Bierkan's 50 Re-Build

[Bierkan]

Just found this forum on Monday and it's already given me new ideas on what to do with this beast my daughter calls "Gonzo". I call it Christine, but that's mainly due to the ordeal in getting it to my home. That story is in the linked blog and too long to repeat here.

Basics: This is a 50 3100 set on a 72 C-10 chassis and drive train. 350 sb, new 650 Holly, Accell ignition, headers + glass packs, 3-speed manual. Truck was initially built in the mid 80's.

Apparently he was afraid of frame welding as instead of removing 12" of wheel base from the middle of the frame, they fabbed up their own rear suspension and chopped off about 2' off the rear. It doesn't work. So, I'm in the process of getting another rear section and piecing it together. Yes, I could go 4-link, but for simplicity, I'll try to keep it stock.

Body isn't bad but it isn't great, either. Cab corners will need to be done, running boards will need to be replaced, lots of bondo under the paint, etc. Since this is going to be a working truck of sorts, I'm not going to go all out on it right now. I want to clean up the wiring and righting a few wrongs (like no body gaskets between any of the panels) and keep her on the road. When I have a better financial situation, it can become more of a show truck.

One thing that was bothering me was putting a new wood bed into this. Basically, it would look "odd" compared to the rest of the truck and I'd be hesitant to use it. Add to that there is interference between the 72 frame and the 50 bed such that the frame comes right up to the bottom of the bed floor. There's no room for the mid two cross members. So, borrowing from the Popeye build, I'm going to put a metal bed floor in. We pulled the bed off tonight to facilitate the rear suspension change and I have it set on sawhorses.

I also want to put inner fenders in this, but I'm not sure if I can with the headers and a-arms. I'm thinking of pulling a set off another 50 in a local salvage yard and seeing if they'll fit and how much cutting is required.

Anyway, look at the pics in the attached blog - I'll add more here as we go along - and let me know what you think.

My coworker (who's built some killer rat rods) and I are already planning our next build around a 3100 cab with a crushed roof. But we need to get this shop truck running reliable first!

http://vierkanttrucking.blogspot.com/

James "Bierkan" Vierkant

[Bierkan]

What a day. Had to drive the 45 minutes each way to work this am for a 5 minute task, only to find out I'm no longer authorized to do that task. yeah.

Got back home in time to pick up the daughter, my neighbor's truck, tools and head over to Ron's Auto Salvage. He found a pair of decent trailing arms. They aren't pristine, but nothing on this truck is. $50 each, so I'm not complaining. I'll have to weld in a couple of re-enforcing strips where the metal is thin. Found a decent set of inner fenders that I was looking for and a couple of good cab candidates for the next project. (I know, I know, one at a time) Unfortunately, due to work and a late start by my daughter, I only had an hour before Ron's closed. So, I'll look at taking next Friday off for those inner fenders.

Got home and tore into the rear suspension. Three friends helped me lift the bed off Wednesday, so I have good access to all the warts on this truck. I started by grinding the rivet heads off the old, cut up trailing arm mount. Once flush, I pried that off the frame. I had to cut up the old e-brake line that wasn't hooked up anyway as it was welded to the cross member.

Next I pulled the old springs, shocks and panhard bar off. I think I *could* reuse the shocks. They're about 20 years and 6000 miles old. But why? Springs were cut to get the right ride height, so they're trash. I'll re-bush the panhard bar as it was pretty much in the right location and the right length. Depending how the axle lines up after the swap, I may have to move the upper mount.

I finished the afternoon grinding on the spring mounts welded to the back of the axle. These was one of the better welds! I started to lose light so I cleaned up and headed to the garage.

The trailing arms still have portions of the cross member attached and I don't have an impact socket big enough, so I couldn't do much with them tonight. I don't like using standard sockets on an impact, and Norby's is just down the road. I'll get one tomorrow. The new-used cross member showed up Thursday and I spent the evening grinding down rivets. They cut it from the frame, so that has to be removed first.

So far, a good start.

[Bierkan]

Here's the writeup with pictures.

http://vierkanttrucking.blogspot.com...post_5744.html

[_Ogre]

welcome to the forum...
most of us here can't read, we really like pictures

[Bierkan]

Originally Posted by _Ogre

welcome to the forum...
most of us here can't read, we really like pictures

Hence why I provided the link to the pictures.

