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Projects Father/Son 63 Chevy C10 SWB Build Thread

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by guthriesmith, Jan 2, 2020.

  1. I wouldn’t say we agree on everything. ;) We do like the same style and that is in part because most of my friends are also traditional guys and have helped ruin him. :rolleyes: However, he does think this thing should run 8’s in the quarter and also still be a good daily driver because of shows like Street Outlaws and even living in a town where there is a big street race scene. And, we often argue but more over him needing to do the actual work instead of me just building it for him. I think overall, we have a generation of kids (and many adults) that think everything should happen instantly. This is teaching him that it takes time and money, but he is also learning about a sense of accomplishment along the way.
     
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  2. Nostrebor
    Joined: Jun 25, 2014
    Posts: 1,278

    Nostrebor
    Member

    How did you end up with my kid at your house?!o_O

    We have come to an impasse where I finally had to inform him that I was not going to build his truck while he slept, and I would put it together and make it my shop truck if he didn't get to moving on it. That seems to have helped.;)

    The truck looks fantastic so far. You may have also convinced me to look at pinner whites for my 51 rather than million dollar wides. I have similar wheels, and those tires look great on them!
     
    1Nimrod, drdave, Thor1 and 4 others like this.
  3. flyin-t
    Joined: Dec 29, 2004
    Posts: 1,421

    flyin-t
    Member

    Enjoying your thread.
    Great wheel/tire combo!
     
  4. edcodesign
    Joined: Mar 30, 2007
    Posts: 4,716

    edcodesign
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    image.jpeg Great to see the nice job a young gun is doing. Chevy trucks rock !
     
    1Nimrod, Big mike 1968, Thor1 and 7 others like this.
  5. lumpy 63
    Joined: Aug 2, 2010
    Posts: 2,603

    lumpy 63
    Member

    Hey Jeff , really enjoying this thread. Thanks for the tire info! When my Daughter was 16 we built her a 65 C10 , Did the longbed to shortbed conversion ,250 6, th350, pwr steering, pwr disc brakes. She still talks about the experience and she's 31 now:p. Built my wife a 66 C10 a couple of years ago, But in doing so I lost space in my garage because it's too nice to park in the driveway....
     
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  6. Made it to the open house this morning. Folks are starting to show up after the rain stopped and my son is running on adrenaline as folks are complimenting his work. :D

    964053DA-C728-4F29-9FF5-90D4CE650498.jpeg CFD2369A-E5D1-41D2-96BB-88A255E14A0C.jpeg 5F816BE9-22BA-4FAF-B18C-9D4EE3F7CD04.jpeg
    AE228CD3-7060-4476-AE83-E4B56AF8728D.jpeg
     
  7. Nice pickup and thanks!
     
  8. Another pic taken by a friend from yesterday.

    1D4B33E2-EECB-4BE6-A2DE-1CFD51349D1A.png
     
  9. Just in case it looks like no one showed up to the open house, that wasn’t necessarily the case. Since it rained in the morning and was also a little chilly, there just weren’t many old cars and most folks hung out inside the shop. Here are a few more pics for reference. Sid has done this deal for 10 years now and is calling this the last one. He even had a couple bands playing this year. He and his wife Treasea are great hosts and feed everyone great chili while they hang out.

    0915C5A3-1AC1-4029-923B-C16906E38F10.jpeg 261DB314-FFEC-48CB-85D5-2158F84CF59E.jpeg 21D1BAE1-1E87-4857-956B-FEF56FC3F630.jpeg 8DDD82B1-6FDC-42B2-BDAE-8FF972D9D28D.jpeg 0CC9FC0C-7D93-436B-84CE-E570CCB1C9F4.jpeg
     
  10. Thinking about the next steps of rust repair in the cab and fenders...anyone have any advice on what patch panels to buy? It has been a long time since I bought any rockers or otherwise and know there is a huge difference in quality and fit and don't want to have to buy more than one set of parts. I will do some research to try to figure out what parts work best, but thought I might throw the question out here too for anyone that may have recently bought some panels.
     
  11. Another small update. Back when we first started working on the rear suspension, I figured we would need to change the length of the panhard bar to get the rearend centered after lowering it. We went all out and bought a fancy adjustable one before I really looked at what this truck had. Apparently the older trucks had the panhard bar mounted at a different angle than the later ones since someone put a bend in this one. Also, you can see it had been modified not only in angle, but length. So, we have been debating what to do to make this as clean as possible. We decided to go ahead and modify the fancy adjustable one. I cut about 2” out of it at lunch today and made the cuts at 5 degrees effectively putting a 10 degree change in angle in it to match the other. In measuring where the rear landed so far, it is about 1/2” offset to the right. So, I made the bar adjustable from about 1/4” shorter to what could be up to an inch or two longer to account for where it lands when the weight is back on it. Anyway, I’m having one of our prototype build welders at work stick it back together for me since he is a WAY better welder than I am. It is sure handy working somewhere with all the capabilities we have from talented folks to tools like a waterjet when making or modifying parts.

