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Old 08-25-2013, 08:12 AM   #26
NC_John
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Yesterday was a HUGE day for Blu. Second only to when I brought it/her home. (seems to have too many nuts to be a she but I'd rather call it a she than a he)

I fitted and installed the carpet. Cleaned and installed the seatbelts. Carpet looks good. I put in some nice shiny new doorsills from GMCPaul that fit really nice. Holes lined up perfectly. (the originals were just too rough to put back in with the new carpet).



Then, to my wife's joy, Steve C (local forum member) came over and helped me put the bench seat back in the truck. This is the first time I'd been able to sit in the truck since I brought it home. I forgot how small it was. Steve was laughing. The cab is tiny. I may have to turn this into an extended cab just to get some leg room.

Then............we took it for a ride. First maiden voyage- I had only driven it onto and off the trailer and into the garage. Never left first gear... My wife was good with Steve coming along as she hasn't seen the truck drive yet either and was skeptical over whether or not we'd make it back alive.

The truck did great. The transmission functioned properly, shifter was good, clutch needs adjustment (all the friction zone seems to be way too high on the pedal). Brakes were........ well........ no power brakes so lets just say it stopped. (I haven't mentioned it on the thread but I did check the brakes right out. New drums on the back, fronts just turned, new shoes all around, new lines, I cleaned everything and inspected it, the brake fluid looks new, nice and clear and it has decent pedal). I've never driven anything without power brakes so I think this'll take some getting used to. Even my '67 Camaro had PB. The suspension was really, really soft, especially since this truck is spec'd with the optional heavy duty coils, front and rear. Needs shocks, too bouncy and the steering wandered just a little - I'll have to see if I can tighten it up a tad in the steering gear box. Steering wheel (that goofy Camaro wheel) isn't mounted straight. Its nearly 180 degrees out which is annoying....

Gauges all worked, speedo worked fine. Got up to temp normally (no leaks anywhere), oil pressure was normal on the gauge..

The exhaust is little annoying- its got factory manifolds (including one I had to replace) and dual exhaust (wimpy looking 2") but no mufflers- its got some kind of weird resonating tubes I've never seen before- they are too long to be glasspacks. (this pic shows the additional rot I found on the cab corner expediting its replacement)



Its not obnoxiously loud, but on decel there can be quite a bit of popping out the back at higher RPM (downshifting), it sounds like my harley. New exhaust with some decent mufflers (I like dynomax) is on the short list.

Anyway, we drove around town for about 30 minutes showing each other all the C series trucks we knew were in the immediate area. Stopped it a few times. Got gas.... It ran good.



The clutch pedal was sticking to the floor a bit so I lubed it up when we got back to the garage. I thought that fixed it but it didn't. It must be binding up somewhere so I have to find where.

I took it out again last night to church and it ran great there - my 7 yr old rode shotgun and loved it. Then after church we went out to dinner. On that drive it started acting up - it stalled twice and didn't want to start (both times in intersections of course). Then it didn't want to start when we left the restaurant for home. I think the float is sticking in the carb. It has a "new" reman quadrajet on it but it sat for about 9 months so the bet is everything is gummed up and sticking. I'll get a few cans of carb cleaner and a rebuild kit and go through it. I found some oil underneath it this morning and it looks like the rear main. Nuts. Not something I can do a temp fix on until I pull the engine out this fall/winter to rebuild. I'll have to keep a cookie sheet with me for when I park in friend's driveways! A small broom and dustpan for all the rust that falls out when I slam the doors too! Seriously, if I have to keep slamming the doors the way I do, I'm getting different brand seals.

Anyway- she is rolling so that kicks ass. I have the driver that I was after. Now I can put some miles on it and let her tell me what she needs.
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Old 08-25-2013, 08:31 AM   #27
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Sweet man, I love it. Well done, interior carpet looks great.
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Old 08-25-2013, 08:40 AM   #28
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

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Sweet man, I love it. Well done, interior carpet looks great.
Thanks, it came out pretty good.

