Loosenutz's 66 SWB BBW LM4 Build

[loosenutz]

I've always wanted to build a C10 and that day has finally come. For the longest time I always liked the 2nd generation C10s but the last couple years my preference changed to the 1st gens. So the search began for solid foundation from which to start. It had to be SWB and had to had a BBW. Really didn't need much else since the rest will be custom. Here's the 66 that I bought. It looks pretty crooked in the one picture but it's just becasue the PO really screwed up the body mount bushings. I also purchased an LM4 4L60E combo from an SSR. It includes a bunch of other parts that I'll try to make use of as well (gas tank, driveshaft, radiator, etc) I also included a pic of my previous build a 66 Chevy II with an LS1 & T56. The build thread for it is here.https://www.stevesnovasite.com/forum...d.php?t=358346

[Captainfab]

The body on the truck looks fairly straight.......Very nice looking Nova.

[loosenutz]

Replaced all the cab, bed, and core support mounts with the correct ones... Much better now. It was so jacked up the way the PO did it. There were cab bushings under the core support and another cab bushing under one bed mount. No wonder it was so crooked. Looks really good and straight now. Probably need a couple little shims to get it perfect but I'll wait until the engine is installed to do the fine tuning. Also replaced the front parking brake cable and that system is working great again. (After lubing up the rear cables)

[loosenutz]

My new aluminum wheels and new tires also arrived. They are Vision Rocker 18x9 in satin black. Went with 255/55/18 tires front and rear. With the -12 offset, they are centered almost perfectly in the rear wheel tubs. -19 would have been exactly centered but they didn't offer that offset. These aluminum wheels required longer lug studs which opened a big can of worms. I'll post about that soon. Here's a stock image of the wheel.

[loosenutz]

So the can of worms I previously mentioned. Pulled off the brake drums and it was quite obvious I needed new axle seals. Inside the passenger side drum is caked in gear oil. The drivers side didn't leak too bad but it's filthy so I figured I may as well do them both. Popped off the rear end cover and it seems to have the original gear oil in here... About an inch of sludge was underneath what was left of the gear oil. Luckily the gears and everything look to be in good condition. I will be putting in a limited slip at a later date but not yet. Ordered new axle seals and new wheel cylinders. The rest of the rear brake system is in good shape so I'll just tear it completely apart, clean it, paint the backing plates/drums and reassemble. Oh and I'll obviously clean out the rear end and put in new gear oil... Note: by the time I took these pictures, most of the sludge had oozed out of the rear. There was a whole lot more initially.

[loosenutz]

Finished reassembling the rear end last night. Everything's all cleaned up (what a mess that was...). Backing plates, drums, and rear cover painted. New axle seals, wheel cylinders, longer wheel studs, and fresh gear oil installed. I'll change the oil again when I install the limited slip just in case there's some residual dirt in there. I used a Lube Locker rear cover gasket. Pretty nice and I would definitely recommend it plus it's reusable. And yes, I laughed at the company name.

Ordered some CPP goodies last night as well.

Compete front disc brake conversion with power booster and 2.5" drop spindles. Also comes with all new ball joints and tie rods.

5" rear lowering springs and adjustable pan hard bar. I'll cut the front springs to level the truck once most of the weight is in it.

[loosenutz]

Decided to start tearing the front suspension apart to get ready for the CPP brake conversion kit's arrival. It's safe to say that someone greased this truck on the regular. Ball joints are covered a a giant ball of hardened grease and dirt. Upper control arm shafts feel pretty good but the lowers are a little sloppy. Decided to just replace them all while it's apart. I will also be cutting a coil off the front springs, relocating the upper shock mount higher, and performing the caster improvement mod to the lower control shafts. Got the original drums and spindles removed and that's enough for tonight. They are free to a good home if anyone wants them otherwise their going in the recycling bin.

[loosenutz]

Big crate arrived today. LM4 and 4L60E along with a bunch of other parts from the Chevy SSR it was removed from.

