87 frame

[oleskool]

hey guys,
long time surfer 1st time poster. looking for a lil help if some of you dont mind. im going to look at a 61 or 62 c10 sitting on a 87 chevy truck frame. im wanting to build the truck for cruise ins and im needing to know if this is a good combo to build or are there some problems i will run into?


thanks for any help

[Captainfab]

Welcome to the forum

Been there done that.....

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=481023

This has been discussed several times. For a 2wd I do not recommend it. For a 4wd is is more workable, but I still wouldn't swap the frame. The only time I would consider swaping the frame is to get away from the '60-'62 2wd frames. And then I would only use a '63-'72 frame. The '60-'72 bodies just don't fit the '73 and up frames right. Also aside from the fitment issus, you have the possible of titling and licensing issues with a different frame VIN than your cab VIN. In some states this is not an issue, in others it can be if not done by the rules/requirements.

[padresag]

I would run the ser # on the frame to check for being clear- not stolen or written off. "perhaps" the the one who is selling it has looked after that already. ask them.
check the w/base also at either 115 or 127". a lot of these guys never shorten the frame to the proper w/b
ron

[oleskool]

not worried about titling, it is already titled in my state . i think we just use the cab VIN in my state.
will it never look rite? building a cruise in truck, (lowered on 20's, mild 350, cheap paint job ) should i stay away from the deal?

will i have problems getting the perfect stance?

thanks for all the help so far, keep em coming if u got em. im learning as i go here

[padresag]

those are just things to look for. the cab will be titled, but the frame will also have a ser# that will correspond to another truck. this will never usually come to the surface unless you get in an accident where they do an inspection as to determine fault. insurance companies look for any excuse to void coverage. where I live if a vehicle comes in from another province or from the us it has to be inspected before it can be registered here. if those nbrs don't match up , you don't make it.. if you sell the truck to someone else and if it is ever inspected, it can also come back to bite you in the b/side.
lots of stolen vehicles out there that get chopped. don't take long for a computer to pick up a bad ser # from a frame
ron

[oleskool]

so how can i tell if the body sits higher on the frame than it should? sorry for so many ?'s im new to the classic truck scene,

it does have a larger than normal gap between cab and bed but i figured some creative fab work could hide that. its just a cpl of inches. can this be done?

[Captainfab]

Did you look at the pics of the yellow truck in the link I posted? It sits about like a stock '73-'87 1/2 ton 4wd. That is a '62 body on a '74 frame......the frames are the same design from '73-'87. This is definitely not the way you should go if you are after a lowered truck. Of course it is hard to tell just what kind of job 'someone else' has dont on this truck you are looking at. You mentioned a big gap between the cab and bed.....doesn't sound good. If it were me, I would look for something else

[padresag]

the reason for the gap between cab and box is because the wheels were centred in the wheel wells where they should be. most that do this conversion have the wheels forward in the frt and behind in the rear to compensate for the longer w/base. something which you can spot readily if one is familiar with these trucks. by shortening the frame you can remedy this.
ron

[richards72chevy]

Why not just swap the front crossmember?

[padresag]

i think that the frame is already under it
ron