Now that its rolling, it desperately needs a static drop to change both the altitude and attitude of the truck. Right now it still looks like a ratty old farm truck. A nice drop will instantly make it a cool old truck.
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Old 08-25-2013, 08:45 AM   #29
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Congrats on the drive. Sounds like after a little tinkering she'll be ready for years of loyalty. The carpet looks fantastic too. Any necessary tips you can share sinse you beat me to the carpet?
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Old 08-25-2013, 03:50 PM   #30
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

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Yesterday was a HUGE day for Blu. Second only to when I brought it/her home. (seems to have too many nuts to be a she but I'd rather call it a she than a he)

I fitted and installed the carpet. Cleaned and installed the seatbelts. Carpet looks good. I put in some nice shiny new doorsills from GMCPaul that fit really nice. Holes lined up perfectly. (the originals were just too rough to put back in with the new carpet).



Then, to my wife's joy, Steve C (local forum member) came over and helped me put the bench seat back in the truck. This is the first time I'd been able to sit in the truck since I brought it home. I forgot how small it was. Steve was laughing. The cab is tiny. I may have to turn this into an extended cab just to get some leg room.

Then............we took it for a ride. First maiden voyage- I had only driven it onto and off the trailer and into the garage. Never left first gear... My wife was good with Steve coming along as she hasn't seen the truck drive yet either and was skeptical over whether or not we'd make it back alive.

The truck did great. The transmission functioned properly, shifter was good, clutch needs adjustment (all the friction zone seems to be way too high on the pedal). Brakes were........ well........ no power brakes so lets just say it stopped. (I haven't mentioned it on the thread but I did check the brakes right out. New drums on the back, fronts just turned, new shoes all around, new lines, I cleaned everything and inspected it, the brake fluid looks new, nice and clear and it has decent pedal). I've never driven anything without power brakes so I think this'll take some getting used to. Even my '67 Camaro had PB. The suspension was really, really soft, especially since this truck is spec'd with the optional heavy duty coils, front and rear. Needs shocks, too bouncy and the steering wandered just a little - I'll have to see if I can tighten it up a tad in the steering gear box. Steering wheel (that goofy Camaro wheel) isn't mounted straight. Its nearly 180 degrees out which is annoying....

Gauges all worked, speedo worked fine. Got up to temp normally (no leaks anywhere), oil pressure was normal on the gauge..

The exhaust is little annoying- its got factory manifolds (including one I had to replace) and dual exhaust (wimpy looking 2") but no mufflers- its got some kind of weird resonating tubes I've never seen before- they are too long to be glasspacks. (this pic shows the additional rot I found on the cab corner expediting its replacement)



Its not obnoxiously loud, but on decel there can be quite a bit of popping out the back at higher RPM (downshifting), it sounds like my harley. New exhaust with some decent mufflers (I like dynomax) is on the short list.

Anyway, we drove around town for about 30 minutes showing each other all the C series trucks we knew were in the immediate area. Stopped it a few times. Got gas.... It ran good.



The clutch pedal was sticking to the floor a bit so I lubed it up when we got back to the garage. I thought that fixed it but it didn't. It must be binding up somewhere so I have to find where.

I took it out again last night to church and it ran great there - my 7 yr old rode shotgun and loved it. Then after church we went out to dinner. On that drive it started acting up - it stalled twice and didn't want to start (both times in intersections of course). Then it didn't want to start when we left the restaurant for home. I think the float is sticking in the carb. It has a "new" reman quadrajet on it but it sat for about 9 months so the bet is everything is gummed up and sticking. I'll get a few cans of carb cleaner and a rebuild kit and go through it. I found some oil underneath it this morning and it looks like the rear main. Nuts. Not something I can do a temp fix on until I pull the engine out this fall/winter to rebuild. I'll have to keep a cookie sheet with me for when I park in friend's driveways! A small broom and dustpan for all the rust that falls out when I slam the doors too! Seriously, if I have to keep slamming the doors the way I do, I'm getting different brand seals.

Anyway- she is rolling so that kicks ass. I have the driver that I was after. Now I can put some miles on it and let her tell me what she needs.
Looking really good. Nice work.

