68 C50 Looongbed pickup build

[rkn463]

Saturday was tear-down time!

Pull the bumper, then the hood. That was kind of diecy by myself but I made it work. It's really weird, the hood will stand on its butt without leaning it up against anything (forgot to get a picture). Next, remove the fender wells; I was surprised that I only had to cut 3 bolts - minimal carnage. Man that engine bay looks wide open with the fender wells gone! (I admit to a bit of vertigo standing way up there on the fenders). Next came, wiring harness, oil pressure line, clutch, throttle, etc. Nothing exciting there to take pictures of. I will have some work to do on the wiring harness. One of the previous owners had converted to an internal voltage regulator using jumpers in the original harness. I will unwrap it and redo it so that it looks like it came from the factory with an internal regulator. I will also need to replace the resistor wire that ran to the coil with a full size wire.

-Richard

[rkn463]

Saturday - continued

Pull the wiper arms; I had a bit of a scare there and thought that I might have to cut one off but it finally gave in and let go. Once the wiper arms were off next was the cowl cover. Then fender bolts. I bagged and tagged everything including the shims so that I can put it back together the way it came apart.

Drain the water and pull the fan shroud then the radiator. Speedometer cable, backup light connector off the trans. Pull the rear wiring from the clips and shove it into the open cowl area. Pulled the master cylinder from the GIANT vacuum booster.

Push it outside and grab the Bobcat again (I LOVE the Bobcat!)

No more front clip!

The third photo is the core support/grill viewed from the back - there are two pieces that you remove to use the wide radiator, pretty cool.

Also I just had to take a couple of pictures of my air cleaner mod. One of the POs had replaced the original oil bath air cleaner with a tiny 4 inch paper element POS. When we pulled the motor from the school bus (the one that donated the steering box) a few years back, it had a full size paper element air cleaner but it was for a 4 barrel. After poking around for a few minutes I made a pattern on a thin piece of wafer board and cut a ring that I silicone'd into the old base. The full size air clear sat down in it quite snug and gave me some peace of mind as well as making it look way better, at least in my opinion.

Enough for Saturday, shoved it back in to the shop and had myself an adult beverage.

-Richard

[Deer_hunter_088]

Love seeing progress on this beast!!!

[rkn463]

Last bit on Saturday was to "remove" the cab bolts. The back ones came out easily. Removed the nuts from the front ones and the bolts never turned, WTF?? Turns out someone welded the bolts to the cab floor. That may make this fun.

So that brings us to Sunday.

I remembered that I had not welded up the AIR holes in the passenger side exhaust manifold so I did that and reinstalled it. I didn't take any pictures because it was the exact same procedure as the driver side covered in post #125.

Back to tearing down the 68... I removed the power brake booster from the firewall, then I pushed the truck outside and disconnected the fuel line under the cab. Then I pulled the bolts from the rag joint on the steering box. At this point two of my brothers jumped in and helped, one ran the "skytrac" (it's actually a Lull but few people have heard of that) brother #2 helped watch and direct. The cab came right off without hanging on anything.

Next up, I pushed that frame out of the way and took the power washer to the cab while I could easily get to the firewall. I didn't spend too much time but it wasn't greasy, just years of dust and dirt. After that we rolled the 89 frame out and went to set the cab on. There were several runs to the tool box as I had to remove some of the temp braces holding up the master cylinder and just little stuff like that. On the first stab we were off to the driver side and not enough slack to push it over so we had to lift again. It barely caught the shifter knob on the floorboard as it came up and put a small bend that I'll need to hammer and dolly out but that is no big deal. On the second try we were close enough that I was able to get both sets of bushings in place in the front and one on the back. One fork had slid over just far enough to keep the remaining body bushing in place so I set it over a few inches just to support the weight. At this point the cab is still sitting a little crooked so squaring it up and bolting it down will be the first priority next weekend. Nothing was removed from the cab for this procedure so it is very heavy but I have a plan

OK, so I'm pretty happy with the progress this weekend. I've found a couple of new challenges and will need to address some that I knew about all along like the steering column having a different connection and not reaching the box by about four inches as seen in the last picture. I'm hopeful that the column from the 89 will fit, if not I will use that to justify adding a tilt!

Thanks for checking in folks!

-Richard

[saxart]

This is a great thread. Like reading a good book, you can't put it down. Well done!

[Advanced Design]

You Texas guys have all the big cool tools, Bobcat, Lull, tractor and mower...

Enjoying the updates Richard...oh, and that description on the hose clamps missing was a hoot....been there myself so many times!

