Otter LRC CM4647296 comes home

[David Dunlop]

Looking very good, Jordan!


David

[Jordan Baker]

Thanks David. In the end all this work will be pretty much hidden inside the hull and behind another plate. But I love a challenge…

Speaking of challenges, I decided to give it a go and rebuild the original fuel tank level senders. Considering the visible condition of what I had to start with where they were just as rusty on the inside as the outside and the mechanics were seized, I wasn’t sure if they would turn out.

I was able to clean them up using the citric acid bath. I was worried at first about the solution damaging the resistance strip, but thankfully there was no damage.

[Jordan Baker]

I used my multi meter to measure the résistance value of the unit. These units are 0ohms for empty and 30ohms for full.

Sadly the one unit had a broken contact inside. This was a small flat spring design that would move back and forth on the resistance strip. I’m still working out on how to make a new one.

[David Dunlop]

Jordan.

It might be possible that for any Sending Unit Assembly from GM Canada in the 30’s and 40’s, they all shared common electrical components and it was just the mechanical parts that varied to accommodate different tank capacities and dimensions. If so, you might be able to replace the broken part you have from another GMC Sending Unit of similar age and voltage and save yourself reinventing the part.

There might be some literature out there on the topic as well.

Nice the way those parts cleaned up by the way.



David

[Jordan Baker]

Yes I’ve thought of that but I don’t have a spare sender kicking about. A friend of mine has a photo etch machine and said I could borrow it. So at some point I’ll be trying that out to make my own photo etched part.


On a different note I’ve finished up the door locks. Both were pretty simple and not make parts. Everything was cleaned up then repainted. Interestingly the door locks are different. The one with the cotter pin is what is shown in the pictures and seen on other restored Otters. The other one is a bit of a mystery but it clearly has been on the Otter from the factory.

[Grant Bowker]

Looking at the version without the cotter pin, I see the body marked A64 and the handle C64 which makes me wonder if the whole assembly might have a part number ending with 64. Also consider other names for the assembly - latch, catch, lock...

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by jordan baker

on a different note i’ve finished up the door locks. Both were pretty simple and not make parts. Everything was cleaned up then repainted. Interestingly the door locks are different. The one with the cotter pin is what is shown in the pictures and seen on other restored otters. The other one is a bit of a mystery but it clearly has been on the otter from the factory.

Here are the three locks on my C15TA, in both left hand and right hand versions. They do not have a cotter pin like on yours - the bolt may have been a modification when the truck was being restored.

I suspect your "other one" is an earlier version of the lock. The later one looks like it has been beefed up.

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