Brent's '72 Custom/10 SWB stepside build

[brossow]

Been a few days without progress, but it's been a well-deserved break. Sold the 6-speed that came with the LS1 when I bought it -- have mixed emotions on that as I sold it for less than I think it was truly worth, but on the other hand I didn't have to dicker on price and the guy is arranging his own shipping and that's worth a helluva lot to me. Quick cash in hand is always good.

Hope to be able to pick up the frame on Monday. Have been talking with Jeff @ Classic Performance about swapping the tubular lower A-arms I bought when I was planning the bag setup for my '64/'66 project(s) for a regular pair of them instead and he's cool with it as long as I pay shipping both ways. A small loss of money for me there but better than (1) spending hours prepping and painting my stockers or (2) buying the non-bag ones outright.

Nothing else new since the last update. Summer is ending and twinges of concern are appearing about getting this back together and rolling before snow.

[toomanytoyz]

Any word on your Powder coating set up? Have you mapped out what part's you want to try it out on yet/ Lot of people do the Hood hinges's & Small Brkt's under Hood. I have seen some item's done up in the Chrome stuff that look Pretty good, From what i've read the Powder from eastwood's is the Best for the Chrome look if you decide to do it.............

I hear you About Summer coming to a end Soon, I was Hoping to get some wheel Time in with my Stepper this Summer & That's Not Gonna Happen...........

Anyhow, Glad for the Update & Just keep Plugging Away at it.

Rick

[brossow]

Originally Posted by toomanytoyz

Any word on your Powder coating set up? Have you mapped out what part's you want to try it out on yet/ Lot of people do the Hood hinges's & Small Brkt's under Hood. I have seen some item's done up in the Chrome stuff that look Pretty good, From what i've read the Powder from eastwood's is the Best for the Chrome look if you decide to do it.............

Not 100% sure which parts I'll be powdercoating. Gonna start out with suspension parts, including taking a shot at the spindles you saw in an earlier post. I've got a fairly decent selection of powders to choose from now -- need to talk to the payroll department and see if they can start sending my paycheck directly to Eastwood.

The actual powdercoating kit was backordered when I placed my order, but I got notice yesterday or the day before that it has shipped. In the meantime, other packages have been showing up. For anyone not good at planning ahead, I really recommend the Eastwood frequent buyer's club or whatever they call it. $40 or so and you get one year of free standard shipping. I love it -- I've saved much more than that just on basic shipping costs, plus if I forget something or want to add something on, I don't have to cry over another crazy S&H charge. I could order 10 bottles of powder in 10 separate orders if I wanted and it wouldn't cost me a penny more than ordering them together.

But anyway, what I've got on hand now is two bottles of platinum (that I hope matches the CPP tubular A-arms and other components), a bottle of chrome, a bottle of low-temp clear to go with the chrome, and a bottle of high-temp clear. Coming with the kit will be three bottles of gloss black and a bottle of Chevy Orange (vermillion). Should be enough to get me started!

Don't hold your breath for pics but when I do get something accomplished you can bet I'll be showing off here.

In the meantime, Dad and I are going shopping tomorrow morning for electrical stuff for the garage. Having just one 220V outlet and only one regular 110V outlet (yes, only one!) is getting ridiculous. Probably fine back in 1919 when the garage went up but not now that I'm trying to get work done. Plan is to install a new 100A panel in the garage with room for at least a dozen circuits. (This crappy garage won't be there forever, but I want to use the panel in a new garage someday.)

[brossow]

Started work on my new seemingly unrelated (but in fact completely related) side project today. Currently the garage where I'm working on this project has a grand total of two circuits, including the 220V I ran for the air compressor. There is one usable outlet and two lights, one of which is blocked if the overhead door is open. Hardly ideal conditions for a frame-off build.

So with a big air compressor, a new blasting cabinet, an oven for powdercoating, and a slew of other stuff related to this project that all require power, it was time to bite the bullet and install a sub-panel in the garage. Today was the day to do it, as Menards had their 10% rebate promo ending and a decent 100A panel kit newly on sale. So I got the sale price on the panel setup and will get 10% back on that and everything else related to the install, including about 50' of 4ga wire , conduit, 60A breaker for the main panel, and various other stuff. It's another $250 I can't put into the truck, but it'll pay off immediately and forevermore.

