Starting my first build - 1966 C10

[Scot_Douglas]

Originally Posted by chad64chevy

man a very cool build i might say!! lots of custom work going on and yet i think its gonna look stock just will be lowered awesome!! what did you do to the long bed? and would you be willing to cut it??

Thanks!

The original fleetside was fairly rotten - I ended up cutting out the useful pieces for people that might need patch panels down the road. So, it is already cut, but it wasn't really solid enough to make it a shortbed.

[chad64chevy]

i was hoping you that the back pieces for the taillights and back up lights so maybe i could get a template to drill out the back up lights in my bed but thanks anyways!!

[Scot_Douglas]

Originally Posted by chad64chevy

i was hoping you that the back pieces for the taillights and back up lights so maybe i could get a template to drill out the back up lights in my bed but thanks anyways!!

I still have those parts - pm me your addy and I'll see what shipping is to you.

[redneck6]

bad ass bro , how low you think it would go if ya put bags inplace of those coils . i had a mecruy couger with that same IRS as was thinking the exact same thing . i am liking the looks of what your doing may have renewed my ideas . also what is ur plans for a clutch with the t-5 ?

[Scot_Douglas]

A clutch from a S-10 should work - or so I have read. Thanks for the props!

[Scot_Douglas]

[Alan's Classic]

Very cool progress!!

[coulter]

awsome build so far man!!! crazy amount of fab time in this thing im sure

[Scot_Douglas]

Thanks all! I've been busy...

Front is sitting a bit lower that it should (it has some old KTM springs in it), but, whoa, I'm stoked.

[Scot_Douglas]

Slave cylinder / trans x-member done:

[ratty 46]

The drolic set up ... your idea or bought part. If it's yours ... I'm impressed.

Ratty 46

[Scot_Douglas]

The slave cylinder was bought (of course) , the bracket was built out of 1/4" plate with the help of a torch, plasma cutter, BFH, a 1/2 rotabroach and a welder.

Thanks for the compliment!

Forgot to mention, the clutch fork had two spots for "actuation" - I cut off the outer one (used by the mechanical linkage) and will use the inner one. I did this to minimize the amount of travel the slave cylinder needs and to make room for the exhaust that will be right next to it.

[awbrown]

You'll have it on the road in say ,... what a day or two ???

[Scot_Douglas]

Six weeks.

[awbrown]

drive it down here and we'll do lunch ............ This from a guy that has had his on the road for less than a week... lol

[Scot_Douglas]

Ordered the wrong clutch.

Apparently, the "S10 V8 Conversion Clutch kit" from Rockauto.com gets shipped used and possibly the wrong part. Oh well, live & learn! Tubing is here, so I'll be able to run my exhaust. WooHoo!

[Scot_Douglas]

New dual exhaust, all welded.

[lakeroadster]

Really enjoying following along on this. Lovin' that Canadian structural steel you are using for cross members, got some of that in my ole C10 too!

If ya don't mind me asking, what is that IRS out of?

[Scot_Douglas]

Originally Posted by lakeroadster

Really enjoying following along on this. Lovin' that Canadian structural steel you are using for cross members, got some of that in my ole C10 too!

If ya don't mind me asking, what is that IRS out of?

It's from a 1993 Furd Thunderbird SuperCoupe. Mostly steel and cast iron, but the SC had rear discs. I picked it up plus the serpentine setup for a SBC for $400 - figured it was cheaper than doing a 4-linked 12-bolt (cause I was shortening the wheelbase).

Had no idea I would have to cut off the back half of the frame.

[awbrown]

It appears you make your exhaust like I do .. lol good job..

[ratty 46]

Nicely done ... what did that all cost you??

Time invested?

Ratty 46

[lakeroadster]

Originally Posted by Scot_Douglas

It's from a 1993 Furd Thunderbird SuperCoupe. Mostly steel and cast iron, but the SC had rear discs. I picked it up plus the serpentine setup for a SBC for $400 - figured it was cheaper than doing a 4-linked 12-bolt (cause I was shortening the wheelbase).

Had no idea I would have to cut off the back half of the frame.

Using OEM parts makes a lot of sense. I never have understood swapping out a trailing arm set-up to a 4 link set-up for a street driven truck. Trailing arms are a proven design, but going independent, like you are, should make for a nicer ride and better handling.

