My '63 C10 "I'd rather be driving" Project

[CRGRS 66]

Thanks for sharing John, wish I could have made it Sunday...

[Johnny_Lamebridge]

Originally Posted by lower50's

Thanks for the compliments John. It was great chatting with you again Your rims look even better in person you did a great job.

No problem Bob, and thanks. I'm surprised how much attention my truck is getting because of the wheels. I still need to get my hubcaps mounted.

Originally Posted by Grizz1963

Thanks for sharing.

Originally Posted by mjh1965

There are some nice rides there thanks for sharing

Yep, no problem guys.

Originally Posted by CRGRS 66

Thanks for sharing John, wish I could have made it Sunday...

Yeah Craig, the weather wasn't great buy it was a good show. Have you been out to any shows or cruise nights? Gotta get those juices flowing!

[Johnny_Lamebridge]

I took thursday and friday off to concentrate on my "home" work. I must've done a good job because saturday morning my wife gave me time off for good behaviour. We got some breakfast, then she gave me a hand to clean my C10 which has been neglected since the torrential downpour last weekend.

After that we headed for downtown Cambridge for the "Rodding for Reading" fundraising car show hosted by the Lead Kings car club. There were some cool Lead Sleds in attendance (obviously), and a real variety of hot rods, rat rods and musclecars.

The only other 60-66 there was this '63 GMC Short Stepper. The body had been repainted, but the interior and drivetrain are original. It's a 6 banger, 3 on the tree. I chatted with the owner for a while. It made me realize how good we Chevy guys have it compared to GMC owners. It never dawned on me that things like fender emblems aren't reproduced for GMC's.

Here's a pic... and one of a cool A100 Dodge named "Vanarchy"

[Johnny_Lamebridge]

After the car show it was back home to install baseboard trim . In the previous two days I'd installed crown molding and laminate flooring. Prior to the bedroom, I'd finished the ensuite and walk-in closet. I won't cut MDF indoors due to the dust it creates, so I set-up my saws in the back yard... so for every cut, I had to run down a fight of stairs, make the cut, then run back upstairs to the bedroom. My feet and legs and knees are killing me. Happily, painting is all that's left to do. Completely spent...here's a pic after finishing up late last night.

I'm having a lazy day today... NASCAR and Canadian Formula 1 race on the tube...

[canadian_diesel1964]

You are looking good man...LOL

[aerotruk63]

Safety Croc's ?

[lower50's]

You don't look spent, you look dead. I sounds like a good show. My pinstriper Adam was there as well. Guess I should have put off my outside chores again and gone to that show.

[clemdaddy]

take a break... you deserve it. room looks good and you saved a bunch by being the carpenter...

[Johnny_Lamebridge]

Originally Posted by canadian_diesel1964

You are looking good man...LOL

Ha! Unfortunately, I look a lot more "curvy" when Im standing upright.

Originally Posted by aerotruk63

Safety Croc's ?

I was careful not to shoot myself in the foot. Mind you... I could use a little more time off work.

Originally Posted by lower50's

You don't look spent, you look dead. I sounds like a good show. My pinstriper Adam was there as well. Guess I should have put off my outside chores again and gone to that show.

I was surprised how many cars were there. I saw Adam's 55 Pontiac 4dr with surfboards on the roof, and Mexican blanket seat covers. Seems like a good dude. A real artist.

Originally Posted by clemdaddy

take a break... you deserve it. room looks good and you saved a bunch by being the carpenter...

Thanks! I try to do everything myself... then there's no one else to blame. Growing up, my now departed Dad used to work construction, and I was expected to help out with any building or reno projects around the house. I guess a lot of that experience soaked in. When I bought my first house I became a big fan of "This Old House" with Bob Vila & Norm Abrams and the gang. I used to really like doing reno work... but now it just seems like more work that eats up any precious spare time.

[Johnny_Lamebridge]

I'm finding some spare time again finally to play around with some things that were on the back burner. I whipped up a soda blaster to play around with. It worked really well cleaning up this dirty old Quadrajet that I'm going to try on my 283. I'll mount it to an Edelbrock Performer intake that I picked up at a swap meet for $30.

[Johnny_Lamebridge]

Another job I've been trying to get to, was a custom shifter handle to replace the ugly S10 handle.

I've never been one to name my vehicles, but given the hassles I encountered when I bought my C10 in Florida, I've decided that "Problem Child" would be a good name. It also doesn't hurt that there's an ACDC song of the same name.

Here's what I came up with... stainless steel. I just need to get it mounted, then polish it like chrome.

[65sub]

Nice shifter John. Cool name for the truck. You must have access to some nice machinery to cut those letters. How about some more info on the homemade soda blaster

[66ChevyMax]

That shifter is sweet!

