My (BUDMAN56) 65 C20 GROUND UP RESTORATION
 

what do you think?:chevy:

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Heck of a change man, looks great!

oh and did you realize the 2nd and 3rd and 4th picture your missing some body parts? just asking.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

looks good. are you leaving it 3/4 ton any suspension changes? we are almost nieghbors i'm in menifee

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Welcome to the forum :D

You don't mess around, do you? Is the frame powder coated or liquid paint? Are you upgrading the suspension and brakes? Looks good.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Looking good neighbor. Its going to be sweet in the end. Remember, you doing yours to that level was my motivation to not take mine that far....lol. But all BS aside its going to be one sweet ride when your done.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

ya I forgot to take more photos when I tore it appart.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

no changes, just going to leave it orginal.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

yep in a hurry to drive it, and its powder coating, i found a really cheap place to have it done.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

The Original Rare Blue frame. ;)

Welcome.

Look forward to seeing your progress.
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Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Off Topic....

I almost forgot about good Ol' BudMan.
I had a T-Shirt with BudMan on it. :D
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Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

so where is this powder coater and how much was the frame?
You have to share man... :lol:

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Looking great. Sharp looking blue!!! Going to do a two tone on it? Blue and white? Maybe a white pearl (blue tinted pearl over the white would be sharp)

Are you building it in your drive-way, or did you move it out there?

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Good man!! That does me good to hear another person leaving a 3/4 ton as a 3/4 ton. Like the frame, but I have to ask, is there a particular reason you chose to do it blue? Curious is all.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

long story short, i was going to paint it my self, but when i got the price to sand blast it, $150 an hour with a 2 hr min. then i would have to spend another $100 or so to buy and prep for the paint it would have cost me too much to do, so my wife suggested that i look into powder coating, but i told her it would cost too much to do. so anyway i decided to check on some price. and wow i was right, i got prices all the way to $1000. to powder coat the frame. but my last call to a company called seven's powder coating in riverside he quoted me $400 to sand blast and powder coat any color i wanted as long as it was a stock color. so i was headed down there to drop off the frame when i decided that i was going to do it in red. but when i got there i seen this blue and just had to have it instead of the red. i have also had just about every thing else i could think of powder coated and im just waiting to get it all bolted back on then i will post more pics of it.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

yep i like the 3/4 ton truck, and thats why i bought it. i will be driving this daily when its all finished thats why i tore it all down to completely rebuild it so that i wouldnt have any problems with it after i rebuilt everything. after my problems with my f250 diesel i just didnt want to have any more car payment and i can work on this my self with out having to pay a mechanic.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

I just got a quote from those guys today,to powder coat rims.
Are you happy with their job ?

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

very happy and their good guys and they turn it around quick.:chevy:
what did they quote you on your rims?

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

$150 for 4 rims.
I'm in Riverside so their close by.
Like what you doing to your truck.Mine also will be stock
and a daily.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

update for this weekend, installed front clip, started the first of the wiring loom kits for the front clip. also got back my swing arms from the powder coating and install them on the truck, also stopped by cpp to pick up the front ball joint repair kit just to get this morning to try to install the front a-arms and found out that the kit was for a c10. so I had to go to anahiem to exchange the parts for the correct c20 parts just to have the salesman convince my wife that it would be better to up grade my front brakes to disc. well needless to say i was all for that until i found out how much it was going to cost, but i think im still going to do it anyway. what the hell its only money and i cant take it to the grave.......right??? well any way here are more photos of my truck and its progress.:chevy::chevy::chevy:

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Nice! Looks great for a Gator fan!

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

How is the clearance between auto trans and the original manual trans bell housing crossmember? I have heard most say it needs to be removed when there is a manual to auto swap.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

subscribed, nice looking build!

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

I agree. There is absolutely no reason for the bellhousing crossmember to be there. It is just in the way IMO. The factory auto trucks did not have that crossmember in there.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Yep didn't need to be there, but I don't like removing things that could be structural and there was no clearance issue with leaving it. but I did grind the rivets and replace with bolts so it could be removed easly.:chevy:
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Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Budman 56, check into purchasing replacement hubs and rotors mine new were only $32.00 each and new disc brake calipers were on 18.00 each. I do not think this conversion to discs has to be so expensive.........Kieth (in your case the only question would be the diameter of the axle shafts etc. Ask Captain Fab he can give you more details. Nice looking build.....Kieth

Re: here's my truck 65 c20 UPDATE 9/12/11
 

This weekend i finaly got a c20 1990 rear axle, i cut and welded the new spring pocket to the new axle and placed it into the truck. Here is a photo of that, now it out and going to the powder coaters.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20 UPDATE 9/12/11
 

Great Job - Panhard bar and all.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Nice job, looking great !!

