1980 Stepside Build... My first build thread

[ChevDog1]

Then I harvested some clean metal from my old front fender.

[ChevDog1]

Then I cut and formed and trimmed until the pieces fit in place. I don't have anything fancy for doing this, just some tin snips, a bench vise, hammers, etc.

[ChevDog1]

And welded it all back together. Sprayed some rust converting paint, seam sealed the weatherstrip channel, and top coated it with more of the temporary satin black.

It's not as pretty as a proper rocker panel replacement, but none of this work will be visible when the truck is complete, so I kept it in budget mode, and just used what I had to fix the problem.

[ChevDog1]

Another shot of the completed repair.

[ChevDog1]

I also had some rust bubbles on the lower corner of the drivers door. I ground into it to see what I was up against. I was greeted with this.

[ChevDog1]

It looks like someone decided to take the easy way out and just bondo over the rust. I am going to cut it out, and try and patch it with another piece harvested from the old fender. Worst case, I'm just out some time. If it doesn't work out like I am hoping, I'll just hunt down another door. Should be fun!

In other news, I found another trans leak before I came back inside tonight. The only external seals that I didn't replace we're the orings on the dipstick, and the vacuum modulator. I have a small leak in that area, so I will pick up new orings tomorrow. I just want this thing to quit pissing out $5/qt oil all over my shop floor!

[Low Elco]

Repair looks repaired to me!

[ChevDog1]

Probably the toughest part was re-creating the flange on the outer rocker panel that holds the weatherstripping. Ended up cutting a couple of strips and welding them in place, the carefully ground them back to close to the original contour.

[ChevDog1]

I hate rust repair! I hate it so much, that I went out and worked on more of it tonight! Pulled off the passenger door(more on that in a bit...), and wire wheeled to see what I was in for. This is on the side of the seat base:

[ChevDog1]

And this was in front of the seat - similar to the other side.

[ChevDog1]

Overall shot of tonight's mess...

[ChevDog1]

Got to work making more patch panels. Check out my custom one of a kind sheet metal brake!

[ChevDog1]

And welded in some patches...

[ChevDog1]

The other patch

[ChevDog1]

Patched in the weatherstrip ribs, lots of grinding, and a little paint, and it almost was never there!

[ChevDog1]

Front part finished

[ChevDog1]

Overall view

[ChevDog1]

And the drivers side again now that the paint is dry

[ChevDog1]

So, back to the doors. Pulled them both off tonight before I got started on the rust repair. Several reasons for this. First, the rust repair was a pain in the butt with the door on, so I figured I'd make my work a little easier. Second, I needed to replace the hinge pins and bushings. Third - I really needed the drivers door off to tackle the rust that I showed in yesterday's update. I didn't take any good in process pics, but here is a completed hinge.

[Crew Laid]

Great job on the rust repair.

[ChevDog1]

The sharper eyed readers will notice something missing in the previous photo. The door spring! Found that it was snapped off, and only part of it was there. So now I need to find a new spring before I can hand the drivers door again. No rush - I have some rust abatement to complete before I can even think about putting the door back on.

Also on the agenda for tonight was more work trying to stem the leaks from my TH400. It was still dripping after all of the work on it yesterday, and it appeared to be coming from either the dipstick tube, or the vacuum modulator. Picked up new orings for both and installed them. Haven't topped off the fluid, since the truck is still up on stands, so the jury is still out on this one.

Also - it just occurred to me.... Is my truck too low if I need to put it up on jack stands to work on the rocker panels?

[ChevDog1]

It just occurred to me that I hadn't yet explained the inspiration for this project. I probably should have started my build thread with this, but as long as I'm thinking about it, I might as well tell the story. I'll go thru all of the details here, then follow up with some iphone pics I took of my old car photo album.

Before I was old enough to drive, my dad had a Corvette, and was looking for a winter beater to drive in the snow. He happened across a 1956 Chevy 3100 pickup that needed some work. It had a 235 straight six, and three on the tree. Later, when it was no longer needed as a beater, we restored/modified the truck as a family project. I think I sanded most of my fingerprints off on that truck. When I turned 15, I learned to drive in it, and I drove it for a couple of years of high school.

After that truck, my parents bought a 1977 GMC jimmy - my first exposure to "square". I also drove this in High School.

I was finally allowed to buy my own car at the age of 18. I chose wisely (at my fathers insistence) and bought a lowered 1978 GMC high Sierra 2wd with a factory 454 and all of the options. Awesome truck for a kid! It was faster than the same year Corvette!

Fast forward a few years (and vehicles) and I was in college. Bought my second square - a 1979 K5. Also an awesome truck, until I destroyed it in a rollover while four wheeling. Looks pretty bad in the pics, but all 5 of us inside were unharmed.

After college my first truck was a 1990 C1500 stepper. Slammed it into the weeds, added some Boyd's, (not in pics)and drove it hard.

Some years later, when I was saving for a house, I sold my then 1992 K1500 blazer and bought a truck I called "the beater". It was a1972 k5 blazer that had been fitted with a 1978 c10 front suspension and a 1968 front clip. This truck was my first full build by myself.

Some years later- again trying to save some money by getting rid of a car payment, I bought a 1970 GMC 1/2 ton 4wd to restore. It turned out really nice, but just after I finished it, I found out we were having twins, and tha family wouldn't fit!

So there you have it. I have a long history with Chevys, squares, and stepsides, but this will be my first square stepper. I'm sure I have left out some pertinent vehicles (I think I'm over 40 at last count), but this pretty much covers my desire to build one of these.

[ChevDog1]

1956 Chevy - mom named it "Ol Bessie"

[ChevDog1]

1977 GMC Jimmy - it couldn't actually defy gravity - I just don't know how to flip the pic now that it's posted.

[ChevDog1]

1978 GMC Lowrider factory 454