[Johnny_Lamebridge]

Dale, I do everything with a hammer and chisel. Ok, not really. The engraving was done on a cnc mill.

I don't have any pics of the soda blaster with me, but there's all kinds of info on youtube. Just google "DIY Sodablaster" and you'll find lots of videos like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vuENNhOMQs

I started out with just a simple blowgun that you stick the end of the nozzle thru a plastic syphon tube to create a venturi. Just stick the other end of the tube in a box of baking soda and you have a soda blaster. It worked ok, but I found I had to keep fiddling with it to keep a steady suction.

I tried a couple different air/water spray guns that worked way better, because they already have a suction connection to draw up the water or cleaning solution. I added an empty orange juice container that has a handle, and stuck a 5/16 metal tube into the lowest point to draw up the soda. It works pretty well.

I ended up with a gun like the one below which is nice because the nozzle at the discharge end is adjustable, so I can increase or decrease the amount of baking soda going thru. I imagine you could also use a sandblasting setup, and just use soda instead. ???

[Grizz1963]

I suddenly find myself wanting a floor shifter......


That has come out great John.

[CRGRS 66]

Shifter looks great there neighbor!
If you are around, and out and about this weekend pop by with your truck for a beer..

[Johnny_Lamebridge]

Originally Posted by 65sub

Nice shifter John.

Originally Posted by 66ChevyMax

That shifter is sweet!

Originally Posted by Grizz1963

That has come out great John.

Originally Posted by CRGRS 66

Shifter looks great there neighbor!
If you are around, and out and about this weekend pop by with your truck for a beer..

Thanks guys! I hope to get it installed this weekend. And yes Craig... I will stop by.

[lower50's]

Ya Adam is a great guy and has an awsome eye for what to do. Love the shifter John, the name really does suit the truck and yes great song. You should bring Craig buy my place Saturday for a BEER.

[Johnny_Lamebridge]

Originally Posted by CRGRS 66

pop by with your truck for a beer..

It ended up being coffee on Sunday morning, but it was good talking and exchanging ideas. Fun little ride in my C10 to the coffee shop too... lol.

Originally Posted by lower50's

You should bring Craig buy my place Saturday for a BEER.

Craig couldn't make it, but my wife Gayle and I dropped in to Bob's (Lower50s) open house & BBQ. Bob and his GF Heather did a great job preparing all the food. The pulled pork was on point!

I didn't know anyone there, but after speaking to Bob's dad and Heather's parents we found that we knew some of the same people. I asked Heather's mom about the Charlotte Motor Speedway jacket she was wearing, and we ended up having a nice chat about all the Nascar races she and her husband attend every year, towing their 5th wheel trailer. Heather's dad then told me he used to race Vintage Modifieds (and others) for a few years in the 70's, and he knew and raced against some of the oldtimers in the car club I belong to, The Motor Lords. As it turns out, when he gave up racing he sold his '37 Ford race car to my buddy Jim, a club member. Jim rebuilt the car completely and raced it for many years until he retired. He still has the car in pristine condition. Back then, these cars were required to run an inline 6 or a flathead V8. What a sound with 25-30 of these six bangers buzzing around the track! Nowadays, they're allowed to run crate 350's, but some guys have stuck with built 6's.

Small world sometimes...

Thanks again, Bob & Heather!

I found (stole ) a couple pics of the '37 when Heather's dad owned it (#80), and when my buddy Jim raced it (#12).

[Johnny_Lamebridge]

Earlier on Saturday, I got my shifter welded up, polished, and installed. I cut off the original handle, beveled the stump and the new handle, then laid down a root pass. I reassembled the shifter and tried it in the truck. I made a little adjustment, took it apart again, then welded 'er up. A couple hours polishing and it looks pretty good imho.

The new handle is a few inches longer than the bent S10 handle, but not too bad as I had previously modified my shifter to shorten the throw. It feels way more solid now being that its all metal.

[FL71C10]

The shifter looks great! Much more period correct.

[lower50's]

Wow John you are too kind. Heather and I are glad you and Gayle came to enjoy our 3rd annual open house. It is amazing how small the world really is sometimes.
Your shifter looks even better in person.

[Paul Y]

Not checked in for a while Johnny and seem to have missed a huge amount! Shifter looks very good, nice work Sir!

P.

[aerotruk63]

The only problem now is all the people doing internet searches for the PROBLEM CHILD Shifter Co. website!

[Johnny_Lamebridge]

Thanks for the kind words Guys...

Originally Posted by aerotruk63

The only problem now is all the people doing internet searches for the PROBLEM CHILD Shifter Co. website!

Haha Norm, good one.