Picked up a 64 Chevy K10 suburban today

[monolith]

Here are the Craigslist pics:





Spent the day shoveling rat droppings, tearing out the interior carpets and hosing everything off and out.

This thing's gonna take some major work- there's no radiator, I have no idea whether the "350" runs or not, but I've been practicing on the GMC, and I've ALWAYS wanted a 4x4 sub to go camping with.

The front cab overhang, windshield surround and A pillars are a nightmare of cancerous rust, and the floors will need to be patched as well, but the frame and running gear look pretty solid.

For what I paid for it, I'm pretty happy with the potential that the truck has.

I'll post some gory pics tomorrow when there's light out.

[Captainfab]

Congrats on the new purchase. Looks like it's been sitting for a while. Looking forward to more pics and details

[monolith]

Thanks!

The guy said it had been sitting for about 4 years.

I'm just gonna post up a bunch of pics that I just took, any comments, advice, laughter, encouragement, sanitarium recommendations are welcome.

I know this is going to be a huge project, with all of the rust issues- the whole top front of the cab is going to need to be replaced- I'm glad I saw 65Sublimes Blazer thread, or I'd have passed on the truck.The floors have some patches that will be redone,The cab supports could use a little help as well as the rockers- and that's just the structural stuff. I talked the guy down to 500 bucks from the 800 he was asking after pointing out all of the work it needed.

I have welded before, and on sheet metal, I worked at my buddies shop-Aero Tanks, making gas tanks as a second job for a bit.

If any of the metalwork ends up being beyond my means- I can drag it over to his shop and have one of his pros give me a hand.

Naturally one of his tanks, and an auxiliary will be going in to the truck.

I'm toying with the idea of putting a 4 or 6bt in, any comments, warnings, etc, again- bring them on- I have lurked over at the 4bt forum for a while and read up a bit, I know it's a big project.

Enough yap- on to the pics, before I get jumped.


note the modern"bling"

[MacAttack]

You may get laughed at, but your rig sure won't.

That thing's going to be a blast to go out camping with!

Mac.

[monolith]

More, the real scary stuff:






This really red interior is going to be repainted ivory:

[MacAttack]

First Thing: Go to Harbor Freight and get that silver tarp - by Saturday - and a container of Bungies!

[monolith]

Mac- I've lusted after these subs ever since I saw that pic of someones 63 4x4 on this forum, I knew I'd have to own one. I used to camp a lot, then I got rid of my dodge truck, when I got the Jimmy, I wanted to make it into a camping wagon, but seeing all of the cool low trucks here, I started to go that route instead. now I can have both.(eventually)

I've got a dollar store up the street that sells 5x7 blue tarps for a buck each,I'll be making a trip today.

It's still in the 90's here, and no clouds, I need to get a shade popup so I can work on my trucks in the middle of the day without getting heatstroke.
I usually end up going out in the morning, quitting when it gets hot, then coming back out when the breeze comes in at about 5-6pm.

More pics- engine bay:



Will a later model radiator fit in these trucks? or should I just get a big aluminum one from Summit in a few paychecks?

I'm getting quite the collection of pushbars, what the hell?

[monolith]

Running gear- any clue what I'm looking at here?

I'll search the stuff out- but any nudge in the right direction would be most appreciated











Flower Power!

[kwernli]

Cool truck and great pics. It looks to be the correct closed knuckle Dana 44 front diff and the transfer case looks like a Rockwell T-221, I have the same setup in my 65 pickup. I'm not sure of the rear diff.

[monolith]

Thanks for the info, Kwernli, I found the "44" cast on the webbing on the front diff after I hit it with some oven cleaner and pressure hosed it off.

I'll do a little surfing to see what the rear and TC are, I'll start with pictures of your suggestion of the rockwell unit.


Question: Are those "lift blocks" between the axles and springs a stock item?

I got the fenders,grille and cowl removed this evening, I'm leaving the radiator support on til I start the motor (if it will start)

I also took a grinder to the patchwork on the front of the cab to see how bad it was, Pics of PO Dr.Frankensteins handiwork tomorrow when it's light out.

[jonzcustomshop]

my stock 63 4X4 has those lift blocks in the back.
that spray foam is about the worst "fix" you can find in an old vehicle... it's like it speeds up the rust process 10X..

[ChiefRocka]

Man..you got a lot of work there...but I think it's gonna be well worth it !!

That thing is super cool !!

The Cummins, with some big boost sounds wicked too !!

[TwoFiftyShifter]

That is one cool Burb. 4X4 with a creeper box..... that rot on the roof sure is rough though.... good luck!

[Captainfab]

That roof cancer is kind of bad......but nothing that can't be fixed. Looks like someone got really carried away with installing a stereo Again that can be fixed too. They sell a patch panel for that for about $50.00.

That rear differential is a 12 bolt, same as the C10's came with. The blocks in the rear are original. I have to agree the transfer case looks to be a Rockwell T-221. Not the best transfer case but should be fine as long as you don't let the oil level get low. Low oil level will kill one in a hurry. And yes a closed knuckle Dana 44 in the front

4X Burbs are really cool. I used to have a '63 4X burb.....wish I hadn't sold it. I've got one to build though......someday.

Keep us posted on your progress.

