Project - '69 4x4 named "Patches"

[msgross]

Here is my 4WD set from LMC. The hole should be smaller and fairly tight... I actually had to file the paint and metal away to seat mine...

[sdailey]

Mike,

How big are the holes in your radiator mount? The picture below shows my radiator mount and the mounts I have.

Dan, does your mount look like this also?

Brother's lists this kit for both 2wd/4wd applications.

http://www.brotherstrucks.com/prodin...er=RSB6972%2D2

[Rack Man]

Shannon, the hole in my radiator mount looks just like yours (same size)....67 & 68 had smaller holes there....there is actually a current post going on regarding that....thats what started this whole thing....

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=361207

[msgross]

I thought that 67-68 2wd and all 4wds had smaller holes

[sdailey]

Hell if I know what's right at this point. The only thing that's consistent looks to be the thickness/shape of the top mount with the shoulder. I've never seen a mount with a larger shoulder that would fit our style radiator mount. Like you it's been so long since I tore mine apart I don't remember what I had to start with.

[Rack Man]

Here is an old pic that shows how big the hole is on my 70.....

[sdailey]

Now we just need a picture of your old mount that went in there.

I've searched all of my old teardown pics and can't find anything that shows the old mount.

[msgross]

I don't think it will matter in the end... just leave it a little loose until you hang fenders so that you can move it around

[sdailey]

Progress has been slow as of late. I've been busy gathering up parts here and there when I can. I've almost got all the sheetmetal needed to put the truck back together with when I get to that point. I just got some repop rear wheel tubs for Tim Christian along with a cab mounting kit. My plans are to cut the low hump tunnel out of my replacement cab and sit the cab on the frame to see if it'll fit in the basement or not. I took off my new tires and wheels and replaced them with some steel wheels. That alone lowered the truck right around 6". I'm hoping the weight of the cab will settle the springs some as well.

[sdailey]

I got a lead yesterday on a NOS '72 outer and inner grill and went after work to check it out. No box or stickers to prove that it is NOS, but I needed one anyway and the price was better than repop, so I picked it up. After talking with the gentlemen for an hour or better I left with a good feeling that it was probably NOS regardless of stickers or paperwork proving so. So I'm happy with that.







He was a super nice guy and had some nice toys. He buys, restores and sells John Deere tractors as a hobby. He even had a couple of trucks that he was trying to sell as well. I was interested in the 3/4 ton GMC 4x4 with truck buckets, just for the seats of course, but he wanted to sell the whole truck instead of parting it out. The truck was all but rusted away and he wanted a mint for it. He also had his grandfather's '71 stepside that had the fewest options I've ever seen on one of these trucks before, so I snapped a picture of the spid just for conversations sake.

[Gene]

I am in the beginning stages of building my 71 SWB 4x4 and really like the look of those wranglers. I am torn between those and the BFG Mud Terrains.

[msgross]

nice score... I just picked up an 80 gal compressor so hopefully I can find my truck buried in the garage and get some work done..

[sdailey]

Originally Posted by Gene

I am in the beginning stages of building my 71 SWB 4x4 and really like the look of those wranglers. I am torn between those and the BFG Mud Terrains.

Both tires you mentioned perform well on and off road, but I went with the MTR's based on the fact that my truck will be used 99.999% on the highway and they'll be a little less noisy than the BFG mud terrains.

Originally Posted by msgross

nice score... I just picked up an 80 gal compressor so hopefully I can find my truck buried in the garage and get some work done..

Thanks Mike. So you finally pulled the trigger on that compressor. Good deal. Like you I have to get back to work on my truck and finish some things up. I want to button up the motor and hear it run first before I move on to bodywork. I'm actually looking forward to doing some body work soon.

[Gene]

Nice build, I plan on hitting the Chickasha, OK swap meet next weekend and picking up my new bumper, grill setup and body mount kits. I sure will be happy when I can roll mine around my garage.

One question though, when you used the diffs from your 76, did you have to mve the spring mounts? I am using differentials from a 91 burb and am thinking the front will bolt right in, but the back is off by several inches, not to mention the shock mounts.

Thanks!

[sdailey]

Originally Posted by Gene

Nice build, I plan on hitting the Chickasha, OK swap meet next weekend and picking up my new bumper, grill setup and body mount kits. I sure will be happy when I can roll mine around my garage.

One question though, when you used the diffs from your 76, did you have to mve the spring mounts? I am using differentials from a 91 burb and am thinking the front will bolt right in, but the back is off by several inches, not to mention the shock mounts.

Thanks!

I didn't use the '76 axles after all and I don't remember why I didn't. I ended up using a set of axles out of a '72 Blazer that bolted right in of course.

Have you started a build thread for yours yet?

