Project: Rufus Restoration

[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.

[GAc10boy]

Steelies and caps for the win! They really set this truck off. Remind me, what's your suspension set-up again?

[shearjs]

Originally Posted by GAc10boy

Steeliness and caps for the win! They really set this truck off. Remind me, what's your suspension set-up again?

Thanks! I really like the steelies and caps too. It has an ECE 4-6 drop kit.

[invicta455]

Very nice rig

[Bennett68C10]

Try to keep it if you can Jason, it's a beautiful truck. Plus you need to drive and enjoy something while you work on that Suburban project

[mcbassin]

Nice detail work on the AC lines. Glad to hear Vintage Air hooked you up. Digging the steelies too! I certainly hope you get to keep both rides. I've been looking for you a burb around here.
How much of a project do you want?

[shearjs]

Originally Posted by invicta455

Very nice rig

Thanks buddy!

Originally Posted by Bennett68C10

Try to keep it if you can Jason, it's a beautiful truck. Plus you need to drive and enjoy something while you work on that Suburban project

Keith, you make a very good point!

Originally Posted by mcbassin

Nice detail work on the AC lines. Glad to hear Vintage Air hooked you up. Digging the steelies too! I certainly hope you get to keep both rides. I've been looking for you a burb around here.
How much of a project do you want?

Thanks Mike. Those shiny lines always stuck out like a sore thumb to me shining through the grille. As for a burb, I don't mind to do some rust repair. Actually I expect it, although something with a little less than my truck had would be ideal. More or less, I'd like to find something that is mostly complete, with 3 rows of seats, that could be driven as is until I get brave enough to tear another one completely apart. Thanks for keeping an eye out for me!

[shearjs]

Against my better judgement, I decided to make a small upgrade today in the name of comfort. My vintage air has been working great, but with the minimal insulation and clear glass, these upper 90 days feel like an oven in there. I've always thought it would look better with the clear glass but I went with some light tint to lower the cabin temps a little. I've gotta say, I love the look and i think it definitely adds to the overall appeal of the truck. Not to mention, it already feels more comfortable.

[shearjs]

Another

[shearjs]

Last one

[Hart_Rod]

Originally Posted by shearjs

Against my better judgement, I decided to make a small upgrade today in the name of comfort. My vintage air has been working great, but with the minimal insulation and clear glass, these upper 90 days feel like an oven in there. I've always thought it would look better with the clear glass but I went with some light tint to lower the cabin temps a little. I've gotta say, I love the look and i think it definitely adds to the overall appeal of the truck. Not to mention, it already feels more comfortable.

Living in FL, I installed all tinted glass in my Suburban.

[Bennett68C10]

The tint looks really good Jason, you didn't overdue it by completely blacking it out!

[GAc10boy]

I typically don't like tint on our body style trucks but with the solid color paint I think it looks great. Very well done!

[flashed]

I agree with Robbie ,looks great .

[mcbassin]

Looking good Jason.

[shearjs]

Originally Posted by Bennett68C10

The tint looks really good Jason, you didn't overdue it by completely blacking it out!

Originally Posted by GAc10boy

I typically don't like tint on our body style trucks but with the solid color paint I think it looks great. Very well done!

Originally Posted by flashed

I agree with Robbie ,looks great .

Originally Posted by Hart_Rod

Living in FL, I installed all tinted glass in my Suburban.

Originally Posted by mcbassin

Looking good Jason.

Thanks everyone! I was a little nervous that it would hinder the classic look but I'm happy with the outcome. This is a driver after all so I might as well me comfortable while doing it.

[shearjs]

It's been a while since I've had any updates. This past weekend I finally decided to attempt the oil pan swap. The truck has the original truck pan from the donor truck still installed. It was about 3-1/2" off the ground. I swapped to the 08-15 ctsv pan to gain an extra 1-1/2-1-3/4 of clearance. I had been dreading this swap for a while with the engine in the truck. After disconnecting the few things keeping the engine in place I was able to jack the engine up a couple of inches to allow plenty of clearance to drop the old pan and pickup tube and to install the new one. Much needed upgrade! Can't wait to get the next upgrade underway and get this ol girl back on the road.

[shearjs]

I've been continuing to work on upgrades. This past weekend I finished up my exhaust upgrade. I pulled everything out from the header collector back, and started from scratch with some 2-1/2" 304 stainless bends and straights from Ace Race Parts. This time around I am giving Black Widow Exhaust a try with their Venom 250 mufflers. I also decided to continue the exhaust to the rear bumper instead of turn downs before the rear end. So far so good! Can't wait to log a few miles and see how it really sounds.

[shearjs]

Black Widow Venom 250 - YouTube