83' M1009 Rebuild to Civilian

[Massboy]

It looks like a real truck again with the grille on

Can't agree more. Seems like it's taking forever. It amazes me just how much work it is going on back on. I remember taking three of these trucks apart and didn't think it was that much work. Of course I was using all air tools too. Putting it all back together, with hand tools, making sure you don't hit paint, cut wires, drill in the right place, etc. just uses up a lot of time and energy. Being in all the crazy body positions at times is making the 52yr old body of mine pretty achy. I wake up in the morning and things hurt! LOL

 

[Chevy305]

Ya I hear ya. Its the details that take all the time. But get them right and it'll bring a 7 to a 10.

Let me know what you find as far as the mats go.

 

[Massboy]

Worked for a couple hours. got the hood, cowl wiper apron, and windshield wipers on. A lot of work getting the hood right. OEM hood and cowl apron but the fenders are after market. Ended up doing a slight shimming of the front of the passenger fender to get the right gap. Up, down, forward, and back!!!! Finally got it right and it looks good minus all the dust. Not sure if the tailgate will get buffed tomorrow or not but if it does then it will be going on. Have the front seat belts to clean with APC and get them temporarily mounted. Still waiting on my new bed side panels to come from Brothers.

 

[Chevy305]

Wow for aftermarket fenders they seem to fit a hell of a lot better than mine did. Where'd you get them?

 

[Massboy]

My buddy got them and he is in the business. He told me when he ordered them that they were they better ones. I can tell you though that the passenger side was a better fender in some instances but then the driver's fender bolted up straighter. Kind of hard to describe. Passenger fender had better lines with the driver's side needed some massaging of the lines to make it correct. Passenger fender pulled in too tight at the radiator support so I had to shim it out slightly. Overall it looks pretty damn good. I will ask where he gets them from. I have owned these fenders for about 5 years though.

Ted

 

[Massboy]

Ordered my Baja wheels direct from Summit yesterday. $99 apiece delivered w/center caps. No shipping, no state tax. Lug nuts and two open center caps brought the total to $431.00. Pretty good price I think. All in stock, coming from OH so I was told 2-3 day delivery. If you guys are looking for wheels from Summit, call them direct and tell them you saw the wheels on eBay. You will get better pricing and free shipping.

Also have BF Goodrich 32x10.5x15's coming. Lots of cash for those but are really a nice tire for what I want. Pretty much the same as the 33's I have on there now. Possibly Saturday I get the wheels and tires done if all come in on time.

 

[Massboy]

Ya I hear ya. Its the details that take all the time. But get them right and it'll bring a 7 to a 10.

Let me know what you find as far as the mats go.

Took a good look at the mats I have. I have a red Blazer set of GM branded. Driver's is worn pretty good a has a couple tears, the passenger has a worn spot around 5" in diameter. The rear is like brand new, just needs cleaning.

The other set is a combo of rug and vinyl with a GMC logo in the middle. They are red also and in pretty good to very good shape but need a good cleaning.
I can get some pictures up tomorrow.

 

[Massboy]

Got the tailgate mounted today. Still working on the alignment and latches. It is an aftermarket tailgate also so it will need a little shimming of the latch catches. Stupid me. When I removed the plastic guides off the tailgate torque assists to paint the assists I put the plastics back on but switched them. PITA to get the plastics off, then back on the assists without taking the tailgate back off but we were able to do it. Tailgate wouldn't close as the plastics were in the hinge line. I've had it apart for so many years it's been hard at times remembering how everything goes back.

 

[Massboy]

Still working on the tailgate. It's all mounted and latches are working great. Bumper and hitch have been mounted and are all set. Need to get the trailer plug wired and mounted. New tailgate gasket has been glued in place. The problem is the new window felts and wipe rubber. We can't get them in and even when we get them close the window won't even think about moving. I am going to post in the this the "garage" forum asking what people have done with their tailgates.

WANTED TO ADD: I can't believe how good Summit Racing is. My new wheels, center caps, and lug nuts arrived at my door at 10:30 this morning. 2 days! Had to go to a customer's shop today to do a repair down in Cape Cod (was waiting for parts to be delivered from UPS) and the tire shop is in Wareham, which is on my way, so I dropped them off. I was told that my tires will be in for 9:00 am and they will be ready for noon tomorrow to be picked up! Tires will be mounted for Saturday. Might be driving it home.

 

[Massboy]

Got the tailgate issues with the felts straightened out so the tailgate is about finished. Got the call from the tire shop tonight that my wheels were done so I'm going first thing tomorrow morning to pick them up. Will mount the wheels at the body shop and they're going to buff the tailgate. It will get a wash then wax and I might be bringing the new "baby" home tomorrow. Will be somewhat of a cold drive without the top on but what the hell. Will be mounting one of the original seats with a couple bolts just so I can drive it home. Not sure if it will happen but it might.

