“George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

Hi folks, here will reside the refurbishing project for our 1964 C10 affectionately named “George” by my son when he was 16 and bought him. The truck is in pretty decent shape considering it is the same age as I am haha.
The good news is it is pretty straight with minimal rust, it runs, stops, and good tires. Came with a 350 V8 GM Crate motor (Hecho en Mexico), 4sp manual trans with the granny low, DUI Street/Strip distributor, new aluminum radiator with electric fan, wide rear wheels. The goal is to keep it mainly stock, make it a reliable work truck and daily driver. Now for the punch list! In no particular order

• Single master cylinder, change to dual
• Wiring throughout is spaghetti, wire nuts, weak crimp connectors, and fuse panel has broken fuse holder. Signal lights and brake lights not working.
• Runs rough/lacks power, and gets really hot, I am hoping it’s just timing & a thermostat
• Battery dies within a couple days being parked, so for now it gets disconnected when not running - see wiring above!
• Gauges that don’t work: Speedo (& Odo) Temp, Fuel, Amm, Dash lights. I do know the odo cable is not connected.
• Lots of holes drilled in the body- mirrors, tie downs, etc.
• No wipers, but the wiper motor works
• Driver door handle/linkage - have to roll the window down and open from outside once the door is shut
• Window tracks, felt, door rubber all in bad shape or completely missing
• Leaky and non functioning power steering system (reservoir is empty, pump might be burned up)
• Horn, cab light don’t work
• Heat/Def cable and knobs all messed up
• Cosmetic, but funky shifter boot and disintegrated rubber floor mat, gaping holes in doors for 6x9 speakers, radio hole massacred for slide in stereo (MIA)
• Wood bed rotting out, PO laid a piece of plywood over and screwed down and now that too is rotting!
• Paint appears to be just primer, with surface rust showing through maybe from under the primer?
• Remove funky push bars from front bumper
• Get some 60’s period black/yellow license plates, there is only one rear plate anyway and it is trashed and the blue/yellow looks awful

Lots more photos to follow, thanks in advance for the help, advice, expertise!

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

Here are some more exterior photos, fun to look at. Somebody also added a heavy duty rear bumper with receiver hitch, trailer plug connector, and even a trailer brake in the cab. You can see the worst of the rust here on the fender below the C10 emblem. Also looks like an old repair, door check needs replacing, and some of the many mirror holes to fill

ID help with engine, rear end and tranny
 

I have done a bunch of searches for the Trans without much luck. It is for sure a 4 on the floor, with the granny low gear. The rear end however I am pretty sure of it being original to the truck.
I would love to know the year of the engine! Engine has stamped 1M0281 9VP on front passenger side head. The rear bell housing casting number on the drivers side is 10066036 Hecho en Mexico. On the passenger side, it has a 99 (or 66?) cast next to the date dial.
In my research I believe it to be a GM Goodwrench crate 350 V8. Some vague information I found online stated it was “350, 4 bolt, Goodwrench crate engine, 2 piece rear seal, ‘86 and up” But, not sure how reliable that is.
Transmission photos show a casting number E228, 2, GM, 3901127 and, another casting number right by what I guess is a Trans fluid temp sender? GM, 0901191, then below that a K2...I think I need to clean it off better.

Rear End photos
 

Photos of rear end,
The rear end has a 12 bolt cover and a casting number 3(?)838227, there might even be a “N” there below the 3. then I found a stamp WE 10 31 which is why I think it is a C15 3.73 Ratio based on internet research data.

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

WE on the rear end means 3.73:1 (Except Positraction)
Built in Warren plant
C15

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

10066036 Small Block V8 350, 4-bolt, Goodwrench crate engine, 2-piece rear seal.

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

THANK YOU Master Chief! Good to know what I have to work with. This makes sense as the VIN shows George was built in Janesville WI

I sure wish there was a way to find out the whole history of a vehicle, previous owners, I wonder how it got from there and ended up here (Wisconsin to California) and finally to me!n Just a curious person I guess.

