4-5-6 Chevy Trucks - 1966 Chevy K10 lwb fleetside build

[LILRED66]

We are getting ready to start a frame-off on this '66 Chevy K10. It is a beautiful factory 4x4 with original equipment with the exception of the wheels/tires, exhaust & rear view mirrors. It has 57,000 original miles on the 283 and SM420 with the factory T221 divorced transfer case. We are installing power-assist steering, power brakes & A/C utilizing original factory equipment.

Before someone points it out to me, I know the Custom steering wheel & chrome horn ring is from a '60-'65, not a '66, but this will be changed to the '66 during the project.

[65gmc930]

cool!!!
can't wait for more pictures

[Jonboy]

Are you going to leave the wheels? I think they look really good on there.

[198plus]

Wow........Nice truck, can't wait should be a great build.

[jonzcustomshop]

are those the original stickers behind the visors? and is that the correct placement forthem on the trucks with a factory inside rear view mirror?

... and put in my vote for the factory wheels /hubcaps, and side mirrors!

looks like a nice one to start with.

[LILRED66]

Originally Posted by jonzcustomshop

are those the original stickers behind the visors? and is that the correct placement forthem on the trucks with a factory inside rear view mirror?

... and put in my vote for the factory wheels /hubcaps, and side mirrors!

looks like a nice one to start with.

Those are the factory original 4x4 stickers, showing shift pattern for the T221 divorced transfer case and the locking instructions for the factory Warn lockout hubs. Believe it or not, they appear to be randomly placed on the several factory 4x4 trucks I have seen. When replacing them, we place them evenly and level, relative to the rear view mirror and the line of the windshield.

The factory wheels will be a little different than the appearance of the polished slots with 33's, but it will be what the owner requested and a very true-to-original, with the exception of the factory chrome dog dish hubs caps, since the 4x4 trucks did not come with caps.

The Jr. West Coast mirrors will look nice and an original factory-correct option.

[198plus]

Really nice looking truck, amazing no rust............Just go ahead and send those doors to me Tony

[TR65]

Hey Tony,

I really love those K10's. That is going to be a jewel. I look forward to following your progress on this one. As you say, keep the pictures coming.

TR

[LILRED66]

Originally Posted by TR65

Hey Tony,

I really love those K10's. That is going to be a jewel. I look forward to following your progress on this one. As you say, keep the pictures coming.

TR

Thanks for the compliment. Here are a few more photos of the bare-naked panels.

[LILRED66]

Originally Posted by 198plus

Really nice looking truck, amazing no rust............Just go ahead and send those doors to me Tony

Hey Ronnie, no rust in the fender tails, cab corners, rockers, kick panels, door bottoms, inner fenders or rear wheel arches...do you want those items also? It is nice to have one that has not been diagnosed with rust and suffering from the side-effects for the past 40+ years!

Thanks for the kind words.

[66 jewels]

update pics please

[LILRED66]

Here are a few of the disassembly portion of the show. This cab and the balance of the sheet metal is the best example of rust-free, I have ever seen in person. We didn't find one area of rust-thru. We also found factory build sheets in the seat bottom and the seat back. I have seen them in the seat back before, but never in the seat bottom. They are usually long-gone by now.

[LILRED66]

It comes back from the media-blaster this weekend, so things will start to get interesting. We are pulling the slots and installing factory-correct wheels. Although chrome dog dish caps were not available on the 4x4's in 1966, we are putting a set of chrome dog dish cap on the black powder-coated factory-correct wheels. It should be a real nice look. The wheels, tires, caps & lugs will be sold to help offset the cost of the build. Send me a PM if you are interested.

[protrash64]

Couple questions; Is that the factory engine color?? I've seen a lot of discussion about it and was just curious.

Also, when you tear stuff apart, do you re-use the bolts? If so, how do you recondition them for use?

Super-nice truck!!

[LILRED66]

Originally Posted by protrash64

Couple questions; Is that the factory engine color?? I've seen a lot of discussion about it and was just curious.

