Project Old Blue, 1965 C10, Rebuild Version 2010

[88Stanger]

awe what a good looking terrorist you have there. lol good for you on getting a new couch!! lol

[aggie91]

She can be a serious PITA, but she is a super sweet dog and I know she is still a puppy for now...

No new couch for me...I need her to grow out of the puppy stage first! lol...

[aggie91]

No real progress on the truck. I figured out the blinkers and decided to order a new turn signal switch assembly and a few other parts. Still waiting on the new door checks to come in. I might go ahead and swap out the turn signal switch tomorrow, but I'm in now hurry. Need to finish the high hump install and seal up the floor and install the new rubber mat too.

[The Rocknrod]

Originally Posted by aggie91

LowElco - Thanks for your service!

Rocknrod - Thanks for those links to explain what he does!

Well I did a couple years in there.

[Low Elco]

Bravo Zulu, Master Chief! Happy Veterans Day!

[aggie91]

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Been a few months, but I have been tinkering here and there on the truck. I need to get it retitled in Texas, as I never did that when I moved back here from Florida. To do that it must pass a safety inspection, even though that is not required for the registration as an antique vehicle. So, for now the focus is on getting the required safety inspection items covered to get it titled and then registered.

The list is not to long at this point.

Horn - COmplete with a dash mounted button. The parts I have for the OE steering wheel horn button are not playing nice and can't seem to make it work. Not even sure that I remember how to put it together correctly...

Wipers - I did the conversion of the Jeep rear wiper arms a couple years ago and now I have no idea where they are at. Anyway, the wiring does not seem to be correct as the motor does not turn on. But I have not really got into the troubleshooting yet.

Rear License Plate mount and light - I have the correct bracket from a good friend, just need to install and hook up the wire for the light.

Exhaust - This will be the last item that I tackle. I have a universal stainless steel kit, and have started on the fit up. But, I hate laying on my back to do this. I need to keep the truck mobile for now as I am not at the shop all the time. Korbin needs to be able to move it out of the way from time to time.

That is all I MUST do that is not already completed to pass the inspection. No work this weekend as I am headed to the farm for my Dad's 80th Birthday party. Mom decided she wanted to do something for him to mark this milestone. None of my kids can make it for their Opa, but I have the time, so I am headed out in the morning to make the 6 hour drive down there.

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by aggie91

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Been a few months, but I have been tinkering here and there on the truck. I need to get it retitled in Texas, as I never did that when I moved back here from Florida. To do that it must pass a safety inspection, even though that is not required for the registration as an antique vehicle. So, for now the focus is on getting the required safety inspection items covered to get it titled and then registered.

The list is not to long at this point.

Horn - COmplete with a dash mounted button. The parts I have for the OE steering wheel horn button are not playing nice and can't seem to make it work. Not even sure that I remember how to put it together correctly...

Wipers - I did the conversion of the Jeep rear wiper arms a couple years ago and now I have no idea where they are at. Anyway, the wiring does not seem to be correct as the motor does not turn on. But I have not really got into the troubleshooting yet.

Rear License Plate mount and light - I have the correct bracket from a good friend, just need to install and hook up the wire for the light.

Exhaust - This will be the last item that I tackle. I have a universal stainless steel kit, and have started on the fit up. But, I hate laying on my back to do this. I need to keep the truck mobile for now as I am not at the shop all the time. Korbin needs to be able to move it out of the way from time to time.

That is all I MUST do that is not already completed to pass the inspection. No work this weekend as I am headed to the farm for my Dad's 80th Birthday party. Mom decided she wanted to do something for him to mark this milestone. None of my kids can make it for their Opa, but I have the time, so I am headed out in the morning to make the 6 hour drive down there.

Happy Birthday to him.

With the way flights are getting canceled/bumped left & right, I'll be driving ~12hrs to be there for my pops 78th in May. I wish he was closer but I don't think I'll ever be able to convince him to come back to TX.

Good luck getting the electrical stuff sorted for inspection. Hopefully it will go easy on you.

[aggie91]

Well nothing really to note here on this build, just thought I would post that I am still moving toward finishing this one to be street ready and licensed soon. Biggest hurdle now is the exhaust and the wipers.

My daughter's cometion season started in January and I have traveled to 2 of her home meets in Lincoln, NE already. Just got back from one this past weekend. They are doing better then last year which was the team goal for the season and they are headed to the BIG10 Championship next weekend up in Columbus, OH. I will be at that meet too!

This weekend is the Good Guys Spring event in Ft. Worth at Texas Motor Speedway. I will have Henry out there and be hanging out with my son at the Sparc Industries booth with them this weekend.

