My build. Project Karma. 71 stepside.

[67cheby]

kind of a cool story, i sell cars for a living a good customer of mine came in he is a motorcycle racer and is sponsored by Kicker, all of this kicker stuff in my truck was in the truck he traded in, he gave it all to me so he could get new stuff from Kicker !!! both amps / speakers/ all the kicker high dollar wiring /fuse blocks...EVERYTHING FREE !!

[lyrikz]

Originally Posted by 67cheby

kind of a cool story, i sell cars for a living a good customer of mine came in he is a motorcycle racer and is sponsored by Kicker, all of this kicker stuff in my truck was in the truck he traded in, he gave it all to me so he could get new stuff from Kicker !!! both amps / speakers/ all the kicker high dollar wiring /fuse blocks...EVERYTHING FREE !!

I remember reading that. ahaha Thats an awesome score there.

Im a huge kicker fan. Ever since i was a kid. I had a 92 honda prelude with 4 12" kickers in the truck. I had the biggest orion amp made at the time. I believe it was 1000x1 at 4ohms stable in 1 ohm. I used to do stereo competitions and hit 146.6 decibles. I dont really need the truck that loud, but i do occaisonally like to give people upset stomachs if i can. ahaha.

[lyrikz]

Well, update. Putting the misc. exterior parts on. Wipers and what not. Driving it again. Runs SOO much better with the new carb. ITs awesome.

Have a few misc. things left to build and do. Will post some more pics later.

[lyrikz]

well, interior is about 95% done. Headliner and some misc. stuff. The wires hanging down are trimmed up and put away now. Just need to make some fake kickpanels/ install the side air vent things and she is done on the inside.

[Cameron 1137]

Nice!, i like the red!

[lyrikz]

Just added up the total of all my receipts. Im missing a few things so im figuring add an additional 1000 to the total. But for the truck i spent $17,146.61. The 1000 should cover the other additional stuff. I figured i would spend about 15gs on this. Still. bit ridiculous. lol. Most of the cost was engine/trans stuff. If i had to pay for my paint and body work labor it could easily been another 10gs.

Man, thats alot of money.

[hgs_notes]

The seat looks great. Whatever possessed you to add up receipts lol? I'd probably start pulling out my hair. Seriously though, that is not too much considering what you have now. Well done my friend.

[lyrikz]

Originally Posted by hgs_notes

The seat looks great. Whatever possessed you to add up receipts lol? I'd probably start pulling out my hair. Seriously though, that is not too much considering what you have now. Well done my friend.

If i had an actual plan when i started i could of easily saved a TON on parts/shipping cost/paint/time.

I had no plan... When i build my wifes car, its going to be different.

[wutnxt]

Just found your thread from stopping and checking out my thread.....You have some mad skills the truck looks great...nice to know that some people actually finish a project and get to drive them...lol...I only wish at this point any of my projects were finished.

Oh .....and never add up the paperwork on a build....shakes me head....thats never been a good expierence for me.

[lyrikz]

Originally Posted by wutnxt

Just found your thread from stopping and checking out my thread.....You have some mad skills the truck looks great...nice to know that some people actually finish a project and get to drive them...lol...I only wish at this point any of my projects were finished.

Oh .....and never add up the paperwork on a build....shakes me head....thats never been a good expierence for me.

Well, i figured i would be in the 15k range and could of saved money there. I didnt have a plan. So i ordered quite a few parts seperatley from the same vendor. Shipping alone i could of saved a grand if i had a plan.

UPDATE:
I installed the distributor yesterday.. The new fuel pump. Fired it up, and it idled great. Adjusted the timing, took it out for a spin and she goes. She goes well. Its nice to be almost done.

One question on timing. I have it set at 16 degrees. It goes to 30 degrees with the vacuum advance hooked up. If im not getting pinging, can i up the timing even more???

[lyrikz]

Originally Posted by wutnxt

Just found your thread from stopping and checking out my thread.....You have some mad skills the truck looks great...nice to know that some people actually finish a project and get to drive them...lol...I only wish at this point any of my projects were finished.

