Russ the 79 c10

[Russ_the_truck79]

Im new to forums so if I'm doing something wrong make sure to tell me. got my first truck last year during summer but just now decided to create a thread. I went out and bought myself a pretty much base model 1979 c10 with an inline 6 (integrated ) and three on the tree manual. The only thing above base was the "heavy duty" suspension. long story short it lived its life on kelly's island (in lake Erie) as a handymans truck he worked on island houses and such so it only had 39,000 miles on it and wasn't drove in the winter. The owner of the matinence company sold it to the worker at some point in time who put in new front breaks, tires and some other goodies. The worker then sold it back to the owner once he was tired of the truck who then sold it to me!

[Russ_the_truck79]

I was planning on leaving it as is......... but then we (me and my dad) found out that when you turn the fan the harmonic balancer would screw in and unscrew about 1/8th inch hearing this my uncle donated another inline 250 this time however it was a non integral head and after much research and youtubing i decided to be original and keep the 6 and also to put a little skip i my step with a very mild engine rebuild id then keep the 3 on the tree souley because it is cool and it blows all my high school peers mind's that i can drive it (especially the girls . then id like to lower it 2 or 3 inches, keep original paint, and do some retromods.

[Russ_the_truck79]

One last thing. I have choosen to name it Russ because that was the handyman's name and he wrote his name above the door handle.. and it wont come off so ive decided to use it as a name tag. I also dont think trucks deserve girl names because they were built to be strong and tough i never really got why people named them after girls. Anyways ill be updating every once in a weekish

[InitialBoss]

Cool man! Welcome to the boards!! Enjoy it! Do you now the gearing on the truck by chance? My '78 used to be a 3 on the tree but my dad swapped it out for an auto. I'm still not sure why. I'm trying to figure out the rear end on mine and if it was stock. What bolt is your rear-end?

[Russ_the_truck79]

not sure how many bolts but i'm pretty sure mine is a 3.73. He probably removed it because 3 on the tree can get pretty fussy with all the linkage

[rusty76]

Welcome to the board and we look forward to seeing more on your truck. Kool truck.

[Boost2Bags]

Nice truck!

[Russ_the_truck79]

thanks guys! My dad and i will be working on it this weekend so there will be an update coming.

[rusty76]

Sweet looking forward to it.

[Russ_the_truck79]

just came home from a day of work on the truck! got a lot accomplished the engine is almost all put back together



my dads buddy brought his kids over so i had them clean up some of the engine ay grease and grime . and the -47 degree weather inspired me to insulate my cab with some very retro shag carpet ... thankfully you wont be able to see it when i re-install the seat



Me and my cousin did this a while back but i figured id share with you my solution to bench seats causing the stereo to sound muffled. I got my hands on some nice computer speakers and took them out of the casing. Then wholes were drilled in the box saudered them into the main speakers wires as the don't require much power at all and the speakers were pointed upward along with some bass ports i put in (just a fancy term for additional holes) now a lot of sound comes up through the top instead of bouncing into the seat.

[Russ_the_truck79]

Originally Posted by InitialBoss

Cool man! Welcome to the boards!! Enjoy it! Do you now the gearing on the truck by chance? My '78 used to be a 3 on the tree but my dad swapped it out for an auto. I'm still not sure why. I'm trying to figure out the rear end on mine and if it was stock. What bolt is your rear-end?

it has 3.73 gearing and it is a 12 bolt rear

[Russ_the_truck79]

also i was doing some snooping at my grandparents house (where the truck is located) and came across the exhaust tips my dad has on his 65 f*rd galaxy. they are chrome and have some nice patina which will match the truck quite nicely i plan on running duel exhaust out infront of the driver side rear tire. And once i get headers itll be true duel

[rusty76]

Cool work on the truck. We'll be looking for more. Those inlines are a lot of fun.