Another strange thing is, the paint code is RPO544AD, I researched it to be White & Red 2 tone but, the truck is Orange under the black! At least, it really looks orange to me but I guess it could be faded red. It looks orange where paint has chipped away, firewall, and door jambs. Anyway I wonder if it worked as a county vehicle, utility company, or something where it was orange. CalTrans (CA Dept. Of Transportation) used to have orange vehicles. Check the photo of the firewall.

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

Nice Truck, very nice start.

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

Nice looking truck! Your trans may be the original SM420 four speed with granny low. This is the same tranny as my 66 C10 LWB

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

Thanks for reply! Doing more research tonight I think it might be a SM465, which has 2 PTO covers (1 each side) which George has. The SM420 has only one PTO cover, is that true for yours? The PO did replace the engine with a crate engine, maybe at the same time he changed the Tranny. The hump cover is a bit cut-up and the shifter hits the seat in R. As if it was not original equipment

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

The SM420 was used in '67 and earlier trucks. If reverse is towards you and back it is a SM420. If reverse is away from you and back it is a SM465.

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

Thanks Capt, it’s definitely away & back so I’m leaning to the SM465. and I may be in touch for a Master Cylinder bracket soon!

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

Yes that is definitely a SM465.

Today’s projects
 

Not super exciting, except to me! Finally did compression check, all 8 cylinders held at 150psi. Super happy about that, troubleshooting overheating and running rough/backfiring issues so glad to rule out compression. New spark plugs since the old ones out anyway and who knows when they were changed last! Definitely not since 2018. Passenger side rear plug had some oil on it but the compression was good so...
George still runs a little rough so tomorrow I will check timing.
Another thing I did was to finally track down a parasitic draw, thanks to instructions off YouTube I used a test lamp attached btwn battery Neg post and Neg cable, pulled fuses to see when the light goes out. Not a fuse, so started checking other inline fuses the PO had added. Finally tried the horn relay, that was it! Disconnected horn relay and light went out. Will check battery tomorrow morning, used to be if I kept battery connected overnight George woke up dead.
Also planning to switch out thermostat for the heck of it in case that was causing overheating.

Re: Today’s projects
 

what a great idea.. lol, never thought about that!

Re: Today’s projects
 

It works great when you’re working solo, you can easily peek through gap in hood from cab while removing a fuse at a time, it is obvious when the light goes out as opposed to walking back and forth checking the multimeter display, a time saver for sure to find the parasitic draw on your battery

New fuel pump
 

Wow am I glad I came across this thread! http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=712970 Midniteblues I owe you a beer and you have my vote for a sticky.
Here is what happened: One day, I stopped getting fuel through my see thru fuel filter up before carb. Checked all the cheap fixes first: check fuel tank pickup line, filter sock, debris in tank that might stir up when I drive, blew out line to carb/check screen filter to carb, blew out lines between fuel tank and carb to make sure no obstructions or kinked lines - all good. I suspected fuel pump (after confirming I had fuel in the tank! - fuel gauge doesn’t work). Put a crowbar in the wallet and got a new fuel pump (mechanical) replaced fuel pump using the trick of taking out short bolt towards front of engine block and temporarily using longer fuel pump bolt to hold the fuel pump rod up. Replaced everything and fire him up, no fuel. Tried this a few (too many) times until I thought I might kill the battery. No prime. Now I am thinking either I got another bad fuel pump (doubtful) or the fuel pump rod is out of place and I am gonna have to disassemble the darn thing…and then I found you my sweet little thread! Took fuel hose off fuel pump intake and inserted into a tall gas can under truck in the space between fan and crank pulley. Blew air from compressor into tank with my hand over filler hole (regulator set at 30psi) and damn it seems like air is leaking out past my hand, not enough pressure to do anything, nothing happening. But when I go check the fuel line, sure enough fuel is pouring out through the hose! Hook it up to the fuel pump and voila, after 3 tries ol’ George fires up and runs again! Really happy as it has been at least 2 months not running. BTW this is for a 350 Chevy V8 crate motor in my 1964 C10, fuel tank behind the seat
I also replaced all the fuel line (rubber hoses) in engine compartment. The metal lines have been cut up by PO’s for the most part, maybe some day will replace the rubber hoses with metal tube from fuel pump to carb. I also put a clear filter before the fuel pump to see if fuel was getting to the pump, I will probably just leave it there for now out of laziness. You can see it by the lower radiator hose. I am a little worried about the fuel line proximity to rad hose, heating up the fuel might contribute to vapor lock we will see!