Oh .....and never add up the paperwork on a build....shakes me head....thats never been a good expierence for me.

Updated pics. Of the engine and what not. Thanks to Big Al for the idea of using that black mesh to hide the wiring. All the other wires are already hid in the fenderwell.










Here is what was causing my issues. Rust in my tank. Now that is all taken care of, hopefully it will run right for awhile longer. This was after a 25 mile drive.

[hgs_notes]

Looking great. Don't mean to nitpik, but you know that heater box stands out now with everything else all nice and glossy black. I saw your thread for ideas on the radiator support covers too and that will clean it up nicely. I was planning to make some up myself eventually. Where did you get those battery cable end covers? Those look slick. Just a high quality build all around.

[lyrikz]

Originally Posted by hgs_notes

Looking great. Don't mean to nitpik, but you know that heater box stands out now with everything else all nice and glossy black. I saw your thread for ideas on the radiator support covers too and that will clean it up nicely. I was planning to make some up myself eventually. Where did you get those battery cable end covers? Those look slick. Just a high quality build all around.

Ya right?? sucks. WIsh i would of deleted that. What are your thoughts?? It was the same color as my booster, then i changed the color of my booster.

Whats your thoughts. I dont have an imagination when it comes to that stuff unfortunatly.. I was going to make covers but for 130 bucks i will buy em.

[hgs_notes]

I just sprayed mine with some krylon plastic paint in satin black and I thought it looked ok, but mine is just a nice driver. Yours is more show quality so if you want the heater then pull it out, get it smooth and paint it black. That way it doesn't have the rough finish and would match up with the rest of the truck. Might need to use the additive for bumpers for flexibility, but I don't think this piece flexes much.

[lyrikz]

Well, added some WELL needed covers. Best looking mod out there. Im going to remove my heater core box and sand that smooth and paint it black. Thanks HGS.

Pics.

[smbrouss70]

Looks Good!

Are those the ones from Northwest auto fab? Link

[lyrikz]

Originally Posted by smbrouss70

Looks Good!

Are those the ones from Northwest auto fab? Link

No, they were LMC. Came painted.

[hgs_notes]

Think I'm going to need those covers. I hope you're not painting the heater based on just my comments.

[lyrikz]

Originally Posted by hgs_notes

Think I'm going to need those covers. I hope you're not painting the heater based on just my comments.

Im just not good with some things. Im like 60% happy with the engine bay. And after your idea, i think i will be about 85% happy. ahah. So i appreciate it and if you have more, please let me know. Its going to look really good when done.

[hgs_notes]

It really doesn't look that bad, but if you are open to suggestions, I'll tell you what I see when I first look at your engine bay. Red wires. Not that the red is a problem, but because they are routed so high and over the valve covers. Even in the looms, it just looks a little messy and because they are such a bright color, and it reflects off the chrome, it stands out. I see the dizzy cap and battery are also red, got kind of an electrical theme there. If you are not loving the red, I'd go black. Just my opinion. Maybe a splash of color is good though.

There is a wire or tube coming up the front of the manifold and around the heater hose and alternator that would probably look better if routed under the alternator. The pics don't really show the front of the engine that well, so I'm not sure what it is.

Next is the brake booster and master cylinder. I like the gold anodized look of some boosters, but you have the grey, then a natural master cylinder, then the gold cover. It just doesn't match up. Maybe paint the master cylinder black and get a chrome cover for it.

Heater hoses would look better with some fancy braided covers. If you have a port for the heater hose on the water pump (there may be a plug there, not all pumps have it) you can move the hose from the manifold to the pump and get it out of the way. If not, maybe you can get an elbow on the manifold so the hose isn't sticking up in the air right in front.

Of all the engine bays I've seen, the ones I like the most are ones that did a good job of hiding wires and hoses. If not hidden they are colored to blend in or camoflage. I have a long way to go on my own yet, but I like how my plug wires are routed now around the back of the engine. BTW, I kind of like that scoop sitting on your shop vac. Any plans to use that?

