1976 Chevy C10 Silverado Step-Side

[ChrisRB]

Hey everyone, I'm 16 years old and just recently purchased my first vehicle. The journey to this point was both stressful and exciting, however now that I have my first truck I'm left with no experience what so ever and I believe you all could be of great help. The truck is as you can see is 1976 Chevy C10 Silverado Step-Side running with a Big Block V8 454 and Turbo 400 Transmission. She is an original California Truck with no rust and a clean title. She has all the bells and whistles as far as I know such as Power Steering, Cruise Control, Tilt Steering, ect. Unfortunately on the drive home from buying the truck the camshaft pulley decided to break off and flew into the new radiator the owner had recently installed so I had it tow it home which only added to my areas of concern. Thankfully the engine did not seize. My initial thoughts were to keep everything as original as possible however I'm open to suggestions.

My Areas of Concern Mechanically:

Air Conditioning does not work. (Fix Original? Or Replace with New System?)
Radiator broken. (Does it need 4-core? 3-core? Or?)
Exhaust leak. (Unsure if manifold or muffler?)
Camshaft pulley gone on freeway. (Obviously need new one, should I also replace harmonic balancer?)
Battery bracket nonexistent. (Currently jimmy-rigged to sit in engine bay.)
Dash gauges mostly not functioning. (Gas works, RPM works, speedometer not working, and shift indicator not working.)

My Areas of Concern Cosmetically:

Broken sliding rear window. (Replace pane or full window?)
Small chip in windshield.
Door windows are squeaky.
Door quarter windows don't rotate well.
Window and door weather stripping dry and brittle.
Few small dings on body.
Two dents on rear fender. (Replace fender? Or have hammered out?
Side mirrors loose and wont stay in position on freeway.
Wood in truck bed old and rotted.
Bench seats need new upholstery. (Eventually may want to replace with bench that has arm rest.)
Headliner drooping from ceiling but not torn.
Door panels aged and weathered.
Dash has cracks on passenger side. (Repair? Replace? Or cover?)
Corner exterior cab molding missing on passenger side.
Rims mildly rusted.
Tires over seven years old. (Replace?)
Engine bay obviously dirty, how can it be cleaned up?
Paint oxidized in some areas.

What I want do:

Now; Get the truck running and fix minor cosmetic things.

Eventually; As money becomes available I would like to fix the major cosmetic things such as replacing a lot of the interior to a more desirable themed color. I'd like to keep the truck the same color blue but swap out the interior for dark grey or white with chrome hub caps and white seaming on the inside of the wheels. I feel the white and chrome will accent the blue nicely.

Pictures:

Side View
Front View
Rear View
Tires
Interior
Engine Bay
Some Areas of Concern

Heavily appreciate you guys taking the time to read this far and any input I receive.

[Ronzo]

Nice truck, I also have a 1976 short stepper. Mines going to y youngest Grandson when he turns 16 and gets his license. Have fun working on it!

[Tom]

Jesus man not to be a debbie downer but it sounds like this truck is seriously messed up.
Yes, replace the radiator and missing pulleys and brackets and rigged stuff before you drive it anymore. Get whatever the truck has originally. There is no cam pulley, so it sounds like the crank pulley came off? That could be major money by itself if the crank is damaged. You should probably consider spending the $150 or so for a real mechanic to give you a list of problems and repairs so you know what to tackle first.

[ChrisRB]

Originally Posted by Tom

Jesus man not to be a debbie downer but it sounds like this truck is seriously messed up.
Yes, replace the radiator and missing pulleys and brackets and rigged stuff before you drive it anymore. Get whatever the truck has originally. There is no cam pulley, so it sounds like the crank pulley came off? That could be major money by itself if the crank is damaged. You should probably consider spending the $150 or so for a real mechanic to give you a list of problems and repairs so you know what to tackle first.

Truck ran beautifully before what happened on the freeway, mechanically it was sound so after getting the issues to get it running fixed ill just be fixing what I consider to be minor cosmetic issues. My biggest thing was no rust when I bought it and I got it for a good price. I knew money was going to have to be put into it but I figure any money I put into it is money I can get back out of it if I ever go to sell. Half of the "issues" I posted were issues that need to be addressed for the car to be perfect, which for a young kid just unfortunately isn't realistic.

