Assembly Line Photos

[gmachinz]

Keith-do you have any knowledge regarding the CUCV military K20s? I’d be curious to know prior to the line, where did the assembly of the frame/suspension/brakes take place? And how about the exterior trim moldings, tailgate bands, etc? Have you ever thought about writing a book or a series of books on restoring these trucks using your knowledge and contacts?

[Keith Seymore]

Yes - we built the CUCV's in Flint, down the same line as the regular products. Every 12th vehicle was a CUCV when we were building those.

They were a little tricky (naturally) due to the added content. I had a diminutive lady that installed the batteries on the LH side of the line. She was supposed to do the battery in the CUCV but couldn't reach. After a while she wouldn't even try; My left side repair man (or me) ended up installing every one of those batteries until she could be moved to a different job more consistent with her strengths and limitations.

Also - the camo paint jobs on those - are standardized. They had the pattern hanging in the paint booth as a reference while spraying the various colors (green, tan) freehand.

Axle trim took place back in the axle bay, just like the commercial products. Front and rear axles were received at the rear of the plant (complete from hub to hub) and hung on a conveyor, in sequence. Axles were trimmed out by adding brake lines, shocks and selecting the appropriate drive shaft (per the build manifest) and hanging them on the same carrier.

We had a library of "wrong" tires on hand at the tire installation point. That way if axles got out of sequence, or a wrong axle installed, the corresponding wrong tire/wheel could be installed to keep the line running and the vehicle would be repaired out back.

Same with the frames. Frames were built up in the plant by adding the frame rails to a "pedestal line", which moved the material but also functioned as an assembly squaring fixture. Crossmembers were built up and added to these rails on the pedestal, along with body mount brackets, spring brackets and any other components that got riveted to the rail. After the frames were viable they were suspended by chains, upside down, until the springs and axles were secured. At that point they were flipped right side up to continue the rest of the process. The CUCV frames were fed into this flow just like everything else.

Prior to 1981 the mechanically attached trim (including the tailgate band) was added in the various trim shops (front end sheetmetal subassembly build, and cab/box trim on the main trim line). In 1981, when the adhesive side trim was introduced, it was installed on the final line using aluminum fixtures in an attempt to get it all on straight. It took a little while to dial in the right process of alcohol wipe, heat and pressure in order to get the moldings to stay on. For a while there you could see those adhesive moldings stuck along the roadway and on the guard rails up and down I-75 and I-69.


I've been told multiple times I should write a book but always related to the funny stories and anecdotes. A restoration guide is a little different nuance than has been mentioned before.

K