TCI to start new R&D Project with a C10!

[slow4dr]

Yanked the bed off yesterday and mounted the driver's side turbo.





I spy Efrain's car. It's now time to start figuring out where things are going to go. Air tanks, compressors, solenoids, lines, batteries, coolers, exhaust, etc

[slow4dr]

Slowly getting to the rear suspension. The Torque Arm will work as is, with slight modification to the cab. The link arms will need to be shortened. We're not going to use this 12 bolt but it already has the bracketry so it helps with mock up. The problem is the 12 bolt is roughly 1/2" shorter at the pumpkin than a 9" so I have to account for that.





From this angle you can see that the axle bracket hangs to far behind the axle. We need to bring the flange area closer to the back of the axle tube to gain clearance for the panhard bar.



I've hinted at the idea that there won't be much room under the hood. The radiator is roughed in. It's likely too wide, since at current placement the tire will actually interfere at full lock. Once the inner panels are constructed there really won't be much room at all. The cardboard box is a rough intercooler size. Dual inlets, one on each top/side, with a center outlet on the bottom that goes under the radiator. Radiator fan outlets will be routed out of the hood.

[slow4dr]

The intake manifold sits pretty high so the dash and firewall will be 'Interesting'. I had already planned on cutting the firewall off and building a new one. The bottom side of the cowl will also have to be cut in oder to clear the plenum.

[slow4dr]

Took a stab at videoing myself. The lighting is terrible and my editing softward had some glitches. Otherwise, I think it came out pretty good. I am already shooting b-roll for episode 2, including the engine build, rear suspension design/assembly and removing the drip rails.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZT1BEqQg-c&t=5s

[slow4dr]

I feel so scatter brained lately. I seem to be jumping from project to project. I started removing the drip rails and then ran into a little problem. So I moved back to finish welding the bed.

I had planned on doing the drip rail removal a small section at a time. This helps keep the roof structure from distorting. I worked the door areas first and all went pretty easily. Unfortunately, when I cut the front section I realized real quick that the roof skin doesn't line up with the windshield surround. Basicaly, the roof skin overhangs the windshield surround by roughly 3/16". So I went ahead and cut that whole front portion of the drip rail off. I now plan to do a small pie cut on the sides and will lay the roof skin down a little at the front to smooth out the 3/16" difference.








Since the drip rail deal is going to take some thought process I moved back to welding up the bed sides. So the sides were removed for easier access.


Just trying to close up all the seams.(& holes that I made)



Will be placing some small steel pieces here to bridge the gap.



I've been going back & forth between mig & tig thru this whole process. I'm glad that this isn't my job cause welding sheet metal is not my thing.

[oldman3]

slow, been there done that had the same with removing drip rail. I ended up doing about a 10" to 12" section at a time, cut relief cut in top and pushed down to meet the other two metal pieces. Tack welded them together and then filled in. A little work, but turned out nice. Here's some pics showing what I did, hope in helps...Jim

[slow4dr]

^^^That's perfect actually. I will do the same when I get back on the cab.

We've been working on rear suspension mock up. The 12 bolt display rearend we had was too wide so we built a mock rearend that is 55" wide housing flange to housing flange and 60" wide axle flange to axle flange. We also had to cut some special axle brackets(similar to our Muscle Car Torque Amr brackets) with a 25 degree angle.



After posting these pics on FB, Bret Voelkel chimed in and said we shouldn't run the shockwaves upside down. Debris can find their way in between the sleeve and body and create leaks. So we may have to pocket the frame a little for bag clearance.





Mocking up Efrain Diaz's 19x10 HRE wheels. The tire is hitting the chassis fixture in this pic. I guess the day had finally arrived where we needed to remove the chassis from the fixture.



Out of the fixture and on the lift temporarily.





Then moved onto the rotisserie to continue welding and grinding. We've got 2 weeks to make it a roller in time for the Brothers Truck Show.

[tinydb84]

Great progress. Can you just make longer tabs for the upper Shockwave mount?

Can wait to see what you come up with for the tunnel.

[slow4dr]

Originally Posted by tinydb84

Great progress. Can you just make longer tabs for the upper Shockwave mount?

Can wait to see what you come up with for the tunnel.

It's a possibility at this point. Won't know for sure until we have the suspension mounted and are able to cycle it. These shocks are loooooooong so I am concerned there won't be enough compression with them standing more upright. Where they are now the lower shock mount needs to be about .75" lower to get the axle to intersect with the frame.

[slow4dr]

Rear suspension is roughed in. We will likely have to adjust the wheelbase once the cab & bed are back on.

[aggie91]

Nice!

[oldman3]

Sweet...Jim

[slow4dr]

[moregrip]

Originally Posted by slow4dr

Took a stab at videoing myself. The lighting is terrible and my editing softward had some glitches. Otherwise, I think it came out pretty good. I am already shooting b-roll for episode 2, including the engine build, rear suspension design/assembly and removing the drip rails.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BZT1BEqQg-c&t=5s

Awesome video! Lots of power, 200mph, Autocross, 1/4 mile, dependable driving, and can tow = what's not to like!

