The 65 C30 Farm Truck

[69 C10 LWB]

I just got this truck a few weeks ago and I figured it was time to start documenting the work. It has been sitting for quite a few years and the engine is locked up. I had a 73 GMC and the body was shot on it but it had been in the family since new (10 years before I was). I hated to get rid of the truck but it was too far gone to save. I stripped it down and sold as many parts as I could to fund this project and then saved the engine just in case. The 230 in this truck refuses to turn so the GMC will live on. The first 2 pictures show the truck that started my love for this body style, my 64 C20 and the organ donor, the family 73 GMC 2500.

About this truck-
It is a 1965 C30 with a 230 and a 4spd. The truck has very few options. It has the Thrift Air heater and 2 cab marker lights. The cable for the heater is free and the truck only has 75,000 miles on it. Unfortunately someone removed the SPID decal from the glove box so I am going to contact GM and see if they can tell me anything off the VIN. It has an AM radio in it now from JC Penny, yes you read that right, I didnt mean JC Whitney, I said JC Penny. Thankfully when I opened the glovebox the first time the radio block off plate was in there. The 230 also has JC Penny spark plugs in it, I never knew you could buy auto parts from them. The floors have a little rust but no holes bigger than 1/2", It needs lower fenders fixed and rear cab corners but for an old farm truck its in good shape. It has a Midwest bed on it with fold up sides so you can haul livestock and there is a stack of Bill Of Lading tickets in the glovebox with boxes to check for sheep, goats or cows. The crossmembers for the bed are rotted out but that should be a lot easier to fix than regular body work.

[Captainfab]

That's a decent looking truck with a fairly straight body. Yes JC Penny used to have auto service centers in their stores with private label parts and tools as well.

FYI, '65's did not have SPID tags. 1966 was the first year for the SPID tags.

[69 C10 LWB]

The wife was out of town so I headed off to work early saturday morning to start the engine swap. Thankfully I work for a great company and we have a big shop so I dont have to try and push the truck in and out of my tiny garage until it runs. The overhead crane is also a lot easier than my cheapo engine hoist. I put new intake and valve cover gaskets on the 350 before I put it in. I wanted to clean it better first but I didnt want to take a chance getting water in the engine and then letting it sit. Once it is up and running I will hose it down with degreaser and try to clean it up a little more. The engine will probably come back out this winter for a good cleaning once I know everything works.

I cant wait until I can roll the windows down and cruise it with the high end stereo cranked up.

[jdl71]

Sub'd. Nice 64 btw. I had one very similar.

[69 C10 LWB]

Progress is slow at the moment. The truck is at work until I get it running because I need to be able to move it in and out of the garage and its a little heavy to be pushing. Ive been working on it saturday mornings and on my lunch and Ive got the new engine in and the first thing I discovered was the manifolds for the 73 hit the frame and interfere with the clutch linkage. Ive been looking for original style manifolds and havent had any luck. Last night I stumbled on a set of shorty block huggers on craigslist that are ceramic coated and unused. They were $100 and only 45 min away. I drove up to get them this morning and then headed straight to work to see how they fit. They are a little close to the starter on the passenger side and the brake line on the driver side but they clear the clutch linkage. Im not too worried about the brake line since it will get a dual master once it is up and running and I will have to bend up some new lines for that. The yard is pretty wet because we had some storms roll through yesterday but hopefully this week I can get back on it and get the wiring hooked up (all 6 wires) and finally get it fired up.

[jdl71]

Where were the manifolds hitting? I've had several of these truck with later small blocks and never had an issue. I've got one right now in a K20, 74ish 350 with stock manifolds, nothing hits.

[69 C10 LWB]

I was going to use the manifolds off the 73 but they dump out right where the clutch linkage attaches on these trucks. The clutch linkage on the square bodies attaches to the bellhousing.

[jdl71]

That's good to know. I've never thought that could be a problem. Guess I've been lucky so far.

[RDrancher]

I've always thought that this body style looks good with a flatbed. Yours is no exception. The JC Pennys items are pretty cool. I have a Montgomery Wards NOS shift lever knob that was still sealed in the package that I scored on ebay a year or so ago. I like quirky stuff like that.

