Projects Flat-N-Low's '64 C-10 thread

I don't see any evidence of "Stripers gone wild " in there , Brad must be going through the seven step program ! Things are looking good .

 

Aint it great to have a level headed friend around when you go into freak out mode?

 

No striping under the hood on this one, Phil. I like 'em subtle under the hood. The outside though, WILL have lots of 1-Shot. I don't want to give it away, but you'll like what we've got planned.

 

No doubt! I'm a bit too anal and lack patience due to my years of working in aerospace, and I need to relax more often. I'm waaaay better than I used to be, but I still have my moments when things aren't going to plan. I hate having to do things twice, especially when you've done such a meticulous job putting it together the first time. They never look as nice the second time around.

 

Brad told me you were a little anal. Oh well, what are friends for!
Aside from that it's looking great.

 

Had another good day today. We were able to get the cab mounts shimmed and adjusted to get the proper fender to door gap, and that was extremely important because it'll save a lot of body panel fit headaches later. Got all of the inner fender and core support bolts torqued, and sandblasted a bunch of parts that will need to be primed and painted soon. That will be my main focus tomorrow, getting these parts etch primed and ready for color.

Here's a few pictures of the front inner structure all bolted up:

 

Damn Alex!

 

Moving in a positive direction , I like it !!

 

looks good. Getting close to the first drive, getting excited yet?

 

first off, the truck looks killer!
secondly, any idea what the deal is with the steering stabilizer on the suburban clip? ive never seen one on a 2wd before. are you going to use that in your build? my studebaker is getting a 82 c10 front clip, with all the best parts the factory (and now junkyard) had to offer. i've already got the 1 1/4 camper special sway bar installed, and was wondering if the steering stabilizer wouldn't be a good idea while i had it apart.

 

I know, I can't believe it myself. I think I mocked up this entire front end at least 20 times before it got painted, getting the inner fenders and core support to fit the way I wanted it. You find out pretty quickly that back in the day, GM wasn't too concerned about panel fit. I had to slot a bunch of holes just to get everything to line up without being in a major binding condition. The original core support and inner fenders were cracked in so many spots that I had to get other ones, and I believe that it was caused by the two broken rear cab mounts that were causing the rear of the cab to sag, and it transferred that bind that all the way to the front. It was a mess.

Thanks, Phill! It's going together for what I hope is the final time, so yes, that is indeed a positive direction.

I'm still a little ways away from the first drive because I still have a bunch of stuff to do, but the list is growing smaller. I want to get this thing finished and on the road more than you can believe.

That stabilizer was on the Suburban, and all I could figure is that it was there because it had 33x11.5-15 tires on it all the way around. I'm not planning on running it because I've got a pretty small tire on the front, so I'm not expecting any steering issues.

 

ahhh. ok. so probably aftermarket? i probably won't need one as my truck is bagged and will have a 235/60/15 or so tire on it. but, none the less i'd like to stash one away just in case. i've been looking at the local yards for months after i saw you posted the picture of it, and have only turned up 4wd ones. if you decide to sell it, give me a shout.

i love the build. it's inspiring!

 

Yo Low... You don't need to use a stabilizer at all! When you get the alignment done, put a couple extra degrees of caster and it'll cruise just awesome. Also, make sure you put a front sway bar on that thing at the very LEAST (rear is optional)! If you don't you'll hate how sucky it is to drive!

 

Heh, heh, He said "sucky"...

 

Great thread ... I appreciate your detailed descriptions of each step in the build. A few may whine about the degree of "traditionalness" (!?) of a 60's pickup, but your approach could not be more traditional: start with an inexpensive vehicle that you like and building it with mostly junkyard and "found" parts that you modify to suit your purpose and that make the truck work better and look good without going broke in the process. I hope to see it sometime.

Thanks for posting.

