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Astro van cat conversion

Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Rain let up a bit.

Wrangled the new exhaust part on the cat.

This was easy....now...once the entire system (Duals) are bolted in and hung...then getting things apart are going to be tough.

Decided to install a "Ball seat" into each front pipe before the muffler.

This will allow the headpipe to be cut loose from the manifold and leave the muffler and tail pipe intact.....

Getting the headpipe in was easy.....but once each side is all assembled that easy is gonna turn Fugly.

Pretty easy to weld in the ball seat units.
 

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Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Great weather today.

Got after the spacer and cover plates for the exhaust flange access hole.

Cut the pieces then fabricated the frame.....laid out the bolt holes in the cover and transferred them to the frame.

Tapped the holes 3/8" 16NC

Got the exhaust access cover done and then went after that very ugly mess just to the North of things.

Got after that ugly hole and managed to remove the old scabby cover that had been welded on to cover what was left open when they installed the blade.

After some seriously tedious cutting, grinding and then bending the old cover off the end was a fairly nice hole..

Perfect size to get the starter out.

Sadly with the big 57" tracks the access will be limited at this time....


Had to stick the new top reinforcing bar in the mill and relieve it to fit the bulge in the tub.

**** The 2100 with the big Ford V8 had the tub splayed out just under the top rail to allow the engine to fit****

The V8 mods to the tub (Factory) has a weld right across above where the starter access hole had been cut by others and the tub splays out at a fair angle..

So the top piece is cut to fit now and will weld in nicely.

I ran to the steel yard late this afternoon and picked up more bar stock to fabricate the rest of the frame to go around the starter access hole.

Tomorrow I can fab up the frame and get it welded on the tub WEATHER PERMITTING

After chopping all the sin off the area I was pleased with how things cleaned up.

I decided to reinforce the area well as the vans front end will be sitting over the engine and fasten to the top rail (With added structure)

Still have a buttload of extra useless holes in the top rail and the lower area of the tube

Gonna clamp a flat piece of brass behind the holes and weld them up....if for no other reason than to clean up the ugly mess...




Piccy's
 

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vintagebike

Well-known member
As a fellow Thiokol restoration traveler, I can’t believe how much I am enjoying your 2100B journey. Steve, now back home in McCall
 

Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Well thank you very much.

"Journey" is certainly what it is.

Rebuilding/refurbishing any piece, be it a car, pickup or ???? has it's ups and downs....but when you delve into a "Roll your own" it certainly take things to a totally different high.

I see one of our other travelers has a small block chevy in his Tucker.....the small chevy is just so universally loved for so many different applications.

Having done other projects in the past I was aware of the turns and twists things take....but the older I get the harder it is to get my old bones around the sharp corners that seem to come up on a regular basis...:thumbup:

Never a dull moment for sure.


I keep telling myself....."If I get ...THIS THIS AND THAT DONE" then things can really roll.....

Well....I HOPE SO.....and the journey continues.

Again...Thank you
 

Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Just a simple update on items that are on their way for the project.

The fresh Quadrajet carb...Be here Monday
Mufflers will be here this coming week
Air cleaner rod and wing nut ...Monday
Exhaust hanger assortment (Weld on rod type/rubber push on ) This week

Oh...the BLACK NOODLE to replace that HIDEOUS blue piece on the steering control unit showed up Friday.

A piece here and a piece there....slowly getting things to keep the kitty on it's journey...
 

Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Was a good day....no blood letting :thumbup:

Weather cooperated a lot and I got the large access holes framed built and installed.

Lots of pictures too.

Got some of the way that the tub is splayed to allow the V8 yo fit.

Actually the Chevy mouse would fit even without the wider sides....but it would be tight.

The fairly large round holes in a row in the splayed area was for the hydraulic lines to the blade (No more)

Pretty much a start to finish on this cover..


I welded the lower edge of the tub sheet metal to the heavy bar to get rid of the ragged edge on the inside.

I had this nasty vision of a blood letting while changing a starter :shitHitFan:


So...aside from welding up a bunch of those extra bolt holes things are pretty good now...

Exhaust, and as soon as this weather improves getting the OC12 OUT.....

Hardest part of today's work was hand tapping the bolt holes.

Hot rolled bar is rather gnarly and not nearly as easy to tap (Machine) as other steels.....

