1998 Silverado 2WD, nicknamed "Deadman"

[Gordonr1973]

Hi all;

this is my thread about my '98 2 wheel drive, 5.7L truck.

I bought his truck used in 2004, drove it daily for 2 years, started working on it a bit, and then it has litterally been sitting in a barn/shed at my parent's place for the last 4 years.

I the meantime I've reno'd 2 houses, travelled / worked all over, got married, quit three jobs, started my own business, and finally am focused on trying to finish this truck.

This is my story....

[Gordonr1973]

Here are some pictures and details about the truck:

Picture 1: this is the truck as it sat two weeks ago. It's white with a blue interior.

Picture 2: This is where a cow rubbed off my original Street Scene mirror. Damn cow cost me $300 to replace the set.

Pictures 3-5: A couple of years ago I bought a set of leather seats from the wreckers and replaced my stock seats. I wired up these seats for heat and power. It was alot of work to do and very cold to finish it in the middle of winter!

Picture of pedals: these are the pedals that the kid that owned this truck before me installed. When I first owned the truck I could feel a buzzing in my feet when I drove. There was a short and I was getting a mild shock from these pedals when I drove in my socks or barefoot! I have since de-powered the pedals and bought replacements!

[Gordonr1973]

These are some of the parts that I've collected over the years to put on this truck that I'm doing over the next few months or I'm getting done for me if it's beyond my limited ability. (I only have one hand so I can't do much that involves a ratchet and wrench in tight or awkward spaces)...I have done some of the welding myself (I did the shaved rollpan) and I plan to attempt shaving the handles and taillights in the next few weeks.

[Gordonr1973]

Some of the other bits and pieces that I've done over the past few years are:

(remember, I've purchased parts for several years, this will not be a build where you see all the latest and greatest parts...I bought what I could with the money I had at the time and tried to buy things that I liked, eg. 18" Boss 304 rims which aren't anything special these days but I still like them)

: Bellteck 2 / 4 static drop

: remote door poppers (handles yet to be shaved)

: shaved Sir Michaels steel roll pan

I think that's it actually. Not that much progress I guess, but more to come!

[Gordonr1973]

Here are some update photos from this work done this last 2 weeks.

I had Lonnie & Tyson from Harder Automotive in Edmonton, Alberta do this work for me as it was beyond my abilities...

First, they installed Edlebrook Ceramic Shorty Headers on the 5.7L --- the install went well with only minor adjustments needed for fit.

Then they installed Flex-a-lite electric fans and an automatic controller for the cooling system. Again, the fit was fine.

They also installed Belltech front and rear sway bars. The rears were tight on the passenger side as I have to get my exhaust redone anyways since the first owner had a bush-league set-up done on it.

[Gordonr1973]

The guys also replaced my brakes all-around with a set from SSBC. These are the rears in the photo below.

Now, this install took alot more work as SSBC is "iffy" on their instructions from what we found. They didn't call us back quickly either when we left messages for customer service. But, I think the set-up looks good even though it is a tight fit on these 18" rims. (I might think about replacing these rims after the truck is done, but for now I'm going to keep them as-is).

I will try to get more photos of the brake set-up once I have the truck back home on the weekend and get things ready for the next go-around of work...diff locker, tranny deep pan, wiring, welding etc.

I need to clean my garage tonight to get ready though.

[89muscletruck]

Cool truck and I like your plan.
oh and to the board!

[JohnC]

Looks good man!

Maybe the PO's pedal mod was a security system of sorts.

[Gordonr1973]

No chance on the weekend to do much but clean up the garage a bit. I sold the box cover though on Sunday nite and might have a chance to wash the truck up tomorrow and take some better pics...

[Gordonr1973]

Well, here is some news....I sold my rims and tires off my truck last night and here is the result....my truck with winter tires on the back and sitting on jack stands in the front!

Here are some pics of the SSBC set up in the front since there are no tires to block the view...the rotors are huge compared to the OEMs!!

The last picture is just a quick shot of the Edlebrock headers from inside the wheel well.

I'm going to be doing some research this week on what tire and rim combos would be best on my truck from here but I may need some advice if anyone has any....feel free to let me know what works / didn't work for you, thanks!

[Gordonr1973]

Hi all;

well I've been busy for the last month with work so not much has progressed with the truck --- other than RIMS & TIRES!!!!!

Now, I was going to go with a set of Irocs as I just love the way they look. But, I saw a set of Foose's at a car show and thought they would look the best with the style of finish I'm going for in the paint and body mods....you have to wait and see what those are b/c I'm not telling anybody just yet!

In case anyone is looking for sizes for their truck, here's what I went with:

- Front -

Rim: 20 x 8.5, 5.25 backspacing
Tire: Nitto 420S 255 / 45/ R20

- Rear -

Rim: 20 x 10, 6.5 backspacing
Tire: 285 / 40 / R20

I like the way they look, I might drop my truck a bit more to fill up the space but I can do that later when I pull the box off to fix some other things...I read what other people had to say about sizing and I went with rubber that will still give a decent ride but will also look good to me.

