Newbie thinking about diving into a '65 GMC 1000

[Praxiss454]

Bled the brakes again today (after recently installing new wheel cylinders, drums, and shoes all around). I still don't think all the air is out but it is much better. Also took the carb apart, cleaned it with some carb cleaner, and swapped the accelerator pump out. It works better now, and doesn't stumble like it did before on acceleration. Needed to tweak the idle settings as once it was warm it was idling too low. I think the adjustment I did just now might be enough, we'll see.

Both of the door locks I fixed are broken again, so I'll have to pop them out and see... I bet the band that holds the wafer springs down wiggled loose. I didn't really stake them down very well. Thanks again to LockDoc for the wafers. I probably should have just sent the cylinders to him in the first place.

I have some seat springs coming and a new fuel filler neck. I think once that is all done I will figure out why the brake and indicator lights don't work. Will need to do some fuse panel work for that, and also for the heater. I found some radiator shrouds and proper mounting bracket, and an original fan. The truck hasn't been overheating since I fixed the timing but it still runs a but warm (200-210) so I might also from a lower thermostat in there, like a 180F. (195F now) I don't really want to drain the dang thing though so I might hold off on that.

When I was at a car show today I found myself pointing out things in my head on the Chevy/GMC trucks that weren't "correct"... (like all those chevys with V6s) What's happening to me?!?

[Praxiss454]

Quoting jdl71 from a WTB thread of mine he replied to:

Originally Posted by jdl71

No problem. I have a fairly original 230, so if you need pics of anything else or have other questions, feel free to ask.

Since you mention it, I do have a couple of questions/problems.

1) Belt Tension


I put on the new-to-me 4 blade fan, and I'm trying to adjust the belt tension so it is tight enough (because it's so loose now I can spin the fan without the belt moving). However, when I move the Alternator to the right to increase belt tension, the blade on the front of the Alternator starts to hit the curved bracket above it. I tried flipping the curved bracket up-side-down but that doesn't work either.

I only see 3 possibilities here.
A. My belt is too old and too lose and I should just replace it.
B. The configuration of my bracket is wrong.
C. The OEM Alternator bracket is gone and instead the bottom alternator mount is attached to some kind of metal L channel, and this causes the alignment of things to be off.

2) What's going on here?


What are these components (aside from the horn)? Is that thing supposed to be mounted on a block of wood? I suppose wood would be an insulator, but it just seems weird.

3)Proper Fastener Size


Any idea what is the proper size screw/bolt for the upper radiator baffle? The 5/16"-18 X 3/4" body bolts are too large, and a #10 Sheet Metal Screw is too small. Did they really use a 7/32" fastener here? It seems like a 1/4" would be too large as well. But maybe I just need to force it.

[jtrichard]

#1 alternator adjusting bracket is UPSIDE DOWN in pic for sure Strap may go on back side of alternator adjusting NUB (for lack of better term)

#2 Silver can is horn relay/main power junction block Black .....On wood is alternator regulator (WOOD NOT OEM Need pic of lower bracket and where wires hook to alternator

#3 may have had clip for #10 sheet metal screw i will have to look at mine in am

[jdl71]

#1) top bracket is upside as mentioned, this is what it should look like:



This is what the bottom bracket looks like. If you have something else, C is likely the answer:



This is taken from underneath, sorry for the awkward view, but I could not get it to rotate. Only other thing I can think of is new pulley is not flat against water pump. Did you have this problem before you replaced the fan/pulley?

2)wood should not be there, although I don't know that it affects anything, as mentioned this is voltage regulator.

3)I thought baffles were only used on V8 radiator which was in the forward position. I don't have any, so can't help you there.

[Praxiss454]

Originally Posted by jdl71

#1) top bracket is upside as mentioned, this is what it should look like:

Thanks for confirming.

This is what the bottom bracket looks like. If you have something else, C is likely the answer:

Yes I have something different. Will take a pic and post. It is hackery.

Only other thing I can think of is new pulley is not flat against water pump. Did you have this problem before you replaced the fan/pulley?

The fan has been loose since I bought the truck. I have not removed the existing pulley since I've owned it. Might still be a cause but if so it's been like that for years.

3)I thought baffles were only used on V8 radiator which was in the forward position. I don't have any, so can't help you there.

I think there is a different kind of baffle or shroud for the V8 radiator, but not sure. Anyway, these fit perfectly w/ my 230 radiator mounted in the lower rear position, and it *appears* the fan clears all equipment without a spacer but based on another member's feedback I am going to confirm before I fire things up.

[jdl71]

Hard to see, but in my first pic fan is mounted with no spacer and clears everything fine.

[Praxiss454]

Who knows what the hell is going on here... My guess is maybe they had the wrong bracket, or the alternator + bracket was pulled out of a different vehicle. For whatever reason, the bracket attached to the alternator is attached to an L channel, which is then attached to the engine. If those bolt spacings line up I don't know why I don't just move the whole thing down and back the ~1".

My oil pan was also either painted blue at some point recently, or swapped in from another vehicle. Obviously I have a leaky gasket or two as well.

[jdl71]

Originally Posted by Praxiss454

Who knows what the hell is going on here... My guess is maybe they had the wrong bracket, or the alternator + bracket was pulled out of a different vehicle. For whatever reason, the bracket attached to the alternator is attached to an L channel, which is then attached to the engine. If those bolt spacings line up I don't know why I don't just move the whole thing down and back the ~1".