Thermostat and heater hoses with new shutoff
 

I have been having issues with the engine running hot so I decided to check the thermostat. Went ahead and replaced it, and there was a pinhole leak in the large heater hose so I replaced both heater hoses. The hose was too long and rubbing on the inner fender well so I shortened it. While I was at it I added a manual ball valve shutoff because it gets super hot in the cab (my heater controls are toast- another project) I used a Sharkbite PEX 1/4 turn ball valve from Home Depot It wasn’t too expensive. I think the PO must have had the same hot engine issue as me. The PO used that greenish Prestone and seriously it looks like 100% concentration, which could also cause problems so when I drained enough coolant out to get the hoses replaced I topped off with water. It all mixed up and looks better. I will flush it “one of these days” and make sure it is 50/50
PS this did not solve my hot engine issue yet! I am thinking Timing is next to try

Door Latch replace
 

Finally replaced the Drivers side LH door latch. The door only opened from the outside, inside handle would not open it, so whenever I shut it I would have to roll down the window and open with the thumb button. Took it all apart, and tried to reassemble with a 60-63 Latch Control let me tell you it is not the same as a 64! The darn guys at LMC must have gave me the wrong part, there is no way I ordered the wrong one 🙄(#sarcasm) Anyway I used the original one and it all works. In case anyone else has this problem of the inside door handle not opening the latch, I discovered that over the 57 years of life the latch wore out to a point it would not move enough to unlatch from the pin. It was not much but enough to cause the issue. There was a divot in the latching mechanism, the new one is perfectly flat. (The photo is upside down) The photos show it best. Anyway the old brittle window glass channel broke during the door latch project so now I have another project!

“I’m not dead yet”
 

Sold the ranch in SF Bay Area so had to move the project up to Tahoe City for now. This was back in July 2025.

From Sunol to Tahoe City
 

Here is photo evidence the truck made it 200+ miles to Lake Tahoe, CA

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

In October i decided to take it for a spin around the block to knock the cobwebs out and, as I was driving up a slight incline the truck stopped dead in his tracks, still running but immobile! I put it in neutral to roll back out of the street, but it would not roll at all. Tried Reverse and it would move with great resistance. Got it parked and left it there until I could get it home. Rented a tow dolly and got it back to the driveway to assess.

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

Sought out some advice, with that thinking:
Seized brakes? Collapsed rubber brake lines?
Blew up differential?
Transmission blown?
Throw out bearing/ clutch issue?
Decided to pull the transmission and do some searching.

Transmission out
 

While removing drive shafts (longbed, 2 drive shafts) I found this, the carrier bearing was thrashed, one bolt barely holding on and the other one MIA
See the gap on the right side

Today’s update
 

fast forward to today, removed the transmission (damn that thing is heavy! Muncie SM465) and going to go ahead and do complete clutch job, inspect transmission, new U-joints.
The “low profile” Trans jack I bought was not low enough! I had to rig up a couple ratchet straps and a heavy pry bar to raise off the jack then lower onto some plywood to get the trans out. Luckily I could remove the high hump to accomplish this feat.
Yes, I did raise the truck up in jackstands as high as I felt safe but not high enough.
Tomorrow going to open the Trans side plates to check for debris but I really think the problem was that carrier bearing and when the truck was in gear the torque moved the drive shaft and froze it up. Will update as I go