    5EBB7EB2-5459-44EB-9E51-37E82FBEB2CB.jpeg
     
  12. Not much more to update yet this week after the thrash last week other than a couple things. I didn’t mention it previously, but last week when we mounted the tires, we had one that wouldn’t balance out. The guy doing the balancing had me somewhat concerned that the wheel might be the problem although I know it is more often the tire. Anyway, I finally got around to calling Wheel Vintiques today to see what course of action they wanted me to follow to make sure I could swap out the wheel if it happened to be the problem. They were very helpful and gave me a to-do list to see what the actual issue was. Anyway, we ended up heading to where we bought the tires to check it out and we found the tire was the issue. We were happy to find that since that is easier to deal with than having to ship a wheel back. Also, I gathered up the parts for my own pu engine rebuild and will take those parts to the machine shop tomorrow before the world completely shuts down.

    11C83662-E4EC-4A21-8AC4-5F526BA94D4D.jpeg
     
    Last edited: Mar 19, 2020
  13. DDDenny
    Joined: Feb 6, 2015
    Posts: 19,144

    DDDenny
    Member
    from oregon

    The front fenders can be tough to repair correctly, most people do a "quickie" patch, due to the bracing on the backside and it starts showing up again a year later.
    This is where the rust starts because the tires throw muck up in that area and never got cleaned out on trucks. There was a factory seal that did a poor job of deflecting crud but did a good job of holding it in, asks like a sponge and never dries out.
    I worked with a guy that redid his fenders a couple of times over the years so when I did my Suburban in the early 90's I found a pair of NOS GM fenders and a rocker panel.
    Some of the first repro rockers were substandard, may be better quality now.
     
  14. DDDenny
    Joined: Feb 6, 2015
    Posts: 19,144

    DDDenny
    Member
    from oregon

  15. Looking good Jeff an Silas! I'll be following along.
     
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  16. wheeler.t
    Joined: Oct 8, 2010
    Posts: 282

    wheeler.t
    Member

    I did a 60 gmc, it needed floors, rockers and cab corners. I actually found all of them on rockauto.com and they all fit reasonably well, priced for what they were and arrived quickly. It did need fender work too, but I found some OEM that were better to start than what I had. Hope this helps. Cool truck


    Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
     
  17. Thanks for all the info guys!

    Got my motor parts dropped off at the machine shop, put in an order for what we need to Summit to finish up the motor in this project, installed the panhard bar to get the rearend centered up, and picked up a couple 37-41 Ford dropped axles that need to get to St. Louis somehow...

    Oh, and received the incorrect lug nuts in the mail today that I now need to get straightened out through Wheel Vintiques...

    A7A73709-8060-4D85-98F2-281B3615630B.jpeg 85EAD5D1-2A94-4FD7-8E49-6884B1932526.jpeg
     
  18. TOMMAY
    Joined: Nov 11, 2005
    Posts: 88

    TOMMAY
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from MOBILE,AL

     
    chryslerfan55 likes this.
  19. TOMMAY
    Joined: Nov 11, 2005
    Posts: 88

    TOMMAY
    ALLIANCE MEMBER
    from MOBILE,AL

    Just looking at the pic of the gearbox bolted to the frame. I seem to remember that it requires a special washer between the gearbox and the frame for each bolt,at least on the 73/87s. Without it the frame will eventually flex and fail in that area.
     
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  20. Ok, thanks. So far, we are planning to just use the 63 gearbox that was on it. We do have the power box off the newer truck that we could possibly change to later.
     
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  21. Not much work has happened for the past few days, but we did receive the majority of the parts from Summit yesterday which should help while we are not supposed to be out and about much anymore in today's world. :( Pretty sure we now have all the parts to completely button up the motor other than paint and maybe a rebuild kit for the carburetor (if we decide to use the Holley 750 vacuum secondary that I have had for years). Anyway, also got inner and out rocker panels so we can start on some rust repair on the cab. Oh, and the new tire showed up yesterday at the tire shop, so we got it swapped out for the one that wouldn't balance too.

    And, I am pretty sure that we are slightly deviating from the original plan at this point on final color of the pu. Once we got the front clip off and then got it cleaned up to take it to the open house, I am pretty sure that Silas has decided he really likes the original turquoise and white. I actually like that idea quite a bit and told him that we could always do some custom paint on the white roof and sail panels or something if he isn't happy with a somewhat stock appearing look other than the wheels/tires/stance. That is sort of the style I actually like in general, so happy with his thoughts on that.

    Still need to finalize the colors of interior sheetmetal as well as firewall. At this point, he is thinking white (I am thinking off-white or maybe the original white that will be in the stripe and on the roof) on the firewall which I think is cool...just questioning the practicality on a daily. And, I think we may end up with the original light gold color for the interior. He needs to decide both of those fairly soon as we will actually be painting those areas even prior to finishing the outside so we don't have to take that stuff back apart later.

