'65 Chevy C10 Long Fleet Retrospective Build Thread

[Iron-Butt]

looks like the bar was set really high. Great work and a very nice truck.

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by FRENCHBLUE72

AMAZING DETAIL ON THE BUILD...This has got to be one of the finest stock restos I have ever seen..

Originally Posted by Alan's Classic

Crazy detail. You set the bar really high.

Originally Posted by Iron-Butt

looks like the bar was set really high. Great work and a very nice truck.

Thanks alot guys!!


I spoke with the owner of the truck last week and they may be forced to sell the truck sometime next year. I'd really hate to see them have to let it go after keeping it in the family since it was only a year old, and being their dad's truck, and their son's first car, and all the stories and memories tied to it. As much as I'd like to own it, there's no way I'd be able to afford to buy it from them to keep it close to home and make sure the truck is kept up like it should be. I'd hate to see it sold and somebody modify it from the way it is, or go somewhere far off and never see it again. After spending many thousands of hours and ~5 years (I'm 24 so that's 1/5 of my life!) working on restoring it, I've got kind of attached to it!

[MalibuKasey]

that would be a horrible horrible thing.

[McMurphy]

Just read this post.
I am both happy and sad to read this took 5 years. Sad that it is such a large part of your life spent on it and then they may end up selling it... but happy because I know I can slow down and be patient with mine (that I just started)

I only get 2 ~maybe~ 3 years to work on mine depending on where I get posted after this duty station.
Awesome awesome work, congratulations!

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by McMurphy

Just read this post.
I am both happy and sad to read this took 5 years. Sad that it is such a large part of your life spent on it and then they may end up selling it... but happy because I know I can slow down and be patient with mine (that I just started)

I only get 2 ~maybe~ 3 years to work on mine depending on where I get posted after this duty station.
Awesome awesome work, congratulations!

The five year time frame was from the start date to the time it was completed and not the actual amount of time I spent working on it. It took that long because I learned as I went, I was also in tech full time for the first two years of the restoration, and the owners had health issues arise later on and needed to take a break in the restoration that lasted a year. I would think that it would still take well over a year working full time to bring another truck to that level of restoration. Even once a body is painted and back on the restored frame, it takes a ton of time to get all of the parts detailed to a high enough level of quality to be able to install them. If the parts aren't available as reproductions, you have to search for original parts or make it yourself, as seen with the kick panel tag and rear bumper splash pans on this truck.

It took me a solid half week to figure out how to reproduce the body tag and nail down the process once I found what I needed to make it. And after making the first one and installing it, it got wet and the graphics streaked so I had to come up with another one and make it more durable. Finding the rivets to attach it took quite a few hours of driving around, searching the local fastener shops (had to order it-more waiting), and then finding the correct longer mandrel for the nut-sert tool because of the deeper depth of the threads in the riv-nut. I could have used shorter depth riv-nuts but the threads would have been visible and not have looked as correct. Of course there's no way I could have charged for all of that time and still have a clear conscience, so I only charged for the time it took to make the second tag and install it; about an hour. You don't make any money money that way, but I wouldn't feel right charging for nearly a whole week to research, make, and install a kick panel tag. And it would have driven me crazy to leave the old faded tag on there since it wouldn't be up to the standard of the rest of the truck. Maybe one day I'll start making and selling them to recoop some of the money I didn't make during the time it took to figure the process out.

The rough draft of the repro graphics and the original faded tag.




The first tag.



The second tag.




I hope that explains a little bit of the reason projects like these can take so long.


.

[SFTorange]

Now I just need to talk you into building an id plate for me!

Looks great.

[propanemudtruck]

I read this whole post, from a link from your targa top camaro to the other camaro site link back to here! All your work is top notch and you're the most honest and fair professional I've read about or seen in this industry. Nice work!

[212004830]

Can I bother you for that baby blue paint code? Looks much like the original I found buried under various layers of paint on mine and I am really starting to dig that color.

