Mdo 69
 

Hi new to this, hope I can pull this off. I have a 69 gmc short fleet, bought it 4/2011, it had an 89 5.7 tbi with 700r4, PO couldn't get it to run, and neither could I, went to my local community college to talk to my old automotive instructor and he said, hey why dont you bring it here and work on it, take the continuing ed class at night. Good idea, I thought that was a year ago. It turned out to be a full blown resto.

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And its a GMC! YES!!!!! Great truck man

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I had a neighbor growing up that had and still has about 15 67-72 trucks, and only one was a gmc, I walked past it everyday on my way to the bus stop, and when this one was offered to me by my cousin, I had to have it.

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some pics of the frame, which im still working on, and the 5.3/4L60E I just got today.

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Hey Rudy-g ...

:welcome2: to the forums and :hi: from Ohio

:cong: on one :c2: GMC project.

Keep the pics coming :metal:

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Nice! I think u will like that motor. My silverado has the 5.3. Its ALOT heavier and still gets 16mpg.

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I had a 2000 2wd sierra and I loved the power of the 5.3 even with the 180K

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Welcome to the board. 5.3 is a good choice, and becoming a fairly cheap buy anymore. When you go to get your computer reprogrammed/tuned, I suggest going thru www.nelsonperformance.com They do great work, but if you plan on doing additional tuning, I would recommend them because they lock there computers up so no one else can steal there software. Good luck, I look forward to seeing more of this GMC. I got one myself.

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See how us GMC guys gather like flies? I love joes gmc, sweet truck!

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Yes we do... I am partial to the 4 eyed beasts.... But all will do. Thanks for the compliment, it's only to get better. I only wish I had pic's of it after I got the LT1 swap done and exhaust. I will get those taken and posted up after I get back to the states. I have many plans in the works.

Rudy-g... What all you got in mind for this 4 eyed machine? You got a nice start on it already.

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Where are you?

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Currently deployed to Afghanistan. Should be back around February.

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Thanks for bitin the bullet for us man. I was US Army 1st cav, 8th engr battalion, Ft Hood back in the day. We appreciate what u guys do. I see you

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Thanks... It has made a better person out of me.

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Turned me into an ass rippin beast as well...way back in '86. Whatever life throws at you from here on out, youll just say "whatever".

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plans for my 69, well since ive never had any experiance with body work as of right now i dont know what kind of paint i'll throw on it, if the body turns out straight i might go metallic.
as for the engine im going to try and use the stock truck manifolds right now im trying to find out which swap motor mounts i can use, i need to try and use my drive shaft since its brand new, i think i might use dirty dingo or cpp.
Once the truck is put together im going to lower it i have cpp drop coils, if im happy with how it turns out i might go with a cpp disk brake drop kit conversion.

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I suggest on your drop using drop spindles in the front, and coils in the rear. I am not sure if you are running disc brakes or not, but if not is would be a good time to convert to them.

One of the main reason I recommend using spindles for lowering is because it keeps all your factory steering components in the same locations instead of changing the geometry of them. In other wards it keeps undo stress off the components allowing them to have a longer life. It also makes the alignment process easier, and tends to stay at proper alignment longer.

When I was in Vo-Tech I spent a lot of time on the alignment machine dealing with lifted and lowered vehicles. Our instructor always harped on the effects of doing things properly when lowering and try to stay at stock specs. With lifts, he told us there isn't much you can do other than ensure your components are in good shape and get an alignment every time the tires are rotated. And believe me, I aligned a dudes truck about every 2 months for my 2 years there, always needed tuned back in.

What I am really saying, spending a little more money in the beginning will save you money over time.

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Welcome from another 4 eye Vet!
Now would be the time to drop it while everything is easy to get to and yes...drop spindles are the way to go.