Can't get the good tapping fluid we had back in the 70's/80's....unhealthy I guess.

Used to use Tapmatic #2....great stuff...but it had a bunch of nasty chemicals in it....
 

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Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Slow right now.
Fresh carb showed up last night along with the air cleaner stud.

Mufflers should be here today some time.

The black noodle showed up and I cut a fresh piece and replaced the hideous blue one on the operator station.

I want to get the exhaust pretty well thrashed out before I pull the engine and trans out again.

Weather is being a real pain....rain rain rain and I really want to get after the OC12

Once it's out and the crap drained I can get it into the shop.

I am not gonna deal with the sloppy mess that's inside the box in the shop.

At least the crap is gonna be drained outside where I can dispose of it...

More stuff to consider as well.

I want to get a fresh starter on and an oil pan drain hose installed before the engine goes in for good....ahhh, and a remote filter assembly too...

Still lamenting over which starter to use.

Thinking about a Denso mini.....a lot smaller and lighter.
 

Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Got after some new cross members to replace the junk I cut out back several weeks ago.

The one that was mid ship where the rear of the cab set down was in rough shape and the one forward where the front of the cab set was no better off.

Decided to add two new ones that will bolt into the tub and stabilize things side to side and provide a nice set of points to hang the mufflers off of.

Got the parts cut and the rains started being annoying.

The forward one is wedged in and the angles are sitting about where the rear one will go...

Decided to build a 2 foot long set of 4" exhaust tips to mount under the tub rail...

Should be pretty high on the cool scale.... :thumbup:

Mufflers should be here this afternoon late.
 

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Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Mufflers showed up.

These bad boys are gonna fit in the rig sweeeeeeeeet.

I got a sneaking suspicion that the little mouse motor gonna roar like a lion with these 2-1/2" Flowmaster super 10's


Stuff to work with for a bit.....
 

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Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Weather was decent this morning...got after building the new cross members and drilling the holes in the tub for mounting.

Got the front one finished and all welded up....the rear one was tacked up but the wind came up and that shut down the welding real quick.

15/20 knot breeze just raises hob with the gas flow on the wire welder....

But better weather coming....

Things looking good.

Got the exhaust ball/flange units coming...

Once they arrive the exhaust system can progress pretty fast.
 

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Jim_S

Gone But Not Forgotten
GOLD Site Supporter
Weather was decent this morning...got after building the new cross members and drilling the holes in the tub for mounting.

Got the front one finished and all welded up....the rear one was tacked up but the wind came up and that shut down the welding real quick.

15/20 knot breeze just raises hob with the gas flow on the wire welder....

But better weather coming....

Things looking good.

Got the exhaust ball/flange units coming...

Once they arrive the exhaust system can progress pretty fast.

How many seats will you have? Can all of us get a ride at once or we have to take turns? :mrgreen:
 

Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Astro usually has seating for 8.

The Red van I have now is an 8 passenger.

Still looking for a nicer van to drop on the 2100.....

Pretty sure we are gonna need to draw straws :th_lmao:

Really irks me....just as this Kung Flu thing was breaking loose and everything was shutting off I had an opportunity to get a 98 Astro that was lovely....had a bad trans.
Guy did not want to drop a buttload of $$$$ into a van with 200K plus on the clock.

I passed due to the uncertainty of things....wish I had grabbed the little beast.

Ah well...more fish in the stream....

I bought the Red one for the cat, but it needs some TLC
Windshield is cracked, paint is a tad Fugly.

It is a great grocery getter an general beater...

I really want a cream puff to use on the cat....

IF WISHES WERE HORSES THEN BEGGARS WOULD RIDE EH ????:thumbup:
 

Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Materials on order....not here for the long weekend.

Decided to design the intermediate pipe that goes between the head pipe and the muffler.

The Ball flange units are not here....but I was able to layout the next pipe in the system on the RH side.

Magnetic protractor, tape measure, regular machinists protractor and a bit of luck......Drew up a sketch and hit the exhaust shop before he closed for the day (Noon on Fridays)

Good fortune favored the foolish.....the pipe could not be better if we tried....

The hangers are likely gonna be best if hung behind the cross member to allow the muffler to be moved rearward if the engine needs to come out.

Two ball/flanges on each side will allow the entire system to be unbuckled and removed with minimal work..

