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

that 55 is a bad look dude. I love the stance and wheel/tire combo

 

I am really enjoying this thread and that is a sweet task force truck!

 

It's cool to see the magnesium TTs on your other truck! They went to a good home here. Love the '64. Something that solid was my dream as a kid when my '63 sagged on the frame because of terminal rust.

 

chevy57dude-
How have you been? I was just wondering the other day how your '57 was coming along. I was looking through some of my old pictures and I came across a picture of the magnesium Americans right before I dismounted the Mickey Thompson tires and shipped the rims off to you in PA.

They definitely went to a good home. Putting them on anything less than a Gasser or a nostalgia Top Fuel Dragster would have been a sin.

 

Wheels and tires look awesome what tig wire did you use on the rim for the 64

 

amazing, I keep reading this thread and looking at the pics

 

Holy cow! That is an amazing work of art! No way you can hide that under the bed!

 

Totally Agree! Dude you need to put a glass bed on that thing. AWESOME!

 

It's been awhile since I posted, and I was hesitant to post any pictures of what I've been doing because I wanted to complete some of it first, then do a start to finish explanation. Today, I was doing a bunch of stuff, so I took some pictures to show a little bit of what's been going on.

This is an unattractive picture, but it shows how I raised the bedfloor 2.75". The bed wood usually goes underneath the flange that goes around the perimeter of the bed. I decided to mount the bed wood crossmembers on the top side of the flange, thereby raising the floor by the height of the crossmember (2.75"). The two primered crossmembers are ones that I made to support the floor in the area adjacent to the wheel tubs. In the stock configuration, the bed wood rests on the tops of the frame rails. Now that I raised the floor, there was no support for almost 36", so the crossmembers will now provide support. Without the supports, the wood would have snapped as soon as you stood on it.

Right now, I'm in the mock-up stage. When I'm done, everything from the cab to the back bumper will get removed, sandblasted, and painted chassis black.


I removed the gas tank from the cab to gain more cab room, and I didn't want to mount the tank between the rear frame rails because I want to utilize the factory spare tire location. So, that meant that the old saddle tanks that I almost threw away would be put back into service. Because the bed floor was raised, I built new tank mounts and moved the tanks up as high as they could go. I plan on sending out both tanks to Redi-Strip to be chemically stripped. When they get back, I will install new sending units and a vent system, and utilize the GM fuel tank solenoid switch from the '73-up trucks. I want to be able to switch tanks from inside the cab and use all factory parts. I was going to get really trick and fill the tanks using the factory filler neck, but I think I'm going to put access doors in the bed floor to fill the tanks. Here's a picture of the nasty looking saddle tanks.


I've been spending way too much time trying to save the original bed wood. It was cracked and broken everywhere, but after a lot of biscuits, filler shims, epoxy, and Liquid Nails, it's starting to come together. There is so much epoxy in those pieces that it they ever caught fire, they would melt instead of burn. I plan to cover them all with deck restoration paint, tinted in black. The bed strips will be sent out for powder coat. The wheel tubs were also moved up. I had to cut into the stake pockets so the tubs would clear, but it all looks factory. Here's shot of the wood just setting in place, with no bed strips.


I was also able to install the 67-72 Fleetside rear bumper. I still need to do a little tweaking, and the license plate box is a '73-up, which puts the plate at too much of an upward angle. I am probably going to build a new box, unless the factory 67-72 box solves this issue. Can anybody tell me if the license plate boxes are different?



That's enough for today. Tomorrow, I might try to tackle the spare tire mount.

 

Awe dude! That rear bumper flat makes it! I couldn't really see the picture you sent on my flip phone, so I was hoping you would post it tonight. Damn glad you did!

Thanks for the favor earlier in the day. Grant thought it was in Kingman, so he didn't run down the river after it, but I'll make contact this week and maybe take a day off this week and go.

 

The plate looks like it's at the same angle as mine......

 

Eric-
First of all, thanks for the tip on the sale at Brother's. I had been looking around for a set, even on ebay, and with shipping they would have still been around $80. The brackets, a set of bumper bolts, and California sales tax was $68. That was a good deal.