[Okiefromwatonga]

Richard, firs off let me say that I admire you and your work. Top notch for sure. I have a question though, Are you useing the 68 cab mounting "ears" or the ones origonal to the frame? I ask because I am looking at doing the same with a 69 GMC 5500 and a 93 Topkick

[rkn463]

Originally Posted by Okiefromwatonga

Richard, firs off let me say that I admire you and your work. Top notch for sure. I have a question though, Are you useing the 68 cab mounting "ears" or the ones origonal to the frame? I ask because I am looking at doing the same with a 69 GMC 5500 and a 93 Topkick

All of the mount points on the frame are original to the 89 and the cab mounts should line up perfectly. I may need to put a spacer under the core support mount. If so it will be less than an inch, at least that is what I think.

I know that he body changed again by 93, I have no idea what they may have done with body mounting points. Do you already have the Topkick? If so get to measuring! If the frame itself is the same width then adapting the body shouldn't be too difficult. What would concern me is the width of the front axle. I got really lucky that I was able to adapt the newer knuckles to my older axle, I don't know if that luck would extend to the 93 knuckles or not. From the pictures that body style looks to have a really wide axle...

Have you started a build thread for your GMC yet? I'd like to see what you are working with!

Oh, and thanks for the compliment, much appreciated.

-Richard

[Okiefromwatonga]

Originally Posted by rkn463

All of the mount points on the frame are original to the 89 and the cab mounts should line up perfectly. I may need to put a spacer under the core support mount. If so it will be less than an inch, at least that is what I think.

I know that he body changed again by 93, I have no idea what they may have done with body mounting points. Do you already have the Topkick? If so get to measuring! If the frame itself is the same width then adapting the body shouldn't be too difficult. What would concern me is the width of the front axle. I got really lucky that I was able to adapt the newer knuckles to my older axle, I don't know if that luck would extend to the 93 knuckles or not. From the pictures that body style looks to have a really wide axle...

Have you started a build thread for your GMC yet? I'd like to see what you are working with!

Oh, and thanks for the compliment, much appreciated.

-Richard

No thread yet as I still have yet to get the 69 GMC home yet. Worked out the deal but cant find a trailer big enough to put it on, tempted to remove the front bumper and bolt on a tow bar and flat tow it home so I can start working on it. I do have some pictures of it in this thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=697424. As soon as I get it home and start the work It will get its own build thread.

[rkn463]

Originally Posted by Okiefromwatonga

No thread yet as I still have yet to get the 69 GMC home yet. Worked out the deal but cant find a trailer big enough to put it on, tempted to remove the front bumper and bolt on a tow bar and flat tow it home so I can start working on it. I do have some pictures of it in this thread http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=697424. As soon as I get it home and start the work It will get its own build thread.

That looks like great project truck, I recall seeing your previous post now. If you decide to go with the tow bar be really careful, these trucks are big and heavy and could easily overpower what ever is pulling it if you get in to an emergency situation. Just out of curiosity, how far do you have to move it?

-Richard

[rkn463]

Originally Posted by Advanced Design

You Texas guys have all the big cool tools, Bobcat, Lull, tractor and mower...

Enjoying the updates Richard...oh, and that description on the hose clamps missing was a hoot....been there myself so many times!

LOL, I thought the clamps would pop back in to view as soon as I managed to find something else but so far they're a no-show.

Thanks for checking in Doug!

Originally Posted by saxart

This is a great thread. Like reading a good book, you can't put it down. Well done!

Thanks or the compliment saxart. I checked out Ol Roy, I really like what you've done so far. That recovered seat looks awesome, it's making me rethink my bucket seats. I'll definitely be following along to see where you go with it.

Originally Posted by Deer_hunter_088

Love seeing progress on this beast!!!

Hey Deer hunter, glad you are hanging with me. I'm getting pretty excited with the prospect of firing it up again soon.



I need to get in an order for some parts with both LMC and Classicparts soon. I've really let myself get spoiled by Amazon prime and their two day shipping. Having to wait for stuff will be a blast from the past.

-Richard

[rustytruck50]

Great read on your work! I like the C50 and C60 in those years, just as much as the C10's!

[rustytruck50]

I've been there and back.....its frustrating but when you slide in behind the wheel for the first time and get it out on the road, all of that goes away in a big hurry!

[rkn463]

Originally Posted by rustytruck50

I've been there and back.....its frustrating but when you slide in behind the wheel for the first time and get it out on the road, all of that goes away in a big hurry!

If things go really well with reassemble then that first test drive may not be too far away. I can hardly wait!