Clutch Replacement project
 

Over the last month at my glacial pace, once I gathered all the parts and tools (and between snowstorms) I have replaced the pilot bearing, flywheel, clutch disk, pressure plate, clutch fork with new spring, “new” clutch fork ball in bellhousing, clutch fork rubber boot which was previously non-existent. I will add some photos of the process for historical record haha. Next is to get the transmission side plate back on and heft that sucker up on to the bellhousing!
Then install drive shafts with new carrier bearing and new U-joints and u-bolts. I figured they are likely 60+ years old might as well while I have everything apart.
Here’s how it looked with transmission removed, this was Dec. 4.
Next on Dec. 5 removed starter, bellhousing, then pressure plate and clutch disk, then flywheel.

Pilot Bearing removal & replacement
 

Next was to clean up the back of the engine and remove/replace pilot bearing. I rented a pilot bearing removal tool & slide hammer tool from O’Reilly Auto in Truckee, CA.
The pilot bearing did come out, but in pieces! I did use PB Blaster but not any heat and, it is pretty cold here.
The new one went in pretty easy compared to removing the old one!
1st & last photos are upside down but you get the idea.
Replaced Pilot Bearing Dec.31

Install new flywheel
 

Installed new flywheel Jan 2, 2026. I could have resurfaced the old one, but figured while I have everything apart why not start with a fresh one. Got new flywheel bolts and washers to go with the new flywheel.
Put thin coating of grease on inside of bolt head only (I used the spline grease supplied with Clutch disk & Pressure plate from Napa) and blue thread lok, torqued star pattern in stages 20-40-60 ft/lbs.
It would not just slide on the back of the crankshaft, it really did have to be torqued in stages to slide it on little by little to not warp the flywheel. In the end it was seated perfectly.
Final clean with Brake Cleaner spray and a super clean cloth

Interesting bolts (to me anyway)
 

Replacing PTO cover on the Muncie SM465 and washing bolts in parts washer, found a cover bolt with what I thought was damaged threads, then saw all 6 are the same. Curious can anyone tell me the purpose of the slot in the threads? Love to learn new stuff

Flywheel bolt tighten trick
 

A little trick when tightening down/torque your flywheel bolts:
Get one of your bellhousing bolts and one of your pressure plate bolts, and a box end/open end wrench that fits the pressure plate bolts and use it to hold flywheel stationary while you torque ‘em down. Pay attention to tightening direction of course - the flywheel will want to turn clockwise.

Clutch Disk & Pressure Plate Install
 

Jan 5th installed clutch disk and pressure plate. The Clutch Kit from Napa Auto included alignment tool, Clutch Disk, Pressure Plate, and spline lubricant. I also ordered new pressure plate bolts because, why not? Used the spline alignment tool to install clutch disk (one side is engraved with “Flywheel Side” so that side goes toward the engine). This will help the transmission shaft “simply glide into” the pilot bearing and clutch splines. More on this later. By the way I marked the spline tool with arrow pointing to top so I could get the transmission splines lined up somewhat with clutch disk. Then installed pressure plate with blue thread lok on the 6 new bolts, torqued in star pattern and in stages first 20, then 35 ft/lbs.

Bellhousing assembly and install
 

Also on Jan 5, I assembled and installed the bellhousing. It was pretty greasy (see before and after photos) so I degreased it and replaced clutch fork ball, clutch fork and clip, and a new clutch fork boot (ordered from Truck and Car Shop) since there wasn’t one on it when I got the truck! Cleaned up mating surfaces with a green 3M pad.
The Clutch fork I ordered actually had a new clip in it already, I had ordered a clip separately thinking the fork would not have one but I was wrong. The clutch fork boot was really good quality and fit perfectly in the bellhousing hole and around the clutch fork. Also installed new throw out bearing on clutch fork.

