Projects 51 Chevy 3100 project

good looking start. your family will have fun im sure. ground down screw driver works best. i like making my own tools. toolbox full of specialty tools.

 

Nice start.....I'll second the bloke that posted two above me, I used a flathead ground to fit, then slipped it in my cordless impact and hammered em out....then replaced them with stainless allen heads....

as a gent on the first page said, expect the snowball effect....again see my sig line for one of many examples on here (also an AD.)

OH and you "6 month" build time....good luck, my pops has always said, figure out how much money and time you think you'll need and double it.....in this day and age....prob more like triple it.

 

Good score. I got a 54 and have been picking away at it for awhile. Looks to be a good truck. Have fun.

 

Levon, wow your truck and mine could be related patina wise. Yours is a bit earlier and doesn't have the door vent windows. Personally, I like that look better, but my wife likes the vent windows so they're staying.

Ok, sounds like I just need to grab one of my old screwdrivers for those clutch heads.

My son is heading home for college break today and is coming right by the place with the Camaro t5 for sale. He agreed to swing by and pick it up for me saving me a 2 hour drive.

 

Spent a lot of time this weekend tearing apart and repairing the door latches. Both were rusted up, and drivers door was so worn that it couldn't be opened from the outside. A few welds to build up worn parts fixed that. Cleaned & oiled both sides and now at least they're working.

Drivers striker is so worn that it needs to have a repair piece welded on. Couldn't get the screws out (which had been replaced at some time), but I WD40'd them so hopefully that will help.

Also grabbed the engine casting number, 3764476, so now I know I have a 58-62 235 thanks to info found here on the hamb.

The numbers on my Craigslist T5 tranny confirmed it was from an 86 Camaro/Firebird engine 2.8 V6 LB8 (not sure what the LB8 stands for). I think I'm going to be happy with this once I find a tail piece that will move the shifter to the forward location.
I looked up the gear ratio and used an online gear ratio calculator to help determine what rear gears might give a good driving experience. I plugged in 2500 rpm because I think I remember reading that the sweet spot for these engines is somewhere between 1500-2500 rpm.

Not sure if my table will make sense to anyone, but basically it is showing the speed in mph for each of the tranny gears (left side) when paired with a rear axle gear ratio (top).
I was thinking maybe 3.70... ?? With a 28 inch tire this should give me a speed of 72 mph in 5th gear at 2500 rpm.

 

Dude, do yourself a favor and buy some PB blaster. Between that and a little propane torch I got a lot of bolts out that I wouldnt have otherwise...

 

Spent some time tinkering with the engine and trying to figure out exactly what I have. These are the casting numbers I could find;
Block: 3764476
Manifold: 3835527
Head: 3836850






From my research it looks like I have a 1958-62 235 block. Manifold is from a 1951 216 (possibly from the original engine). And the head is a 86.2 cc either from a 235 or 261.

One thing I read was that you can't use a 235 manifold on a 216, but I have a 216 manifold on a 235 - so this combination will work?

Apparently so, because I did manage to get the engine to fire and run a couple times for 10-15 seconds, and the guy I bought the truck from said he did drive it around the yard a few times. At least I know I have a running engine to start with.

Information in the glove box shows the truck was last registered & inspected in Virginia in 1992.

 

where in Pa did ya snag it from, overall looks like a very good start, wish i still had my 53 and my 54

 

Pugs, I got the truck from Newville, PA right near Harrisburg. The guy I got it from only had it for a year and didn't do much to it, and he got it from a guy in Virginia.

 

You will enjoy building it I'm sure, good score and build to suit your taste!

 

What a fun little truck, congrats on the tow home.

 

Just made my first major parts order. Since the bed is barely hanging on I ordered new bed strips and the front panel. I realize that many here on the hamb would crank out a front bed panel in their sleep, but I'm just not up to that task. I figure I can save the side panels and tailgate, though. Main bed supports are rusty but appear to be solid.

Also ordered window rubber which is dry and breaking apart. All glass except the side windows need to be replaced anyways, and there's no way I can do that with the old rubber. I'll need door rubber eventually but that can wait for my wallet to recover.