Beyond all that, I have been working on a few custom LS Swap harnesses for others and have a couple more lined up. Been gathering parts and pieces to do complete custom one off harnesses for Gen 3 style swaps, both DBC and DBW. Hopefully, Korbin and I will be doing a LT swap into an El Camino for a local shop that is loaded up with work and looking to outsource this job. Looking forward to it if it all works out. I will be speaking with the shop owner this weekend to see what all he expects and when it would happen. Also, looking at doing full re-wires for hot rods and stuff this year...

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by aggie91

Well nothing really to note here on this build, just thought I would post that I am still moving toward finishing this one to be street ready and licensed soon. Biggest hurdle now is the exhaust and the wipers.

My daughter's cometion season started in January and I have traveled to 2 of her home meets in Lincoln, NE already. Just got back from one this past weekend. They are doing better then last year which was the team goal for the season and they are headed to the BIG10 Championship next weekend up in Columbus, OH. I will be at that meet too!

This weekend is the Good Guys Spring event in Ft. Worth at Texas Motor Speedway. I will have Henry out there and be hanging out with my son at the Sparc Industries booth with them this weekend.

Beyond all that, I have been working on a few custom LS Swap harnesses for others and have a couple more lined up. Been gathering parts and pieces to do complete custom one off harnesses for Gen 3 style swaps, both DBC and DBW. Hopefully, Korbin and I will be doing a LT swap into an El Camino for a local shop that is loaded up with work and looking to outsource this job. Looking forward to it if it all works out. I will be speaking with the shop owner this weekend to see what all he expects and when it would happen. Also, looking at doing full re-wires for hot rods and stuff this year...

Sounds like some promising possibilities.

Don't feel bad on actual truck progress. All I've done for mine is see how much cargo can be stacked in the bed area

I was just rekindling my wheel search @ the start of the month & the price increases are crazy (>$400 increase each since my last look). I was initially pumped as I found cheaper versions (price not quality) & thought "I'm 'gonna pull the trigger" only to see the others had the big price increase. I'm guessing it will be new rubber for the steelies & worry about upgrades later.

I'll look for you if I make it out there this weekend.

[aggie91]

Was able to spend some time on my own stuff this past Sunday at the shop. Got the wiper motor issue all figured out. The original single speed switch was part of the problem. No one make a replacement part for the base single speed wipers without the washer pump feature. So, I found a simple push/pull SPST switch with a knob that looks similar to me OEM knob and installed it and figured out the other wiring issues. Got it all hooked back up and the wipers now function correctly.

Now to reinstall the cowl panel and put on the second set of jeep wiper arms I converted for this truck, because I have NO idea where the first set is...

Also got the plate lamp all hooked up and working.

Started on the new shifter install. I bought an American Shifter Company trans mounted unit with the single bend 16" arm. Very pleased with it so far, although the installation instructions are very lacking in some of the details needed for the average person. For a true hot rodder, not really a big deal. To save time and frustration and knowing that this is a copy of a Lokar shifter, I got on their Website and downloaded a few of their shifter installation instructions and got the required missing info. In the last two pictures, it is just loose on the trans, I was checking to see where First Gear (closest to the seat) and Park (closest to the dash) positions would end up. Pleased with those spots, so I snugged up the bolts to set in on the tailgate so that I could apply some thread locker and tighten all the mounting bolts. Found out I need to tap a hole in each bracket, but that is not a big deal. Once that is done, its time to mount on the trans, hook up the shift rod and adjust as needed before cutting the trans high hump cover for the shifter.

After that, then it is on to exhaust...The last step before inspection and registration!

[aggie91]

Had a very productive East Weekend on the truck. Korbin and I have been making a list at the end of each work day, but it seems to be getting longer instead of shorter. But, we are finding a few issues each time we work on the truck that needs to be addressed, especially before I get in on the road safely.

Got the Jeep Wipers converted and installed. I kinda like the satin black over the stainless steel of the originals. this should be a good upgrade for those rainy day drives.

Got the shifter installed and functional. Cut the hole in the high hump cover and looks good. Need to find an acceptable shifter boot and cut the hole in the new floor mat. But that will come a bit later. For now, it is much better than the column shift which was very hard to use they way we had it installed.

[aggie91]

Started on the exhaust. Realized I made a miscalculation on the lead pipe off the header. It hangs down about an inch or so below the frame. Since the goal is to get it inspected and titled and registered in Texas, we will just be clamping the system together at this point and reduce the amount of waste of the stainless pipe for now. I will go back and remake the lead pipe later. We are happy with the current layout and it is far enough past the cab for now to be legal. Pictures are only the part in front of the rear trailing arm cross member. There are no hangers and some clamps are missing so it is not hanging in its final installed position. It will be more level with the frame once its clamped and hangers are installed.

Will be taking a few weeks off this one so that we can attend a show with Henry and then spend time at the Pate Swap meet at TMS at the end of this month.

[SCOTI]

While it's below the rail.... It's not by much. Looks fine from this view.

