Project "Financial Burden": 1968 SWB C10

[Low Elco]

Nice tight work. I'd like to see how that purge box works.

[Old_Truck_Fan]

I finished welding the turbo flanges on the exhaust manifolds. The aluminum block worked nice for both back purging and as a heat sink. With the factory heat shields installed they turned out nice.

[Old_Truck_Fan]

I was struggling with the fit of the inner fenders. I bought another "brand" but still had similar results on the driver side. If I bolted it to the fender lip then everything else was off 1/4 inch and it rubbed on the steering shaft. If I bolted it to everything else then the fender lip was off 1/4 inch. I slotted the holes significantly on the first set and I was just not happy. So this time I got more aggressive and just cut the fender lip off, bolted everything together, scribed an intersect line, removed about 1/4 inch, and welded the pieces back together. Now all the bolts go in without issue. Seems some people can just throw the aftermarket inner fenders on while others (like me) fight to get good alignment. The second inner fender on the passenger side actually fit a little better and will just require minor tweaking. The driver side fender is original and the passenger side is NOS. Just part of the game getting everything to fit just right.

[TA_C10]

Nice work. I found with my repop inners similar results. I found the best for me was 2 bolts first in front core(left loose), then the large upper bolt to cab(left loose), then install outer fender loose, then attach inner to outer starting with the 2 bolts at top of inner fender(vertical bolts). Those 2 vertical bolt holes where what was really off and made everything suck so they got the die grinder a couple times. Then after that once I had them installed I found the inner fenders stuck out too much from outer fender. Had to trim(grind) that lip down to match outer fender.

Ton of work I know, and I bet they are different for every truck. But I must say, looks like you did the best fix your way, its the right way to fix these things for the best fit.

[Old_Truck_Fan]

Originally Posted by TA_C10

Nice work. I found with my repop inners similar results. I found the best for me was 2 bolts first in front core(left loose), then the large upper bolt to cab(left loose), then install outer fender loose, then attach inner to outer starting with the 2 bolts at top of inner fender(vertical bolts). Those 2 vertical bolt holes where what was really off and made everything suck so they got the die grinder a couple times. Then after that once I had them installed I found the inner fenders stuck out too much from outer fender. Had to trim(grind) that lip down to match outer fender.

Ton of work I know, and I bet they are different for every truck. But I must say, looks like you did the best fix your way, its the right way to fix these things for the best fit.

Hey TA_C10, thanks for the feedback, I like your install process. I was leaving the large bolt in the cab for last since that is a typical spot for shims from the factory, but I could see how that could help give some stability as you install all the other locations. I ended up in the same position as you with the two vertical fender bolts requiring large slots to get everything else to work. I would have been ok with that, but the steering shaft was rubbing on the inside cut out once all the bolts were in. I thought about reworking the steering shaft area, but I was not confident I could get the contours to match back up after I cut and shifted things. You're right that it takes a lot of work to get all these parts to come into alignment. I keep telling myself that time spent now will eliminate headaches and tears when everything goes back together in final paint.

[TA_C10]

Originally Posted by Old_Truck_Fan

I keep telling myself that time spent now will eliminate headaches and tears when everything goes back together in final paint.

Oh you keep telling yourself that, because you are so right. There are things I wish I would have done now that I'm putting my truck back together.

.

[88Stanger]

OH MY, What an AWESOME build! Just went through the entire thing, and you sir are an artist! Great job, ill be looking for more updates.

[1971Stepside]

I had the same issues with my inner fenders. I ended up just welding all the holes and drilling them where they needed to be. I have one fender/door gap that I hate and had hoped the shop would have corrected, but didn't. You will be very happy you did all this when you are in paint. It really is the difference between a 25k truck and 50k truck IMO.

[Old_Truck_Fan]

Originally Posted by 88Stanger

OH MY, What an AWESOME build! Just went through the entire thing, and you sir are an artist! Great job, ill be looking for more updates.

Thanks for the kind comments. Glad you're along for the ride.

Originally Posted by 1971Stepside

I had the same issues with my inner fenders. I ended up just welding all the holes and drilling them where they needed to be. I have one fender/door gap that I hate and had hoped the shop would have corrected, but didn't. You will be very happy you did all this when you are in paint. It really is the difference between a 25k truck and 50k truck IMO.

Welding up and drilling new holes in the correct spot is a good method too. I've had to do that on several parts as well.

