'78 K20 to C10. Almost 20 years in the making.

[TKCR]

Looks good, but I see what you mean about the armrest. If I remember right, I got mine from Classic Parts. The color matched a lot better than the LMC.

On the Dash Bezel, it's not really the gauges that's causing it not to fit right, it's the bezel itself. You got an 81-87 dash pad and your using a PRE 81-87 bezel. The dash pad on the 81-87 is shaped a little different.
Dash pads are 73-78 79-80 81-87
The bezels are 73-80 and then 81-87
They will work, but you will just have some minor fitment issues.

Other than that, I think it looks awesome And I'll say it again, I love that color of gray your using.

[cruizin01]

Originally Posted by TKCR

Looks good, but I see what you mean about the armrest. If I remember right, I got mine from Classic Parts. The color matched a lot better than the LMC.

On the Dash Bezel, it's not really the gauges that's causing it not to fit right, it's the bezel itself. You got an 81-87 dash pad and your using a PRE 81-87 bezel. The dash pad on the 81-87 is shaped a little different.
Dash pads are 73-78 79-80 81-87
The bezels are 73-80 and then 81-87
They will work, but you will just have some minor fitment issues.

Other than that, I think it looks awesome And I'll say it again, I love that color of gray your using.

I was pretty sure this is a later bezel. It doesn't have the cutout for the wiper.. why do you think its earlier?

Thanks again for the kind words. Im pretty hard on myself so its nice to hear good things.

[TKCR]

Originally Posted by cruizin01

I was pretty sure this is a later bezel. It doesn't have the cutout for the wiper.. why do you think its earlier?

Thanks again for the kind words. Im pretty hard on myself so its nice to hear good things.

I guess I was just assuming, because your truck is a 78. But I'll admit, I've been wrong before.
BTW, I don't remember if you said where you got your dash pad? I'm kicking around the idea of a new pad. What was the SEM color that you used?

[LT7A]

I'll throw in my two cents on the door panels. But first I want to say that the truck is coming together very nicely. Your attention to detail is going to pay off.

The place to add detail to the door panels is in the "inset" around the handles. That can be painted a contrasting gray, probably darker, and the perimeter trim another color as well. Black is an easy answer but a metallic gun metal might be the topper. With the width of that trim, spraycan pseudo-chrome won't cut it, but a darker metallic like gunmetal, or even better may be a titanium, will look really nice. Use your OEM armrests that fit. No need to provide contrast there and feature them.

[cruizin01]

Originally Posted by LT7A

I'll throw in my two cents on the door panels. But first I want to say that the truck is coming together very nicely. You attention to detail is going to pay off.

The place to add detail to the door panels is in the "inset" around the handles. That can be painted a contrasting gray, probably darker, and the perimeter trim another color as well. Black is an easy answer but a metallic gun metal might be the topper. With the width of that trim, spraycan pseudo-chrome won't cut it, but a darker metallic like gunmetal, or even better may be a titanium, will look really nice. Use your OEM armrests that fit. No need to provide contrast there and feature them.

Thanks so much. I get what you mean and I like the idea. Ill kick around some ideas and go from there.

[cruizin01]

My good buddy came over yesterday and we knocked out the back slider. Neither of us really had any idea what we were doing. I watched a couple youtube videos but that was it. We struggled at first but eventually with enough elbow grease and some silicone spray we got it in place. Super stoked we didn't break anything or tear the seal. The corners sit just a little funny and have a different gloss than the rest but Im ok with it. The seal was a Precision Seal.



Thinking today I can pull the truck out and give her a bath. Maybe start the process of detailing the thing. Can't do much else until I get the hood back. Starting to get frustrated with that...

[TKCR]

Originally Posted by cruizin01

My good buddy came over yesterday and we knocked out the back slider. Neither of us really had any idea what we were doing. I watched a couple youtube videos but that was it. We struggled at first but eventually with enough elbow grease and some silicone spray we got it in place. Super stoked we didn't break anything or tear the seal. The corners sit just a little funny and have a different gloss than the rest but Im ok with it. The seal was a Precision Seal.



Thinking today I can pull the truck out and give her a bath. Maybe start the process of detailing the thing. Can't do much else until I get the hood back. Starting to get frustrated with that...

Looks good!!

