Finished - 1978 Chevrolet Truck - Frame Off Restoration - Pancho Finale

[BruthaMan]

Hey Everyone,

The time has come (finally!) where I can say "restoration completed." There were plenty of times I wanted to say it, but deep down, I knew there were still things to finish.

So what does a man say after tearing a truck all the way down to the frame, then rebuilding it bolt by bolt? "I'm tired," that's what he says! What a journey!

The Journey

Build Thread

Sale Thread

Here's a video that takes you through the journey, from start to finish:

1978 Chevrolet Truck - Frame Off Restoration -...

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The Details

Drive Train

• 383 stroker engine
• AFR 195 Street heads
• Comp Camps 262h roller cam kit
• Comp gold 1.6 rockers
• Edelbrock carb
• Edelbrock intake
• Edelbrock high flow water pump
• Edlebrock fuel pump
• Approximately 480 horsepower
• Headman headers, xpipe with Corsa DB exhaust
• Aluminum four core radiator
• Billet specialties overflow tank
• Billet Specialties brackets and accessories
• Billet pullies
• Professionally rebuilt 700R4 with lockup and corvette servo
• Hughes Street Master 2,500 rpm stall converter
• 3.73 posi-trac gears, professionally built
• Even the drive shaft was powder coated!

Brakes

1. Converted rear to disk brakes
2. Polished GM Calipers at each wheel
3. Slotted/cross drilled rotors
4. Polished resevoir
5. Proportioning valve for four wheel disc brakes
6. New Stainless steel brake lines

Interior

• Updated with complete Vintage Air AC kit (nice and cool!)
• NOS Dash pad
• NOS Dash pad insert
• NOS Door panels
• NOS Door panel inserts and trim
• Power windows
• Power door locks
• Custom billet window/door lock switches
• Fatmat base, Second Skin audio secondary, followed by Second Skin density foam for sound proofing.
• Alpine am/fm/mp3 deck with remote
• JL Audio amplifier
• JL Audio component 6.5s (in kick panels)
• JL Audio component 6x9s (behind the seats with custom brakets)
• Powered compact subwoofer to bring out the base
• New plush light gray carpet (the thickest most expensive available)
• GM Floor mats
• Under dash lights so you can see when getting in or out of the truck
• GM low back bucket seats with all new vynil covers
• GM center console with custom billet aluminum cup holder
• NOS Gauge bezel
• NOS GM speedometer (rare ebay find!)
• All gauges work correctly, including rare correct GM tachometer
• Rare wiper delay switch
• '59 impala steering wheel
• Tilt steering
• Billet gear shift, signal lever and tilt lever
• All new glass, including door front and rear window, with light tint
• All new weatherstripping
• GM NOS vent windows
• Custom Ostrich skin sun visors
• Chromed glove box door
• New Retro seat belts for bucket seats

Body

• Frame sandblasted, then epoxy primered with Dupont (expensive!) and top coated with GM Restoration satin black
• The entire body was sandblasted and coated with Dupont expoxy primer
• The bottom of the bed, cab and inner fender wells were then coated with POR-15 black chasis paint
• Made a trip from Texas to Iowa to pick up a barn find that included two nos inner wheel wells, to NOS outer front fenders and two NOS doors. All documented in the build thread and on the truck!
• Bed was epoxy primered then professionally coated with lining
• New front and rear bumpers
• NOS drip rails over doors
• NOS "Silverado" fender emblems
• NOS aluminum cab trim
• Immaculate aluminum tailgate trim
• NOS GM grill.
• NOS GM headlight bezels

Electrical

The electrical system is all new, courtesy of Painless Wiring. Powered by a red top Optima battery.

Suspension

• All new suspension components, including tie rod ends, bushings and ball joints
• 2.5 inch lowering spindles on front, with new springs
• Rear dropped four inches with shackles and removed one leaf spring
• New shocks all around
• 15 inch GM rally wheels, powder coated.
• New rally wheel caps with spinners for that classic look
• Brand new BF Goodrich 275/60/15s
• Front end professionally aligned

Lessons Learned

• This forum is your resource. There is nothing that cannot be done on these trucks, that you cannot find find information on here, or someone here who knows.
  
  
• Start with a good base. Pancho was not the best base to start with, which in turn added to the overall cost of restoration.
  
  
• Refrain from adding finished body panels until *everything* under the hood is done. There is nothing worse than doing finish work under the hood in tight places because you were too anxious to get those fenders on!
  
  
• Ensure your motor is the way you want it before buttoning everything up. This cost time on my part, because I decided to go back and swap in AFR 195 street heads and change over to a roller cam. Working in tight spaces is not fun!
  
  
• Try and do something, no matter how small, every day. There were days I was absolutely exhausted and just wanted to rest. On days like that, I would force myself to do smaller tasks, telling myself "anything I can get done today, I won't have to do tomorrow."

Thanks and Credits

• Our Father in Heaven - for guiding me to the solution all those times I was ready to give up. I pray He will forgive me for those moments when I lost my Christianity.
  
  
• My family, for their wisdom in understanding I was absolutely nuts for taking on a project like this, and their understanding help in making this dream come true.
  
  
• The owners, administrators and moderators of this forum who work tirelessly to make this site an amazing resource and a place that makes us feel at home.
  
  
• The online friends I've made here who provided encouragement, a kick in the pants when needed and help when I was at my wit's end.

Hope you guys enjoyed the build, the photos and the end results.