Only got a start on it tonight, knocking out a slug in the main panel and using the hole saw to make a hole for the conduit halfway across the basement. Hope to get the majority of it done by tomorrow evening. I'm taking Tues-Wed off work this week due to lack of childcare, so if the little monkeys aren't completely at each others' throats I'll have that time to finish up the panel itself and maybe run a couple new 220V circuits. (Dang -- that reminds me I should have picked up another 2-pole 30A breaker for the powdercoating oven while I could still get 10% back. Crud.)

You'll notice in the picture below what an eclectic mess I'm trying to work around in this 18x18 garage. From the left, there's my daughter's old antique dressing table, clutch cover and starter from the '72. a CPP aluminum under-bed fuel tank, the new panel and wiring stuff, seats from a late-model full-size Chevy truck, an old iMac computer, and a bird feeder. Sheesh.

[brossow]

Another quick update I wasn't expecting: just sealed a deal on a solid 4L60E tranny AND wiring harness for $500 shipped. Considering I've seen the wiring harnesses alone go for $250-300 and I'll now have a spare to sell, I think that's a helluva deal. On that note, I think I'd better go to bed before my luck runs out tonight.

[brossow]

Look what followed me home today! I left the frame out at my parents' place cuz that's where the welder is.

BTW, that's not primed -- that's bare metal. Purty, huh?

[brossow]

More pics of the smaller stuff I forgot to add earlier. In the group pic, the two on the bottom right are my own (unfinished) work put there to complete the set. Forgot to send them along to the pro. Oops! More work for me.

You can see that a couple of the cab supports are getting awfully thin thanks to rust. Gonna have to fix or replace those. More work!

And speaking of rust repair, I've gotta figure out how to go about fixing the frame rust where the center crossmember was. I have a local contact who I think has a couple frames sitting in the woods that he might let me cut up. If so, that could really simplify things. Gotta give him a call....

[msgross]

I had to replace those as well, I reinforced the other two....


mind if I ask what the blasting bill was?

[brossow]

Blasting was $180. They wanted $200 for 2.5 hours of labor but when I pointed out that they had originally told me it would only be an hour or maybe two at the most, we agreed to split the difference. The $20 wouldn't have killed me but it was kinda the principle of the thing. I went out of my way to get an estimate (though not in writing) so I could decide how much or even if I wanted it done, so when the bill came to 25% more than the max I had expected to pay I wasn't exactly overjoyed.

But having said that, considering how long it would have taken me and how much media at $6-7 a bag, not to mention the incredible mess and disposal problems, I think it was money well spent and I'd do it again without hesitation.

You said you replaced some brackets. I haven't done any research -- are they available aftermarket or do I need to find a donor or just repair them myself? Repair should be pretty straightforward if I can learn how to weld (never done it before and I'm 35 frickin' years old -- what's up with that?!) but I may get lucky in finding solid donor parts with my local source.

[brossow]

No truck work done today. Instead, got a bit more done on the new panel for the garage. Doesn't look like much in the pic below but it took much of the day just to get a couple holes through the house and garage for conduit. Somewhere along the line, someone apparently decided it would be A Good Idea™ to pour concrete between the rim joist and the floor joist butted up against the blocks in the basement wall, so instead of having what any normal person would expect to find (rim joist - air space or insulation - floor joist) I ended up busting one of my dad's 12" long bits when I hit the concrete. Not cool.

So I did what I could from the outside with the hole saw, then reconnected the air compressor circuit so I could use the air chisel to break up the concrete. How annoying! It was pretty crappy concrete and it crumbled easily, but it really was a pointless thing to do to a guy. I'd like to track down the idiot who did it and smack him around, but seeing as the house was built in 1919 I suspect time has already beaten me to that.

At any rate, I've now got all the holes cut for the conduit both inside and out. The panel is ready to be wired. Now "all" I have to do is pull 51 feet of god-awful 4ga wire and seal up the conduit and holes. I'll be back in a week with a progress report.

[msgross]

I don't think they are reproduced but find someone with a scrap frame to cut the rivets out. I think I paid about $25 plus shipping for a nice set. Rears are the same 2WD or 4Wd, not sure about the fronts but confirm that with pics first. Easier to just replace them. I welded a steel plate into my front one's but now I have to cut a hole in them. I just replace the rear because they were to far gone.

$200 for 2.5 hours is pretty cheap. My guys want $110/hr since media prices have increased. Anther guy wants $90/hr but says my cab will take 4 hours with Garnet... so I guess i'll go with the guys that I have already dealt with...

[msgross]

Here are some for sale...

$40 shipped.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=303550

[brossow]

Originally Posted by msgross

Here are some for sale...