[collins10672]

it is right on the trim tag above.paint code #507 is light blue.light blue and white tutone is #537.hope this helps.

[Dustin07]

Originally Posted by SFTorange

Now I just need to talk you into building an id plate for me!

Looks great.

I was just thinking that as well. maybe you won't make money off that first one you sold for THIS truck, but now you have as skill that many here may be willing to pay you for that hopefully will be easier to reproduce
You did amazing work with this truck, definitely very inspirational. thanks for sharing-

[baggedbigblock]

My hat off to you. I have been modifying cars for 14 years and I have never seen such detail, on the verge of OCD insanity but just amazing. I am very picky but you make me look like a bum on my restorations. I am sure your business is flourishing. I hope to be able to bring you my truck for final body work and paint

[ChevyTruckGuy]

You're a master finisher!!!

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by SFTorange

Now I just need to talk you into building an id plate for me!

Looks great.

Thanks!

Originally Posted by propanemudtruck

I read this whole post, from a link from your targa top camaro to the other camaro site link back to here! All your work is top notch and you're the most honest and fair professional I've read about or seen in this industry. Nice work!

Thank you! I have a conscience and have to live with myself, and I don't want to do anything that I don't feel right about doing it. I can't charge for hours I don't spend directly on a project, even it they're related. That's just not right. There's a local shop that just closed up recently; people got tired of being billed for 40 hours a week regardless of how much actual time was spent on their car. I don't know how they stayed in business as long as they did! Bad business ethics will always come back around and bite you in the rear. Health permitting, or for as long as it's God's will for me to be in this business, I may be doing this 'til I'm six feet under so I don't need a bad rep that will hurt business down the road!

Originally Posted by 212004830

Can I bother you for that baby blue paint code? Looks much like the original I found buried under various layers of paint on mine and I am really starting to dig that color.

Originally Posted by collins10672

it is right on the trim tag above.paint code #507 is light blue.light blue and white tutone is #537.hope this helps.

Here's a scan of an old PPG paint chip chart. Your local paint supply shop should be able to use the codes on the chart to mix your paint.

Originally Posted by Dustin07

I was just thinking that as well. maybe you won't make money off that first one you sold for THIS truck, but now you have as skill that many here may be willing to pay you for that hopefully will be easier to reproduce
You did amazing work with this truck, definitely very inspirational. thanks for sharing-

Thanks! I may look into a way to streamline the production of the plates one day, but for now it takes a couple hours to make just one tag. If I could speed up production time they could be sold at a more affordable price and I'd still make a decent profit off of them. Right now I'm cutting the aluminum blanks, trimming and applying a homemade decal, hand stamping them, then clearing them. I'd like to be able to get the blanks sheared out in bulk from a sheet of pre-polished stainless, then have the blanks silk screened. I'd also need a jig to position the stamps in place so the letters would line up better. Maybe one day!

Originally Posted by baggedbigblock

My hat off to you. I have been modifying cars for 14 years and I have never seen such detail, on the verge of OCD insanity but just amazing. I am very picky but you make me look like a bum on my restorations. I am sure your business is flourishing. I hope to be able to bring you my truck for final body work and paint

"OCD Insanity" -That would make an appropriate shop name! Thanks for the compliments!

Originally Posted by ChevyTruckGuy

You're a master finisher!!!

Thank you!!

[duallyjams]

First thank your MOM & DAD for making you the MAN that you are.Faith and belief in ones self is what gives you the ability to build to perfection.Thanks for sharing and teaching an old dog knew tricks.

You blasted a lot of parts what material did use to blast with ?

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by duallyjams

First thank your MOM & DAD for making you the MAN that you are.Faith and belief in ones self is what gives you the ability to build to perfection.Thanks for sharing and teaching an old dog knew tricks.

You blasted a lot of parts what material did use to blast with ?