Clutch fork pivot balls & Bellhousing
 

The clutch fork ball was pretty worn out so I ordered a new one. There was a shipping problem so being Mr. Impatient I got one off EBay that was used but in good shape. The Truck and Car Shop went ahead and sent the one I had ordered, very happy with their customer service. The photo shows left to right, the original worn out one, the EBay one, and the brand new Truck and Car Shop one. I decided to go with the EBay one in the middle because it looked and felt like OEM/NOS nice and heavy duty compared to the shiny new one.
And a photo of bellhousing bolted on to the engine. I was going to paint it but it came out so clean I decided to leave it alone

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

I like that wrench idea when working alone. I bet that would make things a lot easier.

Flywheel torque helper trick
 

Yes! Working alone is all I got right now, I enjoy it but it does provide challenges to overcome.
Stole the idea from ChrisFix on Youtube. This is better than my kindergarten crayon diagram

Transmission install
 

Jan. 8, 2026: Next up was to install transmission. Oh but first bolt the bellhousing to the frame. Should have taken pics before disassembly, I forgot how they went on but figured it out eventually.

Got PTO cover with new gasket installed. I tried it without any RTV sealant as the FelPro site said it was not necessary…Will report back once I get fluid in it.
Got the trans off the engine stand, onto the plywood and slid it under the truck. Used ratchet straps on the heavy bar in the cab to lift it up high enough to get the transmission jack under it. A small block of wood under the back of it so I could keep the platform mostly level, and ratchet straps to keep it from falling and crushing me.
Pulled the clutch alignment tool and eased the trans shaft into the throw out bearing-clutch disk splines-pilot bearing. Seemed to be going well, a little wiggling and jiggling, and jiggled the rear output yoke and pushed on the transmission until it was in all but about 1”-2”

Transmission Install
 

Unfortunately the JEGS trans jack was slowly losing pressure so it would drop a bit as soon as I got it to the right height. A number of reviews of the jack mentioned this as a flaw but I took my chances and, sadly had the same problem.
Anyway I could not get the transmission to budge the last inch or 2. Eventually I did some investigation and found the trans round front plate on the SM465 was not lining up correctly with the machined round hole of the bellhousing.
Once I figured this out, I used a ratchet strap (the blue strap in the photo) hooked to the bellhousing cross mount, around the back of the transmission, then on the cross mount on the other side. I cranked down on it pretty hard so it pulled the transmission forward against the bellhousing. Then I raised up the jack, wiggled the trans, and whacked it on the rear yoke with a chunk of 2x4 and a mallet, and that seated it in the bellhousing!
Photo shows the view of the trans front plate seated in the bellhousing

Re: “George” the 1964 C10 Fleetside LWB
 

Genius idea with the wrench!

Transmission install
 

I got the 2 top bolts on and called it a day, so then today Jan. 10, I got new split/lock washers as the old ones were pretty flat, and got all 4 bolts tight. Specs I found said torque in stages, star pattern, 20/40/55 ft/lbs but I could not get a torque wrench in there for any of the 4 bolts! The top bolts I could reach from cab with the high hump cover off, but the ribs on the trans casting were in the way. And the lower bolts were too close to the pressure plate. Even long, short sockets, universal joints, extensions,…no go. So I applied blue thread lok, gave each one a grunt, then a longer gruuunt, then a looonger gruuuuuuunt. And they are torqued.

Starter and inspection plate
 

Jan 10 I also installed inspection plate (which is new, the truck had none when I bought it) and starter. It was raw metal so I wiped it down with brake cleaner, primed and painted in Chevy Orange to match the bellhousing. It ended up with a few runs in the orange (I am blaming the 30 F temps not my lack of skills) but since it is under the truck and not visible, I called it good.
The plate goes on before the starter, and I wish I had made better notes or before photos of the starter because as you can see in the photos I was left with a long 9/16” bolt, a short 9/16” bolt, and a short 7/16” bolt with a different head. If anyone knows what actually goes where let me know. The long bolt I used has lots of threads out the back of the starter. Oh well, it is on!