[slow4dr]

I haven't made much progress lately on the truck because I broke my ankle back in June. Just been planning the layout of all the under bed items. In order to do that I needed the bed in place.




At the time of this pic I didn't have access to a wheel that would fit over the front hub.

[jocww]

and you couldn't do that with my frame!!! I like those wheels!

[slow4dr]

I've been kinda stalled on the rear diffuser design. My brother (the artistic one in the family) was in the area the other day so I had him take a look at it. I think he's come up with an idea that will look good and function well at 150+mph.



Cut up the factory longbed sides.








A little teaser





Once again, curiosity got the better of me. Included: Radiator, turbos, battery, air tanks, air compressors, tailgate, rear roll pan & cardboard intercooler(LOL). Excluded: Engine, tranny, driveshaft, 3rd member, glass, interior, grill, wiring, hood, rear brakes, and tunnel/firewall.








Sitting on Ed's wheels/tires 18x11 & 18x12

[slow4dr]

Time for the monthly update.

The first few pieces of this was accomplished with Tig because the Mig machine was being used by Ed on Ray Currie's F100. Needless to say I am no sheet metal guru and the Tig added a level of complication due to awkward positioning.

Before, just a big gaping hole.



I skipped a couple pics during this 4 step process. one flat panel, and 3 strip pieces to cover the frame crossover tube.



Making room for the driveshaft. This part was a little more involved than the previous steps. Plasma cut the back of the floor out but there is a cross brace underneath. I had to put myself in the path of the plasma overspray to get to a couple areas.



I had considered adding an access panel here for Torque Arm adjustments. Changed my mind once I realized that once the interior and seats were in there it would be a pita anyway.



This piece had the same curvature as the previous panel. There's more than enough room for even a 4" driveshaft.



Again, skipped a couple pics here. These two pieces had a little bit of angle so it took a few trial and error fitments to get it right.









Skipped a couple pics again. Now that there is some strength back in the floor I removed the cross floor bracing. Now I'm on the lookout for a van engine cover. Likely going to be an Astro Van. Plan to cut the sheet metal around the whole thing and then graft it to the C10.

[3drburb]

This build is insane and very impressive, I always enjoy checking it out. This may be the shortest driveshaft on the site. Lol
Btw, I hope your ankle is doing better, sometimes a broken ankle is better than a very bad sprain.

[slow4dr]

So project #Ctwin is gaining some junkyard parts. After a bunch of measuring and online dimension searching I headed to the Ontario Pick-A-Part with reciprocating saw in hand.

There are 3 variants of the Astro Van engine cover. Early, mid & late. I chose the mid year because of it's larger opening and thick construction.

There were a bunch of vans to choose from. Luckily I found a very clean example and began cutting it up.



The cover and the surround.









Doing a little prelim fitment check. It's pretty darn close as is. The under side of the dash will need to be raised slightly. That will allow the engine cover to move forward against what will eventually be a new firewall. There will be some serious consideration here for dash design. The cover must be able to be removed easily. Which will be no easy task once there are seats in place. Initial thoughts include designing a hinged center to the dash that lifts up and away. Another thought is to have two separate dashes (driver/passenger) and then have a removable center console that mates up against the dash/engine cover that is also easily removable.

[3drburb]

The doghouse is a brilliant idea.
Will you need to take a couple inches out of it to narrow it for leg room and the pedals or will it clear as is?

[slow4dr]

Originally Posted by 3drburb

The doghouse is a brilliant idea.
Will you need to take a couple inches out of it to narrow it for leg room and the pedals or will it clear as is?

The C10 is wider than the Astro Van both overall and in foot space so I don't see there being a problem with it as is. Most new cars don't have much foot space either. There is 19" from the door sill to the engine cover on either side. But, until I set the seats in there it's tough to say how much room there is. I'm staying hopeful at this point that it will work unmodified.

[68racer]

I am contemplating an engine set back, not as radical but still noticeable. I am planning to move the brake pedal over to the left of the steering column and put the throttle where the brake pedal is at present. I bought a Wilwood pedal to mount on the bulkhead and found a Jaguar XJS throttle pedal to hang from the dash.

[slow4dr]

Originally Posted by 68racer

I am contemplating an engine set back, not as radical but still noticeable. I am planning to move the brake pedal over to the left of the steering column and put the throttle where the brake pedal is at present. I bought a Wilwood pedal to mount on the bulkhead and found a Jaguar XJS throttle pedal to hang from the dash.

The way I look at it. Once you go beyond 4"-5" there's not much difference between that and 10" or more. You got the idea though, column right thru the middle of the two. I figure the seat will also be moved as far left as the cage/door will allow also.

Something else that bugs me about the foot well is the angled area between the floor and the firewall where the pedals go. I plan to flatten that area out as much as possible to provide more leg room. Maybe even do a floor mounted pedal assembly. There is a huge gap between this area and the frame so there is plenty room to move the floor down/flat. There is a body seam though so it'll get interesting flattening it out.

[slow4dr]

I finished up Episode 2 last night.

I cover getting the chassis out of the fixture, building the rear suspension, mounting the cab, taking it to the Brothers Truck Show and beginning the diffuser design.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RI5Q...daz5mlw03c010c