MISCELLANEOUS FIXIT STUFF
I'm trying to stay focused on engine, drivetrain, and chassis mechanics. But now and again it’s fun to work on "shiny stuff". These are a few things that were broken, missing, or that I wanted to have some fun with.
* * * * * Wheels* * * * *
When I first saw the truck, I had thought that the wheels would look good once cleaned up. I ended up cleaning them over a period of several months while I worked on the brakes. They were scratched and pitted by corrosion in many places. I didn’t worry much about finish niceties, so I went at it with rubbing compound, lots of water, noscratch scrotchbrite sponges, a small pick and a touch as light as possible. They came out OK, a lot better than before.
It was also a PITA to take them on and off the truck @ 8 nuts/wheel. This was due to the lug nuts being 13/16" stock type so the socket rubbed against the wall in the lug recesses. I found some ¾" Gorilla nuts el cheapo-est on eBay again and bought 32 of them (two Mustang’s worth). Using a ¾ socket, I had clearance so no more binding; lots easier. I didn’t have a suitable lug wrench to keep in the truck, so I made one up with a nice looking Williams breaker bar I found at the swap meet and ¾" deep socket. I thought about getting some center caps, but they would be too shiny I think. Besides, I kinda like the exposed vintage wheel mechanics (
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...4&postcount=10).
I had no idea who made these wheels. I meandered and searched thru the 67-72 threads for pics of 8-lug wheels. I found a couple of pics of trucks with wheels that look similar to mine. special-K identified them as Alcoas. See the last pic in this post --->
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...6&postcount=62 . Mine will never be that shiny. special-K also mentioned that Alcoa screwed these up once upon a time (
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...10&postcount=5 ). I was curious, so I searched and found this historical recall notice on
http://www.gmcmotorhome.com/tech/alc...all/index.html. I didn't find any roll stamp on the inside of my wheels like the recall notice says so I guess I can sleep nights now.
UPDATE 6/3/11: I finally got around to cleaning the inside of the wheels. Underneath the caked-on crud and tucked away in a spoke recess I found the manufacturer's name, PRIME USA. So they aren't Alcoas after all.
UPDATE 6/8/11: I contacted Prime Wheel in Gardena, CA on 6/7/11. They were able to identify my wheel as their #112. They are 16 x 7.5 wheels. They told me that this wheel was discontinued in the early 90s. On Prime's web site in the History section, it says that Prime started producing aluminum aftermarket wheels in 1989 and became an OE supplier in 1994. So my wheels probably were produced for sale sometime between 1989 and 1994.
My tires are Firestone Steeltex Radial A/T LT265/75R16 with a 198 date code (May 1998).
* * * * * Grille * * * * *
The grille was crunched in on the PS. The headlight was broken and the front turn signal lens damaged. I took out the grille, straightened it, repainted the horizontal bar stripes, and repaired or replaced the other off-kilter stuff.
New turn signal lens:
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...postcount=1787
The grille insert was cracked and broken in several places. I couldn’t find any material identifying marks on it. I tried a few adhesives, but ABS cement seemed to grab and hold best (I think I read about that in here). I mended it with flat stock I cut from an old wireless router case (ABS). I cleaned the area to be mended with acetone, sanded it lightly, and clamped the glued flat stock on overnight. It all held firmly but time will tell if it is a good mend or not.
The bumper was bent forward and down a few inches on the DS so I coaxed it back into place with a long L-bar I made from unistrut in combination with a comealong. I finished up the front end by painting the headlight bezels and installing a shiny new slim license plate frame.
NOV 2010 -
- JAN 2011
* * * * *
Other Small Fixits* * * * *
1. Missing cig lighter, non OG wiper blade, broken steering column clamp - - - I found all this stuff in the Parts Board (what a great site this is !) i-got-em-an-put-em-in.
2. POS exterior rear view mirrors; missing inside door handles, escutcheons and lock knobs; PS window regulator roller broken - - - Got new stuff from Classic Parts of America and put em in (
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...postcount=1687 )
3. The ignition cylinder had been drilled out, no door keys - - - I had a key guy make up an NOS E keyway cylinder and two keys using the same code as the door cylinders
4. Turn signal flasher and dome light not working - - - I took a trip to O’Reilly’s
$. The Damage
Gorilla nuts……………....……$..56.64
Breaker bar…(Pomona)….……..8.00
¾ deep socket………………..…..6.51
Headlight……………………......…11.95
Turn signal lens (OG eBay)...20.00
License plate frame…………...…6.51
Lighter………………………..........12.00
Wiper blade………………..…......12.00
Steering column clamp………..…8.95
Parts from Classic………….....107.68
Keys and cylinder…………….....45.00
Flasher & dome light……….....…9.22
Total…………….............……$.304.46
I spent a lot of time rubbing out the paint. Most of the cab is the original saddle and white. A lot of the bed has been repainted and there is a bondo repair on the PS rear wheel well. There is rust thru on the DS cab outer rocker, the PS cab corner, and a little at the DS vent. Lots of other miscellaneous dings, holes, and bends, but nothing major.
The only missing trim piece is the paint line strip on the PS cab. The trim is banged up but could probably be straigtened to look OK. I took some Testors black semigloss and touched up all the scratches where it should be black and it looked a lot better. A little elbow grease and touchup paint can make a big difference in looks and doesn’t cost much.
That should just about cover everything I’ve done up to now. At this point I’m into it close to $3,300. I was prepared to pay that much or perhaps a bit more for a truck right off the bat. This way I get a truck + all the aforementioned fun for the same price.
The next thing is to take care of the rear end leak. I’m planning on removing the bed for access (and to expose the worms in the can). While it is off, I’ll decide what to do about the exhaust and I’m considering 2" lowering springs to level the truck out. We’ll see. One thing at a time.
Thanks for reading,
Jim