Just bought an 87' R10

[foamypirate]

Hey everyone,

I'm pretty new to the forum here (been lurking for quite some time looking up info for my brothers 1970 C10). I just picked up this 1987 R10 a few weeks ago. I've always loved these trucks since my dad had a 78' Scottsdale back when I was a kid. That truck was indestructable, and went through everything! I've missed it ever since it was gifted to my brother, who then traded it for a Fo....rd. Anyways, I'm glad to finally have one of my favorite trucks!

It has a TBI 305 w/ 700R4 and 3.08s out back. As you can see below, the paint was badly neglected. The drivers side of the hood is after 30 minutes of washing. The hood, top of the cab, and tool box were all covered in that dirt. She's pretty straight overall and has virtually no rust (barring minor surface rust on the tailgate and the drivers door where a deer ran into it). Plans for the truck are pretty basic at this point. I want to do a frame-off, strip the frame of rust and paint it, do some basic body work and paint, rebuild the suspension, swap in a 6.0L w/ mild cam, put in a 3.73 posi and put it all back together, then do a slight refresh on the interior (in great shape other than the dash pad and a couple non-functioning switches).

I've got the rest of the paint cleaned up now, as well as the interior, but my camera batteries are dead. Once I get new batteries, I'll post up some more pictures or something. You can even see my other daily drivers in the pictures (ugly green Honda Accord, which I drive when I don't feel like stopping at every gas station, and the Maxima, my wifes car.)










Engine
Stock 305
700R4
Power Steering and A/C (broken)
3.08 rear end
Dual 16gal tanks

Exterior
Black/Gray
LWB
Chrome Push Bar
Sweet rusty toolbox

Interior
Interesting aftermarket seats w/ center console.
Sunpro tach on the dash
Deluxe Instrument Cluster w/ Water Temperature, Oil Pressure, Volts, Quartz Clock
Black carpet
Power windows/locks

Suspension/Wheels
Stock suspension
Stock Rallies (I think? New to the specifics of these trucks)
31's in the rear, 235/75/15s in front

Future Mods
Frame-off resto-mod.
Some type of newer factory rim.
New paint job (part of the frame-off)
6.0L LQ4 w/ undetermined transmission.
1-ton springs in the front to level it out, or maybe a lift (small, ~4" or so), if I can bring myself to do it to a 2wd.

[78 Chevyrado]

Looks like a solid truck. I like it!

[RandyP]

Don't loose that hood emblem! I swear they are made of gold or something for the price they want. I love the 87's and they are getting harder to come by.

[Clyde65]

Why do you call it an "R10"? What makes it different than any other Silverado?

[foamypirate]

Originally Posted by Clyde65

Why do you call it an "R10"? What makes it different than any other Silverado?

R10 was a designation they used to distinguish the 1987-91 trucks, Blazers, and Burbs that were the old body style, but fuel-injected, I believe. R10 is 2wd, V10 is 4wd. It's the equivalent of C/K.

I quickly learned to tell the parts people that it is an R10, not a C10! I got a bunch of tune-up parts for an 87' C-10, that wound up being the wrong part (fuel filter was paper-filter for carbs, plug wires for regular HEI dizzy, not computer controlled, so the boots were too long, etc).

[Keith Seymore]

Originally Posted by foamypirate

R10 was a designation they used to distinguish the 1987-91 trucks, Blazers, and Burbs that were the old body style, but fuel-injected, I believe. R10 is 2wd, V10 is 4wd. It's the equivalent of C/K.

You are absolutely correct.

K

[foamypirate]

Lately, I've been working on correcting the paint on the truck as best I can. It's been quite challenging, as I don't have a Orbital polisher, it's all by hand. I also included some shots of the (mostly) immaculate interior. Other than a cracked dash pad and faded seats, just about everything is mint. You can see the aftermarket seats as well. I'm not too sure what I think about those, I've been debating whether or not to find a factory bench, but I have quite decided yet.

Also got the gear oil changed in the rear end (never have I seen such BLACK gear oil, yuck).




This is before completing the hood. I did a "test panel" on the side to see if my methods would work.




After wet sanding the rest of the hood with 2000 grit, but before rubbing compound/fine polish.


After compound/polish.


Comparison shot showing how the paint looked before correction.





This picture shows how I mounted my tachometer. I like it up here as opposed to on the column, since it stays in my view while I am driving.

[Dooley]

Originally Posted by Clyde65

Why do you call it an "R10"? What makes it different than any other Silverado?

There were no C-K trucks built in 1987. They were R series 2 wheel drive and V series 4 wheel drive light duty trucks in 1987. They brought the C-K model designation back in 1988 for the new truck platform. The 1987 R-V models have been lumped into the C-K models for convenience and other by about everybody since they were built.

This post is to clear up the issues with the 1987's. It's known the R-V series continued past 1987 in the old truck platform in some models.

[foamypirate]

Just got an exhaust installed. Went against the norm, and did a single pipe 2.5" system (plenty to feed a stock 305 TBI for now). Since the truck is an 87', I still have to pass emissions, so I went with a 2.5" high-flow heavy duty Catco cat, and a 2.5" offset Magnaflow 4x9x18 muffler. She actually SOUNDS like a truck now!

