big project C-60 style

[greywuuf]

Here it is.... hopefully it will become a pickup on steroids. First Things first.... Short block is in th garage, hopefully when the weather breaks ( Say in march) it will move under its own power for the first time in over 10 years.

[nibs]

Oh my! Why not keeping it a 427 as badged??? That would be one slick SOB. A nice set of super singles in the business end. Damn soo many ideas

[Pop's C-10]

that is sweet

[haminator]

Pick up beds look great on these trucks. In the 80's in AZ there was a mud truck called cylops like this. It doen't say what engine is ready for it hopefully it's the 427. Get a Clark 5 speed and a Browny over and it will run out nice. I'd can the Daytons though, the wheels are rarely round and those look like splits. It may mean changing the whole axles tho.

[greywuuf]

yes the shortblock is what I beleive to be the last remaining factory new 427 tall deck truck block in the pacific northwest. I all ready have the BIG spicer 5 speed (need a few parts if anyone has any idea's) and yes the front two are splits, though not the serious widowmaker type that is such a horror story.

The heads are fresh back from the machine shop and the engine is nearing completion. hopefully soon an Air braked heavy c60 will live again.

[blkcorvair]

looks mean alreay! cant wait!

[greywuuf]

I have everything I need to get the engine together, Figured i would grab the radiator and fab up an engine run in stand this winter and handle getting the engine ready to drop back in her, The next big hurdle in making her run is the transmission it is a Spicer 5756b (big 5 speed) the picture below Shows my issue, and no i dont have the missing piece so brazing it ( or heating it up and welding etc.) is not an option.....

Anyone know where I can get one of these ?

[greywuuf]

I should see if I Still have the original block for this truck, I could post pictures of the dangers of letting an engine freeze. Freeze as in ice.. this is an interior Alaska truck and the P.O let the coolant freeze solid one winter.... took the intake manifold off and both cylinder walls along the entire length of the lifter valley were cracked, and the cylinders deformed enough to prevent me from turning the engine over even with a very long cheater bar... oh well had they not done that I guess i would have never gotten her .

[greywuuf]

I have some questions about this and other "medium duty" trucks.... is there a more appropriate place to ask questions about them than in just the general forum area ?

[haminator]

I wouldn't think finding a new or used shift tower would be that tough. Course I don't the what it's like up there. Any Spicer dealer could tell you if it's avaiable or not. Is there any truck salvage yards up there? You could also post a wanted ad in the classifieds on here, bet someone could help you out. The internet makes finding stuff alot easier too.

[Marshall Truck Fab]

I'm just doing little things to mine now. Interior and detail stuff. I love these trucks! I only drive it occasionly, but it is a blast!

[Marshall Truck Fab]

There is a fairly large medium and heavy duty parts company here that may work with you. it's partsbyweller.com

[greywuuf]

That is one nice truck! And details? Powertrain, gvwr, fuel mileage
Thank you for the parts lead. I'll check them out.
Posted via Mobile Device

[Marshall Truck Fab]

It's a 79 that was originally a 14' flatbed. It has the original 350 with 4 speed. Only 113,000 miles and runs great so I left it alone. I'm going to do a build thread here shortly, so I'll let you know. All I got so far is thread C-5000 in the 73-87 category.

[Marshall Truck Fab]

Forgot to mention fuel mileage. I never figured it out, but with a 4 speed it really stinks!

[Marshall Truck Fab]

I put up a quick build thread. If you need any help just let me know!

[greywuuf]

Marshall, nice build thread, looks like fun do you know what wheel base you ended up at ?

Mine is comparatively short allready 137" only a few inches more than a longhorn if I recall

Good news is I was able to locate a new casting for my transmission, So I look to be "GO" for a spring time engine install and initial running of my project truck.

[buckshot_86]

greywuuf, cool project. I have never seen a medium sized truck with the engine call-outs before. Good luck with the project!

[Marshall Truck Fab]

I've never measured. I centered the bed over the rear axle then measured the gap between cab and bed. (26") So I cut 25" out of the center of the frame. I used a 88-98 bumper I had laying around, so put it up on truck and figured my distance there. Cut off the frame and made the old brackets into what I needed. I had to pull them in 2" and lift the bumper 3 1/4". If you have to cut out the center of your frame, you run into driveshaft troubles so let me know and I'll go into it for you.

[greywuuf]

Marshall, thank you for the offer and you have a really nice truck, I have been thinking hard about what I am going to do with this one and I coming back to making a hauler for this, (yes it is under restoration currently as well) it is right at 10' long, so the more I think about the less it looks like I will be doing a pickup bed.

[Marshall Truck Fab]

I did an 88 F650 that was a pickup with a gooseneck. Instead of shortening the frame I made the bed 10'1" and kept it low to the frame. He uses it to haul a 4 place car hauler. Something to think about!

[rkn463]

Hey greywuuf, I have a similar project going. Mine is a 68 C50 with a 327 and a four speed. I'm hoping to blend two long beds and the fenders from a stepside to make a very long dually bed. I chose not to do a build thread yet because I am so slow people would forget about it before my next update. Once I make some real progress I'll probably go back and do a couple of really long posts showing what I did.

I'll be following your build, really cool!

[Marshall Truck Fab]

Greywuuf! Think I should mention that I love your truck! I'll give any advice I can, so don't hesitate to ask.

Rkn463! I'd love to see your build, so keep me in mind!

[greywuuf]

Thanks Guys, Yeah I most likely jumped the gun on putting this in the projects thread. it will be a while before any real work is Done, we are still well below zero and another couple inches of snow expected throughout the day. I have to get my garage whipped into shape and then maybe I can get serious about putting this bigblock together. I Did locate transmission parts, so running gear wise i am in good shape.

Nice thing about a cab chassis is there is just not that much Body to need body work on.
Maybe next weekend I can get a few pictures of the factory new original Short block, and my reconditioned heads going back on it. it is going to be a pretty boring build though as it will be most if not all Stock, big Qjet cast iron manifolds .... going to do true dual exhaust(with a crossover pipe) ... maybe stacks other than that she will be pretty blah.

only thing I know for sure about the bed is that there won't be one when I make my maiden voyage. idealy it will get a hook lift system and have a couple interchangeable bodies... but that is a ways down the road yet.

thanks for the encouragement and keep me posted on all your progress as well.

Thanks
Dan

[Marshall Truck Fab]

Just make friends with a couple guys that have tons of BIG truck stuff. Most of it is semi tractor-trailer stuff, but they have some municipal trucks and tons of transmissions. And there is a 68 c50 sitting in the woods! body is trashed but it looks complete. Let me know if you need something and I will talk to them about it.