Syclone #2236 is on jackstands again :)

[Isthatthingstock99]

Got annoyed with the trans removal last night and decided to focus on pulling the fuel tank. It took a little bit of elbowing but I was able to get it out, and found some nice surprises blocking the fuel pump. Atleast I was saving some fuel by blocking the fuel pump like this right?

 

[Isthatthingstock99]

Tank had no rust luckily, and the inside was more or less clean which is weird. Pretty confident that whatever black coating was wrapped around the fuel level sensor had worn off, and created the debris in the tank.

 

[Isthatthingstock99]

Moving on to the final part of the Transmission removal, the Transmission itself tonight after work. Using a Motorcycle jack, the transfer case came out nicely with very little trouble.

 

[Isthatthingstock99]

Hey everyone just wanted to post an update here. Upon removing the transmission and cleaning the bell housing I found some interesting things out. Thanks to a post made by a member named @518 and a reply from @DaveP's Ghost , I can confirm that the transmission in my Syclone is not the original. On the top left side of the bell housing is a good wrench re-manufactured tag. (When I originally removed the trans back in August I didn’t notice the tag. It was so caked in oil you couldn’t tell there was anything there. Mostly likely due to a rear rocker cover leak that was left leaking for far too long.) Along with what is a re-manufactured torque converter that had a tag as well. The tag on the torque converter has two numbers. The upper number being: 8691910. The lower number is 022705. I was wondering if anyone here knows if the 8691910 converter would be an alternative for the Syclone’s application or if it’s the incorrect converter for the Sy. I can’t confirm the stall speed, because I unfortunately couldn’t find very much info on it. I found that it was used as a replacement converter on some of the 4.3 equipped C1500 pickups. However, I couldn’t find it linked as a replacement for a Syclone.

Interestingly I also learned that between its 7,000 mile and 15,000 mile life, the transmission was replaced once before at a dealership in Seattle. (Based on the goodwrench tag.) The truck, before it was in California, was purchased from Seattle in 1999 4 years after the unfortunate passing of its original owner who had purchased it in 1991. From 1995 to mid-1999 it was in a storage facility in Seattle before being purchased and delivered to Bob. (The gentlemen in southern California who owned it for the longest period of time.) This small part of the vehicles history may not mean very much to some. But to me it drives me to make sure this truck is back on the road to enjoy. Wherever the original owner is now, it’s nice to think they might be riding along in the passenger seat with me or sitting around the truck while I wrench on it.

Among other things, I forgot to post before was a fuel leak in the tank as well, you can see in the attached image that someone crudely tried to seal it with some type of glue or liquid sealant. A new Walboro fuel pump along with the appropriate fuel assembly and seal will be installed as a replacement.

The Transmission Build: although I’ve been busy with college and work, I’m very slowly gathering components to do the 4L80E conversion for this truck. After months of jumping back and forth between the 700R4, 4L60E, and 4L80E due to the expense and time that the truck would be down, I’ve committed to installing a 4L80E. I think in the long run, it will be the best option. Although the truck may not be running much more power under the hood for a very long period of time, it will have a very overbuilt transmission. I figured, I might as well build this thing while I’m in here, rather than decide to build a 700r4 only to then end up dumping additional money into a 4l80E build in the future anyway.

Lastly, sorry for leaving such a large wall of text! I appreciate all the forum members input here. I know I’ve said it before, but I really wouldn’t be where I am on this truck if it wasn’t for the advice of many of you guys on here. Every day I come on the forums I learn something new from many of you, and I’m very proud to be a part of a community of people that openly share their knowledge on vehicles like this. Heres to hopefully an amazing 2023!

 

[Isthatthingstock99]

Quick little update here, got the 4L80E, torque converter (2800 stall) adapter plate and Transfercase together. I'm now working on extending the support bracket from the bellhousing to the transfercase. Shouldn't be too long here before I get the support bracket done, and I move on to installing the tranny into the truck. Just in case I haven't mentioned this yet, I decided to go with a Powertrain control solutions TCM2800 along with their 4L80E wiring harness to control the transmission.

 

[Isthatthingstock99]

Another update, here is what I ended up doing to extend the support bar from the transfer-case to the 80E Bellhousing. First time welding something for the truck up. So I know the welds might not look great, but they should hold up fine. Also, not pictured is the steel spacers I made for the end of the bolt hole on the bellhousing side. I'll upload those later, once I'm completely finished with them.

 

[Isthatthingstock99]

This post is for the engine parts that I used for the internals. I had some help from a local engine builder to assemble this together. This was my first time doing something like this so, I hope I made zero mistakes. I'll upload pictures of the assembly later on.

 

[graham1524]

Another update, here is what I ended up doing to extend the support bar from the transfer-case to the 80E Bellhousing. First time welding something for the truck up. So I know the welds might not look great, but they should hold up fine. Also, not pictured is the steel spacers I made for the end of the bolt hole on the bellhousing side. I'll upload those later, once I'm completely finished with them.

I never got mine to line up so I just ditched that bar entirely on the 80e

 

[Isthatthingstock99]

Been a good while since I've posted an update on here so here goes.

To start off, I tore apart the front end, removing the center support and fenders. Once I finished that up, I pulled the engine out. This was my first time pulling an engine, and I was pretty proud of my bonehead self being able to do this. As of now I am now in the process of waiting for a power steering pulley, a re-manufactured power steering pump, water pump, and a new alternator to put on the new engine. I do have a new steering box, and steering shaft to go along with a whole bunch of fresh front suspension goodies.

Next weekend I'm hoping to pull the old accessory brackets off and take them to be powder coated. Still a ways to go, but I'm very happy with the progress I've made over this year with the truck.