Re: Frankentruck
 

Nice job on the air cleaner, thats slick.

Re: Frankentruck
 

Thanks! I can't take all the credit though, I just painted it. Jay welded it up for me and made it work great

Re: Frankentruck
 

What do y'all think?
1) current 15x8 truck rallies, but get factory, metal center caps to go with them
2) 15x8 4 nub steelies
3) 15x8 4 nub steelies with Biscayne hubcaps
4) 15x7 Western Slot Mags
Not pictured) 15x8 4 nub steelies with original 63 c10 hubcaps (would need to find caps)

I want to switch it up a bit, but I don't know what to decide.

I know I can get plastic repop center caps, but I would rather have metal ones if I keep the rallies.

If I go with the 15x8 steelies, I'll need to find 3 more of them. (Just bought this one yesterday)

If I go with the slot mags, I'll need to find either 2 more 15x7s or 4 15x8s (Because I drive the truck so much, I want to be able to rotate my tires)

Please comment below!

Also, I'm waiting on some parts to show up before I can swap in the overdrive trans. I'm hoping to have that done before classes start back on the 14th of January.

Re: Frankentruck
 

After I messed around with the wheels, I decided to uncover the door logo that took me almost 3 years to notice it was there :lol:

Wet sand with 1000 grit for awhile, and this showed up.

It is not the original door to the truck, but it does explain why that door is yellow

Re: Frankentruck
 

I like option 1 or 3. Leaning towards #3 though, but I do like the center caps. On your truck, I think these 2 look better than the other options. JMO..

I have option 1 on my truck with the metal center caps. I might end up putting rally wheels on mine, so my centers may be up for sale soon. My wheels are 5 lug, but the centers should fit (I think).

Re: Frankentruck
 

Thanks for the input :metal:

My truck is 6 lug, so the rally wheels require 6 lug caps. The 5 lug wheels in your build thread are also truck rallies, but they came from a 2wd truck. My 6 lug rallies came from a 4wd truck

Re: Frankentruck
 

If you decide against the 15x8 steely let me know. 👍🏻

Re: Frankentruck
 

Already had you in mind if I don't use it :lol:

Re: Frankentruck
 

It's been awhile since I actually did any major work on the truck, so let's get caught up.

The week before Christmas I worked for UPS as a driver helper. It is a seasonal position, so I knew that they wouldn't need me after Christmas. Over the summer, I worked for Advance Auto Parts, and my boss wanted me to come back and work whenever I was home. I started working for Advance again last Thursday, but today I finally got a chance to pull the old trans.

Everything was going great. Trans came out super easy, swapped over the shifter levers because the old trans levers were in better shape than the new trans, and was ready to get the new to me overdrive trans in. Being a much heavier trans, my dad worked the floor jack while I guided the trans into place. The trans slipped right in once we got it lined up right. I started putting everything back together and it was going great. Looked like I was going to be able to get everything bolted up and ready to go by tonight.

That's when the one thing struck again.. I did not realize that the output shafts were different :mad: Now I need to get the yoke on the driveshaft changed so I can hopefully finish the swap before I have to go back to school.

On a better note though, I was able to purchase a set of rally wheels that had center caps and bands. I just need to get the right screws so I can mount up the caps on the wheels currently on the truck. Not sure if I am going to run the beauty bands or not

Re: Frankentruck
 

Hopefully you’ll get the driveshaft sorted out before you go back.

Re: Frankentruck
 

I think I should be able to, I just need a chance to. I've been working a lot this break, and add all the rain that we have been flooded with, it leaves little time for me to work on the truck. Hopefully I'll be able to call some local shops about getting a yoke, and maybe having them install it if the price is right

Re: Frankentruck
 

Christian ,if you need more 15x8 6 lug Steelie wheels , I just bought another set with tires to sell .You know where I am .

Re: Frankentruck
 

Thanks John, I think a trip to the truck farm is in my near future :metal:

Re: Frankentruck
 

Got a little bit of sunshine today, so I spent some time messing with the wiring harness and mounting the lockdown switch. I've figured out where I'm going to mount it on the Quadrajet, but making the bracket is my issue. I have limited fabrication tools, but I'll make it work.

I also put the trim rings on my wheels to see how they look. I wasn't a fan at first, but they are kinda growing on me. I do love the caps, so now I have to decide if I want to run caps with no trim rings or caps and rings

Re: Frankentruck
 

I like it with Rings .

Re: Frankentruck
 

I do too. I like how they make the wheels look better because you can't see most of the scratches in the paint

Re: Frankentruck
 

I like the rings too

Re: Frankentruck
 

Thanks for the input and following along :metal:


I've pretty much decided to run the caps and rings for awhile. I just want to get this trans swap finished up so I can drive it again

Re: Frankentruck
 

Got a lot done on Frankentruck today. Got a new, 27 spline slip yoke at a local driveshaft shop, and the guy was super nice and installed it for free. Best part was that my u joints are still good, and he was able to reuse them.

Finally figured out the screws issue with the center caps so I was able to get 3 of the 4 mounted today. That last one I need to pull the wheel off so I can drill the holes for the screws I am using.

After I got that done, I continued working on making a bracket for the kick down switch. I had a flat bar of aluminium from when I added tie down points, so I just used that and made it work. I used a hammer and a vise to bend out where the switch mounts, and I used a hack saw to make all the cuts. The only power tool I used was my drill to drill the 3 holes. I smoothed everything out with a file, and will probably put some paint on it if I can get some warmer weather. Not sure if I should paint it black or clear coat it?

