85 GMC Sierra "Scarlett"

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by 87max

wow is all I can say, attention to detail at its finest. I went cheap with my blast cabinet dust collection, I installed a pc fan on the back after opening up the hole. I tapped the switch for power. I then made a blocking shield similar to whats on the back for over the 2" port & installed a vacuum cleaner bag there. I just got it done yesterday & ran it briefly seems to work well.

I tried the Harbor Freight shop vac and it died rather quickly. I waited till this one was on sale and I had an additional 25% off coupon.

Chris came by yesterday after work and loaded the fine grit Black Magic media. It still didnt blow out well so he dug deeper. He pulled the media pick up tube and cleared it out. It had a rubber band trapped inside that was restricting the flow. With that cleared up we plan to go back to the medium grit media and try again.

[N2TRUX]

I haven't been hitting the gym in a few months, opting to work out at home. Unfortunately that was not keeping my weight down, so I decided to be a New Year, New Me newby and get back at it. I hit the gym last night and got a light workout in and realized how quickly you loose what took months to gain.

With that behind me I came home invigorated and spent some time in the shop. The headers needed to come off so I crawled under the truck and unbolted the collectors. From there I went top side and started to loosen the flange bolts. Ironically almost every bolt was loose "except" those at the very back. Fortunately I had decided to buy a stubby wrench set a few months back. That came in very handy because nothing else would fit.
With the headers on the ground I was able to inspect the work that the previous muffler shop had done. Since they did such a poor job on welding the exhaust pipes I expected more of the same. They did not disappoint me. Besides big old bugger welds, there are two holes that go completely through. Looks like I get to make another trip to the muffler shop after I clean these welds up.

[83GMCK2500]

I don't know what is more scary, the exhaust welds or those starter bolts. Wow!

Looks like you're getting lots of great work done.

[Bennett68C10]

Love the wheel choice, fits the classic looks of Scarlett! Awesome job your doing on the build!

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by 83GMCK2500

I don't know what is more scary, the exhaust welds or those starter bolts. Wow!Looks like you're getting lots of great work done.

Yeah those are pretty sweet, but hey they are functional. Trust me, all will be done correctly soon.

Originally Posted by Bennett68C10

Love the wheel choice, fits the classic looks of Scarlett! Awesome job your doing on the build!

Thanks for the kind words.

[beasst]

It's pretty bad when I can actually say that I can weld better than that.

[daddyjeep]

If those are "professional" welds i must be a pretty darn good welder myself. I know exhaust tubing can be tough, but come on.

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by daddyjeep

If those are "professional" welds i must be a pretty darn good welder myself. I know exhaust tubing can be tough, but come on.

Originally Posted by beasst

It's pretty bad when I can actually say that I can weld better than that.

The entire exhaust system was a fiasco. They used premium quality components but the install quality was horrible. The guy that repaired the mess said he understood why the cut the collectors off but didn't understand why the entire system was one piece.

[N2TRUX]

Last night my shop time was limited so I set about achieving a small task that needed some attention. I had noted that the starter had been recently replaced but the bolts were to long. They had used washers and a nut for spacers rather than aquire the correct length bolt.
I posted these pics on my Instagram feed and get my answer. An old forum friend (TXFIREFIGHTER) that I hadn't heard from in a while recognized hat had been done.

According to Kevin this is an 88-95 starter. He feels it's much better than the original unit but it is smaller so the bolts need to be shorter. That makes sense as others have reported the same to confirm his experience.
New bolts are coming soon

[N2TRUX]

With the starter out, I could see the oil pan better. There's no doubt that it's leaking at the pan gasket. I will be replacing that with a Fel Pro one piece gasket after I get the mess cleaned up.

[83GMCK2500]

Originally Posted by N2TRUX

Last night my shop time was limited so I set about achieving a small task that needed some attention. I had noted that the starter had been recently replaced but the bolts were to long. They had used washers and a nut for spacers rather than aquire the correct length bolt.
I posted these pics on my Instagram feed and get my answer. An old forum friend (TXFIREFIGHTER) that I hadn't heard from in a while recognized hat had been done.