[lyrikz]

Originally Posted by hgs_notes

It really doesn't look that bad, but if you are open to suggestions, I'll tell you what I see when I first look at your engine bay. Red wires. Not that the red is a problem, but because they are routed so high and over the valve covers. Even in the looms, it just looks a little messy and because they are such a bright color, and it reflects off the chrome, it stands out. I see the dizzy cap and battery are also red, got kind of an electrical theme there. If you are not loving the red, I'd go black. Just my opinion. Maybe a splash of color is good though.

There is a wire or tube coming up the front of the manifold and around the heater hose and alternator that would probably look better if routed under the alternator. The pics don't really show the front of the engine that well, so I'm not sure what it is.

Next is the brake booster and master cylinder. I like the gold anodized look of some boosters, but you have the grey, then a natural master cylinder, then the gold cover. It just doesn't match up. Maybe paint the master cylinder black and get a chrome cover for it.

Heater hoses would look better with some fancy braided covers. If you have a port for the heater hose on the water pump (there may be a plug there, not all pumps have it) you can move the hose from the manifold to the pump and get it out of the way. If not, maybe you can get an elbow on the manifold so the hose isn't sticking up in the air right in front.

Of all the engine bays I've seen, the ones I like the most are ones that did a good job of hiding wires and hoses. If not hidden they are colored to blend in or camoflage. I have a long way to go on my own yet, but I like how my plug wires are routed now around the back of the engine. BTW, I kind of like that scoop sitting on your shop vac. Any plans to use that?

I plan on selling that. I just bought it off summit and didnt like it on the engine.

I like the red wires, and they are routed all messy cause i just reinstalled the distributor and havent ran them correctly yet. lol.

Good idea on the master cylinder. Dont even see that.

I like those ideas. Super simple and i just didnt see it until its pointed out. THat would look WAY better....

More pics to come this weekend. lol.

[lyrikz]

Drove it in to work today to put in the new gas tank. Drove great. I did notice one issue.. The suspension in the front has started to feel looser and looser everytime i drive.. Now when i rebuilt this, i didnt touch the suspension parts because they appeared tight and the truck handled great.

As i pull in to work, i put it on the lift and shake down the suspension. I notice i have play in my pitman arm.. THen i notice there is play in the whole steering setup... As i look closer EVERY nut is missing the cotter pin. There were 7 or so nuts on the front that were FINGER TIGHT loose. The pitman arm nut was almost off.

I have looked at this truck for years and NEVER noticed it one time. So i tightened EVERYTHING in the front back up, installed the pins and the truck feels like new again. lol. One quick question, when should you adjust the valves on a brand new engine. How many miles???

Heres a pic of it this morning waiting to go in the shop.

[Jdhitch]

I just spent the last few hours reading through your build and man oh man do you have a nice @$! truck! Thanks for the detailed work. Where did you get your box blasted at? I'm just starting to work on my truck and have no clue on what type of welder/air compressor to buy. Any suggestions?

[lyrikz]

Originally Posted by Jdhitch

I just spent the last few hours reading through your build and man oh man do you have a nice @$! truck! Thanks for the detailed work. Where did you get your box blasted at? I'm just starting to work on my truck and have no clue on what type of welder/air compressor to buy. Any suggestions?

Thanks. I might be selling it this september. Or making an attempt.

As for welder and compressor. I cant really state this enough. BUY THE BIGGEST and best of both the first time that you can afford, cause later you will want to upgrade. I bought a compressor, and first time i painted i returned it for the bigger model. My welder is ok, but i cant do as thick as i want to..

[lyrikz]

Couldnt sell it. I didnt even try.> It hurt my heart to think about it so i knew it was the wrong choice.


I have a question. On my front suspension it is stock with air bags. The airbag cups are not cut or shortened. I wanted to know, with the stock suspension, how low can i get that front if i removed the inner wheel covers? What would i have to do? Just modify the bag mounts to bring the front end down lower?? I have to repaint my inner fenders anyways so i figured i would modify them while they were out.