Markeb01 Build Thread

[markeb01]

Well the new gas pedal trim showed up today and was quickly installed. I like the overall image it provides:





From a few feet away it looks fine, but I’ll be replacing it the next time I need to order something else and chalking it up as another learning experience. For $5 it wasn’t worth sending back, and I wanted something shiny on the pedal in the interim until I can buy a decent replacement.

As I normally do, I purchased the complete set from Chevy Duty, make that ClassicParts. The pads were very supple and fit well, and although Counterpart items seem to receive consistently bad reviews, it was their brand of pedal trim I received and it looked and fit nicely. The trim was highly polished both on the face and the sides, and I was completely satisfied with the quality.

Unfortunately the gas pedal trim was on indefinite back order (maybe a month or more). So I decided to cancel the back order and buy the trim somewhere else. In spite of many many quality and customer service complaints I've read about, I’ve purchased from LMC twice, both were good experiences so I tried it again. 3rd time wasn't the charm.

First up the flimsy and vulnerable trim was shipped in a padded envelope, so of course it arrived warped, twisted, and all of the tabs were bent and required straightening.

Second the piece was malformed. The sides, top, and bottom are suppose to be parallel as shown in this example:



The trim I received is punched incorrectly, with the top and bottom at an angle, not parallel with the outer edge. The sides look like they went through a grinder, and they came with no manufacturer identification, just a sticker that says Made in Taiwan. I didn't think to take a close up before installation:



Also the rectangular holes were punched from the backside, so the rough edge is facing forward instead of against the pedal. All in all it’s a completely sub standard part compared to what Chevy Duty supplied. I should have waited for the backorder, proving once again a lack of patience is rarely a good thing.

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by markeb01

Well the new gas pedal trim showed up today and was quickly installed. I like the overall image it provides

i agree, the overall look is nice! it really balances all the black & chrome

Unfortunately the gas pedal trim was on indefinite back order (maybe a month or more). So I decided to cancel the back order and buy the trim somewhere else. In spite of many many quality and customer service complaints I've read about, I’ve purchased from LMC twice, both were good experiences so I tried it again. 3rd time wasn't the charm.

First up the flimsy and vulnerable trim was shipped in a padded envelope, so of course if arrived warped, twisted, and all of the tabs were bent and required straightening.

Second the piece was malformed. The sides, top, and bottom are suppose to be parallel as shown in this example:

Also the rectangular holes were punched from the backside, so the rough edge is facing forward instead of against the pedal. All in all it’s a completely sub standard part compared to what Chevy Duty supplied. I should have waited for the backorder, proving once again a lack of patience is rarely a good thing.

sorry to hear about the bad luck with inferior parts...just last night i was discussing that topic with a friend from the S-10 forum i frequent...aftermarket stuff is always such a hit-or-miss, which sucks....i clearly see what you're referring to about the piece not being parallel...as patient as i am, i tend to get antsy as well when i want a project finished

[66-PMD-GMC]

Wow!
I spent the last hour reading your build thread and I have to say that 1992 to 2012 showng a 20 year progression of "phases" your truck has gone through is astonishing.
I gave up keeping photo records of my builds 20 years ago. I normally just take a couple pics of finished projects and leave it at that but your thread made me wish I had done more on some of my builds.

[northern 85]

Perfect!

[markeb01]

Thanks for the feedback guys.

Originally Posted by 66-PMD-GMC

I gave up keeping photo records of my builds 20 years ago. I normally just take a couple pics of finished projects and leave it at that but your thread made me wish I had done more on some of my builds.

Having experienced similar disappointment many times is why I take so many photos now. Since this is a build thread and not the general forum, I’ll digress a bit and share my picture taking history along with some of the limited photos of earlier builds. My photographic history started out rather poorly. Having a dad that made every childhood picture taking event miserable, I grew up with a loathing for photography.

As a result I have no photos of my first two cars, a 1946 Chevy two door sedan, and a 1947 Chevy coupe. It didn’t take long to regret not having taken any. But with the cost of film and developing, pictures were rarely snapped more than a few at a time.

