Bunch of random questions

Yeah I have some more questions for you guys that know your stuff. Thanks for any replies.

Can I use the normal fuel line from the auto parts store with the new fuels? It seems there are a lot of people that say no but don't you think the newer fuel lines should be compatible with the new fuels?

The vacuum line that goes from the distributor to the carb has some "belled" ends as seen in the pic below. Do I have to get a shop to make this line or how to these belled ends get made? Also, it almost looks like in Harvey's engine pics there is a rubber line/hose used. Can I do that rather than the hard line? I could cut my existing ends off if they are in decent shape and clamp them to a hose.




In Harvey's engine pics, I see he has the ports plugged for the coolant line I have running from the top of the water pump to the top of the head. Can I simply plug these ports as well rather than run a hose? If I can do this, what was the original purpose?

I have cleaned many parts up in diesel and would like to paint them. Is there a specific cleaner I should use at this point so the paint adheres well or don't I need to worry about that?

Undercoating - I am planning on rubber undercoating the bottom of the truck. I've never used this stuff before. Do I have to be careful around moving parts and do I have to cover bolt heads? Or is it thin enough that doesn't matter?

I want to clean the body up but I don't want to do any body work, paint, clear, etc. Can I simply run a buffing pad over the body with patina and all to clean it up? I'm just not sure how it's gonna work going over the patina/surface rust with a pad.

Another question.......how important is the spring in the exhaust manifold? Mine didn't seem to be doing anything.

The "bulb'd ends" are called "compression fittings". You can buy them at the auto parts store or a hardware store. You slip the hard line thru the nut and ferrel, and into the fitting itself, tightening the nut compresses the ferrel onto the line.
Without a picture of the water connection in question I can't answer. Some use a bypass line to allow the coolant to flow back to the waterpump when the thermostat is closed. The BLD line uses a small passage from the block to the radiator return pipe on the block to do the same thing, I don't know how the small six handles the bypass. Without some sort of bypass, the coolant will not flow in the block and heads when the "stat is closed, this will cause unevan cooling of the block and head during warm-up and delayed opening of the 'Stat. Since the waterpump is a dynamic (centrifugal) type pump, deadheading the outlet will not cause the belt to slip or even load the belt more, but it is never a good idea to deadhead a pump. There needs to be some sort of coolant return to the inlet of the pump.

The "rubber" fuel hose sold today should work just fine with todays fuel.
The spring controls the "heat riser or Hot Spot" on the manifold. The valve or diverter plate inside should move freely and the thermostatic spring controls the position. New springs are avaiable as the same one was used on gas engine farm equipment. The main thing is to make sure the diverter plate can move, may need to be free'd up by soaking and or applying heat.

I am going to take the risk of being wrong, AGAIN. Is it possible that "lump" on the tube might be...https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=Br ... ORM=IDINTS

For the vacuum line to the dizzy I cut mine 6'' short of the carburetor and ran a hose off of that to a hose barb adapter I mounted to the carb. The threads in the aluminum body of the carb would get a little more wallowed out each time I had it on and off the motor with the original compression fitting and it was developing a vacuum leak, the short section of hose and the permanent hose barb fixed that.

For paint prep I do my final cleaning of parts with acetone. Be sure and wear good chemical resistant gloves if you go that route. Also the rags will be a fire hazard so watch what you do with those.

For the prep for my outside clear coat over patina I used fine wet sandpaper and a bucket of warm water. If your doing the patina thing you don't have to go crazy with the sanding just get loose paint and a layer of rust off. I did not go all the way to bare metal on the surface rust. To me it's part of the charm. I had the whole truck prepped in two hours and coated in one.

In Harvey's engine pics, I see he has the ports plugged for the coolant line I have running from the top of the water pump to the top of the head. Can I simply plug these ports as well rather than run a hose? If I can do this, what was the original purpose?

That is plugged where Harvey's heater hose normally connects to the water pump. I don't have the heater connected so it is also plugged at the top of the head.
Supply and return ports...

Got it guys. Thanks. Still learning. Didn't grow up working on these things.

Harvey......Aaaahhhh...Yes I do remember now when I first got the truck it had heater hoses and I pulled them off since I knew I wasn't going to use the heater. Somebody told me to run a hose from the pump to the top of the head. I would assume since I am not using the heater I can plug those heater supply and return ports just as you did.

Got it guys. Thanks. Still learning. Didn't grow up working on these things.

Half the fun of the hobby is learning this stuff and getting to network with like minded people in the process. I've been doing this as a hobby for over forty years but I'm still a piker compared to CB89, Kevin, Nikki, etc. etc. Since I came back to this forum a year ago I have got a lot of help here from all the members getting my truck back on the road.