okay well, another update;
I started off tonight moping around not really wanting to get to work, but eventually got under the truck and began messing with a wiggling the motor/trans to try and get it to fall into place. To give you an idea of what I was dealing with, the motor was sitting on the driver's side motor mount studs, but was ****ed slightly towards the driver's side so that the passenger side motor mount was about 3/4" forward of the studs. I had the two bottom bolts in the trans/motor, but for some reason the transmission was being torqued towards the driver's side just like the motor. Also, since the bottom bolts were in, there was about 1/4" gap at the bottom of the two, but the top there was more like a 1-1/2" gap that would only open up if I were to lift the front of the engine up, or jack the back of the trans up, WTF
After another hour or so of trying different things, lifting the motor/lifting the trans, torquing them both blah blahh blah I eventually was able to knock the motor down into the passenger studs. After checking a hundred different things that could be holding this thing up, I finally got the idea that the torque converter bolts may not be lined up correctly and causing the gap at the top to not close. I crawled up under the truck (note: I've been in and out from under the truck for about 2 hours at this point.) again to check out the flywheel to converter bolts. Every one of them checked out just fine.. I was PISSED, partly because that wasn't it, and the other half because I was fresh out of ideas. So I'll admit it, I lost my temper and kicked the crap out of the bellhousing on the transmission. OUCH, my stomach started burning from where it had fallen on me yesterday. Just about the same time I began to think that was a bad idea;
BANG the ENTIRE driveline jumped about an inch but what seemed like a foot towards the rear of the truck. So much so that one of the overload springs on the back axle vibrated like one of those springy doorstops.
I looked up to see that the motor and trans had finally dropped in to one another. It ended up being the flexplate. Some how one of the little guide ears on the motor was hanging up on it and was not able to go into the transmission, and finally it just gave way and chipped a piece off the flexplate and banged in. MAN was I a happy sonofagun. After getting it all hooked up and bolted up I turned over to realize I forgot the lay the starter in. I then had to drop the freakin front diff so I could wiggle the starter up beside the block to bolt it in.. that was reeaal fun.
I called it a night and picked up the camera to take some pictures.. aaand of course it was dead. I started to take a couple pictures until it turned off, but was able to turn it back on and get a quick picture of the motor. So for what it's worth here they are..
1 - picture of the old dog that came out
2 - thats of my workshop
3 - someone said my garage was nice and heated, I think it was xeek? Well yeah it's heated, kinda..
: doesn't have one trace of insulation on it though..
4 - the new motor in!