-Richard

[rkn463]

Weekend update:
First on the agenda was to finish hooking up the clutch. When I pulled the clutch rod out the previous week I noticed that the rubber boot in the firewall was disintegrating. While I didn't have any expectation that the light duty and medium duty would use the same part I ordered one from LMC. As soon as it came in I knew it wasn't a match, you can see from the second photo it wasn't even close. That meant that I needed a plan B. With nothing to lose I set out to remove the old boot from the cab without finishing it off. I ended up using a blow dryer to heat it up to get it soft enough to remove it from the cab without destroying what was left. Once out I cut both apart and then grabbed some tire patch material and bonded the two together. It is a crappy looking temporary fix at best but for now it will keep air from blowing in. If anyone happens to have an old GM parts book I'd love to get a part # so that I can search for an NOS piece. Once It was back together I heated it with the blow dryer again and reinstalled it. Then I popped the clutch rod in and pinned it top and bottom. Clutch functional, check!

-Richard

[rkn463]

Next up was the steering column. As seen in last weeks photos the 89's column was the correct length. The shape of all the parts was a perfect match as well. I did need to swap the bracket that holds the column to the dash structure as well as swapping the floor gasket setup. I was able to work the floor gaskets off both and knocked the metal part of the brackets loose but I ended up cutting the rubber part of the bracket from the 68 column (forgot to get a picture). Anyone that has ever put a van column in a pickup is familiar with having to make a new hole in the column for the bracket to index in to. This one was no exception. I did not want to take the time to disassemble the column to do the drilling and cutting so I rigged up my shop vac over the existing slot so that I could drill, cut and suck all the metal shavings out at the same time - worked like a charm! First I drilled a 1/4" hole at each end I stepped the hole up to about 7/16 and then used my angle grinder to cut the part between the two holes. I swear I took some more pictures but they weren't on the camera so this is all you get, pic 1 is the vac hooked up, pic 2 is the completed hole, pic 3 is the bare metal painted. I installed the column and popped on the 68 horn button. The 89 button would be cool if it weren't for the silly little horn icon at the bottom. Column installed and functional - check!

-Richard

[rkn463]

Time to deal with the floor hump. The shifter doesn't come through in the original place so I need to move the hole. I also decided to go with the oval shifter boot from the 89, so I need to change the shape as well. I knew that the hole needed to be farther back so I started by cutting out the back end to get the shape right. Still way off. I did lots of measuring and figured out it needed to be roughly 3.5 inches farther back. I masked off a rectangle that I determined I could cut and rotate 180 degrees an weld back in. This would move it the proper distance back as well as moving it to the right about a quarter inch. I spent a lot of time measuring and masking and got my rectangle "in square" but when I cut it I got off the marks! I taped the piece in and test fit it and it looked perfect. Theory, spot on - execution, not so great. That was all for Saturday, the welding would have to wait till Sunday.

-Richard

[rustytruck50]

Nice work!
I just had a thought about your clutch rod boot...I would take a look at the flat side that goes to the inside of the cab & see if you can find a number molded into the surface (flange)...probably a 6 digit number....

[Advanced Design]

Richard, you've really been moving right along. Good detail work that takes a lot of effort and time.

[notchbackgta]

Wrap that boot with some self vulcanizing rubber tape, it will look a lot better than those little patches.

[Stephen717]

Any progress?

[rustytruck50]

I've been working on a part number for that boot, but have been unsuccessful...still trying

[rkn463]

Originally Posted by notchbackgta

Wrap that boot with some self vulcanizing rubber tape, it will look a lot better than those little patches.

I had never even heard of that...

Originally Posted by Stephen717

Any progress?

The progress to frustration ratio is out of whack!

Originally Posted by rustytruck50

I've been working on a part number for that boot, but have been unsuccessful...still trying

I appreciate the effort!



I will be posting the latest but have been working late so far this week and haven't had the energy to get it all written up. Stay tuned.

-Richard

[notchbackgta]

Originally Posted by rkn463

I had never even heard of that...

I haven't used this one specifically, but it is nice. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/mor-72038
When you wrap it back upon its self it makes a permanent bond. You could probably get it at an electrical supply too, we have it at work for the linemen so I would think they sell it there

[rkn463]

Originally Posted by flashed

Happy Thanksgiving to you to ,great update .

Thanks flashed. I know yours was probably difficult this year.

Originally Posted by Hewfil1

Late but, they say there's two good days with a Corvette. The day you buy it, and the day you sell it.

I still need to experience it for myself...

Originally Posted by Hewfil1

What a beauty.

I can still hardly believe it. As recently as this last Saturday he was still alive and well.

Originally Posted by sweetk30

nope that's a BOAT

and

b - break
o - out
a - another
t - thousand

Amen to the boat acronym, I have a good friend who always kept a boat and was kind enough to take me skiing, dang those things drink money!

Originally Posted by notchbackgta

I haven't used this one specifically, but it is nice. https://www.summitracing.com/parts/mor-72038
When you wrap it back upon its self it makes a permanent bond. You could probably get it at an electrical supply too, we have it at work for the linemen so I would think they sell it there

Thanks for the link, looks like good stuff but WOW that is expensive tape. I think I'll buy a roll and try it out.

-Richard