Senior Project Build

[LuckyHenriksen]

Here is my attempt at a build thread. The truck is a 1968 Chevy LWB, and I am rebuilding the suspension, motor, switching transmissions, and adding disc brakes. This is my Senior Project for high school.



Here are some pics of when I first brought it home. The blue one is my '62 that I wrecked, being parted out.







































Truck came with a crusty 350 and the original 3 speed on the column. The linkage was mostly broken so I had an interesting time getting it from Battle Ground WA. to my house in Oregon. The motor leaked oil like a champ, so I tore it down hoping it was the front main seal.









I fixed that and it still leaked like a seive. I found a fairly straight tailgate on craigslist for cheap and brought it home and rattlecan primered it.














Next step was to remove the lame rear bumper and stickers from the back window.

[Riveted1]

Nice looking truck!

[LuckyHenriksen]

The manifold was in bad shape too









And heres a couple pics of the poor '62

[LuckyHenriksen]

Originally Posted by Riveted1

Nice looking truck!

Thanks!

[LuckyHenriksen]

Now it was time to remove all the old stuff and clean it up.
There goes the rusty, oil soaked exhaust.









Then comes the motor and trans.

[LuckyHenriksen]

I tore the motor down to a short block, and replaced all the seals and gaskets, added a new oil pan, timing chain cover, water pump, fuel pump, starter, and a new Edelbrock performer intake and 650 CFM carb. I also repainted it, those are just iron heads that I painted with aluminum paint.









Then I started the suspension tear-down














I am switching from 6 lug to 5 lug, so I have new axles to install in the rear and a set of 2.5in drop disc brake spindles to install up front. At the same time I will be installing 4'' drop coil springs to bring the rear down and 3'' drop coils up front. Combined with the spindles I should have a 5.5 /4 drop.




This is one of the new 5 lug axles

[rcrahn]

Tell me you were not in that '62 when it was T -Boned? If you were you are one lucky kid!

[LuckyHenriksen]

Originally Posted by rcrahn

Tell me you were not in that '62 when it was T -Boned? If you were you are one lucky kid!

Yes unfortunately I was. I DIDN'T have a seat belt on, so I was thrown against the opposite side. The doors jammed shut, but I was able to crawl out the window hoping the fire bomb gas tank behind the seat wouldn't ignite. I guess thats why my friends call me Lucky

[LuckyHenriksen]

I pulled off the upper and lower control arms, cleaned, painted them, and had new ball joints pressed in at NAPA.














Then I installed everything, including the new spindles, shocks, springs, and suspension components.

[LuckyHenriksen]

Next came the new disc brakes. The calipers were gold, and it didn't look right, so I painted them red with high-temp paint.







































Here are the new braided steel lines, compared to the old rubber ones.









And here is a test fit of a junky 5 lug rally wheel.

[sixty8c10]

looking good, keep up the good work

[rcrahn]

Wow, I believe "lucky" is an excellent nickname for you now.
Nice work on your new ride now.
In the future buckle up.

[LuckyHenriksen]

Originally Posted by sixty8c10

looking good, keep up the good work

Thanks man

[thirdstreettito]

Lookin good! Keep it up! How old are you? 18? Guessing because you are a Senior.

[LuckyHenriksen]

I'm actually 17, my senior year started thursday
My school lets us get our senior projects approved at the end of your junior year, so you can have the summer to work on them. Kinda cool

[68 short step]

looks good

[LuckyHenriksen]

Thanks for the comments guys

[LuckyHenriksen]

I found a set of stock wheels on CL for a good price, so I grabbed them and cleaned them up a bit. I needed new wheels because I switched to 5 lug. I had them sandblasted at this sweet old shop in town, then rattlecanned grey primer and "clearcoat" over them.














Then I mounted the tires that came on it so I could get it on the ground. They were way too big but at least it is a roller now.



















So far plenty of ground clearance









This shows my freshly rebuilt TH400 with 2000 Stall converter, and the clean shiny engine ready to rock.

[LuckyHenriksen]

Finally the day came to drop the motor and transmission in. For this job I enlisted the help of a friend.
























My so called "help"









It is all nestled down in the engine bay, looks empty









Then I squeezed in the Hooker Comp. Headers



















The weight of the drive train pushed the front down even more

[IvelDesigns]

nice lookin' truck man. what are you plans for the rear end?

[LuckyHenriksen]

Here are the latest pics. It now moves under its own power. I know a guy who works for Goodyear, and he got me a good deal on some new Eagles. They fit much better than the old tires. They are too skinny in the rear for my taste, but they were cheap. Had the driveshaft shortened and rebuilt. Most everything is hooked up and working. The stance is pretty aggressive, and I only have like 2 inches of clearance between the header collectors and the ground. Thats a bit of a problem. But other than that I'm happy about the way its turning out.

[LuckyHenriksen]

I like rake, but this is a bit too much. Theres not enough clearance in the front. I have new springs ordered to fix this problem.









And I also have a chrome bumper on order to fill in the back end.








Next up is exhaust and alignment

[LuckyHenriksen]

Originally Posted by IvelDesigns

nice lookin' truck man. what are you plans for the rear end?

Thanks Im glad you like it. I have a chrome bumper on order through LMC right now

[LuckyHenriksen]

I was having lots of trouble chasing electrical gremlins, and nobody could help me, so I enlisted the help of a shop across town. I used my AAA card and had it towed over there and back for free. They cleaned up some of the wiring harness and set everything right.

[IvelDesigns]

sorry, i was talkin about the ride height. but it sounds like you're gonna get new springs up front to balance it out? or are you getting springs for the rear?