[HunterRotten]

Dad told me to check out your thread. I also have a 1978 build with a sniper big block. I got some of the black coated BB8 headers. I had similar fitnent problems as you, and my ceramic coat has failed with less than 500 miles of use. You are probably better off with the painted ones. Sanderson said they would repair if I paid shipping and the ceramic coat process. Needless to say, I won't be buying Sanderson ceramic coated headers for $600 again.

[cruizin01]

Originally Posted by HunterRotten

Dad told me to check out your thread. I also have a 1978 build with a sniper big block. I got some of the black coated BB8 headers. I had similar fitnent problems as you, and my ceramic coat has failed with less than 500 miles of use. You are probably better off with the painted ones. Sanderson said they would repair if I paid shipping and the ceramic coat process. Needless to say, I won't be buying Sanderson ceramic coated headers for $600 again.

Ive been following your thread, thats how I found these headers. But wow, that stinks. Im relieved now I didnt buy the black ones. At least if the VHT fails i wont be out much except for my time. Thanks for the tip.

[cruizin01]

I spent the last 2 weekends finishing up the exhaust on the truck. Everything went pretty well. I was surprised I was able to get everything setup, cut, tacked, finished welded, coated and reinstalled. This is the first exhaust Ive ever built and I have very minimal experience welding. So keep all that in mind. Im overly pleased and Im pretty hard on myself.









Everything here is finish welded and cleaned up ready for some paint. I wish I could just leave them this nice shiny finish but they would just rust in a heartbeat. I went ahead and just sprayed them with VHT high heat to try and help keep the welds from rusting.



After test fitting and making small modifications to the headers I wiped them down and sprayed about 3 coats of VHT on them. I then put them on the grill one at a time and did the 200*, 450*, and ~600* temps for about 20 min each. I figure that was better than just running them on the truck. I then put some painters tape on the headers and carefully put them on the truck. Sanderson doesn't recommend gaskets so I bought their recommended sealer and applied it then hand tightened the bolts and let it setup overnight. I then retorqued everything in place.



I reinstalled the exhaust this past Saturday. Everything went back together pretty well. One side went together sorta tight but I was able to get it close and then the H pipe clamped in place. It has a hands amount of clearance between it and the bottom of the cab.

The new exhaust has plenty of clearance compared to the old setup which was about 2" off the ground. My only other worry is the trans mount. Ill eventually get one of the custom ones that loops up and over the exhaust.




Once everything was mounted up and plugs reinstalled, etc I started the truck up and didn't find any leaks or weird noise which was excellent.

Yesterday I cleaned up my garage and workspace. Decided to get a HF cart for $30 and modify my work bench to contain my welder and cart. Its not super pretty but its functional.



My grand parents stopped by for a few minutes and I surprised them with a quick ride in my truck. My grandfather is a wonderful man and had been very influential in my life. He continued to push me to finish the truck so this was a LONG time coming. He was stoked, none the less.




I'm still waiting on my hood. If I didn't already mention it the body shop got it painted but didn't get it blocked well enough and it looks like poo, so they are redoing it. In the meantime I need to get another hood so I can drive the truck. I think Im just gonna get a repop hood from Jegs for $200. Their distribution hub is close to me so I can just pick it up. Ill just install it as is then swap it when my original hood is done.

[cruizin01]

Had a good day yesterday followed by a let down.

I bought a cheap repop hood from Jegs to run on the truck until I get my original back from paint.

I got it fit decent, not great. I had to remove the hood springs to get the hinges to sit down far enough for the hood to sit flush.

So yesterday I drove to work. Everything went pretty good. Was nervous but didn't have any issues. Then after work I stuck it on our alignment rack so I could set the toe. The camber was pretty decent at just over -1* so I left that alone. The caster is off a little from one side to the other but I didn't really have the time I needed to adjust it. The toe was off so I get it set at about -1/8" side to side. I need to drive it a little more to see if I like the handling at that toe. If its too "responsive" Ill toe it back "in" a little.

So on the way home I got stuck in stop and go traffic for about 20 minutes. The coolant temp got to 220* but not any higher. As traffic was clearing up I took off from a stop and the truck spit, sputtered and died. After pulling off I realized my fuel pump in the fitech sump wasn't turning on. It was also super HOT. Like I couldn't put my hand on it. The pump failed but I can't determine yet if the pump was failing and got the sump super hot or the opposite. The tank was full so fuel should have been circulating keeping the sump cool but maybe something is going on that I haven't figured out yet.

