Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
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NUMBERS (Part 4 of 4)
Cowl markings Attachment 1050239Attachment 1050241 Attachment 1050242Attachment 1050240 2T CE20934 6 S9KA 49TD T2 2T & T2 = upper and lower trim (? my guess) CE20934 = SPID model number 6 = ??? S9KA = SPID engine option - 350 49TD = SPID transmission option - Turbo Hydra-matic Seat Belts Attachment 1050245 Robbins Model #9300 40K68 40=40th week of 1968 (the 40th work week of 1968 is from Sep. 30 to Oct. 4) K=Manufacturer code (i.e., Robbins) 68=1968 Seat Belt Ref: http://www.camaros.org/seatbelt.shtml 1968 Calendar Ref: http://www.timeanddate.com/calendar/...1968&country=1 The prevalence of late September 1968 codes leads me to believe that this truck was among the first of the 1969 model year trucks out the door, built in St. Louis probably in early October 1968. At that time I was 19 years old and in Navy basic electricity and electronic school in San Diego (beep school we called it), driving a 1958 Ford station wagon, my first car and surf wagon….but I digress. The TH400 transmission looks to be a 1970 unit, so it was probably retrofitted into the truck later (or installed to replace a failed unit). When I got the truck, I could see that it had been set up for camper and trailer use, so a transmission retrofit (TH350 to TH400 perhaps ?) makes sense and an early failure of the original transmission isn’t out of the question,either. The detent (aka kickdown) wiring and switch for the TH400 look like factory pieces, could be from another truck, could be original to this truck, I dunno. If there was a kickdown cable for a TH350, it’s long gone. So I don’t really know what transmission it had originally. Perhaps some of you transmission gurus could shed some light on this one. The serial number could provide a clue to the assembly date, but I don’t know of a reference source that shows the range of serial numbers produced in a given month at a specific assembly plant. If you know of one, I’d be interested in seeing it. Many of these trucks have been scrapped or modified, and the number of intact examples decreases daily. In addition, an agreed-to authority on originality appears to be absent. I offer up this information hoping it will serve as a documented source to those interested in the historic aspect of these trucks. OK class is over, you can wake up now. Jim |
Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
Missed your thread up until now but just read up on it. Cool truck, neat that it's so original, and GREAT writeups!!!! I'm going to recommend them to be used as FAQ material. Keep on trucking. :chevy:
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Very informative, I love it, keep em coming.
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I am big into the history and original stuff too. I finally managed to get an original dealers emblem for my truck at a swap meet a couple weeks back, it snapped right back into the holes that were still there.
If you havent already you might wanna check behind or under the seat, sometimes they stashed a build sheet between the springs. |
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looking good!
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Hey Jim, nice detail as usual, you do such a great job on all your post. Catch you next post......Jim
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INTRODUCTION
I sorta jumped right in with the gory details of my project without introducing myself or telling you why I got this truck in the first place. I think most people put this information near the beginning of their threads, but I didn’t, so I think I’ll say something about that here. Right now, I’m slowly fittting up my new dual exhaust, waiting for parts, etc., and I don’t have enough work on it to keep me busy all day, so I’m free to write stuff here to my heart’s content. AUTOBIOGRAPHY (with cars and trucks) I was born in Glendale, California and I grew up in Torrance not far from the beach. My parents bought a new house in Torrance in 1954 where I lived off-and-on for 54 years. My dad owned a Crosley station wagon and a beautiful green and black 1951 Ford Crestliner with a black vinyl top (long gone now). I can remember him letting me steer the Crosley when I was a wee lad while I stood on his lap. Sadly, my dad passed away at the young age of 37 when I was but 9 years old. My mom remarried a few years later and my stepdad put me to work at his place of employment, a muffler shop and gas station. I started out as the janitor and gardener. After a while I was helping remove and install mufflers and shocks, pumping gas, changing oil, fixing tires, all that. When I had enough money, I bought my first car, the service station owner’s 1958 Ford station wagon. I worked at the gas station until I graduated from high school. After graduation, I worked for a year at TRW as a reproduction equipment operator. In 1968 Uncle Sam called on me so I joined the Navy to avoid being drafted and going to Nam and spent the next five years, ten months, and two days in the USN. The Navy sent me to computer school in Vallejo in 1969 and while there I bought my second car, a 1959 Ford station wagon. On my last Westpac cruise in 1973, I ordered a 1974 Dodge van at the Exchange in Subic Bay and that is what I had when I got out in Norfolk in 1974 as a Data Systems Technician Second Class. After I came home to Torrance, I