Here are a few examples of my early snapshots. On some of these cars these pictures are about all that were ever taken:

My high school car (my first daily driver) was a 1954 Chevy two door sedan. I have no pictures capturing the somewhat dangerous trip towing it home on a rope, or images of what it looked like. Although the body was in near mint condition, it was a boring pea soup green with wide whitewall tires, upside down tail lights and a broken transmission. I repaired all the dings and dents, installed a used BelAir blended windshield, rebuilt the transmission, and corrected the tail lights. When my parents were away for the weekend I repainted it black to cover the terrible “wrong color (blue) paint job” my dad insisted on doing himself earlier. At this point I finally bought a cheap Instamatic camera, and snapped about a dozen “after” pictures. On the income of a a high school student it was just too expensive to waste shots.

Yes this is me a few years ago when I was somewhat (45 years) younger and a tad skinnier. I was very pleased with how the paint turned out. The photo was damaged in a divorce many years later, so I’m happy it still exists at all:



Although I didn’t do the final paint, I rebuilt my girlfriend’s 57 Chevy from this:



To this:



The first picture wasn’t an intentional “before” shot; it was just one that I took when the car was purchased.

After returning from Vietnam in 1970, my first project car was a 1950 Plymouth 3 window coupe I converted into a 1949. Because film and developing were still expensive on my limited income, photos continued to be taken very sparingly. By the time I sold the car I had taken maybe a dozen photos. The early pictures weren't taken as "before" photos, because at the time I never anticipated I would modify the car so substantially:









As things progressed and my income increased, I put increased effort into capturing more of the important moments of a build. (This of course had to fit in with taking tons of kid pictures during the same time period). In spite of being older and wiser (?), I still generally continued forgetting to take any before pictures.

There were at least a dozen more cars that received similar treatment including this original owner 54 Chevy I had for 5 years. It was quite a sleeper after I added about 95% of the optional exterior accessory trim, and a Corvette 283/4 speed.



Of all these early cars, most had no before pictures taken and during ownership rarely had more than 1 roll of film exposed.

Finally in the early 80’s I went berserk with photos. I built a 46 Ford 4 door sedan from what was basically a parts car into a daily driven 300,000 mile street rod, and almost every detail of the construction is documented on film.





I started out intending to steam clean the engine compartment and drop in a Chevy small block. Like so many others, I got carried away and the whole car went down to the frame, but at least this time I had the sense to take pictures.

My last and final build is our truck. We’ve had so much fun with it, and I’m very grateful digital photography came along. It’s so much easier to work with and far less expensive than film ever was.

If digital photography and web forums like this one had not come along, I would have taken about 95% fewer pictures of the GMC. I have benefitted immensely from the photos and postings of others, it inspires me to return the favor when I can.

For anyone just starting a build, I highly recommend getting any affordable digital camera and take lots of photos, and most importantly – take a bunch when first purchased and before anything is touched. Too many times it turns out there are no “before” pictures at all, making it difficult for others to appreciate how much work and talent have been invested, or just to remember what it used to look like.

[66-PMD-GMC]

Originally Posted by markeb01

Thanks for the feedback guys.

Having experienced similar disappointment many times is why I take so many photos now. If digital photography and web forums like this one had not come along, I would have taken about 95% fewer pictures of the GMC. I have benefitted immensely from the photos and postings of others, it inspires me to return the favor when I can.

For anyone just starting a build, I highly recommend getting any affordable digital camera and take lots of photos, and most importantly – take a bunch when first purchased and before anything is touched. Too many times it turns out there are no “before” pictures at all, making it difficult for others to appreciate how much work and talent have been invested, or just to remember what it used to look like.

I lost a couple, very special photo albums in my divorce. I feel your pain.
I would like sometime to sit face to face with you and talk cars and trucks since we seem to have much in common.
Maybe I will get a chance to cross, "travel the perimiter of the U.S. in my hot rod" off my bucket list and drop in on you.
My crazy plan is to go to San Diego, travel north to Washington state, east to the U.P. of Michigan, down to Detroit and then up to Maine, down to florida and back across to Arizona. And all in a car or truck I built from the ground up.
All cool cars there friend... Now if I could just talk you into putting an old Iron Indian motor in that GMC of your's... wouldn't that be something??

