86 K10 LWB - Frankie

[silverbear]

Step 2: Replace core support and grill. these are from a 89 Suburban. Special thanks to GMACHINZ for hooking me up with contacts I needed to convert the connector on the wiring harness.

The grill in not in the greatest shape but it will work for now.

Step 3: Drivers fender replaced. Cheap, rusty aftermarket one gone and a factory (rust free) original in it's place.


Maybe tomorrow, if the weather continues to hold out, I can swap out the passenger's side fender. This may be a small victory but I also now have functional horns.

[77K10Silverado]

Good amount of work here! Looking good!!!

[silverbear]

Originally Posted by 77K10Silverado

Good amount of work here! Looking good!!!

Thanks. It has been a long project but I have enjoyed being able to use it as I improve it.

[silverbear]

A little diversion from the body work. The before pic. The brush aluminum look was damaged so I wanted to try to dress it up a little.


The after pics. Silver carbon fiber vinyl made a big difference. Nice thing is, I have about $6 in materials and if I get tired of it, it is easy to change out.

[silverbear]

A couple of pics of the dash bezel mocked up in the truck along with the right side trim piece.

[bgood70]

Looks really good Chris. Time to get it installed.

[silverbear]

Originally Posted by bgood70

Looks really good Chris. Time to get it installed.

Thanks Brad. I have a few things to install under the dash before I can finish up the duct work and then the trim pieces. I hope to get the sound deadener install on the firewall this weekend.

[bgood70]

Looking real good Chris.
Posted via Mobile Device

[silverbear]

So about 6 months ago I discovered a crack in the radiator tank. I don't drive this long distances so I made due for a couple of months. I found a good deal on a new aluminum radiator so I picked it up about 3 months ago. Since I am upgrading the A/C, I also picked up a parallel high flow condenser. Both of those items sat in my garage for 3 months because I have been sooooo busy helping out others that I didn't have time to work on my own projects. So this past Saturday I decided it was time.

Empty core support.


Condenser mounted. Still need to work out the lines for this but that will be another day.


The radiator mounted. Need to reroute one heater hoes and fab up some mounts for the fan shroud.

[silverbear]

Well like most of my projects for this truck... something does not go as well I as I was hoping for and then the time line gets extended or in this case, one of the old parts gets damaged and then I have to get MUCH deeper into my pockets to fix it. In the process of modifying the fan shroud to work with the new radiator, I managed to run a bolt right through the tank on the brand new radiator. So I had to pull it back out and take it to get welded back up. Got that back in and mocked up my new heater hoses and then had to wait a few days for the pipes I wanted to get bent for me. I am not set up to bend 5/8" and 3/4" stainless steel tubing. I got those back and installed and then found a crack in the old intake manifold. So now I guess since the intake has to come out, I will address my oil leaks. Intake is getting replaced. Valve covers getting cleaning, refinished and new gaskets. Oil pan getting cleaned, painted and new gasket. After all of that with a little help Bgood70 got the timing and the carb fine tuned and now Frankie is running smooth.

Here are a few pics of what i was trying to do.

[silverbear]

Here is where I ended up, for now. I know there is a lot more to address but I happy to be making some progress.

[Greenlee]

Looking good!

That's a bummer about the new radiator and intake-- 1 step forward, 2 steps back.

[made2drag]

im loving the carbon fiber vinyl...interior is looking sweet

[LT7A]

Dash pad looks great. When I started reading this build, I kinda thought, this guy has got a lot of work in front of him. The changing out of multiple body parts, multiple times would doom most projects. Way to stick with it! That is now a really solid rig.

[silverbear]

Thanks guys. It has been slow going at times but I have an ultimate plan for this truck and it will take me a while to get it the way i would like...more to come.

[silverbear]

Still have not been able to start my axle swap but I did get a few more items checked off. I got the rear speakers installed and I had to replace the starter. My original one has been noisy for a while but it still worked, so I didn't mess with it. About three weeks ago the noise got worse and it finally quit working.

[whitels1]

Great work, can't wait to see more!

[silverbear]

After having to use 4 wheel drive a few times to get down my road after the hurricane rolled through my area, I discovered that my pinon seal in the front axle was leaking along with the drivers side axle shaft seal. Since I was planning on upgrading to the 8 lug rotors, I figured it was a good time to get started. Well just like most everything that was on this truck when I purchased it...the axle parts are in very rough shape. Seal and bearing surfaces worn and rust pitted. I also discovered that my truck was not loaded with 3.73 gears like the seller had told me. I had 3.08 gears. Rather than spending a small fortune to replace everything I went hunting for a decent replacement with the correct gear to match my 14bolt rear. Here are some of the before pictures.

[silverbear]

Found a good replacement axle with the correct gears. It just need some cleaning and some new seals and bearings. Here are some glamour shots of the new axle.

[bgood70]

Looks great!

[silverbear]

There comes a time when you just have to take that leap. In order to keep progress moving forward, I had to sell a few old things in order to buy some new things. Since I am upgrading, the 6 lug Rally wheels will not work anymore. I hate to see them go because I really like those but they have a good home now and will continue their life on sweet 58 Chevy pickup.

Frankie sitting on Jack stands.


Out with the old parts

[silverbear]

Thanks GREENLEE. To be honest , I have no idea what generation those rims are. I needed some 8 lug rims and a buddy of mine sold me these for $20. I got the center caps off of Ebay. I cut out the centers of the front caps to allow for the hubs. I am shopping for some trim rings.

[silverbear]

I got my punch list completed this past weekend and took Frankie out for a drive. Only put about 25 or 30 miles on it but that was good for now. I have to get the front end aligned so I will keep to the back roads until after Thanksgiving.

[Greenlee]

Frankie has come a long way! Looks good with the new axles and wheels.

[silverbear]

Originally Posted by Greenlee

Frankie has come a long way! Looks good with the new axles and wheels.

Thanks!