I also heard that the '82-'92 S-10 Blazer license plate box will fit with a little bit of modification. My box is bent in the center, and even after heating it with a torch, and whacking it with a mini-sledge, it refuses to straighten out. All of the ones in the wrecking yards are either bent worse than mine, or you have to completely remove the hitch assembly to get to the two upper bolts. It's not worth the effort. I may even build a new box that has the angle I want. I would prefer for the plate to be perpendicular because it'll work better with the hidden hitch I'm going to build. I'll make a template out of cardboard and then use Rob Lindsay's press brake that he just bought.

 

Yep, the phone pic didn't do it justice! Looks awesome!

 

Stellar work as always Alex.

 

Yep, lookin good. I like what your doing. Keep up the good work!


Posted using the Full Custom MUNDSTER app!

 

I did some work on the spare tire mount yesterday. I wanted to use the factory spare tire mount location, and now that the bed floor is raised, I have a little more room to tuck the tire up and out of sight. I don't like the look of the spare tire hanging down when it's up and installed. I also never cared for the clunky factory spare tire bracket and how much of a pain it is to take the spare in and out.

The first step was to blow out the rivets on the two spare tire crossmembers and remove them. One of the crossmembers is the small u-channel one on the top of the frame, and the other is the thin sheetmetal one about 12" back from the u-channel. This now makes an open space that if you place your spare tire winch correctly, you can stow a 27" tall tire between the frame rails.

I went to the local wrecking yard looking for a suitable spare tire winch, and unfortunately, our yard likes to use the area where the winch is to prop up the trucks, so there were hardly any that were accessible. Lots of guys have used Ford Ranger winches, but I could access any, so I wound up using a mid-'90s Blazer unit.

I built a simple bracket using a section of 1.5 x 1.5 angle iron, and I welded in some tabs on both ends. I wanted it up as high as it could go, so I made it level to the tops of the bed floor crossmembers. I went a little over-kill on the bolts (1/2" diameter, 2.5" long, Grade 8).

I mocked it up, using the two aft bed floor crossmembers as the supports. I could have mounted it one of two ways. Either with the jackscrew facing aft, or facing to the side. I would have preferred to have it facing aft and have the end of the shaft extension wind up behind the license plate, but that wasn't possible. When I raised the bedfloor, the bedfloor crossmembers went up 2.75", but all the other crossmembers stayed in the same location. The jackscrew shaft would have had to change direction a few times in the 18" distance for it to work, and even with a flexible shaft, that wasn't possible. So, I decided to move it to where the jackscrew faced to the passenger side. The reason for the passenger side is because if I ever have to change out a tire on the freeway, I don't want to be laying out in the road trying to get the spare tire out. I wound up using a factory GM flexible shaft from a mid-'2000s Chevy/GMC truck. I haven't built the bracket to support the end of the shaft yet, and I'll do that today. It'll be a bracket that will bolt to the passenger side frame rail with a tube welded to the top. The tube will have a .750 inner dimension, and the extension will slide inside it. The end of the extension will have a 3/8" end on it where I can use a ratchet to raise and lower the tire. Here's a picture taken from the passenger side.

Driver's side

From the rear looking forward

Here's a picture from underneath. It's a bad picture, but you can see that the spare is completely tucked out of sight. The bed floor crossmembers are now the "stops" for the tire. The tire sidewall is even to the bottom of the frame rail. You cannot see the tire at all unless you get on your ear and look up. Disregard the old tire and wheel. I found one in my pile that had the size I needed, and this was only used for mock-up. You go with a large as a 27" tire. You could probably go a little more if you trimmed the frame rails.


Next step: Building a trailer hitch. The hitch crossmember will also restore the frame strength that was lost when the two spare mount crossmembers were removed.

 

When you installed the rear bumper did you move the brackets towards the rear? On my install i mounted the bumper to the 72 brackests and the clearance between the bed and bumper has me worried as its not much.

 

My bumper is really tight, also. I'm doing a lot of bed work right now, and my bed is not in it's exact position. When I get the bed bolted down and finalized, I'll look and see what I've got and make the necessary adjustments. Worst case scenario: I may have to elongate the holes in the brackets. I want the bumper to fit nice and tight, but not making contact with the bed.

 

I'm thinking I'll elongate my brackets .....BTW I really like your ideas

 

always cool to see updates on this truck

those welds are sexy

 

Worked around the house for most of the weekend, watched my Kentucky Wildcats win their Final Four game, and I got a couple of things done on the '64.

