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Isn’t that my rear orifice tube?
Rocket Man's 02 Denali Build Thread AKA "THE BEAST"
- Thread starter Rocket Man
- Start date
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iamdub
Full Access Member
Isn’t that my rear orifice tube?
Well-played, sir.
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Got bored waiting on parts. The new water pump to cowl heater hose came in and I decided to wrap it in the high temp loom I bought. It has a formed bend that I knew wouldn’t work with this loom so I used heat shrink around that part. It didn’t come out horrible, I’ll run it. I also did the main AC line that comes off the compressor. That one looks legit.
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That spiral-wound hose is similar to what I used to make at Caterpillar as a "spiral winder," but what I made was for hydraulics. 4 ply, 6 ply, 10 ply 3/8" to 1.5". Fond memories of the night shift in Chillicothe, IL. Made miles of that stuff, 52 feet at a time.
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I got the new Dorman Y heater hose and wrapped the part that goes up to the firewall, it came out good. Then I installed it and the other quick connect at the firewall. During the struggle to install everything that first heater hose I wrapped came undone just as it clicked into the fitting at the firewall. I removed the braided stuff. Damn. So now I have one that looks braided and one that doesn’t. I’m leaving it for now since in order to fix it I either need to either drain the system and wrap it from the engine side or buy a quick connect and cut the one off and do it from up top. Good news is I have no leaks, front or rear. I warmed it up and let it burp, then refilled. Still waiting on the rear AC lines. Supposed to be here Tuesday but so is the next heat wave. I’ll work on it when it’s not too hot.
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These pics show why it’s so hard to get to those tees with the blower in. Pretty much the only way that was going to happen was with the accumulator out. That hose closest to the blower almost didn’t go back on, it was crooked to get it started and I had to force it. I am super glad I didn’t fu*k up the o-ring installing it, but I ran it up to pressure and no leaks.
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Since the truck is laid up, it was the perfect time to try the leather repair kit from www.autoleatherdye.com and see what I could do to the second row. I didn’t have high expectations and you can see why. These seats were pretty much wasted due to my dog and the fact they’re 21 years old. But there’s no replacement covers available and I’m sure if I had an upholsterer make some they’d be a few hundred. Here they are right after I pulled them from the truck.
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Here’s the kit. First I cleaned them with Foaming Bubbles Bathroom Cleaner. It works great but I wouldn’t use it often, it’s probably harsh for the leather.
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Next I attempted to steam the foam in order to tighten things up. It kinda worked but I also messed up and removed the nozzle on the steamer and just stuck the tool in because I wasn’t getting as much steam as I wanted. Which showed me which parts were vinyl because it kind of melted it in a few spots.
The instructions were to repair any tears first using the glue and fabric you glue in the backside of the tear. I had one that was big enough to do that. Next I used the leather filler and the tiny spatula to fill in scrapes and small cuts. There were a lot of those. The stuff can be wet sanded.
The instructions were to repair any tears first using the glue and fabric you glue in the backside of the tear. I had one that was big enough to do that. Next I used the leather filler and the tiny spatula to fill in scrapes and small cuts. There were a lot of those. The stuff can be wet sanded.
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Then I used a sponge to do 4 light coats on the dark panels. The color match was pretty good. Being these seats are 2 tone, they’re kind of a PIA. Getting the dye as close to perfect at the seam where the colors meet was hard.
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Finally I did 4 light coats on the lighter panels. I might still do a little touch up but they’re pretty much done. IMO they came out pretty damn good, considering how bad they started out.
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Yeah, that's a world of difference! Lookin' good!
George B
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Excellent work as usual!
drdave81
Full Access Member
I need that same kit for my seats, I have the same color interior you do. Which kit did you order on their site, the crack/crease repair kit?
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No, I got the damage repair kit because I had a few cuts. I also added an extra color. The colors were GM77 and Medium Dark Pewter II. If you email them and give them the interior color codes off your RPO list they will match them.
drdave81
Full Access Member
And my "to do" list just got bigger lol. This thread has to be one of my favorites to follow.
Buggdave
Full Access Member
Mark, I have similar issues with my second row seats as well. Would you recommend the repair kit you used from Auto Leather Dye?
Tonyrodz
Resident Resident
I'm really interested how long that's going to hold up. Still letting the dog back there?
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Yes however the colors aren’t an exact match, as you can see. I’m not sure if I got the wrong color or this is what they looked like new. Either way, I’ll just pull the backs and do them too. I used maybe 1/3 of the dye. I bought 8 oz of each color. IMO I won’t see the difference between the fronts and backs, just when there’s a dyed piece next to an original.
I’m curious too. And yes of course. He goes almost everywhere I go. That’s his half of the truck. And now he has AC back there!
