building a mule

[Moscowmule]

also on the front end and rear end they are stamped gm 57 anybody know what they are or how i find out

[swamp rat]

Best to start by posting pictures

[Moscowmule]

ya my pictures are in my phone but for some reason they wont transfer to the computer at work like they did before ill figure it out when i get back home in a couple of weeks

[Moscowmule]

so here are some pics of the "new rear end and front end they came out of a 76ish 1/2 ton not sure what they are but i got just about everthing that was attached to them brake booster and power steering included but i didnt get the cross member off the front end. i may be able to go back and get it if i need it. does any body know what they are for sure im asuming the rear is a corp. 10 bolt not sure about the front probably the same?

[Moscowmule]

couple more pics of the front and rear ends

[Moscowmule]

[Moscowmule]

here is a couple of shots of the very dissapointing rot i found under the windshield rubber.rotten all the way through in some places and paper thin the whole way across the upper portion inside and out

[Moscowmule]

so i found a guy 45 miles away that had a cab thats in great shape (ish)away i go

[Moscowmule]

Funny thing about this business the guy that has the cab tried to sell me the whole truck a few months ago 200$ all i bought at the time was a rearview mirror, parking break lever and a cool spotlight 60 bucks. went back for the cab 500bucks. All the parts that i previously purched were part of the cab but i took them off my first trip.live and learn i guess

[Moscowmule]

after getting the body off

[Moscowmule]

new cab on jacks for now

[Moscowmule]

here is the rust on the rockers and floor on the new cab no rust or dents anywhere else so i am happy about that for sure. although just as im typing this i realized i have not pulled the windshield but it sure looks good from the outside i dont know whats under the rubber.Man i feel dumb right now for not pulling the glass before i loaded it up thats what you get for being in a hurry. i wont know what ive got for another month till i get home.

[Moscowmule]

Can somebody tell me hoe far the replacement rockers go into the floor pan?

[Moscowmule]

So I had some time to work on the truck a bit while i was home this time. I ewven took some pictures of the work ive done (not much but progress was made). I know most of you guys know way more about this stuff than i do but i think im going to try to share some of the things i learn as i go hoping maybe it will help somebody like me that is just getting into one of these builds for the first time.

[Moscowmule]

the first thing i did when i got home was clean out the shop because my wife managed to increase the output of her cardboard farm enough that she tried to steal realestate from me.

[Moscowmule]

Last year i found a front end from a 73 k10 that had all the power steering and disc brake set up i was looking for. iI got it cleaned up and replaced allo the seals and bearings brake rotors calipers and upgraded to warn locking hubs

[Moscowmule]

not sure why they are upside down

[Moscowmule]

I cleaned the front end with a wire brush and wire when on a grinder then wiped it all down with brake clean. then applied a coat of por15. then let it dry for a coup[le hours until it wasnt tacky any more and applied 2nd coat. when the first coat dried it was kindof a flat black and the second coat was more of a satin finish.

[Moscowmule]

After reading on here multiple post about por 15 i decided to give it a go.
one thing i learned from the message board was not to open the can but instead just drill a hole and seal it with a screw. this worked great however what i learned from my own misery was do not shake the can to mix before you drill the hole. when i popped the hole in that crap sprayed out like a tiny fountain made a heck of a mess. so drill your hole put your screw in and shake away then remove your screw no mess.

[Moscowmule]

i found it was easier to chase the runs if i hung the parts verticle

[Moscowmule]

can someone tell me how to make the pictures right side up?

[Moscowmule]

new hubs bearings seals replaced everything except the gears they looked great. all of the bearings and seals looked to be in excellent condition when i took them out but i figured might as well do it while i was in it

[Moscowmule]

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[Moscowmule]

i used a scraper and a wire brush on the frame.there really wasnt anything much for rust mostly dirt got it all cleaned up found 2 cracks up where the bumper mounts up nothing major. i just ground out the crackes and welded them up .

[Moscowmule]

por 15 for the frame now i did 2 coats one side then flipped it over with a chain hoist and come along and did 2 coats on the rest