1968 GMC - Ol' Blue

[MDPotter]

Got a little bit done this weekend. The sound system is done now - I fabbed up a couple plates for my front kick panel area speakers to hold 5-1/4" coax speakers. I had sealed up the vent from the outside when I did the rust repair. I had to use a 1" spacer since the vents aren't deep enough for the speaker.

Also took apart my vent windows and got those blasted and painted.

And glued the door glass to the sashes. I used 3M Fast Cure windshield urethane. It came out of the gun pretty easy since I heated it to at least 100 degrees, but it does start drying out pretty quick so I'll leave it clamped for a week.

[sprint_9]

I wish I would have worked on my window sashes like you have, they look alot better painted up.

Pretty slick on the speaker placement.

[MDPotter]

Originally Posted by sprint_9

I wish I would have worked on my window sashes like you have, they look alot better painted up.

Pretty slick on the speaker placement.

I'm just hoping they hold! It should be a tighter fit than just the rubber (which relies on friction) compared to urethane which should be friction and adhesion, but we'll see.

I'm hoping I have clearance for the vintage air box. I just saw a picture on here that shows the box pretty close to the kick panel.

[TA_C10]

Very nice work. On the wings, I guess you just have to drill out and pull the rivet and the glass can be removed? I'm assuming you have to pull the glass before you sandblast?

What A/C are you going with? If it doesn't pull fresh air, are you worried about not having vents to open for fresh air when A/C running? I was reading some guys are having to open the passenger side vent for fresh air sometimes or they have issues.. I need to read more on what exactly they are experiencing...

Those speakers look great in there. Put any sound dampener behind them on the metal cowl? I hear blow back causes distortion and sound dampener directly behind the speaker stops that.

Looking good man! I'm taking notes

[MDPotter]

Originally Posted by TA_C10

Very nice work. On the wings, I guess you just have to drill out and pull the rivet and the glass can be removed? I'm assuming you have to pull the glass before you sandblast?

What A/C are you going with? If it doesn't pull fresh air, are you worried about not having vents to open for fresh air when A/C running? I was reading some guys are having to open the passenger side vent for fresh air sometimes or they have issues.. I need to read more on what exactly they are experiencing...

Those speakers look great in there. Put any sound dampener behind them on the metal cowl? I hear blow back causes distortion and sound dampener directly behind the speaker stops that.

Looking good man! I'm taking notes

Vent windows are held together by rivets. To get the glass out, you drill out the pivot rivet and take the nut, spring, and washers off the bottom. Rivets get drilled out from the head side and use a punch to knock them out. I left the wing glass in the channel because we had so much trouble getting them back in on my dad's 64. So I taped off the glass and then blasted and no problems. In the video link (below), he sandblasts and paints the entire assembly but I don't see that as necessary as some of it is galvanized and mine were in good shape. The parts that were painted definitely needed paint though. The black channel with the chrome strike plate for the wing window latch can be pulled off the frame. I'll take pictures of the parts in their painted form this weekend before we reassemble.
Here's a link to a good video I've been watching on vent window restoration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiZOiHmcb_w

I plan on going with the Vintage Air Surefit system. It was my understanding that these systems reuse the air in the cab since there's no fresh air intake anywhere. I saw a picture where the right side of the blower assembly was almost up tight against the kick panel sheet metal, whereas the outside of my speaker grille is probably 1.5" or 2" out, so hopefully that doesn't become an issue. Maybe the lines coming out of the box end up in a different spot than intended and hopefully that's not an issue.

I didn't put any sound dampening behind the kick panel speakers. They're pretty low power speakers so hopefully it won't be noticeable if there is some distortion. It's going to be hard to hear the music over the sound of those black widows anyway....

[MDPotter]

Vent windows are done, doors are loaded, and front bumper is on.

I was really happy with the rubber from Classic Parts - it all fit great. But I really dislike the rivets that hold these vent windows together. We started off at a disadvantage because the rivet setting tool I ordered (the cheap punch type) is on backorder so we had to use one that has already been used on two windows. We tried welding each end to a c-clamp, but the clamp just wasn't up to the task so I just unthreaded the c-clamp and used it as a punch. It's pretty well used now. What I found works the best is to use the rivet setting tool to get it about 75% flattened out and then finish it off with a normal punch.

[TA_C10]

Looks good, what kind of paint did you use?

[MDPotter]

Originally Posted by TA_C10

Looks good, what kind of paint did you use?

I just used some rattle can epoxy black and clear. Not the best route I know, but going through the process in the paint booth with all the automotive coatings just wasn't worth it for me. If it fades, I'll just respray it. I blasted everything prior to paint so it should adhere well.

[MDPotter]

Console is mounted. I was hoping to get both seats mounted too, but the console work took longer than I expected and I had to redrill the holes for the seats. For anyone considering 99-06 buckets and a 14-18 console (or any console that is approx. 14" wide), it's a tight fit and you really should have all three parts in hand and mocked up at the same time. I had to redrill the seat holes about 1" toward the outside on both sides and plug the old holes. Not my ideal fix, but I didn't want to weld them shut and burn the epoxy on the underside.