Bet you're really looking forward to that first drive.

[Scot_Douglas]

Originally Posted by awbrown

It appears you make your exhaust like I do .. lol good job..

What? I thought I had all the empty beer cans? ;D

Originally Posted by ratty 46

Nicely done ... what did that all cost you??

Time invested?

Ratty 46

Good question - and I was thinking of tallying it up - but then my wife might find it.

I bought the rear end along with a serpentine setup for $400, but the agreed price was $150. I spent $250 on new calipers/discs/hoses/cables and probably about $50 in steel. Oh, and wheel adapters for $120...

Maybe $700 total?
Time? Probably a solid 20 hours of measuring and fabwork - maybe 40 extra hours on all the research I put in on which IRS vs. what 4-link design vs. redoing(shortening) the trailing arms.

Originally Posted by lakeroadster

Using OEM parts makes a lot of sense. I never have understood swapping out a trailing arm set-up to a 4 link set-up for a street driven truck. Trailing arms are a proven design, but going independent, like you are, should make for a nicer ride and better handling.

Bet you're really looking forward to that first drive.

Oh man, you ain't kiddin'! Hopefully, it'll be vibration free and not have any bad characteristics. One nice thing about the IRS is that they (in general) do lousy burnouts - so hopefully it'll help me act more my age behind the wheel.

I would've left the dang rear suspension alone if I hadn't been told: "All stepside beds are the same - from '56 to '66". That missing 8" of bed is hard to spot when the thing is propped up on the side of the road!

One of these should be waiting for me when I get home...

[Scot_Douglas]

Exhaust done.
Frame done.
Driveshaft done.

A few misc things left before I put the cab back on.

[Scot_Douglas]

Originally Posted by Scot_Douglas

Ordered the wrong clutch.

Apparently, the "S10 V8 Conversion Clutch kit" from Rockauto.com gets shipped used and possibly the wrong part. Oh well, live & learn! Tubing is here, so I'll be able to run my exhaust. WooHoo!

Just for those curious on the clutch trouble I had:

Most, if not all of the T-5 swap info I've read suggests swapping a S-10 tailshaft housing on to a Camaro T-5 to get the benefits of WC strength and shifter location. I just went with a "plain" S-10 trans and figured I'd go with the "S-10 V8 conversion" clutch kit I've seen for sale.

This is what I found, once I had my hands on the parts:
The biggest S-10 clutch I could find was just over 10" - and it would work well - IF I had a 153T flywheel or a 168T with dual patterns drilled in it. I do not - my 168T only has holes drilled for the 11"+ clutches.
Since the S-10 T5 has a 1" dia 14 spline input shaft, the Camaro clutches of the correct size (for a 168T FW) are not compatible.

Through research, I found that a clutch from an 86 M-van (Astro) was the correct diameter and spline count to couple the early T5 to a 168T bellhousing. Everything worked well until I tried to put the trans on the bellhousing - it would go in nearly all the way before binding up on something. The last 1/4" nearly peed in my happy water.

So, out came the trans, I measured everything again and saw that nothing was unreasonable. I marked up several areas that I thought might be binding up with paint pen and installed the trans again. The "witness marks" left in the paint showed me the pilot busing was fine and nothing was bottoming out there. There were interesting marks on the splines though - looked like the disc was going up too far on the input shaft. So, the whole bellhousing/clutch assembly comes apart again - for about the hundredth time in two days (or so it seemed! ).
I slid the clutch disc on the input shaft and could immediately see what my problem was - the clutch hub sat too far out (toward the trans) and rode too far up the input shaft - and was bottoming out on the input shaft splines.

My solution - we'll see how it holds up - was to countersink the spines on the hub 0.1" and shim the trans out 0.2" from the bellhousing (enough that the input snout still engages the bellhousing / locates the transmission). That gives me enough clearance to bolt up before there is any bind - and (hopefully) a small amount of extra space for the disc to float.

The NWC T5 is definitely the weak link in my drivetrain, but it shares the same exterior length and output shaft size/spline count as a T56, which I am keeping my eye open for an affordable one. Hopefully, I'll have one waiting to go in next fall (if everything goes according to plan) when the body comes off for the final paint and dent removal, etc.