Bringing up the rear

There's not been as much time available this past couple of weeks for restoration work, but I've still

New brake lines to the new discs

found some time to keep the project moving forward.
Last weekend I tackled the installation of all new brake lines. I purchased a bulk roll of 3/16" steel
tubing and went to work. Since I am installing a disc brake setup, the original routing for the front and rear lines won't work, so that absolved me of trying to accurately recreate the original look. Instead, I focused of getting the lines as neat and straight as possible, and after a few hours I think it all came out pretty nice. The three lines that will eventually terminate on the proportioning valve were left sticking up with enough material to make whatever bends will be necessary to make the connections.

Rear lines all done

I was also able to get the steering box and linkage blasted clean and reinstalled.  Digging through the old boxes of "restored" parts, I found the tie rods and adjusters that I had stripped and painted fifteen years ago. With my improved skills, I stripped and repainted them with the CastBlast gray that I've been using on many of the parts that I want to appear as bare metal. Up until now, I've had a piece of steel pipe connecting the two steering knuckles, but now with the steering box and linkage in place, I can use the actual steering wheel to guide the frame around the shop.
One thing I've been trying to finish is the rear axle area. I wanted to replace the rear pinion seal to ensure there would be no gear oil slinging around the underside of the car. My old restoration handbook made it seem pretty easy: remove the nut and washer, pull the yoke off, pop old seal out, tap new seal in, reassemble.

Steering box and linkage installed

The 11/8" nut came off with a little resistance, but I had no way to remove the yoke without a puller. Fortunately, I have a great mechanic who is happy to loan me his specialty tools when needed, as well as dispense advice when requested. As he handed me his puller, he casually reminded me to make sure and count the number of revolutions when I removed the nut. My alarms went off in my head and I asked "Why? I've already removed it." With a look of disdain reserved for idiots who have just enough knowledge to get themselves in trouble, he explained to me that I couldn't simply crank the nut back down without knowing where to stop, as the crush sleeve in the pumpkin would then be incorrectly distorted. That in turn would change the interaction of the pinion gear to the ring gear, thus causing a grinding noise when turning. Yikes!
Frustrated with myself, I went home and--after the fact--did some Internet reading to learn that it is crucial to mark where the nut is in relation to the yoke before removal so you can put everything back the way it came off. It had seemed so simple before all of this!
Feeling betrayed by my manual, I gave it some thought and decided that since the yoke had been on the pinion gear shaft for 60 years, it was probably set pretty tight. Therefore, if I cranked the nut back on

Oops.

before I removed the yoke, and tightened it almost to the specified torque, it wouldn't compress any further and I could then mark everything and feel pretty confident that I hadn't screwed everything up. So that's what I did. I won't know if it worked out until many months from now when I finally get Old Yeller back on the road.

Out with the old...

With the new seal in place, I was able to clean and paint the yoke,
and repaint the pumpkin. At least it all looks pretty!

...and in with the new. All finished!