Rusty, crushy, but trysty.

[threeonthetree]

some serious rust repair in that cab.
has inspired me to go ahead with mine nice work will have to read threw this hole thread.

[makman1297]

Thanks threeonthetree, i consider it the working mans truck. Nothing really high end, just a bunch of good work and regular parts.

[threeonthetree]

Looking great still reading the thread. keep up the fine work doing a realll good job

i hope my comes as far as you have.

[Gordonr1973]

Its going to be a nice blue!

I really like that shade of color blues on the C10's.

[makman1297]

I wasnt sure how the color would turn out, but i do like it. Cant wait to get it all painted up. I also got my computer cable from aldl. It connects the test connector on the vechile to you laptop USB. I need to run the scan on it and set the base idle and check to make sure everything is working properly.

[makman1297]

Today i finished up the valve seal job, fired it up and it blew smoke for a bit and then seemed to die down. Let it idle for about 15 min. After that it smokes a little after revving it up, and then clears back out. I am thinking there is some oil residue down the exhaust pipes that is slowly burning out. Guess i will leave it as is and wait to i can drive it some and then check it. I think the tranny will also need some fine tuning, just back and forth down the drive way it seems to shift hard into second. I did put a lot of newer parts and shift correction kits as well as a govenor kit that i need to calibrate. I also noticed the engine vacuum seems to be a bit higher than it was before. I am going to try and get more body work done on it tomorrow. I have to work this weekend so wont have as much time for it.

[makman1297]

Nothing done today thanks to my work schedule. So i thought i would at least put up some pics, one of the cable i got and some of the tbi after i modified it.

[gshibler]

Where did you get that fancy cable. I didnt know you could hook your old beater up to a computer!

[makman1297]

Gabriel i got it from ALDL.com. Im sure there is not too many 77's around with a computer plug in. This way i can use my laptop as a scan tool since OBD-1 scanners are hard to find and expensive. I still need to check and make sure the base idle is working properly, that the iac counts are correct, and the sensors are all ready properly. I can also drive it and record the data, that is if i can get it set up and working.

[makman1297]

Got the new carpet in, hopefully this one will fit. Will try it in the morning.

[my4by2]

Looking really good man! Dig the engine paint & all the rust repair along the way - doinf some of the same to my Daughter's '79 here shortly... Keep up the great work!!!

[makman1297]

Today i got some work in, got the cab 95% ready for primer. Have just a little body filler to sand down. Once i get it in primer can fix the remaining defects. Also tried my new carpet, looks like we have a winner. It will need some trimming to fit, but at least this one is wide enough. Also hooked up my cable and ran the winaldl and tada my compter turned into a scan tool , now i can set my idle and adjust the tps.

[makman1297]

The wifey got some work done on the seat cover. The bottom is done, except it needs the material sewn in on the bottom to run the wire, then hog ring it on. I also welded the broken spring back together.

[spudz]

WOW !!! Last I looked at this thread it was a black 2wd!! now its awesome! lol.

[foamypirate]

Awesome work! I love seeing all the rust repair. Gives me a little more confidence that I can do the same thing with a little bit of practice!

[makman1297]

Thanks spudz and foamypirate, I think anyone can do this type of work. I just takes some time and some tools. They dont really get much easier or cheaper than these old trucks.

[jbwolfe]

I've been wanting to learn to weld for awhile now. For a beginner, what welder would you recommend? I'd be using it for this type of work.

[makman1297]

Started doing some body work, but then it started raining so i decided to tune the engine. I did the IAC adjustment. What a pain to get the old plug out, not as easy as pop it out like all the other people have said. I set the base idle at 500 rpm and adjusted the tps to .58 volts. I let it run for a while. Idle soild in open loop around 800 and then around 750 in closed loop and fluctuates a bit, like 725-800. But the computer is far more sensitive then the cheap tack. In open loop it shows rich, and closed loop i see it bouncing from lean to rich, so i guess that is how its supposed to work. Really need to get it done and put some miles on the thing.

Jbwolfe, any mig with gas that is rated for 22 guage sheet metal will work fine. I use a harbor freight mig. Its a 220V setup, with a regulator and argon co2 mixed gas, and i use the .23 wire. The setup was about $300. I got the welder and regulator at harbor freight, and i got the tank off ebay and then swapped it out at a welding supply for one thats filled. There are many to choose from, just dont get a flux core only, they dont have as nice of a weld, and burn hotter then the gas setup. Good luck.

[jbwolfe]

Thanks for the recomendation. Right before I was reading your post, I was looking at mig welders at Harbor Freight. This one here seems to be good, and it's on sale. What do you think? http://www.harborfreight.com/170-amp...der-68885.html

[Factor]

trucks looking great same thing as me but im saving up the big bucks to get final paint and touch up work done at a body shop this summer, its my first restore and i wanna keep mine im 18 and worked my ass off and got over 7000 in my chev and this week im putting a new rebuilt performance 700 r 4 with extra clutches wider bands hardened sun gear stage 3 shift kit ,corvette servo and lager valve body along with a stich welded torqure converter with a 2800 rpm stall and a cooler with 1 inch deeper pan cuz my new 385hp 355 small block took my orignal trans out in 2 weeks i hate it cuz these old trucks are addicting i find more fun restoring and rebuilding them then i almost do driving the thing especially when most guys think its my dads ride when its not lol ive had 6 trucks and im keeping this one for as long as i can i hope past marriage too :p and i hope the same for yours as well ,your doing a gret job

[Factor]

got some pics of my truck at the moment this was for my prom 2 weeks ago, i want 35s its got a 4 inch lift ,ive done all body on it and the new engine like i said a new 355 cammmed intake headers the works rebuilt , everything done or payed for by myself 2 years in the making i could see in the cab from the inside and it didnt even run when i got it / i had a 3 day motor swap 4 days before prom and to have it ready for the lady , "i said u want a limo and she said id rather take your truck. and my jaw dropped lol

[makman1297]

Nice pics factor. Got the truck in primer and sanded down, have a few small defects to fix, then some more primer and then paint. Its getting close. I also got the headliner material on and started on the box sides. I see that the inner rear fenders are rotted too. I put a set on order from classic parts.

[makman1297]

I looked at the back of the dash and found a 2" section of the printed circuit was melted out. It was for the dash lights, guess thats why all the bulbs were pulled out of it when i got it. I couldnt justify buying a 70 printed circuit, so i just soldered a wire in to jump out the bad part. Works pretty good.

[Gordonr1973]

Originally Posted by makman1297

The wifey got some work done on the seat cover. The bottom is done, except it needs the material sewn in on the bottom to run the wire, then hog ring it on. I also welded the broken spring back together.

Seat looks great! She did a very nice job on it.

[makman1297]

Thanks gordon, i know she put i lot of work into it. I should have the back piece done this weekend. Today i got my inner bed panels for the wheel wells. I havent had a chance to get much done the last couple of days thanks to the long work week. I am hoping to finish up the primer and get the cab into paint tomorrow.