1968 C10 Stepside Restoration Project
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We inherited a 68 C10 that has been in the family since the 80s. Was the father-in-law's, then was passed on to a brother-in-law, and upon his passing it sat from 2004 until we brought it home in 2018. Here are some photos of the truck after we got it home.
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Re: 1968 C10 Stepside Restoration Project
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Once we got a chance to look at it it was obvious it had the usual rusted out areas, but at first glance didn't look too bad.
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More photos of the truck as we started our teardown:
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Awesome project. Keep the updates coming.
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Teardown continues and we are able to remove the front clip and pull the cab off and place it on a roll-around dolly. This made inspection of the cab so much easier (shout-out to PaulkC10 on YouTube!). My daughter was eager to help sand on the firewall!
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So I started cutting out the rotted metal and purchased the patch panels. I figured that I would get a welder and teach myself to weld. Again, for things like this, YouTube is your friend!
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And then the rocker went on and I also worked on the passenger side kick panel. The floor area just before the firewall needed a little repair, all in all not too bad on this side of the truck. I then started to move around the door opening which had a bit of rust and places that rusted through. For the most part, this is coming out pretty decent. I was particularly happy with the cab corner.
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Very cool truck! Best patina I've seen in a long time. Excellent that your daughter wants to help and you set her up with a way to do that.I'm glad that you guys are keeping it in the family and saving it from further weathering.
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So, with Christmas almost here I haven't been able to work on the truck. Two young kids have the effect of keeping you occupied. My goal is once Christmas is past, I will get a chance to get on the project and get closer to having the cab done.
Thanks to A1971Blazer, I have a stepside fender on the way with the spare tire cut-out and the mounting bracket. I have always wanted to get one of those, and because they do not make an aftermarket reproduction, an original fender was the only way to go. So thanks A1971Blazer, I will be able to mount that spare without taking up the precious little bed space I have! |
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Nice! I have that trucks brother-cousin waiting for a redo in my back field! Same color, it was a government truck.
Good luck, Rg |
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Congrats on being able to get after the rust!!!
I like the idea of your daughter wanting to help. I hope she might want to know how to use the welder, she’d be the only one in her class with that skill!!! Thanks for saving another classic! What condition do you think the engine was in? I noticed it was it complete. |
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Cheers- |
Re: 1968 C10 Stepside Restoration Project
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So, in an earlier post there were some photos of the area in the cab's passenger door opening where there was some rust-through and the metal did not fit well. I have gone back and welded up those areas where there were holes due to the rust through and re-worked the area where the metal did not fit together properly.
The other photo here shows the drip rail after I removed the seam sealer and had fixed a dent in the roof just above the drip rail. |
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So, I was able to get a couple hours to work on the truck and was able to get the outer floor patch panel welded on. I am going to leave more of the weld on this side being that it is the driver's side and I will be in and out constantly from this side. Besides, there will be carpet covering the weld anyway. I will also weld it up from the bottom as well when I flip the cab up on its end and do the bottom work.
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How did you and /or don't forget these seams under the cowl. They will rot out everything. Check both sides. Must be water tight.
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cj847, I haven't forgotten about that, it will be last on my cab "to do" list. I will be using an old inner fender to repair that area. The last thing I want is water coming back into the cab after all my work. The inner fender has the curved surface, so I think it will make for an excellent patch panel. The passenger side is in great shape, I only had to repair a hole that was used to run an antenna lead through.
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I was able to take advantage of the sunny 65 degree weather today and do a little more work on the truck. Today I was able to repair the driver's side forward cab support and I was also able to start trimming the panel that will finish the driver's side floor. I am trying to be careful and just nip away a little at a time so I won't have to order a new floor section.
My morning was taken up with going to pick-up my fender (with the spare tire cut-out) that arrived - I can't wait to get started on the bed and get that fender on. Photos coming soon... |
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Great job, I'm in to see how you fix that inner cowl piece.
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Great work. You may have to cut up that inner cowl and repair those overlap seams. Ask me how I know on that one. It's not fun, but I am glad I removed that whole inner cowl and repaired the lower cowl. It allowed me to address those areas properly and put in better sealer. Plus I found that in many places where there was about a 1/4" gap where the lap seams had spot welds that did not capture properly. It looked a lot like your door frame. Cant wait to see the updates.
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Your progress is looking good...taking your time and doing it right With the proceeds...I was able to get the non spare cut out fender I needed Attachment 2070391 |
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Cheers- |
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So, I did a test fit of the new passenger side door, not a perfect fit, but I think I can get it to work. Bought a pair of door frame mount mirrors, I think they look pretty good and fit the style and period of the truck. I went this route as I really did not want to drill holes in the new door.
I did notice that the new door has this squirrely weld seam on the door, so I will have to fix that so it looks like the original door. Hinges were in great shape, no play in them at all and they feel nice and tight. Not sure why the photos are horizontal, but you can get the gist of what's going on. Cheers- Shaun |
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So, I was able to get out and work on the truck, one of the things I did was fix/modify the spare tire mount I have for the cut-out fender. It had a broken stud, so I removed it and I am installing a nut on the back side to accept the GM tire lock. Unfortunately folks aren't as honest as they used to be, the locking device will come in handy. Once I get the fender with the cut-out installed, I can then weld the upper mounting arms so they are at the correct geometry to the bed rail where it bolts on.
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Well, I was able to get out on Saturday and work on the truck. The driver's side floor patch is done and I have welded in the lower rear door pillar patch (photos coming soon). I still have the lower front door pillar patch to weld on in addition to the outer rocker, kick panel, and some repairs to the foot panel that sits just above and adjacent to the floor panel.
After all that, I will tackle that rusted-out inner cowl just above the driver's side floor vent. |
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When you tackle that inner cowl panel, remember, we will need a bunch of pictures :)
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So, we have been seeing a bit of a break in the weather and it has warmed up nicely. I decided to get out ant take advantage of the sunny weather and tinker with the truck some more.
I have been able to get the bottom patch panels on the lower A and B pillars along with the driverside cab corner. My welding isn't the prettiest, but I can grind down some more of the ugliness because I was able to do the welding on both sides for strength. I also was able to get the kick panel in and do a test fit of the outer rocker. |
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Here are the latest pics...
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This is a test fit of the outer rocker...
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Nice project. I wish my stepside was as straight as yours when I got it.
Mine was a power company service truck and lead a rough life before they put it out to pasture. |
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Got a pic of your truck? Cheers- |
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So with the weather getting better and better (minus a day or two), I was able to get out and work on the truck. With the driver's side outer rocker finally welded on, I could move on to other things. Next task was to get it on end so I could clean-up the underside.
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Uploading one at a time due to file size.
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The underside before cleaning...
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just found this build ...nice work very nice
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Started the cleaning and welding seams from underside.
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