I also need to look into the cooling system. I may bump the fan kick on temp down and see if that helps. I don't really know what t-stat is in the truck either. Or my jeep fan just isn't capable of keep up..

Regardless I had to get flat bedded home 3 miles.. sigh. oh well. $hit happens.

[bluex]

That fitech sump thing overheating pumps is something I heard about a lot. One of the main reasons I went with an in-tank pump. I hope they take care of it for you....

[cruizin01]

Originally Posted by bluex

That fitech sump thing overheating pumps is something I heard about a lot. One of the main reasons I went with an in-tank pump. I hope they take care of it for you....

Yeah I knew about that ahead of time that's why I modified mine to cycle the fuel back to the tank. Most guys don't have any issues using it that way.

I found out why mine failed. I ran the truck for a few minutes, shut it off. I pulled the return line off the sump and fuel sprayed everywhere. This should not have been under pressure. I put a little bit of air through the line and realized it was plugged. I don't know what was in it but I was able to bump the pressure and clear whatever was in the line. The low pressure gauge now reads next to zero pressure which makes sense as the fuel is filling and then returning to the tank once its fills. Previously it was reading 5-6 psi.

The system now runs a lot cooler. I don't expect any future issues.


edit. The pump got pretty hot ;-)

[cruizin01]

Realized a couple days ago that my backup lights were not working in reverse but only in drive. So I assumed my neutral safety switch was out of adjustment. After spending some time trying to adjust it I realized there wasn't enough adjustment in the switch. So I slotted the ends to get just another 1/8" or so that I needed. Works fine now. I assume the custom shift rod and aftermarket shifter lever is causing the issue. Sorry I forgot to take pictures.

[cruizin01]

Made another voyage to work and back and some errands yesterday without any issues. My sump is still getting nearly 120* when in stop and go traffic but Im guessing the fuel isn't anywhere near that. It should just be the outside of the housing. When I tested the fuel temp coming from the sump when diagnosing the problem it was only 80*ish.

Im getting a weird noise when braking and coming off throttle so last night I decided to check the exhaust. Im pretty certain my H pipe is hitting the bottom of the cab so I pulled it off. Im going to rework it today and hope that fixes it.

[cruizin01]

I reworked the H pipe on the truck Saturday. I had to run to Napa and get a tight 90* bend to keep the pipe closer to the trans.

This was my original pipe I made a couple weeks ago. I had crushed the top of it to clear the cab but I wasn't happy with leaving it like that. I wasn't able to get my hand in between the 2 so I wanted to fix that.



I found a piece of scrap metal to weld the ends together so that when I cut the center section out it keeps the angle and length close to the same.


Welded back together with the new pipes.


And repainted.



Ive been getting a noise in the rearend that I've been struggling to figure out. Its like something was shifting when applying the brakes or getting hard on the throttle. It also did it when shifting into reverse.

So I got under the truck and started rolling the truck forward and backward and I got it to do it. I realized the whole damn axle was turning inside the flip kit. As in the flipkit was rocking back and worth because it didn't fit tight up into both sides of the leaf pad. I had mentioned this to RideTech when I was installing the kit and they thought it would be fine. Obviously it wasn't.

So I went about adding a tab to lengthen the bracket. I cut a small section of scrap frame I had. Drilled a couple holes and welded it into place. My new Hobart welder was awesome to weld this 3/16'ish steel with.





I painted it up and reinstalled it and the noise is gone. Pretty simple fix for an awful noise.

[cruizin01]

After driving the truck around for a bit I decided I had to do something with the exhaust drone. Around 1600-1900 its just obnoxious. The 3" is obviously way too big for my engine combo but Im trying to work with what I've got.

I decided to leave the 50 series flowmasters and install some Vibrant Ultra Quiet resonators after the axle. I also wanted to move the tailpipes closer to the rear bumper as I've read that helps noise as well.

You can see in this first pic how I was able to move the tips out further. The nearest tip is before adding the resonator.