In my last set of pictures, I still hadn't finished the support for the end of the spare tire cable reel jackshaft. I wanted something that was strong and secure, was adjustable, and allowed the jackshaft to spin freely. So, here's what I came up with:

I got a cheapo 3/4"-16 rod end from ebay ($7), got a 3/4"-16 coupling from Osh Hardware ($6), used an old 3/4" flat washer I had, and made a bolt. When you get up to 3/4" diameter on a bolt, it's nearly impossible to find one in a 3/4 inch length. I had a long bolt and a castellated nut, which I ran down all the way to the shank and then chopped it off flush with my band saw. I fired up the Mig and welded the nut at two of the castellations. Now I had a 3/4" diameter bolt in a 3/4" length.

I drilled a 3/4" hole in the passenger frame rail and bolted it all together. Works great!

This is the view looking up from just behind the rear tire. Lots of room, and I'll have easy access to the shaft if I ever need to drop the spare.


I'm also doing a lot of advance planning for the next upcoming task, the fuel tanks. I ordered the sending units, and I should get them this week.

 

This thread has it - stance, great advice, junkyard tech, and a laid back vibe. Only thing it needs is an update!

 

If I know Alex, (and I do!) he's been working his ass off at his regular job.

 

This is why I love The Hamb. Little stuff like your spare tire jack and using the factory tank switch setup is the kind of details I think really set everyone here apart.

 

This is my favorite build thread going. I love this thing - going to be the coolest shop truck ever.

 

WOW! What a great build!

~ Carl

 

Thanks for the nice compliments, guys.

This week, I've been working on the fuel tanks in the evenings after work. I've cut the holes for the sending units, and I've ordered the bolt-on fuel flanges, the push thru caps, and the rollover vent valves. One of the tanks had a MASSIVE beehive inside of it that was probably 15"x10"x10" in dimension. It took me a long time to get it all out. So long, in fact, that my shopvac decided to die and it looks like it's time to get a new one.

In the end, it'll probably work out where I will have spent more on retro-fitting the old tanks than it would have cost to buy new ones. That's no big deal to me, though. I'm one of those people who likes the challenge of making old stuff look and work better than new stuff.

I'll post up some pics when I'm a little farther along on the retro-fit.

 

I've been working a lot on the fuel system on the '64, and I figured that it was time to start posting up what I've been doing. I did a ton of work on the tank(s), but I have a few more things to do on them before I'm ready to post up my progress.

I was drawing a blank on how I wanted to vent the tanks, and I came up with probably a half dozen ideas, and none of them got me excited. I didn't want a clunky looking system, and it had to perform well. I did not want a vent system that made the inside of the garage smell like raw fuel, so I needed to make a filtered vent system.

If you remember a few months back, I built two extra crossmembers out of 1"x3" tubing to support the middle of the bed floor after I raised it. I decided that the forward crossmember would now serve two purposes, support the bedfloor and vent the tank. Here's what I did:

I wanted a vent system that had the opening to the atmosphere higher than the tank outlet so it could vent most efficiently. The bedfloor crossmember was about the only thing above the tank because I raised the tanks as high as I could get them for extra ground clearance. I decided to utilize the crossmember as a vent chamber. I came in 10" from each end of the crossmember and made a cut:


I then cut a piece of .125" thick steel to the inner dimension of the tube:


And slid it into the cut. I made it a tad bit shorter on the top so I could get a good weld on it:


Welded and ground smooth. Now, the tube has the first part of the chamber.


I bought a couple of cheap K&N clone filters off of ebay for $5 each, and cut a section of steel tubing from a scrap power steering pressure line I had laying around and drilled a hole in the crossmember and welded the tube into place. I took a 1/4 NPT x 1/4 barb fitting and threaded it into the tube as well. The barb fitting will be the connection to the rollover vent valve on the tank. The area that is marked with a Sharpie shows the size of the chamber. When it all goes back together for the final time, I will fill the chamber with activated charcoal . The section on the end that is unmarked will have a foam plug to contain the charcoal, and there with be a plastic tubing cap on the end. This will give me the capability of reservicing the charcoal at a later date, if needed.



There you have it. A cheap ($7 in parts) fuel tank vent!

I will post up the progress on the tanks very soon. I wish I would have taken more pictures of what I did.

 

It's about time you posted your progress. It's looking good and I can't wait to go for a ride. Even if it is only a short one in a parking lot.

 

Cool man! Good to see you getting back too it.