My oil pan was also either painted blue at some point recently, or swapped in from another vehicle. Obviously I have a leaky gasket or two as well.

From the looks of the second picture, if you remove the L bracket and remount the alternator there you will be compounding the problem as it will move it back another 1/2" or so. I could be looking at that wrong, but it sure looks like the bracket to block bolts are farther toward the rear of the engine than the alt to bracket bolts.

[Praxiss454]

I've been looking at this more and I think the bracket is just too small, and that is the cause of my fan belt tension problem.

jdl71 - is that a pic of a stock bracket? It looks newer than the surrounding components.

[jdl71]

Originally Posted by Praxiss454

I've been looking at this more and I think the bracket is just too small, and that is the cause of my fan belt tension problem.

jdl71 - is that a pic of a stock bracket? It looks newer than the surrounding components.

Yes, it's just been painted. I should have a spare somewhere I'll try to dig it up today.

[jtrichard]

You might want to check this out http://www.ebay.com/itm/Low-Mount-Al...5XtJKe&vxp=mtr

[Praxiss454]

Originally Posted by jtrichard

You might want to check this out http://www.ebay.com/itm/Low-Mount-Al...5XtJKe&vxp=mtr

I saw that, too. To me, it looks just about the same positioning as the one I currently have. Was that your assessment as well?

[jtrichard]

Some what close (hard to tell with pics) but i would say lower for sure

[jdl71]

BTW, I have a spare alternator, and engine on stand also so if you need me to measure something just holler.

[Praxiss454]

Another minor setback today. I had ordered 6 replacement seat springs for my standard bench seat from 4-5-6 Chevy Trucks. When they arrived, I noticed the long section that supports the seat was round instead of flat. When I went to install one of them, it was a good 2.5" too short (18" front to back vs 20.5"). So now I gotta ship these back on my dime and see if he has the proper springs. Kinda frustrated about it all, because the seat is all torn apart to install the new springs, so I won't be on the road for at least another few weeks now.

As far as I know, my bench seat is original to my truck, but I suppose it's possible my bench is from another model year and this mix up is not their fault.

[Praxiss454]

Since I have what appears to be an original upper bench seat, I set out trying to find repop seat vinyl. Everyone seems to want to do the fabric seat, I thought I'd try to find the vinyl that matches mine. Part of the motivation was to do something a bit different but still true to the model year, and part of the motivation was to save a bit of money. Turns out the embossed vinyl is not that much cheaper than fabric.

Here's the swatch from SMS. I'm not going to pull the trigger yet because there are so many other issues with my truck that'd it would be like putting lipstick on a pig.

[jdl71]

How many yards to do a seat? I assume that is material only?

[Praxiss454]

Originally Posted by jdl71

How many yards to do a seat? I assume that is material only?

Yes that is the material quote. I don't know for certain how many yards of each one needs but I gather it is 3-4 yards total.

[jdl71]

Wow. I though the premade replacement covers in the catalogs were high, now I see why.

[Praxiss454]

Originally Posted by jdl71

Wow. I though the premade replacement covers in the catalogs were high, now I see why.

Yeah, and then you gotta pay a pro ~$350 to actually sew the cover and upholster the seat. Hard for me to justify that kind of money when I have dents in almost every body panel and what looks like a rattle can paint job.

[Praxiss454]

Unboxed my eBay find this evening - NOS Delbar Swing Lock Jr West Coast Mirrors. These were the GMC Factory Accessory mirrors, similar but different from the more common Chevy mirrors. It's almost a shame that I'm gonna mount em up onto such a beat looking truck.

The only problem is that it is missing the t-bolts for the top mounting bracket and screws for the bottom. Also, I sure as hell hope the standard mounting brackets fit our truck.

[Praxiss454]

Anyone who is following this thread happen to know what the 3 pins are on the back of a factory AM radio? One is power, and the other two are for the speaker, but I don't know which is which. Mine didn't come with a pigtail either.

[Praxiss454]

Originally Posted by Praxiss454

Anyone who is following this thread happen to know what the 3 pins are on the back of a factory AM radio? One is power, and the other two are for the speaker, but I don't know which is which. Mine didn't come with a pigtail either.

Cancel that. I believe by looking at some photos in another site I was able to determine that the power line is the outer most pin, and the inner pins are the +/- wires for the speaker. ALSO learned that trying to turn this sucker on w/o a speaker hooked up could burn the caps, so won't be doing that.

Next up - figure out why my thrift air heater won't blow. My suspicion is a critter built a nest in there. When the headlights are on and I turn the heater knob, the headlights dim slightly with each click, like it's trying to engage.

Also gotta figure out why my interior dome light never turns on. I'm not actually sure when it is SUPPOSED to turn on.

[jtrichard]

Dome light, turn your headlight knob as far counter clockwise as you can you will feel a slight click for lack of a better term and the dome should come on,, no other way they come on

[Praxiss454]

Originally Posted by jtrichard

Dome light, turn your headlight knob as far counter clockwise as you can you will feel a slight click for lack of a better term and the dome should come on,, no other way they come on

Thank you. No light. Bulb looks to be intact so one more wiring gremlin to track down.

Some good news tonight - just bench tested the factory GMC AM radio I bought on another forum and it works. Loud hum though, which may just be the janky way I hooked it up.