[69 C10 LWB]

Worked on the truck this morning. Today has been the best day so far. I started by raising the engine a little and removing the driver side engine mount bracket. I wasn't in the mood to keep searching for manifolds so I was determined to make the headers work. I cut out the part of the mount that was hitting the number 1 pipe and then used some scrap steel to bridge the gap. Since this was a farm truck it only seemed appropriate to use tractor parts. The scrap piece I found at work was a tooth off a trencher. I cut out the part of the tooth I needed and then welded it to the motor mount. Then I ground it down and painted it with the only paint I had laying around. Jacking the engine up also gave me a chance to get the cross shaft for the clutch linkage put in and all the linkage freed up and reinstalled. Once I had everything bolted in and nothing was hitting I started on wiring. This truck is definitely gonna need some wiring help. The wiring to the coil is really stiff and cracked in a few spots and obviously I need to shorten a few wires and convert to the later model internally regulated alternator. First step is going to be new battery cables since the truck currently has side post battery cables and they are in rough shape. I did hook a jump pack to the cables long enough to fire it up and shockingly the first thing I noticed was the radio was on and working!

The engine fired up pretty easy the first time I turned the key.

Still needs work to be drivable but getting much closer. Working on finding a radiator and I need to plug a couple vacuum leaks (note the big hose going from front to back of the carb). Also need to check the fuel tank and get a line run to the engine.

[69 C10 LWB]

This weeks work includes a special mid week work day thanks to some training that kept me at the shop all week. I took advantage of an unusually quiet lunch to pull the sender out of the fuel tank. One look at the sender told me I was probably in trouble. I pulled the tank and it is shot. I took a chance and drained the stuff out of it (and all over my boots thanks to a not so helpful co worker). Took it down to the local radiator shop only for them to tell me it will cost $100 just to tell me IF they can fix it, then who knows how much more to actually fix it. Tomorrow is radiator mounting day and Im going to take a ride by a co workers house after lunch because he has a couple spare fuel cells that I hope to mount between the frame rails under the bed.

[69 C10 LWB]

Yesterday was another successful day of work. This is a low buck build so I have been trying to trade for or buy used when ever I can. This weeks lucky find was like new 4 core radiator out of a big block 73 Nova. It is slightly wider and shorter than the original radiator for these trucks but close enough to work. I checked with the local auto parts store and they wanted $200 for a new aluminum and plastic radiator. This radiator only cost me $75 and came with a small electric fan. I was able to reuse the original upper hose from my 73 GMC donor and I cut the original mounts and extended them slightly to fit the new larger radiator. I managed to finish the bottom mounts but unfortunately everyone else was working today so I had to give up the welder so someone could actually work. The upper mount will have to wait until next weekend. I was able to fill the fuel line and carb and take the truck on a short test drive. It has been almost 4 months since I bought the truck and it feels great to be able to finally drive it under its own power. After a few short drives (as long as it will run off the fuel in the line and carb) I started cleaning up the cab. First order of business was to get rid of the as much of the mouse nest as I could. I will have to pull the seat and work a little harder to get all the nest out but atleast most of it is gone now. Thankfully they seem to have limited mouseville to the back of the seat.

[69 C10 LWB]

Not much progress to report this week. The boss locked the yard down for the weekend so I couldn't get in to work on it and I was busy with family stuff anyway. I did find time to sneak off monday and visit the local parts hoarder and pick up a fuel cell that will fit between the frame rails. I don't know if I will stick with this or not but for now it will work to get the truck mobile. As an added bonus it came with a fuel filter and some braided lines to help get it plumbed.

[69 C10 LWB]

Last weekend I didn't get much work done. I cut the old hitch off which took way longer than it should have. Farmer John welded a cutting edge from a bucket across the frame rails and then welded a piece of 1/4 in angle iron on top of that. I tried using a plasma cutter to hack it off but due to co worker abuse it wasnt working at 100%. I ended up using a cut off wheel to get inside the frame and cut where it was welded to the sides. Then 2 hours with an 4in grinder to get rid of the rest of the welds and the frame is almost back to normal. I also spent some time re bleeding the brakes because I have a wheel cylinder leaking and the master cylinder ran dry.

[69 C10 LWB]

This weekend felt much more productive. I found some scrap steel to make a tank mount and I was able to get my fuel cell mounted temporarily. I still need to finish the plumbing but that should be pretty easy. I welded up a frame to support the fuel cell from some 2 in square steel tubing that I bolted to the frame in the back. I cut a hole in the bed floor to fill the tank and I will make an access door to cover it once I start work on the bed. I also got the alternator from my 73 wired up so the batter will charge and the light on the dash even works.

