81 Chevy K10 ShortBed

[Matt Man]

Well looks like I am back in a square finally! I sold my lowered c30 back in 2011 and regretted it ever since. I am not usually a 4x4 guy, but I have always wanted a 4x4 square. My father found this truck for me, I saw the truck and passed on it becuase it was so cheap I thought there was something wrong with it. So I emailed the guy and he sent me more pictures, went and saw it and bought it, here is where the nightmare begins.

So when I bought the truck the previous owner told me the motor was "rebuilt" I did not believe this because it seemed like it was running on less than 8 cylinders and was backfiring through the carb... I drove it home in the pouring rain with hardly any brakes, no registration, windshield wipers barely working, and a motor that wouldn't stay running. Drove it home 40 miles parked it in my driveway thinking "Why did I buy this thing!?!". Granted for my area, what I paid for this truck was very good.

So I got the truck home and did a complete tuneup, still runs like crap and backfiring through the carb...great I need to smog this thing! So I took the valve covers off and next thing I know this "rebuilt" 350 has a flat cam on number 8 cylinder. So before I bought a cam I did a compression check and got 160+ on all cylinders but 3,5. Those cylinders were at 35 holy poo something is wrong here. Time for a crate motor...

Here is the first picture I took of it:

Crusty interior:

Nice job on the carpet install...

spec sheet:

Inside of bed:

Some rust:This is a picture of the passenger side cab corner. There is some rust around the windshield as well as the right side inner fender, and 2 small holes on the floor. Overall its in really good shape body wise, paint it decent for a DD.


Don't expect a frame off build here, just building a daily driver that will see hardly any offroading, just snow in the winter.

[Matt Man]

So here I am with a truck with a bad motor, and need to smog it to register the vehicle. Now this is where it gets interesting, since the truck was in storage since 2005, the previous owner put the registration on non-op, so I had to get the motor in asap, and smogged, great I hope the catalytic converter is OK!

Here are some pictures of the motor and core support before tear down!
hmm look at that smog 350! Gotta love California...




I pulled the front core support to get the motor out, here are pictures of me and my dad pulling the motor, I have never done a motor swap before, and its been 30 years for my dad so we took our time. Overall it was pretty easy because we were replacing a 350 with another 350.

Hood needs to come off:

Motor coming out:

Motor is finally out! Hm look at all that dirt and grime...

Here is the crappy motor on the stand ready to be stripped:


So this is when I ordered my crate motor drum roll! Sorry guys it's just a simple goodwrench 350 from summit 1500$ shipped to my garage, gotta be able to smog this truck still I would have loved to put a 5.3 in it, but my pockets are not that deep considering I am a full time student right now. So the GoodWrench 350 will be good for now.

[Matt Man]

So I ordered a whole bunch of parts, I knew this part was going to snowball on me. Ordered a new radiator, water pump, motor mounts, heater core, radiator hoses, heater hoses, new EGR, new air injection for passenger side. Probably forgot some things...I also painted the frame and undercoated the firewall again, since the previous owner did a half ass job doing it.

Motor going in:


Its In!


Took the passenger side fender off to get better access to heater core:

Some more rust on the inner fender....


So I got the new motor in running good, broke in the cam. Truck runs really good. Drove it for 60 miles took it to the smog and it failed the NOX over 2000 ppm also I must have bumped the distributor because the timing was at 18 btdc, California allows between + - 3 degrees, so I put the timing at 8 took it in for a 2nd test and it failed the 25mph test by 80ppm...poo. Extremely frustrated that I put this new motor in and out of money, I triple checked all the vacuum lines and it turns out I had the EGR hooked up wrong so it wasn't working. Took it to the smog station and it passed!! So I rushed over to AAA and got my tags and drove it around "legally" for the first time. My windshield is still cracked but at least I have registration. Next up is the brakes....

[Matt Man]

So I finally sold my honda, yay I have money to spend on the truck! So I redid the drum brakes including new drums, because the level of craftsmanship was superior whoever did the drum brakes before left one of the tabs above the brake shoe on the inside and it grooved the poo out of the drums....

Never done drum brakes before so my pops helped me out!

and my new drums these things are pricey!

Also serived the rear differential, now if you looked at my spec sheet earlier, you may have noticed I had the G80 locking differential, well when I took the cover off, the G80 was not there. Thats Ok I kind of figured it wouldn't have lasted 34 years anyway. But there are 3.08 gears in there which is good.