What's this about the cab being small though? Do you have your bench seat all the way back against the tank? I'm 6' 270 with broad shoulders and long legs, and fit just fine with the stock bench and steering wheel/column. If you need belly room, I've heard of guys pulling the steering column in towards the engine. You might just be comparing it to modern trucks, that are SUV's with a small bed. Don't do that. Appreciate it for what it is.

Also, I meant to post this photo on this page, but mistakenly added it to a different page. I saw this car yesterday at a car show. I think your truck would look great clear coated


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Old 08-25-2013, 05:52 PM   #31
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

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Congrats on the drive. Sounds like after a little tinkering she'll be ready for years of loyalty. The carpet looks fantastic too. Any necessary tips you can share sinse you beat me to the carpet?
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I lined up the carpet on the drivers side first- against the side of the cab, and had my wife hold it in place while I stretched it out to the other side to make sure it was over far enough. When I confirmed it was centered OK, I put the driver side door sill plate in to fix the carpet in place. Then I stretched it all the way over to the passenger side tightly and then put that door sill in. I found my seat bolt holes with a screwdriver from underneath the cab (which might be a problem on yours as low as it is). The mold of the carpet fit over the shape of the floor pretty good. It's a little wrinkled over the trans hump which is disappointing but its not too bad. Other than the gas pedal not fitting over the ball studs now there weren't any real issues.
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Old 08-25-2013, 05:55 PM   #32
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

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Looking really good. Nice work.

What's this about the cab being small though? Do you have your bench seat all the way back against the tank? I'm 6' 270 with broad shoulders and long legs, and fit just fine with the stock bench and steering wheel/column. If you need belly room, I've heard of guys pulling the steering column in towards the engine. You might just be comparing it to modern trucks, that are SUV's with a small bed. Don't do that. Appreciate it for what it is.

Also, I meant to post this photo on this page, but mistakenly added it to a different page. I saw this car yesterday at a car show. I think your truck would look great clear coated

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No belly problems but I'm 6'-6" and there just isn't much leg room.... Its alright, I'm not planning on any cross-country trips with it.

That bug does look cool!
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Old 08-25-2013, 06:18 PM   #33
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

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No belly problems but I'm 6'-6" and there just isn't much leg room.... Its alright, I'm not planning on any cross-country trips with it.

That bug does look cool!
Lol. Ok, 6'6"... You get a pass to say the interior is small
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Old 09-02-2013, 08:31 AM   #34
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Been working on the truck whenever I have time- been travelling a lot for work..

Here's the latest (nothing really picture-worthy), mostly mickey-mouse type of stuff:

Gave up on the quadrajet (the donor carb was junk and corroded beyond being of any use, even after soaking for a week in carb cleaner) and bought an edelbrock 600 cfm, vac secondaries, electric choke. Autozone had the carb in stock and it was supposed to be a direct fit but I start reading through the book at home and discover I need an adapter plate for it to mount on the stock intake which of course needs to be ordered. Grrr.. so the truck will sit for the weekend.

I took the time to finish cleaning the backside of the intake and engine and got it detailed pretty good. Nothing but bare cast iron and what's left of the original chevy orange paint now.

I installed the window seals on the passenger side. Much easier. The driver's side was learning side and was a PITA. The passenger side went it in less than half the time and with a minimum of profanity. I am still having to slam the doors with ridiculous force to get them closed. If this keeps up I am trying a different seal. This is embarrassing and unnecessarily beating the heck out of the truck.

I had to drill out one of the bottom screws on the door panels on each side (seized and then stripped the head, even with the impact driver). The driver side drilled out clean and the nut was re-useable. Not so lucky on the passenger side- In the battle to get the screw out, the nut welded/tacked to the backside of the door skin came loose. I need to "glue" a nut on the backside maybe to snug a screw in there. I got replacement screws from LMC. I also got some escutcheons for the door handles and window cranks. They seem to work well but look goofy- they look like big plastic donuts with an odd shade of blue. I'm keeping them on for now as they eliminate any door rattles (important with all the door slamming!) but will get something else when I go to black panels. So for now, the doors are freshened up and done.