sold the van (gas crunch era) and bought an economical 1974 Dodge Colt (made by Mitsubishi) that I kept for the next ten years. I went to college on the GI Bill and eventually graduated with a bachelors degree in engineering (with an electronic specialization) from UCLA in 1980. My first "real job" was as an electrical design engineer with an engineering firm in Pasadena. I worked for them for seven years, spending two years in the office, and then moving on to construction in the field. My field assignments were in Tacoma, Washington building oil and gas gathering equipment for ARCO, and in Jubail, Saudi Arabia building a new refinery for Petromin Shell. While in Tacoma, I ordered a 1983 GMC S-15 Jimmy 4x4 that I kept for the next 27 years. Before I went to Saudi, I bought my mom a 1976 Ford Granada (which I still have). Oil and gas work petered out in ’86 so I came back to Torrance. In 1987, I found work with an engineering firm that provided construction manangement services to the US Postal Service and spent the next two years building a general mail facility in Los Angeles. During this time I bought my 1967 Corvette and took the body off and restored the chassis. When the Postal Service job was over, I hooked up with a buddy and got a job in Cairo, Egypt of all places. I spent the next four years in Cairo as an advisor to the Egyptian army for construction of an M1 tank plant. I bought my house in Carlsbad with the money I saved on that job. When that was over I came back to Torrance and decided I’d had enough drifting around; time to settle down. I’d hoped to find someone to settle down with, but that didn’t happen. For the next several years I struggled to find steady employment locally. I worked in retail, in sales, and for industrial contractors, none of which lasted long; early 90s in California were not good times. I took many classes at the local community college; welding, auto and machine shop, accounting, & art. I started surfing again, a lot. Eventually I found steady work with a construction consulting firm in Torrance that lasted for 12 years (where I had to do investigations and write a lot of long-winded, detailed reports, does it show ?). After my mom passed on, I fixed up the Torrance house, sold it in 2008, quit my job, and moved to Carlsbad. And here I am now, with a Vette, a Granada, and a Chevy truck, quite content. WHY A TRUCK ? (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Why_a_Duck%3F) So why did I buy a 1969 ¾ ton Chevy truck ? Good question. My little Jimmy, although dependable for 27 years, had qualities that I didn't care for. I didn’t use the four wheel drive, it was a bi tch to work on, and at the end of its life, needed a lot of work. So I got rid of it in August 2010 and started looking for something different. I wanted something pre-1976 so I wouldnt have to deal with the smog man and that I could do most of the work on myself. I looked at Rancheros, El Caminos, and Ford trucks at first. My Vette had sat in a corner of the garage in Torrance and then Carlsbad, unused, for almost 14 years, and with inadequate storage prep, it was kind of a mess when I started working on it again. But I got it running and back to the point it was at when I abandoned it back in 1996 or so. The engine is the original 327. I’ve had it down to the bare block, so I’ve been able to take a few measurements and inspect it. It’s a loosey-goosey motor and needs a rebuild, I doubt it has ever been rebuilt. It does OK around town, but on the road it uses a lot of oil. At any rate, I didn’t want to tear apart an original Vette motor for my first engine rebuild. So that led me to old Chevy trucks because I figured I could find one with an original 327 (at a reasonable cost) and use it for my first rebuild experience instead of fking up my Vette motor. I discovered this site at about that time and found tons of useful information here. During this time, one of my friends kidded me about wanting an old, full size truck and he started calling me billybob. That name wasn't available when I signed up, and just wanting to be done with the signup process, I became "bollybib". I found I didn't care much for Chevy truck design prior to 1967, but the 67-72s were quite appealing, 1967 and 1968 even more so among the six years. I found a few trucks available with 327s, but it was limiting my search. I also wanted rear coil springs and an automatic transmission. My upper limit was $4k and even that was kinda high, low $3k’s would be better. So I looked for a 350 or 327 (original to the truck), automatic, with rear coils, 1967 to 1972, and I ended up with what you see in this thread. It’s the first vehicle that I’ve purchased since 1987, kinda blows my mind, that. It’s a pretty cool looking truck and fits my criteria. As I’ve spent more time with it, I have had no regrets in my choice, and I feel I was fortunate to find one in this condition for a decent price. |
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wow with all of that traveling i bet u have some storys to tell to bad im in Missouri id love to stop by and help with the truck and shoot the u know what with ya . Keep up the great work on the truck
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Looks like you have moved around a bit yourself. Stop by any ol' time bud. |
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Great read! Just got done reading the 3 pages and must say, well done. These old trucks sure are fun.
