1952 GMC Suburban/S10 Swap

[youngrodder]

Yes, I bet it was a little un-nerving. These old heavy burbs dont flip that easily.

Looks great, not hurry and finish so that you can send me your rotisserie..JK

Keep up the progress.

Marc

[pokerpossum]

Marc,
I got your PM, but I keep getting an error message when I try to reply. Anyway, I'm keeping the rear windows stock so I need my SS parts. I saw some at the last swap meet I went to, I'll keep an eye out for you. I can't remember, is there a difference between the left and right side?

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by pokerpossum

Marc,
I got your PM, but I keep getting an error message when I try to reply. Anyway, I'm keeping the rear windows stock so I need my SS parts. I saw some at the last swap meet I went to, I'll keep an eye out for you. I can't remember, is there a difference between the left and right side?

Thanks Poker, I figured that you were but I had to ask. Yes there is a difference. The little tab goes on the bottom so that is the easiest way to tell which side to have based on how they attatch to the glass.

I apprecaite you keeping your eye out.

Marc

[pokerpossum]

Which side are you looking for?

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by pokerpossum

Which side are you looking for?

I guess it would help to know that small detail...he he

The passenger side. Looks just like this and has a small tab on the bottom.

Thanks
Marc

[pokerpossum]

As I said before, my Suburban's original life was a U.S. Army Ambulance. The undercoating applied back in 1952 was still mostly intact. Having the rotisserie has made it easy to scrape off the old undercoating, just set it at 90 degrees and the underside becomes a very accessible wall. The shop vac got a workout, though. You wouldn't believe how much crud comes out of every nook and cranny the first time you put your vehicle on the rotisserie.

You can see on the attached photos that I have scraped the bottom half off. Notice how shiny the paint is on both the sheet metal and the plywood deck.

I'm thinking of replacing it with a spray/brush-on truck bed liner. Anybody have any experience/thoughts about using bed liner as an undercoating. Will it stick to plywood?

[dmack91]

I used Rustoleum roll-on bed liner ($44/gal at Walmart) for undercoating my F*rd F1 body panels and did the bottom of the bed boards too. I have only had it on the road for a couple of weeks, so far so good. Can't say as to longevity though.

[Iceburgh]

I am using Raptor spray on bedliner under mine. I have to replace the wood first. In the process now of doing that before taking the body off the frame. Just to secure it a little better

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by Iceburgh

I am using Raptor spray on bedliner under mine. I have to replace the wood first. In the process now of doing that before taking the body off the frame. Just to secure it a little better

Let me know how this goes. I understood that the floor was much harded to take out with the body on the frame. I know some people cut it in many piece and take it out that way.

Marc

[youngrodder]

Nice work possum.

It does look very clean under there. My suburban looks like it was dragged through mud then parked for 50 yrs. I'm jealous of your rottisorie in case you havent norticed..JK

My experience is bed liner sticks to EVERYTHING including your skin. I think I still have the stuff stuck to me. I think that I'm going to replace my wood. Rather do it now rather than later.

Marc

[Iceburgh]

Originally Posted by youngrodder

Let me know how this goes. I understood that the floor was much harded to take out with the body on the frame. I know some people cut it in many piece and take it out that way.

Marc

It is a PIA either way. But mine was junk so no option. I have the new one in 3/4 of the way. Few more cuts and it should be in. Need 2 sheets to work. Plans to cover the seam with stainless bed strips

[pokerpossum]

The frame is coming along, I purchased a Energy Suspension polyurethane kit that included suspension bushings plus body mounts. Only problem is the S10 had 8 body mounts and the Burb has 10. I'm gonna recycle two of my old ones.

You can see side by side the difference between the original Burb (3/8 carriage bolt and a block of wood) and the new stuff. I am using 1/2" Grade 5 carriage bolts along with the polyurethane mounts. I have begun fabricating my body mounts. I will temporarily mount them with bolts and put all the sheet metal on, just to make sure it fits like I want it to.

[99 to Life]

always a good feeling getting the body mounted/making the mounts.

[pokerpossum]

Body work.....aaaarghhhh....my least favorite thing. I have three areas of rust that need to be addressed. One is all around the cowl. The other two are the rear wheel wells and the driver side floor.