I bought an aftermarket lap belt from LMC so I can go three wide on the bench. It doesn't look factory but will do the job for now. Got black too, as that is the way the interior is going so its mismatched, but oh well. It was a PITA to install with the bench seat in, even with my gorilla length arms.

I got my headlight bezels painted flat black. Look nice.... Makes the grill look older... Cleaned up my grounds on the headlight wiring. One side was loose. Headlights are both coming on with full brightness now. Check that off the list.

I drilled out, tapped and replaced by gas pedal ball studs. I got the spacing too far off (it was tough to drill out the broken screws) so I had to elongate one of the holes and put a nut on the other side of the firewall. I spaced up the studs with some washers to compensate for the added thickness of the new carpet and underpad and the pedal seems to be good now.

I'm using my tap and die set a lot on this truck... Glad I have a good one (MAC Tools kit).

Finally yesterday I made an attempt to change the transmission tailsection extension gasket and rear seal. Everything came apart easy except I quickly learned that the tailsection will not come off the tranny body without opening it up (should have googled that first dang-it). Bolted it all back up and refilled it with new gear oil. I hope the gasket that is in there doesn't leak worse now or that tranny has to come out. Bummer... The factory service manual isn't very helpful for this truck. There is very little detail or even mention of most jobs I have had to do. I hate to say it but I might need to get the chiltons book too.

I am running out of these basic maintenance/road worthiness issues to do on the truck (not even sure what to do on it today- my wife is shocked). I need to start driving it....

I think I'll drill out my factory air cleaner today. I am going to retain it to keep everything looking stock but want better airflow so I am going to drill out the bottom and the firewall side to open it up.
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Old 09-11-2013, 08:27 PM   #35
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Not much going on with the truck lately- been working on the driveability and getting the bugs out. I gave up on the quadrajet and put on an edelbrock carb. As soon as the carb got fuel the truck fired up and ran great. The first test drive (picking up my little guy from after-school care) went great with no problems. I got brave that evening and took the truck out to a church event. Ran fine there. Not so good coming back. On the drive home it started popping and farting under load. I'd have to back off the go-pedal and let it clear then go again. It kept getting worse and worse until it finally died a mile from the house. Crank-crank-crank but not even trying to fire.

I got a buddy to tow me back to the house with his suburban (at least it was another chevy). Starting fluid wouldn't do anything so that told me I had an ignition problem. I had 12V at the distributor (HEI) but nothing at the plugs. I guessed the coil was gone so pulled the cap to remove it. I figured I'd inspect the rest. Underneath the rotor was complete crap. Corrosion everywhere. The mechanical advance was seized from rust, the vacuum advance wasn't working. I'm surprised it ran as well as it did as long as it did. The previous owner put a new cap, rotor and wires on a distributor that was completely shot.

It was so far gone I just ordered a new one from Jegs. Should be at the house when I get back from this work trip and we'll see what's next.... I'm going to be nervous about going out in it without a chase vehicle (my wife) for a little while.

Oh well, that's why I got it- to work on it. I just wasn't planning on so much exercise from pushing it so much (off the road, in and out of the garage....)
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Old 09-11-2013, 08:28 PM   #36
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

And hey- good news! My custom painter buddy saw the truck and said they could match the patina when I replace the rockers and cab corners. He's got a satin clear that he says will preserve the existing finish without adding any shine. Sounds like a winner.....
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Old 09-15-2013, 04:40 PM   #37
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

New distributor is on. Once I had the timing right (its been a longggg time since I did a distributor swap and I was out too many teeth), it fired right up. I got brave and took the truck out and it ran good. I thought I heard some pinging under load so I checked the manual for the timing spec (I had put it at 8 degrees when I set it). Factory spec for my engine is 0 degrees so I backed it down to 2 and its much better. Fixed an exhaust leak off the RS manifold and quieted that down. Went for another ride today and apart from finding a minor fuel leak at the pump fittings, all was good.

I drilled out my factory air cleaner everywhere its not visible (back side by the firewall and underneath) to improve air flow but still look stock. I spent way too much time wetsanding it with 400 paper and spray bombed it with Plastikote Hot Rod Black Lacquer. It came out pretty good. I need to get some factory decals to finish it off. Having some new parts on there is making me anxious to pull the engine, freshen it up internally and really make it look purty under the hood.