I have another surprise that I'll attach after this that I'm even more excited about! -- Scrool down and check it out too!

[Gordonr1973]

Now before I go listen to more GnR and read what you other people are doing on your trucks, I want to show you something....I have a 1979 GMC that I'm putting plans together on for next year's build....and I saw these on kijiji 3 months ago: slots!!!!!!!!!!

So, $300 to buy them and double that to get them straightened, the missing chunks welded in, and the crap polished out of them (all done by Wheel Works in Edmonton --- they are the best at this in Alberta!), here are a set of classic rims that are going to look killer when wrapped in fat rubber.

I don't think a set of 18's to 22's will look better on my '79.....remember, it's going to be old school cool!!! They are bit dusty in the pics, but they are going to get alot dirtier next summer!

Peace.

[jb1016]

Very nice! I like the slots, the Fooses, and those brakes!

[JohnC]

Looks good man.

Really digging the slots. They will look good on the 79!

[Vega_67C10]

Nice build Gordon. I'm digging the slots also.

[Gordonr1973]

Some more progress updates. I put on a Volant cold air intake and a Granatelli Mass Flow Air Sensor.

The Volant was a pain in the a$$ to put on because I already had a throttle spacer on my truck so the bolts that were included didn't fit at all. After getting some Reddi-Rod and thread lock to fix that I found out that the throttle spacer actually put most of the angles out on the Volant air tube. It took some convincing, but it all fits now but be warned if you are putting one on your truck --- the hood will push on it when its closed if you mount the air intake on a truck with a throttle spacer.

The Granatelli I'm not sure about. I heard that you have to get a programmer to reset your computer settings if you put one of these on your truck and even though I was going to buy a programmer anyways, I wasn't planning on getting one now. After I put the Granatelli on, my motor sounds like it will almost stall out if I'm parked and it's idling on its own. I have turned the sensor upright now and adjusted the Volant air tube AGAIN so the sensor won't hit the hood when it's closed so I will see tomorrow if it runs any better. My current opinion is the Granatelli isn't worth the money from what I've seen so far.

[Gordonr1973]

The other thing that I did last week was I had an Auburn limited slip differential put into my truck. (In Edmonton, the Gear Centre on 50th street is the place to go for this kind of work.) For a 1998 2 wheel drive, the part number is 542097 and is the Street version, not the Pro version I used.

I kept the 3:73 gear ratio as-is and an important thing to note with these lockers is that they are NOT designed to use synthetic oil, you are to use gear oil with the additive for limited slip differentials. I would write down what they used but the paperwork is outside and I'm upstairs at 11pm writing this!

I'm pretty happy with it so far. I have had a Detroit locker in another truck I had and I found it too loud for my tastes. This one is quiet (although I notice a slight whine) but it no where near as loud a clicking the Detriot locker made when turning a corner. Basically I wanted something that would be a bit stronger than the OEM posi-track GM used in their trucks but something milder than a 4 wheel drive locker or one made for the strip.

I put a chrome diff cover on too, I just wanted something with a plug incase I need to change the oil myself without cracking the cover completely off.

[Gordonr1973]

I had a chance to decide on my exhaust system for the truck this week and got it done on Thursday.

I removed everything from the headers backwards, took out the cats for good, put in cheaters, and replaced it with a true dual exhaust set up.

I went with:

- these mufflers: http://www.summitracing.com/parts/MPE-12288/

- 2.5" tubing

And tips.

Had some trouble getting it lined up and might have to make some slight adjustments once I pull the box off and have room to get at it.

Overall, I'm quite happy with the throaty sound when I step on it and it has a nice mellow tone when I'm cruising on the hi-way in it.

(I had it done at ABC Muffler and Hitch in Edmonton, fyi for the Alberta guys on here. I hear most of the Oilers get their vehicles done there as well.)

[Gordonr1973]

and these are the tips I went with....I'm going for a "muscle car" look.

[JohnC]

Exhaust looks good man! Now we need a video clip so we can hear it.

[89muscletruck]

Nice exhaust man! gotta admit, i'm hoping that i see ya whilst im crusing around town. So i can hear that system in person.

[Gordonr1973]

Well, it looks like snow anyday now so I don't know how much longer I'll be working on it this winter...once salt is spread on the roads here for ice, I'll put it in storage and start working on my '87 SWB as it fits in my garage better and leaves enough space to work around it.

Anyways, I ran into a HUGE problem with the '98 when I was shaving the door handles that I need to get fixed asap (yes the door panel got too hot while I was mig welding with too thick a wire and the panel sucked in.)

Let this be a warning to everyone not to do what I did!!!

I did take pics but I'm too pi$$ed off at myself to post them yet to show everyone what a moron I was that day...

If I can fix that panel and put in all the sound barrier yet this fall I'd be happy. I might make the sub box / console as well this winter, but only if I get bored with the '87.

[getbent]

kick ass build keep those pics coming

[rblcori7]

Looking good man keep up the great work

[getbent]

I love the twin flex-a-lite fans with shroud and controller Ive got the same ones on my build and they are super pullers!!!