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Well here another GMC junkie welcome to the forum

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thank you guys for making me feel welcome.

i would really like to lower it while its bare bones, but i just dont have the money for that just yet, maybe next summer, I will do the drop spindles and disk brake setup.

right now im trying to figure out my engine swap, I think im going to go with dirty dingo's slider mount, and mid 80s bracket a couple of members have gone this route and i believe it works good and its the cheapest. i need to use my existing drive shaft and truck exhaust manifolds
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Just a thought, what if you could take a 67 chevy grille cut it and modify it so you can put it between the 4 gmc headlights. i've had that idea in my head for a while but i dont know if the final product would look good, and I'd hate to spend the money on the 67 grille then cut it and it not look good.
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Im all for mods, but not sure about that one...I think the bezels might be too different to make it look right. And the headlights are different sizes

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welcome from Texas.....looks like you are having lots of fun with the truck. keep up the good work..it will be worth it.

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I cut up an LMC catalog and came up with this probably wouldn't work
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Looks better than I thought it would! Definitely unique. Id leave it with no emblem and let people squirm trying to figure out what kind of truck you have

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I'll keep my eyes open if I come across one of those grilles i might just try it out
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im going a little out of order, i had problems with my desktop. Here are some pics from earlier in the project when i started working on the cab.

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When I bought this truck it had a 4yr old paint job, so it looked ok, but under the new paint job were huge dents and lots of rust, had i known what I was getting into I would have not begun this project as I did.

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After lots of body work Its now ready for the wet sanding

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I had to cut out all the old patch work, and the after market parts are so crappy they dont even work with each other

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as you all can see the previous patch work sucks. I painted my frame with POR 15 black on the frame and POR 15 silver on the drive shaft and motor mounts. I went with dirty dingo adjustable brackets and the motor mount perches are from a 78 c10. i went this route because ive got $150 in that setup and has about 4 inches of adjustment

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I installed my lowering springs, they are CPP 3 and 5" drop I dont know if im going use those springs, because i dont know how low it will go. Body shop class wont start back up until mid Jan 2013. So i had to bring my cab home, the frame alone looks sexy, with the cab on it, not so much.

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I am also attemping to redu my own wiring harness, I figure whats the worst that can happen, I buy a new one, well if I pull it off i save $500+

I've been using lt1swap.com and really its not so bad, the trick is to take your time and double check and trace everything before you clip and wires.

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I ordered a 70 chevelle gas tank from Rockauto it is set up for cars equipped with later model fuel injected motors, I called the manufacturer in Canada and they said the pump is set up to work with ls type motors. The tank, straps,gas cap, and wix 33737 fuel filter, total package shipped was $434. I think it is a great deal, I hope it works.
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I'm going to do the 5 lug conversion and all wheel disc brakes with a 3,5 lowering, I'm going to use cpp parts,

I received the chevelle tank today, but it was damaged, so I sent it back.

In order to mount the tank I need to change my Trac bar due to the 5" drop,after mounting the Trac bar I will know where to mount my tank.
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heres a recent pic of the gmc, i added CPP 3" drop coils in the front the rear has 5"
I'm adding a few pics of the suspension parts im getting from CPP, I dont know if im going to stay 3/5 drop or get 3/4 since the kit comes with 2 1/2 drop spindles and what ever coils you want.
I added a picture of a sierra I came across online, I like the paint color its got, what do you guys think about it, would it look good on mine?

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set my bed one the frame, for storage, it was at my dad's house. I think im going to go a different route then CPP. I have a friend that has a short wheel base 5 lug frame with new brakes and tie rods and 373 rear end with 15x8 rally wheels with rings and centers for $500, my truck has a 307 rear end so I think getting my friends frame is my best bet.

picture is blurry, didnt wipe the dust off my phone before i took it.

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heres my chevelle tank with efi pump, I had the tank mocked up and forgot to take a pic of it, sorry.

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I picked up the 71-72 frame, its been worked on. It has been c-notched and the lower a-arms have been modified. Im only going to use the spindles, rotors, calipers, tie rods, and the rear end.
I haven't been able to work on my gas tank, because I need the bed off the frame. The only time I can work on it is when I have help getting the bed off the frame and then back on the frame. I don't want to leave the bed outside.
I hope I can get the gas tank installed and hopefully fire up the engine this weekend.