another Oldschool sneak peek

[oldschool18]

So I got this 70 longbed about 2 years ago to putt around in, I got it for a pretty good price and it had new 20" rims and tires. Its got a 250 an 3 on the tree no power brakes or power steering. And who ever started working on the truck did a ****ty job of lowering it by heating front springs and cutting the rear, it rides the a brick on wheels and its kinda a pain in the ass to putt around in. My plan is to throw a 350 in and a 350 turbo I got layin around and upgrade the brakes and add power steering. I'm shooting for something a nice everyday summer driver, no big horse power motor or anything over the top. I been gathering parts for the past couple months and hoping everything goes smooth. The first pic is when I first got it and the rest are from the start of the tear down.

[tmc1986]

Looks like a solid truck to start with. I don't understand why people cut or heat springs when you can a brand new pair of drop springs for $99. At least you're treating her right
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[Tx Firefighter]

Originally Posted by tmc1986

Looks like a solid truck to start with. I don't understand why people cut or heat springs when you can a brand new pair of drop springs for $99. At least you're treating her right
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You can cut a front spring for free. One coil gives you about a 2 inch drop plus the weight of that 100 dollar bill that's still in your wallet.
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[Boog]

Cut the fronts for 2" and 2" blocks in the rear for a mild drop.

[CG]

Neat project. Those wheels dont match your board name though =).

I didnt think you could cut rear coils because of the way they bolt in. But I could be wrong because Tx Firefighter didnt mention it. When it comes to these trucks as far as Im concerned he is one of the best board experts we have.

[Tx Firefighter]

Originally Posted by CG

Neat project. Those wheels dont match your board name though =).

I didnt think you could cut rear coils because of the way they bolt in. But I could be wrong because Tx Firefighter didnt mention it. When it comes to these trucks as far as Im concerned he is one of the best board experts we have.

You're correct. The rear springs aren't the same size from top to bottom. They taper smaller on each end where they bolt down. If you cut a coil off of either end, you lose the tapered part that allows it to be bolted down. Rear springs aren't like fronts in that they're not captured within cups. They must be bolted down.

I'm sure someone is gonna chime in about how they have cut rear coils. There's a few ways to get around the issues, even fewer of them soundly engineered. They aren't like the front springs where you can remove, cut, and reinstall exactly without mods or rigging.
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[oldschool18]

here are some pics where they had tac welded some metal plates to the bottom of the frame and used some brackets to attach to the plate and by the look they heated the rear springs too.

[oldschool18]

well I got the cab off and didnt have to many problems which was surprising, and now I'm guessing is going to be the worst part......cleaning the 40 years of crap off the frame and replacing everything and up grading.

wish i had more room for all this stuff and for my other project

[oldschool18]

OK it took all summer to get somewhere, and where that is I am not sure yet. But I got the frame all cleaned up and all the parts painted with POR-15 and I tried to stock up on a lot of parts to be ready for winter. The 350 turbo is at the shop getting rebuilt and I am gather parts to build the 350 motor. Now I hope to have it rolling before the snow flies, but here are some pics cause I know how much people love pictures.

[oldschool18]

yeah I have cut front springs before, but they took a torch and heated them way to much. and then cut the rear but I got a new rear set of springs for 88 bucks from brothers on sale. I have a set of front springs from my 85 when I bagged it, I think I cut one coil off of them so I am going to try them first cause i'm not sure how low I want to go yet. And yes the truck seems pretty solid and someone did some work to it but it looks like they did a half ass job on some of it. they did some body work but they did a ruff job. When I bought it the bed floor was metal with wood and carpet over it, so I rolled under it and the floor looked good from underneath they had put some new floor braces on and I could only see a couple rust spots. when I tore the wood up the bed floor was shot over top the braces so I never saw it from under the truck. I just hope there are no more surprises like that.

[oldschool18]

hahaha wheels dont count.........and they had some weird bracket made that didnt look safe at all.

[oldschool18]

And for those that have never used POR-15..... Try not to get it on your skin cause it won't wash off......
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[oldschool18]

Got some new to me seats today, a buddy of mine is putting new seats in his 2010 Camaro so he gave me his factory buckets. SCORE

[oldschool18]

[oldschool18]

I think I might save the camaro seats for my blazer and put my blazer buckets in the truck.........I'm at a stand still but I'm sitting down!

[oldschool18]

well I got the motor done and trans back from getting rebuilt and got it all put together...........and I thought I would push her outside to work on her tan.

[oldschool18]

well I got the cab back on the truck and started painting..........I went with 1960 corvette Sateen silver and white, doing white on the top and bottom. the white came out pretty good for painting in my garage behind my house and not having a real paint booth, but I did have a little box fan in the door way.
And if everything goes right I hope to have the silver painted next weekend.

[mechanicalman]

Originally Posted by oldschool18

well I got the motor done and trans back from getting rebuilt and got it all put together...........and I thought I would push her outside to work on her tan.
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Hi Oldschool-

Hey I've never been able to get the big amp alternator to fit the serpentine bracket. Is that a special bracket? I have seen police cars with the big alt but they had adaptors.

[engineer_gregh]

subscribed. Nice job. I've not done a frame off and I learn something new every time someone is nice enough to post pictures of their build. Thanks.

[hpcgmc]

That's alot of work. Nice job.

[oldschool18]

this is the first two tone paint job I have done and boy did I pick the tricky one. there has been a lot time put in to masking off the truck but I think it will be worth it, well thanks for looking guy and the good words.

[oldschool18]

well it took a lot of tape.......and I tried using electrical tape instead of masking tape and I must say it worked pretty good not as easy as masking tape but good. I taped everything off and then used thin vinyl tape to edge it, it turned out pretty good but the fenders for some reason got a little orange peel to them but I can live with it for now.

[oldschool18]

[67_C-30]

I love the color combo!

[70cst]

Looks like great progress