New Guy Checking in with my 66 GMC

[66GMC-Canuck]

Picked up my 66 GMC and drove it home yesterday. Wanted a nice truck to haul my parts for the three Hudson Hornets I am restoring and thought this was the kind of truck I should be driving.

It has a 20 foot paint job and a 350 under the hood and what looks to me to be the box of a Chev.

Still drives nice and I like it got it for a great price so I ain't complaining.

I will post more pics tomorrow ran out of daylight cleaning it tonight so only have one pic to share for now.

Will be asking loads of questions coming up as I fix some things.

Great site. Been lurking while negotiating on this truck. Learned a lot.

[markeb01]

Good for you, and welcome. Nice looking truck. It wouldn't be surprising if the bed or tailgate had been changed, with trucks this old it's very common to find mix and match between the brands.

[66GMC-Canuck]

Thanks. I like it and fits my style of only driving old iron.

[Corts60]

Good looking truck. Welcome Aboard!

[GruntMoanCough]

Welcome, nice lookin' truck ya got there.

[Captainfab]

Welcome to the board

That's a nice looking truck you picked up. I see it has '65 Chevy emblems on it and a Chevy hood too.

[66GMC-Canuck]

I wondered about that. The emblems say GMC 910 and I thought the hood might be Chevy. The tail gate is Chevy maybe the whole box. The cab is GMC though. I know the guy who owned it had a couple of trucks and was trying to build a good one.

I am trying to figure out what parts are what so I know when trying to fit parts.

What are the differences between the 66 GMC chassis and the 66 Chevy chassis if any?

[63sbssbbw]

Welcome to the board 66
Yes, chassis is the same 63-66
I've seen your truck runnin around Lloyd
Looks good
T

[Anthony Fremont]

Nice truck and welcome. One difference between the Chevy and GMC is leaf springs vs. coil springs in the rear. Your grill is from a pre-66 GMC as 66 was the first year of the squared off lettering with red inserts in the grill.

[creep]

Originally Posted by Anthony Fremont

Nice truck and welcome. One difference between the Chevy and GMC is leaf springs vs. coil springs in the rear. Your grill is from a pre-66 GMC as 66 was the first year of the squared off lettering with red inserts in the grill.

I like the pre 66 grille much better. The big red letters look out of place on these grilles

Sweet truck man, congrats!

[Chevy Fleetside]

Nothing like a 60-66 Chevy truck. Ok GMC too...

[66GMC-Canuck]

Yes I had figured out the grill was pre 66 and your right I like it better as well. Looking under the truck it has coil springs on the back not leaf springs so I am thinking its a Chevy Chassis. I will take pics and post and you guys can help me figure the puzzle out.

Deciphering the vin I see its a Canadian built truck (well cab at least) and it should be a step side not a fleet. Kind of like the fleetside myself.

Thanks for the welcome. First up is fixing the exhaust its got dual exhaust with thrush mufflers and no tail pipes they exit underneath. Maybe I am getting old but having that much noise is too much. Looking at a proper magnaflow kit for it.

Another thing I do not like is the manual tranny its geared to low. It has a granny gear then 3 speeds all low to me. It winds up a bit on the highway. Like to throw a 5 speed in there. Can you guys suggest a good bolt in for me.

Yup bought it in Lloyd thought you might recognize it. Thanks for the shout out.

[creep]

Rear coils and fleetside bed are both nice upgrades in my opinion. Sounds like someone was building a nice "frankenstien" truck at some point.

[creep]

if you haven't yet, you should check out www.6066gmcguy.org. Tons of good info on our GMCs.

[markeb01]

Another thing I do not like is the manual tranny its geared to low. It has a granny gear then 3 speeds all low to me. It winds up a bit on the highway. Like to throw a 5 speed in there. Can you guys suggest a good bolt in for me.

If it still has the stock engine mounting with the bellhousing attached to the crossmember, any 3, 4 or 5 speed manual swap is easy. Just unbolt the transmission and hang anything on the back you want. You'll just need to make sure the spline count in the clutch plate matches the new pilot shaft. You may or may not need to shorten or lengthen the driveshaft depending on what transmission you pick. Since nothing changes in the clutch, all the factory linkage, bellhousing, fork, etc will work just like they do now. You may also need a longer speedo cable depending on where the drive output is located.

[66GMC-Canuck]

I will have to confirm that today when I get under the truck. It has a 350 out of an 82 in it and a 90's gear box. Its all hooked up properly. So I will spec it out and go looking for a new tranny as I cannot live with this one. Be good if I was pulling a train but not for the part running I want to do. Thanks for the info...

[Chevy Fleetside]

Some GMC's did come with coils also. The way to tell is by the dash. The driver side will have the hump when the Chevy dash is straight across in those years. Oh yeah and

[Chevy Fleetside]

GMC dash..

[66GMC-Canuck]

Yup confirmed the cab is totally 66 GMC. Gauges, dash etc. Will post pics today if I can get my lazy ass out there and do something. I washed it yesterday and put in a seat cover, which means I am just about done for the year.

Do you have a bigger pic of that GMC dash? mine is pretty worn and beat up. Need to freshen it up. Want to go with new gauges.

[markeb01]

You might want to check out these links:
http://www.6066gmcguy.org/cluster.htm
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...ht=gauge+panel

[creep]

Originally Posted by Chevy Fleetside

Some GMC's did come with coils also. The way to tell is by the dash. The driver side will have the hump when the Chevy dash is straight across in those years.

My GMC has the "hump" dash and it is leafsprings. I think GMC used the same dash throughout the model's run just changing the actual guage cluster.

Check the vincode on the frame, should clear things up a bit.

[66GMC-Canuck]

Thanks lots of good info there. My instruments are worn out. Driving it home on highway with sun I could barely make out gauges as they are so faded. Want to get new gauges and install those probably install new wiring harness while I back there mine looks like a science project.

[Chevy Fleetside]

I go that picture from the site link posted above. http://www.6066gmcguy.org/cluster.htm

[66GMC-Canuck]

Here are some more pics as promised. Check out that pro wiring job. Nothing for me to do on that one..

[66GMC-Canuck]

So checked the tranny its a SM465 mated to the sbc 350. The rear suspension is coil spring.