Hey yall, my names John. My old man has had a 1959 Chevy Apache 3600 sitting in the backyard waiting to be terrorized. Well, its time to terrorize it. For the most part, we want to restore it back to its former glory then give it serious balls. That being said, the front suspension and brakes are going to be kept original. The engine and transmission are hopefully going to have a mild built SBC 350 paired with a manual transmission. We want to swap the old manual steering for a power steering unit as well. Otherwise, this truck is going to be as stock as possible and used as a light duty tow vehicle. My questions for the people of the HAMB are: What manual transmission should be paired with the SBC (maybe 300-400) hp? We're looking to do light towing so nothing more than a couple quads. I have a th700r4 that came out of a motor home that could just as easily be swapped in but would that be better? If we do go the th700r4 transmission path, should we get a lockup torque converter or a lock-up torque converter kit? For the power steering, is there a known kit that whose gearbox fits the truck and steering pump fits the 350? Lastly, is it truly worth doing the front end swap? I ask because my pops and I love the higher stance the truck has. Also, it's 2018 and all the early cameras are difficult to find in the Las Vegas Area. My old man and I are not on a time crunch and were fluent in vehicles and welding.
I am old school...if you want a manual, then don't even think about a 700R4...I hate those... ultra low first gear, and when it finally goes into lock, I feel like falling asleep from pure boredom. You building something fun to drive or wut? I'd go old time 4 speed, Muncie, Borg T-10, or even Saginaw. Hurst with a tall stick. Bang some second gears for the onlookers On the PS kits for the stock front end.... I was just chatting with a shop owner who had to fix one. Seems there are two types for 55-1/2 to 59, and one has very poor geometry, causing bump steer. Hopefully someone who knows the best one will answer here. .
These two sentences are incompatible: " For the most part, we want to restore it back to its former glory then give it serious balls. That being said, the front suspension and brakes are going to be kept original. " By "cameras" I take it you mean Camaros for a subframe swap / "clip" I have always thought of those as crude at best, requiring a bunch of hack work and still look crude when done. Spend some time checking out dropping the original axle or a suspension that uses the original frame rails and is designed to fit properly. Power steering kits: https://www.speedwaymotors.com/1947-59-Chevy-Truck-Power-Steering-Conversion-Kit,25170.html http://www.classicperform.com/power2.htm https://www.ecklerstrucks.com/chevy...it-400-series-box-first-series-1955-1959.html
i'm not quite following your message? My 32 has sort of stock suspension, I dropped the axle, brakes are 40 front drums, rears are 55 Olds, on single circuit, bias tires...and..my Olds Rocket has very serious nuts. I run a super fast ratio steering box, and I've never come close to losing it, no matter how hard I launch, and it's my daily driver, too. he did :below .
Nothing wrong with that 700 if you set it up correctly A 5spd from a 90s 1/2 ton or 4.3 s10 could work The hamb friendly OD option would be a 3sp with OD Nothing wrong with that straight axle either Buy quality pads and add a dual master cyl with a booster Sounds like fun
Anthony to you and I, that's 4 wheelers. I got lost there too. I thought he meant dual quad carburetors for towing.
That truck came equipped with a 4.56 rear axle ratio. You can swap the center section from a later (up to 1972) 3/4 ton Chevy or GMC. Those later ones with automatics usually have 4.10 gears. You will not find any higher gears than that for that HO 72 rear axle. That may be suitable for you, depending on tire size.
The easiest route would be to find a V8 bellhousing, up to 1967, and install your 350, using the SM420 4 speed. A bolt in deal.
I had a 57 3800 years ago, pretty much the same truck. I swapped the rear end from a 80s 3/4 ton suburban into it, to get 3.73 gears to replace the really steep gears it came with. I put in a mild 454, and kept the SM420 four speed. It worked pretty well. I kept the front suspension and steering and brakes stock. I didn't have any trouble driving it. I don't know why you'd need power steering. Beware that there are power steering kits that have really horrible geometry. You can tell by the really short drag link.
I drove a '65 C30 long bed for years with a warmed up 283 and the SM420 4-speed. Rear was atrocious, like a 5.13 or so. It was wound up pretty tight by 55. Manual brakes, manual steering. It drove quite well and I'd like to have another one some day. It really was not that heavy either, maybe 3600 lbs.
Holy Crap! I got caught up with school and forgot to check back! I'm looking for something fun to drive and throw your head back in second gear, but pops is 61 and looking towards retirement and easy driving. I was leaning towards muncie transmission or the NV3500 in the 90s 1/2 tons. I've only seen one clip swap that looked great but its definitely not worth it to us. Most the swaps I've seen have been for lowering or bagging and we don't want any of that. Power steering would be a nice thought to install to be a daily driver. If it's not necessary then I won't even consider it. The more I can save to put elsewhere in the truck the better! We have a late 80s rear end that we were considering swapping in. I got to see what the code on the differential is before I actually know what it is but it came as a gift from my uncles wrecked 80s c10. I'm definitely going for 3.73 over 4.56 and 4.10s. I don't want to be able to tow a mountain For the brakes, should we upgrade to a brake booster or leave it plain and simple?
I would leave the brakes stock, but fix everything about them that might be worn out. Factory rear gears in most of the half ton Chevy trucks of this era were 3.90. 3/4 tons usually had 4.56, 1 tons had 5.13
You can always put a 70's-80's Camaro rear in as well- good gearing and you get an extra inch on each side, should you want a little wider rear wheel/tire
The Jalopy Journal
