1957 Chevy truck re-rebuild

[bowt1ed]

Jim, don't we all?

Cheers, Jim

[Kim57]

Nice blower.
Kim

[RockinKees]

Yes, agree with Kim!!
That should look very nice in the enginebay!!

[tune_1]

Great to see it back at the top. Will be enjoying the changes that you are making and any insight as to how that you provide.

Dwight

[Stepside Jim]

Thanks everybody, I see there is excitement and support for this phase of this truck build.

Last year at this time I was assembling the front fenders and starting to think about getting the weather stripping ready for around the vent windows and such.

Let me say, it is all a work in progress, one project at a time, can't move forward til each area is finished in it's proper order.

Now that I've paid the price of time and patience to get where I am now I am so excited for spring time again.

I finally got back into the shop. I have many concerns about fitment concerning accerator cable, transmission kick down cable, HEI distributor, upper radiator hose and front belts and pullys and the space for the blower belt.

One item that also needs modification is the hood cross brace. My plan is to tie the four brace rods to the under hood support I made some time back.

Off came the old manifold and on went the blower manifold and the blower itself. I have a few items to modify but nothing major. I will address all the fitment issues in the next couple of weeks, once everything is properly fitted, the engine comes out for forged pistons, new heads and camshaft.

Here's how a 1957 Chevy Truck with a Big Block and a Weiand 177 series blower fits in the engine bay.

[RockinKees]

Plenty of room

[Stepside Jim]

Just a quick update...... I did get the blower to fit. My original intent was to do a mock-up check for pulley alignment and anything else needed to be modified before I removed the engine for upgrades to handle the new power.

Once I got everything fitted, well, it wasn't much more work to hook everything up and give it a try. If I had 2 extra thumbs I'd give it 4 thumbs up. I put about 100 miles on it and probably burned off 1000 miles of rubber. Every intersection I hoped the light would turn red before I got there. The fun part wasn't starting the burnout while taking off, it was getting on the other side of the intersection then begin the burnout.

After I had my fun it is time for the upgrades, pistons are now Speed Pro forged pistons, the cam is new and designed for a boost vs naturally aspirated engine. The cast iron heads are upgraded to higher flowing Aluminum heads, and a new main body for the carb to flow more air.

Having a taste of what the blower did makes me very excited to see what I'll have with the up grades.

Sometimes the fun wasn't driving the truck, it was seeing the reaction of the unexpected appearance of a blower when I opened the hood for someone to see.

Hard to believe all this acually fits under the hood. Nearly ready to go back into the truck.


In the above picture the transmission has also been torn apart for up grades. Two changes having to do with sprag cluthes being able to over 500 horse power. Another change is to change the first gear ratio from 2.52 ratio to 2.75. The numeric value as I understand will get me a 4.10 final ratio as compared to my 3.73 that I have had. Did someone say burnouts??? lol

If I have this figured right, my 3.73 will be 4.10 in first gear, second and third will be 3.73, til I engage the Gear vendors overdrive which takes me to a 2.91 rear ratio.

One cool benefit of the Gear vendors is you can turn on the overdrive while sitting still, then gas it moderatly agressively, it will automatically engage at 20 miles an hour. What's this mean, without doing anything it'll bark the rear tires at 20 miles an hour. Yes, I like my toys and switches.

I never had a picture of the overdrive attached to the transmision, I have it all out now so a good time for a picture.


There we are, all summer I figured I'd be taking care of a few odds and ends and it would be an inexpensive winter, ha, that didn't happen. Although, I must say, I'm just as excited about getting it this year as I was last year. Gotta love these old truck projects.

[oldman3]

Wow Jim, sounds like you will have a great engine set-up. Engine looks good, keep us updated...Jim

[Kim57]

Looks sweet.
Kim

[Dean Vanacker]

Hey man, i admire your work, really!!! So damn good.
My dad has bought me a 57 apache for my 18 birthday, and now i want to start my own build.

Witch chassis did you use for your build?

Thanks , Dean

[Stepside Jim]

Originally Posted by Dean Vanacker

Hey man, i admire your work, really!!! So damn good.
My dad has bought me a 57 apache for my 18 birthday, and now i want to start my own build.

Witch chassis did you use for your build?

Thanks , Dean

Thanks for checking in Dean, there isn't much special about the chassis.

It's the original '57 frame. It has a 1980 Camaro front clip.

One difference from mine to many others is mine has the original frame attached to the Camaro frame basically even on height.



Different to most conversion where the original frame is layed on top of the Camaro frame rear extensions. This design drops the ride height another 3 or 4 inches.

I know, I know, everybody likes them real low, I, on the other hand like the front top of the wheel well even with the top of the tire.

I now have about 3500 miles on the truck, it drives with absolute confidence at any speed.

One thing that I believe helps is it has a 1 1/4" front sway bar and I believe a 1" sway bar in the rear, it handles very very nice also.

