Some pics of my new cab & bed

[bb1979]

Gday all from Australia

Thought I'd post some pics of my project. These are of the new cab and bed I've recently brought to do up and perform a cab/bed swap. The front panels are throw aways but the cab and bed are virtually rust free hard to find over here cos GM only produced them for 5 years at about 1000 all up. No C10's only 3/4 tonne C20's and big C30's no big blocks and very few had 350's in them mainly 292 sixes with granny four speeds. Will post some photos of my daily driver which is a 1979 3/4 tonne C20 table top with dropped spindles and cut coils on the front but stock rear springs BIG RAKE LOL has a 350 small block, turbo 400, power steer.

[bigblock73]

Welcome to the board from MN

Yes, post some pics of your truck, I am sure we would all love to see it. I know I want to see an interior shot, right hand drive would be a treat so see! I can't imagine how hard it would be to find a nice dash pad for your setup, as they are hard enough to find here in the states for left hand drive LoL!

[Srubydo1986]

welcome from virginia. Yes i too would like to see some picture of the truck and the bed and cab look to be in great shape.

[wedgemon]

Awaiting the next episode of "Chevy's Down Under"

- Dave

[bb1979]

Ok I haven't got any photos of my daily driver on my computer at the moment but heres a few of some of the trucks that are getting around over here. This red and white one was brought brand new in 1980 and is in the same town as me (been around the clock maybe twice very low miles) has a blown 383 small block with twin propane carbs & turbo 400 really needs to be dropped tho. All our trucks out here came out with fully fibreglass dash pads no metal like you guys so recovering the fibreglass is easy rip it off and make your own from vinyl, leather whatever you want the shape is in the fibreglass lol. Gauge pod the same as is the instrument cluster. Really all the trucks which came out here were the base model rubber mats idiot lights etc but most have been modified by now. Will try and get some photos of my dad's and my collection on the weekend with so few made we buy most of the parts trucks we can find within a resonable distance from home, pickup beds being the hardest parts to find. Theres also a shot from the passengers side of a different truck. Actually its funny that you asked for photos of a right hand drive dash I saw a truck in sports truck magazine i think that had been converted to right hand drive and how many hours had gone into the conversion of the dash and the steering box setup lol should of just brought the bits from over here lol

[knightlife]

right hand drive...*drools* .... ... .. . envy. .. ... ....

oh yea! welcome from South Carolina

[bb1979]

So heres a couple of shots of my truck which I drive seven days a week hence why i have the other body and pickup bed because I can't take it off the road for a full build. Its not as good looking as alot of the trucks on here but its my pride and joy and I wouldn't trade it for a new car lol. It will look good when done but it takes alot more $$$ to build one over here......

Mechanically its got a 350 small block with vortec heads and aluminium dual plane, a bumpy cam, flat top's, 4 bolt bottom end, high volume oil pump etc, topped with a 425cfm impco LPG mixer on a 600 holley base plate (really needs twin carbs but.....lol), extractors and a full 2 & 1/2" dual system. This is followed by a T400 w/stage 2 shift kit and a 4.56 Dana 60 rounds out the package. Could really do with a 3.7 centre, next thing on the to do list but with smaller rear tyres. Needless to say with the rear end gears 0-80mph comes and goes in a hurry lol but revs hard to maintain 60mph for normal driving like 2800rpm.

Front suspension consists of 3" dropped spindles, 2 inch cut coils (give or take) with 29x9.5x15 Long Trail Radial T/a's and one of those elusive sway bars from a C30 (one of best handling upgrades ever lol). Rear is stock with 33x12.5x15 All Terrains.

A flip kit and reset springs are also on the to do list along with the above mentioned diff centre and tyre changes. Front tyres with reduce a little as well. Can't take it much lower our law only lets us go down till the lowest point is 4" off the ground and my a-arms are oh so close lol (stupid laws).

Body wise this cab isn't too bad needs the outer edges of the floor done but nothing much else just don't have the time. All the bolt on panels need repair of some sort, new ones for the other cab when I do the body swap.

And yes I know it could use some better rims but I haven't found an alloy for it yet that I can get in an 8 stud that i have liked and converting it back to a C10 is expensive. Been wondering what a set of reverse chrome solids with baby moons would look like on it with a set of 245/60R15 Radial T/a's on the front and a set of 255/70R15 on the rear ???

later

[bb1979]

And some more photos

[Srubydo1986]

man those right handed driving truck through me for a loop it like something odd to see. But it makes me for some reason want one for the novitalty reason ill be the only guy with one it be cool.

But getting parts for the dash might be a bit hard like for the pad at most things.