 

[Massboy]

Been raining cats and dogs today here in the NE. Went and picked up my new tires and brought them to the body shop to install them. Got them on and had to drive the truck out of the shop so they could jockey some cars in and out then it went back in. They installed my temporary "Portuguese" soft top so I could drive it out in the rain! LOL
Will be making up the seat adapter brackets on Monday. Need some 4" wide by 1/4" steel to make them out of. I will be bolting the brackets down but will install grade 5 carriage bolts up from the bottom to make studs to bolt the seats to. Going to try and mount the brackets to the floor first with the rug on top so just the mounting studs will come up through the rug. Will take pictures as I go.
After I drove the truck back in from the outside they hit it with some soap and a quick rise to get all the shop dust off of it. Here is some pics. I and everyone else who have come into the shop love the new wheels and tires.

 

[Chevy305]

Wow that came out amazing! The wheels and tires look great too!

Any chance you could grab a pic of those mats?

 

[Massboy]

Sorry, forgot to take those pics. Will try and get them up tomorrow. Big game for us on tap right?

 

[Massboy]

Pictures of the better GMC mats. Most likely aftermarket ones. Carpet and vinyl. Not tears or rips. Pretty dirty will need good cleaning but I don't see major stains in carpet that look like they wouldn't come out.

 

[Massboy]

OEM GM Red Blazer set front and rear. One of front is getting rough, large worn area and split or two on edge where it would bend at floor. Other front has a smaller and lighter worn area. Both are identical, they do not appear side specific. The rear one was in perfect condition but I picked it up and it folded in half. I'm sure because of it's age and the cold in my garage today it cracked in the area where you can tell it was shaped from sitting on the trans tunnel hump. Even though it has the small split it is still in very good condition with little to no wear.

 

[kennyw]

I have a set that matches those GMC mats but with Chevrolet on them. They are aftermarket. They also slide up and get stuck under the clutch and throttle pedals a lot sitting on carpet.

 

[Chevy305]

Thanks for the pics but those look pretty dated and not what I am going for.

 

[496truck]

Those wheels look good and the tire size looks right on

 

[Massboy]

Well, I drove it home tonight at 12:30. My buddy needs room in his shop as he has a load of cars coming in and we have a 6-9" snowstorm on tap. Got the driver's seat in with my flat plate adapters. Used 4" x 3/8ths steel with carriage bolts up from underneath to mount the tahoe seat bases to. Ran my seat heat leads under the carpet and spliced in the power seat wires to the red and black wires. I am running a separate relay with power directly off the battery that will energize with accessories. Have to tie in with the passenger seat also. The adapter plates for the seat are under the rug so just the seat frame sits on top of the rug. Real easy to fasten the seat down with the bolt studs sticking up. Used Nylock nuts to hold the seats to the studs.

After a complete washing the truck got waxed earlier today so when I got there I couldn't believe how good it looked. Got all the work done above after it dried.

On the drive home all I can say is I can't believe how great this truck drove, handled, and sounded. No rattles or noises anywhere even with no top on. The brakes and trans were absolutely spot on. With the 32's on, the trans w/3.08 gears seems to be fine. Truck was super quiet and smooth. I drove halfway to my house, about 4 miles, then had to stop and let my buddy drive it the rest of the way. The truck tracks straight as an arrow and feels like a brand new truck. He was completely floored by how well it drove. He also couldn't believe it's acceleration and how smoothly it shifted even when kicking it down into passing gear. Only thing that really needs to be done is to get the wheel centered when I send it for an alignment. I'll get some pictures up later today. Got to go to bed now, it's 2:30!

 

[Massboy]

Here are some pics of it in my yard. Some earlier "befores" and now the "afters". Of course the interior is still not done yet nor is the top. I will be taking it down to the body shop in a week or two when he gets some breathing room.

Not sure if I mentioned this before but when I got the 91' motor it had a rusty oil pan on it so I bought a new one. The motor showed no signs of leaking anywhere so I had no worries. When I first started the motor there was also nothing dripping on the floor but the more I ran it and when it was at the body shop it was acting like an old Harley and dropping oil out of the aluminum bell housing cover weep hole. First thing I thought was rear main, then whether I had done a ****ty job of installing the pan at the rear lip. Well all I can say is after the drive home a quick look under the truck in the garage and there was not one drop. Anybody have any idea how it stopped? And before someone pipes in, Yes, it still has oil in it!