My 1967 Chevy K20 Build Thread

[Chaparralman1974]

1/4/2023
I got a call from Jerry saying that the wheels were ready to pick up and that he had dug out a motor for me. I went up to meet with him and the wheels are in excellent condition! They are Ford Accurides, but are a very good representation of a steel wheel and I think they will work nicely. Moreover, he found me a spare! They all match and I am very happy with them. He showed me the motor that he pulled and said that they pulled it from a 1965 Chevy truck 5 months ago and that it had been a runner. He gave me a great deal on it for $150. Worse case is that it is a core, but I can’t go wrong for $150. It is a 3970010 block, so 68-79 350. The stamp pad on the block is V0512CDB. We can narrow it down based on the casting number of 3970010 which is a 350 casting and the 350 did not start until '67. Given that, the casting date of E 4 2 says May 4 and I would assume 1972. It could be 1982, but I think it is 1972. I think the C in the VIN number is passenger car (maybe Impala or Caprice). There appears to be an EGR mechanism on it, and GM started using the EGR in model year 1973, which would probably correspond with the date. If it is a May 1972 motor, it could have been for a '73 model year. Of course, that may not be the intake the motor started with either, so hard to tell. My guess is 1972 350 out of a passenger car. The intake is definitely a Quadrajet intake. The engine was painted corporate blue, but it is obvious that the heads were originally Chevy orange. I am not sure yet if I will be just doing a refresh on this motor or if I will do a full rebuild or even an exchange. I would really prefer to have a 327 for the sake of originality, but realistically, the Chevy 350 is the volkswagen of motors with millions of them out there. It really is a better motor, but I am not overly thrilled with going this route. Maybe a big block will be in the future…I just don’t know. At any rate, the 350 will be more than enough motor to get the truck rolling.

[Chaparralman1974]

1/7/2023
I decided to swap both axles with disc brake setups. I found a set of later model axles in Joshua Tree CA with all new parts to do a disc conversion front and rear. We were heading to San Diego tomorrow anyway to see my son off on deployment......we are just taking a "slight" detour to Joshua Tree CA, on the way to San Diego. These axles are out of a later model squarebody truck and include a set of “Big Hubs” (Spicer Hubloc) locking hubs for the front. This is the same type of setup that was on my first truck (1973 K20) so it is period correct and adds a bit of nostalgia for me. The axles came with all of the steering linkage and the front should be a direct bolt in. The rear came with the spring plates as well. I am not yet sure if I will swap in the rear. On one hand, it would be nicer to have a 4.10 gear ratio as compared to the 4.57 that is in it now, but it would also take away from the originality of the truck. In any case, I purchased both axles. I can always sell it if I don’t need it.

[Chaparralman1974]

1/13/2023
Today saw the removal of the cab from the chassis. I thought that this was going to be a lot harder than it really was. I had pre-soaked all four of the cab mounting bolts thinking that they were going to be seized up, but I was shocked at how clean and easy that they came out. I pulled the steering column and parking brake as well in order to get the cab off. One thing to note is that the speedometer cable actually screwed into the back of the gauge cluster. I thought that it clipped in based on some online research that I did, but it may be that the 67’s were just different. In any case, I was able to get everything disconnected and the cab lifted off using my engine hoist with a 4x6 beam mounted to the top of it. I did decide to remove the doors as well as I don’t want to bend or tweak them when lifting the cab.
The cart that I made ended up being a tad short and it was a bit of a challenge to get the cab off of the hoist and onto the cart. In the end, I had to place jack stands under the rockers of the cab to support it while I moved the hoist out of the way and then moved the cab cart under in its place. I put a few 4x4’s in between the cab and the cart and it seems to be holding, but they are a bit short for my liking so I will get some longer material in there at some point. I also ran a ratchet strap through the cab and around the cart for added stability.

[Chaparralman1974]

1/14/2023
Cleaning day!!
Today’s main goal was to clean the rolling chassis, new engine, and new front axle. Years of grease, dirt, and neglect were caked onto everything. I started by rolling the chassis out into the driveway and put a large piece of cardboard under it, and went to town scraping the old caked on grease with a putty knife. I ended up moving over to my cheap harbor freight pry bars, and they actually worked better. I was able to scrape off at least 15-20 pounds of caked on grime. After doing some research online, I decided to go up to the local DollarTree and pick up a bunch of cheap oven cleaner. As it turned out, the oven cleaner worked great! I sprayed it on and allowed it to soak for 15-20 minutes and then hit it with the pressure washer. I got at least 90% of all the grime off and anything that remained will be easy work with a wire wheel. More importantly though, now I won’t have all the dirt and crap falling off of the frame and getting all over the garage.
As the frame began to get cleaner, the original frame color came out along with the transfercase and bellhousing! I was shocked to see just how clean this frame really is! There is only surface rust, and I think that all of the bolts should come out nicely.
As for the axle and new engine, they cleaned up nicely as well and will look great after getting refreshed and repainted.

[Chaparralman1974]

More cleaning pictures.

[Chaparralman1974]

Here are some more pictures of the cleaning process.

[Chaparralman1974]

Here are some pictures after pressure washing.

