Rustbuket 67 build "Georgia"
 

So it's about time I started my own build thread so here it is. I bought this piece of junk off of ebay about 5 or 6 years ago from Georgia (mistake). Yes I was dumb enough to buy it off ebay first of all, then spend $500 in gas to go get it and bring it back to Oklahoma. Well i paid something like $980 so it wasn't that bad and at the time an unmolested 67-72 in Ok would start at $2500 of course now with the economy they are a bit cheaper. well I got it home and couldn't register it because the seller wasn't the last to register it and they only give bill of sale for old vehicles so I had to do a mechanic lean sale deal aka "title 42" in Oklahoma to get a title for it. well It kinda sat around for a few years due to a lack of funding, then it was remodeling the old house, selling the old house, having a baby (well the wife did that), buying a new house and moving all my junk. Now I seem to have lost the old pics of it so heres the best one i can find. It had a 283 w 3 on the tree open 373 rear with 6 lug wagon wheels and lots of rust (first pic) then my current avatar pic how it looks now (second pic) and the old black 95 that i got the wheels from, sold the truck and kept the wheels. they are Budnik Famosa 20x8 and 20x10.

Re: Rustbuket 67 build "Georgia"
 

arrgh, pics didn't work. 2nd try

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The front wheels are not really on there just posing for the pic, still has 6 lug drums on the front. So next (at the old house) the only things i got done was change the oil (made it smoke worse), new plugs, fuel pump, rebuild the carb. then stripped the pass side bed side to bare metal, shaved the stake holes and welded up all the trim holes and screw holes from po's reattaching the trim. Sprayed it with some slicksand. I plan to strip it all back off since that was my first spray with a real paint gun and i goofed it a little and lay down some epoxy prime.

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Gotta love those wagon wheels!! note: they were 15x8 and 15x10 all 4 had 235/75/r15 the rears looked like coneheads stretched over those disgusting hoops. more stake hole pics and a redneck dent puller. I couldnt get to it anyother way, it was dented in on the corner looked like it was hit with a pipe. the heat from the weld and being able to pull on the bolt worked out nicely.

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Heres my shave and prime job, not to shabby but my first coat was too wet so had to sand alot of sags n drips.

Re: Rustbuket 67 build "Georgia"
 

So then I got moved into my new house and swapped the rear axles out for some 5ers. I pulled a whole rear end (also 373 open 12 bolt) from a 71 at the wifes grandpas farm. i was going to swap it in but the yoke had some rust or dirt in it and was quite crunchy when i spun it. so I researched swapping axles and priced new ones and It turned out to be my lucky day my 6 lugger was the rare long 70 not the original 67. I measured and measured and made sure the housings were the same and they were and i finally uncovered the date code on my rear, it was manufactured late in 69. so i swapped the 6ers out and stabbed the 5s in. it was pretty easy, remove this bolt (circled) in pic so the king pin can slide out (arrow). second pic removing the kingpin. third pic push the axle inward and remove the c-clips the slide the axles on out.

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much better ! but there is definately too much air under there :ito: sold the wagon wheels on CL for $10 :metal:

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FYI the stake hole filler plates were from Infanti machine I bought them on ebay i think the were like $10, fit great they also have a website and the have gas fillers and firewall fillers with nice low pricing. I got a new to me front clip from a buddy for free, well traded some welding work on his truck for the clip for mine. its the brorange fender in the pic. the truck was baby blue when i got it but after removing the glass it looks like it was originally a medium blue. so now it is baby blue, brorange, prime grey, yellow(tailgate), and black (new fender) and a white roof. now if i could just find a red door.... just kidding the doors are from a 68 hillbilly prostreet truck i traded for years ago and scrapped. I plan on putting the original 67 vent windows in the 68 doors because i like the old 67 - vent handles better.

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so then the next step I sold the old smoker 283 as much as i wanted to keep it I already had 2 engines and 3 trannys in the garage so I sold it on CL for a cool $100. I started building "plan A" an old 70s 350 cast # 3970010 high nickel block 010 020 casting .060" over stock stroke, ARP mains, ARP Wave lock rod bolts, weight matched and resized rods, Summit racing rebuild kit with flat top hypereutectic pistons. had the whole rotating assembly balanced to spin 7k rpm.

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Shaving the gas hole. another fine Infanti machine filler, $20 i think on ebay.

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This is why I named my self rustbuket! ahhhhh rust everywhere ! luckily i live near classic auto parts in OKC www.classicchevroletparts.com/so i saved on shipping except the rear pillar or "b" pillar, had to buy that from LMC. Id guess about $200 in replacement steel on just the driver side. Dont waste your money on the inner rocker it is too short vertically unless you just want scrap metal to fill holes with. i used the floor edge repair piece that includes the inner rocker and a few inches of floor for the whole length of the cab.

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There's my "A" pillar patch!!!:lol::lol::lol:

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cutting out the cancer and a little test fitting. a little advice_ If the rot doesnt go up as high as the hinge on the "a" pillar dont cut it to match the repair patch, cut it about an inch under the lower hinge hole. trust me this was a pain !! if you do you have to figure out how to reattach the cage nut thing to the repair piece so the cage nut doesnt fall into the kick panel when you remove the door later on causing you to cut up your truck again. thats my opinion anyway.