I'm glad we have this forum to share what we've all learned! For blasting, we have a blast cabinet, and used either BX-30 sand (fairly fine stuff, not quite as fine as play sand, and I think they changed the name of it by now) or glass beads, depending on the delicacy of the part I was blasting. For larger parts with heavier paint/rust we use a 100# pressure pot blaster.

Mom and Dad had a huge part in the project. We lived right beside our shop until 7 years ago, so I pretty much grew up in the shop watching and helping dad work on the projects in the shop. Until about 15 years ago, dad only did upholstery and glass/weatherstripping on the older cars so there was always some kind of neat old car around. Dad does top notch upholstery and glass work so I guess that's where I learned about making sure to do the best you can, and to do it right the first time. When I first started the job on the truck, I didn't really know what I was getting into. I was still in tech so I only had some basics to get me started. Dad and Mom, and the owners of the truck gave me the opportunity to learn as I went, and to build the truck to the best of my abilities, and I'm thankful for that.

The biggest reason I spent so much time on the truck though, is this; I'm a Christian and I don't work to please men, I work for Christ; if people can see a difference in me that points them to Him through the type of work I do, I've served my purpose while I'm here. God wants everything I do to reveal His glory, and through this job I'm able to reach out to guys that would never otherwise hear or see anything about who Christ is and what He did for us. He equipts us so we're able to accomplish His purposes, so I can't take credit for my abilities. He put them in me and I just want to be obedient and serve Him where He's placed me.

"And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ." Colossians 3:23,24

[oldspowered67C10]

Came to this thread via your post regarding panel gaps. Ive got a couple of questions for you if you don't mind.

First off, I noticed you sprayed clear over single stage, whats you're reasoning for using single stage as a base rather than regular 2 stage base? Also, did you color sand the base before you shot the clear?

Secondly, looking back on this thread I found you used 507 light blue as a color and in the panel gap thread you said it came out a bit darker. Was it darker because you didn't like the original color and intentionally had it darkened or was it just because that's the way it ended up spraying out(maybe because of the tinted sealer?)

Finally, after you shoot you're sealer do you immediately shot color coat while the sealer is still in its re-coat window or do you let the sealer cure and then sand it before shooting top coat?

Sorry for all the questions but I'm about to spray color coat on my 67 and I really like that color and I admire you're work. Very detail oriented build, nice work.

[narx66gmc]

Wow is all I can say. The amount of work u did to this truck deserves a standing ovation. If the owners were to sell it, I would hope it Would sell to a collector that cd understand the level of perfection u achieved.

Again, great job and u will do great in business.
Posted via Mobile Device

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by oldspowered67C10

Came to this thread via your post regarding panel gaps. Ive got a couple of questions for you if you don't mind.

First off, I noticed you sprayed clear over single stage, whats you're reasoning for using single stage as a base rather than regular 2 stage base? Also, did you color sand the base before you shot the clear?

We originally planned on using single stage but after spraying it I wasn't completely happy with how it turned out, so we shot a few coats of clear over it so we'd have enough material to wetsand and buff. We didn't wetsand the single stage, just scuffed it with a grey 3M scotch pad.

Originally Posted by oldspowered67C10

Secondly, looking back on this thread I found you used 507 light blue as a color and in the panel gap thread you said it came out a bit darker. Was it darker because you didn't like the original color and intentionally had it darkened or was it just because that's the way it ended up spraying out(maybe because of the tinted sealer?)

It came out unintentionally darker, I took the original paint code by our local Finishmaster and they cross referenced it to a "match" using Spies Hecker Series 257 single stage. It didn't look very far off on a small color chip but I should have got them to tint it lighter. I didn't have any original paint to match it to either. The tinted sealer was nearly the same color as the paint so it wouldn't change the color any. It did help the paint to cover better.

Originally Posted by oldspowered67C10

Finally, after you shoot you're sealer do you immediately shot color coat while the sealer is still in its re-coat window or do you let the sealer cure and then sand it before shooting top coat?