[markeb01]

Sounds like a plan, I’ll look forward to your visit when you eventually make the “Perimeter Tour”!

As for Pontiac engines, I became a fan back around 1970 on my first day of work at a new job. I was driving a black 1963 Galaxie 500 XL with the bucket seat interior and a factory 390/4 speed setup (later to include 3x2’s off a 406):





I parked right behind what appeared to be a brand new 1961 Pontiac hardtop, wearing a full set of American mags and Firestone wide ovals. By the end of the shift I had met the owner and learned more of the details which nearly blew my mind. He in fact bought the car brand new and spent five years collecting all the parts needed to assemble an authentic 421 Super Duty engine. In addition it had the dual quads, an Isky 505 roller cam, Scheifer flywheel and clutch assembly, Sun tach, and Hurst shifter. It had all the go fast goodies. When the car was brand new he removed the sunvisors and had a new headliner installed.

It was show car quality and unrestored. He just maintained it in mint original condition. Most days I parked right behind his car and the pair drew a lot of attention.

Later I picked up a POS 68 Firebird. The body was shot, but it had a completely rebuilt 389/4 speed that the guy couldn’t get running right. It picked it up for a song, intending to pull the 389/4 speed to put in my 67 Chevelle:





The only thing wrong with the engine was all the vacuum hoses were messed up. A quick fix and man that thing was strong. Sitting so low to the ground, stomping hard on that thing was like driving a rocket powered sleeping bag! It had screw in rocker studs, push rod guide plates, and I loved the fact the intake manifold could be pulled without disturbing the distributor. In my opinion it was a much better version of the Chevy small block with numerous improvements.

Unfortunately after I did the bodywork and slapped a paint job on, it was worth far more as a car than just an engine/transmission so I ended up selling it outright. But I never got over the fondness I had for that engine design.

I thought about installing a Pontiac engine in the GMC back in 1992, but recently divorced, I just couldn’t afford to be different. Regardless, I still think it would be very impressive to pop the hood and see a Pontiac sitting in there. If the resources ever fall in my lap it could still happen!

Wow I almost forgot the 76 Formula I owned. It also had a 389 but had an automatic transmission which soured me on the car. By the time I got done with it, swapping in a 4 speed would have just cost money with no return, so it also when down the road. I haven't scanned the album yet with those photos, so maybe I'll add them later.

[66-PMD-GMC]

My first real fast Pontiac was a 67 GTO with a 400, 4 speed 4.33:1 Posi from the factory.
It's best was an 11.02, factory original with 9 inch slicks.
I had it until the day it was stolen. 17 years, 8 months and 12 days is how long I was honored to own that vehicle.
I have had way faster Pontiac's but that old GTO was my buddy.
My 68 Firebird went 9.44 at 140 (all motor) and some kid with more money than brains had to have that one. It went down the road.
My wifes 63 pick-em up is getting a 380 horse 350 backed by a 2004R, the 12 bolt has a 3.73 posi. I tried to sell the whole truck for $500 but my wife wants it. So she gits it.
This image is not my car but looks identical. The photos I have of it are packed away somewhere...
The black 66 is my best friend Andy's car. We put a 479 Pontiac mill in that with a tremic 6 speed behind it.

[markeb01]

Both of those cars are stunning, but the paint/bodywork on the black one is unbelievable. I would imagine you have not yet gotten over the loss of the one that was stolen.

Back in the early 70’s my ex-wife’s cousin bought one that looked like your first picture except it had a black vinyl top. I don’t remember ever knowing what engine was in it, but it had a 4 speed with the factory Hurst shifter. Back then you could just go to your local used car lot and pick one up for used car prices. Those days are certainly over!

[66-PMD-GMC]

Originally Posted by markeb01

Both of those cars are stunning, but the paint/bodywork on the black one is unbelievable. I would imagine you have not yet gotten over the loss of the one that was stolen.