[ChrisRB]

Originally Posted by Tom

Jesus man not to be a debbie downer but it sounds like this truck is seriously messed up.
Yes, replace the radiator and missing pulleys and brackets and rigged stuff before you drive it anymore. Get whatever the truck has originally. There is no cam pulley, so it sounds like the crank pulley came off? That could be major money by itself if the crank is damaged. You should probably consider spending the $150 or so for a real mechanic to give you a list of problems and repairs so you know what to tackle first.

Also unfortunately even did pay a mechanic that price for him to take a look at before I purchased and said it was solid mechanically. I think what happened was just unlucky. That being said does the radiator have to be a 4-core since its a 454?

[Leonard60]

From what I read it lead me to think it was the fan pulley that came off and went threw the rad. The bottom pulley is the crank or harmonic balancer

[tucsonjwt]

If you want 100% original show condition - that will cost a lot of money and be difficult to achieve.

If you want a driver quality truck you can do it relatively inexpensively,

I have a 1983 C20 454 with SM 465 manual and I just installed a
Autozone aluminum/plastic Spectra radiator. It is just a cheap radiator (probably 2 core) but it cools my truck fine in the AZ 100+ degree heat. I had a 73 454/400 and I just had a cheap radiator in that one and it was fine in the desert heat also. So, just look for a cheap Spectra radiator for your make/model/engine/trans and buy it. I got my radiator from Autozone for just over $100 with 20% off sale and free shipping. I got about $30 for the old copper/brass radiator at the scrap yard so the net cost was less than $100. Check online - Amazon, Ebay, etc.

When you look for parts you should check these vendors as well as Ebay and Amazon:

www.rockauto.com
www.oehq.com
www.oewarehouse.com
www.davesauto.com
www.gmpartsdirect.com
www.lmc.com

Before you buy any parts, post online here what your plans are and get some advice from others here. Most of the parts are made in China and many are of poor quality - not worth the money. You can still get some "New Old Stock" (NOS) original parts if you look around. You might as well get the LMC (Long Motor Company) catalog for 1973-1987 parts - it will give you a good idea of what is available.

If I were you I would get a new crank pulley from a junkyard (I hope you have a "pick and pull" nearby, which is a pull your own part junkyard.) Make sure you take accurate measurements on your current pulley, including hole mounting pattern. I had a crank pulley fly off my 83 twice, and I think it was a bad harmonic balancer (the solid black part behind the pulley), so you should get another one of those also (buy a new part, not used.) You should also use the correct Loctite on the bolts when you install the new balancer. An auto repair shop can do this for not much money, but if you have the correct tools you can do it yourself.

Let us know what gas mileage you get on that beast. My best has been 11 city/ 13 highway, but it can go down to 8 mpg in the city at times.

[tucsonjwt]

Most likely your battery tray is corroded/sulfated and needs replacement. Check Ebay and Amazon. Also, get a battery mat from Ebay which you can cut to fit for your new battery tray to prevent corrosion in the future. Your battery is held in place by a black plastic block which presses down with one bolt and washer. I had to get a longer bolt than the stock length when I installed my battery mat but it was worth the extra effort. You can get the long bolt from any hardware store. Just put the battery in the tray with the battery mat in place before you install the battery tray in the truck, then you can measure the length of bolt you need - including the thickness of you new battery hold down block. Then take the tray to the hardware store and get the correct length and type of bolt to fit the threaded hole in the tray. It might be a metric bolt. Your truck will likely have both Metric and SAE (US) bolts and screws, but most parts are not Metric.

[ChrisRB]

Originally Posted by tucsonjwt

Most likely your battery tray is corroded/sulfated and needs replacement. Check Ebay and Amazon. Also, get a battery mat from Ebay which you can cut to fit for your new battery tray to prevent corrosion in the future. Your battery is held in place by a black plastic block which presses down with one bolt and washer. I had to get a longer bolt than the stock length when I installed my battery mat but it was worth the extra effort. You can get the long bolt from any hardware store. Just put the battery in the tray with the battery mat in place before you install the battery tray in the truck, then you can measure the length of bolt you need - including the thickness of you new battery hold down block. Then take the tray to the hardware store and get the correct length and type of bolt to fit the threaded hole in the tray. It might be a metric bolt. Your truck will likely have both Metric and SAE (US) bolts and screws, but most parts are not Metric.

