Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Ya this is the saddle/white lwb fleet club so far haha. Sounds like you are on to a sizable project. I'd like to see some pics. I might have interest in your tailgate depending on what it looks like. Retirement is such a luxury, I enjoy the stress-free aspect of it immensely. Have a nice day.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

good lookin truck jim.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

yeah everyday is a monday! :lol:
ill see if i can get some pictures posted later tonight

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Hey Jim, nice detailed write up on the driveshaft redo, thanks again....Jim

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Thanks Rick, I got a big kick out of your cool whitewalls not long ago, I laughed so hard :lol:. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...postcount=1815.

Looks like you have one of the longest build threads here, 1,909 posts as of a few minutes ago. It took me forever to find that whitewall post again. haha

Keep at it, you have a cool lookin machine there.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Hey Jim, I'm at an in-between-stuff-to-do stage so I sit here and burn up hours on end writing about what I did :lol:. Hope all is well with you.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

haha man if you knew me outside of a computer you'd know i joke around alot! haha thnaks jim ya its pretty long build thread, i have to put links up when i tell people stuff in ti and they want to see lol.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Good stuff Jim! I am really enjoying your build thread. I am sure I'll be using a lot of your posts to help me with my truck. I am slowly going through everything on my truck to make it safe and comfortable. It is tough working in a carport and we aren't technically allowed to where I live so it is VERY slow going- I make do watching great build threads like yours!

Paul
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Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Hi Paul,
I understand the slow part for sure. I think the key is just to keep plugging away little by little, no matter how little that may be. I understand how frustrating it must be for you to have limited work space. I've been in that situation, too. I'm very lucky now to have lots of time, enough money, and adequate facilities to goof around with this big toy. Our trucks are very much alike so I hope you will find some of my info here useful in the future.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Great build thread! This will be a great help to me and many others, thank you. :clap:

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Thanks. I hope you'll find some of it useful. There is a lot of good info available on this site if you take time to search it out.

I've been wading through a few issues on my exhaust but I hope to have everything done soon so I can put the bed back on. I drove it to Oceanside and back the other day with a set of trailer taillights and homemade mudflaps installed. The sheriff saw me go by and did nothing so it must be legal enough for an old truck. The rear end is very light so I have to be careful not to let it lock up and skid when I brake. I recently removed the passenger side pipe because I am replacing the mufflers with quieter ones. I'll write something up on this soon.

Peace.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Great Job and post

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

thanks for the motivation! :mm:

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Great driveshaft info!

Thanks

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

You're welcome.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Thanks for posting the pic of your white/saddle truck to add to my collection.

A good swift kick in the ass once in a while is a good motivator , too :lol:(just kidding).

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

I can use all the kicks to the ass i can get! :lol:
Hopefully i can finish gutting the cab today so i can pull it back off and get going on my frame mods this week ;)

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

My truck is now officially a daily driver and surf wagon at nine months since I bought it.

8/3/11 - 8/9/11: 126.7 mi., 10.80 mpg, $45.63

8/9/11 - 8/18/11: 111.0 mi., 11.42 mpg, $36.93

8/18/11 - 8/25/11: 153.2 mi., 11.20 mpg, $51.16

8/25/11 - 9/3/11: 147.5 mi., 11.38 mpg, $51.31

9/3/11 - 9/9/11: 134.8 mi., 9.95 mpg*, $52.84

9/9/11 - 9/13/11 111.8 mi., 10.50 mpg, $42.35

9/13/11 - 9/21/11 128.4 mi., 10.34 mpg, $48.42

9/21/11 - 9/27/11 123.4 mi., 10.60 mpg, $45.41

9/27/11 - 9/28/11 156.4 mi., 13.08 mpg**, $47.57

9/28/11 - 9/29/11 129.1 mi., 13.49 mpg**, $36.35

*The mileage dropped on this one because it includes about 2.5 hours of creeping along at 2-3 mph or less in semi-gridlocked traffic during the San Diego County power outage of 8/8/11.

**Almost all freeway driving at 60-65 mph.

Note 9/30/11: Around town mileage decreased slightly after 9/9/11. Could be from a heavier foot (getting used to driving this beast) or changes in tuning from use.


The surfboard is a vintage early 60s Jacobs made in Hermosa Beach, CA. It is my regular ride and at 10'4" it almost fits in the bed at an angle. Forward into the past ! Stoka-boka !