Back in the early 70’s my ex-wife’s cousin bought one that looked like your first picture except it had a black vinyl top. I don’t remember ever knowing what engine was in it, but it had a 4 speed with the factory Hurst shifter. Back then you could just go to your local used car lot and pick one up for used car prices. Those days are certainly over!

The black 66 is a rotisserie build. Stupid $$ was spent but it is his high school car..
My 67 was cameo white with black interior just like that car.

[LostMy65]

I just went through your thread again.
I didn't see if you ever upgraded to power-steering?
I'm needing to do it on my 65 on a 62 frame.
Thanks

[markeb01]

Yes, I was highly motivated to install power steering when I first got the truck. It was actually the first thing I did after the engine swap. The original steering box was almost unworkable. Upon inspection I realized the big plug on the forward end of the box was completely missing, eliminating any lubricant and allowing dirt and debris into the gears. At great expense I replaced it with a replacement junk yard box which turned out to work just as poorly. It was so hard to turn I avoided parking lots and normally left the truck in the street.

The only mention in the build thread is on page 1, the last photo on post #4. It just shows the finished installation. This far back it never occurred to me to take detailed photos of the whole installation process:



REZ made the only kit on the market in 1992. I was somewhat bummed when the kit arrived and I discovered it was not designed to work on a 60-62 frame. But I was committed to having power steering, so I fabricated heavy steel spacers for the front bolt(s), which have performed flawlessly for 20 years.

The steering column I bought was a generic model from Butch’s Rod Shop. I was fortunate in finding a nearly new intermediate shaft from a mid-70’s Monte Carlo that was a direct bolt in between the box and column. It even came with a plastic cover that keeps dirt out of the flex coupler. Here’s a better shot of the cover when I was swapping out the front suspension years later:



To install the steering box using the REZ kit, the box needs a new mounting hole drilled as shown in this photo, and I believe the lower forward mounting hole must have the threads drilled out:



The downside being if you ever have to replace the steering box (which I did 17 years later), these modifications prevent returning the old box for the core credit.

[McMurphy]

Those Pontiacs are indeed a thing of beauty.
I just entered my 66 Tempest Custom in the Good Guys show for this August at the Spokane Fair Grounds.
As I was going thru last years photos on the Good Guys site, I noticed they got a partial of your truck next to a 30s or 40s two tone sedan.

Anyways, it is my deepest hope that I get to meet some of you PNW guys this summer, before-during-or after the show!

Thanks for the info and advice Mark, you have been one of the real go-to guys on this site and I appreciate it!

[markeb01]

Originally Posted by McMurphy

Those Pontiacs are indeed a thing of beauty.
I just entered my 66 Tempest Custom in the Good Guys show for this August at the Spokane Fair Grounds.
As I was going thru last years photos on the Good Guys site, I noticed they got a partial of your truck next to a 30s or 40s two tone sedan.

Anyways, it is my deepest hope that I get to meet some of you PNW guys this summer, before-during-or after the show!

Thanks for the info and advice Mark, you have been one of the real go-to guys on this site and I appreciate it!

I’ll be there and look forward to meeting. I wasn’t planning on bringing my truck this year, but knowing you're making the trip has me rethinking the decision.

Thanks for pointing out the photo I’d never seen it before. By the way the car in the photo is a 1935 Ford.



That was taken Friday morning right after we checked in. I was somewhat surprised when we were issued entry #12! The low number resulted from registering the previous December at their deepest discount.



Normally we wander around for an hour or so on Friday and return for most of the day Saturday. Last year on Friday we hung around long enough to meet Vernski and his wife, which was fun.

On Saturday we usually park farther back in the corner because there is shade most of the afternoon and I’m not much of a hot weather person. It’s a great spot for a picnic, but not the best spot if you want pictures of your car published. It also seems most of the pictures that end up in print magazines are taken primarily on Sunday, in case this matters to you.

How about posting a photo of your Pontiac here so I’ll know what to look for. Look forward to seeing you there.