[Bierkan]

Since I'm used to using my blogs for tracking my builds and not forums like this, I'll see how well I am at uploading photos from my phone. So far, this is all I have on my computer.







OK, not bad. Next I'll try pulling photos from my blog.

Above are pics from my Dad's place before we hauled the truck to my home. He'd had it for about 5 years and managed to change the shift knob. The last pic is in my driveway. That's where I'm currently doing the work - literally shade tree mechanic style!

[Bierkan]

Here's some better photos of the current state:
I picked up this cross memeber off e-bay. This will be located 12" forward of the old, cut up mount

Here is the current suspension under the truck. Notice the way the axle is mounted


Here's the problem with this set up. With the torque of the motor and springs, there is no good way to hold the axle in place. Toss in a pot hole or uneven road and you've got lateral torque, too.

[Bierkan]

Some more photos from Saturday's work.

This is the old cross member that I removed from the truck. Notice how the bottom half is missing? It was rubbing on the driveshaft, so they just blue wrenched it away.


To get the right ride height, they also blue wrenched the springs. I doubt I'll reuse them.


Marked the center of the axle so I can line it back up with the trailing arms and get the cross member mounted in the right spot. Yes, I'll measure it, too, but this helps with the initial swag. Since the rear tires lined up about right with the fenders, this is where I want it to end up. I will probably take my engraver to it in case it rains.


I have other photos that show the AFU rear suspension on my blog. They're too large to upload here.

[dmack91]

Wow, scary suspension. Nice to know we are driving on the same roads idiots that cobble those type of things together also inhabit. Nice start!

[Bierkan]

Originally Posted by dmack91

Wow, scary suspension. Nice to know we are driving on the same roads idiots that cobble those type of things together also inhabit. Nice start!

Luckily I don't think he built too many like this and I think this is the only one still around.
Posted via Mobile Device

[_Ogre]

after i posted i read your blog, scary stuff the po did to that truck
your truck looks like good original tin, no major body issues that i see

[Bierkan]

Originally Posted by _Ogre

after i posted i read your blog, scary stuff the po did to that truck
your truck looks like good original tin, no major body issues that i see

There is some bondo under that primer and black paint. Rear fenders have cracks/bends that have been covered and the original mirror mount locations look to be covered. Here's something that's really scary. I have no idea what's holding the mirrors on currently. There are holes for screws, but no screws in the holes. I'm guessing double sided tape or superglue!!

[Bierkan]

There are times I do stuff where I feel like this guy in this commercial.

Mr. Dumass-commercial very funny!!! - YouTube

When I do that, I remind myself that it's pronounced Du-Moss.

I had a couple of DuMoss moments yesterday.

I cut the spring mounts off the axle so there would be clearance for the trailing arms I bought. I was thinking that I could use the existing f***ed up rear suspension to locate where the cross member needs to go. Last night I'm looking at pictures of other 67-72 C-10's (my chassis is a 72) to see that where the trailing arms attach to the axle is RIGHT where the current suspension attaches. El Crappo! So, I'll leave it sitting on the jack stand as current, remove the current FU arms, bolt the trailing arms on and use those to help line up the cross member. I'll also double check with measuring wheel base and cross.

Next I compared my trailing arms with others on the boards. Yeah, mine are near junk. Since I didn't know enough of what I was looking for and was looking for a pair not rusted through, I ended up with a pair splitting down the middle. Oh, for practice I'll drill out the rivets, flatten them back out and re-bolt and weld together, with a plate on top. For my build, I just bought a pair from CA off the boards here. I know my skill level and I'm anticipating that I'll just mess mine up, but it'll give me more practice at metal working. The set from CA will get blasted and powder coated before going on my truck to help control the rust.

Could be worse! :-)

And sorry, Ogre, no pics today. It was too dark when I got done cutting. Maybe tonight.

[Bierkan]

Did some odds and ends on the truck last night. Only had about 30 minutes of light after family commitments. Took some photos with my camera and forgot to change the settings, so they're too large to upload here. Mainly shots of the condition of the bed and rear fenders. Left has had a lot of work done to it, patches and such, and there's some new holes forming in it. Oh well. ONe of the bed cross memebers is all hacked up for frame clearance. I'm thnking of notching the frame before putting the bed back on and replacing this cross member for strength.

Are be bed cross members supposed to be welded in or do the bolt in? Mine are welded, but that doesn't see right.