The upper cowl needed replacement as well as the entire passenger side. The drivers side just need the lower 12" replaced. I wanted to make sure I didn't tweak my door/windshield openings so I did it a section at a time.

First, I removed the passenger side lower cowl. Lots of spot welds to remove. Drilling them out is a PIA. I saw the price of spot weld drills from some of the major rod magazines and decided to try the $4.00 Harbor Freight ones. Usually I am disappointed with Harbor Freight quality, but I was very pleased with the spot weld removal bits. The first one I burned out after 2 or 3 welds. I turned it over and took my time, and I drilled all of the rest of them with the same bit.
It was just a matter of patience, something most of us are lacking....

Here are some photos of the cowl removed, a patch I had to do on the inner cowl, and the reattachment. Before I welded it back permanently, I reattached my door for a brief time to make sure my margins were still okay. I used POR-15 on the rusty areas. Sorry, some of the photos are a bit blurry.

[youngrodder]

Nice work Possum..

I have to replace the bottom 8" or so on the driver side and the pasenger side from just under the louvers. I'm thinking of just making my own patch panels. I also noticed some pitting/pin holes on the inner passenger side about where yours was rusted at.

Keep up the good work.

Marc

[oldman3]

Nice repair job...Jim

[pokerpossum]

The cowl is the next project. I had already cut away part of it on the passenger side lower cowl project. I drilled out all the spot welds and removed the old cowl. It was rusted thru around the windshield and all around the cowl vent. So off it came.
I took advantage of this time to clean the backside of the dashboard, prepped it, and applied POR-15.
I used my air flanger/punch to make all the holes so I could mig weld the new cowl back on. I used about a dozen vice-grips and clamps to keep it in position before I started welding. It came out great, but I haven’t got the nerve up yet to lead the cowls back together. I’ve never done that, so You-Tube can hopefully give me some good instruction. Like I said I’m a rookie at this.

[youngrodder]

Originally Posted by pokerpossum

The cowl is the next project. I had already cut away part of it on the passenger side lower cowl project. I drilled out all the spot welds and removed the old cowl. It was rusted thru around the windshield and all around the cowl vent. So off it came.
I took advantage of this time to clean the backside of the dashboard, prepped it, and applied POR-15.
I used my air flanger/punch to make all the holes so I could mig weld the new cowl back on. I used about a dozen vice-grips and clamps to keep it in position before I started welding. It came out great, but I haven’t got the nerve up yet to lead the cowls back together. I’ve never done that, so You-Tube can hopefully give me some good instruction. Like I said I’m a rookie at this.

Wow nice work. Pictures can be deceiving. I didn't think that your suburban looked very rusty at all. Good progress.

Marc

[99 to Life]

looks great, worked out well for you cause getting behind the dash is a pain.

[oldman3]

Very nice work, and it looks super...Jim

[chev3600]

Cool project. I like the pic of the cowl removed. It sure seems a lot tighter in there when you're stuffed in there from the underside.

[pokerpossum]

Thanks for all the nice comments, much appreciated.

Next rust removal is the drivers side floorboard. That and the bottom of the inside cowl were in sad shape so here goes.

I bought a replacement floor and inside cowl for the drivers side. I drilled ou the spot welds and cut the lower section of the inside cowl out with my air cut off wheel.
The first photo shows the floorboard and cowl section removed. The next ones show the prep process with the POR-15. First, I cleaned it with their Marine Clean product. Then I soaked it with their Metal Ready product. That's the shiny, wet appearing surface. The last photo shows it after drying, it leaves a white chalky residue which means it has etched the surface and left a zinc coating behind.

[pokerpossum]

Then I got to apply the POR-15. It is really a nice product. All that rust is gone and encapsulated, never to come back in my lifetime.
Since the Burb and I were born in the same year, we've both got parts that need replacing. If only I could cover up my bad areas with some POR-15. I can't believe how old and grizzled I've become....

[youngrodder]

Looking good. I could take some pics of the same areas on my 53 that look about the same. I'm ready to weld my floors in but I was waiting to treat the metal before I cover it. I will have to look up eastwood for the products that you mentioned.

Thanks for sharing
Marc

[oldman3]

Nice job...Jim