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great read!! very detailed and descriptive. very helpful for me and im sure not the only one. keep it up good job
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Mine is just a toy for now, it still needs quite a bit of work to be reliable transport, but I'll get there. I bet when I do I'll put it to work now and again. |
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TUNES (Part 1 of 2)
I spent most of my time on the truck over the past several weeks working on the exhaust system and driveshaft. I’ll post something about those soon. When I got near the end of the exhaust-ing work, I needed something fun to do, so I decided to put in a stereo. I managed to find most everything I needed in my small-but-extensive "salvage yard", so this little project ended up costing me the price of a pack of connectors, $3.58. I didn’t want to remove a lot of stuff or drill any new holes or cut anything. The stock AM radio doesn’t work, and I didn’t want to troubleshoot it or remove it since the AC ducts are in the way and I was not of a mind to destroy those just yet. I didn’t want to put the stereo unit in the glove box because it is way too far to reach while driving. There are two fat pan head screws below the HVAC control unit on the dash that looked like they would make fine attachment points for brackets. So I scratched my head and drew a quick sketch on my work table. I rummaged around to find something suitable for a bracket. The center-to-center dimension of the factory-installed screws is identical to the width of the stereo unit so I needed something that would provide a rigid offset around the screw heads. I had some 1/8" thick rectangular aluminum tubing on hand that looked like a good candidate, and it would be easy to cut and drill too. So following my sketch, I fabricated two brackets and made a few test fits. It looked like it would work OK. Then I went to the truck’s electrical schematic to find a good place to hook up the power. I used the lead at the cigarette lighter for unswitched power and ran a wire to the radio connector near the fuse box to get switched power because I couldn’t reach the radio’s power connector. A PO had drilled a hole in the bottom of the dash directly above my mounting location so I used that for a ground screw. I disconnected the antenna cable from the radio to use for the stereo (lucky I could reach it without taking stuff out). I needed to buy some spade terminals but I had everything else on hand. |
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TUNES (Part 2 of 2)
I used a pair of 6 ohm speakers from a Sony mini-shelf system because 1. I hadn't used them for quite a while, 2. They worked, and 3. They fit under the seats. I screwed a piece of thin board to the sides of the speakers because I attached the speakers to the floor with silicone glue. I didn’t want to completely ruin the looks of the speakers in case I ever use them again elsewhere. I painted the stereo case and brackets semi-gloss black and put everything in. I used an iPod cassette adapter and ran the wire up to the ash tray where I can set my iPod. Fired it up and it sounds good and looks fine. Now I can turn it up to drown out the valve train noise haha. Rock on. Jim |
Re: Jim's 1969 Custom/20
Nice looking set-up Jim, rock on:metal::metal:....Jim
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See, I learned something by following your build ;). |
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How much $ did you spend on parts to do the rebuild? Thanks, Robert |
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There is a lot of external stuff that Edelbrocks need, fuel filter, fuel pressure regulator, fuel gauge, fittings and so on that could run you another $100+ easy if you don't have them. All this stuff is itemized in my list. Some guys don't want to deal with all this and just go buy one complete. That works, too. YW |
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That's close to the numbers I was getting. I already have the Holley Regulator and Pressure Gauge. I'm thinking I'll just get the 9906 (refurb 1406) this time around. Thanks again. |
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Jim,
Thanks for the link to your fix for the trans leak at the speedo gear. $2 worth of seals from the local tranny shop and no more leaks. Dave |
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After browsing your thread, I wanted to say thanks.
I like it went guys document their steps/progress - I have found so many solutions to my projects by just browsing build threads. |
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This has been a great read. Nice to see another Custom Camper here!
This is what mine looked like pre-restoration: http://inlinethumb25.webshots.com/79...600x600Q85.jpg Then when I got it in January: http://inlinethumb09.webshots.com/25...600x600Q85.jpg And now: http://inlinethumb43.webshots.com/44...600x600Q85.jpg Keep up the good work! |
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While the bed is off, there are several other things that need attention and now is a good time to do them because I have good access to everything. Besides, I doubt much anything I can see now that requires regular service or replacement has been touched for many years. After the pinion seal, I had the following items on my List.
