Project Goldilocks, '66 C10 SWB BBW Build

[66redw/white]

please take at least one picture of it laid out with those mudders on the back!

[FRENCHBLUE72]

Another great build from you keep it up..

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by 66redw/white

please take at least one picture of it laid out with those mudders on the back!

I'll prolly have the stock wheels and those tires on it until it's all back together and everything with the suspension is sorted out so I can get some final measurements for backspacing on the 18's. I was thinking it would be cool to see a bagged truck aired out over some mud grip tires so they'll definitly stay on long enough to see how it looks!

Originally Posted by FRENCHBLUE72

Another great build from you keep it up..

Thanks dude!


The bags and brackets from Jason at AVS came today. Going to get the brackets powdercoated before I install them. I'll take the C notches back off to get them powdercoated and I'm going to pick up the bed wear strips from a local shop tomorrow as well so I can get everything coated at once.

[theastronaut]

Got the four short boards cut to length and the edges trimmed, then feather-edged the seam where I had to glue the filler strip in. Skim coated the edges and sanded them smooth so they're ready for primer.






Also got some paint mixed up for the engine. I found a spot of original paint on one of the valve cover hold downs and took it to a local paint shop to get it matched. It's a little brighter than what's on the hold down so I may add a little black paint to darken it some.





I've been researching hop-up parts for the 250 and it seems like Brazil is the place to go if you want a hot six. I'm thinking about a set of triple two barrel webers for it, billet rods and pistons, cylinder head work, 13:1-ish CR and a big cam on E85, a tuned header, and get everything balanced. I can't find anybody that makes the intakes to mount the weber carbs though. Crower makes a few different cams and billet steel rods for it, and pistons wouldn't be hard to find.

This guy is running a 250 in his Chevy Opala and it runs mid 11's in the 1/4 mile.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dCwGUlEvcI8&feature...

[XtechX]

Originally Posted by theastronaut

Just laid the bed wood out and found that the outer boards aren't wide enough. Whoever made them grooved both sides just like an inner board. I'll have to get more cut to fit under the inner bedsides. Otherwise, they look good and measure out fine, other than being about an 1/8" too long (going by classicheartbeat.com's measurements). Better than being too short though!

I've decided to paint the wood low gloss black like I did with the '65. Even after taking more time to prep the wood better, and adding coat after coat of stain, I couldn't get it as dark as I wanted it. And once I got the wood laid out today, I'm not that crazy about the grain pattern anyways. Painting it black will look more original, and I've had to remind myself that I'm leaving the truck as stock/original as possible, other than lowering it.




Had an extra cross mount to check the fit of the wood strips with. Looks about right.



The outer planks with the both ends milled for wear strips.

I am getting ready to make my own bed wood and I was looking at pics of yours. I can't be totally sure, but it looks like you didn't dado bed strip grooves in your wood. Will that be enough to hold the wood where it's suppose to be? If so, that will make my wood working alot easier, all I have to do is router the shelf in the edges of the planks, right? I also must say that the black wood in your other truck looks awsome!!! I'm still torn between the everyday cleared oak or the stock but different than most black.

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by XtechX

I am getting ready to make my own bed wood and I was looking at pics of yours. I can't be totally sure, but it looks like you didn't dado bed strip grooves in your wood. Will that be enough to hold the wood where it's suppose to be? If so, that will make my wood working alot easier, all I have to do is router the shelf in the edges of the planks, right? I also must say that the black wood in your other truck looks awsome!!! I'm still torn between the everyday cleared oak or the stock but different than most black.

It doesn't have the step on the edge like it should have. I'll post back about how well the strips fit up when I test fit everthing. I'm sure it will work, might take a little more work to line everything up before the bolts are tightened down though. The correct extra grooves let the edge of the wear strips drop down and lock in place.
Posted via Mobile Device

[likaroc13]

nice work, & i'm tuning in for continued progress! good to see a fellow 60-66'er who is relatively in my neck of the woods, doing quality work

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by likaroc13

nice work, & i'm tuning in for continued progress! good to see a fellow 60-66'er who is relatively in my neck of the woods, doing quality work

Thanks! Charleston isn't too far away!


Made a little progress today. Got the front springs out and the front bag brackets and C notches blasted and painted. I had some parts to blast at work today anyways and I already had the paint so I decided to go ahead and paint them instead of waiting for powdercoat. This way I'll be able to install them sooner.

I ground the welds down on the C notch before painting.










The paint is still wet in this shot so it looks glossy but it'll dry out to a low gloss finish and match the frame pretty well.




Springs out, sitting on the bump stops. Didn't realize it would sit that low!







Also pulled the manifolds off the 250 and this was what was inside the intake ports. Not what I wanted to find. Hopefully the block can be salvaged.