Re: Rustbuket 67 build "Georgia"
 

Did some media blasting with a pot style blaster and a hillbilly blast tent made out of pvc and drop cloths to try and contain the media, made a huge mess with minimal results. the floor edge repair piece fit like a glove .... on OJ . just sayin. on my cab the one rear cab supprt hole lined up, they didnt punch the second one for some reason, the seatbelt hole had to be opened up a bit with a air die grinder due to the hole not being centered over the thread in the cab support, then the biggest problem the fron holes to the cab support were about .375 off thats 3/8 for you fraction people. so being a dummy i cut a section out and welded it back together. Dont do this just slot the dang holes and save yourself the aggrivation.

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Hey your the first to find my thread ! I could pick one up for you after church tomorrow and mail it to ya. might get there faster..

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did I mention you have to shave about .125" or 1/8" off the bottom of the floor edge to get the rocker to fit onto it ? if i made a part like that at work i would be embarrased. seriously i work within .030 personally i shoot for .010 on sheetmetal. Dont get me wrong id rather buy it than make it but man use a tape measure before you go having a die made to stamp these things! more test fitting and coating the inners of the cab supports with some POR15

Re: Rustbuket 67 build "Georgia"
 

I hear ya!! Your build looks great!!! (you've been holding out on us):lol:

So what's your overall plan? If you don't mind, how old are you and what do you do for a living? :chevy:

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It's nice to have all these aftermarket parts and patches,,,,,would be even nicer if they fit.

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here i blasted the driver side stake holes out, prepped and painted with POR15 before i weld in the filler plates just as i did on the pass side. the tape is to keep the POR off the welding surface that stuff is nasty messy!! you can get it off your skin with acetone within 5 minutes otherwise your stuck with it for a few weeks. also applying some POR15 in a few trouble areas.

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Looks like a good start and nice progress you have going on!

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the fourth pic is looking up inside the "A" pillar. I looked up in there and it dripped on my face right next to my eye! smooth I know right. I used a 2" paint brush taped to a paint mixing stick worked great, on a side note I bought some of the "dauber kit" from POR and they are craptastic! for one the fuzz ball is too big to get into the corners and they leave all kinds of fuzz in the paint so dont waste your money just buy a cheap paint brush at lowes and tape it to a mixing stick. another piece of advice dont buy the chinese paint brushes from POR15 they will leave bristles in your paint, go to lowes or wherever and buy a cheap economy paint brush, no stray bristles with those !

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coming alone nice

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Finally getting to burn some of this floor together. my flux core is kinda frustrating wish i had the millermatic from work in my garage right about now. I bought a true MIG conversion kit for my hobart handler but I havent had the spare funds ($300) to go buy a bottle full of argon/co2 yet so I will have to suffer the flux !!
The "hump" by the front seat mount proved to be a challenge, the pitch didnt match so i had to do a bunch of pie cutting and welding. I used a weld backer that I made out of an aluminum block and some scrap steel pieces to minimize blow through and absorb the heat with the old fluxer and i welded the whole floor edge top and bottom, yes i layed on my back (not directly under) and welded the floor from the bottom after i finished the top. then finished it by using a grinder and stepping down to an air angle die grinder (my best friend) works great in tight spaces and you can use different grit roloc discs so you dont grind through or put too much rash into your work.
I have invested a serious amount of beer in this floor.
my advise: dont try to do it in one day, take your time, I did probably 20 test fittings over a 2 week period before i burned it all together.

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Here I am attaching the "A" pillar. since i cut it up too high as i said previously I used a piece of scrap aluminum (.125) to back the welding surface retained by a sheetmetal screw in the lower hinge hole. Thinking i didnt want any porcupines (stray weld wire) hangin in the way of the hinge mount cage nut thingy. I welded across the front only where the hinge attaches so it would have just enough flex to cram the kick panel in behind it. then i welded the bottom of the cage nut thing to the "A" pillar.

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I need to take some more pics of the floor and progress but heres a few other pics, first is my 59 2 door brookwood chevy wag that a few have asked about. and the "plan B" i just found for a drivetrain donor. Its a 97 chevy tahoe vortec 5.7/4l60e the trans was built last year and the engine was rebuilt about 50k ago, bought it from a friends family member so if I need to I know who to squeeze (if theyre lying).. got the drivetrain pulled, the trans has obviously been pulled since the tranny mount is split in half, the trans x member was missing a bolt and the trans cooler lines were cut and reattached with rubber trans hose. Too dumb to remove the push to connect 4L60e cooler fittings i guess. Runs and drives like a dream way better than my DD 93TBI but the front susp was a little wabbly, frame was bent in a front end crash. I paid $600 for the tahoe, I was saving up for aluminum heads for "plan "A" but was thinking id be in it for atleast another $2000 before i could run it and i kinda want to be able to afford gas to drive it around. plan "A" was going to use an M20 muncie 4spd with a carbed 350 (4.06x3.48) 400 HP but the old 12 mpg was not looking too well so here goes the Vortec EFI/overdrive option and Im getting rid of my muncie M20 4 spd

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Finally, I get my picture of your Brookwood. (thanks!) :ennyd:

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We pulled the drivetrain out of the tahoe over at my buddy darrells house. He is my hero, twice my age just retired and he can work faster than me. He builds hotrods, paints cars and raises his grandkids. he's standing next to the tahoe. (im pic shy) did I mention he is my hero ?

also theres a pic of a 47 thriftmaster truck that darrell has for sale, supposedly sold pending payment, wish i had room I would have bought it !!