[79GMCSierra]

Originally Posted by Russ_the_truck79

I was planning on leaving it as is......... but then we (me and my dad) found out that when you turn the fan the harmonic balancer would screw in and unscrew about 1/8th inch hearing this my uncle donated another inline 250 this time however it was a non integral head and after much research and youtubing i decided to be original and keep the 6 and also to put a little skip i my step with a very mild engine rebuild id then keep the 3 on the tree souley because it is cool and it blows all my high school peers mind's that i can drive it (especially the girls . then id like to lower it 2 or 3 inches, keep original paint, and do some retromods.

Hey Russ the 79 c10 your project sound familiar. I'm new to this forum too and have just purchased a 79 GMC Sierra SWB Fleetside with an I6 (inter-grated head ARG!!) with 3-sp manual, converted to a floor shift.

Question for ya... what model year is the new 250 I6 that your uncle supplied. I'm looking for a non-inter-grated head also, as mine is cracked on the exhaust manifold.

Was kinda hoping reading through your thread that you might do away with the 3-on-the-tree shifter, as I'm looking for one also. But good to hear your going to keep it. I agree it's pretty cool and reminds me of the '66 Chevy SWB fleetside I had years ago.

Look forward to seeing your build!

[79GMCSierra]

P.S. found a sound box similar to the one you have pictured here, behind the seat of my truck. Too funny...

[Russ_the_truck79]

Originally Posted by 79GMCSierra

Hey Russ the 79 c10 your project sound familiar. I'm new to this forum too and have just purchased a 79 GMC Sierra SWB Fleetside with an I6 (inter-grated head ARG!!) with 3-sp manual, converted to a floor shift.

Question for ya... what model year is the new 250 I6 that your uncle supplied. I'm looking for a non-inter-grated head also, as mine is cracked on the exhaust manifold.

Was kinda hoping reading through your thread that you might do away with the 3-on-the-tree shifter, as I'm looking for one also. But good to hear your going to keep it. I agree it's pretty cool and reminds me of the '66 Chevy SWB fleetside I had years ago.

Look forward to seeing your build!

my 250 is from 1968 you can tell the year by removing the manifolds the date is cast in that spot. (im sure you can tell by the vin numbers but idk which ones matter) and yeah if you can fix the slop in the shifting i think its cooler than "three on the floor" good luck on your project

[79GMCSierra]

Originally Posted by Russ_the_truck79

my 250 is from 1968 you can tell the year by removing the manifolds the date is cast in that spot. (im sure you can tell by the vin numbers but idk which ones matter) and yeah if you can fix the slop in the shifting i think its cooler than "three on the floor" good luck on your project

Thanks for the quick response and the info!

[Russ_the_truck79]

Originally Posted by 79GMCSierra

Thanks for the quick response and the info!

anytime and just an additional tidbit... they were made from 63 to i think 72 and they did not change through those years. if you are near a body of water like me and know a boat mechanic you could work up a deal with him for a marine engine (these engines are often used in boats) only thing you'll have to change is the exhaust because it requires a constant flow of water to cool it down but the marine inlines have a more radical cam, 2 bbl, a forged steel crank, and i believe they also have flat head pistons. that is a very affordable route if you planned to build it up.

[79GMCSierra]

Originally Posted by Russ_the_truck79

anytime and just an additional tidbit... they were made from 63 to i think 72 and they did not change through those years. if you are near a body of water like me and know a boat mechanic you could work up a deal with him for a marine engine (these engines are often used in boats) only thing you'll have to change is the exhaust because it requires a constant flow of water to cool it down but the marine inlines have a more radical cam, 2 bbl, a forged steel crank, and i believe they also have flat head pistons. that is a very affordable route if you planned to build it up.

Awesome! I'll check that out. Mine has a 2bbl also.

Thanks again,

Jim

[Russ_the_truck79]

Originally Posted by 79GMCSierra

Awesome! I'll check that out. Mine has a 2bbl also.

