Father/Son '77 Stepper

[nasqar]

We purchased a 1977 Chevy Stepside off of Craigslist for $500!It had been in storage for 14 years because the gentleman's brother had passed away from cancer. The young man had purchased all new GM metal, gutted and painted the interior, rebuilt the motor, and cleaned the front suspension/frame. It was a great deal and an exciting time as I never had the opportunity to build a toy with anyone. I have made a decision to make sure this gets done for my son and the young man that started this project. I will attach photos as I learn how to do it properly.

[nasqar]

This is the day the stepper came home!!! The pickup we were driving was completely full of parts and the bed of the stepper was full as well...There was a small decal on the bumper we overlooked that read "some assembly required..hahahaha" should have paid attention to details i guess.

[nasqar]

First day pics continued

[nasqar]

First at home pics....my wife made an appointment with the shrink to find out what the hell my mind was experiencing....i heard through the grapevine he is now in therapy after delving into my brain...poor guy

[MTCK]

Solid looking truck! What are your plans for it? Lower? Higher? V8? Keep the six? I like the red. Good luck on the build.

[nasqar]

We are gonna keep it pretty stock. My son is 17 and enjoys speed to much so yes we are keeping the 6....my idea and he agreed pretty easily. We are haggling over colors because he wants black or lime green.....ummmmm not my first choice so the color of the exterior will be decided later. Inside will be black and red so the outside should match somehow. Pics will follow as we work toward the finish.

[Chevy350V8]

Looks like fun

[79gmcclassic]

cant wait for this build!

[nasqar]

We laid the dash pad and dash bezel in place. It was pretty dusty from sitting in the shop but it looked pretty good for a couple rookies that's never attempted this before! We took an old dash pad, cleaned it, and painted it black. It looks brand new, and I was totally shocked it looked so good. It came out of the donor truck we purchased for $200...and we know how much a new dash pad cost!!!! Cha-Ching!

[nasqar]

We installed the seat from the donor seat into ours and it made moving the truck alot easier. We will have to get a black seat cover to make it match. We cant afford to re-upholster the seat correctly. We will install the seatbelts into the truck tomorrow as well as the tilt steering column. Our goal is to have the interior done by the end of next week. Then on to the drivetrain.

[nasqar]

We just moved into our shop because it was full of new sheet metal. We moved the metal inside our enclosed porch since we don't use it in the winter time. Here is our cheap work bench...it is the old tailgate off my 71 chevy put onto a set of saw horses! My son laughed until he started using it and found out it worked well.

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by nasqar

.... We are haggling over colors because he wants black or lime green.....ummmmm not my first choice so the color of the exterior will be decided later. Inside will be black and red so the outside should match somehow...

Awesome to see a Dad/son build. Tell your son that he needs to consider the resale value to help with the decision on colors. If he ever wants to sell this one Lime green is going to limit his buyers. Black on red, or red on black is always a good choice.

Have him look at the links in my sig for a black on red combo that might inspire him...

[nasqar]

We have spent more time together the last 60 days then we have in the last couple years. We have seen his grades go from D's and F's to A's and B's because he feels better about himself and his confidense has grown. I constantly talk about attention to detail and it is spreading into the other parts of his daily life. It has been fantastic but there is still a long way to go. Thanks for the comments, it means alot.

[nasqar]

It's 2:30 and we have installed tilt steering AND power brakes on the stepper!! Wipers will be done today also. We have to get another set of seatbelts since these wont bolt up good enough for me to feel comfortable. Interior will be mostly done by tonite though. Pics to follow tonight.

[spike38]

Any updates, I'm subscribing

Spike

[nasqar]

Originally Posted by spike38

Any updates, I'm subscribing

Spike

Yes, but working for Schwans has kept me swamped and Kam is at wrestling practice ALL the time.....not sure where he gets the addiction to want to kick everyone's a$$ and finish first....hummmm

1. Tilt and automatic steering column has been installed on the truck. The three on the tree is out and up for sale.

2. Power brakes have been installed on the truck so braking will be a little more normal for Kam.

3. We have the motor unhooked and ready to come out. A replacement inline 6 and auto is going back in. Gas mileage is a huge issue as is the fact he cant drive a stick and I hate it so teaching him is OUT OF THE QUESTION!

4. The pulleys, fan, master cylinder, brake booster have all been steel wooled/sanded to be painted.

We are waiting for a friend to come over with the equipment to remove the old motor so we can finish cleaning the suspension and frame. It was done by the previous owner but it needs a couple fresh coats of shiny black to bring it back to life. No scraping or hard cleaning is needed, just a hose with a nozzle and a wash rag will do just fine.

I have lots of pics to post so hang in there, they will be up within the week!! Thank you for your support.

[nasqar]

Post winter update:

The truck has left the property and delivered to the mechanic to have a inline 6 and automatic transmission installed. The rear drums had locked up and took an hour and a half to free them up. Then the tranny wouldnt go into nuetral so off came the driveshaft so we could tow it 7 blocks to the mechanics place. I bartered with the guy and told him that if he installs drivetrain, and I can drive it home, I will give him the parts truck we had purchased even up and he agreed. This will be huge because all the wiring will be correct and Kam will get to see how his truck will go together. That is really kewl. The only thing I think we will need to buy is a body bolt kit to make sure we have ALL the nuts, washer, and screws to re-assemble the basket case! Cruising this summer with the son may happen yet!

[nasqar]

Old motor and tranny are out. Come to find out, someone had drilled a pin hole in the oil pan of the original motor. If we would have broke it lose and made it run, chances are we would have lost it from lack of oil. We have purchased the easy off oven cleaner to spray on the motor and let it soak all night. We should have it sprayed and possibly painted tomorrow. The brackets and accessories will hopefully be painted also. We will probably order a new gas tank this week because I'm scared to mess with a tank that has been sitting for 14 years.

[nasqar]

A big reason for the delay in working on the truck is that Kam was all conference in wrestling this year. After a year off because of a broken jaw, he came back and whipped some serious ass. Quite proud of the young man!

[nasqar]

New (to us) motor and tranny is in and the easy off has been sprayed and soaked. Problem is it hasnt stopped raining since we dropped the motor. No painting on the motor yet but we got some brackets and pulleys painted and ready to roll.

[nasqar]

Pics of the new (to us) motor bolted in and the easy off doing its thing! We have alot of work ahead of us getting this "mud" pit cleaned up. I think the hoses and wiring will be the worst to clean up but that's what it is all about. Kam is pumped having the motor in it. He talks about it all the time and his mom is ready to choke him!

[Irish's_79_Step]

If you were closer i'd say you could come get my tank. I have a brand new tank just sitting and i'm not going to be using it.

[nasqar]

Originally Posted by Irish's_79_Step

If you were closer i'd say you could come get my tank. I have a brand new tank just sitting and i'm not going to be using it.

I am going to LaCrosse Wi this weekend for a family wedding. Is that anywhere near Racine? We will be traveling up 90 from Rockford to Madison on Friday and back Sunday.

[Irish's_79_Step]

pm sent

[nasqar]

The most recent update is involving the motor. We had to have in intake machined and most of the bolts drilled out.....ummmm......holy crap i spent $179 on the head and gasket! I wanted to die when he told me how much.
Hopefully the motor will be running by Sunday. We gotta come up with a radiator, hoses, and belts.

We now have all new shocks for the truck and will be installed this week. We will send Kam to the pull-your-part yard this weekend for some inner fenders, and possibly a radiator. Not sure what to do about the radiator because i could spend money and not get a good one. How does someone tell if a used radiator any good? I know it can be pressure tested but i have to buy it first. Any help would be good.