I also cleaned up all my wheels steel wool and aluminum polish go a long way, also did the bumpers and buffed the paint turned out really good. I will get some pictures of the exterior when I get a chance.


I also replaced the front brake pads, didn't get a picture but the rotors are in good shape. My wheel bearings are loose so I'm going to borrow the socket from my uncle and tighten them up this weekend. I checked all the balljoints and tie rods and they are nice and tight.

I ordered a whole bunch of interior parts, tires, cab mounts, sway bar bushings, and a new steering stabilizer. Also I think my pops kept convincing me to buy this truck because he had a 91 k5 blazer, same color just had blue interior, anyway I was brought home from the hospital in that truck. My father had it for about 6 months before some people stole it, they recovered it but sold it quickly after as he said it just wasn't the same after he got it back. This truck reminds him of his blazer and his memories that he had from it, so we both enjoy working on it.

[77K10Silverado]

Nice work! I like how you removed the core support to pluck that motor!

[Matt Man]

Thanks mike it sure makes it a lot easier, also I had the opportunity to clean it up and paint it.

[junksaver]

Looks good. You should have a nice daily driver.
You said you got the smog inspection done, but does CA not have a safety inspection?

[Matt Man]

No safety inspection, just a smog check every 2 years for vehicles 1976 and newer.

[DBLSPRT68]

Nice job! Your brave to work in bare feet! I would not............

[junksaver]

Originally Posted by Matt Man

No safety inspection, just a smog check every 2 years for vehicles 1976 and newer.

You have to love the CA government, they are so concerned about some 30 plus year old vehicle polluting the air that they could care less about safety.

I'm glad to see you are fixing your truck properly. Keep up the good work.

[Matt Man]

Originally Posted by junksaver

You have to love the CA government, they are so concerned about some 30 plus year old vehicle polluting the air that they could care less about safety.

I'm glad to see you are fixing your truck properly. Keep up the good work.

I want to breathe clean air, but the percentage of 1981 vehicles on the road has to be very low... personally I think that they should have a 30 year exemption rule.

[Matt Man]

Got the wheel bearings tightened up, I was able to loosen both nuts with just the socket....pretty scary, also got the new steering stabilizer on, going to do sway bar bushings tommorow and cab mounts. Next week its going to the body shop to get the rust fixed.

[Justin@EntropyRad]

killer driver!

[Matt Man]

Ordered lots of parts today, new carpet, new dash pad (not a cover),grill moldings, seat belts, and other misc crap. I just need to find a a shop to do my seat. Going to fatmat the floor before I lay carpet down.

[Matt Man]

got the seat out, need to find a shop to re do it. Undercoated the rest of the floor, got everything I need now for the interior except the seat. This weekend I will be rebuilding the vent windows, I hope to have the doors completed.

[77K10Silverado]

Looking good!

[Matt Man]

Finally found a shop to redo my seat, he is going to try to get it done by Saturday. I got the vent windows rebuilt and installed, what a huge pain to do those. Also got my fatmat installed on the floor and the doors, and door panels.

Here is the seat at the shop, crusty and smells lol. The seat is going to be redone in black cloth.

Another picture of the seat:


Here are some pictures of the fatmat I installed.



Got my new dash put on, the fitment is pretty good but not perfect. Also rebuilt the entire glovebox, and painted the dash black along with the roof.

[Matt Man]

Here is a picture right after I removed the seat, this was after I cleaned up all the fast food bags. Absolutely disgusting, no wonder the truck smelled on a hot day. Found about 3$ in change as well.

[Matt Man]

Just a update, I got the interior finished, got my stereo installed and have been driving it. Will get some pictures soon.

[77K10Silverado]

Word! Looking for some pics.

[cochino12]

Waiting... haha

[Zane M]

Looking forward to seeing the results of your recent progress.

[Matt Man]

Added a DeeZee low profile toolbox today, truck is really dirty.



Another picture of the carpet, interior has been finished just thought I would share this picture.

[68Timber]

Nice work! Funny to see quad front shocks on a Scottsdale truck w/no AC. Maybe they came with the HD front springs. Either way, nice truck!

[Matt Man]

Originally Posted by BRUISER

Nice work! Funny to see quad front shocks on a Scottsdale truck w/no AC. Maybe they came with the HD front springs. Either way, nice truck!

Yep, came with hd springs, premium front end appearance (Quad headlights). I find this trucks options odd. I thought I was going to die with no AC but so far its been OK, not great but OK. Vintage air might come next year with tax season.