[slimjim66]

cool build so far, the SSR's were just a iron block 5.3 LM7? i didn't know that. good luck with your build

[350TacoZilla]

slimjim66 I think you mis-read

SSR had the aluminum block 5.3 like the trailblazer\envoy = LM4 like OP stated
Iron block 5.3 =LM7 you mention.
Just for future reference the later displacement on demand trailblazer\envoy still had aluminum block but it is the LH6
OP cool build and cant wait to see it together

[loosenutz]

Thanks! Correct, it's an aluminum 5.3L

Originally Posted by 350TacoZilla

slimjim66 I think you mis-read

SSR had the aluminum block 5.3 like the trailblazer\envoy = LM4 like OP stated
Iron block 5.3 =LM7 you mention.
Just for future reference the later displacement on demand trailblazer\envoy still had aluminum block but it is the LH6
OP cool build and cant wait to see it together

[slimjim66]

Originally Posted by 350TacoZilla

slimjim66 I think you mis-read

SSR had the aluminum block 5.3 like the trailblazer\envoy = LM4 like OP stated
Iron block 5.3 =LM7 you mention.
Just for future reference the later displacement on demand trailblazer\envoy still had aluminum block but it is the LH6
OP cool build and cant wait to see it together

i did miss read lol, my bad guys.... good to know

[loosenutz]

My order from CPP arrived on Saturday so I started with the front suspension upgrade/rebuild. So far I got the old shafts and ball joints removed (rivets suck...) Other than one lower shaft that was sloppy, they were in pretty good shape for originals. I have the UCAs cleaned, painted, and reassembled with new ball joints and shafts. I also painted the CPP drop spindles. I'll post up pics once it's completed. Still waiting for the new LCA shafts to arrive from Summit. Also started putting the 5" drop springs in the rear. Thought it would be a quick 30 minute job but due to stuck/rusted spring retainer bolts, I only finished one side so far.

[loosenutz]

I took some measurements tonight now that I have the engine and trans here. If I install the 4L60E to the stock trans cross-member location, the SSR driveshaft is the perfect length. Just need a conversion u-joint. Sweet! Will need to get a low profile poly trans mount because the SSR trans mount is way to big. I'll probably need clearance some where the driveshaft goes through the rear suspension crossmember too. The SSR driveshaft is a huge 4.5" diameter which fits through the crossmember but very little room to spare.

[350TacoZilla]

That's cool when stock parts fit together, makes the list of things to remember shorter at parts counter. You planning to hook up like ac\cruise etc?

I wonder if the SSR cluster would fit in the stock dash opening lol

[loosenutz]

Yes, it will have ac and cruise. I do have the SSR gauge cluster. Not sure if I'll use it or not. It would be nice to but I don't know if it will look right in the old C10. I guess we'll see when I get to that point.

[loosenutz]

My new LCA shafts arrived so I finished cleaning, painting, and rebuilding the LCAs. I modified the LCA shafts to increase the amount of caster as I've seen others on here do. I'll start assembling the front suspension and brakes tomorrow.

[loosenutz]

Got quite a bit done today. Machined the LCA shafts to move them forward. Removed the saddles that hold the LCA shaft. Sandblasted and painted them. Then reinstalled them using socket head bolts to get a better engagement into the shaft. Cut a coil off of the front springs, sandblasted, and painted them. Then I clearanced the rear of the cross-member to allow the LCA to move forward without interfering.

[loosenutz]

After that I put everything together. It when together pretty easily. I didn't put the brake calipers on yet because I want to paint them first. There's enough clearance at the rear of the LCAs that I could probably move the LCAs another 1/4" forward but I'll leave it for now.

[loosenutz]

Threw the front tires on and set her down to check the stance. Not too bad. Should be just about right once the driveline and interior is installed.

[loosenutz]

Swapped out the stock SSR engine and trans mounts today. Using universal weld in LS engine mounts so I can position the engine exactly as I want it. Using a low profile Energy Suspension mount on the trans. You can also see the odd front sump SSR oil pan in this pic. I have a Holley 302-2 pan I'll be installing soon.

[loosenutz]

Installed the conversion U joint into the SSR driveshaft so it will connect to the C10 rear yoke. Took longer than expected. This was my first encounter with a plastic injected U joint. Took a bit of research to get that apart but all good now. I'll definitely need to enlarge the opening in the crossmember where the driveshaft passes through. The SSR driveshaft is 4.5" diameter and has less than 1/8" clearance per side

[SCOTI]

Originally Posted by loosenutz

After that I put everything together. It when together pretty easily. I didn't put the brake calipers on yet because I want to paint them first. There's enough clearance at the rear of the LCAs that I could probably move the LCAs another 1/4" forward but I'll leave it for now.

How much did you shift the shafts forward?

[loosenutz]

These shafts were already 1/2" more forward than the stock ones so I only moved them another 1/4"

[loosenutz]

I'm going to be setting the engine/trans into the truck soon so there was few things I wanted to do first. Installed a Corvette servo (left in the pic, stock on right) into the 4L60E and I replaced the output shaft seal since it looked damaged. I also installed the tie rod assemblys that came with the CPP kit. Nice stuff....