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Project Blue Truck: '83 C20 - Rolling Chassis

Unfortunately the other cab in is comparable shape to the one I have, so it looks like I get to spend all of eternity welding patch panels in.:doah: Are there any panels for the B pillar or will I need to shape/make those myself? TIA
 
afaik, there are absolutely no sheetmetal parts above, say the kick panel down by your feet... even the lower B post where they anchor seat belts often needs to be custom...

serious, thats gonna be rough... I have done some of the craziest resto-rust jobs I know of.. Rene may remember that Old's wagon I was posting pics of a few yrs ago... and even I walked away from my 77 K5 for that VERY reason...

your gonna need to be drilling spotwelds, seperating panels, ALL custom patches, blasting, rinse, repeat... there are varying degrees obviously.. but the more "shortcuts" ya take, the less time it lasts...
 
Well damn, I was worried you were going to say that. I'm sure I'll take plenty of shortcuts, as I'm not looking to achieve the same level of restoration as you did with your Blazer, but I don't plan on doing this again (nor do I really think I want to:haha:).
 
jekquistk5 said:
Just cut the roof off, dont run doors put a full cage in problem solved
Click to expand...

But then I wouldn't have a crewcab anymore, and the cab is the main reason I bought the truck.:doah::doah::doah:

It's been hot as balls here (103 today, 105 earlier in the week) and that has zapped any motivation I have had to work on the truck, but I worked on it until 4:30 last night while it was in the mid 70's and finished up the passenger side slider.

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Once I get another 10 feet of tube and finish the other slider, I'll move on to fixing (hacking) the cab back together, which will then be welded to the sliders.
 
The sliders are mostly finished up, they just need a brace for the rear most section, but that wont come until I get the rear axle in and cut off any of the tube that may want to touch the tire.

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The other great improvement is 230v power for my welder, as before I had been running it maxed out on 115v to weld the 3/16 and now I can burn through it at half power.:woot: The room off the driver's side of the truck is an outdoor kitchen that hasn't been used in several several years which I have been using as my tool storage area. I had an epiphany and unwired the stove and drilled some holes and now I have a 230v outlet for my welder and any tools of the plasma variety I buy in the future.
 
New Cab with Extras

Today I drove 70 miles to Cochran, Georgia, to get a new cab that was supposed to be ready for pickup at 4, but when I arrived at 4:15, they were just unloading the C30 off of the rollback to start stripping/removing the cab. Since the yard closed at 6, they didn't have time to strip the cab at all, so I wound up getting a full interior, a hydroboost setup, the AC system, and a sliding rear window all for the same price as the bare cab. Score.

Leaving out.

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And stopping at a Dairy Queen to refuel.

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The new cab is in awesome shape as far as I'm concerned; I think it is in about the best shape I can hope for for this area considering the humidity we have. It also looks to have been repainted at some point since under the carpet is black.

As for progress, I stripped the carpet, trim panels, and headliner as of now, with the dash electronics on tomorrows agenda. Once it got dark I hooked a spare battery to the remains of the engine bay harness and worked by the maplight.:pimp: The chicken lights on top and the cargo lamp still work too.:haha:
 
Did the SM465 and TH400 use different mounting locations for the transmission crossmember? The truck was originally equipped with a 400. I can provide pictures of the current mounting if needed.
 
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I've almost finished wirewheeling the frame (all 20 feet of it) inside and out and am going to be priming the whole thing hopefully this week and was wondering if anyone had any long term reports after using Rustoleum Rusty Metal Primer?

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I'm not looking for a show finish in the end, but I do want something durable that won't flake/scratch off easily. I've already primed both sliders spraying it through my gun, but will sand it off it won't last.
 
Today I purchased some motor mount plates (that run from the frame rails to the engine crossmember) from a 4WD Blazer expecting them to bolt up to the C20 frame; turns out they won't.

Reference picture:

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My picture: 2WD mount on driver side.

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Anyone want to buy some motor mount plates from a Blazer?:doah:
 
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Do any of the 4WD motor mount plates swap over? I read that they did, which is why I bought these, but now I'm reading (and experiencing) that they don't.

More productive news is that the sliders are finally ready yo be welded in.

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