Immensely appreciate you taking your time to give me two awesome responses! My plan is to make it a daily driver to and from school, like local drives. Not to make it a trailer queen. Thank you again for your advice and help, any thing in the future you have to give is always appreciated! I'll be looking into everything you talked about.
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[ChrisRB]

Originally Posted by Ronzo

Nice truck, I also have a 1976 short stepper. Mines going to y youngest Grandson when he turns 16 and gets his license. Have fun working on it!

Beautiful trucks! Your grandson is going to love it as much as I do I'm sure!
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[Westwind]

I think you got a very very nice truck and you should do a little at a time after you get it running and replace the tires.

Here's my opinion:

Air Conditioning does not work. (Depends how long been siting, may want to save up the $1300 for vintage air)
Radiator broken. (3 Row will work fine)
Exhaust leak. (Start at the top of the motor listening and looking for blackish soot and work your way back)
Camshaft pulley gone on freeway. (Talk to a mechanic and have them help with the diagnostic - maybe give you some direction)
Battery bracket nonexistent. (Junkyard pull - will be fun)
Dash gauges mostly not functioning. (Gas works- Great RPM works- Rare Option, very cool, speedometer -check if attached at transmission or get one from junkyard (New $100.00), and shift indicator not working ( Remove dash bezel and check whats up - Junkyard crawl).)

My Areas of Concern Cosmetically:

Broken sliding rear window. (Replace )
Small chip in windshield.(super Glue)
Door windows are squeaky.(white silicone grease from Oreillys)
Door quarter windows don't rotate well.(Seldom do , leave for now)
Window and door weather stripping dry and brittle.(leave for now)
Few small dings on body.(Patina)
Two dents on rear fender. (Get a book or watch videos - use the right tools)
Side mirrors loose and wont stay in position on freeway.(Replace)
Wood in truck bed old and rotted.(leave)
Bench seats need new upholstery. (Seat cover and get a girlfriend to set your arm on)
Headliner drooping from ceiling but not torn. (Just Pull it out unless you want the red)
Door panels aged and weathered. ( They are in nice shape - I would re-dye the plastic and get new arm rests)
Dash has cracks on passenger side. (Dash cover $29.99 - Pretty good shape for the years)
Corner exterior cab molding missing on passenger side.(Junkyard)
Rims mildly rusted.(polish and steel wool)
Tires over seven years old. (Replace,replace , replace ..not worth the risk)
Engine bay obviously dirty, how can it be cleaned up? (Elbow grease)
Paint oxidized in some areas.(Polish by hand)

[Dead Parrot]

Is your plan for this to be a daily driver or a track truck? A 454 from that era pretty well defines the term gas guzzler. Don't want you to spend a bunch of money fixing it up only to be too poor to afford to drive it.

If the pulley that failed is the large bottom one, that is the crank or main pulley. If it was the top pulley that holds the fan in place, that is the water pump pulley.

In either case, did the pulley break or did it come off because the bolts failed or came loose?

Talk to the person you bought the truck from. Find out where he got the radiator. If it was a local shop, they might give you a bit of a break on replacing or repairing the current one. Worth a call anyway.

If going to a serpentine belt system was in your plans, now might be a good time.

[jimboh247]

Oh to be 16 again and into a big block, short bed, step side Square!

Man, I envy you! What a great 1st truck!

Just remember, it might be a pile.....but it's your pile! Have fun with it!

There is PLENTY of knowledge freely given on this board. Search first, ask questions later.

Good luck on your project!

[ChrisRB]

Originally Posted by Westwind

I think you got a very very nice truck and you should do a little at a time after you get it running and replace the tires.

Here's my opinion:

Air Conditioning does not work. (Depends how long been siting, may want to save up the $1300 for vintage air)
Radiator broken. (3 Row will work fine)
Exhaust leak. (Start at the top of the motor listening and looking for blackish soot and work your way back)
Camshaft pulley gone on freeway. (Talk to a mechanic and have them help with the diagnostic - maybe give you some direction)
Battery bracket nonexistent. (Junkyard pull - will be fun)
Dash gauges mostly not functioning. (Gas works- Great RPM works- Rare Option, very cool, speedometer -check if attached at transmission or get one from junkyard (New $100.00), and shift indicator not working ( Remove dash bezel and check whats up - Junkyard crawl).)