 

i'll keep the caster in mind. i've already put an 1 1/4 sway bar on it from a "camper special". i was playing around with the air ride last week. i discovered if i put air in one side, it will lift the truck almost equally with out airing up the other. sure didn't do that with the stock 7/8 bar! it should handle pretty well i think. i will probably put a watts link in the rear when i get to the rear suspension. not sure yet on that. i program 4 to 6 thousand watt metal cutting lasers, and my boss is a hot rodder. so custom brackets and such won't be a problem for the rear. and my dad is a welder. so the possibilities are endless. 4-link? wish bone? irs? not sure yet. thanks for the help guys! now i gotta stop hijacking f-n-l's thread! its too good

 

Thanks, Bill!
I really like your statement about what the term traditional can be. Yes, the most common interpretation of that word is in relation to a style or an era, and that's a no-brainer. But, I have always felt that the term traditional can also mean the method in which you build something. I take great enjoyment and pride in building things using parts from multiple sources and spending a little time with a grinder and some paint to make it all look like the vehicle was born with it. I'm a hot rodder, and I really enjoy the traditional builds on this site where guys take parts from different makes and models and make it all work. Back in the day, many builders didn't have the luxury or the budget of ordering stuff out of a catalog, and they had to make do with what they had. To me, that's hot rodding.

I'm sure I'll see you out and about when I get this truck on the road. I know a few of the same guys you do (Rick Barakat, Pete Eastwood, and others), so I'm certain our paths will cross.

 

Really informative build thread and well described posts, projects built to this level and attention to detail really inspire especially done a very reasonable budget , look forward to more, and thanks for sharing !

 

Man you've got yourself one bad ass truck.

AWESOME JOB!

 

You know, when I look at those engine compartment photos, I keep thinking "man, theres a lot of room for a turbo and an intercooler up front..." Not exactly HAMB friendly, but then neither are those valve covers with the bolts in a funny place, so why not?

 

Just read the whole thread.. and damnit, i want more!

Can't wait to see this all done. So rad.

 

Wish I could see it in person.

 

This is a pretty cool build thread...
Keep up the good work.


.

 

Had some time off and got some suspension tweaking done. I wanted to drop the back of the truck down just a little, so I ordered a pair of 2" blocks from Boris at Street Machinery. Man, they make a nice piece. Solid billet aluminum blocks, no extruded crap, and the u-bolt length was perfect.
After installing the 2" blocks, it put the back of the truck exactly where I wanted it. I haven't had a chance to see the truck on the ground and sitting "right" in a long time. You will also notice in this picture that sliding the front wheels 1" forward when it got Z'd made a HUGE difference.



We got most of the bed wood removed today, and the next step is to cut the bolts that won't loosen (the ones that just spin) and then remove the wheel tubs. After that, the c-notch goes on, and the bed floor gets raised, followed by a bunch of other stuff that I won't divulge just yet. The ideas I have are going to be mods that I've never seen anyone do before. I think you'll like them.

 

I just let out a laugh that sounded way too much like a drunken Ed McMahon when I slowly rolled down to the new photos of the truck.... That stance is perrrrrrfect!

 

Geez! This thing is awesome. Your skill and attention to detail, blows me away. From being able to restore and convert your gauges, to swapping suspensions, it's incredible.

 

Looks like you've given yourself the perfect Christmas present!
Well done.

 

Ed McMahon....now that's funny, but I know the EXACT laugh! I'm really happy with the stance. Now the work begins.....install the notches, raise the bed floor, etc. It's easy to get them down on the ground, but the hard work is making them ride and drive nice.

Thank you for the kind words. I really enjoy the challenge of making things work better using easy to access parts that might be a bit unconventional. I think that I would have a lot of fun on the old "Junkyard Wars" show.

Thanks, Rick! Soon, I'll be motoring down to Bradbury and we'll go grab some chow in this thing!!

 

Nice job your truck is sweet. I have a 61 gmc and am putting a cross member in from a 78. You mentioned a box bracket is this to line up pitman arm? I am still cleaning it up to go in ,but looks like the pitman arm is wrong angle for stock box. Any help would be great thanks Gary

 

If I'm thinking of the same bracket, the one I bought is so I could use a power steering box. Is is a plate that bolts to the frame rail and has spacers that allow the use of a power box, which is a larger diameter and the bolt pattern is different, versus the manual box.

I'm also a member of www.67-72chevytrucks.com, and one of the members makes these, which is what I used:
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/showthread.php?t=332923