54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Iron Oxide, aka Fe2O3, more commonly known as rust is the first thing anyone will notice about this truck. It has it on every panel, and on the frame. It has rust outs in numerous places, but not in the main places. So far it seems worthy of putting back on the road, so I'll mainly be concentrating on doing exactly that.

No fancy frame swaps, clips, fancy paint or LS's are in the cards for Ox, just make it safe to drive, stop the rust, and a decent stance. It came with a 350/700R combo of questionable condition - it's in there but has never moved Ox an inch. It won't start and it has no brakes, a new wiring harness that has not been installed. It's a project someone smarter than me bailed out of.

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...pslh13bwwo.jpg

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psjxr7goes.jpg

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...pssvy9mcl1.jpg


http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psyyciq9ew.jpg

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

I like it. You may run into an issue with the driver's side exhaust manifold, too.

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Gotta love them :gmc2:!

Love the name! Sounds like a straight forward project!

Good luck.

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Fortunately the PO found a set of OEM cast manifolds that clear the steering box and the frame, so I may have lucked out there.


Yeah, it should be straight forward but I rarely luck out that way, and my goal posts keep moving as I get into it.


Thanks for stopping by, guys!

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Taking on a project like this has me a bit overwhelmed- so much to do, take stock of, decide on a plan of attack and come up with a vision of where I want to end up.

Those who fail, fail to plan - right?

So anyway, I'm still in the early stages of each of those things. First thing I had to do was replace those gawd awful rollers with a set of Boyd Coddington Timeless wheels I had squirreled away. The 17x9 wheels with 275's fit, but just barely. Luckily the front and rear bolt pattern is 5x4.75 so I've got lots of wheel options when the time comes to get the actual set to be used.

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psuja1hr9s.jpg

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Nice Patina!

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

I'm in.

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

haha been there! good luck!

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

I gotta admit something here. I mistakenly thought doing the ole patina thing would be a whole lot easier than it's turning out to be. I should buy PB Blaster by the drum. I have rounded off more bolt heads and stripped more threads than all my other builds combined.

And the grill. Cripe O Mighty. The peeling paint on it bothered me, so I thought I'd get it blasted, right? Can't get to the bolt heads because there's at least 4 layers of paint. So I get paint stripper. And I scrape, and scrape, add more stripper and scrape. More bolt heads round, threads strip and the sucker is still on.y

Thoughts of a plasma cutter enter my head briefly, but I decide to just strip the damn thing on the truck. So after hours of applying CLR and not getting anywhere fast, I use a wire brush, graduated to a wire wheel and then to an angle grinder dammit.

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...pshwp0gnbc.jpg

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psqublrpue.jpg

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psmjuvjtq0.jpg

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psraaajaeo.jpg

Another couple days and one of us will be whipped. :smoke:

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

sheeeeooot. I have a chrome gmc grille hanging in the shed I was almost giving away a couple months ago. I need it for my 49 GMC though, which has a beat up grille of its own.

http://i266.photobucket.com/albums/i...psacot0wf8.jpg

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Wow...there some metal under there!

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

OX

I use 50% acetone with 50% any atf. Works better and less cost than the stuff in a can at 8 buck a pop, get a spray bottle like you use to spray windex. I spray once and wait 24 hrs use heat OxAc, then spray again and wait 24. If it is still not giving, then I get two long box end wrench's and bust it up, if that doesn't work get the fire wrench.

Project looks good, making head way on the grill.

Keep on keepin on

Nut Case

:gmc2:

ps I have a 57 GMC disassembled down to the frame scattered between two states. I'm downsizing. No Joy

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Looks great man!

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Nice, I'm in. If you want the patina look still, just paint the grille and leave the body. Not something I like to suggest, but you cold always do a faux-tina on the grille if you don't like the painted look on a true patina body.

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Hi Duane, thanks for dropping in. I won't have to do any faux-tina - all I need to do is leave it alone and it will rust up all by its lonesome. I could use steel wool to maintain it if I don't paint it I suppose. I would like to do something to stop the rust from being the surface type to graduating to scale or worse. It's amazing how the steel on the grille and surround has held up while the bolts have all given up.

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Joe, just noticed the cab in your pic is sporting some of the same green that mine has. I wonder if that was a primer or ?

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

UPS truck came by today. Got enough stuff to keep me busy over the weekend, including these Dolphin gauges

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psmbbso7y3.jpg


Replacing these:

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psyyciq9ew.jpg

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...pso9zwykq2.jpg

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

I'm in, tagging along.

