Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step

[Elliot949]

What we did Vic was to weld the nut to the pivot and ran the bolt through the tail light opening.... worked great...

[Low Elco]

Very nice! Keeps you from dingin' up the paint when installing! I like the bolt trick too.

[Vic1947]

Our visitors have been gone for awhile now and I've been careening around between several project thingys on CRLS. Not getting a lot done, but moving from one thing to another creates the illusion of progress.

Before Rick took off to go back to Seattle, he helped me tear down the Flaming River steering column my good buddy Jay gifted me. It's a 30" paint-able tilt column, but was setup for column shift. I plan to run a B&M Megashifter, so the bowl and sleeve for the column had to be modified. I carefully removed the shift arm pivot and the gear indicator notch from the cast aluminum bowl and then filled the holes with JB Weld. Did the same to the illumination hole in the sleeve then sprayed both pieces with self etch primer. Spot filler took care of the pinholes and everything has been waiting for some decent weather to shoot Slick Sand and do final prep. We've had over 3" of rain this week and today is the first day it's been even somewhat nice.

I also whacked the end off the old steering rod and threw it up in the mill to extend the "double D" shape far enough to slip into the new column. So with a few nice days coming up, I hope to get the parts painted and reassembled.

Meanwhile, I did some more work on the filler panel out back. Added a lip to it that fits under the edge of the bumper and completely hides the brackets. While I was at it, I removed the bed from the frame and revised the frame mounting holes so I could move the bed forward a bit more and tighten up the gap between it and the cab. I slotted the bumper brackets on the mill so everything should be super adjustable now.

Also in the middle of all this, I inventoried all my parts to see what I had that would no longer work for the new drivetrain, etc. The new radiator is a nice HD aluminum direct fit for this truck. However, the inlet is on the driver side and the LS3 upper hose is situated slightly to the passenger side. Routing the hose to clear the pulleys and the air intake tube will be a little tight. Add in the fact the LS steam line needs to tie in somewhere. So I decided to use aluminum tubing for most of what I need and short lengths of rubber hose for the connections. Both the upper and lower hoses have different sizes on each end, so I have a plan for the crossover.

What I don't have is a tool to roll a bead at the end of the straight aluminum tube to prevent the hose from blowing off under pressure. There are several solutions that range from crude to elegant... with prices to match. I saw a homemade tool on You Tube that looks like it would do a good job, so I've begun machining the parts I need to build a clone. More on that later.

[Xeen]

Making plans are part of the deal so it sounds like you are making plenty of progress. I'm looking forward to hearing what you are going to do about interior, and the first fire of the new engine.

[jlsanborn]

Sooooo clean! Anxious to see this bead-roller deal for the tubing and all that plumbing.

[sduckworth13]

Vic, you always go above and beyond... Nice work!

[Vic1947]

Thanks, guys. Been making some small progress, but still bouncing around a lot between tasks. The Derale fan shroud and controller arrived on the brown truck the other day, so I finally had to make some decisions about radiator fitment and such. The HD aluminum radiator was too thick for the stock pieces that hold the rubber cushions, so I had to drill the spot welds, remove them and lengthen them 7/16" to fit the longer cushions I picked up at Classic. Notched the core support so they'd fit and welded them in. Also had to narrow the aluminum strips on the radiator that fit into the cushions, but once that was done, the assembly fit like a glove.

I also received the aluminum tubing for the radiator hose. Mocked up what I need lengthwise, but haven't welded out anything as yet. Still waiting on bearings for my homemade tubing beader. I've machined a few pieces but still have quite a bit to do. Even at machinist apprentice rates, I'll probably have $500 in labor to save the $250 it would have cost for a ready made one. Sneak peek below...

[Vic1947]

I also decided to get rid of the stock parking light assemblies and use headlamps that have built in LED turn signals / park lights. Being lazy and cheap, I decided against scrounging a grille and cannibalizing the upper shelf. So I made some filler pieces and used 3M adhesive to glue them in place. They're ready for bondo when I can work it in my schedule.

