoods, fenders, seat, battery box, tool box and hose reel primed

White finish coat applied to fenders and seat

Running boards and tailboard are completely rebuilt

Putting the finishing touches on the new tailboard

Adhesive being applied to tailboard - next will be the new rubber matting

After all the striping is completed, new lettering is applied to the hoods

As our "signature" rig, the hood is re-lettered with our name

With the job nearing completion, we take a final look at 128's "before" appearance . . .

After months of painstaking work, App 128's restoration is finally complete!

~ Apparatus 131 ~

Straighten crankshaft & replace main bearings

Babbitt flakes in the oil filters during routine maintenance alerts us of a problem. We discover bolt holding #4 main bearing is broken causing crankshaft to flex. Engine has to be removed and torn down. Crankshaft needs to be straightened and new main bearings poured and line-bored.

Engine is shown here removed from rig

The culprit . . . broken bolt holding #4 main bearing cap and damaged bearing

New bolts are machined and ready for installation

Engine is placed in engine-stand and ready to be transported to bearing shop

New babbitt bearings being poured

Bearings being line-bored

Straightened crankshaft is re-installed in engine

While engine is at bearing shop, we are busy at our facility preparing for re-assembly

All components and accessories are cleaned and re-painted, gaskets are made and all brightwork polished

Once the engine is back in our shop, it's primed and repainted while still in the engine-stand

Flywheel, clutch, clutch-brake and transmission are re-attached to engine

Engine with transmission attached, is positioned over 131's engine compartment

The engine is photographed from several angles before being re-installed

The engine is carefully lowered onto the frame-rails

Once the engine is in frame, the driveline, shift tower, parking brake, and clutch and service-brake linkages are reconnected, as well as the power-take-off for the aerial. Intake manifolds are the first components to be reinstalled on the engine.

Next are the exhaust manifolds

With all accessories in place, only the spark plugs, radiator and water pipes are left to install

View of the underside of the engine

Job completed . . .

. . . finally!

Note: App. 131 was "out of service" for 293 days, requiring hundreds of volunteer man-hours. Over 360 photos were taken showing each phase of the project, as well as complete written documentation from start to finish.

~ Apparatus 198 ~

Replace pistons & rings

and brake reline