My 68 C-10 Build in Pearland, TX

[jwgeorge]

OK, I finally am going to start a build thread for my truck.
A little background: Truck is a 1968 C-10 originally purchased in Bellingham, WA. It has a 250 c.i. 6-cylinder and 4-speed SM465 trans, with 3.73 gears.
The 250 will stay and the 4-speed will be replaced with a 3-speed w/3OTT column and the 3.73 axle will be replaced by a 1970 axle with 3.08 gears. A good friend of mine in Tucson, AZ found the truck for me and bought it. I went to Tucson for a wedding in March and picked the truck up from him and drove it the 1100 miles home, after rebuilding the carb, changing the fuel pump, the oil and the thermostat. The truck drove like a champ at a top speed of 60 mph. Not bad for a purchase price of $750!! The truck was purchased with a lowering springs installed, relocated shocks and dropped front spindles with 5-lug discs and a super-fat Hotchkis sway bar. And 4 NASCAR-style steel wheels. The truck also has a couple of bucket seats mounted in it from a Cessna. Darn comfy for the 1100 mile ride.

[jwgeorge]

Future Plans: Restore rust-free cab (repaired) stored in garage (Thanks 77chris03!), completely POR-15 painted with final color being a dark gray inside. Bench seat out of a late-model GM truck, fabric door panels and three sets of shoulder harness seatbelts from LMC. The dash has not been cut up in this truck and as bad as I want a modern DIN-size stereo in it, I just cannot bring myself to cut the dash up, even if I did it nicely, just can't do it. So I will be creating a "remote faceplate" stereo so that I can surface mount it to the dash (probably to a re-pop radio delete plate and hide the rest of the head unit in the glovebox. I am going with drak gray as an interior color because white is too bright and black is too dark and body color is a bad idea if you ever decide to change the the color of the outside. That's the plan and I am sticking to it!

[jwgeorge]

Engine and drivetrain: I have already bought a 1966 250 c.i. engine and 3-spd trans from a 66 GMC 1/2-ton, kinda wanted to find a 292, but I got a smoking deal on the engine, trans, steering column and e-brake handle, all for $165.00 and a case of Bud Light (Thanks, Alex and his dad!). I like this engine because the head doesn't have the emission plugs. I will completely rebuild the engine, bore it and bump the compression just a little, haven't decided on a camshaft, but nothing too radical. I will have hardened seats installed in the head to run on the piss water they call gasoline nowadays. Intake manifold may end up being an aftermarket 4-bbl. unit running an adapter a Rochester 2G or (gasp) an Autolite 2100. I have had excellent luck with this carb on a 304 c.i. International Scout, they are great carbs. Yes, I dislike side float Holleys and love Q-Jets, call me crazy. Like I said, I am going to run the 3-spd. trans and column shift, with the 3.08/3.07 gears. Is it 3.07 or 3.08 in the GM 12-bolt axles? Probably run the stock points ignition, because it won;t leave you on the side of the road. A points file and a matchbook and you're back in business.

[jwgeorge]

Last, but not least, the exterior. The truck has 67 front fenders and welded-up marker lights in the bed. The bed is a wood-bottom unit and I don;t like the wood beds. I have a line on a steel bed from a co-worker, so I am happy about that. I'll need a new tailgate eventually, so I will probably just buy the usual $300 LMC unit, but it will have to have the "CHEVROLET" lettering on it, that's a requirement, it's a long story. The truck has a 69-70 core support, so the 68 grille never fit with the headlights. I gave the grille to 77chris03, because he's a good guy! I am thinking about changing the headlight buckets to the GMC 4-headlight setup, another long story. But I will be making a custom grille. OK, So my color choices for the exterior at this point are, drumroll please, Lotus Isotope Green or Krypton Green, as affectionately known as Tennis Ball Yellow. Yellow with a twinge of green in it, I don't know I had a vision one night. The other color is the same or darker than, Dark Toreador Red (factory Ford color). Thinking about a black hood, black cowl and black roof and pillars, stopping at the bodyline above the door handles. All emblems and things blacked-out, door handles, key locks, cargo light housing, mirrors, vent window frames, etc. I have won on Ebay a set of the 69 or 70 "C/10" chrome emblems in block lettering, I like these, so I will black them out and install them. I also want to get a pair of the early Nova six-cylinder engine badges, possinly chrome them completely and mount on the front fender, still undecide, just want to let people know that I love the six.

[Hotchkis]

JWGeorge – Sounds like a fun project. Keep us posted on your progress. Do you have any pictures posted?

[jwgeorge]

I do not have any decent pictures to post yet, but will soon, need to download from camera. Has Hotchkis ever thought about designing a goodrear shock relocating kit for the 67-72 trucks with swing arms and 6" lowering coils? The angles the current shock re-locators place the shocks in is very ineffective and the tiny little shocks blow out easily at that angle, at least mine have. No, I would rather not add an airbag to the system, thanks. If I don't find a workable solution ready to go out there in the world, I believe I will be designing and building my own.
I sure love my huge freakin' front Hotchkis sway bar!!!!!