[87 STEPPER]

WOW!

Thoes trucks are kool it's wierd seeing the brake booster over on the right side of the firewall.

Your truck will look much better with the factory bed on it as for that topper i'de leave it at the scrappers.

Keep posting the progress pic's.

Gday mate!

[Malo83]

Welcome from Cali land(California) good looking rides you got there and different yeah keep the pics coming and good luck with the projects, you anywhere near Perth or Fremantle.
John

[dubdeuce80]

thats weird...a couple days ago i was just thinking how cool it would be to convert to a right hand drive. and it definetly looks sweet!

[bb1979]

Thanks for the comments like i said its a daily driver which clocks up 250 mile a week on average and it has lead a hard life before I got it as a builders truck so its a little beat up but you build what you can find over here lol. I live on the complete other side of Australia from Perth (westcoast) over near Sydney (Eastcoast)

[pcmcobra]

welcome...
Anyone know where these right hand drive trucks were built?
Very cool.

[bb1979]

Ok since you guys are interested heres the basic rundown of the history of these trucks in Australia........

1975 GM Holden had nothing with a decent carrying load (there 1 tonner was the biggest they had) and all the sales were going to Ford with there F100. So GM Holden imports the bodies & chassis in knock down form and assembles them here, brings out the baseline C20 converted it to right hand drive using a fibreglass dash panel and swapping over the steering column etc. So heres the history as follows :-

1975 - 292 six cylinder, 4 speed granny transmission 7.50x16 rims and tyres. Basic interior, no power steer, no auto's, no V8's. These trucks had very little chrome and all were table tops

1976 - As above

1977 - Fleetside 8 foot pickups are added to the C20 range same options as above. The baseline C30 long wheelbase is added to the range all options the same as the C20.

1978 - As above

1979 - 350 cubic inch V8's introduced into both the C20 and the C30. Turbo 400 truck boxes added to the C20's as an optional equipment. Silverado external trim is added to the C20.

1980 - Same options as above

And that was it basically the trucks were overpriced in 1975 you could buy an F100 outfitted with all the accesories of the day for the price of a C20 with next to near nothing. GM Holden had its 1 tonner which killed any hope of a C10 being produced over here and by 1980 the Japanese had a huge amount of vehicles being exported to here including trucks which killed them completely.

Basically these trucks were marketed to builders and fruit delivery mobs. Having said that nobody really knows how many were produced but the figures aren't alot. There is still a large following for these trucks over here most guys with F100's drool at the sight of mine or my old man's or even our C30. To give you some idea I live in reasonable sized town on the east coast of Australia and there are 12 trucks left getting around and we own three of them so.....

The majority of the original trucks have long since rusted out and been crushed and you have to search hard to find them in the wrecking yards but many America trucks have been imported over here in the last 15 years or so and been converted across to right hand drive with the Aussie parts. The only big issue when converting is a power steering box, mine is from a 1988 up C1500 with a home made adaptor plate to mount it to the chassis.

It isn't had to convert it over at all just takes a little time and knowledge

[86swb]

If you had a right hand drive here in the states it would really be hard to pass a truck because you would have to go out into the on coming traffic to see if anything is coming. I ran into this when I was in England with a left hand drive and trying to pass. Not safe if you need to pass. Nice trucks.

[bb1979]

over here you can register an vehicle older than 30 years left hand drive but the law states you have to carry a passenger at all times, would have to do something similar over there I guess??

[bb1979]

Finally got my ideal drivetrain sitting in my garage after driving the old man's 454 I had to have one lol

Picked up a reco'd 454 for US$2500 a month ago, my T400 will stay, it was brand new about 12 months ago, and i have just picked up a reco'd gear vendors for US$1200

I drive 40 minutes on the way to work at 70mph and then home again, as well as using my truck for collecting parts from all over the state and towing with.

I figure with 30" tall rear rubber and the 4.56 diff gears I'll be pulling around 2800rpm at 70mph or 2400rpm at 60mph which is the speed limit down here and with all the torque of the rat and with twin propane carbs I'll be laughing, should go ok down the strip as well with some slicks.

I have totally gutted out the new cab I brought. Disassembled the pickup bed and straightened the left hand side, the front panel, inner guards and painted the floor.

The right hand side was hit hard around the taillight and had been dodgy repaired with heat and bog (a real mess) as luck would have it the only section of the old mans original bed that wasn't beyond use happened to be the same area so instant patch panel.

The cabs only got the smallest bit of rust in the right hand floor and a little along the main seam of the firewall. Hopefully I can get it repaired and primered by christmas.