Lss3
 

The time has come for the restoration of my 69 short stepside. Here’s a picture of it in 1981 with a fresh paint job.

I bought it in 1977 to drive to high school. It originally had a 307 with 3 on the tree, but by ’80 they had been replaced by an SS Chevelle 350 backed up with a Corvette 4 speed.
In 1982, the truck was disassembled for a complete restoration. The time and money wasn’t available so it sat in storage for the next 32 years.
I’ve collected a few parts for it over the years. The most important is the LS3 out of a 2010 Camaro. It was pulled out with 4 miles on it for an LS7 swap.

(Don’t ask about the Jeep in the in the background.)

Some of the parts being reunited after a very long separation. The engine is mounted using 911 GEN III conversion mounts from Early Classic.

The stock mounting location leaves more gap between the firewall than I would like. I slid it back 2 inches and will eventually drill new mounting holes.

The transmission is a T56 Magnum from American Powertrain.

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Transmission Mount Progress:

The crossmember is made from 1X2 1/8" wall tubing. Braces are included to stiffen the frame so the cab won't flex out the top.

Purchased a stock type rubber transmission mount for a 1972 Camaro from Napa auto parts, 620-1024. This mount was used in many GM vehicles up into the 80’s.

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Sweet project and power plant..

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I am tuned in for this build. Nice score on the motor and transmission.

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Fuel Tank Work:
The tank is a Boyd Welding Special EFI A1000 aluminum fuel tank. I had Boyd not include provisions for the fuel level sender or fuel pump.

I am customized it to hold an in tank fuel pump from a 2012 Silverado fuel pump, MU1949. The pump was shortened to fit the tank.
I made a fuel pump clamping ring. It will need to be welded to the tank.

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Amazing start, can't wait to see more. Any info (part #) for the fuel ring/o-ring?

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The O-ring came with the 2012 Silverado fuel pump. RockAuto lists it as an AC Delco G41 (22682111).

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Awesome project. I'm in. Love the powerplant and tank.

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Very good start.

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Innnnnteressssting..... I'm in. Nice motor!

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will you have to use a high hump to clear this tranny?

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I am currently looking for a high hump. It doesn't look like it there is enough clearance, but I haven't put the cab on since I got the trans.

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very good. thank you. that is what i was guessing..... i like your project so far... keep it up... maybe the weather will get warmer soon.

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I just tried setting the cab on the frame to see the clearance to the transmission. I definitely need a high hump transmission cover. It might work if I were willing to slide the engine forward and tip the back of the trans down, I would rather have the drivetrain where I have it.

Anyone have a good high hump?

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I installed the same transmission and used a high hump. It fits very well. I did have to notch the cab floor to clear the top of my transmission because I moved my engine back a couple of inches. Keep the pictures coming your build is looking good.

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I got the fuel pump clamping ring welded in. I’ll try to fit the tank to the frame this weekend so I can get the tank powder coated.

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Very nice!

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Looks like a cool project. I like your trans crossmember.

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Nice welding on the tank.

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Nice stuff going on here. Cant wait to watch some building! Wish I could find an LS3. :(


Where is Windor? Unless you meant Windsor over by Santa Rosa?

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Oops! No one said that I could spell. It's Windsor, near Santa Rosa.

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Mounting the fuel tank:
When it comes time for final assembly on the truck, the fuel tank area is going to be very congested with the tank, hitch, bumper and bed all competing for the same area. To allow the tank to be installed without access to the top of the mounting bolts, I made bolt plates. They drop in to the top through existing holes in the frame. Rubber pads and nylocks will be added later.

I will need to notch to top of the frame to make room for the fuel filler hose.

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Updates?? It's been a long 9 days...

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Nice project. You're going to love the LS3.

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Looks like a cool build.

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There's been quite a bit of activity on the truck, but none of the tasks have been completed. I bought a bunch of parts and it seems that at least one key part needed for each task has been back ordered. This weekend I should be showing my modified trailing arm cross member with it's exhaust cut outs. I was in the machine shop at work making the reinforcement tubes.

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I’ve had the LS3 for almost 4 years. To insure it stays in good condition, oil has been squirted into the cylinders and oil passages. I also turn the crank periodically. Last weekend I made a makeshift pre-luber out of a garden sprayer. This forces oil into the oil system. The oil port has M 16X1.5 threads. I bought a PN ATM-2268 from Summit racing.

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How cool is that! Very innovative idea :metal::metal:

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This weekend I modified the trailing arm cross member for the exhaust to pass through. Like other forum members, I used a piece of plywood to center a 4” hole saw. The sleeve used to reinforce the cross member is a pipe coupling with the correct outside diameter. It was cut in half then the threads machined out on a lathe. The finished inside diameter is 3.5”. This should be OK for 2.5” exhaust. It was difficult to weld the parts together since it was not in a comfortable position.
I finally found a high hump trans tunnel without any holes. I bought it on Ebay and it should be here sometime next week.
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Here's a few more pictures:

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Looking good!

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The exhaust system is going to use 2010 Camaro exhaust manifolds and 2 ½” stainless steel tubing. A 3/8” thick flange (1472S from Vibrant Performance) is used to connect the two. To properly align the tubing to the manifold, the tubing needs to extend past the flange and into the manifold. Unfortunately, the recess in the manifold is a little less than the 2 1/2” needed. I used the flange as a guide to bore the recess with a hole saw. Tape was wrapped around the saw to accurately center the saw.

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I just got my high hump transmission cover. I spent a couple of hour scraping off decades of grease and dirt. It’s in good condition. I hope to get it fitted this weekend.

The original low hump has my cutout for two different shifters for the old Muncie. The first one required a large hole while the second was much smaller so I welded back to original cutout. Now I can cut out the whole mess.

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Nice!

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Today was the day to cut the big hole. My first picture shows the impressions in the floor. I cut inside the depression to retail some stiffness to the floor.

I ran into a clearance issue at the back of the trans. I ended up cutting a little more of the floors it would fit. There will need to be something added to the trans cover also.

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There’s lots of room toward the front. The back wouldn't have been a problem if I would have the engine positioned where the ECE mounts wanted it.

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Love the build. I am embarking on the same project right now but with a LY6/6L90. I am going to go with a high hump as well. I need to put a full floor pan in my cab...what cooling system are you going with?

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I'm leaning toward a vintage air system, but it will be a while before I know for sure.

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Very nice progress on your truck. Looking good.

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The Hidden Hitch from CPP (6772HTH-K) finally showed up after being back ordered for over a month and a half. It is only roughly position today. The biggest task way moving the chassis away from my garage door so the hitch would fit. I hope it is far enough away to also allow the bumper to also fit with the door shut.
I was happy to see that there were no clearance issues between the hitch and tank.