"Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion

[rustytruck50]

Nice...that's a long, tedious process! (Not intentionally making a point of that) I had my '82 Stepside taken that far apart & something as simple as having the doors reinstalled is a morale booster, simply because it's looking like a truck again!

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by rustytruck50

Nice...that's a long, tedious process! (Not intentionally making a point of that) I had my '82 Stepside taken that far apart & something as simple as having the doors reinstalled is a morale booster, simply because it's looking like a truck again!

Anything that makes it look like its moving forward is a morale booster. I'm ready to get this one going.

[nlped]

Any updates on this?

[beasst]

Originally Posted by nlped

any updates on this?

x2

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by nlped

Any updates on this?

Actually there has been a big step in the right direction. I recently sprung Jake from paint jail. Fortunately the work that had been done was of good quality. Unfortunately I am about three months behind schedule.

[nlped]

Paint Jail sucks!

[N2TRUX]

The good news is Jake is home now. I have a lot of catching up to do.

[Chaplain]

...

[N2TRUX]

Heres a quick update to where I'm at now with Jake. I have confirmed the new painter will be Aaron Boese from Homegrown Hotrods. He has committed to having Jake painted by Lonestar Throwdown in February.

Once again, I have teamed with American Racing to provide the wheels, and RideTech for coilover suspension. We will be using Tamco Paint products from start to finish topped of with Mar-K sidemolding.

The interior will be updated with the Dakota Digital #RTX-73C-PU-X due to its simplistic gauge face surrounded by Cheyenne Pickup parts bezel and dash pad. The cab will be kept cool with a Vintage Air A/C system, while riding on premium TMI products seating. Precision Replacement Parts will rebuild the vent windows and provide a full seat of gaskets and seals.

Under the hood the existing 454 will be retained for now. A full set of Slosh Tubz filler panels will accompany Slosh Tubz "Mild Tubz" for additional tire clearance. Eddie Motorsports hinges will hold the early hood up.

I'm sure I have left out a lot, but thats a good start. Chad Canning of Rendered Rides was commissioned to do a digital rendering. Heres what we started with. Stay tuned for more updates coming soon.

[nlped]

Sounds like it’s going to be one SeXy beast! I’ve wanted a CCSB roundeye for 10 year and just haven’t ever found a good starting point.

[808_67C10]

Originally Posted by N2TRUX

Heres a quick update to where I'm at now with Jake. I have confirmed the new painter will be Aaron Boese from Homegrown Hotrods. He has committed to having Jake painted by Lonestar Throwdown in February.

Once again, I have teamed with American Racing to provide the wheels, and RideTech for coilover suspension. We will be using Tamco Paint products from start to finish topped of with Mar-K sidemolding.

The interior will be updated with the Dakota Digital #RTX-73C-PU-X due to its simplistic gauge face surrounded by Cheyenne Pickup parts bezel and dash pad. The cab will be kept cool with a Vintage Air A/C system, while riding on premium TMI products seating. Precision Replacement Parts will rebuild the vent windows and provide a full seat of gaskets and seals.

Under the hood the existing 454 will be retained for now. A full set of Slosh Tubz filler panels will accompany Slosh Tubz "Mild Tubz" for additional tire clearance. Eddie Motorsports hinges will hold the early hood up.

I'm sure I have left out a lot, but thats a good start. Chad Canning of Rendered Rides was commissioned to do a digital rendering. Heres what we started with. Stay tuned for more updates coming soon.

This is gonna be super cool! When you say team up with all these companies to get all the gucci parts... do they donate them to the build or give you a discount in return for showcasing them on your build? Just curious how that works.

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by 808_67C10

This is gonna be super cool! When you say team up with all these companies to get all the gucci parts... do they donate them to the build or give you a discount in return for showcasing them on your build? Just curious how that works.

I have an agreement of confidentiality with all of the vendors I work with.

[Dads79GMC]

Not gonna look for it, but are you putting in a 74 interior or 80's with a 74 exterior?

[808_67C10]

Originally Posted by N2TRUX

I have an agreement of confidentiality with all of the vendors I work with.

Interesting... sad, people who build big dolla trucks get a break but, the average weekend builder has to sacrifice greatly to buy these parts. I guess thats how the world works. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

[1970SWB]

You won't be disappointed with Tamco products!!

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by Dads79GMC

Not gonna look for it, but are you putting in a 74 interior or 80's with a 74 exterior?

It will be a mixture of both with some custom parts that emulate what GM might do.

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by 1970SWB

You won't be disappointed with Tamco products!!

Thats what I have heard from all of the professional painters I asked. I love to support a small business owner like myself. Even better if they offer a premium quality product at a very fair price.