[GruntMoanCough]

Cool "fixer upper".
Wonder if you could splice in a regular cab roof to repair the front of the roof?
Anyhow, good luck and have fun!

[Joemomma1]

WTF! You got that here in Cali? Id say thats a deal for a factory 4x4. You have tons of work ahead of you but its only metal. Good luck.

[monolith]

Thanks for the comments and encouragement!

Thanks for the answer on those blocks, Jonz- I was concerned that they could be unsafe, I'm not brushed up on my 4x4 suspensions yet. and yes- that spray foam is HORRIBLE- and the PO seems to have thought it was a viable structural material, he crumpled some screen door screen, jammed it into the overhang, squirted foam into it, then bondoed over the entire mess. Then he pop riveted some 22 ga sheet metal over it, and screwed a threshold plate to it to keep the whole thing together,sort of. I can lift the front of the cab up with one hand and peek through the 1" gap it makes above the windshield (which unfortunately is cracked and will need to be replaced- but thankfully I can use it for a buck for alignment when I weld in the new metal.)

And thanks for the additional axle info, Captain.
I'll have to pull some covers, check my gear ratios and get some new oil in them before too long- something to do while the welds cool.

I'll figure something out with that dash, looks like an easy patch, compared to the rest of the project.

GMC- thanks! there's a build thread by 65Sublime which gave me the courage to attempt this project- He cuts a Sub down to Blazer length, and one of the things he does is grafts a pickup cab front to the Sub. The contours are a little different- but with a few pie slices and some work, I'm confident that I can get the shape close.

Joe- yup- picked it up in Perris. Saw an ad on Craigslist. I waited almost a week to call, cause it looked so rough in the pics, but I decided that I just had to go for it. I almost walked away from it- the floor was literally completely covered in rat turds and horrible carpet,I knew the floors underneath would be rusty as hell, but I figured I could make more than $500 if I bought it and parted it even after scavenging some parts for my 66.

It's just too cool of a truck to not fix up, though.

Oh- and I found a Chevy and a GMC horn button assembly inside, along with a haynes manual, and the PO's marbles- about 7 of them, catseyes and 1 steelie (which I hope isn't an important bearing)

More pics tomorrow.

[4dranch]

cool rig...looks like fun...I'm diggin that shift knob...

[monolith]

Thanks 4D, I'm having fun with it already!- tearing into it, that is. When I saw that shiftknob in that truck, I laughed my ass off.

It's got a gold flower with a bubble in the center with blue liquid in it.

My hippie girlfriend loves it. I'm not so sure it's staying in the truck.

Got the hood off today by myself with the use of my engine hoist- was pretty easy, actually.

I'm back to work tomorrow, then a run up to Flagstaff for a family visit over the weekend, so these will be the last pics for a bit:









My "helpers" Cornelius-heeler mix,3 and Eitelfritz-shepherd 12- they can't wait to go for a ride! Fritz was trying to get in every time I left the door open when I was inside.

[FRENCHBLUE72]

She looks like she needs some serious roof help. Maybe you could find a truck roof section to graft on?

[monolith]

Haven't had a lot of time to work on this beast- been busy with making my newly acquired 64 pickup into a reliable daily driver. The 66 3/4 ton is still going strong as my daily right now. I LOVE these trucks.

Good news though- I found a 64-66 GMC suburban shell in GREAT condition- just some surface rust- in Hesperia and dragged it home. It's lowered with front disks and 5 lugs- no papers, motor or tranny, just bill of sale- but I figured it would be an easier route to pull the body off of the current frame and swap it onto the 4x4 chassis than to attempt the huge amount of body fabrication that the project will require currently.

I also have a quick question about chassis interchangeability: Will a same year pickup cab fit on a suburban chassis without a ton of mods? If so, it might be an easier option for me to lower one of the pickups by swapping the cab than having to swap all of the suspension out,etc.

any advice is appreciated as always.

Craigslist pics: better ones to come as my schedule allows and it stops raining:

[iehotrod]

Monolith- if you ever need a helping hand I am always willing to work ole trucks let me know Im in Chino. cool project... hope you take me up on my offer.

[monolith]

Hi there! Thanks for the offer- I may just take you up on it some time this summer- How are you at bodywork?

I'm just up Euclid Ave from you. I used to live on Gettysburg ave in Chino, right off of Ramona.

Interesting that this post got a hit, and on today of all days, I actually went out to the sub after I put the mufflers on my 66 pickup, and pulled the spark plugs to see if I could get the motor to turn, bad news- water came gushing out of 2 cylinders even though I had the motor covered.

My plan is to find a diesel for it anyway- but I'd hoped I could get it to start and drive as is.

I found a roof that I can pick up toward the end of summer, but I'm torn between wanting to get it close to stock again, or going nuts, cutting the top off, running a jeep style top and roll bars.

Looks like that other suburban that I bought for "parts" is going to become ANOTHER project all it's own- I really love the "street" suburbans as well, I'd love to try my hand at pro touring one.

Then again- ever since I found out about those 1 ton panels, I've been wanting one something fierce.

But I will do SOMETHING with this suburban this summer- even if it's dropping another smallblock in it, and repairing at least the windshield surround so it's driveable.

Baz