My Areas of Concern Cosmetically:

Broken sliding rear window. (Replace )
Small chip in windshield.(super Glue)
Door windows are squeaky.(white silicone grease from Oreillys)
Door quarter windows don't rotate well.(Seldom do , leave for now)
Window and door weather stripping dry and brittle.(leave for now)
Few small dings on body.(Patina)
Two dents on rear fender. (Get a book or watch videos - use the right tools)
Side mirrors loose and wont stay in position on freeway.(Replace)
Wood in truck bed old and rotted.(leave)
Bench seats need new upholstery. (Seat cover and get a girlfriend to set your arm on)
Headliner drooping from ceiling but not torn. (Just Pull it out unless you want the red)
Door panels aged and weathered. ( They are in nice shape - I would re-dye the plastic and get new arm rests)
Dash has cracks on passenger side. (Dash cover $29.99 - Pretty good shape for the years)
Corner exterior cab molding missing on passenger side.(Junkyard)
Rims mildly rusted.(polish and steel wool)
Tires over seven years old. (Replace,replace , replace ..not worth the risk)
Engine bay obviously dirty, how can it be cleaned up? (Elbow grease)
Paint oxidized in some areas.(Polish by hand)

Appreciate all the wise advice. As far as the tires are concerned, what style in particular do you recommend? I may as well get the right ones if I'm replacing them right?

[ChrisRB]

Originally Posted by Dead Parrot

Is your plan for this to be a daily driver or a track truck? A 454 from that era pretty well defines the term gas guzzler. Don't want you to spend a bunch of money fixing it up only to be too poor to afford to drive it.

If the pulley that failed is the large bottom one, that is the crank or main pulley. If it was the top pulley that holds the fan in place, that is the water pump pulley.

In either case, did the pulley break or did it come off because the bolts failed or came loose?

Talk to the person you bought the truck from. Find out where he got the radiator. If it was a local shop, they might give you a bit of a break on replacing or repairing the current one. Worth a call anyway.

If going to a serpentine belt system was in your plans, now might be a good time.

The plan is yes a daily driver, I only plan to drive it to school, gym, and local places like that which are only a few miles away at most. I knew the gas would be expensive when I went to buy it however my belief is any money that I'd save on gas now, I'd lose in pure value of the vehicle. Prior to finding this truck I was looking at newer trucks but I didn't want a truck I payed $6,000 for now to be worth only half of that a year from now just to get a little better gas. I figure I can't lose with an old truck like this because they are becoming quite popular and collectible.

It was the bottom pulley that came off on the freeway however it did damage the pulley above it, it looks to be distorted. Do you recommend shooting for the serpentine belt system?

[ChrisRB]

Originally Posted by jimboh247

Oh to be 16 again and into a big block, short bed, step side Square!

Man, I envy you! What a great 1st truck!

Just remember, it might be a pile.....but it's your pile! Have fun with it!

There is PLENTY of knowledge freely given on this board. Search first, ask questions later.

Good luck on your project!

Exactly! I know some people won't understand it but there are plenty that do. I couldn't be any happier with my purchase.

[Dead Parrot]

If you don't drive many miles, gas prices don't impact you much. And value loss is a problem with newer trucks. If you do fix yours up, consider some kind of GPS theft tracking gizmo. They do get targeted by thieves looking to strip them. A fairly recent thread covers one member's misfortune and includes some preventative suggestions.

I actually prefer the older style belts. They have a more forgiving 'limp home' mode if a belt driven device decides to fail. Had a AC compressor front bearing decide to seize up 60 miles from home after dark. Pulled over, turned off engine, cut AC belt, tossed in bed, started back up, finished drive home. The belts for the remaining good devices weren't impacted. Had the AC bearing replaced later.

A lot of folks prefer the newer single belt system. There are many conversion threads on this forum. If you are already down two pulleys, a radiator and maybe the fan and you like the idea, now would be the time to do it. Might consider switching to an electric fan(s) while you are at it.

Before going to a junk yard, make a list of everything you might want and what fits from what. What the yards have vary from day to day. If you are focused only on the bottom pulley, you might miss the near perfect bucket seat set that is an easy replacement for your needs fixing bench seat.