According to Kevin this is an 88-95 starter. He feels it's much better than the original unit but it is smaller so the bolts need to be shorter. That makes sense as others have reported the same to confirm his experience.
New bolts are coming soon

He's still alive!? Excellent! I loved following his threads on here, particularly his white C30. Great to know you're in touch with him. Also good info about the starter, I knew the 96+ Vortec ones were even smaller yet but had no idea the TBI ones were a step between. I'll try to file that away in the memory banks without loosing it.

While you've got the front end stripped down have you given any consideration to converting it over to the single serpentine belt system with the aluminum brackets from the late tbi motors?

I'm interested in those wamrod hood struts, I'll have to read up on those. Thank you for the pictures of them. Does the hood open to the same height as with the coil springs?

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by 83GMCK2500

He's still alive!? Excellent! I loved following his threads on here, particularly his white C30. Great to know you're in touch with him. Also good info about the starter, I knew the 96+ Vortec ones were even smaller yet but had no idea the TBI ones were a step between. I'll try to file that away in the memory banks without loosing it.

While you've got the front end stripped down have you given any consideration to converting it over to the single serpentine belt system with the aluminum brackets from the late tbi motors?

I'm interested in those wamrod hood struts, I'll have to read up on those. Thank you for the pictures of them. Does the hood open to the same height as with the coil springs?

Yeah it felt good to hear from Kevin. I always loved his practical approach to his builds.

So far I have have it on good authority that the 88-95 TBI starters are smaller and better than the 73-80. I'm told that the a/c blower motor is a bolt in upgrade as well. Recently I was told that that same generation of cruise control was adaptable to the earlier trucks too.

I have considered a serpentine set up. I'm still not that familiar with all of them, and I know some are rather bulky, while others are much cleaner. Unfortunately, time constraints are not going to allow that to happen.

Regarding the WAM rods, they can be adjusted to what ever height you desire within reason. Their objective was aesthetics so they recommend an open height that is level with the top of the cab.

At a show, I usually lower my hood to a spot that is right before gravity pulls it down and closed. I set my height at that point which is a few inches higher. This gives me plenty of access under the hood with out restrictions.

The advantage with a WAM rod is you can pop a clip off the rod and use a prop to hold it open higher than the stock hinge allows. Not pretty, but functional of you do need to make repairs and dont want to pull the hood.

[moregrip]

Thank you for a great read! Lots of good info in here and details! Fantastic truck brother! I hope mine turns out half as good as yours!

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by moregrip

Thank you for a great read! Lots of good info in here and details! Fantastic truck brother! I hope mine turns out half as good as yours!

My pleasure. I have learned so much from this forum, its the least I can do to share my experience with others in hopes they might benefit as well.

[N2TRUX]

Another long day at work so my shop time didn't start till late. I have been working on a couple of ideas for the breather on Scarlett. I really liked the one we put on my 84 GMC, but I wanted to refine this one a bit. I started by sending the lid to my buddy Johnny C for his dimple die treatment. He has the dies and the skills to use them so it made sense to have him punch the holes.
I wanted to use a wire mesh to cover the holes so I searched for a source. Most of the expanded metal or wire mesh I found was too costly, and too heavy of a gauge. I noticed that an old air filter had just what I needed so I stripped it down.

If you try to duplicate this be warned that the edges are very sharp when exposed. I cut the mesh to the proper width, then rolled each side for a smooth edge and to give it strength. I'm still working on a solution to attach it to the breather lid, bit I like the look.
This is a project that evolves as it comes together, so stay tuned for possible changes.

[UKNOWME]

Now that's sweet!
What are you doing with the base to eliminate the intake tube?

[daddyjeep]

I like that breather a lot. I may have to borrow that idea. I'm thinking it might be cool to have longer oval holes instead of the round holes...then I wouldn't be stealing your idea.

[Low Elco]

I like the breather. Glad to hear Kevin's still alive out there. Miss his threads a lot.

[moregrip]

Originally Posted by Low Elco

I like the breather. Glad to hear Kevin's still alive out there. Miss his threads a lot.

got any links to these threads brother?