Hope this helps. Jim

[Stepside Jim]

It's been 6 years since an update on my 57. I've always thought it would be nice for those who we have followed on a build thread to check in after a few years and give us an update on how the truck is doing, what parts have lasted and which ones have failed.

Perhaps peoples response's to your truck or people you've met.

I have one to mention...This past Saturday I met a very nice couple at a car show, I'm sorry I don't recall their names (sorry) but I do remember very well the conversation. They followed my build thread for the couple of years as I posted my progress. I remember I was floored by the kind words of my craftsmanship and their remembrance to the work I did to my truck. I also recall them mentioning inspiration, attention to detail ect.

Point is, we just never know who we inspire by having a build thread for others to see. As a side note...if you are doing a build thread, I've found the best comments I get are the way I show the progress as I work along, not just the beginning and the end with no pics on how it was done.

I've just reached a milestone on mine. I've thought it would be a good time at 10,000 miles to do an update. Not a good pic of the speedometer, sun glare was an issue. I was 150 miles from home and I had to pull over on Route 65 north of Branson to catch the 10,000 on the speedometer.

to be continued...

[Stepside Jim]

Here we are, how's the paint, 6 years and 10,000 miles, excellent. I have one barely noticeable chip on the hood where it tucks under to meet the grill, I have to look to know it's there.

I chose Summit Racing paint, I was extremely fussy on the silver and they had the silver I wanted exactly, so I used their paint. I am very pleased with the finish today, I would use their paint again. I rarely stop in a public place without someone mentioning the black is awesome, and black is the toughest to get right.

The exhaust coming out the side step is usually the first item to bring comments. They were a lot of work to fit right, but I have had no problems with the exhaust. The Jegs cut outs do get used fairly often, they open and close every time within 2 to 3 seconds.

The fender emblems, as nice as they turned out, often are over looked, they have the same basic shape as original emblems. Not til they ask what engine? I point to the 396 in the emblem, then they notice.

Sliding rear window... Rarely used, but very handy when I do use it. Only in cooler weather do I use it. If you open it and have any windows open it will draw outside air in, it doesn't help. Now, cool days, just want fresh air passing through the cab, closed windows, open rear window just a little bit, open fresh air vents in the kick panels, good cool breeze passing through and out the rear window.

The gills I put in where the front turn signals used to be are a hit. Always a plus when the Judges come around and find unique pieces that look like they could be factory.

to be continued....

[Stepside Jim]

Drivetrain---Cooling, I went with BeCool radiator for a 66-67 Big block Chevelle.
Jegs two electric fan shroud, along with Painless temp sensor fan switches that the sensors just need to rest on the radiator tank, I made brackets that hold them in place, each fan switch adjustable for different temps for each fan. With this setup, I've never gone over 200 degrees.

396, Edelbrock aluminum e-street heads, all works well, add the Weiand blower, all works spectacular. For the most part the blower was a bolt on. I've only run Holley carb on it, there are needed changes to the Holley to run on a blower, I had some learning to do, but I enjoy learning the working details of stuff, so I'm all the better.

I have the TH350c trans and I can say, it's not happy, I know, I know, it's not a strong trans to begin with but I had most of the parts for it so I used/abused it.

Remember, I still have the Gear vendors OD behind the TH350c.

in my shop I have acquired a 4l80e, when I get time I will go through it for the truck. Trans problem solved....Hmm what to do with the Gear Vendors OD. They make an adapter to bolt the Gear vendors OD to the 4l80e. Double overdrive I'm working for. Too low of gearing with both overdrives, yup, I will be changing the rear end to 4.10 gears. Better acceleration and still end up with a 2.50ish highway ratio.

Rear end with Yukon posi carrier ring and pinion along with Moser axles, all working great.

[greystoke]

Great to hear from you again Jim, yes this was one of my favorite builds...such quality and a beautiful end result. Please keep us updated!!

[oldman3]

Jim, glad to see this update. As soon as I saw the truck I remembered the build. Beautiful truck. We aren't that far apart, maybe one day I will see it in the flesh...Jim

[Stepside Jim]

greystoke, thanks for checking in. I've been extremely busy, just not on the the ole 57. I am going to have to address the transmission issue soon, which means I've got to redo some of the exhaust system. . I will have some pics in the future.

oldman3, Cabool, I was almost there, rain? Some from the Current Rivers Car club came down though. Pictures, you were parked between a newer Dodge Challenger and a orangeish colored early 50s Chevy truck. I felt I missed a chance to meet you that day. I did make it to the Licking car show last Saturday, I was thinking there would be a chance of seeing you there. Our paths will cross someday.

[oldman3]

Originally Posted by Stepside Jim

greystoke, thanks for checking in. I've been extremely busy, just not on the the ole 57. I am going to have to address the transmission issue soon, which means I've got to redo some of the exhaust system. . I will have some pics in the future.

oldman3, Cabool, I was almost there, rain? Some from the Current Rivers Car club came down though. Pictures, you were parked between a newer Dodge Challenger and a orangeish colored early 50s Chevy truck. I felt I missed a chance to meet you that day. I did make it to the Licking car show last Saturday, I was thinking there would be a chance of seeing you there. Our paths will cross someday.