But the console came out really nice - we chopped the old mounting points off the frame and welded L-brackets to bolt it to the floor. We cut the bottom out of the lower plastic tray and it holds the PCM and TAC module great and I mounted the OBD port to the tray as well. I pulled my iPhone cable up into the top half so I can plug it in from the console too.

I get tunnel-visioned when I'm working on my truck and forget to stop and take good pictures. I'll have a picture of the seats and console next weekend.

[TA_C10]

Very nice!

I didn't think about coming back later and doing buckets and having to weld shut the old holes... That's gonna suck to redo... Enjoying seeing your interior coming together.

[sprint_9]

Im looking forward to seeing it all fit together. I like that newer style console a lot better then the 99-06 one

[1971Stepside]

Can't wait to see a pick of the interior completed. Going to look goooood.

[MDPotter]

Seats and console complete, windshield and back glass in. I had to trailer it to a local glass shop and they were very reasonable on cost. It's a lot more enjoyable to take on test drives now.

[1971Stepside]

Glass looks great. You know you are close when the glass goes in!

[TA_C10]

Oh yeah man, your getting close! The interior looks great.

[MDPotter]

So close I can feel it. I just need a bed and a hood and then I can start driving it. Vintage Air and wheels/tires will be a little later.

Then start on the next project!

[vanzant33]

MDPotter, What size trailer is that you're hauling it on? I have to get a trailer to do those things with my build. Thanks. And by the way, you have a awesome build going on!!

[sprint_9]

That console looks great. I wish mine flipped back all the way like yours, maybe Ill refab the mounts like you did.

Whats your next project?

[MDPotter]

Originally Posted by vanzant33

MDPotter, What size trailer is that you're hauling it on? I have to get a trailer to do those things with my build. Thanks. And by the way, you have a awesome build going on!!

I believe it's 18'x7'. Just a couple inches on each side of the front tires.

[MDPotter]

Originally Posted by sprint_9

That console looks great. I wish mine flipped back all the way like yours, maybe Ill refab the mounts like you did.

Whats your next project?

I'm not starting a build thread yet, but I'll post in the general forum what we picked up this weekend.

[TA_C10]

Dude, pics, progress, wuz up?

[MDPotter]

Originally Posted by TA_C10

Dude, pics, progress, wuz up?

I haven't done much on the truck this month. I'm at a point where I'm ready to start working on the bed, but I need warmer weather to do most of it. But 2nd Christmas came on Friday when my bed parts showed up! One of the bedsides has a small dent in it, but no big deal. Next steps with the bed are to cut in the fuel door and then mock up the whole assembly and then blow it back apart for paint.

My dad has wanted a lift for a long time and it's finally happened. We knew a guy that knew a guy that had one for sale and we are going to trade him some work for it. It's a 4-post (not a great picture) that he bought from another guy and never ended up using so it sat on a trailer for awhile. It was a workout taking it apart and setting it up in the shop.

[MDPotter]

Back to my truck though - we set the bed floor on it and immediately found a clearance issue. The drop shackles I installed aren't going to work. I knew from researching on here that I would probably have to modify a cross sill for clearance because the leaves come really close to it, but I didn't predict the shackle itself hitting the floor. It's actually holding the floor about 1/2" off the frame. So I blasted and painted the stock shackles and I'm planning on putting those back on. So now I'm trying to decide what to do for drop. I've read about taking out leaves, having the leaves rearched, buying drop springs, and doing a flip kit. Right now I'm probably at a 2/1 drop and I kind of want to go 4/2. I'm going to call a local leaf spring shop today to see what they can offer. Just another reason I wish I had coils!

[TA_C10]

That 4 post will be awesome. I'm hoping to get a lift when I finally build my shop.

I didn't realize you needed a whole new bed. Interested to see how this goes. I ended up getting a new tailgate, it was easier and cheaper than fixing mine. Plus now I have a back rest for a bench to sit on in my new shop...

Man you have enough leaf springs on there to trailer a 5th wheel

.

[MDPotter]

Originally Posted by TA_C10

That 4 post will be awesome. I'm hoping to get a lift when I finally build my shop.

I didn't realize you needed a whole new bed. Interested to see how this goes. I ended up getting a new tailgate, it was easier and cheaper than fixing mine. Plus now I have a back rest for a bench to sit on in my new shop...

Man you have enough leaf springs on there to trailer a 5th wheel

.

Yeah, I can definitely take out the lower three leaves and gain some drop but probably not as much as I want and I would have to get different u-bolts. I talked to my local spring shop and they didn't recommend re-arching them and wanted over $600 for a custom set. I can get a set of lowered springs for like $350 or spend the same for a flip kit and a c-notch so I've got some thinking to do.