Finally, the way I have always wanted it!

[XLCOR_65]

Back in 1997 when I was 17, I had a 65 C10 and wanted a rival to my best friend's 64 Ford 3/4 ton that had a 292 Y-block and 4 speed with granny low. His was a beast and we used to run it and work it all over the place. I wanted an inline 292 and SM420 for the longest time and never could find one. Well it’s been a long time coming, but I finally have my truck set up the way I have always wanted it to be (mechanically speaking, that is). Some might find a lot of this post to be TL;DR, but I am terrible at remembering to take pictures as I work and a little write up of what I did is the best detail I can give because most of the pics posted at the end are just when I remembered to stop and take a pic. lol

After spending a few years amassing parts and most of those from members of this board, I was finally able to compile them all together and put them in the truck.

The recent upgrades include:
Factory 3 row radiator (out of a 63 Catalina, re-cored)
Radiator upper and lower perches (bought from perro13)
292, SM420, high hump, and driveshaft out of a 63 C10 (bought from sigshooter)
HD Support Bearing perch (bought from CaptainFab)
New U-Joints and support bearing (Joplin Driveshaft)
Oil bath air cleaner (from BLK65K10)
Power brake booster (bought from pimpston65)
New steel brake lines (from Inline Tube)
New brake hoses, wheel cylinders, pads, and turned drums (O’Reilly’s)
New front end rebuild kit (eBay…. )
Factory sway bar off a 69 C20 (Salvage yard)
Factory C20 front springs off a 69 C20 (Salvage yard)
Factory overload springs (Salvage yard)
SignalStat 105 flasher (bought from jdl71)

I had the 292 rebuilt, went through the transmission, and put in new gaskets and seals, had the driveshaft checked and new support bearing and u-joints installed locally. I am positive the 292 would have started and ran as purchased, but it was a bit tight from sitting and I honestly wanted everything to be as “new” as possible anyway, so a fresh rebuild was ordered. I grabbed the Catalina radiator and had it re-cored as well.

When rebuilding the front end, I found a lot of issues. For starters, the previous owner at some point and time had the front end off apparently and put the upper control arms on backwards ….so TONS of caster….as in 10 degrees….not ideal for manual steering. I think factory specs are 2-3? Also, I always noticed that the front end sat lower than I preferred and a bit crooked. The reason is that the front springs had been cut with a torch and had about 1/2 inch height difference. So off to the salvage yard and I grabbed a good set out of a C20, plus the factory sway bar.

Sent the power brake booster to get a fresh rebuild not long after I purchased it (just because…again, I like having the original items but also want them to be fresh internally)

Gave the oil bath air cleaner a good scuff and respray and filled it with some cheap 40W and put it on the 283 for a while.

While I was in limbo with the 292, I had a friend help me get the SM420, driveline, and high hump installed behind my tired, temporary 283 that I installed a few years ago. I loved driving that setup! Problem is, the poor 283 was just so tired and at the end of the day, it was running on 6 cylinders anyway (found that out after pulling it and found the #1 and #6 spark plugs were totally blocked from being so oil fouled. No way they were producing spark.)

So a few months ago I finally got the 292 finished, built a test stand, broke it in, and started to pull the 283.

After everything was finished, I got the factory-style exhaust installed. I would have done that myself, but for whatever reason, Walker just refuses to make the 292 front downpipe, so I had to have a local muffler shop make it…and man, talk about complaining…every shop I called asked why I just didn’t put split manifolds on it and let them weld up a dual system for them and blah blah blah. Because it isn’t a hotrod…it’s a truck that I intend to keep using as a work truck and I want it to be as original as it can be for nostalgic reasons and easy maintenance.

Doing the power brake booster install was easy. It is all original and I have the factory books, so just following the diagrams and instructions got it all done in no time. Installing the new lines from inline tube was ok…had an issue with some of the bends not terminating at the right spots and the crossmember line up front leaked at both ends, so I had to fix those. Other than that, everything went well.

Went to the back and put in a new gasket and new gear oil in the rear differential. Also got the rear overloads installed.

So now, for all intents and purposes, it’s like I have a heavy duty 1/2 ton. I am totally stoked and for now it is getting driven all over the place. I will get a floor mat and other interior goodies soon and then start collecting sheet metal because as a former painter, I can't stand the delamination of the clear that a previous owner did and the rust bubbles coming though in areas. It will go back to a single stage red with white top and have the stainless trim back on it when that is all said and done. But that is later on down the road!

This is a huge moment for me and seriously couldn't have happened without the knowledge and generosity of the members of this board and I am glad to share it with you all. (pardon the filthy shop! )