Also, when you tear stuff apart, do you re-use the bolts? If so, how do you recondition them for use?

Super-nice truck!!

First of all, thanks for the kind words.

Secondly, for fear of starting a fire-storm, I don't know the exact color of the factory 283 and 327 for the '60-'66 Chevy trucks, but I do have few very reliable sources, that are providing actual paint samples for use on this '66 Chevy K10 with a factory 283 and another '66 Chevy K20 with a factory 283, so that is what I will be using, at the owner's direction. I will post photos of the samples and the finished product. Here are a few very nice examples, I have on file. The paint on the 283 in the above picture is not correct for any motor or year on the '60-'66 Chevy light-duty trucks.

Thirdly, I sand-blast or tumble most of the original fasteners, unless they have damage to the threads or heads. The same is true for all the original brackets, clips, fasteners and keepers. I have used the "factory-correct" style fasteners, but stainless steel from Totally Stainless. The fasteners and other miscellaneous clips and hardware for this project will be stripped and refinished in-house or by Missouri Plating. My buddy, who does 1,000 point Corvette restorations, speaks very highly of them and he uses them for all his original Corvette fasteners.

[LILRED66]

Long day today. My 2 year old son, Cole, and I pickep up the rolling chassis and sheet metal from the media-blaster today. With the actual windshield time, numerous stops for a two-year-old, loading and driving slower than usual, it was a 10 hour trip. The stripper did a great job for a reasonable price and I am very happy with the results. They even pulled the wheels and did the hubs.

They look funny bare-naked, but I like it. There was absolutely zero evidence of any rust-thru on this entire truck. By far, the nicest rust-free example of a '60-'66 Chevy/GMC truck I have every laid eyes on.

[jonzcustomshop]

I know all about those long trips, I have a 3 and 5 year old, slows down the process alot.
Is there a way that you can get the cab dipped , so that it has a rust protection coat inside and out? Or is it never going to see rain water again? that would work too!
amazing to see a completely rust free cab!

[63 & 64 Bowties]

That's an amazing truck to start with.
Now, the job of getting all the blast media out of the nooks & crannies.
I hate sand-blasting

[DPowers]

Awesome looking

[LILRED66]

This outfit uses various grades of crushed corn kernels...coarse, medium and fine. They removed 1/8"-1/4" of heavy-duty undercoating from the hood and front fenders, which I figured would be nearly impossible to strip and expose the bare metal, but they did an excellent job.

Although the truck may see some weather in it's future, it will be prep'd, primed, painted and undercoated well, so I am hopeful it will survive another 40-50 years.

[old chevy truck]

Hay are you the guy with the web page with all of the chevy trucks if your i need to talk ot you can you seed me your e-mail thanks.

[LILRED66]

Originally Posted by Randy Phipps

Hay are you the guy with the web page with all of the chevy trucks if your i need to talk ot you can you seed me your e-mail thanks.

Thanks for the inquiry. My e-mail address is in my signature below. Let me know if I can help you with anything in the future.

[LILRED66]

We welded up some random holes in the bedsides and doors, prior to taking to the painter on Friday.

[collins10672]

i just love virgin factory sheetmetal.looks like a truck that might be 2 years old if that.if i owned that truck i would be afraid to drive it thinking i was going to get it stolen wrecked or stripped.thats a museum piece for sure.

[66Gilbert]

Tony,

Just noticed this 60-66 projects and build forum at the top of the page. I am glad to see that you sold this but sad at the same time. I really wanted to get my hands on this truck, but the bad economy kept me from moving forward on it. What are the new owners plans for it. Will it be about the same build as 66 jewels truck as far as color (Red and White)? Will it have the side molding. It looks to be a little more detailed resto than 66 jewels. Congrats to the new owner as this is a rare truck to find being that it is a factory 4x4 with the big back window, low miles and the amazing condition. I will keep up with this build for sure as this will be known to me as the one that got away.