Thursday
We left the truck and hit the local parts store early to pick up new fuel filters, an air filter, gear oil, spark plugs, carb cleaner, brake fluid, a radiator cap and a bungee cord to hold up the broken E-brake pedal. We worked on the truck until noon and actually got it running fairly well. However, it was still missing and wouldn't idle. No biggie--we grabbed some grub, turned up the idle and sputtered on.
A couple hours later, the upper radiator hose gave up the ghost in a rusty Titanic-like spray of steam at nearly 70 mph. The split in the hose was close enough to the end so that I could cut it off and reattach it to the radiator. We poured in every bit of liquid we had to refill the system, but it wasn't enough. Fortunately, Oregon is full of lakes and rivers. Hazel drove a mile or so down the road until he found a small pond and refilled the water jugs.
With fresh radiator pond water, we drove down I-5 to Drain, Oregon where we stopped to check out some stainless steel flatfender bodies we'd spotted on the way up. A NAPA parts store was right down the road, so we stopped in for an upper and a lower radiator hose and some coolant, just in case.
The J-truck wouldn't start when we tried to leave. After messing with it for a while, we figured out it wasn't getting fuel again. The NAPA didn't have the fuel pump we needed, so we bought an electric pump just as it was closing up shop. Unfortunately, this pump needed a regulator because fuel just poured out of the carb bowl vents and down into the intake. We experimented with a pair of locking pliers on the fuel line as a makeshift regulator. This idea was canned after Hazel's comment about getting all my valuables out of the truck to keep them from burning when (not even if) the truck caught fire. We left the truck in the NAPA parking lot that night with the hope of finding the right parts the next morning.
Speaking of old-man engineering, check this out. The fuel switch was connected right next to the exhaust with rotten hoses and no clamps on some of the lines. That could make for a killer fire. We changed out the rotten hose, added clamps and did some rerouting before we hit the road. | 
After a couple cans of carb cleaner, new plugs and fuel filters, we had the J-truck running halfway decently. Speeds up to 75 mph weren't a problem until this upper radiator hose blew. There was enough of it left so that we just cut out the blown part and reattached it. | 
Right before the J-2000's unplanned over-night stay in Drain, Oregon, we spotted these stainless steel flatfender bodies from the Philippine Islands for sale. They're a little different than stock and made from 14-gauge stainless. The company only had a few left, but if you want one, try calling Oregon MetalCraft at 800/822-6313. |