Jim, the orangeish colored truck belongs to my son Mark. I didn't know the Licking show was last week, if I had known I would have been there, friends of mine saw you truck and said it looked great. One day soon I hope we will meet. Jim

[57tailgater]

This may save some neck aches....

[Stepside Jim]

The truck is back in the shop, it's upgrade time. Two upgrades are on the menu, first the turbo 350c trans has done well for 10000 miles along with the Gear Vendors overdrive.

First upgrade is the transmission, I know the Th350c is not the strongest although I did put stronger parts inside of it, I always took it easy while shifting, ect. I also had a 3000 stall lock up converter which was a great combination. This 3000 stall converter is why I went with the 350"C", it has a lock up converter. I have the best of both worlds, great low end, then at highway speeds, over drive and lock up the converter.

Must have been time to upgrade, I went to the junkyard for something else and sitting there was a 4l80 that had "Bad" written on it and it had the 4x4 tail shaft. These 2 situations made it the least desirable, sold $100.00.

The tail shaft issue was easy, e-bay and a 2 wheel drive tail shaft acquired. I've been purchasing parts for months now and am ready for the upgrade.

Parts, new shifter for 4 speed, torque converter, major overhaul kit, shift kit, new electronics, TCI ECU, Gear Vendors adapter, Throttle position sensor, Torque converter cover, Ring and Pinion and other odds and ends.

I'm sold on the 4l80e since I removed a Th400 in a customer car and installed the 4l80e. Overdrive, lockup converter, push buttons to change the shift firmness, set RPM shift points....sold.

[Stepside Jim]

I decided on a torque converter from TCI that is a 3000 stall. It has a multiple lock up disc upgrade which I like, its supposed to handle high horsepower with the lock up engaged. It also is a bolt together converter meaning it can be worked on with out cutting it apart and rewelding it back together.

I've found in the past that the stock 4l80e converter flywheel bolt holes did not exactly match the bolt pattern of old style flywheels. I did a prefit test and it looks like TCI gave it multiple bolt patterns so it fits nice.

I decided to assemble the empty trans case and overdrive and fit it into the truck. I've been able to have the driveshaft fitted and found a slight interference of the bellhousing to header to starter, nothing that removing a bit of aluminum couldn't take care of.

My old exhaust had to go through major changes, Ill show that next post.

I'll be able to remove the old kick down cable and vacuum modulator line also.

[dsraven]

what is the final gear ratio with the 4l80 final ratio and the added o/d final ratio? at highway speeds what kinda engine rpm will you have in high gear with the o/d engaged and lockup on? just curious why the added o/d unit with the trans that already has an o/d, do you have a super low speed axle ratio then? not being critical here, just curious.
your truck looks super clean underneath. nice job.

[Stepside Jim]

dsraven, your curiosity is as mine was once I decided to do the double overdrive.

With the TH350 and Gear Vendors and 3.73 rear end, I ended up with a final ratio of 2.91, plus or minus.

With the 2.91 ratio at 65 MPH I was approx. 2100 RPM.

My new numbers changing to 4.11 rear and double overdrive puts me at 2.50 final ratio. Dropping me to 1800 RPM at 65 mph.

Rarely with the 2.91 ratio did I need to change out of O.D. so I figure I'm right on the fine line here.

I'm always looking at what changes I can make to have more fun with the truck, being able to go with a higher ratio gear start off, then going to the other side of the possibilities and easy cruise at 65 or more.

Now, this is not cheap, I don't care. I committed to do the best I possibly could back in 2011. Regardless of time or money.

[dsraven]

Interesting. You wont know till you get it back on the road I guess. Curious how the 4L80 will do and if it wants to hunt for lock up/overdrive at certain rpm's. You could always swap the rear ratio if need be. What axle do you run? An axle with a 3rd member could be like a poor man's quick change if you had another
3rd member with a different ratio to swap in for testing, if it hunts a lot. Nothing more aggravating than that constant fear change. I hate my 2015 trans for that reason, and also the v4 mode.

[Stepside Jim]

You bring up some good points on how the ECM will react. I'm going with a TCI brand control unit, it has a fair amount of options for shift points ect. It also has an option for manual control over the lock up converter.

The Gear Vendors does have a control unit, it pretty well just works off a speedometer speed signal, it turns on overdrive and turns off overdrive at set speeds. It does also have a manual switch that allows you to be in full control of overdrive.

Hopefully I'll have enough options to get the results I can be happy with.

Progress wise, with the trans case still empty and light, it's easier to get all the odds and ends fitted or refitted. The old crossmember needed to be altered, the driveshaft shortened and the exhaust redone.

GM puts a perfect indentation in the pan for a drain plug, Amazon had the perfect drain plug kit. Drain plug installed.