[ChrisRB]

Originally Posted by Dead Parrot

If you don't drive many miles, gas prices don't impact you much. And value loss is a problem with newer trucks. If you do fix yours up, consider some kind of GPS theft tracking gizmo. They do get targeted by thieves looking to strip them. A fairly recent thread covers one member's misfortune and includes some preventative suggestions.

I actually prefer the older style belts. They have a more forgiving 'limp home' mode if a belt driven device decides to fail. Had a AC compressor front bearing decide to seize up 60 miles from home after dark. Pulled over, turned off engine, cut AC belt, tossed in bed, started back up, finished drive home. The belts for the remaining good devices weren't impacted. Had the AC bearing replaced later.

A lot of folks prefer the newer single belt system. There are many conversion threads on this forum. If you are already down two pulleys, a radiator and maybe the fan and you like the idea, now would be the time to do it. Might consider switching to an electric fan(s) while you are at it.

Before going to a junk yard, make a list of everything you might want and what fits from what. What the yards have vary from day to day. If you are focused only on the bottom pulley, you might miss the near perfect bucket seat set that is an easy replacement for your needs fixing bench seat.

The GPS is something I didn't even think of, I'll do some research on the forums and look around for one. Would hate to lose her one day. On the note of theft, would you also recommend a type of kill-switch? If so, what would it be?

[Westwind]

Dead Parrot is right. As far as the tires, I would look at photos of trucks on line to help determine what size and/or stance you are liking. Good Luck!

[daddyjeep]

Congratulations on a very cool truck for a young kid. This kind of truck will teach you so many lessons. You are lucky to have forums like we do here so you can learn from all of us that have been down the same road you are on. Back when I was 16 we didn't have any help. We either had to figure things out or find someone to mentor us. Just tackle one problem at a time and try not to get off track until that problem is fixed. I would make tearing off that bug shield project #1. After that, I would research the serpentine belt conversion.

[ChrisRB]

Originally Posted by daddyjeep

Congratulations on a very cool truck for a young kid. This kind of truck will teach you so many lessons. You are lucky to have forums like we do here so you can learn from all of us that have been down the same road you are on. Back when I was 16 we didn't have any help. We either had to figure things out or find someone to mentor us. Just tackle one problem at a time and try not to get off track until that problem is fixed. I would make tearing off that bug shield project #1. After that, I would research the serpentine belt conversion.

Finally got the bug shield off after 3 days of tasseling with the rotted screws. Thanks for the congratulations.

[tinydb84]

You are getting a lot of good advice here.

The best advice I can give is to make sure you take your time and spend the money needed to do the job correctly. I made the mistake many times when I was young and tried to rig up too much stuff only to have it not work or not be happy with it later.

Take a class at night if you can. The local school here has classes for free for high school students and will give you credits towards graduation. I took them later but learned body, paint, and tig welding. They offer mechanics and machining too. Most of the paint and body classes were filled with older guys working on their own projects.

[ChrisRB]

Originally Posted by tinydb84

You are getting a lot of good advice here.

The best advice I can give is to make sure you take your time and spend the money needed to do the job correctly. I made the mistake many times when I was young and tried to rig up too much stuff only to have it not work or not be happy with it later.

Take a class at night if you can. The local school here has classes for free for high school students and will give you credits towards graduation. I took them later but learned body, paint, and tig welding. They offer mechanics and machining too. Most of the paint and body classes were filled with older guys working on their own projects.

Yeah I really appreciate it all too for sure! Unfortunately at my highschool a class isn't offered however because I am under 18 I can take classes for free at junior colleges which is what I'm now aiming to do since my knowledge is obviously limited.
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[rusty76]

Congrats on the truck. My favorite year. You've got a really nice truck. The only concern I have is get it running and driving first. Then as money comes available fix stuff that doesn't eat up a bunch of time. Plan ahead and don't worry heavily over the small cosmetics. You don't have to have Ac to drive it. Fix the glass to keep weather and other varmits out. Radiators are relatively cheap. Me personally fix the things you'll spend the most time with. Hope this helps. Have fun.

[pound41]

I have a 76 stepper 454/400/373 posi my father special ordered. Original over 100k on it.
Still runs like very strong. Get it driveable enjoy it and don't destroy it! every time I take mine out I get offers from people wanting to buy it