Project: Rufus Restoration

[shearjs]

It's been quite a while since I've checked in on the forum. I've been able to make a couple of upgrades during the offseason and take care of a couple issues. The first problem I had was a leaky rear end around the pressed in axle tubes. I had a local buddy tig the tubes to the housing and make it nice and solid. During this time, I decided to go ahead and do a gear swap to a 3.73. As much fun as the 4.10 was, it just wasn't very driver friendly. It cleaned up pretty nicely. Luckily I had a good helper. I also decided to try something a little different than the rallies. I should have the tires mounted this week. This girl loves her new shirt too!

[mcbassin]

Heck yeah Jason! Love the pic of you and your daughter
3:73 is a good choice too. I'm ready to see your truck with the caps.

[Bennett68C10]

Can't wait to see the new wheels on! That is a cute picture of your daughter laying with you under the truck with the Mechanix gloves on!

[shearjs]

Thanks guys. It's so special that she likes to hang out with dad in the garage. I finally got the tires swapped over and the caps on. I'm happy with the outcome so far.

[shearjs]

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[shearjs]

It wa s a beautiful weekend for a bath and some road time. I'm really liking the new steelies so far. I've been trying to drive the truck every chance I get. I really need to take a few minutes and hook up the cruise for those drives into the office.

[shearjs]

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[roushinator]

Nice work!

[swamp rat]

Truck looks great, i like the big ole Mechanics gloves on the little hands too.

[Sac]

Very clean truck.

[shearjs]

Originally Posted by roushinator

Nice work!

Thanks buddy. I appreciate the nice words.

Originally Posted by swamp rat

Truck looks great, i like the big ole Mechanics gloves on the little hands too.

Thanks! My little girl loves garage play time with daddy.

Originally Posted by Sac

Very clean truck.

Thanks for the compliment and checking out the build.

[SIXTY9CST]

What are the brand and part numbers of your upper and lower radiator hoses?

Originally Posted by shearjs

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[Bennett68C10]

Truck is looking awesome Jason

[shearjs]

Originally Posted by SIXTY9CST

What are the brand and part numbers of your upper and lower radiator hoses?

I used a Gates 21439 on top and a Gates 22437 on the bottom for coolant hoses. Both fit really well and I only needed to trim a couple inches off of each to get the right length. I'm happy with the way it turned out.

Originally Posted by Bennett68C10

Truck is looking awesome Jason

Thanks buddy. It's been a lot of fun so far this spring. I'm trying to drive it back and forth to work at least 1-2 days a week as the weather allows. Can't wait to see where you go with your new build!

[shearjs]

I'm a little late with my announcement, but we welcomed a baby boy a few weeks ago. He is 6 weeks old today. From the looks of things, he may have to fight his older sisters for his spot in the garage though. I'm starting to think I need to start searching for a more family friendly hot rod to haul all these babies around. I've been keeping my eyes open for a Burb, but haven't had much luck just yet. It seems like every one that goes up for sale is 2000 miles away.

[flashed]

Congrats on the cute new addition .

[Bennett68C10]

Congrats on the little guy!

[shearjs]

Originally Posted by flashed

Congrats on the cute new addition .

Originally Posted by Bennett68C10

Congrats on the little guy!

Thanks guys!

Well I am very happy to report, that after more than two years of being on my to do list, I now have working cruise control!

[MMcMasters]

I just finished reading your whole thread. First off, congratulations on your baby!! Secondly, you have a beautiful truck and you should be extremely proud of your build. The steelies definitely completed the look in my opinion.

Mike

[jus2qwk]

I love the color on this truck!

[shearjs]

Originally Posted by MMcMasters

I just finished reading your whole thread. First off, congratulations on your baby!! Secondly, you have a beautiful truck and you should be extremely proud of your build. The steelies definitely completed the look in my opinion.

Mike

Mike, thanks for your kind words. I appreciate you checking the truck out and taking time to comment.

Originally Posted by jus2qwk

I love the color on this truck!

Thanks buddy! The color is a modern GM color. It is Imperial Blue Metallic that GM used on Camaros and some trucks I believe.

[SIXTY9CST]

What radiator brackets did you use? The Griffin radiator is too thick for my stock brackets. Thanks

Originally Posted by shearjs

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[shearjs]

Originally Posted by SIXTY9CST

What radiator brackets did you use? The Griffin radiator is too thick for my stock brackets. Thanks

Thanks for checking out my build. I used the hd radiator mounts that are wider than the standard mounts. http://www.lmctruck.com/icatalog/cb/full.aspx?Page=162. You can see them listed here for a 4 row radiator.

[shearjs]

I had been having some trouble keeping my a/c working. It turns out that my low pressure hose was leaking around the beadlock crimp. I had the hoses crimped at a local hydraulic shop. I contacted vintage air and they offered to recrimp all the hoses properly if I sent them in. Within a week I received all new hoses that were perfect length with the proper orientation. And they didn't charge me a cent! How's that for awesome customer service?! While it was down, I removed all the hard lines and painted them black so they aren't near as noticeable through the grille. This cool air is a life saver on these high 90 days. I've been driving this beauty a couple days a week to/from work and I really think it drives better every day.

[shearjs]

Before/after