One ball flange will go in the intermediate pipe about a foot ahead of the muffler and the other will go behind the muffler hung off the rear cross member.... (New one)


As soon as the other parts arrive I can cut the pipes and weld in the ball flanges and start stitching the system together......

There will be plenty of room for access to the drive shaft and center support bearing too.

The exit out the rear looks like it's going to be just ahead of the OC12 and then back under the top flange of the tub and straight out the back.

May add a large tip.??????????....We shall see.

A high angle shot to really see where the exhaust lays.

As soon as the LH manifold gets here the same things can be fit to the LH side


JUST AN FYI

The 2 x 4 across the tub is there to keep the tub at the proper width...(When I cut the cross member out that was under the rear of the cab the tub popped in about 1/4" sooooooo...I spread things with a hydraulic jack and cut the 2 x 4 to fit)

Once things are where we need them the front NEW cross member will be holding things.

Fun Fun Fun.....
 

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Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
The LH exhaust manifold showed up today....:clap:
Got the old manifold off and the threaded holes in the head all cleaned out with a tap...

Got the new manifold in and OH YEAH.....As I figured...gotta have a rat hole to make a tad bit more room.

Sadly this manifold gets into the splayed area of the tub and will require a bit more finesse to frame the hole in and building the cover plate will be interesting to say the least...

But it's doable....
Using a different type of manifold would have placed the the outlet in a worse spot than it is now.

These manifolds are standard issue on 1995 Chevy Tahoe and Suburban...

Also 88-95 1500 and 2500 pickups with a 305 or 350 engine... EASY TO COME BY....

SOME PIX

OH and a different kind of CAT....MY LITTLE BUDDY Chupi....8 year old Sphynx (She has a bit more hair than most Sphynx cats)


One plus....I can reach the oil filter now.....:thumbup:

The drain plug is in a nasty spot....Best guess is that oil changes will be done with a sucker down the dipstick tube.....

I am looking over the ideas of a higher capacity pan with the drain plug a bit more on the side instead of being angled down as it is.

We shall see.

I really would like a baffled and gated pan with an 8 quart capacity rather than the 5 quart stock fill.

Having a bigger pan with gates and baffles should be a plus for doing more radical operating angles...


And on we go...
 

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KickerM

Active member
Site Supporter
GOLD Site Supporter
I rebuilt the pan on my Skidozer and it has a side drain on it and 8quart cap for extreme angles!
675ce2b2f59432577d581a1f713ee286.jpg



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Nice looking pan.

With the fairly large extension you must have a pretty fair amount of room under the engine ????


I have the little Chevy within 1/2" of the bottom of the tub....so the only thing I can/could do is go out sideways with any additions.

There is room to extend the sump forward some too......

The front axle is right below the pan so there is no room to go down at all.

There are several specialty "Hot Rod" pan builders that make all manner of pans for the Small block Chevy, so if/when I decide to do something I will likely look to one of these options....

Back many many years ago I was into Drag boats and ran Big Chevy's......I always used a 13 quart specialty Marine pan that was baffled and gated.

For now... with so much work ahead to get this project up and running I am thinking that a fresh oil change and filter will be good to go.

Later on down the road things can be revisited and changes made to suit the need.

I don't want to get bogged down with a bunch of little special things that are gonna hog the limited budget.

Getting the power train pretty well complete and such is my goal for this summer.

After the power train is ready to go the remaining part of the build will be relatively simple, although full of several little projects.

The air system
The cable trans shifter
Wiring from the van to the cats engine.


There is still the issue of the tracks....I have one (1) of the 57" standard tracks.
Hopefully one more will come along....
 

Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Fooling with the manifold on the LH side and the dipstick tube keeps troubling me....I can't seem to find a fresh one.

The one on the engine is tweaked and bent so many ways it is nearly impossible to get the stick in and out.

The bolt bracket is gone (The spot welds on the tube are there. but no bracket.

I removed the new manifold and wrangled the tube out of the pan aperture and got that bad boy out in my hands.

Took it to the vice and gently...GENTLY straightened that thing up.

The tube is supposed to have an O RING at the base where it slips into the pan aperture.....no Oring...just Gasket goop.

Cleaned things up well and finally got the dipstick straightened out to where the pair actually work well together again....

Then to find an O ring...Napa store had that covered.

How to fasten the stick so it would stay put ???????

Decided to use a compression fitting and make a little bracket to fasten to the one stud top bolt that had been holding the manifold on....

