1969 Custom/10 clean up

[RockinKees]

Doesn't look bad at all mate!!
I also made my rollpan myself, it looks way better with the licenseplate frenched in, just watch!!
One question: does the pan "stick out" the back or is it the angle of the picture?
Normally it's flat with the bedsides and tailgate. Or are you creating some sort of bumper at the same time? Just asking

[Steve-W]

Originally Posted by RockinKees

Doesn't look bad at all mate!!
I also made my rollpan myself, it looks way better with the licenseplate frenched in, just watch!!
One question: does the pan "stick out" the back or is it the angle of the picture?
Normally it's flat with the bedsides and tailgate. Or are you creating some sort of bumper at the same time? Just asking

thanks buddy!
Not sure yet if I let it come down straight with the tailgate or I let it stick out an inch. Won't be doing much work these coming days. just been to the eye doctor because I thought it was infected, but he sees it more in line with a piece of metal of e chemical residue that got in contact with my eye. "have you done any recent metal work sir?"....
So I'm at home with drops and cream

[Steve-W]

finally recovered from my eye thing, when I went to the specialist, he was stil unsure what caused it, He figured it could have been a viral thing.. Oh well, I've recovered and spent some time in the garage again.
Didn't do to much, because I'm still unsure how to proceed..lets call it designers block I did make the cut-outs for the bedsides, so I could tuck the bumper in and see what it would look like


I made the bumper arms, and now have to figure out a way to align in all, so it soits straight and in the middle.


with the cut-outs done, it already looks a lot better


but I'm still not happy with the side view and this is where my creativity comes to a shocking hold, I just cant see how this will clean up nicely



I took a picture from under the car just to see where the bumper arms would end up


ofcourse at a certain point the bumper fell over ripping the exhaust rubber, but thats an easy fix.

to get my mind off things I had a look at a local car gathering "Kings Cruise" near Amsterdam and despite the crappy weather there was quite a nice turn up.





















and just to show you there are people in the Netherlands with no taste..

[Steve-W]

i Love that Little econoline, It's a 74 with a 302. seller want $4k for it... hmm do I want another project?

[RockinKees]

Originally Posted by Steve-W

i Love that Little econoline, It's a 74 with a 302. seller want $4k for it... hmm do I want another project?

No, you don't want another project
But.....If you have room, why not??

As for your rollpan, did you look at aftermarket pans, how they made them?
I think it's best to follow the body lines, but that's easier said then done AND my opinion....

How was the King Cruise? Lots of people?
Nice pics!!

[Steve-W]

Originally Posted by RockinKees

No, you don't want another project
But.....If you have room, why not??

As for your rollpan, did you look at aftermarket pans, how they made them?
I think it's best to follow the body lines, but that's easier said then done AND my opinion....

How was the King Cruise? Lots of people?
Nice pics!!

Yes kees, the but aftermarket pans follow the body line, this would be perfect if I didn't have those propane tanks sticking out like a pair of hemorrhoids.
and moving them, or buying different tanks isn't a task I want to take up now.

Kings cruise is always good, nice zz-top cover band, beer, burgers and I guess 200+ cars. 1st of July there's Saterday Night cruise in the Hague. I want to be present there with truck

[Steve-W]

So having assembled the bed completely, I worked on the allignment


because on the right side there was a huge overlap!


but.. it turned out that the was an axle stand still under the bed on the left back side, so in the end it turned out alright.

Currently I'm waiting for a opportunity to paint the bed sides, because I can't do it myself, so I'm depending on the availability of my friend. But in the meantime I decided to paint the bed.


I used Hammerite, don't know if you've got this product in the US, but it paints straight over rust and is pretty durable. it comes in a pot, or as spray paint. (normally used on metal fencing)


The blue paint for the bed sides I ordered in a 3L (quess about 3 quarts?) and 2 spray cans. So in order to check the color, I sprayed a litle spot.
Color seems ok, and I'm super impressed with the rattle can, because these don't spray a round spray, but you can actually turn the nozzle to get a horizontal or vertical line.



I have to restrain myself, not to just rattle can the bedsides

[RockinKees]

Bed looks straight and really nice in paint!
The rattlecan test part is also very nice. Is it a metallic blue? Can't see that...

We should meet up sometime, I want to see it in realtime
Take a cup of coffee and talk koetjes en kalfjes and talk cartalk

[Steve-W]

Originally Posted by RockinKees

Bed looks straight and really nice in paint!
The rattlecan test part is also very nice. Is it a metallic blue? Can't see that...

We should meet up sometime, I want to see it in realtime
Take a cup of coffee and talk koetjes en kalfjes and talk cartalk

Cheers Kees, The blue I had matched at a paint shop because the previous blue I used (Boeing Aircraft Color Blue) wasn't available for me. So I took my glove box and had them match the color. I have the feeling the tint is good, there's just a little bit more metallic in the new paint. but I have been thinking about a mat clear coat which is available as a 2K rattle can..but from what I heard is that spraying a mat clear coat is equal to opening Pandora's box. your thoughts?