Got some photos of the clutch linkage that is giving me fits. Posted that under the 67-72 message board looking for advice.

Pulled the u-bolts off the rear axle and fought the bolts holding the swing arms on. Screws aren't long enough to get threads through the nuts, so they came off easily, but I couldn't get the screws driven back through. Finally was able to hammer them out - rounded the threads but who cares - they're not going back in.

Got some better trailing arms coming my way, so I just have to finish cleanging up my cross member. I need the arms to help line up the member, then I'll drill the frame and bolt it in.

I haven't had this much fun since working on my CB750 chobber last year!

[Bierkan]

This weekend I had to work quite a bit, so not much done to the truck. Soon I'll have to find garage space to keep working on it.

The more I look at my clutch linkage, the more I see wrong with it. Transmission seems to be sitting low and crooked, causing a serious bind on the linkage. I'm not positive, but they may have moved the engine forward to clear the cab. I need to find an unmolested C-10 for comparison.

I sat in the cab to further define the ergo issues and saw that my left knee hits the turnsignal arm. It's a Chevette column mounted low due to it's width. That is part of the reason for the clutch linkage move on the pedal.

Wed I plan on spending the day at a salvage yard pulling inner fenders, hood latch, steering column, steel bed floor, and looking over manual C-10 trucks for comparison. Trailing arms and brake booster should arrive this week as well. Should be able to locate, drill and mount the cross member this week.
Posted via Mobile Device

[Bierkan]

Spent Wednesday at a local yard, but only managed to get the two inner fenders and some benchmarking on other c10/K10/C20 clutch linkages. Two challenges kept me from fully utilizing the day. On the way there, the truck I borrowed broke an exhaust flange on the way there. I had to strap the broken pipe to the frame. Then when I got to the yard, the owner was away for the morning. A quick call got me permission to go in and pull what I wanted, but I didn't have access to his air compressor, which made a 1 hour job about 3 hours long.

The inner fenders ended up being quite the job. Typical rust issues with iron this old. Surprisingly the fenders are quite solid. It was the stuff they were attached to that was rotted - cab, outer fenders, grille. At one point, I needed to have 8' arms as I needed to hold a wrench underneath and behind the right front turnsignal and a wrench inside the front fender behind the headlight. At the same time I had a bolt at the cab that wouldn't let go. I ended up punching a hole through the rust for the cab bolt to slip through, then split the inner and outer fender enough so I could reach both ends of the front bolt.

Add to this I brought 12-point sockets, so any bolt head partially rusted away was guaranteed to slip or get stuck in my socket. Mental note, get 6-point SAE 3/8 drive sockets this weekend.

The owner did arrive in the afternoon and we scoped out some potential transmissions to replace the 3-speed I currently have, both auto and manuals. We also looked at some potential donor cabs for my next project. (maybe I should get this one done first? Naaaah!) Found a semi-solid 5-window split windshield AD cab. It's mounted on a S-10 4WD chassis and looks to be an abandoned project.

Had to cut the day short so I could get the borrowed truck into a shop to deal with the exhaust and then take my daughter out for beggar's night.

I got a treat myself, the good trailing arms I bought from a forum member here arrived with the first ghouls of the night. Tonight I bolted them to my axle and roughly located my cross member. Looks like it'll go 12 inches ahead of its original location, just like I guessed. Any advice for drilling a frame?

[Bierkan]

Took some more current status of the transmission and mount.





As you can see, it's not mounted correctly. From looking at other examples, there's supposed to be a mount either midway down the tailstock, which there's no mounting boss on the transmission, or there should be a mount on the bell housing, which is missing, too. Basically, this is a bell housing designed for a transmission with cross member and a transmission designed for a bell housing with cross member. Looks like I'm changing one or the other!

[dmack91]

Interesting use of a u-bolt.

[bk2life]

i think its pretty cool.

even though there is some scary involved, the guy had some thought into it. i mean really who wouldve ever thought of a u bolt for for a trans mount like that? that's some jesse james stuff right there!

[Bierkan]

Daylight savings tome sucks. It's dark when I get home, so the only work I've been doing has been on the weekends.

Today I cleaned off the old brackets and welds off the rear axle.



Here you can see where the original axle seats were ground off. They gouged into the tube. I hope this doesn't cause problems re-attaching the seats. At least we know where they're supposed to go. My guess is we'll have to build it up with weld before adding the seats.