[aggie91]

My whole goal on this truck is to get it running and driving again, the heck with how it looks. This weekend, we finally finished it to a point where I can get it licensed and registered to be on the road. Since it still has a Florida title from when I lived in PCB back in 1998, I have to get an inspection. That is the goal for today.

Over the weekend, Korbin and I buttoned up the last few items it needed. Got all the exhaust clamped up and hangers added. Got the spring locator in the lower A-Arm moved to the correct position so the spring is not binding on the crossmember. Installed the Floor Mat and moved the PCM to a better mounting spot. Moved the mechanical gauges on the dash and used screws, not zip ties to hold them in places . Finished the day yesterday by giving it a through cleaning inside and out. Used a degreaser and red scotch brite pads on the outside to remove years of oxidation. Cleaned up well for a POS. Very happy day for certain.

Here are a few pictures...

[aggie91]

One more of the truck cleaned up and on the Trailer to get it to my house and to the inspection station in the morning.

The other thing that happened on Saturday, is I got me a new tool storage unit for the shop. This is something that I have wanted for a very long time. I had the cash, so I bought one. Got a great deal on it at the local Home Depot. with a bit a asking for a discount and seeing the back had a dent and a minor scratch on the front, I ended up with a huge savings off of the $798 price tag. Out the door after the discounts and taxes added, I paid $583.09. Pretty happy with that! Its huge, I can just barely reach the lid in the open position to pull it down to shut it. It is by far the nicest tool chest/box I have ever owned.

Now to buy more tools to fill it up!

[The Rocknrod]

Ya nice tool box, you need that.

[Braunschweiger]

Great deal, finally space for more tools

[SCOTI]

Good luck on the final inspect although I imagine it won't have any issues being in Texas.

If I might make one suggestion on your rear suspension set-up.... I would triangulate the frame bracket for the Panhard Bar. When they sit more than a couple of inches from the rail the 'length of the lever' effect comes into play & there's a bunch of tension on them. I think we discussed it @ some point but in that image I still don't see anything helping support the length. On my 64, I used the original bar & repurposed it for the gusset support bar.

[aggie91]

Originally Posted by SCOTI

Good luck on the final inspect although I imagine it won't have any issues being in Texas.

If I might make one suggestion on your rear suspension set-up.... I would triangulate the frame bracket for the Panhard Bar. When they sit more than a couple of inches from the rail the 'length of the lever' effect comes into play & there's a bunch of tension on them. I think we discussed it @ some point but in that image I still don't see anything helping support the length. On my 64, I used the original bar & repurposed it for the gusset support bar.

There is a new bar in the works for just what you are saying. I just ran out of time for it. The passenger side end will be up inside the channel of the rail and braced off of the factory canted crossmember. Plan now is to have it in place by C10's in the Park. Hopefully by then the rear half of the frame and suspension will be painted too...

[aggie91]

Got Old Blue inspected yesterday and it passed. Never really doubted it would, but you never know. Next step is to get it registered and insured for the road.

I just got to find my year of make plate I bought for it many years ago...

[aggie91]

Took Old Blue to C10 Nationals Texas over the weekend. Had a blast. Met up with some old friends, made some new ones and just overall relaxed and had a good time. Had to use some restraint in the Vendor's Midway, but got a few cosmetic parts for the truck. Still need to get a few more to finish out the interior for now.

Trip to the track had its own excitement. I had a trailer tire blow out, luck not far from an exit off the highway and was able to find a spot in the shade to change out the tire for the spare. Looks like I am buying a trailer tire this week...

just chilled out for the weekend. Did get to drive it on the track for a few laps on Saturday evening. That was a blast. Learned a bit more about the truck for this rendition, we have a bit of work to do before it is truly street worthy. Third picture is on Pit Road waiting our turn on the track.

[aggie91]

This truck frustrates the crap out of me...

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by aggie91

This truck frustrates the crap out of me...

Uh-oh.....

If it makes you feel any better, you're definitely not alone in the boat. Between my dually, the OBS (Spot), the 64, the g-body, & a Model-A...... Frustration is part & parcel it would seem.

What's going on w/it?

[aggie91]

Well, where do I begin...

I knew I had an issue with the MAF, it was reading the IAT ok, but no feedback on the MAF. Started the truck (which is a battery issue also), let it warm up while I was logging into my laptop to connect with HP Tuners. Well, while doing that the laptop battery died. So, shut it off to go get the power supply and the extension cord for the laptop. Got that all going, fired up the truck again, now the DBW pedal is not communicating with the throttle body. Checked all my fuses, all good.

So, packed it up and gonna walk away for a few days...

[SCOTI]

LS swaps are easy.
LS swaps are great.
LS swaps are.... just like every other machine.

They can have parts that dont cooperate.
They have parts that fail.
They can be finicky.
They can leak.
They can break.

Get the batteries (computer & truck) charged while YOU get mentally recharged. I know you'll triumph!