I think this is gonna work well....

Tuesday I can gather up some steel and finish the rat hole on the LH side.
 

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Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Just a note to quell any curiosity.

I stuck the brass fitting in the lathe and ran a drill through it to allow the dipstick tube to go clear through....

Made a sweet "Adjustable" bracket

The little aluminum piece has a slot where it fastens to the stud top bolt.

Tweaked the aluminum a bit to allow the brass fitting to run straight with the tube....Close anyway.
 

Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Today was a productive day.....

Got some exhaust pipe bent and things moving ahead.

Also got the heavy bar stock to frame the hole in around the LH exhaust area.

No pics on the frame today...tomorrow....

Got some shots of the head pipe on the LH side.

A tedious chorus of a tweak here and a little nudge there to end up with clearance where needed.

Sadly the standard exhaust tube benders will not do what I needed done....
Sooooooooooooo...we had to build the head pipe in 3 pieces....but it is just about ready to get tacked together.

The results were pretty good all in all, and the flow should be fine.

We also bent the LH variant of the intermediate pipe today as well.

I will get more pix tomorrow.

I learned that the exhaust shop is losing his lease on the building and will be gone by the end of June....I am gonna hustle and get the complete system done, or at least all the parts made to get things finished to the rear of the cat.
 

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Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
Good things happening..

Got the LH head pipe completed and life is good.

Framed in the LH access hole and made the cover plate.

The shape of the tub has made the shape of the cover plate a tad odd.

I need to make some little puzzle pieces to finish closing in and cover the hole.

The splayed nature of the area made the top of the hole cover just plain nasty to build.

Finishing that beast is tomorrows task....

The intermediate pipes fit great as do the mufflers....

Still waiting for the ball/flange units to get here....tomorrow maybe........

Once the ball/flange units get here the system can be finished up.

It will be nice to be able to completely disassemble the entire exhaust system and remove it from the Cat chassis piece by piece if need be...


I was pleased with the end result of the complex bends up near the manifold outlet.

The inside of the pipe looks pretty good all considered....
 

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Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
More progress today...

Finished up the LH TUB cover plate....

Made cardboard patterns and cut out "Puzzle pieces"

Cut the steel and stitched it together.

This bad boy will keep the crap out and also keep the structural integrity good in the tub.....

The exhaust parts will be here on the brown truck later this afternoon....:smile:
 

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Snowy Rivers

Well-known member
ALWAYS A FLY IN THE OINTMENT SOMEWHERE.

Today was gonna be a kick ass day and wrap up the exhaust back through the mufflers....

The Ball flange kits showed up last night on the Widdle Brown Truck. :clap:

Getting my first cup of coffee going and un-boxing the goodies......

Get the parts out on the table and SOMETHING IS NOT RIGHT.

This kit is supposed to have a ball and a flange set, 6 bolts, 6 nuts and two retainer plates.

Now granted I am still waiting for my first cup of caffeine ...so maybe I am just looking at things wrong ??????

Both flanges are the female end :shitHitFan:

OMG
I opened all 4 boxes and all are the same thing.

I pulled the part up on Summit Racing's web site and reread the listing...

I did read it right.

Kit includes a ball and a flange piece.....

Seems that the parts packer was having a bad day.

I called Summit on the phone and after a short wait I get a very helpful fella on the line.

I gave him the order #### and told him what was wrong.

As it stands the parts are packed and sealed at Hedman and the folks at Summit just ship them.

So the customer service dude is having 4 more sent from a different warehouse direct to me ...be here tomorrow morning.

So much for getting stuff done today.

Rain for the weekend.....Arrrrrrrrgh

Here is a couple pix....The first one is what I got...the bottom pic is what I expected

Nobody ever said building a snowcat would be easy..????:hammer:

Guess I will clean up the new access hole framing and covers and get that stuff painted today while its still warm and dry.

At least it will keep the stuff from rusting.

I was planning on doing painting while the engine was back out of the cat.....

SNAFU....OH YESSSSSSSSSSS
 

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vintagebike

Well-known member
Resto Quiz

Only one more for now. ID the rear end , the make and model, being modified for our 1949 423 and exactly where it was purchased. This is for some of you not yet back to work.:smileywac. I will start a new thread soon with new and more difficult challenges. SR gets a prize.
 
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