Yes, the single stage was shot after letting the tinted sealer flash. I wouldn't do that again though, as it shot out fairly "dry" and I had some dusty overspray that I had to nib off of the horizontal areas before I could spray the single stage. I've switched to using PPG products now, and will be using their K93 translucent/tintable surfacer/sealer for the final sealer, and will be wetsanded before spraying the top coat.

Originally Posted by oldspowered67C10

Sorry for all the questions but I'm about to spray color coat on my 67 and I really like that color and I admire you're work. Very detail oriented build, nice work.

I do like color now that it's done, and I'm not sure I'd go back and change it if I could to the original lighter color. I'll find out the paint code for you and post it once I find it. Thanks for the compliments also!

Originally Posted by narx66gmc

Wow is all I can say. The amount of work u did to this truck deserves a standing ovation. If the owners were to sell it, I would hope it Would sell to a collector that cd understand the level of perfection u achieved.

Again, great job and u will do great in business.
Posted via Mobile Device

Thanks alot! I'd love to be able to buy the truck back, but I've got too much money tied up in my '66 project. I do hope they are able to keep it!

[theastronaut]

Here's the info from the paint can.

[darkhorse970]

WOW! This is an outstanding build, I'm not sure why I am just finding it.

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by darkhorse970

WOW! This is an outstanding build, I'm not sure why I am just finding it.

Thanks!



I came across a few more pics from the build while going through my old camera. They're pretty random but I'll post them anyways.

The insides of the tail light and hood light reflectors were coated with fake chrome paint for better reflectivity.





Once the metalwork was done, the edges of all the panels were skim coated and blocked across the panel gaps to get the panel flushness dead even.





To check the straighness of the bodywork before painting, the panels were wetsanded with 500 grit and wiped down with wax/grease remover. This showed up any distortion before paint while there was time to fix it.






Here's a few more pics of the wetsanding process, I didn't show any before of the 1000 grit step. I block sanded the truck with 1000 grit on a long/skinny Durablock and kept a squeegee handy to check progress. This is a before pic showing the orange peel and distorted reflection.





Partially blocked with 1000 grit. There's still some orange peel showing.





Orange peel fully blocked flat. Ready to guide coat and sand with 2000 grit.





Up close pic of the guide coat partially sanded with 2000 grit. The 1000 grit scratches are easily visible. This way you can know when you've sanded just enough without oversanding and risking sanding through the clear coat.





After sanding with 2000/3000 and buffing. Very clear, distortion free surface.





Here's some better pics of the grill shell and fender details. The original ones I posted were dark and poor quality.











The Ooga horn that the owner's dad installed was restored and installed back where it originally was.






And, the last pic I took of it right before the owner came to pick it up.

[C@rnut001]

I am new to the forum, so I just found your build on this truck. It is awesome and you did great work. Hopefully, you will be able to do this type of work for a long time. Thanks for sharing as it brings back memories of my dad and uncle's trucks like this and the one that my dad had was my first vehicle. I have had several of these trucks and they are so special in my memories. Thanks again for sharing all of your build.

[theastronaut]

Originally Posted by C@rnut001

I am new to the forum, so I just found your build on this truck. It is awesome and you did great work. Hopefully, you will be able to do this type of work for a long time. Thanks for sharing as it brings back memories of my dad and uncle's trucks like this and the one that my dad had was my first vehicle. I have had several of these trucks and they are so special in my memories. Thanks again for sharing all of your build.

Thanks, and welcome to the forum! I'm glad you enjoyed looking through the build! I think you'll find everyone here to be friendly and helpful, and many of the guys here have the same experiences with these trucks that you have, so you'll fit right in!

[VeronikA]

Beautiful trokita! And really like the way you work. Systematically. Awesome! Also love how the truck bed turned out. Looks dope!

Again love your truck! Be proud homie!!

[Corts60]

Wow, I don't know how I never stumbled on this before. What an incredible build!