I've got your number, so i'll call you later.

[RockinKees]

I do not know a thing about spraying paint, all I know is that spray a Matt clear is difficult.
Or you have to spray everything in one go, so spray everything from the same bottleneck.
You can ask Royal Jack, he's done a lot special paint work.
Nice guy, just tell him I sent you.

I plan to go to the next King Cruise, I should be ready then.
If you go we meet there, we have contact before.

[Steve-W]

jeez.. these side panels are so big, I can't haul them around by myself and because of the length I can't fit them in any normal sized European station-wagon. next to our garage there is a Polish garage owner who's got an extended Mercedes van, but it's unavailable for the coming two weeks. I just don't have the patience to wait for this.

the alternative, painting it here in the garage is not an option, I mean the chance of covering everything with blue spray dust is not a risk I want to take.
small surfaces is no issue, but two longbed fleetsides..nah, not gonna risk it.
So, I'm going to put the whole thing together and see if there's a spray booth I will fit

in the meantime I have mostly been helping with our GMC 100, which is nearing completion. (I'll update that thread soon, waiting for some pictures)
But I did a small experiment with a 2K Mat clear.

My tailgate is going to remain patina, so I mat clear coated that.



then I looked at the small blue test I did on the bedside and first scotched it, then shot the mat clear... I have to say, it does look good in my opinion.

before:


and after:



let me know what you think

[RockinKees]

Looks good to me!!

[Steve-W]

So the whole mat clear finish is long term, because the owner of the garage wants us to create some space so he can put some tractor parts. Well the GMC 100 won't be going anywhere, unless it's sold. and my C10 still needs some work. Initially I wanted to paint the bed sides as loose parts, but I can't seem to get the logistics and time scheduled. So I'm putting it back together and then spraying it whole.
I filled up the double plating with something like POR-15 and then took care of the area which I won't be able to reach once the bed is on.
then I primed the bed corner and rattle canned it blue.


using this pistol grip, really makes it so much easier!

[Steve-W]

Tomorrow evening me and my mate Ferry will go on a 400Mi road trip.
Setting of from Hoofddorp in the Netherlands, we'll drive to Voissel in Germany
and then back on Sunday.

So in preparation, I changed my alternator because it wasn't giving enough juice to the battery and I put in an aftermarket voltmeter..just to be sure.

Also I didn't have any temperature indication, so watertemp meter has been placed. the trick was getting the European sending unit to fit, because I tried the original one, but the temp range was way off (after 10 minutes of idling with a cold engine, it read 250F..)

replaced the belts, and of course oil and filter.
Seeing I'm only running on propane, I thought I had to map out all the propane gas stations in Germany, but luckily they're propane friendly..no pun intended.


here the initial test with the original sending unit after 10min idling


here the temp and volt meter built in...yes the volt meter has a temporary place.


during my holiday my mate Ferry was using the truck for what it was built for, hauling stuff.


guess where I went on holiday?


I'll try to have a detailed trip log..if we make there

[dfwright]

That's very nice! I'm glad to see you're up and running, and I look forward to any updates about your trip. I hope it all goes well for you!

[Steve-W]

We made it there and back without any trouble!!, the engine didn't miss a beat, tranny didn't fail, and despite some moderate climbing (from below sea level in Holland to 2000 Feet at our destination) the brakes were as hard an reliable as always. Leaving we had decent weather, but once we started to clime..it turned ugly! Poring rain, thunder and lightning and guess what? no water in the cab!
there we're of course some things; the truck would shudder around 45MPH, so I drove 55 continually but then I was worried because it was revving a bit high. there was the odd rattle/squeek/bang But the engine temp stayed at a constant 176F, oil pressure never dropped..happy camper!

here is a map of our route and the trip is 611KM, or 380Mi. We burned 115L or 30Gallons of propane, which makes a milage of: 12Mi/Gal..not bad, not bad at all! Seeing propane costs 50 eurocents/ liter, the trip cost me 80Euro's or $96,-


So on the Friday we expected a quiet evening because the birthday party was to be on Saturday with more friends from Holland arriving. guess our surprise when we pulled up at 12:30 in the evening with a full blow party..so I only saw the inside of my eyes when the sun was rising .

With a pounding head in the morning we rumbled through sleepy German towns looking for a supermarket to fetch breakfast (on the BBQ ofcourse)
we found one and some nice back roads


on Saterday the party continued with fresh people rolling in and unfortunately taking pictures while intoxicated isn't one of my skills.
so you'll have to settle for a bonfire picture


Then Sunday came, with a double hangover, but I was able to shake off the cobwebs and take some pictures





(thats not me btw)

The drive back went as easy as coming, but some how my friend and I were a lot quieter during the trip

while I'm writing this, the rain is coming down in buckets with my truck sitting outside.
Tomorrow I'll be going on a 100Mi trip to a BBQ, so I'll be loading up my UDS again.. hopefully It'll dry up a bit.