I'm going to keep driving it now, get it reliable enough to go anywhere, anytime and just work on little things here and there. I have to slow down the spending for a bit until I am sure I won't need any more mechanical stuff. Like said elsewhere on the board. I don't want to be a dumbass and blow my budget on new marker light lenses and decals only to have something else go on the engine. I'm starting a big, extended duration project next week at work where I can bank some extra money that will go towards lowering with spindles, coils and blocks.



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Old 09-21-2013, 01:42 PM   #38
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

The latest.... Chased after a misfire/stumble under load with a set of new wires and plugs this morning. Ran the wires behind the manifolds. It was a huge pain in the rump but looks great finished. Still a bit of a bird nest up by the distributor (why don't the wires ever come in the proper length?) but I think I can straighten it out some more. Need to replace that crappy looking temporary fuel line and the vacuum advance hose now.





Test drove it and its running PERFECT. Nice and smooth throughout the RPM range in all three gears. If it didn't leak oil as much as it does I would leave it alone and just drive it.

Next step is to back off the parts spending a bit and just drive it. I've got about a hundred miles on it now since the last problem so maybe I've got the bugs worked out. I'm starting a major power plant outage tomorrow that will have me out of town for weeks but will give me a chance to bank a bunch of extra money. Money to lower it or get ready for the rebuild. Maybe some of both...
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Old 09-26-2013, 09:09 AM   #39
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Cool looking truck. I like the idea of keeping the patina like it is.
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Old 09-26-2013, 09:56 PM   #40
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Nice base to start with!! Looks super clean!!
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Old 09-26-2013, 10:13 PM   #41
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

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Cool looking truck. I like the idea of keeping the patina like it is.
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Nice base to start with!! Looks super clean!!
Thanks guys. I'm hoping to put some miles on it this weekend....
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Old 09-26-2013, 10:16 PM   #42
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

I'd convert it to a Gmc personally
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Old 09-27-2013, 11:15 AM   #43
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Man, I love the truck. I have a 68 stepside with the same color blue interior with a darker blue outside. What color are you going to paint it. Your exhaust is a very high dollar chambered exhaust from a High perf Camaro or chevelle 68 or 69. Never seen it on a truck. If it is not rusted you might want to save it or sell it to someone who needs it for a restoration. You might look it up at year one or some other Camaro resto parts place and see what they sell for. If you get up near Asheville with it let me know and we will get coffee or lunch or something and compare notes.

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Old 09-27-2013, 10:46 PM   #44
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

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Man, I love the truck. I have a 68 stepside with the same color blue interior with a darker blue outside. What color are you going to paint it. Your exhaust is a very high dollar chambered exhaust from a High perf Camaro or chevelle 68 or 69. Never seen it on a truck. If it is not rusted you might want to save it or sell it to someone who needs it for a restoration. You might look it up at year one or some other Camaro resto parts place and see what they sell for. If you get up near Asheville with it let me know and we will get coffee or lunch or something and compare notes.

Mika
Thanks. I have no plans to paint it (for now at least). It took 43 years to get the paint this cool so I want to leave it for a while. Maybe freshen it up later. Maybe....

I'm surprised to hear that about the exhaust- they're marked "Turbo Tubes." When I was trying to find out where they came from I found these guys:

http://www.classicchambered.com/

I don't really like them very much. I guess I need to hear them on a drive-by. Not too loud though and there is a really funny "blat-blat-blat-blat" when you shift at high rpm. Kind of like a Harley when the engine revs down. My 7 year old loves it. They're mounted too low on the truck- they should have been tucked up much higher. The installer really didn't care how they looked I guess.

I don't head up to the mountains much unless I'm on the bike. You should come down for the meet & greet Liz is setting up this way next month.
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Old 10-06-2013, 03:32 PM   #45
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Just been driving Blu on weekends (when I'm in town). Got a few more tanks of gas through her incident/tow free. The truck is running really nice and its a real pleasure to drive around in it. Its just fun. Its seems to be set up with the 3-spd and 3.07 rear for for country backroads- 50-60 mph. No hurry- just moseying along. It just runs real nice there without seeming to have to work.