[Hotchkis]

Originally Posted by jwgeorge

I do not have any decent pictures to post yet, but will soon, need to download from camera. Has Hotchkis ever thought about designing a goodrear shock relocating kit for the 67-72 trucks with swing arms and 6" lowering coils? The angles the current shock re-locators place the shocks in is very ineffective and the tiny little shocks blow out easily at that angle, at least mine have. No, I would rather not add an airbag to the system, thanks. If I don't find a workable solution ready to go out there in the world, I believe I will be designing and building my own.
I sure love my huge freakin' front Hotchkis sway bar!!!!!

Jwgeorge – Looking forward to photos of your project. We’ve had great success with our redesigned rear suspension system with gives extra adjustment for shocks. The Hotchkis Tuned Bilstein shocks don’t seem to be a problem and are very effective in their new location when used with our 6” rear lowering coil springs.





Here’s the February 2011 Truckin Magazine article: LINK

[jwgeorge]

Wow! That is an awesome setup, I will share this on the thread with the other guys in my area. Do you guys every do any booths or advertising at small car show/cruise night events? We have a cruise night every Friday 6:00-9:00pm in Pearland, TX. I am guessing that we probably had 50 cars there at one time. Just an idea.

[jwgeorge]

Here are a couple of examples of one exterior color that came to me in a vision, probably a drunken, lack of sleep-induced, but no less a vision.

[jwgeorge]

And...

[jwgeorge]

Or...

http://images2.snapfish.com/23232323...3C434%3Bnu0mrj

http://images3a.snapfish.com/2323232...65834%3Bnu0mrj

[1956cameo]

Hey man! I will have to come by some time and lend you a hand (or at least slow you down by BSing with you sometime. I was at the cruise night this Friday (not in my burb though). I think I saw your truck but I didn't find you. Keep us posted and show us some pics!

[Hart_Rod]

......i.....

[TexasJimmy]

Originally Posted by 1956cameo

Hey man! I will have to come by some time and lend you a hand (or at least slow you down by BSing with you sometime. I was at the cruise night this Friday (not in my burb though). I think I saw your truck but I didn't find you. Keep us posted and show us some pics!

I saw you drive in as I was leaving. Lets hook up next time.


JWGEORGE....Nice start to the thread man!

[franky69c10]

Originally Posted by Hart_Rod

......i.....

Posted via Mobile Device

[Hotchkis]

Originally Posted by jwgeorge

Wow! That is an awesome setup, I will share this on the thread with the other guys in my area. Do you guys every do any booths or advertising at small car show/cruise night events? We have a cruise night every Friday 6:00-9:00pm in Pearland, TX. I am guessing that we probably had 50 cars there at one time. Just an idea.

JwGeorge – Thanks for the idea. We typically stick to shows. The closest we’ve been to your hometown was in March when we were at the GoodGuys Lone Star Nationals in Fort Worth, back in March. Keep an eye on our event list next season.



FB images: Link

[jwgeorge]

1956cameo, swing-by anytime, I shouldn't be too difficult to distract!

[jwgeorge]

OK, Guys, I understand, no pictures means that I could just be another poser. So here they are!

[jwgeorge]

This is the new cab I picked up to restore and do a swap onto the truck. The PO replaced all the bad sheetmetal and did an awesome job, much better than if I tried myself I'm sure. Even the radio holes in the dash are uncut, which makes it hard for me because I wanted a modern stereo mounted in the dash, but I just can't bring myself to cut it, just can't do it. But I am onto an idea to remote-mount a stereo, when I perfect it I will share.

[jwgeorge]

http://images2.snapfish.com/23232323...27834%3Bnu0mrj

This is the truck I paid $750.00 for, exactly as it sits and drove the 1100 miles from Tucson, AZ to home near Houston.

[jwgeorge]

http://images2.snapfish.com/23232323...27834%3Bnu0mrj

[jwgeorge]

I have decided to go with the 69-70 block lettering-style badges, just because they look tough to me. I will black them out, like the rest of the trim and mount them in the same place as stock, except lower, down near the body line that runs from wheel well to wheel well.

[jwgeorge]

Not a bad old truck to start with, the neighbors hate it, oh well it's inspected and registered and insured, so TFB! I am working on putting a new exhaust system on it. It already has the 6-into-2 Hedman header, with a single glasspack on each outlet and it's way too loud. So I will be going with turbo mufflers, one per outlet and twp pipes exiting the truck in front of the LR wheel. I am going to get creative with muffler mounting and will post those pictures. I am also thinking about a NASCAR-style rectangular exhaust tips.

[jwgeorge]

Here is everything "arranged" in my side of the garage, so I could get the wife's truck back in her side. Please note the cab and the 70 rear axle, with 3.08 gears, this was an Ebay find here in Houston and I also got to meet a couple great guys who like to lay with 67-72 trucks. This axle will be re-fitted with a set of 5-lug axle shafts that came with the purchase of the truck too! Remember: There are width differences between 67-69 and 70-72 truck axle housings.

[jwgeorge]

I never thought that I would be a fan of the 4/6 drop on this truck, but it's starting to grow on me. I need to build/find a way to mount real shocks on the rear, not these dinky "lowered' shock that sit at a ridiculous angle and are so ineffective! I have an idea for a horizontal shock mounting system, but need to study it some more.
Anyway, I find myself liking this truck the more I keep looking at it.