    And, because all posts are better with pics...he started putting some stickers on his back window...even though that piece of glass will come out soon. :cool:

    IMG_9669[1].JPG
     
  22. Trying out that “work from home” deal and liking it so far. :D

    8BA1B71A-92B8-4A82-83D6-4C1D179F4FFC.jpeg
     
  23. Well...never get done everything you want... But, we did get the rocker studs and guide plates installed, stabbed the cam, got the timing chain on, and started cleaning up the push rods and rocker arms. Might have finished more if we didn’t have to make two trips to the parts store to borrow a puller to get the old timing gear off in the middle of all that. It was good practice for Silas driving my truck though especially when it is running bad. Takes even more skill to drive now and thus why I will be building my own motor soon too.

    Thinking of “working from home” again tomorrow and maybe we can finish it up and paint it.
     
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  24. Thor1
    Joined: Jun 6, 2005
    Posts: 1,664

    Thor1
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    Jeff,

    I don't know how I missed your thread, but I am now subscribed. I am thrilled for you and Silas! What a great experience working together with your son. You are making some memories with him that he will carry with him the rest of his life. My oldest son Cody is the gearhead of my three kids. We have worked together through the years and I have tried to impart my wisdom to him such as it is. Sometimes you don't know if they are "getting it", but then they surprise you. A couple years ago Cody gave me this sign...it tore me up pretty good.

    upload_2020-3-26_21-57-25.png

    That is a sweet looking truck too. Years ago I had a '63 step side. It was a great little truck and I wish I still had it. I think the turquoise and white color scheme is going to look awesome as well. I look forward to seeing more of your updates.

    I hope you and your family are doing well with all of the craziness that is going on.

    God bless,

    Steve
     
  25. Very cool Steve! Thanks for the encouraging words. And, thanks for sharing your story about Cody as well.
     
  26. Jeff,
    I really enjoy your thread. My son and I are working together putting an O/T Ford Ranger together for my work truck. It’s super enjoyable to work with my son and teach him the stuff that Dad taught me. Soon we will start on my sons own Chevy C-10, but it’s too new to be here. Hopefully we will stumble across an older one and we can do a build thread. Being a SBC lover, what are the details on the engine, thanks.
    Andy


    Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
     
    1Nimrod likes this.
  27. Andy,

    Very cool that you are working with your son too! Passing this stuff on to the next generation is definitely fun. Thanks for the comments!

    As far as the engine, it is pretty basic. It is just a .040, cast piston, 350 4-bolt with a still-standard (which surprised me) steel crank. Another HAMBer (mow too much) gave the short block to my son before we even had the truck. We put a set of 291 casting heads with 2.02 and 1.60 stainless valves on it. We wanted it to sound decent but not be over-cammed, so we ended up with a hydraulic Comp Cams 12-319-4 (specs in pic) that we are hoping works well with the rest of the combination and the standard transmission. Otherwise, it is pretty stock other than he is running a set of my old roller tip Comp Cams rocker arms too I guess.

    He wanted this motor to look like it could have been built in the 60’s which is also why we ended up with an Edelbrock C3BX intake that we are putting the oil fill tube in. I would like to be able to run valve covers with no holes to finish the look, but will likely end up with an old set of Edelbrock finned aluminum ones at least for now that also have holes for oil fill and PCV. So far, I haven’t found what sounds like a good way to convert a newer SBC to be able to evacuate the crank case without just running the PCV valve in the typical valve cover location. My other son will have a 283 in his pu that is set up with the old crank case breather so will run an old set of Cal Custom valve covers on his. Oh, and we will just run some Holley four barrel (maybe the newest one I have which is a 25-year-old 750 vacuum secondary) and either a points distributor or a small-bodied electronic that at least looks old. I just had a co-worker give him a brand spankin’ new aftermarket HEI, but it will hit the firewall and won’t look right anyway. I need to pass that one on to someone that can use it.

    5CA5A0AB-1330-47CD-BCE7-ECBEA35E44ED.jpeg
     
    1Nimrod, Big mike 1968, Gammz and 8 others like this.
  28. AmishMike
    Joined: Mar 27, 2014
    Posts: 968

    AmishMike
    Member

    Notice in video - daily driver truck & sons 63 look like still have gas tanks in cab. Please take the time & effort & stick under the bed.
     
  29. ssracer
    Joined: May 2, 2011
    Posts: 107

    ssracer
    Member
    from oklahoma

    Hey Jeff. Only 5 miles away and just now get to see your new shop. Really like you and the boys project!!
    Keep up the good work.
    Vic
     
  30. Roothawg
    Joined: Mar 14, 2001
    Posts: 24,523

    Roothawg
    Member

    Looking good guys.
     
    Nostrebor and loudbang like this.

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