[MARKDTN]

Originally Posted by Chaparralman1974

1/4/2023
I got a call from Jerry saying that the wheels were ready to pick up and that he had dug out a motor for me. I went up to meet with him and the wheels are in excellent condition! They are Ford Accurides, but are a very good representation of a steel wheel and I think they will work nicely. Moreover, he found me a spare! They all match and I am very happy with them. He showed me the motor that he pulled and said that they pulled it from a 1965 Chevy truck 5 months ago and that it had been a runner. He gave me a great deal on it for $150. Worse case is that it is a core, but I can’t go wrong for $150. It is a 3970010 block, so 68-79 350. The stamp pad on the block is V0512CDB. We can narrow it down based on the casting number of 3970010 which is a 350 casting and the 350 did not start until '67. Given that, the casting date of E 4 2 says May 4 and I would assume 1972. It could be 1982, but I think it is 1972. I think the C in the VIN number is passenger car (maybe Impala or Caprice). There appears to be an EGR mechanism on it, and GM started using the EGR in model year 1973, which would probably correspond with the date. If it is a May 1972 motor, it could have been for a '73 model year. Of course, that may not be the intake the motor started with either, so hard to tell. My guess is 1972 350 out of a passenger car. The intake is definitely a Quadrajet intake. The engine was painted corporate blue, but it is obvious that the heads were originally Chevy orange. I am not sure yet if I will be just doing a refresh on this motor or if I will do a full rebuild or even an exchange. I would really prefer to have a 327 for the sake of originality, but realistically, the Chevy 350 is the volkswagen of motors with millions of them out there. It really is a better motor, but I am not overly thrilled with going this route. Maybe a big block will be in the future…I just don’t know. At any rate, the 350 will be more than enough motor to get the truck rolling.

CDB in '72 is a Chevelle or Monte Carlo 350 with powerglide.

[Chaparralman1974]

Originally Posted by MARKDTN

CDB in '72 is a Chevelle or Monte Carlo 350 with powerglide.

That sounds about right. I think the previous owner had swapped it into his '65 Chevy truck. It was painted blue when I got it, but you can see the orange under the blue paint.

My plan at this point is to take the motor down to the short block and inspect everything. If all looks good, then I will just do a complete gasket refresh on it and then put new valve stem seals on it and run it as long as I can. That will allow me to put more money into the body and stuff. I am also going to swap the 327 intake onto the 350 to at least make it look like a 327. I have later model valve covers with holes in them so that should take care of the breather / PCV issues as well. Ideally I will find a 327 in the future, but for now the 350 will get the truck moving.

Thanks, Clay

[Chaparralman1974]

1/15/2023
Frame Day!
Today started with a goal of removing the powertrain from the chassis. I had the motor out in about 10 minutes and decided at that point, that if I ever have to remove an engine again, I will ALWAYS remove the cab and front clip! Over the years, I have pulled dozens of Chevy motors…..cursing and throwing stuff all over the shop as I would labor to climb over and under the truck to get to bolts and remove components. With the powertrain exposed, it is just too simple!
Pulling the motor showed that the clutch was actually in pretty good condition as was the flywheel. I will have the flywheel resurfaced and will be replacing the clutch and throwout bearing for good measure.
The transmission and transfercase came out as a unit, and I lifted them up onto my workbench for now to store them until I can tear into them. My hope is that they are good to go needing nothing but new gaskets and seals. I will tear into them at a later date.
Seeing as how the powertrain came out so easy, I decided to keep working to disassemble the frame today. I began by fully documenting the parking brake cable configuration and routing, brake and fuel lines, as well as all of the frame clip locations. The latter I marked with a “C” punch on the frame at each location. This should aid in installing new clips after I get the frame sandblasted and painted. I then began the removal of the brake lines from the axles. This is where I did encounter a snag. Both the front and rear flexible brake lines were essentially welded to the hard lines at the flared fittings. I did expect this as that is just the nature of old brake lines. As I intend to clean and reuse the fuel and brake lines, I used a tubing cutter and cut off the ends of the hard line. There is more than enough line there to add new flares when it goes back together. For obvious reasons, I will simply replace the rubber parts.
Starting with the rear axle, I marked the leaf springs (driver and passenger), unbolted everything and removed the axle. The same procedure was followed for the front axle after removing the steering gear box.
I now have the bare frame ready to go to the sandblaster. My plan is to paint the frame, axles, and leaf springs with Chassis Saver paint followed by a top coat of Rustoleum Matte Black.
The entire chassis tear down process took 34 man hours to complete. What is amazing, is that during the entire tear down, I only had to break one bolt that was seized on the grill and the two brake line fittings! Every other bolt came off neat and easy! Even the cab bolts came out looking new! I am convinced that this truck had to have been covered or in a barn for a good chunk of its life.

[Chaparralman1974]

1/16/2023
Frame Repairs and Engine Tear Down
Today was full of rain in the forecast, so I decided to cut off the make shift bumper and shock mounts that were added to the frame of the truck. At some point, someone goober-welded a dual shock mount with angle iron and rebar and added a channel iron front bumper mount. The bumper mount was actually welded on fairly well, but the goober-welded shock mount was not. The shock mount required very little cutting with a cuttoff wheel before the welds just knocked off. I wonder if they were welded by the same person. Some surface clean up with a 80 grit flap disk, and the frame is now ready for the sandblaster. I had a brief lull in the weather, so I loaded the frame on the trailer so it is ready to go.
Once the rain picked up again, I was locked in the garage so I decided to tear into the new motor to see what I was dealing with. I was a bit disappointed. Despite being told that it was a “runner” when I bought it, it was clear that this motor had sat out in the elements for some time. Several of the lifters and all of the cylinders were full of rust. The motor had been rebuilt at some point as the pistons are all marked .030 over. Lastly, I verified that the motor is a 2 bolt main. Since I am not too concerned about power, a 2 bolt is fine, but at this point the motor is probably just going to be a core since I am not attached to it. I may just look at a turn key motor now.

[Chaparralman1974]

Frame after cutting off the extra metal and the pile of junk after.

[Chaparralman1974]

This motor is now only good for a core I think.