"The 72" build
 

I finally decided to start my build thread on here. I bought this rust free 72 shortbed Chevy last December locally. It was originally from New Mexico so it has very little rust. Ive done some stuff so far, including slot mags and chrome bumpers. I hope to put a new engine in this winter. :burnout: it has a 307 with a 3 on the tree right now. i drive it to school everyday. My current plans are to put in a new radiator (which i already have). it has a tiny 1 row radiator right now and it overheats. It also has manual steering and the grant wheel i put on is just a little to small so i bought a 67-68 wheel that im gonna put on soon.

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Re: "The 72" build
 

Nice truck. I love the slots :metal:

Re: "The 72" build
 

heres the picture of my new steering wheel. im working on the radiator right now. the parts counter guy said the 4 row radiator i bought would fit right in but it actually needs new mounts. im waiting for them to come from lmc. id like the lower it too :metal: any suggestions on how much?

Re: "The 72" build
 

Nice truck, It makes me wish i never would have sold mine.

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yeah as the value of these slowly goes up, i hafta tell my self ill regret it if i sell it

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i sold my first 72.. to this day it still sucks that i sold it.:no:.. charles... keep working on it.. your on the way to a good build... :metal:

Re: "The 72" build
 

Great looking truck, it looks alot like mine did when I bought it.

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how much did you drops yours White? That thing looks sweet!

Re: "The 72" build
 

cool. I'll be following along.

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i havnt been working on this the last few days. im still waiting for my radiator mounts to come and i need to go to town to get paint for my steering wheel

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Do you have a side shot of truck? I'd like to see those slots as they look really polished up.

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im not sure if i have one, but ill take a good one tmrw. yeah i used polish that i bought for some semi truck wheels and i used it on these

Re: "The 72" build
 

Im in! love the truck! what's the plans future wants?! :)

Do you use your truck as a truck?

For a cheap job you could do some blocks in the rear, jeep springs.

Cut and thread your existing track bar and throw a tierod adjuster on there for adjusting

some shorter shocks (have to hunt on this lol..)

Front-get some drop spindles or cut a coil(s)

looks good man!

Re: "The 72" build
 

oldblue, id love to take your advice on the blocks for the rear, but its a leaf spring pickup. but i could do a flip kit or drop shackles. i dont use it to haul anything. thats what my f**d is for :lol: i really wanna do a 383 stroker real bad. and i dont wanna drop it too much since i live on a gravel road.

Re: "The 72" build
 

What color are you painting your steering wheel? It looks good as it is.

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well i know nothing about cheap lowering on leafs, maybe take som leafs out lol idk

cut the springs up front...but you will need an alignment afterwards

Re: "The 72" build
 

blue. my steering column is blue so i want it to match. yeah its in really good shape tho.

yeah oldblue, you can take out leafs but i dont think its that great of an idea. a flip kit will get you 5 inches of drop but idk if i want that much. you hafta notch your frame if you do a flip kit

Re: "The 72" build
 

yeah thats what my bud said for his 78 with flip kit..

Re: "The 72" build
 

my parts came from lmc today, and in a late nite wrenching session i got the new 4 row radiator in. it should cool better than my 1 row. it used to overheat within 15 miles every trip. but ill drive her to school tmrw and then post some pics :metal: next on the list is my steering wheel and maybe a new manual steering box. my steering is pretty loose

Re: "The 72" build
 

Attachment 632512
you be surprised how long it took me to get to this point. i had to chisel the old mounts off and putting the bolt in these takes some time. its kind of tight spaces underneath that thing.
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now thats a man sized radiator :metal: it didnt overheat on the way home from school :lol:
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heres a side shot for chevy88
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Re: "The 72" build
 

i also have forgot to tell you everything ive done to the motor so far before this build thread started. i put in a pertronix distributor, a new water pump, and a new heater core. on the interior, i put a new floor mat, and a new radio and speakers. that first interior shot was taken before i did that

Re: "The 72" build
 

good work! Now you'll be able to enjoy it more w/out worrying about overheating!

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thanks for the compliments! yeah the last time i drove it a long distance was to a car show and i had to stop twice on the 50 mile trip to let it cool down

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Thanks for the side shot, How wide are those rims?? Mine are 10 inch and tires look ballooned on front But I only have P275-15 on. But your tires look good.

Re: "The 72" build
 

truck looks good man!! ya need some centercaps!!

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mine are 8.5 inch wide. i got the 275's out back. what caps to you suggest? the guy i bought em from sent torque thrust type caps but they dont fit over the front hubs

Re: "The 72" build
 

Attachment 633547

those who dont live on miles of gravel, be thankful on the days it rains

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i put a coat of paint on my steering wheel tonite! it looks great! as far as i can tell, its gonn match my interior really good

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newstalgiawheel.com

They had some caps for slots at this booth in Nashville, this is off the card, they had em at the vendor booth at goodguys, i assume its on there site.

did ya prep your wheel EXTRA good lol, 40 years of greasy oily hands..what'd ya use to fill the cracks (or was there) jb weld maybe or did ya buy the 'special steering wheel repair epoxy)?

PICTURES

Re: "The 72" build
 

DANG you went muddin!

Miles of gravel roads huh..I remember SD as BIG open fields...lots of combines, and more BIG rolling hills!

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hahah call me wierd but i didnt do anything with the minor cracks on the wheel. i kind of like em. theyre pretty small. you cant even see the metal rod in the the center in any of em. yeah the roads have been a mess!!! you should see it today.... its worse. my poor slot mags. yeah next monday, the progress will slow down due to harvest starting. that will probly run a month. every nite after school till who knows how late

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haha shoulda jb welded em up!

if ya have to redo it, id jb weld sand/file em down and clean it GOOD lol, imma find a wheel to redo sometime

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yeah we'll see... if im not happy with it, ill redo it

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ive had another modification on my mind for awile. would you think its tacky to put a cb radio in my pickup? im obsesed with semis. almost more than old chevys. ive always wanted one but my dad will never put one in our trucks

Re: "The 72" build
 

ive been plannin out my 383 stroker and ive got a few questions. im gonna go with a 1996-2000 383 stroker block from summit. they said it accepts mechanical fuel pumps. do cams made for factory roller blocks have the fuel pump eccentric on the cam? and it seems like the roller grinds are way hotter than flat tappet grinds and they have the same power ranges. can rollers be alot hotter and still live on the street?

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yeah throw a cb under the dash and a whip out the stake pocket!!

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im glad you like the cb idea! ill prolly do it no matter what tho

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just dont make anything permanent and dont cut any holes lol (in case u change your mind) now send me your wheels/tires lol

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i thought you had a set of slots off a jeep or somethin. didnt you used to post on the slot mags forum?

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Yeah I got some slots froma 78 parts truck (frame) I bought

now I just need a 5 lug rearend or some conversion axles $$$$$$$$$$ lol