[msgross]

all axles through the early 80's should bolt in.. not sure about newer but you can always cut them off and weld new perches on, that's what I did to my rear.. it was a 2WD posi 12-bolt..

[Gene]

Originally Posted by sdailey

I didn't use the '76 axles after all and I don't remember why I didn't. I ended up using a set of axles out of a '72 Blazer that bolted right in of course.

Have you started a build thread for yours yet?

Yeah, not alot of pics yet(dial up hell) and progress is slow. I started out using a 2wd frame and was going to convert it to 4wd, but then found a good 4wd swb frame on craigslist perty cheap. http://www.67-72chevytrucks.com/vboa...d.php?t=352570

Originally Posted by msgross

all axles through the early 80's should bolt in.. not sure about newer but you can always cut them off and weld new perches on, that's what I did to my rear.. it was a 2WD posi 12-bolt..

Yep, thats what I am planning on doing, I have a 12 bolt and a dana 44that came with the frame that I can use the rear for a model. They are 3.07 or I would use them.

[sdailey]

Believe it or not I'm making a little progress. My replacement cab has a low hump floor, but I plan on running my 4spd manual tranny, so the floor had to be cut to make room for the high hump for my 4spd.

I took the high hump and placed it over the area that needed to be cut out and used spray paint around the edges to mark the bolt holes for a reference. I forgot to take pictures before I started so I didn't get the "before" shot of the floor area, but you should be able to get the idea of what needs to be done.

Painted the flange on the high hump to mark the bolt holes.



A little plasma action.



Finished results.




I finally got the cab loaded up and moved over to Alan's shop next door so I can start cutting out the rust before I take it to the sand blaster.



Stay tuned for more progress pictures.....

[msgross]

why not just take it to the blasters, then take care of any remaining cancer?

I did it that way and found a few surprises once it came back. I did open up the cowl area though so that he could blast it better.

[Rack Man]

Looking good Shannon....Little by little she's getting there...By the way thats some pretty handy plasma cutting you did there....straight & clean!


I agree w/Mike on taking it over to be blasted now before you do any of the rust repair....




RM

[sdailey]

Originally Posted by msgross

why not just take it to the blasters, then take care of any remaining cancer?

I did it that way and found a few surprises once it came back. I did open up the cowl area though so that he could blast it better.

Originally Posted by Rack Man

Looking good Shannon....Little by little she's getting there...By the way thats some pretty handy plasma cutting you did there....straight & clean!


I agree w/Mike on taking it over to be blasted now before you do any of the rust repair....


RM

Fellows I got a little ahead of myself in my last post. What I meant to say/type was that we're going to brace it up first, cut out the rusty areas (rockers, cab corners, floor pans) and then have it blasted. That way there are more open areas for the blaster to get to.

Thanks for looking out for me though.

[sdailey]

Got a little work done on the cab last night. Alan was already busy beating out dents when I showed up. (It's nice having a good neighbor.)



I started trying to remove the 40 year old caulk from the drip rail. Talking about a mess...



One of the problem areas on this cab was where the cowl flange is spot welded in the wiring gutter. That's where most of the rot is on the entire cab. Alan started out by drilling the spot welds and then using the air chisel to help remove the cowl panel. Sorry I didn't take before pics of the area in question.



In this picture you can see the remnants of the cowl panel flange that was spot welded inside the wire gutter. Over 3/4 of the cowl flange was rusted away. The plan is to remove the cowl panel from my original cab and use it on this cab.




At least the blaster will be able to blast this area now.

After the cowl was removed we scratched our heads for a little while and then we moved onto the cab corners and rockers.

Marking the cab corners.....



Drilling out the gazillion spot welds on the rockers....




By this time it was midnight and time to call it quits for the evening.

Stay tuned....

[sdailey]

On a side note, this is what I had to do for Alan to earn a spot in his garage.

[Alan's Classic]

Let the fun begin.

We are not planning on using the whole cab corner patch, just a small portion. They appear to be in really good shape (minimal rust). Just marking for reference.

[sdailey]

Finished drilling the holes in the rockers this weekend and got them removed. Alan has an air tool that is specially made for drillng out spot welds and it came in handy drilling out the welds on the bottom of the rockers.



Spot weld air drill




Inner rockers



I also got the cowl removed from my original cab.




Got the cab corners opened up so the blaster will have easier access to that area.




PO quick fix for rust in the cab corner. Caulk....



The blaster came by today to drop off some parts that he blasted for Alan and while he was here he gave me a quote to blast my cab, cowl and hood. He told me he could do it all for $450, which I think is a pretty fair price for everything. He even said that he would come get it if needed whenever I'm ready to have it blasted.

Stay tuned.......