85 GMC Sierra Classic 1 Ton Crew Cab

[1985-GMC]

Looks great man! Are you making your engine cross member after you box in that area, and are you going to sleeve the shock bolts like that too?

[Mattman2010]

Originally Posted by 1985-GMC

Looks great man! Are you making your engine cross member after you box in that area, and are you going to sleeve the shock bolts like that too?

Yes, the cross member will be put in after the frame is boxed. I am just going to weld the cross member in. As for the shocks I just welded the nut inside the frame.

[Mattman2010]

So today I got a few more boxed pieces made for the frame. Also welded all the nuts to the frame for my front body/spring mounts. Not going to final weld the stuff in till I get my bushings from Diy4x for the front shackles.



Shop is starting to get messy again. Probably need to clean up soon.

[Dieselwrencher]

It isn't messy enough yet. You need at least one more truck strung all over in there. Hehe! Keep up the good work!

[Car'n'Guitars]

I wish I had that much space to work with.

[Mattman2010]

Originally Posted by Dieselwrencher

It isn't messy enough yet. You need at least one more truck strung all over in there. Hehe! Keep up the good work!

Haha that's not even all the stuff I have. We also have sides of the shed and I think I have two trucks worth of parts stuffed over there lol
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[Mattman2010]

Originally Posted by Car'n'Guitars

I wish I had that much space to work with.

It's nice but then you start to collect to many parts...
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[1985-GMC]

Too many parts, psshh no such thing...

[Mattman2010]

That's what I thought but I'm running out of room
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[Mattman2010]

This weekend I picked up some new bucket seats with a matching center console. They are out of a newer gm truck. Not exactly sure on the year but they seem to fit great in my truck. Just gotta get them mounted and they should be good to go. They sit a little high, but I am 6'4" and it seems to be fine for me.



Might get the frame done this weekend if I have the parts I need by then.

[Dieselwrencher]

Nice score on the seats! Hey, at least you can start your engine.

[Mattman2010]

Originally Posted by Dieselwrencher

Nice score on the seats! Hey, at least you can start your engine.

Maybe haha, last time i started it it shut down and wouldnt start. I dont think the fuel pump was pulling fuel. I tried to pump it a few times but it didnt want to suck up any diesel or something. Not really worried about it right now cause it does me no good running while on the shop floor

[Dieselwrencher]

You've had it for what? like 7-8 weeks and you already broke it? Dang kids!

[Mattman2010]

I've had it less than that lol. Last time I started it was like 3 weeks ago. We might have to build another motor sooner than I thought! Lol!
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[Mattman2010]

Well today I got my diy4x bushings for the front shackles. Looks like they will do just what I want and will really beef up the front some.

Outside pic


Inside

Boxing plate is just sat in there for mocking. I had to push the plate that goes around this bushing in a 1/4 of an inch to be able to weld the dom tube to it. So there will be a little lip right there instead of it being flush. Hoping to get those welded up some time this week and get the frame done.

[Mattman2010]

Well I finally got these welded into the frame. Looks like they are going to beef this up a lot.

[Dieselwrencher]

Is that a caterpillar on your frame?




































Just joking man! It's looking great. Now you need thicker shackle bars because they look puney. Haha

[Mattman2010]

Originally Posted by Dieselwrencher

Is that a caterpillar on your frame?


Just joking man! It's looking great. Now you need thicker shackle bars because they look puney. Haha

I'm looking at getting 2 inch longer shackles from diy4x and getting an ez inch as well. So they will get some beef too. They might still look small tho!
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[Mattman2010]

Well tonight I finally finished boxing in the frame. Hoping to get the cab back on tomorrow.

[1985-GMC]

I bet you're glad to get that over with! Are you going to spray some paint on it before you put the cab back on?

Also how many holes are in the low portion of the frame for draining? And I'm really interested in how rigid that made it, have you jacked one tire off the ground yet? Man i'm just full of questions aren't I?

[Mattman2010]

Originally Posted by 1985-GMC

I bet you're glad to get that over with! Are you going to spray some paint on it before you put the cab back on?

Also how many holes are in the low portion of the frame for draining? And I'm really interested in how rigid that made it, have you jacked one tire off the ground yet? Man i'm just full of questions aren't I?

No because the cab will be coming back off and sense I am welding the engine cross member into the frame I am just going wait to paint it.

Whatever holes are factory in the bottom of the frame are the number of holes for draining haha. Ill flex it out with the tractor once I get the engine cross member welded into the frame for ya!

[1985-GMC]

Alright sweet!

[Mattman2010]

Oh yeah, I am kinda glad its over so that I can move on to mounting the motor. But I really enjoy working with metal and welding so it was actually kinda fun. At first it seemed like a pain in the butt, but after getting the first couple pieces cut and fitted I got the hang of it and all the other pieces basically just fell into place. This thing is going to weight a lot by the time im done. I think i added close to 200 - 250 lbs just from those pieces in the frame. And I still have to build a cross member for motor trans mission and trasfercase (Thinking about supporting the transfercase as it hangs behind the transmission a lot) and build a bumper out of some 1/4 steel (stupid other drivers and deer)

[Mattman2010]

Got the cab back on tonight.



That is my dad in the pic, he has been helping me with all of this. You can see my A frame in the pic that I extended 3 feet to make it be able to pick the cab up.


Another view.

[Mattman2010]

I did decided to lower the motor into the frame to try to get an idea of what kind of room I have.

Looks like I will have quite a bit of room to work with. I plan on running two electric fans so I should have some room to play with.