[Old_Truck_Fan]

I had to make a little more clearance between my intercooler plumbing and the inner fenders. So out comes my brand new radius brake. Just a cardboard shipping tube.

[Old_Truck_Fan]

I finished up the hard lines for the condenser. I also received my custom Moser Engineering third member with 3:70 ratio, 31 spline, Truetrac differential in a thru-bolt aluminum case.

[TA_C10]

Great work. And resourceful. No interference with power steering box lines underneath fender?

Where did you pickup your A/C hardline supply?

[layinrocker65]

Awesome stuff happening in this thread

[TA_C10]

Very awesome 👍

[SkidmoreGarage]

Nice job on those pieces. I'd like to hear more about the curved turbo shield process.

How well did it hold the large radius curve? What would you do differently? It looks like the shoulder radius was hammered over the form?

[Woodnears]

Very nice use of the 3d printer. I have one as well and have made a few parts for myself so far. Interesting to see what others are doing with these machines! Nice project!

[72 tigger]

Excellent fab work

[YellowK5]

That is some nice metal work...I am guessing it is part of your daily work?..a bit better than a back yard mech.

[MONTE]

You have some crazy skills!! Keep it going.

[Old_Truck_Fan]

Thanks for the motivating comments. I appreciate it.

Originally Posted by SkidmoreGarage

Nice job on those pieces. I'd like to hear more about the curved turbo shield process.

How well did it hold the large radius curve? What would you do differently? It looks like the shoulder radius was hammered over the form?

It would have been easier to just weld the two pieces together at a 90 degree edge but I wanted the look of a stamped piece which the large radius curve helps pull off. I really like the hammer forming process. You basically sandwich a primary shape between two forms while you hammer the material over an edge to form a secondary shape. I split the two pieces along the centerline of the radius so that the shaping was even between the two halves. You could have put the full radius on just one piece but it requires a lot more shrinking to turn the corner. With enough hammering the part will conform to the form very well, so there were no issues with the part conforming to the large radius. The only thing I would have done differently is perhaps rolled the edge of the heat shield on both sides instead of just where I welded it to the mounting flange. I thought I could only assemble the shield from the rear of the turbo but it actually can be assembled from the side too. So I could have curled over the front edge instead of leaving it straight. I'll attach a few more pictures that might be helpful.

Originally Posted by Woodnears

Very nice use of the 3d printer. I have one as well and have made a few parts for myself so far. Interesting to see what others are doing with these machines! Nice project!

I've really enjoyed using my 3D printer as well. I bought it as a kit earlier this year so it was a fun process just putting it together and understanding how it works. Its been easy to use and I was able to get successful prints right out of the box. I'd recommend the PRUSA mini as a good machine for someone just getting started with one.

Originally Posted by YellowK5

That is some nice metal work...I am guessing it is part of your daily work?..a bit better than a back yard mech.

I'm a mechanical engineer but I don't get much hands on exposure at work.
All of my metal working skills have just been picked up through reading, videos, a few metal working workshops, and a lot of trail and error. I'm just a weekend warrior but I really enjoy it and try to make every part better than the last.

[Old_Truck_Fan]

I needed another distraction from wiring, so I decided to recover my bucket seats. These are from a 1971 Blazer that I found on eBay many years ago. As expected the driver side was broken down on the entrance side, but nothing an electric fillet knife, 3M super 77 spray adhesive and some new foam couldn't fix. Watching a few YouTube videos also helped. The passenger side was mint. I think they turned out pretty good for the first time giving it a go. I'd also recommend OEM Automotive Tools Hog Ring Plier set PN 25931.

[geunther]

As you already know, nice work on all of it.

[BigBird05]

What did you spray on the interior of the fire wall?

[dnd1978]

Great fab work. The only problem was on the first page where the fleet side came in. Haha. following

[Old_Truck_Fan]

Originally Posted by dnd1978

Great fab work. The only problem was on the first page where the fleet side came in. Haha. following

Ha, thanks dnd1978. You'll be happy to know I sold the step side bed to a gentleman who was changing over from a fleet side. So I haven't changed the population of step sides in the world.

I recently finished rebuilding my vent windows, refreshing all the internal door components and installing new glass. The only thing I struggled with was getting the right glass setting tape. I ordered from a few different venders, but was finally happy with the 5/64 thick tape from Bob Drake which you can get through Summit Racing. I blacked out all the vent window trim and handles. Here are a couple videos that helped me with the glass setting procedure.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUY1XXIBiiA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w9JC_8LmNJk