85 GMC Sierra "Scarlett"

[TKCR]

Originally Posted by N2TRUX

Its time to get back on this project. I had planned to get started last weekend, but I had too much to do around the house. Now that I am somewhat caught up I plan to get going again.

I did score a part that I desperately needed. A buddy that has a nice collection of NOS parts offered me one of his GMC hood ornaments. It was exactly what I needed and at a very fair price considering how hard NOS parts are to find.

Sweet. Yeah those ornaments are hard to find. I just settled on a reproduction one, for my truck. Would have liked to gotten a NOS part, but couldn't find one.

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by aggie91

Good to see you back to give her some attention.

BTW, Thanks again for the time you spent at C10's in the Park looking/discussing the tan/red '84 I brought along. I did end up buying it, sealed the deal last night finally, we agreed on $4500....

You did well sir. Like I said, if you had passed I would have bought it. Thats going to clean up nicely.

Originally Posted by TKCR

Sweet. Yeah those ornaments are hard to find. I just settled on a reproduction one, for my truck. Would have liked to gotten a NOS part, but couldn't find one.

Unfortunately they dont make a repop for GMC or I would have taken one.

[aggie91]

Good to see you back to give her some attention.

BTW, Thanks again for the time you spent at C10's in the Park looking/discussing the tan/red '84 I brought along. I did end up buying it, sealed the deal last night finally, we agreed on $4500, so I think I did fine getting that truck. Turns out it will end up being Owen's truck and we will be selling off the Sonoma to offset some of the investment. I hope to start a very slow moving build thread on it soon.

[05duramaxhd]

Can't wait to see that ornament on the truck. The GMC stuff is getting a lot harder to find it was hard to let that one go but I knew it was going to a good cause!!! Having knee surgery next week so I hope to have some down time to inventory the NOS stuff.

[N2TRUX]

No updates from the weekend, but I really hope to see some progress this week. My shop had become an absolute disaster. I had been accumulating old parts for a swap meet and had no good place to store them, so I bought a couple of modular shelves from Sams and dug in.

I pulled everything out and cleaned thoroughly then added insulation and sheetrock to a section of wall I had never finished. Chris and I separated everything from keep to sell and fit as much as we could in tubs and stacked on the shelves.

Thanks to Chris for the help, and motivation.

[gringoloco]

Much mo betta. Looks like a good sized space to work in. Need to see more of that other 'undercover' truck--never get tired of looking at it

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by gringoloco

Much mo betta. Looks like a good sized space to work in. Need to see more of that other 'undercover' truck--never get tired of looking at it

Along with being OCD I am also claustrophobic. I have a hard time focusing on my work when I feel like the walls are closing in. It was a huge feeling of relief to get things clean and organized in that corner.

The 77 will be getting some well need love soon enough. i have to get Scarlett finished up first or I will not have her ready for Lonestar Throwdown

[N2TRUX]

After an unintended break, I am back on this build. Life and work demanded my attention but I am starting the "Countdown to Throwdown " with a vengeance.

Yesterday I stored the remains from my trip to @c10sinthepark and got on with the dash updates. The freshly dyed pad came out to get to the stock clcluster. I had several updates to do so it had to come out.

I was pleased to discover that that the cluster was original and in excellent condition. Despite that, it needed some love to meet my standards.
Follow along as I restore and update with LEDS and a GM Sports 7k tach.

[N2TRUX]

The cluster comes out along with the HVAC controls. This allows access to the incandescent bulbs that will be replaced.

[N2TRUX]

I ordered the LEDS from Amazon. They were much cheaper than any other source I had found. I read the reviews and they showed to be very bright and true white with no blue cast to the light.
Take note that you will need to straighten the leads on the bulbs and they are directional. If the don't light up reverse them in the socket. I had no defective bulbs once I fixed the leads.

Amazon link

[N2TRUX]

I won't document each step because there are detailed articles in the FAQ forum to cover what I am doing.
The objective is to get the gauges out so you can paint the housing. Use hand tools and caution removing the gauges. Most housing are brittle and the mounting pad can break.

[N2TRUX]

At this point I made note of what modifications were necessary to install the GM Sports tach/fuel gauge.
Note that they also offer a tach only if you want to run a small gas gauge and no clock. If you are just restoring and adding LEDS you won't need to make these modifications.


GM Sports link

[N2TRUX]

After the mods were made to the housing and I was sure the new tach would fit it was time to restore and improve. Start by masking the various holes and connectors.
Since the housing has yellowed I use a bright silver to restore it's reflective ability. You can use white, but silver reflects better.

[N2TRUX]

An important step in making your gauges like new again is repainting the needles. They will fade over time and a fresh coat of paint makes them look new again.
If you suspect that your needles might be brittle from UV exposure you may prefer to paint with a brush. I use a folder to make masking easy and Testors fluorescent orange or the needles.

I Do Not recommend removing the needles. Getting them repositioned properly with out breaking one is almost impossible.

[N2TRUX]

Once reassembled with fresh painted needles, LED lights and a new tach it was time to test my work.

Everything functioned properlyexcluding the tach. I still need to run the input wire to the distributor and confirm proper operation before wrapping up.

Meanwhile let's look at the results so far.

[UKNOWME]

Originally Posted by N2TRUX

Once reassembled with fresh painted needles, LED lights and a new tach it was time to test my work.

Everything functioned properlyexcluding the tach. I still need to run the input wire to the distributor and confirm proper operation before wrapping up.

Meanwhile let's look at the results so far.

Mighty fine job you've done! That tach upgrade is awesome!

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by UKNOWME

Mighty fine job you've done! That tach upgrade is awesome!

I got it wired up today and it's very nice. Much smoother than the factory 5k tach.

[UKNOWME]

Originally Posted by N2TRUX

I got it wired up today and it's very nice. Much smoother than the factory 5k tach.

Where did you pick it up?

[RodsGreen10]

Originally Posted by UKNOWME

Where did you pick it up?

www.gmsports.com
They sell them on eBay also.

[UKNOWME]

That Buddy was Gene Porter right? That is who I was with when you and I met at C10sinthepark.

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by UKNOWME

That Buddy was Gene Porter right? That is who I was with when you and I met at C10sinthepark.

Yes sir you are correct. I'm sorry I forgot that you were with Gene when we meet. Its hard to keep up these days between Facebook, Instagram, and Forum screen names.

Typical of any automotive enthusiast, I do remember what truck you drive.

[UKNOWME]

That's all that matters

[N2TRUX]

With only 14 weeks (101 days) till Lonestar Throwdown, I need to turn it up a notch. Factor in Thanksgiving, and Christmas and thats even less time. I have to get the interior done so I can move on to the motor. Tick, tick, tick....

[N2TRUX]

Not much progress last night. I worked with my wife cleaning carpet and rearranging furniture. We are hosting Thanksgiving and plan to have a house full of family.

I did get the ashtray cleaned and painted. Then I started on stripping more of the interior plastic to finish dying everything to match. Tonight I will get the back of the cab pieces pulled.

[TKCR]

Originally Posted by N2TRUX

I did get the ashtray cleaned and painted.

I've been wanting to do this with mine. If your using a spray can, how do you get the whole inside of the ashtray covered. It seems it would be hard to get it in there without the paint running.
And what paint did you use?