[UKNOWME]

Originally Posted by moregrip

got any links to these threads brother?

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...archid=5546174

This one is my favorite

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=622971

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by UKNOWME

Now that's sweet!
What are you doing with the base to eliminate the intake tube?

I'm not sure yet. I have an idea for replacing the base, but that will come later.

Originally Posted by daddyjeep

I like that breather a lot. I may have to borrow that idea. I'm thinking it might be cool to have longer oval holes instead of the round holes...then I wouldn't be stealing your idea.

The oval holes were what I planned to go with, but the dies wouldn't fit in the limited space available. I may be the first one to do this on a Squarebody, but certainly not the first. I got the idea from my buddy N2billet

Originally Posted by Low Elco

I like the breather. Glad to hear Kevin's still alive out there. Miss his threads a lot.

Me too. Hes a fun guy to follow.

[N2TRUX]

I'm still not sure how I want to attch the mesh inside the breather lid. I have a couple of ideas, just not sure how to make it look nice.

In the interim, I moved on to the valve covers. I have a new set on the shelf, so I considered cleaning these and adding them to my swap meet parts bin. It didnt take long to realize the chrome was not going to clean up. It appears that they have been wiped with Scotch-Brite and there was some mild spotting from rust.

Looking inside I saw that they had been pulled off of a used motor and "sorta" cleaned up before installing them on this 305 HO. The left over grunge bothered me, so I decided to clean them up in my blasting cabinet.

Before committing to keep them, I checked the mounting surface with a straight edge and they were all true. Despite the appearance, these were actually a quality set of chrome covers. Committed to reusing them on my build I media blasted all of the internal grunge then hosed them down with brake cleaner.

Prepping chrome for paint is not an easy task. I cleaned the chrome in the blasting cabinet, then hit it with 150#grit to give the primer something to bite on. Once I had the whole surface sanded I came back with Scoth-Brite and brake cleaner to ensure a oil free surface.

After a blew them clean inside and out once more, I laid down a few coats of sandable primer. When this cures, I plan to wet sand and test the adhesion. If it sticks well, I will add a color coat.

[UKNOWME]

Originally Posted by N2TRUX

I'm still not sure how I want to attch the mesh inside the breather lid. I have a couple of ideas, just not sure how to make it look nice.

In the interim, I moved on to the valve covers. I have a new set on the shelf, so I considered cleaning these and adding them to my swap meet parts bin. It didnt take long to realize the chrome was not going to clean up. It appears that they have been wiped with Scotch-Brite and there was some mild spotting from rust.

Looking inside I saw that they had been pulled off of a used motor and "sorta" cleaned up before installing them on this 305 HO. The left over grunge bothered me, so I decided to clean them up in my blasting cabinet.

Before committing to keep them, I checked the mounting surface with a straight edge and they were all true. Despite the appearance, these were actually a quality set of chrome covers. Committed to reusing them on my build I media blasted all of the internal grunge then hosed them down with brake cleaner.

Prepping chrome for paint is not an easy task. I cleaned the chrome in the blasting cabinet, then hit it with 150#grit to give the primer something to bite on. Once I had the whole surface sanded I came back with Scoth-Brite and brake cleaner to ensure a oil free surface.

After a blew them clean inside and out once more, I laid down a few coats of sandable primer. When this cures, I plan to wet sand and test the adhesion. If it sticks well, I will add a color coat.

I'm so glad to see you redoing those valve covers. I was worried you were going 90s chrome on us! Haha just kidding

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by UKNOWME

I'm so glad to see you redoing those valve covers. I was worried you were going 90s chrome on us! Haha just kidding

I do dig retro, but that's not where I'm headed with this. I just hate to waste good parts, and these are actually well made.

[N2TRUX]

I went out to load my truck for the work day and couldn't resist checking on the valve covers. I decided to wet sand them and check for adhesion. It wasn't 100% but not bad.
You can see where it peeled rather than feather out in a couple places. I sanded them back till it feathered then scuffed them with Scotch Brite once more. This was followed by a wipe down and a few more coats of primer. I think they are going to work out nicely.