1. Replace the u-joints and bearing support 2. Replace the exhaust system 3. Clean the frame 4. Replace the shocks 5. Replace the rear brake hose 6. Redo the rear end cover seal that I apparently didn’t do very well the first time So here goes with Numero Uno, Replace the u-joints and bearing support (aka DRIVESHAFT). DRIVESHAFT (1 of 3) I’ve taken out one-piece driveshafts and replaced u-joints before, but this two-piece shaft looked a little more complicated. I made sure I marked the original orientation of all the parts so I would reassemble them in the same position (assuming they were all in the proper positions to begin with, of course). I cleaned up as best I could around the transmission tailshaft seal to minimize introduction of dirt when I removed and replaced the driveshaft assembly. I then removed the entire two-piece driveshaft (this was easy). U-Joints Since I don’t know the service history of this truck, I decided to replace all three u-joints (UJs). The two forward UJs are the same size (Series 1310), and the rearmost one is larger (Series 1350). However, the auto parts stores think all three should be the same, but on a C20, they aren’t. 67-72chevytrucks.com and the Chevrolet Truck Parts Catalog provided the details regarding the anomalous part. I bought sealed Precision UJs so I won’t add three fittings to grease in the future. The ones I removed were sealed Spicers. The truck probably came from the factory with sealed UJs, according to the Service Manual. It’s been many years since I worked on UJs, so I fiddled around a while until I got a method worked out. I ended up using my hydraulic press to remove them and a 6" C-clamp to install them (both in combination with an appropriate size socket) which worked reasonably well. I had some difficulty installing a couple of them. After the lock rings were in, the joint was binding, I could feel that it was stiff and not rotating freely. I wasn’t too sure what was happening, so I took one of the old Spicers, tore it down, cleaned it, greased it, reassembled it, and reinstalled it at a joint (a good exercise, probably something people did a lot way back when, too, rebuilding UJs). No binding. I began to think my new Precision UJs were at fault. I read a few threads where people disliked them, but they didn’t give any specific reason why. I made a lot of measurements to compare new and old UJs (I’ve got a decent set of mics and calipers) and I found both almost deadnuts the same. So something was amiss in the way they ended up after I installed them, I thought. Maybe the binding I felt was because the trunnion end faces were being forced into the bottom of their bearing caps. So I went back and made sure all the yoke surfaces were clean, the lock rings and their slots were undamaged, and everything was free of debris or damage. I found a few places that needed attention, so I got out my Dremel, small files, wire brushes, and solvent and did what I felt necessary. The lock ring slot on the splined center yoke was definitely tweaked (more about that below). Once I took care of all this, all the UJs went in fine and did not bind. Here, in greater detail, is a procedure I wrote based on how I did my UJ work (with lots of pics). http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=492271 Bearing Support The Service Manual calls this innocuous looking contraption a bearing support, so I guess I will, too. The bearing support consists of a stamped metal frame, the lower section of which is formed into a cylinder. Held within the cylindrical section is a rubber isolator that grips the outer race of a roller bearing. The bearing’s inner race is pressed onto the splined section of the front driveshaft. By virtue of its being attached to a frame crossmember, support is provided for the driveshaft near the center UJ. My driveshaft obviously sagged here. It was way off-center relative to the bearing support. With the bed off, I could hear it squeaking when I drove at slow speed. The last pic below shows the support after it was removed from the driveshaft. Attachment 1050257 Bearing support Attachment 1050258 From beneath cab Attachment 1050259 Cut and sagging rubber isolator |
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DRIVESHAFT (2 of 3)
To get things apart, the yoke at the rear of the front driveshaft must be removed. It was stubborn and required quite a bit of torque on the puller to break it free (I was wondering for a while if it would). I found later that I had deformed the lock ring slot with the puller claws. Due to problems later encountered, I ended up having to remove and replace the yoke several times. Instead of pulling directly on the yoke, I inserted a pair of old trunnion bearing caps with their openings outward and pulled against them, not the yoke. However, the damage was done so I fixed it as best I could. I cut off the old bearing. I cleaned up and straightened the two metal end shields. Then I installed a new bearing with the a shield behind it. Then I slipped the stamped metal/rubber isolator assembly over the bearing, put on the other shield and the yoke, and torqued it up. Then I reassemble the UJ. Then put the whole bloody mess back on