1971 K10 Stepside - Getting a Roller Roadworthy

[pjmoreland]

Removed the input shaft next. Four bolts and a little tapping with a rubber mallet, and it was out.

[pjmoreland]

The main shaft assembly could then be lifted out of the case. It was heavy and awkward.

The gears down in the bottom of the case look good, and they spin smoothly.

The rear main shaft bearing was pressed on, so time for more pulling. Had to run to a hardware store in the next town over that closes an hour later than the local one to get some couplers to allow the puller to reach all the way to the bearing.

[pjmoreland]

Disassembled the main shaft assembly next. There were a few stubborn snap rings, and one synchro plate on the front of the shaft that had to be pulled off. Had to grind down the tips of the puller jaws to fit in the narrow gap.

[pjmoreland]

Here are the old and new shafts side-by-side.

I reinstalled the main shaft components onto the new shaft, but had to stop there because I had to order a new rear bearing. It should be here on Tuesday.

I'm tired!

[loudchevy]

Awesome work, I love the large helical gears in these boxes. Just pure beef

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by loudchevy

Awesome work, I love the large helical gears in these boxes. Just pure beef

Thank you. Apparently these transmissions aren't very sporty to shift, but that's just fine on a vehicle like this.

[Ol Blue K20]

You make it look easy

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by Ol Blue K20

You make it look easy

My knees would say differently. That's what I get for doing this work on the floor.

[pjmoreland]

Spent the last two evenings making dummy filler necks, but I did have enough epoxy paint left over to paint these parts.

[pjmoreland]

Installed a new bearing and snap ring on the NP205 front output, and the excessive end play is gone. Now there is only about .005" of end play. The transfer case is now ready to go in the truck.

[pjmoreland]

Did some reassembly of the transmission. Replaced the input shaft seal. Installed a new rear bearing on the main shaft. Reinstalled the main shaft and the input shaft. Checked the main shaft end play, and it was too tight, so I had to order a shim kit.

[Ol Blue K20]

Progress is happening!

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by Ol Blue K20

Progress is happening!

It will be nice to have a drivetrain sitting in this truck after who knows how long without one

[Ol Blue K20]

Yes, it will be. I've been driving Blue for a week, it feels great.

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by Ol Blue K20

Yes, it will be. I've been driving Blue for a week, it feels great.

I'll bet!

[pjmoreland]

Since I'm waiting for the transmission main shaft shim kit, I spent the evening doing some smaller tasks. I disassembled, cleaned and painted the clutch bellcrank.

['68OrangeSunshine]

Originally Posted by pjmoreland

Since I'm waiting for the transmission main shaft shim kit, I spent the evening doing some smaller tasks. I disassembled, cleaned and painted the clutch bellcrank.

I would have suggested you closely inspect the welds on the Z-Bar Ears before painting. Those welds have broken on me about three times. Twice on the GMC Jimmy and once on the Stepside. Not a good feeling when you're stuck in gear, stalled, in traffic, in the city...

The Jimmy's Z-Bar had some exotic S-style joggling done to it -- weakening the Factory welds. The Stepside was closing in on 400,000 at the time. Daily Driver, urban application.

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by '68OrangeSunshine

I would have suggested you closely inspect the welds on the Z-Bar Ears before painting. Those welds have broken on me about three times. Twice on the GMC Jimmy and once on the Stepside. Not a good feeling when you're stuck in gear, stalled, in traffic, in the city...

The Jimmy's Z-Bar had some exotic S-style joggling done to it -- weakening the Factory welds. The Stepside was closing in on 400,000 at the time. Daily Driver, urban application.

Good advice. I didn't inspect the welds super closely, but I didn't see anything obvious under casual inspection. I won't be venturing far from home for the first few months of driving.

[pjmoreland]

I also wire wheeled the exhaust manifolds and then painted them.

[pjmoreland]

Received the main shaft shim kit today, so I set the end play this evening. Took a couple tries. Got it set to .003", and the spec is .002-.006.

While reassembling the overdrive gears, it became apparent that I am missing a component due to the distance between the small gear and the threads for the nut that holds it in place. After a little online searching, I learned that I'm missing a spacer. It's on order now.

[raggedjim]

You've gotten a lot done on this in a short period of time! Nice work.

Did you have a build thread for your avatar truck (68 stepper)? I looked but didn't find one. Thanks, Rg

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by raggedjim

You've gotten a lot done on this in a short period of time! Nice work.

Did you have a build thread for your avatar truck (68 stepper)? I looked but didn't find one. Thanks, Rg

I should have done a build thread, but I didn't, unfortunately. I posted lots of stuff on the "What Did You Do Today To Your Truck?" thread. Here are some other threads that I created for some of the projects I did on it:

Fuel Tank Relocation

Bed Wood Replacement

Vintage Air Install

Disc Brake Conversion

700R4 TCC Arduino Controller

Tremec TKX

Buddy Bucket Seats

[raggedjim]

Thanks for the list, I'm sure I've read some of them.

[pjmoreland]

I'm waiting for some parts to arrive, so I worked on a side project today. The fresh air door seals are crumbling, and the metal has some surface rust. I ground off the formed ends of the rivets, cleaned up the parts and painted them.

[pjmoreland]

Painted