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

on my truck the green is the original color of the truck, the red is the primer. similar to Henry Fords famous quote, I can seem to find trucks in any color as long as they are green. this is my fifth green truck. :hh:

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Ho ho ho....GREEN GIANT!:lol:

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

double type

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

I've got an Ox to grind - worked on the tailgate today

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...pszgzropyk.jpg

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...ps7djjq9ls.jpg

Turns out most of the crusty stuff is paint curling up. The top layer is a skim coat and white, below that is a dark brown, followed by a dark green and then finally a light blue. I'm using an angle grinder with a flapper disk with light pressure. When I hit the green I know it's time to ease up because the blue is underneath.

Not sure why I'm keeping the blue, I guess it's kinda cool the original paint has hung on so long and with all the others it's managed to keep the steel in surprisingly good shape.

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Working on the wiring now, got a fuse box installed so that the main wiring harness is protected. Also setting up a common ground bar, a trick that proved useful installing LS's. The main power lead from the battery connects at the bottom, and I have the power lead from the alternator attached on the right. One advantage to hooking up the alternator this way is that the fuses take the hit before the diodes.


http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psenbo2rq7.jpg


Ok, I have some work cut out for me here....

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...ps3llgzotu.jpg

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

looks like a pot of spaghetti blew up!

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

And wiring one of these old trucks should be as easy as it gets. To top it off, this is one of those generic wiring harnesses that has each wire labeled, but there is no schematic for it. On top of that, I've had to buy the ignition switch, light switch, dimmer switch all separately and they have generic wiring as well and there is no matching up wire colors. Even had to splice in the right light harness to the left side. :waah:

Anyway, I'll get'er done - the worst that could happen is I burn it to the ground, right? :lol:

I should have this part done sometime this week I hope - I'm about ready to hook up power to it to make sure everything works before I tie everything away.

I'm using all new parking light and headlights too, and replacing all the connectors - getting rid of all the old crap. Same with fuel sending unit annd dash instruments.

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psoybwl9fs.jpg

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

stay away from dorman headlight sockets, I just bought some and they are crapola, the terminals push out of the plastic.

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

I went with H4 headlights so I used ceramic plugs. I didn't want to risk plastic ones melting

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Thanks for the advice guys. :metal:

I got some of the spaghetti cleaned up today. Hooked up the battery, no sparks or plastic melting which is always positive. Turn signals and parking lights are working. Put on the hood to cowl seal today. The old screws did not want to depart!

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...pstprgshat.jpg

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Loving this project so far

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Just because a truck has a ton of rust, I dont think it's a good dea to let it go without doing something to slow or stop it. Eastwood sells a spray on product that's a rust "converter" instead of an "encapsulator". Just go after the area with a wire brush then hit it with a couple thin coats.


Before
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...pslw056v57.jpg

After
http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...pscjte0vsp.jpg


Got the headlights, parking lights and tailghts installed. The headlights are HID with the turn signals built into them. The turn signals I changed to be parking lights. One piece of amusement is that the new dimmer switch I bought worked for low beams only, so I cleaned up the American made 62 year old old one a bit and shot some lithium grease into it, and it works like a champ.


http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...pshwap5xg2.jpg


Spaghetti is getting under control

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psafgo1qrm.jpg


I should get the gauges installed this week

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Decided to work on the dash and gauges so I could get them wired up. Here's how they looked before - all original and I don't know if they worked or not. If anyone wants them, drop a PM.

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psyyciq9ew.jpg

After

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psvbfsvute.jpg

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

nice work! the fourth dimension has always been time.

are your headlights upside down?

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

All the ones I've seen have the turn signal at the bottom. Now you've got me wonerdering...

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Love you builds. This one looks like a 180 direction change from your last few...

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

no I think you are right, the turn/park chamber on mine is on top!

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

You're definitely nicely right about that. I've figured out my favorite part of the hobby is the build process, figuring out how stuff works, and it's as close as I'll ever get to artistic expression, if that makes any sense. And you don't have to drop big chunks of change to do it.



Hey, if it works that's a win IMO. :metal:

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Got the gauges installed in the bezels and made up the wiring harnesses

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psmcxginrd.jpg


Yes, that's a dent in the hood. :(

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Cool Project Steve! I would have never known if you hadn't changed your picture....
Looking forward to following along.

Re: 54 GMC 100: The Iron Ox
 

Well Mike, this is a project that I'm doing myself, a low budget-have some fun-twenty footer. I bought this on a whim and we'll see how it goes. It's been fun so far.

http://i205.photobucket.com/albums/b...psgeoedwc8.jpg