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Interesting.......I've not seen a Dana 60 in a 3/4 ton truck in that year range. That didn't come out of a G20 van did it?

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

I was told that it is a Dana 70 and it came out of a 1990 1 ton truck.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Im looking for some bumber horns to put on my truck can anyone tell me where I should look for them? like the ones in this drawing or something like them.:chevy:

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Oh ok, the Dana 60 and Dana 70 covers are the same. I was thinking it was a Dana 60 because you said it was from a C20.



I believe those bumper guards are available from most of the truck restoration suppliers, such as Classic Parts.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

to be honest Im not sure what axle it is, this is what the cl add said,

Dana 70 rear end differential, complete drum to drum, 3.73 gears
came out of a 1990 GMC 1 ton truck, single rear wheel, 8 lug

so I must believe that it is what he said it was. I have looked it up on line and it appears to be a dana 70, the great thing is there are disk brakes for it so I will be upgrading them too at a later date.


here is the artical I found on how to convert the axle to disc brakes. has anyone done this before? is a easy as it looks?


Really Good Read Here!

Publish date: Mar 1, 2005
By: David Dennehey
Source: Toyota at Off-Road.com
Dana 70 Disc Brake Swap - Trucks 4x4 @ Off-Road.com
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First lets ask the question, why a Dana 70? What about the more commonly available and cheaper 14 Bolt rear end? Well, in my case, the price was right, it was rebuilt, had the right gears and was the right width. On first glance, many would not be able to tell the difference between a 14 Bolt and a Dana 70. Same size ring gear, generally around the same width, come under heavy duty trucks, and so on. But there is more than meets the eye.

Some Specifications and Facts on the 14 Bolt:
• Max gearing is 5.13:1
• Very limited locker selection
• 1.5 30 Spline Shafts
• Max Torque Rating: 6242 Lb-Ft of Torque
• Cast Iron Housing
Some Specifications on the Dana 70:
• Max gearing is a massive 7.17:1
• Excellent Locker Selection
• 1.5” 35 Spline Shafts
• Max Torque Rating: 8,000 lb-ft or 8,800 lb-ft for the HD
• Nodular Iron Housing
The two most significant of those are the gearing and torque ratings. You can gear a Dana 70 45% higher, and it is about 30% stronger than a 14 Bolt. Also to be noted is the different housings, nodular iron is much stronger (Ford fans know of the famed N marking on a 9” housing). It is also easier to weld to if you are doing an upper 4 link mount on the housing.

As for cost; a 14 Bolt is generally dirt cheap due to its availability. I picked up my Dana 70, rebuilt, in great shape, no rust, grease marks still on the gears, and shipped from Texas to CA for 300$. Not bad.

The drums on a Dana 70 are massive. I asked the seller to remove them so shipping costs would be cheaper (FYI; Final shipping weight was 298 pounds). With the drums gone I decided to do a disk brake swap.

First you’ll have to remove the axle shaft. Simply take off the bolts that go into the hub and slide out the shaft. These are torqued VERY tightly, if it’s not on a vehicle, you will have to rig up a way to hold the pinion down, or get a heavy friend to help. (Some of my studs were already removed a while back when I was planning this)

Next you’ll have to pull off the hub from the axle. Do this by using your fancy hub tool to take off the nut. Or, just use a chisel (When tightening it back down, I recommend getting the tool to set proper preload).

I picked up some disk brake brackets from Great Lake Off road for about 55$ shipped. Upon getting them and all the other parts I learned I needed some spacers to position the caliper correctly.


Next came the expensive part. All Rotors and calipers came off a 1977 K20 front axle. They are commonly available at any auto parts store. I highly suggest just getting a set of loaded calipers. I got mine for $44, and you’ll have to eat the 20$ core charge. They come with the caliper pins (which run about 8$ a pop!) pads and the caliper itself. This is much cheaper than piecing it together. Brake Rotors ran me $45 each (No core charge). Total was somewhere around $220. Now came the fun!

First was the job of painstakingly pounding out all the studs.



Next, put the rotor on the back of the hub, and pound the studs back through. This is not as easy as removing them since the holes on the rotor are not splined like the studs and hub.