All cleaned up! Only took about 4 hours!

Then I uncovered the rear stake pockets. The original builder plugged them up to smooth the rear end for the steel tonneau cover.




Next up I built a bed rail.

[Bierkan]

It was dark when I took these pics, I'd just finished.

I started with an old wood ramp I had lying around. The ramp was made from two old 2x6's about 13 years ago and worked well to load my 800 pound motorcycle into my old truck. But, I no longer have that truck, almost never hauld the bike anymore and have an aluminum ramp when I do. The wood is weathered *just* right for the truck's patina.

Cut the two 2x6's down to 80" and split the remained of one board into 2" strips. Then cut them into 16" lengths for the stakes. the 2" x 1.5" thick stakes fit into the stake pockets perfectly.

I clamped the side boards to the stakes and drilled holes for the carriage bolts salvaged from another project ten years ago - so they also have a nice patina! Bolted it all up. It may not look the greatest, but I like it. So far.







Next up I'll have "Vierkant Trucking" painted on the side. My great uncle had a trucking business back in the 50's, so I'll put his old number on it. BR-59385, or whatever it was. I'll have to "age" the paint, too. Probably have that painted on the doors, too.

[Bierkan]

A couple of photos from last weeks' work. My daughter, Punkster, and I worked on drilling out rivets from the trailing arm cross member. I started by grinding the rivet heads off, then using my air chisel to revmove the support plates or sections of frame. Then I center punched and drilled progressivly bigger holes through the rivets. Once they were drilled out enough, I was able to punch them out. Now the cross memeber is ready to locate on the frame and bolt in.




Then last weekend I worked on removing the old, cut up cross memeber. I got the rivets ground down, but couldn't get the air chisle to remove anything. After about 4 hours of making a lot of noise, I threw in the towel for the day. It was getting dark and cold. I'll try again tomorrow.

[Bierkan]

No pics today - too busy working. In-laws are here. 'nuff said!

Rented a mag drill to drill out the rivets holding what was left of the old cross member and drill the holes for the relocated suspension cross member.

I hate rivets.

Started by grinding the heads flush top and bottom. Then tried the mag drill. Had to get the truck up higher, so used the old trailing arms as frame stands. Wasnt' high enough. Jacked the truck up higher and used my regular stand under the home built trailing arm brackets on the outside of the frame. Got it high enough, but still had to dig a small trench under the frame rails for the drill. Truck looks like its seriously raked right now. Stands were also in the way of the mag drill for some of the rivets and I had to use a hand drill on those. Exhaust was in the way, too, so I pulled them off from the headers. Found a bunch of holes in front of the glass packs, which expains the excessive noise. I *was* going to run exhaust pipes out the back, but now will have to do a whole system from the headers. More $$.

Got everything drilled out and used the old holes to line up the new, 12" further forward on the frame. Just as I was finishing up, the sun set and the temps dropped 20 degrees. Guess winter is here.

So, exhust is off, old brackets are off and the holes are ready for the new suspension cross member.

Tomorrow, I *should* be able to set the cross member in place, bolt in the trailing arms, and set the axle in place to verify everything is right. If not, punt. I'll also cut the old suspension mounts off to clean up the outside of the frame.

Next week, or this weekend if he's available, I'll move the truck over to a local garage to begin re-assembly.

[Bierkan]

Well, found some good use for the old, homebuilt trailing arms that were on my truck. I needed to hold the back of the truck up enough that I could get a mag drill under the frame.

Got the old rivets from the old suspension cross member drilled out.

Next two pictures are of the rear cab mount. The first one is how the first builder compensated for the narrower 72 frame. Scary? Yes! Those are lug nuts, square nuts and washers. I have some rectangular tubing cut to fill this gap properly.

[Bierkan]

Yesterday I cut off the old trailing arm mounts from the homebuilt suspension.

Then drilled the rectangular tube for the rear cab mounts.

And got the tubes installed on the truck. The first part actually INSTALLED on the truck. Whoo Hoo!!


Next two photos are of the front cab mounts. See anything missing? Like nuts? Every time I look at something else on this truck, I find another thing that scares the crap outta me that this was actually on the road. The rear cab mounts were the only thing keeping it on the frame. I *thought* the cab felt like it was rocking when taking turns!


Now the question is how I put nuts on these mounts when I have no way of getting to the top of the bolts? Any thoughts?