More soon. I called and ordered the bed wear strips today and they'll be ready to pick up on monday. I'll test fit the wood floor once I get them so I can mark the fenderwell openings and perimeter holes for cutting/drilling. Then I can get the wood painted and get the bed back on the frame. I'll get the cross channels and the wear strips powdercoated before the bed goes back on the frame, and also clean and undercoat the inside of the bedsides with Duplicolor truck bed liner like I used on the blue '65. Hopefully the powdercoater doesn't take too long and I can have the bed back on in a couple weeks.

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by theastronaut

Thanks! Charleston isn't too far away!

true dat, haha...maybe one day when my truck makes its way to SC, we can meet up....

those notches look great smoothed up & painted...hope the engine works out for ya

[65Pickup]

Great project, love the 6 plan. That Opala completely rocks, hope you get your six to that level, I'll definitely watch with interest.

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by likaroc13

true dat, haha...maybe one day when my truck makes its way to SC, we can meet up....

those notches look great smoothed up & painted...hope the engine works out for ya

Thanks! I checked out your '66, I love me some black/white custom cabs! Awesome truck!

Originally Posted by 65Pickup

Great project, love the 6 plan. That Opala completely rocks, hope you get your six to that level, I'll definitely watch with interest.

I finally found the build specs for his engine, he's running 15.5:1 CR on methanol! I'm thinking around 13:1 with E85 should be doable and 105 octane E85 is pretty easy to find around here. Compression that high would help out with bottom end torque with a bigger cam so it would still be streetable. Just wanting something different than than a small block, everybody has those.



Got a little bit done this afternoon, worked in the yard most of the day. Flipped the frame up on its side so I could drill the bottom holes for the C notches and bag mounts. Man I hate drilling holes in steel this thick!




Here's a mini tech tip. Put some wide tape over the part that you will be mounting (bags in my case), and mark where the holes are. Then transfer the tape and use the markings as a template to drill your holes. You can center punch the part while the tape is on there too, and I was able to peel the tape off and use it again for the other side.




Center punched:




And here's what the notches looked like once the paint dried, its a fairly close match to the frame.

[chevyrestoguy]

Very, very nice work! I really like your attention to detail. All of that extra work will really pay off in the finished product.

Your tape template trick works well, as I have used it before. Another trick that works is to use a scrap piece of sheetmetal and double-back tape it or loop some duct tape to keep it in position.

I work in aerospace, and when we transfer holes, we use a drill bushing that has an O.D. that fits in the hole in the part (in your case, a 1/4" or .250"). The I.D. of the bushing has a small hole, usually around a .080". When you pop the holes, it's dead center in the middle, and then you remove the part and the bushing, and then step-drill to the final size. You can find drill bushings on-line in places like ebay.

A lot of times, guys fight drilling holes in steel because they try to drill the final hole size at the start. Always step drill, and work slowly. It'll save your drill bits from wearing out, and it'll keep you from breaking your fingers when the drill catches at the end. Been there, done that, but usually with a drill press. Those things can be evil

[65Pickup]

Great tips guys. Thanks for instructing us.

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by chevyrestoguy

Very, very nice work! I really like your attention to detail. All of that extra work will really pay off in the finished product.

Your tape template trick works well, as I have used it before. Another trick that works is to use a scrap piece of sheetmetal and double-back tape it or loop some duct tape to keep it in position.

I work in aerospace, and when we transfer holes, we use a drill bushing that has an O.D. that fits in the hole in the part (in your case, a 1/4" or .250"). The I.D. of the bushing has a small hole, usually around a .080". When you pop the holes, it's dead center in the middle, and then you remove the part and the bushing, and then step-drill to the final size. You can find drill bushings on-line in places like ebay.

A lot of times, guys fight drilling holes in steel because they try to drill the final hole size at the start. Always step drill, and work slowly. It'll save your drill bits from wearing out, and it'll keep you from breaking your fingers when the drill catches at the end. Been there, done that, but usually with a drill press. Those things can be evil

I'd never heard of drill bushings before, I'll have to look those up. Good to know! I did start out with a 3/16th hole before working up to a 3/8" bit for the air bag mounts, then 1/2" for the air line fitting, then using the air grinder and a carbide burr to open the hole up the rest of the way. I should have used a hole saw for the air line fitting; I'll know better when I do the other side though. I went slowly and used alot of pressure on the bit and kept it cool by spraying it with glass cleaner every few seconds. The bits aren't discolored or dull yet so I guess my method is working ok.


I use the looped tape trick all the time to keep masking paper/plastic in place, remembered that one from hanging up pictures of trucks I'd drawn in kindergarten

[gimmy 64]

clifford sells manifolds for mounting webbers to chey sixes. if you are serious about building a six you need to get Leo Santucci's book. those guy's in Brazil are getting 800 to 1100 horespower out of turboed 250 chevy sixes.

[MalibuKasey]

well Im doing a VERY similar build.... Stock "looking" but lowered. My Little V8 will "Look" like a stock 283/327.... MUHAHAHAH.
You do AMAZING work!!
So on mine I ran CPP's shock relocators with CPP shocks... It rides AWESOME! Better than my 03 dropped half as much!

