71 c10 6.0 ls swap tips and suggestions?????

[Reed123]

Hey guys, new to the block and was wondering if yall had any tips or suggestions. This is my first true build so im curious what you have done that may help me.
My truck is a '71 chevy swb
i have a 2006 6.0 ls with a 4l80 trans that i robbed out of a perfectly good chevy 2500!! (i did save the wiring harness and throttle pedal)
motor and trans have already been installed.
Truck is lowered 4 1/2 in the front and 5 in the rear with springs and spindles. May bag it in the future but went this route for now.
Paint is original with no intentions on painting it.
Frame has been sandblasted, all new bushings, shocks, brakes, brake lines and painted with dupli color rust barrier.
The truck was origially 3-n-the tree.

Questions:
How and where i should install the shifter for the 4l80 trans?
Is it possible to use the original guage cluster with the ls wiring harness?
What wheel tire combo should i use?? Id like to have the tires barely tucked up in the fender wells, but i do not want to c-notch the frame or tub the bed.

[Reed123]

More pics of my project

[mdelosrey]

Not 100% sure on this but I think you'll need a new column and one of these linkage kits.

[Reed123]

thanks for the heads up, I was also considering putting the shifter in the floor. don t know which would be easier to do yet...

[rjs53]

I tried the lokar shift rod on a 65 el camino, it was kind of a pos. Probably my fault, I didn't have a straight shot from the trans to the column shift. I had put a th400 in place of the original power glide. It was a waste of money for me.

[Reed123]

thanks for the info rjs53, I really don't k now what route im going to take yet. Im really considering a floor shift but don't know for sure yet

[Ramjet51]

I purchased the CPP column shift linkage....
1. With a 4L65E, the original length and angle is not the same
2. If using original column, then you’ll need to offset the arm about 4 inches

So, I ended up buying some 5/16” SS rod and building a new arm while using the CPP hardware

[mdelosrey]

There’s also a shift cable conversion available

[Reed123]

Originally Posted by mdelosrey

There’s also a shift cable conversion available

the shift cable conversion sounds like what im looking for, …..
bet you don't know who makes it do you??

[bs46488]

I believe they are referring to this cable conversion.

Lokar Steering Column Cable Shift Linkage ACA-1805

I remember seeing a picture of what RamJet describes about bending a 5/16 rod, I plan on attempting this method