[McMurphy]

Thank you for the info on the car show.
Not sure if I am a photo hound or that I live to see my car in a magazine or anything like that...
But I do like picnics !!

LOL

I am honored to post a pic (or 3) of my humble Tempest here, thank you for the invite!
My wife found this car on Ebay in Tulsa Oklahoma while she was stationed in Kuwait, and bought it for me as a Birthday present back in September 2005.

She got it to replace my original Tempest Custom 2dr no post coupe that had been stolen while we were stationed in Korea that I had when she and I met.

and here the old boy is!



This is me at my 30th High School Reunion last summer at Franklin Park up on Division.


This is my OHC6 230ci that I had rebuilt into a "sleeper" Sprint. I post this because this will more than likely be the main attraction for my car with the dual exhaust and the 4bbl carb.


Like I have said over on my thread, I hope to get this bad boy on a Dyno this summer and get the HP rated.
As always, thanks for taking a look!

[markeb01]

Very cool indeed. Sorry to hear the original was stolen, but what a cool story about how this one was acquired. I have the same type of relationship with my wife. She found the ad for my truck and it was purchased for my birthday as well. I still have the penny saver ad, and the envelope she handed over full of money.

I clearly remember the September 65 Hot Rod cover, since the new inline six was a big topic in High School auto shop:



A 4 barrel equipped inline six cylinder with headers was always something I intended to build when I “grew up”, but that’s not very likely any longer. Regardless, I still enjoy nice examples. Looking forward to seeing it in person.

[McMurphy]

Ahhhh yeah, thanks for posting that particular magazine cover...
You just reminded me I need to finish up my car show display for the Tempest.

Egads, too many projects.... this getting up and going to work every day stuff has got to stop! It is starting to conflict with my ability to get stuff done....

Hahahahah
Thanks Mark, hopefully my little blue motor will not disappoint

[66-PMD-GMC]

Originally Posted by McMurphy

Egads, too many projects.... this getting up and going to work every day stuff has got to stop! It is starting to conflict with my ability to get stuff done....

I love the mid year 60's pontiacs 64-67....
I am just itching to get my hands on an A body hardtop or sedan...
I would give up all of my trucks except one for a Tempest/LeMans/GTO...

[McMurphy]

Originally Posted by 66-PMD-GMC

I love the mid year 60's pontiacs 64-67....
I am just itching to get my hands on an A body hardtop or sedan...
I would give up all of my trucks except one for a Tempest/LeMans/GTO...

Resto guy back in Spokane is finishing up a complete body job on my wifes 72.
Still kicking around the idea of entering it with my Tempest in the Good Guys in August.
I dont show to win trophys though, for me it is more about saving these cars from a time when Americans really loved their cars, and built stuff to last.

Here is hers.

[66-PMD-GMC]

Beautiful Pontiac !!!
I had a chance to buy a convertible 2 years ago but I am not really into them or in a place where "I" can enjoy them.
Red hair and light complexion make me hide in the shade... LOL
I have a line on a 64 tempest 2 door hardtop. I have my fingers crossed.

[markeb01]

Originally Posted by 66-PMD-GMC

I had a chance to buy a convertible 2 years ago but I am not really into them or in a place where "I" can enjoy them. Red hair and light complexion make me hide in the shade... LOL

Direct sunlight isn’t my friend either. A 3rd degree sunburn in my youth made me susceptible to bigger problems with additional exposure.

Originally Posted by McMurphy

Resto guy back in Spokane is finishing up a complete body job on my wifes 72. Still kicking around the idea of entering it with my Tempest in the Good Guys in August. Here is hers.

If there’s a practical way to get them both there, I’d encourage bringing them both. I’ll be bringing my truck and my son will either tag along or perhaps enter his 1960 Galaxie as well.

My only A body car was a 67 Chevelle.