Re: Frankentruck
 

Tomorrow should be a better day for you to work Christian . I hope I feel up to some work tomorrow after my Ambulance Ride to Northside this morning . My day SUCKED BADLY .

Re: Frankentruck
 

Aw man, that sucks! I hope you feel better man. What happened?

Tomorrow we have to move some more furniture out of my grandparent's house. Sunday is going to be a great day to hopefully finish up the swap

Re: Frankentruck
 

Christian , I was clearing very Moldy furniture and Junk out of a storage area at work and had an Alergic reaction to the mold . It caused my throat to almost close up and the Workers Comp people told me I needed to have someone call 911 and get me to a Hospital. They gave me a steroid shot and a Pee test and let me escape a few hours later .Feeling better but still wired up from the shot and my throat is still scratchy . That mold was growing some serious HAIR all over everything .

Re: Frankentruck
 

Dadgum! That mold is some nasty stuff! I'm glad you're on the mend though. That stuff must have been sitting in storage for a long time

Re: Frankentruck
 

Keep an eye on that aluminum bracket. Most all aluminum flat bar is 6061-T6 which doesn't like to be bent. It is quite possible that bend will crack.

Re: Frankentruck
 

Thanks Captainfab I was not sure what it was made of, and that explains why it did crack a little bit even though I put some heat to it while bending. I am probably going to remake the bracket at a later date, but I'm trying to work with what I've got so I can get the truck back running again. Not sure if this makes a difference or not, but I can't easily bend that part of the bracket with my hands.

When I remake it, what material would you suggest I use given the tools at my disposal?

Re: Frankentruck
 

I would make it our of say 1/8"-3/16" steel. If aluminum is easier, then get a piece of 5052 aluminum sheet to work with. That alloy will bend without cracking.

Re: Frankentruck
 

Thanks! I'll be making bracket number 2 fairly soon

Re: Frankentruck
 

Quick update:

Got the driveshaft in today, put some gear oil in the trans, put the lockout cable back, and continued to repair/modify the wiring harness. I could drive it in lockout right now, but I really want to test the overdrive during the first test drive. It's so close!

Re: Frankentruck
 

I got a lot of stuff done yesterday and today on the swap.

Got the kickdown switch mounted yesterday after running some errands and laid out where the harness needed to go. I did not have a clamp for the lockout cable at the transmission, so some zip ties worked perfectly :lol:

This afternoon I extended the wiring to the kickdown switch, wired up the relay for the HEI cut out, and plugged everything up. After that was all done, it started to get dark and I realized that I did not have a fuse for the power wire. I'll get that done tomorrow and hopefully be able to go for a test drive :metal:

Re: Frankentruck
 

I was able to drive the truck today, but overdrive won't engage. Not sure yet if it is the lockout lever not all the way back, or the kickdown switch wired wrong, or a bad solenoid, or a combination of those.

It does drive good in lockout mode though. Seems that there is a different gear set in this trans compared to the old 3 speed. Definitely seems to get up and go a little quicker now

Re: Frankentruck
 

Truck looks good....Love to see younger people so involved with these trucks

Re: Frankentruck
 

I enjoy reading your thread...because, like John said, I enjoy younger people that love old cars and trucks Good job on everything.

Re: Frankentruck
 

Thanks John and Andy! It's been a fun project, and I've been able to spend a bunch of time with my dad working on it



Today's update:

Still haven't figured out why the overdrive won't engage, but the truck drives great as a regular 3 speed. It is definitely something electrical related. I believe the relay works, the kickdown switch is new, and I took the wiring harness apart today and fixed the last few areas that needed to be fixed. I still need to check the governor and the solenoid tomorrow, but I don't think I will be driving the truck back to Milledgeville on Saturday. That really sucks, but that's how it goes sometimes

Re: Frankentruck
 

Its so awesome that you are getting to work on your truck with your Dad...you will have these memories forever.

You can figure out the tranny issue Im sure....Mine has a late lockup valve so I don't have a wiring harness that goes with mine

Re: Frankentruck
 

All those memories are why I don't want to sell the truck even if it has to sit for awhile.

Is your trans a 700r4? Mine is a Muncie sm319 from a 65 truck. Same length as the old 3 OTT, but has a planetary gear set in place of the tailshaft. When functioning properly, the trans is designed to shift in and out of overdrive by itself. I have a plan tomorrow to execute after work so I can hopefully get it to work right

Re: Frankentruck
 

Hey Christian...do you remember what color green you painted your valve covers and other engine parts? Thanks

Re: Frankentruck
 

I used a rattle can because that's all I have access to. Detroit Diesel Green, also known as Alpine Green. I think it was Duplicolor brand, but I don't remember the brand for sure. It's the closest match to the 292 and 327 color in rattle can form, and I like it better than painting the engine grey

Re: Frankentruck
 

Wow! I don't know why I didn't look at this thread sooner!
This is one cool truck build!

Re: Frankentruck
 

Thanks! Sometimes I hate it, and other times I love it :lol:

Re: Frankentruck
 

Well, I have some unfortunate news... Solenoid is bad. Full of gear oil, which causes them to fail, and won't do anything when I put direct power to it. I did pull the governor out and check it, and it seems that it is ok. The governor isn't really a common failure point like the solenoid is, so I'm not too concerned about that part