Went to Dixie Truck Works with forum-buddy Steve Cole yesterday and got a great score- I found a '68 intake manifold in great shape for $40.



This is one of the parts I've been hunting for to get ready for my engine work. Now I just need to find a pair of the 60's Chevrolet scripted valve covers. Orange Truck has got a pair of steel ones for $139 that might do the trick.

I've still been tinkering a bit. I replaced the side marker light lenses to freshen them up. I'll get my heater controls next week from my Saturday trip to Dixie ($85 for a real nice looking repro). I found 6-lug chevy rally's (also at Orange Truck parts) for $89 each. I think I'll go with 15X7's on the front and 15x8's on the back with the early 1967 center cap.

I'm still fighting the door weatherstripping- it still takes a real hard slam to close the doors. The drivers side is aggravating me- I can't get the door lock to work with the door closed. It works perfectly with the door open (by key or knob) and with the door closed and weather stripping out. But with the weatherstripping and door closed it won't properly lock. I completely disassembled it yesterday, cleaned and lubed everything...still no joy. I just can't find the sweet spot on the adjustment to get it to work.

Other than the door lock, its fun now- I'm just driving it around not sinking a lot of money into it. More money for gas than parts right now. I've got some high dollar projects coming- engine, lowering, wheels.... but I'm not blowing money on repair parts for the time being (which is good because my 02 Tahoe had to get a new fuel pump last week . ) Life is good!
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Old 12-09-2013, 09:21 AM   #46
Sarg
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Hey neighbor the truck looks great! Just down the road from you in Albemarle. The next time you go to Dixie Truck Works look me up and stop by (I am only 10 min. from them). I would love to see your truck in person. All the hard work you have done is starting to pay off. I also have been working on an old long bed truck.
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Old 12-09-2013, 02:37 PM   #47
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Quote:
Originally Posted by Sarg View Post
Hey neighbor the truck looks great! Just down the road from you in Albemarle. The next time you go to Dixie Truck Works look me up and stop by (I am only 10 min. from them). I would love to see your truck in person. All the hard work you have done is starting to pay off. I also have been working on an old long bed truck.
LOL- if you want to see my truck in person you need to come over and look at the pile of parts! I'm in the middle of an engine build which might turn into some body work too while it is down. A three day job morphed into a three week job and I am going to try desperately not to let it be a three MONTH job.

I'll surely be at Dixie again before too long but it won't be in Blu!

"I used to have an old truck. Now I have a bunch of old truck parts."
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Old 12-22-2013, 04:47 PM   #48
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

Hey y'all.....long time, no update.

I've done a bunch of small stuff (refurbed by gauge cluster) and some bigger stuff (lowered it 3" in the front and rear with springs).

Here it is with just the front done:



Now I'm into the BIG stuff. I decided that over the Thanksgiving holiday I was going to pull the engine, reseal it, change the timing set and oil pump, paint it and put it back in....

I ended up taking the entire front clip off to make the engine removal process easy.



Tugging out the small block and Saginaw....



And ready for cleaning and teardown....

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Old 12-22-2013, 04:53 PM   #49
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

I spent a lot of time doing pre-cleaning on the engine before I started tear-down...



With the front clip removed the truck is all set for some more cleaning....



I spent a few more hours on it with a 3,800 psi pressure washer, copious amounts of degreaser and toothbrushes.



With that done it was time to start disassembling the engine to see what I'm working with...

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Old 12-22-2013, 05:03 PM   #50
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Re: 1970 C10 LWB "Blu"

I was doing pretty good keeping on the plan until my Dad talked me into pulling the heads to see what the valves looked like and to change out the valve seals. "What's a set of head gaskets cost- nothing!" he said.



Everything looked really good and it was obvious that I was the first one inside the engine. No signs of anybody else ever cracking it open.



I decided since I had it this far apart it would be stupid to not rebuild it properly. It's too much work to do this again in another year or two. I stripped it right down to the bare block.



And made a big pile of parts in the garage....

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