Thanks for saving an Early Deuce and welcome to the sweet, snappy, sultry sounds of the G749. I'm in my 5th year of wheeling Goose, the M135, to a ton of various events and if you can enjoy the maintenance that comes with a 60 year old, 12,000lb truck, you're in for a sore jaw from smiling. I hired mechanics to do most of the brake, steering, electrical work on mine but had the opportunity to do a lot of the work myself with a mechanic/ mentor over my shoulder. Hopefully you get that experience with yours because they demand a bit of attention with Preventative Maintenance. PM's
Brakes
The G749 is quick for a big truck. The only real upgrade that it needs is a dual circuit brake system. Even though we touched every piece of Goose's brake system, I still drive it like it weighs 100,000lbs. I always touch the brake pedal long before I need to stop and time every light so I don't need to pile on brakes at the last minute. Situational awareness must be high. New Crush Washers are best when working on brakes. If you replace every line and test the brakes for leaks then the situational awareness can drop a bit however it's still a single circuit brake system and daily inspection is required.
The Emergency/Parking brake on mine works slick and it's set up to hold the truck when I throw it in drive. The truck gears down nicely by itself and in an emergency the E/P brake will slow it down..... a little. Check the E/P drum for cracks every run because the story is, they can detonate which could take out the brake lines all in one big bang.
First Spare parts you benefit from is an E/P brake drum and all the parts to replace wheel cylinders including spare seals for the hubs. If you're lucky, you might even get to replace wheel cylinders in the first year. Spare brake pads for the wheels and E/P brake will also be needed at some point. A spare air-pak and/or 'air pak kit' with new replacement parts is a bonus.
Even though my brake system shows no signs of leaks, I still check the Master Cylinder fluid level and E/P brake drum every run. PM's.
Steering
I replaced the drag-ink on mine and found some spare tie-rod ends when I need them. When Eastern checks the tolerance on your steering and replaces all worn parts, you probably won't need to think about it unless you're running Moose over on a daily bases. I check the cotter-pins in the steering on every run and keep it greased. PM's
Transmission
Spare transmissions are handy.
Engine
She screams a bit and is loud when you punch her. The 302 runs from low rpm to high rpm on every shift. Some of the boys add foam inside the cab but I kinda like the old rattle and hum sound the truck makes.
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I've replaced condensers, capacitors, points, coil, spark-plugs, a few spark plug wires (complete distributor caps) and starters to keep Goose moving. Oil filters on the shelf are also handy. We've set the valves 3 times in 5 years so extra valve cover gaskets will be needed. Spare fan belts, water-pumps(repair kits), thermostats, fuel pumps, carbs, engine kits could be added to the shelf.
Tires
The M211 usually runs on 9:00 - 20 tires. We should find out if you can fit 11:00 - 20's under it because that will give you a bit more speed and be easier on the 302.
I'm 5 years with about 30% wear on a set of new tires so.....sooner or later it's good to have spare rubber. $50.00 / tire is a good price. Having a handy tire-shop with the correct gear to safely inflate/ monitor and change tires is a good thing. Changing a flat tire on the side if the road can be done with the right tools, strong back...but it's much easier to employ the tire pro youth that also need a job.
Differential,
It's good to have spare pinion seals in addition to bags of the various Crush Washers on the shelf. There are a few different sizes, from the diff plugs (6), the entire brake system, top of fuel tank, front diff, any place with fluid. I'm told they should be replaced however some guys are able to make the old ones work again. The new ones should always go on the brake system
There are inner seals in the front diff. They seem to leak if the truck sits so if it's parked over winter, set it up on some serious stands and run it once in a while. Several sets of hub seals...as mentioned in Brakes.....are handy for yearly inspections when they can't be saved.
What did I miss?
