This is Paul. Paul just bought the Safari. Paul handed me $3,000 in cash and never even started the car. He'd been ripped off twice in a row, the second time, by a guy who sold him a van without "Cadillac converters." So it wouldn't, couldn't possibly, pass smog. Paul's served hard time twice and now spends all of his time and effort in service of God, in service of others.

I'd listed the car for $4,800 initially, and I'd lowered it to $4,200. When he called -- and there's another story -- I asked him what his budget was and he said $3,800 and, having heard the first tidbits of his story, I told him he could have it for $3,000. But now he's paying me a substantial chunk of the $800 he saved to me, to install an inverter and a simple sleeping deck, procuring a charger and an inverter, blacking out the side windows -- he'll be sleeping in the van -- and other things.

Paul was the only person who called about the Safari. The. Only. Person. And when he first texted me, frankly, I thought he was another scammer, and I asked folks here what you thought. @WilliamsSW , @AestheticsInMotion , @Shop-Teacher all said the guy was likely legit and I should ping him back. I gotta thank you guys.

Paul left me with his $3,500 in cash, never having even started the car, and he's off to DMV to register it. I avoid discussing it here, but I will say that I subscribe, all-in, to a worldwide organized Christian faith, and this was definitely something that, as Paul put it, "had God in the midst," and that we had "found favor." Simply an amazing experience.

@BicycleBuck @HammerheadFistpunch

Hello Everyone, I have a video I'd like to post here because it's just so Oppo and it deserves, no, NEEDS to be here.

Backstory: I was out exercising Rusty a few months ago and the engine became ill, losing compression in two of its cylinders. What's a guy to do about that? He does the right thing, of course: he buys an engine from a salvage yard. (With apologies to Derek Bieri...) It was a beautiful day and my pal Rich, who JUST retired as a lifelong crane operator and rigger, came along.

This engine is a 250 inline-six, being pulled from the husk of a 1968 Chevy C-10 pickup truck. $400 and a bell housing, flywheel, clutch and pressure plate.

I've joined a flesh-and-blood car club, Inliners International. I've volunteered to be the secretary for the East Bay Chapter, and I've volunteered to be the merchandise coordinator for the national/international chapter. We meet for brekkies on 3rd Saturdays and there are several "runs" planned for Spring. I need to get Rusty back on the road.

The grandson is visiting this week -- we're off for Presidents' Week -- and he's got a little brother due in May. He's a fun little guy who is always asking, "Whatcha doin', Gampa?"

Shoot me an email if you like. I'm RustyVandura, Gee Male, et cetera. If you reply here, I probably won't see it until I make another low pass in another six months. I hope you all are well.

Best always,

Rusty

@ttyymmnn @Shop-Teacher

I posted about this earlier. Wound up giving $7,200 for it. The very first thing we did with it was drive to the airport (SFO) to pick up my mother. The previous owner is going to receive a bill for my $6 toll... Mom said, "This thing is a tank! I'm going to call it Sherman!" Works for me.

Truth is, I've always liked big cars. My grandfather -- our Pappy -- always drove Chrysler New Yorkers and Newports, and his other car was always a big GM pickup. So there's a nostalgia element for me driving this big Chrysler. It's a Grampa SUV and I love that. I love that.

Sherman gets the same gas mileage that the Safari got. Remarkably similar, though I'm sure it could get way less. And the Safari won't drift.

Power delivery is very smooth, and the ride is quiet. The sound system is Alpine-badged, though I'd rate it above typical over all, and not astounding. But definitely adequate. The steering is light and kind of touchy; this was a criticism in the reviews of the Aspen when it was new.

DMV was a breeze today. Hayward, California, DMV is like the worst DMV office in the state, but it was desolate today and my transactions went smoothly: transferring the MEEPZOR plates to Sherman, registering Sherman, and getting new tags for the Safari. Piece of cake.

So Rusty is very happy with Sherman, the new Family Truckster. Let's hope Sherman winds up being a dependable conveyance.

Particular thanks to @Long_Voyager94 for his input. He's my go-to MOPAR guy on this board.

@ttyymmnn
@Shop-Teacher
@sony1492
@Just-Jeepin
@Snuze
@drVanTraveler

I don't have a speedometer yet, so I motor doped using my Wahoo app and made a 16-mile round trip. First time I've had it on the freeway, since the fuel system, up until now, has amounted to a fuel can strapped to the floor in place of the passenger seat. Mrs. Vandura forbade me from driving on the freeway in that configuration. The original fuel tank has been dipped and coated inside and out and has a new sender and new soft lines, as well as a new fuel pump and fuel gauge.

The cooling system is revamped with a renovated original (factory ordered oversized) radiator, water pump, thermostat and hoses. The original externally regulated charging system is upgraded with an internally regulated alternator and the crusty old points-based ignition system is upgraded to HEI.

And instruments, as seen in the YouTube video. This is a preliminary, prototype setup to get me going. There's a GPS speedo, a tach, an oil pressure light, turn signal indicators... Oh, yes: currently, all I have is brake lights.

I think it still needs a degree or two of timing adjustment, but the front pulley has apparently slipped and the original mark does not line up properly with the quadrant, so I have to use a digital timing light that I can adjust to bring the mark to a useful place for reference.

The front suspension, whilst thoroughly greased, still feels like it wants to fall out, and the exhaust, which was a poorly executed Midas sort of affair, is about to rust through, and I am looking forward to having that replaced.

This is my report! Five and a half years since I bought it.