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by theastronaut

Thanks! I checked out your '66, I love me some black/white custom cabs! Awesome truck!

thanks!

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by gimmy 64

clifford sells manifolds for mounting webbers to chey sixes. if you are serious about building a six you need to get Leo Santucci's book. those guy's in Brazil are getting 800 to 1100 horespower out of turboed 250 chevy sixes.

Thanks, I looked on Clifford's website but only found manifolds for downdraft progressive(?) webers. I'm trying to find mani's to mount sidedraft two barrels, either Weber DCOE's or Dellorto DHLA's. Preferably Dellorto's. I'll definitly be picking up one of Stantucci's books. I'd be happy with 325-375 hp. One of the guys at work was showing me the throttle bodies off his 2011 Triumph Rocket 3 Roadster, and I may be looking into something like that also. The bike is three cylinder with individual TB's so I might could make something like that work.

Originally Posted by MalibuKasey

well Im doing a VERY similar build.... Stock "looking" but lowered. My Little V8 will "Look" like a stock 283/327.... MUHAHAHAH.
You do AMAZING work!!
So on mine I ran CPP's shock relocators with CPP shocks... It rides AWESOME! Better than my 03 dropped half as much!

Thanks dude! I'm waiting for updates on your build thread! I checked it out awhile back and love the style you're going for- that engine looks great! Good to know on the shock mounts, I'll look into those. I'm thinking about building my own, not sure yet but its good to see what others are running to get ideas

Originally Posted by likaroc13

thanks!

Welcome!


Got a little done last night. Went and picked up the bed wear strips from Trucks USA in Greenwood, SC (they look and fit great btw) and took the four short boards and two outer long boards home with me to mark the fenderwell openings and perimeter bolt holes. Only took a couple pics though. I should be able to get the bed wood painted this week, will have to wait til the support rails and wear strips are back from powdercoat before I can get the floor back in. Gunna scrub down the inside of the bed with steel wool and CLR while I've got the floor out to get rid of the rust stains on the tubs and flanges. I'll probably go over the paint inside the bed with some sort of cleaner wax to spiffy it up a lil bit too.

[theastronaut]

Progress may be slowed up a little on my '66. Dad found a '50 Chevy in a barn about two miles from the house and bought it yesterday so I'll be helping him get it back on the road. I'll start a build thread on it once we get that far with it. Plans include a dropped axle, bias ply tires, and leave the body like it is and run it. It's got a '59 engine that was running when he parked it (brakes went out) and hopefully won't take much to get it going again.

[FRENCHBLUE72]

Nice find...

[65Pickup]

Outstanding...have fun.

[theastronaut]

I started cleaning up the lip around the fenderwell and bedsides last night. The lip is still the original paint, I guess the guy who painted the truck didn't want to mask out all the bolt heads so he just masked off the whole lip. I used 0000 steel wool and CLR to take the rust stains off which worked pretty good. I'll go over the whole thing with Johnson's carnuba paste wax to seal it up once I get the whole thing done. I'll have to resize the pics before I can post them, I'll edit them back in here.


Also got the backside of the wood floor painted last weekend.

[theastronaut]

Couldn't figure out how to edit the post to add pics (I've done it before?) so here they are.






*Edit* I guess you have to edit a post within a certain amount of time or before logging out. It let me edit this one...

[65Custom]

nice project!!! subscribed

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by 65Custom

nice project!!! subscribed

Thanks!


I got the engine torn down last night. The cylinders had a touch of rust around the rings but nothing that won't clean up when its bored. The crank journals look pretty good and I can't catch any scratches/gouges with my fingernail. I used a set of numbered dies to mark the main bearing caps and the main webs in the block to keep track of their orientation before taking them off, definitly didn't want those getting mixed up. The lifter bores look really good and the lifters were nice and tight in the bore. I had been looking into putting a solid roller cam in it, but I've only found one company that will custom make them, and listed the price as "call for price". That usually means $$$$$ so I'll probably stick with solid flat lifters. Hoping for 375+ horsepower, does that seem doable with this combination of parts?

Plans for it so far include:

Bore the block enough to clean up the cylinders.
Balanced stock crank.
Lighten the flywheel.
Eagle forged 4340 rods, 5.7"
Forged pistons, haven't found any "off the shelf" yet.
Head bolt boss removed from intake port, lump port kit installed.
Larger valves, ported heads, decked for more compression.
Block decked for .040-.050 quench.
13:1ish compression (will be running E85, 105 octane)
Solid flat cam, wanting it to pull to around 7000-7200 rpm.
Comp Cams Aluminum roller rockers, 1.75 ratio.
ARP main and head stud kit.
Triple Weber/Dellorto 2 barrel side draft carbs
6 into 1 header, single 3" exhaust, magnaflow/dynomax straight through muffler?