Decisions decisions

[atcavage]

In lieu of buying a new car, I plan to put a large chunk of change into my truck (when you're young and single you can do this) and turn it into a sweet daily driver, instead of decent one. I have some decisions to make about what to do, and instead of going about it blindly and finding out that it doesn't work or is a pain, I thought I'd ask you all.

I like the look of carpet, but then again if I spill something on my floor mat, I'll clean it up in a week or so with some hot water and a dish brush. Is carpet really worth it?

I want to replace the instrument cluster because it looks old and junky. It would be expensive, but it would be new and look really slick. Or I could save my money and just re-paint the bezel. Any opinions? A tach would be nice though...

Any thoughts on re-wiring the cab after 30+ years? Everything works okay, but the fuze box is getting full and things are a bit hodgepodge. A friend of a friend did this and he says the K5 runs like a new truck. Ideally, I'd want to have a modern fuse box with blade fuses put in, but that would be a serious job for an electrical shop.

I'm also going to put in disc brakes and power steering, but should I wait until it's been upholdered and painted to do that? I'd rather be careful with the new paint than have certain things painted over. Just unsure of how to order it, but appointments may override that.

Thanks.

[Longhorn Man]

My opinion on redoing the wireing... and I will get flamed, the industry is just shy of a scam. They are feeding off of ppl being afraid of what they don't understand. If youe harnesses are still good, leave it alone. you can add a few circuits and have all that you need. If it looks like mickey mouse was doing the wireing, then consider a new harness.
Plastic mats are OK, and great when your boots are nasty or if you spill your dew, however, they also trap moisture underneath and that can help speed up rust. i say get a rug, and nice mats, and try to keep it nice. (Unless this is a true work truck)
Guages... I agree the stock ones look lame, and I have issues trusting 30+ year old guages... they were questionable back then.
A $30 bezel, some low cost aftermarket guages, i think they were 40-ish, $20 white stickers, and a $2 can of white paint... plus some labor by yours truely... and my guages look good, and work better than they did 35 years ago. (where it's black under the numbers on the lens, is all white now, and looks much better)

I see absolutly no reason to delay installing the disks and power steering. If you feeldrums are not safe, then do it ASAP. You'll be fogging everything under there with black after the paint and body work... or if you have it all detailed already, then you'll be masking it all off before paint... either way, it doesn't matter.

[crazy longhorn]

My ? is always, "will it make it go faster, or stop faster?" to my thoughts, suspension& brakes had better be right on. After that, the hop up chit rolls on! The old saying was "if it dont GO ,chrome it"......you wont see too much shiny chit on my truck, as it dont make it go any faster! I like clean/sanitary, but not bling-bling. hell, even the shift handle on my Richmond 6 is homemade,(no chrome) just painted. the oldest kid just got the plastic racing buckets, in favor of something more comfy......carpet would be sweet, but not needed. crazyL

[GREASEMONKEY72]

on the carpet part, my truck doesnt have any carpet didnt when i got it but i put in a one piece rubber mat that covers both floors and over the hump and im happy with it and its much nicer to clean when i spilt my soda in the 5 times so far just used a wet towel and a dry towel

[GMC Jim]

I agree with Longhorn Man on the wiring issue...Think about all the rural power and telephone lines; many over 50 years old or more, exposed to the harshest weather and still supplying all the needs for which they were designed. The wiring in our trucks, for the most part should still be quite adequate. True, the insulation can get brittle over a period of many years, but in general will not cause a problem unless flexing has caused the insulation to expose the bare wire. The wire can be cut, a shortpiece of heat shrink tubing inserted after the wires cleaned and soldered .
If you may be installing items of high amperage draw, then this does change the situation. Use relays for those applications or run an auxillary circuit with wire, fuses and switches of sufficient capacity for the current draw.

[BowTieOgre]

Originally Posted by atcavage

Is carpet really worth it?

I want to replace the instrument cluster because it looks old and junky.

Any thoughts on re-wiring the cab after 30+ years?

I'm also going to put in disc brakes and power steering, but should I wait until it's been upholdered and painted to do that?

If you plan to make it a DD I would consider a rubber floor mat for ease of cleaning.

I bought a wire harness for my truck for $150 seems like cheap insurance to me and if you ever decide to add power windows/locks, fuel injection, AC, stereo, etc. it would be easier to do with a brand new block/harness with extra circuits.

Brakes and PS might be easier to do when the front clip is off the truck and I wouldnt think you would want to be removing sheetmetal or climbing over/under it with tools after its painted.

Just my .02 and GL with the upgrades. Dont forget sway bars if you dont have them and maybe some new body mounts.

[smoked68]

I don't get the big deal with yall not wanting carpet because you can't clean it easier. Its simple enough...don't spill anything and as far as getting it dirty just treat it like any new car. Vaccum it out once a week and knock your shoes off before you get in...not hard.

[Rokcrln]

On carpet or rubber it is up to you. I like carpet, it is quiet and warmer and looks better. What ever you do first you will want to remove the old seam sealer and clean out all the joints and seams. Then get a good rust inhibitor product and paint all areas that will be re seam sealed. Then seam seal them and paint over them and your entire floor. This will help protect everything under the rubber matt or carpet. I like new wiring and for the price of some of the kits I think it is worth it. Yes the original stuff will work if it is in good shape and does not need to be replaced but I still like it new if it is one of my projects that I plan on upgrading and keeping for any length of time. I would also change out the brakes and steering all before paint that way you know it all fits right and like it was mentioned above you can re-spray it after the truck is painted. But get all the add on's done first and shake out all the bugs then go on to paint. When I am doing a build I will complete the entire vehical first then tear it all down before paint. This is not always needed but saves alot of problems after the fact, keep in mind I do alot of full custom builds so it is needed for what I do but not in all cases. Still make sure it is right then go to paint!

Kevin
LFD Inc.

[Mad Dog]

Congradulations on building instead of buying a new car. The new car will only lose value, while your truck will stay the same or rise in value.