[69 C10 LWB]

Another successful saturday mixed with a little disappointment. I had to get a few pictures with the sides folded up before I started taking the bed apart. I started by cutting the nuts off the hold down bolts for the side. Problem 1 the bolts are rusted into the bed. No problem I have pry bars and cut off wheels. I can get everything loose. Problem 2 the steel stakes are rusted into the bed frame. Problem 3 almost all the wood is rotted. I broke several boards trying to pry the stakes out of the pockets. I broke through the bed floor in a couple places. And last and certainly not least, the previous owner almost burned the truck down!!!! There was part of a bottle rocket laying in the front of the bed next to the burned lower boards. When I looked at the truck in May it wasnt there. When I picked it up in July it was. That means someone got a little careless over 4th of July. I finally decided to take the bed off in 1 piece and deal with it later. I took the truck from work to the house so I can work on it more than just saturday mornings. I got my fuel cell mounted up and some new lines so it doesn't leak so the truck is officially mobile for more than a few minutes at a time.

The truck has made one decision for me. I was debating swapping the Eaton rear axle for the 14 bolt out of my 73 GMC 2500(3.73 with a limited slip). After looking at the u joints, leaking wheel cylinders, checking the gear ratio(5 something) and the play in the axle, the Eaton is on its way out. I havent had a chance to measure the 14 bolt but hopefully it is close to the same width.

[69 C10 LWB]

Not a lot of progress the last 2 weeks. Last week I got the bed off and got it home. A little wipe down on the dirt in the interior was about all I had time for. This morning I cut the old spring perches off my 14bolt and ground one side smooth. My grinder was too hot to hold by the time I was done so finishing the other side will have to wait. I need to run by the 4X4 shop and get a new set of perches and some u bolts now.

[jdl71]

Would you mind taking a couple pics of the ebrake cables on that eaton while you've got the bed off?

[jdl71]

Lostmy65 put a 14 bolt under a 66, albeit single wheel. Starts around post #53 or so:

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...=428035&page=3

[69 C10 LWB]

JDL71, this truck has a trans mounted drum e brake, sorry no cables.

[69 C10 LWB]

A few pictures of the latest work. First off the trip home. A start on exhaust to keep the neighbors from complaining too much - straight pipe is better than headers. Cleaned some of the stuff off the dash, not sure what it was, but it was sticky and nasty. And luckily my little truck is just big enough for a real axle.

[jdl71]

Thank you anyway.

[rusty76]

Cool truck. Digging it. I’m late as usual but I’ll watch.

[69 C10 LWB]

My parents were in town for the night and I spent the week in Atlanta for training so I only had a little bit of time in the garage. I did manage to fix my throttle linkage. I used a couple zip ties as a temporary fix so I could move it and that has been replaced by something a little nicer. Thanks to a well timed post I saw on here I found some plans to build a nice linkage assembly that should be trouble free and much better than just the factory threaded link. I also made a temporary tube for the pcv valve, since I will have to change it slightly when I get my new valve covers cleaned up. I put on a cheapo seat cover I got from wally world so I dont have to deal with the dirty sticky stuff on the back of the seat. I also made a light to work with since the days are getting shorter. I took a led light I got from the hardware store for $5 and stuck a magnet on the back for a work light. Since these trucks are all metal it will stick anywhere and it is super bright.These pictures were taken with no other light.

[69 C10 LWB]

Made a little progress in the last 2 weeks. Temps have been dropping so my first priority was to get some coolant in the truck since I filled it with water when I put the engine in. I filled it with water because I wanted to make sure the used radiator didnt leak and I knew the heater core may have to come out. I pulled the heater box off the firewall and cleaned it out, surprisingly there was no sign of mice inside. The heater core had been leaking though so I was glad I pulled it out. A call to Oreillys and and a new core was ready the next day, I could have had it the same day but I didnt want to drive across town to pick it up.

I spent today grinding the last of the old spring perches off my 14 bolt so I can get it ready to go under the back of the truck. Hopefully I can get the new ones welded on and actually drive this thing before it snows.

I have a bunch of little things I want to do like fix the wiring for the ignition and the alternator but I have been forcing myself to leave it as is since I can do it this winter while the truck is in hibernation.