Thanks again,

Jim

a carb swap to the newer one may be difficult because it has an automatic choke and you'll have to create linkage for it because for some reason on the non integrated version the carb is rotated 90 degrees and instead of turning it they added a bunch of complex linkage i don't know why but they did. but its defidently not impossible there are a few threads on here showing you how to make the linkage. im probably going to use a small 4 bbl (500-550ish) and block off one of the barrels to regain a little of fuel economy. either way you have to make up the linkage but with the 4 or 2 bbl you can just use an adapter plate so itd be a little easier just my 2 cents

[79GMCSierra]

Originally Posted by Russ_the_truck79

a carb swap to the newer one may be difficult because it has an automatic choke and you'll have to create linkage for it because for some reason on the non integrated version the carb is rotated 90 degrees and instead of turning it they added a bunch of complex linkage i don't know why but they did. but its defidently not impossible there are a few threads on here showing you how to make the linkage. im probably going to use a small 4 bbl (500-550ish) and block off one of the barrels to regain a little of fuel economy. either way you have to make up the linkage but with the 4 or 2 bbl you can just use an adapter plate so itd be a little easier just my 2 cents

Great info! I've priced out the parts for a bone stock rebuild and guessing on the machining work, crank, block and head, and it's looking like around $2k. So with that in mind I may consider a V8/auto swap. I bought the truck because it has a I6 and 3OTT just like the '66 I had in the 70's. I ported the cylinder head and it pulled like a freight train with all stock components, so I was thinking of doing the same to this one until I discovered the intergrated head. I called the machine shop a few days ago to inquire about finding a non-intergrated head and the first thing he said was "Oh the intergrated head was a BIG mistake, I'm not surprised it's cracked! I can probably repair it but sometimes they crack way up into the head" Nice to know! The sooner I can dump the intergrated head the better. Changing out the parts shouldn't be a problem for me.

[Russ_the_truck79]

Originally Posted by 79GMCSierra

Great info! I've priced out the parts for a bone stock rebuild and guessing on the machining work, crank, block and head, and it's looking like around $2k. So with that in mind I may consider a V8/auto swap. I bought the truck because it has a I6 and 3OTT just like the '66 I had in the 70's. I ported the cylinder head and it pulled like a freight train with all stock components, so I was thinking of doing the same to this one until I discovered the intergrated head. I called the machine shop a few days ago to inquire about finding a non-intergrated head and the first thing he said was "Oh the intergrated head was a BIG mistake, I'm not surprised it's cracked! I can probably repair it but sometimes they crack way up into the head" Nice to know! The sooner I can dump the intergrated head the better. Changing out the parts shouldn't be a problem for me.

no doubt it was a mistake but yeah good luck man keep me up to date on the progress!

[79GMCSierra]

Originally Posted by Russ_the_truck79

no doubt it was a mistake but yeah good luck man keep me up to date on the progress!

Will do! I have a bunch of pics I plan to uploading on the Projects & Build forum. Hopefully I'll get to that sooner than later LOL! Jim

[C15_Sierra]

Cool truck, awesome story!

Mine was a 250 I6/3 on the tree from the factory, the original owner blew up the six in 1988 and replaced it with a 305/TH350 from a '79 Camaro. The next owner (previous to me) kept it that way until I bought it 3 years ago and swapped in a 5.3. Kudos for keeping the concept original, the six should wake up nicely with a couple of bolt-ons. Keep up the good work!

[Russ_the_truck79]

Originally Posted by C15_Sierra

Cool truck, awesome story!

Mine was a 250 I6/3 on the tree from the factory, the original owner blew up the six in 1988 and replaced it with a 305/TH350 from a '79 Camaro. The next owner (previous to me) kept it that way until I bought it 3 years ago and swapped in a 5.3. Kudos for keeping the concept original, the six should wake up nicely with a couple of bolt-ons. Keep up the good work!

thanks C15_Sierra you too have a nice story and ill have a work day this weekend! hopefully... the goal is to have the engine in by monday ill keep you guys posted