First project ever

[marcolara]

So here is an interesting story. My father used to have a 68 long bed that was passed on to me and my brother during our teen years. As any teenager not really realizing the value of things, we gave the truck (yeah, in running condition) away to some dude that was really happy to get a truck for free. now I'm in my mid 30's and realize how clueless I was back then.

I bought a 68 c10 long bed about 2 miles away from my place. right on my driveway, the passenger front spindle snapped broke and the truck slammed hard to the ground.

I suspect that the bearings were bad and the friction cause the spindle to heat up and break the way it did.

Once I was able to push it back to my backyard using a floor jack, and took the broken spindle off the truck, I realized that the frame had cracked. After further examination, I also found out that the engine block broke off a piece that holds the starter's bolt and is currently using some Mikey-Mouse (my way of saying half-ass) trickery with some frigging wooden shim to hold the starter in place. It was then when my moral just dropped the same way my truck did on the driveway. I can't blame the guy who sold it to me, but the guy who inspected the thing before buying it (me).

Anyhow, Life goes on and I just forced myself to see the potential on the truck. I had the option to weld the crack, buy a new spindle and just move on but I decided to go with a more ambitious idea. I found a rolling short-bed chassis with a nice looking bed in Arizona and hauled it back to my place in Cali.

My idea is to disassemble the bed, clean the chassis (perhaps sandblast), clean the rear-end, buy new 2.5 drop spindles with drop springs, and start moving the parts from my truck to the new frame.

This is the first time I'm doing this so I really have no clue what the heck I'm doing and I learn as I go and the reason I joined this community.

I'm looking for inspiration, answers, guidance, mentoring and to share my experiences for any individual with similar undertaking.

The other problem is that I just moved to a new area (Murrieta California) about a month ago, and I have no contact information for any good shops or people that can do most of the services I require for the project such as sandblasting, body shop, glass, electric, mechanics etc... Luckly for me, Brothers is only 30 minutes away and I can save on shipping.

I don't have much budget so I'm planning to do as much as I can myself, but I'm no mechanic, electrician, body shop expert and by no means am I an expert on trucks. Any tips, comments, feedback is highly appreciated.

Thank you and I hope I can be a good fit here among the experts.

[Toxic Orange]

Welcome... You are in the right place. There is a wealth of knowledge on this site. Just break it down and post one thought at a time and you will get some great feedback and advice!

[PanelDeland]

Just go at it like you would eat an Elephant.One bite at a time.Get a box of baggies and a sharpie to put and label bolts in.

[Tinkermc]

Well 1st off welcome to the forum, nice lookin truck and a very ambisious project. Take plenty of pic's when tearing down for reference points.

[CC69Rat]

Welcome to the board.. !

What are the spring things that connect to the frame then to the back edge of the trailing arm? Sort of a helper spring?

[marcolara]

@CC69Rat, I was wondering that myself. I assume these are like some sort of helper springs for when the truck is loaded or something. My truck is going to be a cruiser... I don't even know if I need them. Should I removed them?

[MattPSU]

Welcome and Good Luck! Some of my advice will mirror what's already been said, but here it goes:

1 - Learn to use this board.

Use the search box for answers to your problems/questions. Chances are, someone's already had the same problem as you and there are already answers/suggestions to the problem. Posting a new thread isn't a problem, there's lots of helpful people here, but it may take a little while to find answers if your in a hurry!

Be sure to look at the regional sections of the board and try to meet some local members. I, like you, moved away from all of my resources to an area that I knew nothing about. Most board members are willing to stop by and give you a hand/inspiration if they're close by.

While we're talking about other area's of the board, be sure to check out the suspension, engine, paint, etc. before you dive into a project related to one of those topics. Learn from other's mistakes and attempt to make things easier on yourself.

Search for ideas and make a plan before you start. My plan has changed a couple of times after I saw things that other members have done.

2 - Don't get discouraged.

You will more than likely have a moment where you say to yourself "What the hell was I thinking, this is too much/too hard/too expensive." Since I had that moment, I've turned one HUGE project into lots of smaller projects. Now the goal isn't to finish the truck, it's to finish this one project (brakes, suspension, paint, etc.) which will lead to the big long term goal of finishing the truck.

3 - Expect to at least double what you think it will take - both in money and time. I'm being kind when I say double. I'll easily be 3, 4, or 5 times into this what I originally thought.

4 - Pictures and baggies are your best friend. I took lots of pictures as I disassembled and I wish I would have taken more. Even if you're going to replace something, label what it is, where it was located and how it was installed.

5 - Try to have some fun with your truck.

My plan was to get it safe and drive it occasionally as I restore/customize it. The most fun I've had in a long time was driving it 1.5 hrs each way to the C10 Cruise In in Charlotte last month. It looked like crap compared to the other trucks there, but it was great to hit the road and it was great to meet other board members.

You'll pick up the rest as you go. - Matt

[alsriv2]

Welcome to the board!

Seems the '68 had some rough and hard use in its days. Looks like you have done good by getting that setup in AZ.
Take it slow and easy taking lots of good pictures for reference and use lots of ziplock baggies and such to keep track of parts.

Keep pictures flowing and don't be afraid to ask lots of questions to the board here.

Good luck and have fun!