$40 shipped.

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=303550

Perfect -- been too busy wiring the subpanel to start looking for replacements. Thank goodness for others willing to do my research for me!

Much appreciated, Mike!

[msgross]

Hopefully you are able to get them... np, someday i'll need something that you will have available...

[brossow]

Had a little surprise waiting for me in the driveway when I came home from work tonight. Paid for the tranny (private sale through LS1Tech) on Monday and it made it from Texas to Minnesota by Friday. As I said over on that board, I can't even get a DVD I purchase on eBay sent that fast!

All told it cost me $500 including shipping and a factory LS1/auto harness. With harnesses selling for $200 and up alone and core charges on a 4L60E around $300, I think I should turn myself in to the authorities cuz I stole this! Even got some ratcheting straps out of the deal!

Looks great from the outside; only time will tell how good it is inside. Might pull the pan over the weekend to see what falls out.

[msgross]

what company shipped that? seems like a fair price...

[LuckyHenriksen]

Originally Posted by brossow

On September 9, I added a coat of Eastwood's Rust Encapsulator to the rear axle housing and various other parts I wanted to protect. My oldest even got a picture of his old man in action, using Q-Tips to touch up a couple spots I missed (since I was sick and tired of cleaning paintbrushes by that point and only had tiny spots here and there). After letting the stuff sit for a couple weeks I noticed that I could stand to add another coat of RE to the whole rear axle, which I'll do "one of these days."

That's my older son / photographer below. The chrome cover is just hung in place temporarily. I've since added several coats of clear to help protect the chrome. Not as shiny as it was before, but fine for my purposes and a lot better than rust.

That Camaro look freakin' sweet. I love 4th Gen Z's....
The truck is comming along nicely

[LuckyHenriksen]

Hmmm the pics didn't transfer.... I meant the Camaro in the pics on the first page

[brossow]

Originally Posted by msgross

what company shipped that? seems like a fair price...

Delivered by Roadway Express, if that's what you meant. Sold by a private individual.

Originally Posted by LuckyHenriksen

That Camaro look freakin' sweet. I love 4th Gen Z's....
The truck is comming along nicely

Thanks on both counts!

[brossow]

Finally finished wiring the new sub-panel in the garage this afternoon. Talk about stuff that's not much fun! 50' of 4ga 3-strand wire, seven 90° bends, and a 45° bend. It's gonna take a new garage for me to even think about doing that again! If anything I did meets any sort of code, it's purely coincidence. Words alone cannot express how little I care.

Only have two circuits in there right now, just the preexisting ones (110V lights and power, 220V air compressor), but I got them off the main panel and wired into the sub. Next order of business is emptying out the garage so I can run some more circuits for outlets and lights plus a 220V circuit for the oven so I can start powdercoating, since that's what necessitated this $#@^& detour in the first place.

You can see one of my helpers in the pics if you look close. That's Jane, my black lab. The beagles were utterly uninterested in the project, but Jane wanted to be right in there with me. I prefer the beagles' attitude.

[brossow]

Forgot to post this pic the other day -- one of the reasons for all the new wiring.

[brossow]

Too many projects going on at once! Spent the morning separating the 6-speed tranny from the LS1 to send it to its new home. Here's a tip for all you guys like me: it's a LOT easier to remove the tranny when you take ALL of the bolts out of the bellhousing, even that one that's hidden underneath everything. DAMHIKT.

So here it is, still in the back of my '64, where it's been since June 2005. Getting closer to being put to use though! Need to get an engine stand ASAP.

[sfcmess]

Originally Posted by brossow

Words alone cannot express how little I care.

That's just classic! Nice work on your build, too.

[brossow]

Brown Santa showed up again yesterday, this time bearing goodies from Brothers: various pads, bumpers and seals; dome light; stainless rocker trim; cab mount kit; and tailgate chains. Not pictured are the new dash pad and a couple items that are backordered.

[brossow]

Made good progress this weekend and still have a day to go because of the holiday. Yesterday I went out to my parents' place, where the frame has been since coming back from the sandblaster, to get going on the rust repair. Looked around and discovered that the old rear bumper I had taken off the truck last year and intended to sell for scrap was the exact thickness of the frame and even though it was rusted too badly to salvage as a bumper I was able to section it up to make perfect patches from the non-rusted areas.

Pics below are from yesterday. (Today's progress will follow in a separate post.) After cutting and fitting the patch section for the driver's side, I took both patches home and put them in the blast cabinet. Pic below is a "before" shot.