That slide is circa 1974. Our parents divorced and we spent Christmases with Mom each year in the Chicago suburbs. One winter there was a great snowing and our flight home was canceled and Mom just took us back to her home on Castle Street in Sandwich, Illinois, where @Ttyymmnn and I hung out for three days while Mom went back to work. We led the unexamined life and emptied the cupboards and refrigerator. The horn Ttyymmnn's playing in this photo, I believe, belonged to Mom's husband.

Passenger seat: installed, with lap belt. First destination: Walmart. Big day for Rusty and me!

You know, I always expected Rusty to be fun. But it's much more than that. Working on Rusty, thinking about working on Rusty, making plans to work on Rusty, it's my Happy Place. Rusty is an expression.

My church congregation adopted several local families for Christmas and put out a list where we can volunteer to provide specific things for the families. One of these was a request for LEGO for a girl. So I ordered this:

This is Rusty, the '71 GMC Vandura. 250 straigh-six, three-on-the-tree, purchased from the original owner at 80k-ish miles. Special ordered it, they did, with windows and a second-row seat, which is long gone. They towed a camping trailer with it, the old guy said.

First, thank you all for the warm welcome on my last post.

I bought an engine from a junkyard, as I reported previously. My pal Rich gave me a chain hoist and I used the loft in my garage for hoistage. (2x8 spiked to a 2x6 and a 9-foot span).

I don't have it pictured, but with some experimentation, I came up with a sling arrangement that keeps the engine nice and level. The first time putting the engine on the stand was arduous, and two trips to the hardware store. I'd bought the stand three years ago and this was my first time using it.

The engine came from a C-10 pickup and had pickup 11-inch flywheel and cast iron bell housing. Rusty's starter wouldn't fit, so I had to pull the transmission and retrieve the original flywheel. Opportunities for cellulose fabrication:

They'd obviously done a "pad slap" clutch change somewhere along the line: the flywheel and pressure plate are deeply worn. I will find out whether they can grind off enough material from the flywheel and it remain serviceable.

With the engine happily mounted on the engine stand, I installed the starter, oiled the cylinder bores liberally, and used the cordless drill to exercise the oil pump extensively before cranking the engine and having No. 2 and No. 3 cylinders make only limited compression. Same two cylinders as in Rusty's current engine.

So I need to bench run the thing and see if it gets any happier. To do this, I cellulose fabricated an engine cradle which I'll use for that purpose. Engine sits right on its oil pan flange. The first photo shows the chain sling that made hoisting life much better.

The main idea is to do things right: thorough and tidy, so that even a know-it-all would see that I'd put some thought and effort into the project.

Cheers, Guys, and have a great week!

@Shop-Teacher @ttyymmnn

Perfect doesn't mean there's nothing wrong with it. It's just perfect.

Maybe next year.

@Italia @ttyymmnn @Shop-Teacher

He made a beautiful shift knob for Rusty but the sun has absolutely destroyed it.

@ttyymmnn Or sitting out there in Winter with the engine idling and the heat turned on and partying. Good times. And deep cringes now when I think back on some of the risks that I took back then. Not a job for an 18-year-old.

@Ad-absurdum-per-aspera This specimen might also have had its bed replaced and the original storage containers were rusted out.

@ash78 When I was 18º, I had a job driving a school bus for a redneck private bus company. I kept the busºº two blocks from my house, parked behind the Methodist Church because I lived on the opposite end of town, six or seven miles from the owner's lot. I drove that bus all over the place as if it were my own personal vehicle. Talk about invisible. 38-foot school bus and everyone looked right past it, right through it.

º I do not condone nor recommend placing this kind of responsibility with an 18-year-old.

ºº 1971 Ford B600 with a 361 CID V8 engine and a Superior coach with fiberglass seats.

@Shop-Teacher @ttyymmnn

@Shop-Teacher The whole is infinitely greater than the sum of its parts. I especially like the aspect ratio of the wheels and how the rims are prepared.

@pickup_man

@Urambo-Tauro And who knows what else?

Perfect doesn't mean there's nothing wrong with it. It's just perfect.

@Highlander I think that running it for a while will be telling. I'll report on that.

First, thank you all for the warm welcome on my last post.

I bought an engine from a junkyard, as I reported previously. My pal Rich gave me a chain hoist and I used the loft in my garage for hoistage. (2x8 spiked to a 2x6 and a 9-foot span).

I don't have it pictured, but with some experimentation, I came up with a sling arrangement that keeps the engine nice and level. The first time putting the engine on the stand was arduous, and two trips to the hardware store. I'd bought the stand three years ago and this was my first time using it.

The engine came from a C-10 pickup and had pickup 11-inch flywheel and cast iron bell housing. Rusty's starter wouldn't fit, so I had to pull the transmission and retrieve the original flywheel. Opportunities for cellulose fabrication:

They'd obviously done a "pad slap" clutch change somewhere along the line: the flywheel and pressure plate are deeply worn. I will find out whether they can grind off enough material from the flywheel and it remain serviceable.

With the engine happily mounted on the engine stand, I installed the starter, oiled the cylinder bores liberally, and used the cordless drill to exercise the oil pump extensively before cranking the engine and having No. 2 and No. 3 cylinders make only limited compression. Same two cylinders as in Rusty's current engine.

So I need to bench run the thing and see if it gets any happier. To do this, I cellulose fabricated an engine cradle which I'll use for that purpose. Engine sits right on its oil pan flange. The first photo shows the chain sling that made hoisting life much better.

The main idea is to do things right: thorough and tidy, so that even a know-it-all would see that I'd put some thought and effort into the project.

Cheers, Guys, and have a great week!

@Shop-Teacher @ttyymmnn