81 C10 Rebuild
 

So this weekend while I was looking online I saw a truck pop up for sale that I sold a few years ago while in a tight spot and had to have it back! It’s an 81 Silverado. Brown and tan two tone. It appears the rust has grown a bit since I saw it last and the trim is all missing. But, a little rust repair, interior makeover and paint will get he back to a presentable state. Still rocking the 305/350 combo and has full McGaughys suspension that I installed years ago. So glad to have this one back!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

stockish,
nice to see it returned back to a great caretaker!:metal: please feel free to update as you progress...:ito: ;)

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

I got the interior removed last night. Carpet was a disaster and someone back in the day thought it would be sweet to cover everything in the inside of the truck in brown velvet lol! All the tan interior pieces were sprayed brown as well..... So I'll get everything cleaned up inside, strip and re-dye the plastics back tan like they were supposed to be. Replace everything else with new pieces and have the seat recovered. Then its on to the body!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Nice truck and good color. ;)

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Velvet, yeah!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Made room in the garage tonight and got the truck in out of the elements. Going to continue cleaning everything and see exactly where I am as far as rust repair, freshening up the suspension, etc. Now to get to looking around and decide what wheels to throw under this thing to make it a little more presentable.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Cool to get one back that's not too much worse for the wear.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

definitely. Could be better, but could definitely be worse. Glad to have it back for sure.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

I gotta rethink my strategies man; my projects always start 1/2 step from the local pick-and-pull!

Beautiful truck!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Fine-lookin' machine sir! :chevy:

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Thanks fellas. Hope to make a little progress this weekend with the interior makeover!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

I’m following. Good looking truck

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Thanks fellas. Hopefully picking up some wheels tomorrow. Been deciding between US Mags Ctens or Torque Thrust wheels both in staggered 20" sizes. think Im going to go with the timeless choice and pick up the TT2s. While its getting the wheels I hope to get the chassis cleaned, painted, and get the calipers and drums cleaned and painted as well. My body doesnt do well in the cold so hope itll warm up soon!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

A little progress tonight. Here’s a before and after wheel install.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Isn't it great what a set of wheels could do.....Truck looks great!



My build: http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=794986

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

stockish,
very nice!! although I was kinda diggin' the stock wheel look too!! I may have missed it but what tire size did yo choose?.....

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Nice truck!
I like the addition of the '85-'87 grille.
I was never a fan of the '81-'82 grille.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Thanks man, I went with 245/40 fronts and 275/40 rears.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Yeah the newer grill looks way better in my opinion. Thanks for the compliments.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

agree:metal:.. my '86 will have the same grill..... now that I got rid of the phantom grille:ito: from when purchased.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Wow! What you have done so far looks really nice. Love the wheels! And of course I’m a big fan of the 85-87 grilles myself.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

I love the look of the new wheels, Just in case your selling I need a set of the original take off wheels. Please contact me if you want to sell them.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Thanks for the comments fellas. Been down a couple weeks with flu garbage going around. Hoping to get back on the interior redo soon!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

The good ole carburetor on the 305 started acting crazy the other day, so I went out there to mess with it and one thing led to another. Next thing I knew the entire drivetrain, front clip, HVAC box, etc is gone. Guess it’s as good a time as any to clean and paint all the chassis parts and frame. Ordered some Slosh Tubz firewall filler panels last night. Will get the firewall painted after the filler panel install and start the LS swap as well. Time to get to it!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Made a little more progress last night. Got the bed removed, hopefully cab removal will be tonight. Then on to cleaning and painting the chassis. Ordered Slosh Tubz firewall filler panels to get the firewall all straightened out. C-Notch ordered, and body mount bushings are on the way from Energy Suspension. With any luck I’ll have the chassis cleaned and ready for paint this weekend!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Well that escalated quickly, haha.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Yep. I told my wife I was going to go work on the truck for a bit, she came out around lunch time and was like "what in the".... lol. I figured I was planning the swap at some point anyway, didnt make sense to buy a nice intake and carburator. May as well tear into it now!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

ddooohhh!!!! too funny

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Great color combo on it.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Thanks guys. Little more progress today. Getting everything blasted and painted. New upper and lower LCA bushings and ball joints. Rest of steering stuff is new already. Going to be using a manual brake master cylinder with the factory disc/drum combo. Will I need to keep the proportioning valve? I’ve seen some people use them and some not. Just curious. Want everything to to be as clean and neat as possible. Also, has anyone used this front frame stiffening kit? I need to put a brace off the steering box to prevent the common frame cracking issue. I have one very small crack now that I fixed, DONT want more coming back. Thanks for the help.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

I haven't seen anyone use that specific kit but I have seen people use from Off Road Design without any issues.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Super productive day today. Got the frame completely sanded down, cleaned with acetone, and painted with VHT Satin Chassis black. Also got the upper control arms blasted, painted and rebuilt with Energy Suspension bushings and Moog ball joints. Hope to have the lower control arms done tomorrow and the McGaughy spindles, and backing plates blasted and painted as well. Here’s a couple Pics!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Little more time n the garage today so I rebuilt the lower control arms with Energy Suspension bushings and Moog ball joints. Got the Beltech shocks and McGaughys coil springs installed. Blasted, primed, painted and installed the fuel tank brackets and the new 87 EFI tank with EP381 Delco fuel pump and Corvette filter/regulator. Will repaint the drop spindles and install them tomorrow hopefully. Hoping to have it back on it’s feet this coming week sometime!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Yeah, that escalated really quickly...:thumbs:. Looking forward to seeing it finished, maybe next week sometime??? :metal:

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Yeah man probably! Naw honestly I,m surprised its gone this quickly. The weekends without driving up and down the east coast for my sons baseball has provided me with tons of extra time. Although I miss watching him play, its definitely been productive in the garage. Today I got the McGaughys drop spindles stripped and painted, and reinstalled along with the McGaughys drop springs and BelTech shocks. Got the body mount cups stripped and painted and installed new Energy Suspension body mount bushings. Hope to have the bottom of the cab stripped and spray on bedliner sprayed on this week so I can get the cab back on the chassis.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Had some good time in the shop yesterday. Finished cleaning painting and installing the rear suspension and rear axle. Got the backing plates and engine mount perches blasted primed and painted. Flipped the cab over on its back and spent a couple hours cleaning and sanding the bottom of the cab and then coating it in spray on bedliner. Turned out fantastic and should protect it for years to come!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

All the suspension, steering and brakes are put back together and I got the cab mounted back on the chassis. Got the c-notch installed on the driver’s side and hopefully will get the passenger side done tonight. Hope to have it to the body shop this week so I can install the firewall fillers and get the firewall body worked and painted. Need to order a manual brake master cylinder so I can get the brake lines ran as well.

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

I have the same fuel setup:metal: I am looking foward to the install ONCE! I can get this wiring figured out on my LS swap. hopefully we can share install tips/tricks!:lol: good luck with the build!! ;)

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Thanks man, be happy to help in any way. I have the chassis finished and sitting on its wheels again. starting to look like a truck again!

Re: 81 C10 Rebuild
 

Started mock up of these sweet Slosh Tubz firewall fillers. Great product from Mike Losh! Going to look killer! Thanks Mike!