[Low Elco]

Nice! This is turning out pretty trick. Are you going on Power Tour?

[Vic1947]

Originally Posted by Low Elco

Nice! This is turning out pretty trick. Are you going on Power Tour?

Thx, Chip. We're probably only going out the first day in KC. We're planning a late summer road trip across Canada and one long haul is enough for us.

[mcbassin]

Very nice work on everything Vic! I like the bender project too. That's right in my wheelhouse. I do that kind of stuff all the time. I have a long machinist background.

[Low Elco]

I've seen it in person, and the beader is cool! Makes me wanna stay late at work and make one for myself.

Thanks again for the help yesterday, Vic. Had a fun day and Yeller is back on the ground. Please also thank Miss Kathy for the awesome lunch! We appreciate it.

(Guys, I've seen it in person, and this truck is gonna be awesome!)

[swamp rat]

Nice work on the tool Vic!

[Oregon 1967 GMC]

wow what a underachiever I am (but damn proud of it lol), It's always interesting to see what you got cooking. Keep up the fire!

[bevis1]

Even the handle is "elegant"!! Nice goin'

[mcbassin]

Killer work on the tubing beader! I had it in my head it was a bender. Anyway, nice work as always.

[hewittca]

That tubing beader is really nifty! I also like the work you did to fit the rear bumper. That is always a weak point to me in custom builds, but you nailed it.

[Xeen]

It looks like the bead tool worked very well.
Paint already, woah I didn't realize you were that close, I can't wait to see it.
I'm looking forward to hearing the engine run as well.

[Vic1947]

Originally Posted by Xeen

It looks like the bead tool worked very well.
Paint already, woah I didn't realize you were that close, I can't wait to see it.
I'm looking forward to hearing the engine run as well.

Thanks, Brian. I'm probably closer than you realize due to the fact I did so much of the basic work before setting CRLS aside to work on the '57 Ford.

I'll be glad to get the paint dealio settled once and for all. I've bounced back and forth between doing just primer or full on paint several times. I reckon that's to be expected when the build drags on way longer than you plan. There seems to be a lot of "ho hum" when the subject of flat primer comes up. Most of the sentiment seems to be, if you spend that much time on getting the body straight, why would you put it in primer? So I'm back leaning toward paint.

The other thing I considered was doing a base color in either HotRod Flatz or a basecoat with flat clear over it. I'd accent the base color with a second color with a gloss clearcoat. The logistics of doing this are pretty formidable. So, I'm thinking I'll just forge ahead with a glossy finish overall with maybe just the bumpers and headlight buckets in flat clear.

I'm mulling over two potential schemes, but I have a few weeks before I have to make any hard choices. I used HOK's Digital Paint Booth software to do two sketches. One has a center stripe that runs the length of the hood, cowl, roof and extends down the back of the cab. The s/w won't let me replace the big rear window with a small one like I have, but you get the general idea. The other sketch is a more conventional two tone. Nothing new about it, but it still looks nice. I'l also flip the colors and see what that looks like. The suggestion box is open.

[Vic1947]

Here's a couple of views with the colors reversed...

[Xeen]

Hmm I don't really like any of these options, it would look great in metallic silver, also consider doing a 69 Camaro SS paint scheme on it.

[mcbassin]

Very nice progress on the radiator tubing. I like the steam line fitting idea too. very cool!
That's a cool paint program you are using. Ultimately, You have to pick your paint scheme but I like the solid silver like your stepper in your avatar. Keep up the good work.

[sduckworth13]

This is getting exciting Vic. I like the second color scheme with the orange on top.

[swamp rat]

I like version 2 the best, nice

[knomadd]

You know what they say about opinions... well, since you said the suggestion box is open... out of the options you showed, I like the orange on top, silver on bottom, but I like it all the way around the cab and top of the bed more than the fat stripe that ends above the bed header panel.