When you are done; it will look like this



Now reinstall the hub and rotor back onto the axle; Using your 35$ socket. Or not (I chose not since this will not be run for a long while)



Here is the caliper, out of the box and ready to go with all required parts



Now remove the pins from the caliper, slide it over the rotor, line up with the holes on your bracket, and bolt it up. Hopefully you’ve gotten any necessary spacers, and everything lines up well, like this.



Now repeat for the other side, and you have a disk brake equipped Dana 70 axle. Disk brakes are lighter, more compact, easier to maintain and actually work when wet. This is no doubt an excellent upgrade.

Before I called it a day, I had to make sure my wheels of choice fit on it (Of course I was pretty sure, but nothing beats seeing it on there!)



What you see is a stock Hummer rim, 16.5” wheel with 7” of Backspacing, with plenty of clearance. A 16” wheel would also probably be fine. 15” wheels have been run, but you would likely have to grind down the outside of the caliper, which seems like a poor idea to me.

In hindsight I would recommend painting the caliper. I thought it just had a gunmetal finish, but it was bare metal and now needs some wire wheel action.

So there you have it, under 300$ for some high quality disk brakes! It will surely have no problem stopping any size tire the Dana 70 can hold onto.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Also I would like to crimp the drip edge on the top of my cab, here are some photos I found on this web site, has anyone done this and is there anything I should look out for when I do it too mine?

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

My concern with a 1990 vintage rear end would be it being too wide for these older trucks. I do know that the '88-'98 pickup 1/2 ton rear ends are about 4" wider than the '63-'70 1/2 ton rear ends. I assume you did check that out? The Dana rear ends have the series number in the casting at the lower left or right of the cover.

Yes upgrading the full floater rear ends to disc brakes is very common among the off road crowd. There are a few places to purchase the caliper brackets for doing so. Keep in mind that your master cylinder and proportioning valve will need to be changed when converting from disc/drums to disc/disc's

Shaving the drip rail has been done by a few members here. The cab in those pics is Strodders, cab. If I remember correctly he showed some step by step pics in his build thread. That is located in the 'Projects and Builds' section here....http://www.67-72chevytrucks.com/vboa...d.php?t=327644

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

[QUOTE=Captainfab;4903514]My concern with a 1990 vintage rear end would be it being too wide for these older trucks. I do know that the '88-'98 pickup 1/2 ton rear ends are about 4" wider than the '63-'70 1/2 ton rear ends. I assume you did check that out? The Dana rear ends have the series number in the casting at the lower left or right of the cover.

Yes upgrading the full floater rear ends to disc brakes is very common among the off road crowd. There are a few places to purchase the caliper brackets for doing so. Keep in mind that your master cylinder and proportioning valve will need to be changed when converting from disc/drums to disc/disc's

Shaving the drip rail has been done by a few members here. The cab in those pics is Strodders, cab. If I remember correctly he showed some step by step pics in his build thread. That is located in the 'Projects and Builds' section here....http://www.67-72chevytrucks.com/vboa...d.php?t=327644[/QUOTE

Thank you for the help I will check that out.
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Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

Does anyone have assemblies drawings for the a arms.
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Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

I've got a quick question for you Cap.,
I'm swappin my BB V-6 (305E) for another one...(351E)....and also losing the SM420 for a TH400.
In my case, I'm working on a K1000 instead of a C series.
I'll be sliding the engine & tranny into it tomorrow....I think.
I have a good auto tranny cross member and it looks like everything will clear the manual cross member, albeit close.
It looks like in my case....(rear of the front leaf spring hangers) the original cross member is a lot more important structurally.
I was thinkin I'd leave it.......as I can't tell for sure if there are any clearance issues 'till I actually get her in there.
Your thoughts.....?

PS: If you have no thoughts on this one.....I'll let you know how it goes after I find out myself.

BTW....Budman.....
That thing just sparkles....I love it.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20
 

I agree with your thinking that the bellhousing crossmember adds support to the rear/front spring hangers. While this certainly sounds like a good thing, the later model K series trucks that came from the factory with an auto trans did not have that crossmember, which did not seem to have any adverse affects. When I get around to building my 4x4 Suburban, I will not have that crossmember in there. IMO it is just in the way for access to bolting up the torque converter, and running the exhaust.

Re: here's my truck 65 c20 Update 9/18/11
 

Finally got my baby to a roller, got my front disc brake kit install and the rear axle powder coated and installed. Im just a little closer to having her running..