These resonators only come in stainless so it was a struggle for me to weld them. I didn't have the correct wire to weld but read you could get by with whatever the standard is. The struggle I think came down to how thin the stainless resonators were. It melted quick! I also had to fill a bit because the original exhaust pipe wasn't completely round because of how it was bent so there was small gaps between the two pipes. I got it done but Im not pleased with the results of the welds.

It was late when I finished so I didn't get to drive the truck but the initial start up and idle is a significant improvement. My wife said, "well the house didn't shake when you started it up"

If this doesn't knock the sound down to my liking Im not exactly sure what Ill do.. Maybe weld some J-pipes in the front pipes or something...

[TKCR]

I do like the look of putting the pipes closer to the plate. Looks GOOD!!

[cruizin01]

Been a minute since my last update. My wife and I went off to Sedona for some hiking/offroading and relaxation last week.

The new resonators are awesome! They cut out a ton of drone and noise. Really happy with that.

So the Saturday before I left I went to cars and coffee in the morning. Small turnout but got to talk to a few folks, etc. I needed to stop off at whole foods to pickup an Amazon package before our trip. I run in, run back out and try to start the truck and it just GRINDS loud. Like the starter gear was rubbing up against the ring gear or something. I beat on it with a 2x4 I had, even went so far as to walk over to my work (couple blocks away) and got a socket and breaker bar to turn the engine over. Nothing helped.

So I waited 2 hrs for a Flatbed to come drag my ass home. Frustrating.


Anyway so I get it jacked up and take a gander. The gear is engaged on the ring gear when I first look at it. So it doesn't make any sense why it was grinding and not turning the engine over unless something failed inside the starter.

As soon as I loosened the starter the gear retracted. I bench tested it and every 4 or 5 times I spun it up the gear stuck. So something in the solenoid was sticking. So whatever. While I was off I ordered a gear reduction unit from Summit. I installed it yesterday and everything is good now. I did have to extend the wires to the new starter as the terminals are farther reward.


A couple weeks ago one morning I realized I didn't have any heat inside the cabin. The truck was getting plenty warm but no heat. Yesterday I flushed the heater core to make sure it wasn't clogged. It was fine. After looking around the net for a bit I realized I had my heater hoses routed wrong. I had the inlet side to the heater core coming from the return side of the water pump. So it wasn't flowing any coolant. So I had to move fittings and sensors around on the intake to get that working. Gets HOT now.

My heater controls aren't functioning now either. I have 13-14 inches of vacuum at the back of the unit but seem to have a leak somewhere as I can hear it bleed off when I shut the truck off. So I need to get a hand vacuum pump to try and diagnose that. fun stuff.

Oh and the truck has a lean misfire at around 3500rpm now under full load. Need to run some diag on the Holley and figure that out. It seems to have started sometime after my fuel pump replacement but that doesn't make any sense as the fuel pump Im using should support 2x the HP my truck makes.

[cruizin01]

Worked on the vents last night. I ran over to harbor freight and picked up a mighty vac hand pump. I pulled the vacuum lines off the selector and checked each one by one. All held vacuum so my leak wasn't in the lines. So I plugged the head back in and went out to the track and pulled the main vacuum line and hooked up my pump. I had my wife run the pump while I was inside. The leak was coming from the vacuum selector at the back of the heater control unit. So I decided to take it apart and figure out what was going on. Of course the clip broke that holds it all together. The "seal" was a little hard but I cleaned it up and lubed it up and made up a small bolt/nut/washer setup so I could adjust the tension on the seal. I then plugged my vacuum lines back in and everything held vacuum. I was able to actuate all the flaps. So that's fixed!

[MTCK]

Nice work on the hvac. I would have struggled to find enough patience to solve that one!

[aggie91]

Great work trouble shooting. I'm with Marcus, I would not have the patience to get that job done...

[Mike W.]

I just ready this thread from the start. Excellent work. I will have a build starting very soon and you have helped me plan for my own.

[cruizin01]

Originally Posted by Mike W.

I just ready this thread from the start. Excellent work. I will have a build starting very soon and you have helped me plan for my own.

I appreciate it. More to come.

[cruizin01]

Enjoyed the couple days of nice weather we had over the weekend. Drove the truck around for a bit. Then the alternator failed... I initially thought it was a wiring issue because when running the exciter wire only showed 4V. Spent several hours diagnosing it. Eventually got frustrated and ran to the parts store to get an alternator and it fixed it.