Darrell is one of those real friends who will help me and let me use his garage to yank an engine since my HOA frowns upon such behavior, dont worry I return the favor and pay him (or attempt to) for his assistance.

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here is the vortec 5.7/4L60E in my garage. I'm supposed to leave one side of the garage open for the wifes hondur accord during the winter... sorry pookie i'll move it soon !

and then here's the best thing I ever fabricated! I told her she could have it when she turns 16, well maybe after driving a hyundai for a few months

I told her she could have my DD93 also but idk if that will be around then I'm kinda getting sick of fixing her ,big blue that is 93 GMC xcab 5.7 Z71 4l60/700R4?

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Thanks wade i've been stalking for a while. this will be stage 1 of the build. fix the rust drop it 3.5/5" and get it on the road ASAP so i can get to working on the 59 Wag .grandpa aint getting any younger and i'd like to pull up to his house in the wag some day soon.

I work for a large HVAC manufacturer in Oklahoma. I work in engineering, not an engineer...yet... also a college student (engineering) engineers make stuff on paper and i make it a reality out of metal and/or whatever they want. i spent at least 5 years as a press brake operator in production and as a machine set up man/operator with CNC turret press, Finn Power is my speciality on CNC turret presses and I specialize in Cincinnati press brakes

34 years of age, Ultimately I'd like to have a porterbuilt dropmember and some sloshtubz, but for now its going to be a get it on the road kind of deal !

Re: Rustbuket 67 build "Georgia"
 

Thank you sir, I have been stalking for a while and finally started my own thread!

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Thank you sir !

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Sorry, I couldnt remember who asked for that pic (a few have asked) I thought it was mcbassin but couldnt find his request in his 69 build thread. My dad says people ask to buy it all the time since it is currently at his house (damn HOA). It has a 5.7 TBI in the pic which i have since removed and a CPP disk brake kit and rolling on vette rally wheels. Im thinking some 3" white walls and air ride suspension. good cruising material. if you like the old 59 wagons check out "codywalls" on the HAMB he has an awesome 4 dr wag build in progress there

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Next I have to remove the manual trans xmember and im going to somewhat tear down the new "plan B" drivetrain as far as removing and cleaning the intake and EFI prob the trans also before I install it in the old "rustbuket" maybe remove the heads and oil pan to inspect the condition of the rotating assembly.

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Very nice progress (now that I see it all ;)) And hopefully that'll be a great engine for you....Ideal having the complete truck to pull anything you need from it!

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yeah hope it works out using the Vortec MPFI. definately nice to have the whole truck so you can keep and label all the wiring. man theres alot of wiring on the 96-98 Vortec. just noticed you have a build thread also. ill have to check it out, later.

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Heres my "A" pillar almost finished up, I had correct a couple of the angles on it with a press brake to make it fit. then plug weld,plug weld,plug weld. make sure the upper hinge hole is 7.5" center from the fender flange on the bottom front of the pillar. I still need to cut out the front of the floor where your feet go and weld in the new one, Im thinking ill cut it out where i marked the photo, but not crooked, square off the edge where it meets the firewall. and fab up a piece to repair the offset flange of the firewall.

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I was planning on using this 18 gallon fuel cell i got on CL for $75, never had gas in it. but im thinking one of those aluminum would better suit what i want and i could have it made to accept the tahoe fuel pump/sender float. or maybe just use one of those corvette style external pumps i see others using on their LS swaps, thinking those in tank pumps are a pain to replace having to remove the bed or drop the tank.. any thoughts ? keep the plastic or sell and get a fancy aluminum one, use the tahoe in tank pump or go external ?

Of course I plan on an under bed mount and eventually raise the bed floor a bit to cover it up and have ground clearance.

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A few parts from Brothers trucks.

There's some Western 2.5" drop spindles for 73+ W/1.25 rotor I got an awesome deal on from JOHN@BROTHERS, we did a little trading. Thanks again John !!

Then I had the wife buy me some 5" rear drop coils for my birthday, I got from the Brothers "end of summer sale" only $88 ! sweet :metal:

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So my next moves are
1- clean and put up all my tools from yanking the goodies from the tahoe
2- remove the bellhousing mount xmember
3- temporarily stab it into the truck so the wife can park in there for winter
4- label and remove the harness from the engine
5- find a trans xmember ( truck didnt come with one just the old iron bellhousing mount)

Re: Rustbuket 67 build "Georgia"
 

i like the wheels I wish i could find some for my truck
great build cant wait to see more