I had it put together at Muffin Muffler in Austin, TX. Great guys, and they did an AWESOME job. It was a treat watching these guys work. I will definitely be bringing more business to them in the future.

Here are pics of the install.

[big10ratrod77]

loving the r10 man i want one now!

[foamypirate]

Originally Posted by big10ratrod77

loving the r10 man i want one now!

Thanks! I've still got a long ways to go to get it where I want it. I need to motivate myself to finish polishing the rest of the truck!

[3r!c84]

good job man keep up the good work..

can you tell me more of the process u did on the hood?

[foamypirate]

Originally Posted by 3r!c84

good job man keep up the good work..

can you tell me more of the process u did on the hood?

Thanks! I'll do my best, haha.

As far as the process for the hood, it's pretty simple really.

Since it's never a good practice to jump straight to the harsh stuff, I tried using Meguiar's Swirl remover to see if I could remove some of the cloudiness and contamination, but it didn't do much, so I moved up to Meguiar's Ultimate Compound, which again, didn't result in much.
The next level was wet sanding. I did all of my wet sanding with 2000 grit. You want to use a VERY light pressure (emphasis on light, it's very easy to take off too much paint/clear). I always sand in a back and forth motion, never circular. After sanding straight back and forth one direction for the entire hood, I rotate 90* and sand again.
After I had finished the portion of the hood I was on, I washed it off with soap and water to remove any contaminants, then dried it. I then proceeded to do a light buffing with rubbing compound to remove the wet sanding scratches. At that point, I had a dull shine, so to bring out the final shine you see in the pictures, I washed and dried again, then used Meguiar's Swirl remover (mentioned earlier) to remove the marks from the rubbing compound.

The end result is what you see in the pictures. Now, mind, there is still some minor cloudiness and contamination in the paint, but they are so too deep into the paint to safely remove. You can just use your best judgment for situations like these. If the light wet sanding doesn't remove them, they are pretty deep, and not worth the risk to remove unless you really know what you are doing.

If you have any more questions, feel free to ask. I am by no means and expert, but I can certainly try and help and/or point you to someone who can. Autopia.org is a great place to check out for stuff like this.

[3r!c84]

my clear coat is all the way gone on my hood and roof so i dont think i could shine that up... the sliver truck

[southside_jon]

Originally Posted by foamypirate

R10 was a designation they used to distinguish the 1987-91 trucks, Blazers, and Burbs that were the old body style, but fuel-injected, I believe. R10 is 2wd, V10 is 4wd. It's the equivalent of C/K.

I quickly learned to tell the parts people that it is an R10, not a C10! I got a bunch of tune-up parts for an 87' C-10, that wound up being the wrong part (fuel filter was paper-filter for carbs, plug wires for regular HEI dizzy, not computer controlled, so the boots were too long, etc).

I ran into the same problems at the parts stores also. Mine is a '87 R2500 (GMC)

[foamypirate]

Just put in my order for 15x8 Cragar Nomad IIs. They will fit right in with my theme of "mostly stock...mostly." No plans for a drop or big wheels here. Just a nice looking near factory truck with some gusto!

They have to build them, so it will be about 3 weeks before I get them. Can't wait!

[nbpro]

good work keep us posted with pics

[irishman999]

I thought R-10 means its a van! haha

[foamypirate]

New wheels! 15x8 Cragar Nomad IIs with 3.75 backspacing. You can also see some of the polishing I did on the passengers side (just compare to drivers!) You can see where I haven't finished the back of the bed (lots of swirls from the compound, need to go through with a finer polish to remove them). While it's not perfect (even the "finished" part still has swirls), it looks 10x better than before. I don't want to put too much effort into it because, a) I am doing it by hand, and b) I am planning on repainting the truck come spring time. You can also see the freshly painted tool box, complete with smeared rubbing compound. =(

[foamypirate]

I guess my rims are about 7" too small and my ride height 5" too tall for anyone to care.

[ont_guy_38]

Looking good !!!

[SBTork]

Originally Posted by foamypirate

I guess my rims are about 7" too small and my ride height 5" too tall for anyone to care.

haha, kinda. Truck looks really good, 100% better with the chrome nomads. What are your plans for paint colors when you paint it in the spring?

[foamypirate]

Originally Posted by SBTork

haha, kinda. Truck looks really good, 100% better with the chrome nomads. What are your plans for paint colors when you paint it in the spring?

Thanks! I'd agree, it does look much better with the new wheels. As far as paint goes, I'm planning to go with Spruce Mica Metallic (it's a toyota color) if I can find it reasonably priced.

[babyJay]

Truck looks good. I'm odd, I like the stock stance and rim/tire sizes. I love the 87-91's because you don't have to mess with carburation. My 87 is a TBI also. Not to Hijack but to add to the R/V VS C/K discussion, Here's a pic of my bone stock 87 V30 (4WD 1 ton). The Burgundy one is a 79 K20 (4wd 3/4 ton not stock) I sold because it's too big and too hard for an old man like me to work on.

[ont_guy_38]

Originally Posted by foamypirate

Thanks! I'd agree, it does look much better with the new wheels. As far as paint goes, I'm planning to go with Spruce Mica Metallic (it's a toyota color) if I can find it reasonably priced.

Wow that will be quite a change for sure