I gotta start checking around for a place that can cut my glass for me. It's has to be cheaper than ordering pre-cut online, right?

When I had the engine running a couple days ago I noticed sparks at the generator. Turns out the belt adjustment bracket was broken so I pulled that out and welded it up. When I did that I noticed the other bolts are not even the correct size and one had no nut and was about to fall out.

Now that the carb has gas in it I can see that it's leaking. I'll have to pick up a rebuild kit for that.

 

Congrads on your troka. Check out these sites

http://www.stovebolt.com/
http://chevytrucks.org/

 

Pulled the generator out since I needed to replace one of the pivot bolts. While I was re-installing and lining up the belt pulleys I noticed the main crank pulley was bent. Not sure how this could have happened while in the truck. I'm thinking it must have been done either when the engine was out or being swapped in.



Anyone have any ideas how to fix this without pulling the pulley off? To do this it looks like I'll have to remove the radiator & maybe the front grill. Any tips?

I'm trying really hard to keep myself from tearing this thing down, but...

 

I found a local place that sells POR15 so I picked up a quart. Once I tear off the bed I'll need to clean up the frame and POR it. Also planning on doing the cab interior.
I'm hoping I'll get some time this weekend to start ripping.

At some point I'm going to have to hunt for a 6 lug rear axle. I want to keep the 6 lug wheels but need to convert to an open drive shaft to go with the t5 I have planned. I hear that late model Passports and a few others had a 6 lug about the right width (58"-62").

 

Managed to straighten out the crank pulley with a crowbar and re installed the generator.

 

Looks like you're getting right after it. I did too, but now it's in a 100 pieces. Looks pretty straight.

 

Yes, I hear you BlackLion, I'm trying hard not to tear things apart. I know that once I start tearing her down it will be years before I get it on the road. I need to stick to the plan for now and fix only the the things that are broken.

 

Carb was leaking so I bought a rebuild kit for $12. After pulling it apart I could see that the air horn was warped. Jumped on the net and discovered this is a very common thing for the Rochester Bs. Not sure if I want to go through the process of heating & clamping to straighten the thing out. As it wasn't warped too badly I filed the high points a tad bit which improved the fit greatly, and then I used two gaskets when reassembling.

Had a little time before it got dark so I bolted it in and gave it a try. Poured a little gas in the throat to get things going, and I thought I forgot to tighten something down because gas literally poured out around the base. After looking closer I could see that it was leaking around the throttle shaft.

But I cranked it over anyways and it sputtered to life. Ran rough for a couple seconds then actually smoothed out when I gave it some more gas. Ran for about 15 seconds before dying. Not sure why it cut out, but it was getting late for a Monday anyways so I called it a night.

I think I'll be looking for a new carb soon, but I'm hoping to get by with this one until I can discover & work through some of the other problems.

 

Weather was great this last weekend so I spent some time Saturday removing the bed. I plan to Por-15 the rear portion of the frame before it goes back on.




A previous owner had welded the bed sides to the rear cross piece so that had to be ground off for removal. Tailgate hinges were also welded on and rusted beyond repair. A little more rust repair than I was hoping here, but I suppose that comes with the territory.


New bed strips & front panel were delivered on Friday. I figure I can save a bundle and cut my own wood from Home Depot lumber. Haven't decided on wood type, but I'll probably just go with a good quality pine.

Also found a rear axle on Craigslist that came out of a 6 lug 4x4 pickup. Axle width is 64 inches which is 2 inches wider than what is there now, but it looks like I have that inch to spare on each side and still fit inside the fenders. Nice thing is the ratio is 3.42 which is what the Camaro t5 I picked up was originally mated to.
Tomorrow night I'm going to take the boys and make the 1 1/2 hour drive to pick up the axle.
Now I just need to find me that S10 tranny tail section and a drive shaft.