[dfwright]

Sounds like you had an excellent adventure! You must have a virtually one-of-a-kind ride on the trips!

[RockinKees]

Hey, just missed your roadtrip!
Glad it went well! There are these things for, driving around!!

Sunday (sept 17) King Cruise??

[Steve-W]

Originally Posted by dfwright

Sounds like you had an excellent adventure! You must have a virtually one-of-a-kind ride on the trips!

We did for sure! the weather has turned to absolute crap here, so got her locked up now, but I hope to make the same trip soon, because the guy who lives in Germany has (among a lot other cars) a '71 charger. we've stil got a lot of parts laying around that need to be transported there. engine blok, tranny and rear axle..I'm a bit worried about the weight, but it should be fine.

Originally Posted by RockinKees

Hey, just missed your roadtrip!
Glad it went well! There are these things for, driving around!!
Sunday (sept 17) King Cruise??

Kings Cruise..Hell yeah!, my son has a sport event in the morning, so I'll be there at 14:00. I've got your number, so I'll give you a buzz when I arrive.

Bought a new trans pan gasket because I over torqued the the cork one I put a year ago and it's leaking now. this one is silicone, so we'll see if it's better.

and I had this 8" knife laying around, which was heavily abused and very illegal here in the Netherlands, so I decided to put it to good use and turned it into my shift knob.



Here are my wife and our 18month old daughter playing in the truck

[Steve-W]

Went to a local car show on Sunday and ran into RockinKees.
But seeing the last 1000Mi I have driven, it was either raining, or raining hard. So you probably guessed it, it started to rain a half an hour after we arrived.
luckily we could sit inside with burgers and beer, but most of the cars were heading home. I was able to take 2 pictures

[Deckguy44]

Got standard light cab roof. Ever seen one?

[dfwright]

Wow, that panel is very nice!

[Steve-W]

Originally Posted by Deckguy44

Got standard light cab roof. Ever seen one?

you mean the cargo light? isn't it an option on all trucks?


Time to get back in touch with the community here. I've been suffering from "internet detraction". Just couldn't get myself to go online and post on FB, or linkedIn or forums.

But winter is almost over and I've been busy on the truck, so might as well give y'all an update.

I'm still running 6 lug in the back (std. 12 bolt) and 5 lug in front because of the crossmember swap I did in the beginning. So I saw an add for a 5 lug 10 bolt which came of a '78 G20. it didn't cost much thus I bought it, not realizing it was for a leaf-spring setup, where I have coil-spring on my C10.

But they both have 30 spline c-clip axels, so I though I could just swap them.
Not so much..the axles from the 10 bolt are about 4"s longer. I should have know it wouldn't be that easy. I am glad though that from taking a peek on the inside, both look very healthy, although I never bothered to change the oil on my 12 bolt.

what to do then? 6 to 5 lug converters? or swap the rear ends? Only trouble then is that I have to convert the 10 bolt to coil spring, but maybe that's not as hard as it sounds? (ideas welcome) and how can I find out that that will do with my differential ratio? or do I have to re-open it and count teeth? I looked on http://www.drivetrain.com but couldn't find any 5 bolt axles which would fit in my 12 bolt.

Oh and I swapped my trans gasket for a silicone one..but it leaks even harder now! So i bought another one which I'll put in tonight. We did use liquid gasket as well, maybe that isn't necessary when using a silicone gasket?

here a pic of the 10 bolt

[RockinKees]

How are you doing Steve?
Any progress made lately?

[Steve-W]

Originally Posted by RockinKees

How are you doing Steve?
Any progress made lately?

Hey Kees, yes still alive and kicking. Good to read in your thread that your health is improving.

I faced some oldman problems even though I'm only 46. it turns out I have severe Cervical myelopathy and arthritis in the upper part of my neck. which caused excruciating pains and loss of function and feeling in my right arm/hand

Since March I've had pain meds and physiotherapy and I'm at the level now where I have 95% of my mobility and strengh back and only my right little finger and surrounding tissue is still numb.

Most important thing, I can handle a spanner!

The C10 was running ok, during my recovery I was planning to go to Belgium for an endurance drive on my Yamaha WR450. So we loaded the C10 with 2 bikes and headed down (. But luckily faith stepped in; 5 minutes into the enduro drive the Yamaha died and nothing i could do to get it started again.
(I'll add some pictures, gotta find them first) I think it was the smart choice not to engage into a 5hr endurance drive with an iffy neck...

anyway, did absolutely nothing on the truck, it just ran and ran and ran. until 2 weeks ago, where it would fire up, but as soon as I hit the street, it would loose 2 cylinders. I bought new sparks, plugs HEI parts..but my gut is telling me that i need to measure compression. so hopefully I'll be able to do that tomorrow. back online and keeping you posted. but the biggest news is still to come because we found a new project...all I'll say is keep a lookout for a new thread with "Viking" in the title