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Jim, truck looks great, and I'm sure you enjoy driving it. May want to think about changing those gears at 11 mpg.:hmm::)...Jim

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Hi Jim,

I was a little surprised to see it come in at 11, I was expecting something less than 10. I think many guys chuck the Eaton and replace it with a rear that offers more gear options. From what I've read here in the Board and discovered online, there is no gear set available for the Eaton in the current aftermarket that is numerically less than the stock 4.10.

Nearly all my driving is within a 20 mile radius of my house and a I rarely venture onto the freeway. Among the three vehicles I own, I estimate I drive them all for a total of less than 5,000 miles per year. And since I’m more of a Mr. Fixit than a builder, I’ll probably just leave it as it is. It gets me to the grocery store and beach and looks cool. If my use of the truck changes in the future, or I have to mortgage my house for a fillup, I can always rethink this.

Thanks for your comments and have a nice day.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

I got rid of the rear bumper, too. I found the stock license plate bracket and light still in place. I think I need to lower the rear a couple of inches to level it out when I get ambitious again.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

Ss. Great project an a lot of good info. I was having trouble with my universal joint that connects to my tranny an thought of the c clamp as well:lol:. How did you install the u joint?
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Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

I'll try to write up a little procedure for you. I didn't take any pics of that work when I did it.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

EXHAUST (Part 1 of 6)

I did this work on the exhaust system between June 3 and August 18, 2011.

While I was doing all the aforementioned work in the bed area, I evaluated the existing exhaust. I decided to chuck the PO's system for several reasons.

* The headers obstructed access to the spark plugs, were in direct contact with a brake line, pipes had been crushed to clear the frame, and they were basically in the way of everything. Some plug boots were burned where they hit the pipes.

* The header pipes interfered with the tiny hex head attaching bolts such that the bolts could not be torqued properly. It was a looseygoosey, leaky arrangement at best.

* The driver side muffler had broken away from the pipe. The passenger side wasn’t too far behind.

* It was all way too noisy for me. I want smooth and quiet, not rough and noisy.

So out it all came. Another easy job (taking stuff apart is a piece of cake). BTW, please feel free to heap abuse on me for using the Fram filter shown in the first pic below.


I wanted straight dual exhaust using original GM part number exhaust manifolds (aka ramhorns). I figured I could install an exhaust kit myself because I installed a kit on my Vette long ago (still in good condition, too). I found several kits available for 67-72 trucks and eventually decided on the Hooker 16621HKR with Hooker 21005HKR mufflers. I found a few threads where guys had used this kit and had no issues with it. If it all comes from the same manufacturer it should fit like a glove, right ?

The kit instructions ---> http://www.holley.com/data/Products/...l/16522HKR.pdf

I found a passenger side exhaust manifold on eBay (GM 3896956) and I bought the driver side from teeitup in the Parts Board (GM 3932469). The old studs are usually a problem (rusted in and so on) but I figured I could get them "good enough" and if there were problems later, I could either get new Dormans or better used ones. So I drilled and tapped and JB Welded and wire brushed and ground until I felt they were good enough to use.

Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
 

EXHAUST (Part 2 of 6)

The passenger side manifold arrived first, so I started my my pipe fit-up on that side. I attached the headpipe to the manifold and snugged up the flange with plain stud nuts so that the flared end of the pipe was flush with the manifold outlet (best not to use locknuts just yet, wait until everything has been fit up). I left it loose enough so I could adjust the direction of the pipe once under the truck. I guided the assembly into the engine compartment and secured the manifold to the head by snugging up three bolts, two outer and a center. I then went to take a look at what was happening underneath the truck and the pic below shows what I saw.


Hmm…now what…I e-mailed a notice to both Holley (they own Hooker) and Summit (the vendor) describing what I encountered. More on this later.

While I was figuring out what to do about the droopy headpipe, I went on to the rest of the kit. I don’t have a welder (which may be blessing or curse depending on the situation). So I was thinking I’d clamp the pipe joints and find some way to use fasteners to attach the hangers to the frame. Six hangers are required, three for each pipe run. I got out my C-clamp collection and began to search for good frame attachment points. I hoped I could find holes in the locations where I needed a hanger. I did find a couple for the rear hangers, but I was unable to find existing holes suitable for the others. I had no desire whatsoever to drill through the frame.


During the initial fit-up, I had a hard time keeping the pipe and mufflers from flopping around, falling and generally behaving in an unruly manner. So I made up a pair of wood saddles for the mufflers and set them on a crossbeam and used a lot of wire and clamps plus the hardware in the kit to secure sections of pipe and that helped a lot.