[LT7A]

Originally Posted by 808_67C10

Interesting... sad, people who build big dolla trucks get a break but, the average weekend builder has to sacrifice greatly to buy these parts. I guess thats how the world works. The rich get richer and the poor get poorer.

808, I thought I would comment here as I've seen this line of inquiry run amok and people that I really respect on here get pretty worked up about it. There is nothing that precludes any of us from approaching vendors and asking them to participate in our build. And probably more correctly, there is nothing stopping us from doing superlative builds that catch vendors' eyes and that compel them to contact us and ask to be involved. Having read all of Ken's builds on here, his focus is on building high quality trucks. He shows them and has access to big shows. In many cases, reading his threads, he mentions that particular vendors approach him. I suppose anyone can say whether they think he is lucky or just plain works hard. But there's no denying he puts a considerable amount of energy into each build. Each interested vendor has to decide what level of involvement is appropriate to get the return on their sponsorship. If I was Ken, I wouldn't make the details of those agreements public either.

[aggie91]

Originally Posted by LT7A

808, I thought I would comment here as I've seen this line of inquiry run amok and people that I really respect on here get pretty worked up about it. There is nothing that precludes any of us from approaching vendors and asking them to participate in our build. And probably more correctly, there is nothing stopping us from doing superlative builds that catch vendors' eyes and that compel them to contact us and ask to be involved. Having read all of Ken's builds on here, his focus is on building high quality trucks. He shows them and has access to big shows. In many cases, reading his threads, he mentions that particular vendors approach him. I suppose anyone can say whether they think he is lucky or just plain works hard. But there's no denying he puts a considerable amount of energy into each build. Each interested vendor has to decide what level of involvement is appropriate to get the return on their sponsorship. If I was Ken, I wouldn't make the details of those agreements public either.

I was tempted to make this post the other day, but held off. LT7A, you hit the points I was thinking. I had approached a vendor while doing my son's red truck, they did offer to do what I was wanting, but after weighing their needs for it to happen, I had to graciously decline as I was not in a position to be able to meet those needs fully.

I have known of Ken for quite sometime. I make a point to go chat with him at all the shows we are at together. As I have gotten to know him, he more or less started out doing these trucks on his own with help from friends and family, just like the vast majority of us do. In his signature, Refining Sierra is a recent build that I believe he did on his own with some labor help from his nephew, Chris. I don't recall him getting any help form vendors. The next one, Scarlet, he did the same way the first time and that is when he got approached by Ride Tech, American Racing and Kicker that lead to the second rework of that truck...

Elwood was the last remake of the '77 and he did get more help on it, but it and Scarlet had to meet requirements from those vendors and that takes time and a commitment from Ken to make those happen. Ken has been doing this a long time and has been fortunate to establish these friends and contacts in the industry that gives him the opportunity to build these nice trucks. To me, it is a far cry from the rich get richer type mentality. He has consistently shown these vendors and others in the industry that he builds a great looking truck that can showcase these great products for them.

[808_67C10]

The fact that this topic has the potential to get heated just proves my point. Its okay, the feelings I have about this issue inspired the "daily driver" thread which I think is pretty awesome - thanks for weighing in and I will be a good citizen...

[N2TRUX]

Thanks to those that spoke in favor of my builds. I truly appreciate all of your support and kind words. The appreciation for my projects is what motivates me to spend long hours in the shop after a full days work.

[SKT]

.

After following some of your previous builds on this forum, I’m really looking forward to seeing this one come together!

.

[N2TRUX]

Originally Posted by SKT

After following some of your previous builds on this forum, I’m really looking forward to seeing this one come together!

Me too. Its frustrating when you have set backs that you have no control over. Despite loosing several months of build time, my plan is to push forward regardless.

[N2TRUX]

Chris and I worked on the 84 to 74 conversion this past weekend. We removed the original 84 Silverado front clip piece by piece. I know it can be removed as a complete assembly, but that means it would have to be stored outside. That was not an option I prefered so it was decided to break it down to be stored inside.

If anyone is interested in the 84 front end, message me.

[N2TRUX]

This was my first time to do a complete front end conversion. I searched diligently for a complete assembly, but came up short. Instead I opted to piece it together with clean GM parts. I had a core support that I had recently converted to use the 73-74 grill. I located set of fenders, and a good original hood.

Unfortunately nothing ever goes as planned, especially for me. What should have been an easy afternoon of bolting parts on, turned in to a lesson in frustration. The fenders will not line up to bolt in place correctly. I have them hanging in place, but they are not mounted correctly.