1953 Tucker Sno Cat 443 Mt Washington WMTW Channel 8 Restoration

[Track Addict]

Glad I made the change, tables are better than new and buttery smooth all tightened and bolted.

Few notable items. The center pivot retainer needs to tighten flush against the top fixed steel bushing on the center pivot. The nut then gets tighten and cotter pin. It only serves the function of a grease retainer and only sees upper table contact if the rear end is suspended hanging the pontoons but really the outside and rear table hangers carry the load.

If this washer was missing cat operation would have no impact.

 

[Track Addict]

These outer table retainers carry the load and forces from sidehill and if the tables were to hang in the air for some reason crevasse or jacking up off frame.

The table is threaded and these special washers slide on the top of the upper table. Trick is to adjust the washer tension checking at full swing which will be the tightest least warn spot.

After that, they lock under the table with hardware. As the table rollers and bearings wear these can be adjusted to take up slack.

Once the tables get close to touching rebuild again. Many believe the table to table is normal and just grease but that’s bad.

My guess is even earlier tables didn’t have these side retainers and that lead to broken upper table. Eventually the desig morphed into C channel setup which solved the same problem but simpler on later models.

Progress!

 

[Track Addict]

Ready to make is a roller again for more mock up.

 

[Track Addict]

One of the areas Tucker didn’t slack was bolt shoulder length.

It’s surprising they would take the time to machine down bolts to custom lengths to minimize thread contact when through bolting.

This is found on the tables mostly.

 

[chowderman]

fore warnings:
I own no snow track anything.
never ridden in a tracked snow machine.
never driven a tracked snow machine.
but I do watch them grooming my ski runs . . . .

however.... I have questions:
why are the rollers supporting the plate not "stubby shafts with a ball bearing?"
the lower plate 'rollers' are stationary - why does the lower have those big grooves that accumulates dirt?
why not resurface the upper plate with stainless, preventing all the rust crap destroying the rollers?

 

[Track Addict]

Need a Time Machine or a connection to your god to figure out why someone made the sky blue.

Just preserving what came before me and worked for 70 years!

 

[Track Addict]

East Coast Strategic Reserve Preserve

Photo dump

 

[Track Addict]

More press!

 

[Track Addict]

53 moved into summer project position. Pivoting on this project back to frame repair before test fit. Going to strip the tables and pivot off get this thing on its side on dollys to fix the rot on the upper frame.

Good bad weather work until fall.

 

[Track Addict]

Stripped down and labeled the parts.

 

[Track Addict]

This gives perspective on how the 53 was built roomy for comfort and convenience.

 

[Track Addict]

Positioned for surgery. Note how the drivers side is more rotted than the passenger side. This is because it sat tipped that way in the junk yard for who know how many years.

Entire bottom tube of upper frame will be cut out cleaned up stitched in with new material welded and ground down.

Wear sunscreen to prevent skin cancer!

 

[Track Addict]

Cut out some rot and welded in test patches. Better than new at 1/8”.

Won’t as bad a job as I thought. Used the cut off wheel but think plasma cutter will be the way to go.

 

[Track Addict]

Another photo for the archives. Possibly this 433 with a U.S. Army 443.

Mount Washington Observatory | Observer Comments

www.mountwashington.org

 

[Track Addict]

Plasma worked out much better.

Final step will be to sandblast the entire frame to blend everything before paint.

 

[Snowy Rivers]

Gotta love cutting out ROT...

My Son in law VOLUNTEERED ME to help fix a badly rotted frame on a Toyota Land Cruiser last year....

Boxed in sections that had filled with dirt and then got wet......

Absolute nightmare .....

You job is looking great.......

Have you considered treating the inside of the remaining tube with PHOSPHORIC ACID .....Treat and then wash well with water....

This will turn any existing rust into a black oxide and stop any more degradation......

 

[Track Addict]

Progress

 

[Track Addict]

?

 

[DAVENET]

Now you may not need a raincoat going forward!

 

[Track Addict]

Or rubber wheels!

 

[Track Addict]

Inching along in 80 degree heat 100% humidity monsoon season on this frame off frame up frame down preservation.

Little test dent removal on the donor body. What I need will bang out nicely. It’s getting grafted in somewhere before the rear window as it sits now. Want to preserve as much of the MT WASHINGTON TELEVISION on the original body. New graphics will replace what’s missing from OE.

 

[Track Addict]

Picking up speed on this frame repair. Almost ready to rotate.

 

[Track Addict]

My roof is good to where the blue tape is on the donor body. There is an additional hoop roof support that does not exist on the donor.

My guess is the rear frame also had a hoop to support the roof rack that was on this.

Think the move is to bang the dent out of the roof. The frame on the donor is bent toward the passenger side.

Use the donor side and rear panels and blend the roof in over the hoop and I under the rack. Graft in the donor frame with new stock as needed and it will be like 53 OE.

Should work quite well!

 

[DAVENET]

Measure twice, verify, measure an additional two times and then cut!

 

[Track Addict]

Will call in lots of eyeballs. The front windshield roof clip will be on the frame. That edge will need to be squared first.

Should be able to lay the donor roof piece on frame then trace draw snap measure fit.

 

[Track Addict]

They say the first cut is the deepest.

Cut the off the area that I don’t need. That let me easily take some of the debt out.

These cats are going to be perfect mates.

 

[Blackfoot Tucker]

There are innumerable youtube videos with all kinds of techniques to do almost anything.

If you are going to be trying your hand at hammer and dolly work, I highly recommend Karl Fischer's videos. His youtube channel is called Make it Kustom, and he's a Canadian who owns a shop called Japhands Kustoms in British Columbia. I personally don't care for Rat Rods, but his skills are impressive and in my opinion his videos are so good because he is a great teacher; explaining things in sufficient detail that even a knucklehead like me can understand.

They're also somewhat addictive. You watch one...and that leads to a second...and pretty soon... a few hours have elapsed.

BTW, I'm really enjoying this thread!

 

[Track Addict]

Last tubes cut out to repair before we rotate.

 

[Track Addict]

Progress. Hurricane season slowing down boating season. Should be ready for rotation and clean up this weekend.

 

[olympicorange]

You’ll be busy to get it show worthy for Thornton. But I’m guessing you’re gonna make it happen 👍🏻