the truck. I had the rear wheels off so I could run the drivetrain with the rear axle up on stands. I fired it up and it spun like a top ! But then..,wait,..,what’s this I hear ?? Damn.,.,.it started squeaking loudly so I shut it off. The shields were hot as hell. I thought maybe I had a bad bearing so I took off the rear driveshaft and ran just the front one. I put my stethoscope to the bearing, it didn’t sound all that great , but after running it for 15 minutes or so, no squeak or obvious overheating. [Note Added on 8/11/11) I simplified this narrative some so I should also mention something else that happened. The first time I ran the assembled unit, the squeak began, got slowly louder, and then the driveshaft began to wobble violently. I believe this was caused by excessive friction between the shields and the rubber which makes sense considering what I did next. Next I tried greasing the rubber. Not a long term solution, but maybe that would help me figure out what was wrong. Reassemble and reinstall the driveshaft again. The grease shut it up. I left it like that for a while, figuring I’d get back to the problem later, if there still was one. But later on when I checked, it started squeaking again. The pic below is with the rubber greased up. So I took the driveshaft apart one more time. Now I could see that the rubber was chafing against the shields. OK, this is good, I know what is wrong now. You can see the flat spot worn into the rubber by the metal shield in the pic below. This was happening on both sides. |
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DRIVESHAFT (3 of 3)
So how to fix it ? I found a support unit only (less the bearing) that I thought I’d try next since it wasn’t too pricey. When I got it home I compared it to Mr. Squeaky. I found that newcomer Mr. Slim was one-fourth of an inch narrower than ol’ Mr. Squeaky, and that the rubber was much stiffer, too. This seemed like a good thing. Maybe the rubber on Mr. Slim would clear the shields and provide firm, dampened support like it is supposed to. I put it all together one more time (how many times now ?? ugh) and lo and behold, it worked like a charm. Well, except the alignment was off a little (the flanges of the shields were not parallel to the metal stamping, so the rubber isolater was distorted a little). So I shimmed the front attaching bolt a little at the crossmember support bracket, then it was prefect. Below are pics comparing the two different isolators; Mr. Squeaky on the left and Mr. Slim on the right. Quite a difference. Left - National Driveshaft Support Bearing, Part No. HB206FF (from O’Reilly’s) Right - Balkamp Driveshaft Center Support Rubber, Part No. BK 6021087 (from NAPA) So in conclusion, I probably should have bought the NAPA thing right off the bat, left the original bearing alone, and saved myself almost 50 bucks and a lot of troubleshooting. I’m going to take back the O’Reilly stuff next time I visit them (minus bearing) and see what they will or won’t do. After much ado, the finished installation is shown below. Support brng, u-joints………............$.85.88 Rear u-joint……………………............…….38.05 Driveshaft center support rubber …..…11.84 Hardware, grease, wire wheel……....….20.53 Total……………...............……...………$ 156.30 Added info on 7/8/11: O'Reilly's gave me a refund for the entire purchase amount of the support bearing, even without the bearing (it's pressed on and I was not of a mind to remove it and get another). Thank you very much O'Reilly's. Old Total..............................$.156.30 Less refund.............................(46.32) New Total..............................$109.98 |
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Looks like theres a whole bunch of us with the same truck same color even! :lol:
Mine was in a lot rougher shape then yours to start with ,but since im retired again ive got plenty of time on my hands. Im going the 4x4 route with mine to make it easier to find parts,and since it snows a lot here in nebraska.The picture of the other truck brings back lots of memories since i was a plumbing/boiler/electrical contractor and ran a lot of back hoes over the years,the guy i inherited the truck from taught me to work on boilers years ago so it must be a sign from above! :lol: Im going to have the complete rolling 3/4t 2 wheel drive chassis out from under the truck including 4 speed sitting in my driveway this weekend hopefully including a decent 8' box if anybody needs it its free to a good home to anybody that wants to haul it off give me a call 402-321-4003 jim ;) |
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good lookin truck jim.
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ill see if i can get some pictures posted later tonight |
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Hey Jim, nice detailed write up on the driveshaft redo, thanks again....Jim
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Looks like you have one of the longest build threads here, 1,909 posts as of a few minutes ago. It took me forever to find that whitewall post again. haha Keep at it, you have a cool lookin machine there. |
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