I can’t say I ever “loved” the car because it was a 4 door. It was however a fantastic daily driver. The sedan was a plain vanilla California government car with no options. Five years later it had a 350/4 speed, 12 bolt rear end, heavy duty driveshaft, front disc brakes, Pontiac station wagon springs, and Olds 442 front and rear sway bars with the factory boxed lower rear control arms. And how times have changed, I bought every suspension component for $5 each or per pair, like the sway bars, springs, and control arms. I was amazed how many Olds 442’s and GTO’s were in the local yards at the time. Inside a factory optional full gauge cluster was added along with the factory 4 speed console and Jaguar XJ12L leather seats front and rear.

The outside had 68 Mopar fender markers, rally wheels, black acrylic enamel and aluminum window trim from a Buick (Chevy never offered it on 4 doors).

After 5 years of searching I finally found an SS396 hood, buying an entire POS car just to get the hood!



My birthday present that year was a new Targetmaster 350. 3 or 4 days later while out testing the clutch adjustment, a drunk driver in this VW ran a red light doing 55-60 in a 35 zone. The Chevelle was totaled. Here’s a photo of the bug a few days later in the wrecking yard:



And this is what happened to my brand new hood:



He impacted just ahead of my left front tire and spun the Chevelle 270 degrees flinging it backwards into a traffic pole. The front of the frame was moved over 2 feet, and the back was shoved in two feet knocking the passenger side doors out of the body. Fortunately I had the hood chained down in front, because the impact tore the driver side hood hinge off and left the corner of the hood resting against the windshield. It could have been worse. At least I only got a concussion and lost the car. My son was in the car at the time and was unhurt. The VW went end over end a couple of times throwing the engine down the street several hundred feet farther. Fortunately nobody but the driver got hurt.

Looking back it was somewhat of a blessing, since I put the running gear into another car which I sold for a profit, and parlayed that money into the 46 Ford which eventually led to the purchase of my 1960 GMC.

And on the topic of the GMC, I retrieved the buffer from my son last night so I can get started on polishing the windshield trim. I’m hoping to have it finished and installed before the show in August.

[ConnDemned]

Dang Mark, the picture of your Chevelle looks a lot like my dad's if only a yellow 2 door. His throttle stuck wide open and ended up hitting a tree. He put an el camino frame under it and drove it until the motor blew and its been sitting for the last 2 years, fixed incomes aren't all that great when fixing up cars. His hood and doors don't line up all that well but I doubt he'd trade his car for another.
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[McMurphy]

Both our Pontiacs are there in Spokane Mark, we have 14 acres out in Chattaroy we are going to retire on in the next 5 years, so we have started to consolidate all our stuff there.

I may go ahead and enter her car this week, is a nice husband/wife team those two cars !!

[markeb01]

I spent most of the day yesterday getting the garage ready to start working on the windshield trim. I needed a clean open space to hold the trim while it’s being worked on. This inspired moving the DVD/TV off the clean bench onto a wall shelf, which was a nice improvement all around:



For a baseline I took a few photos of the windshield trim, identifying the problem areas needing attention. The driver side upper piece has no blemishes and requires only polishing. The other three pieces have a few defects:

This is the lower driver side piece, and has the most problems. The lower edge appears to have been hit with a careless D/A sander along the bottom edge. There’s also a ding and a depressed area closer to the corner, and it either has overspray or may have been sandblasted from years of road exposure:



More towards the center of the truck the same piece has a bunch of vertical scratches and a small single ding:



Similar defects mark the lower passenger side as well:



And the biggest dent of all (actually 2 small dents) on the lower passenger side:



The upper passenger side has 2 problems, a pretty decent scratch on the right and a bend in the outer corner which is changing the profile, narrowing the trim:



Luckily all the caps are there and in good condition:



I’ll probably give everything a good cleaning and mild sanding before starting on the ding/dent removal so they are more easily detectable.

I haven’t yet determined where to buy the windshield seal. Since I’ve waited this long I’m actually dragging my feet until after the trim is finished just in case I mangle a piece with the buffer. I think the last time I destroyed anything with a buffer was in the 1960’s, but anything can happen.

More to follow.

[MisterC]

Very nice work along the way. Subscribed to follow your trim revival!