 

Took my two youngest boys (age 11 & 14) with me to pick up an axle I found on Craigslist. It's got the right gear ratio (3.40) and is 6 lug. A hair wider than ideal (this one is 64 inches - current one is 62), but if I measured correctly it should still fit under the fenders. Gears look good, but I haven't pulled the drums to check the condition of the brake components yet. I'm hoping the brake cylinders are still good. If anyone can tell by the picture the exact year and vehicle this came out of let me know. All I know is it came from a 70s 4x4.

 

Another nice weekend provided more quality destruction time for the old truck. I've got everything rear of the cab taken apart about as far as I can go. Removed the original torque tube axle, springs, hangers, and shocks. This is what she looks like now.



I'm planning on reusing the original springs since they appear to be in good shape. I will have to replace most of the bushings (might as well do all) and shackles.



I have a set of nice 67 Camaro mono leaf springs which I briefly considered using on the rear instead of the originals. The 70s axle spring perches are actually located at the right width and the springs would have bolted on right on. I would have just had to construct spring mounts, but I could have gained a few lowering inches in the process. Probably would have given a nice ride, but decided against it because of the dangers involved if a spring ever broke.

The truck had overload springs which I won't be using. Overload springs are shot, but figure I'll save the mounting bracket in case someone needs it.



Next step is to start grinding on the frame to get it ready for the POR15. Also need to order those bushings and spring perches. More $$s...

 

Nice jackstands!! MAn that all looks familiar. Dont get discouraged like I did, just keep on working and it'll eventually pay off. I just got back from roundup this weekend and that gave me a huge boost to get back to it.

 

Uhhh, go buy some $59.95 six ton jackstands so you get to watch your kids grow up. I wouldn`t get under that truck on a bet...

 

haha - yeah, I knew I was going to catch some grief about my jackstands. It's a lot more stable than it looks, but thanks for looking out for me - I'll invest in some stands.

 

We all look out for each other here. Glad you`re investing in safety.

Good luck with the project.
A few pics of ours..

 

Been awhile since I've posted, but I have made some progress. Got everything from the spring mounts back wire wheeled and cleaned as best I could and put on some POR15 to hopefully slow down future rust.

The thing that gave me the worst trouble were those two rear spring shackle bushings! I knew they had to come out because they were shot. Spent yesterday morning banging on em and trying to figure out the best way to get them out. I don't have a torch, and my sawsall blade was just too dull. Finally came up with this, and figured I'd post a couple of pictures just in case it might help someone else out.

I used one of the spring U-bolts, the washer that was on the shock mount, and a 7/8 half inch socket.


Placed the socket on the bolt and then inserted the bolt through the bushing. Placed the washer on and then screwed the nut down tight.


Put the impact wrench on the nut and had at it. The bushing was protruding about 1/16 of an inch and after tightening the nut down with the impact wrench this was enough to break it loose. I removed the U-bolt, and then I used my puller with a socket that was just slightly smaller diameter than the bushing to push the bushing the rest of the way out.


After a minute with the impact wrench on the puller the bushing was out. Whew!


Now I'm almost to the point I can start putting things back together.

 

keep going ,off to a good start.

 

Had a little time today so I removed the other backing plate from the 51 rear axle. Call me crazy, but I'm going to put the original 51 brakes on the 12 bolt axle. I did a mock up of the backing plates & drums on the 12 bolt and everything should work. The only mod needed is to shift the holes in the backing plates about 1/8 inch so they line up with the axle housing bolt holes. I'll weld up the holes, re-drill and I should be good to go.

I'll tell you one thing, though - those rivets that hold the backing plates on are a bear to remove!

 

Still making progress, but not real exciting stuff. Cut the old spring mounts off the 12 bolt and ground down the welds. Also cut the old shock bolts since they were rusted solid.

Re-drilled the backing plates (actually only had to fill & re-drill two of the four holes), and then wire wheeled the backing plates and painted with POR15. They're good to go as soon as the paint dries.

I've got a friend at work that has a Chevy AD and he says he's got lots of extra parts he's willing to sell. Brand new 12v wiring harness, rear shocks & brake shoes, gas tank, etc. I need to stop by his place soon to see what he's got.

Wish I didn't have to go to work tomorrow. Darn weekends are way too short!