Project 59 GMC 4X4

Ok here is the 1959 GMC 1/2 ton I bought for a whopping $800.00. It came with later model (1969) 3/4 ton chevy axles. 270 straight 6 and a 4 speed.



After some points, carburator clean out and a fuel cell I got it to run.



The truck has a few more pressing issues that I am going to try and repair starting with a fuel cell I picked up for 100.00 smackers. I installed it behind the axle with an electric pump to help push it to the front. It came with a sending unit that I hope is 0 to 90 ohm. I need to check that now that I have some gas in it.



Here are a few shot of some of the other problems starting at the back. I'll let the photos speak for themselves.



Front shock





The castor in the front axle appears to be backwards.

Right now I am working on the rear axle. I dropped to from 6" to 3" and replaced the 14" long U- bolts. This is to level it out some and get rid of that stink bug stance. And it will allow me to get it into the garage. Next up is to get the brakes sorted out. Ill be replacing some hard lines and rebuilding the master cylinder That is somethig I have'nt done in a while as the new master cylinder is 120.00 bucks but a kit is only 17.00



The new blocks in the rear



Relocating the rear brake hose bracket.

Next up will be relocating those rear shocks

Looking good !!!!!

Nice clean truck. Gotta love the shock fix. I don't think that's why they call it mechanics wire.

Out here in the Midwest it's called bailing wire. They used to use it quite a bit and it was everywhere. Now days they mostly use twine.

Growing up one of my best friends was called Supersmitty, a nick name I coined for him.

Thanks for the looks. The front axle is just as farmered up. If I can get this thing where it is safe to drive over 15 MPH I'll be pleased. Like 55 MPH or so. Although I might add with 4.56 gears it's never going to go very fast. LOL!

The interesting thing is the 6" block was made to do just what it was doing. It even has a bump stop provision...[S

jfg455 said:

The interesting thing is the 6" block was made to do just what it was doing. It even has a bump stop provision...[S

Click to expand...

Yep, that block is original.

Have you considered setting the ride height and stance, with the bed on?

I have a bit of experience with the '59, and also '69 Chevy 3/4 ton 4x4 drivetrain. It should have a Rockwell transfer case. If your kingpins aren't floppy, and tie rod ends are tight, you'll be fine for highway speeds. Well, except you don't wanna run that engine at 3300 RPM to get to 65 MPH.
That rear diff is definitely not from a '69 Chevy. They had Eaton axles that look like a big Ford 9 inch, with 4.56 ratio. I've heard of 4.10 gears in them, but I'm not sure about that.
That's also not a GM 14 bolt axle. Is it a Dana 60? If it is, you can get gears for it. The front is a Dana 44HD, so you can get gears for it too.

I know a friend of mine who has a 65 ford 4x4 with I believe a similar gear ratio. My 65 has 3:23 so any time we meet up and go anywhere I gotta take it easy otherwise he ends up a mile behind me yelling.

Going on what I was told. I beleive it is a Dana 60 but have not checked into it. I seem to recall the Dana 60 in a 3/4 ton 2wd Chevy truck my Dad owned. The reason why I remember it was because I broke it. Those blocks probably worked good on the 69 chassis. Not too well on the stock 59 1/2 ton though. I'll get a picture of the front axle if you need a good laugh. It has almost 3/4" of wheel travel....almost. Most of the problem is with the upper plate that has the stop on it. I imagine I'll make a new plate from some 3/8" material like I did in the back. If thats not enough then I'll have to notch then box the frame a couple inches. I should gain about 4" by replacing that top plate.
Another problem I have is the turning radius. I hope to find a longer steering box arm. Does anybody know if perhaps a big 1.5 ton truck steering will work?

That bed don't weigh enough to settle much of anything. 2 people can lift it. In my opinion a 4x4 should set high in the front like a gasser anyways.

I did get my Master cylinder kit and some door pin bushings today.

I'm still messing with my 53 GMC that I started several years ago. I need to update that build thread some day as I made several changes to it. I really dig cruzing it around.

This is my 1st rodeo with a 4x4 as a project. I do have a 88 chevy 4x4 but it's all stock. Probably gonna sell it when the 59 is up.

Yeah, I've owned and changed a few of the 58-59 Chevy fleetside beds, and stepside too. They aren't very heavy, unless you end up with a sheetmetal floor or something like that.
If you want it to be a little high in the front, then perhaps the solution to your front suspension travel would be to remove those thick plates like you say, and put fresh springs under it. That way you wouldn't have to alter the frame, box it, and still have to clear the oil pan/starter with the axle and driveshaft. If you ever decide to go to a V8, you're gonna want that portion of the frame for motor mounts.

The big truck steering boxes will have you cranking and cranking to make a turn. The ratio is usually a lot different than small vehicles. If you get a pitman arm from an International Scout, they're about 9 inches long, and it should give you enough throw. They had Saginaw steering boxes, and will fit other Saginaw boxes, but I don't know of anything that fits the original steering box on there. Is it still the original box?

I've run that same axle on two different long wheelbase Chevys, and I wouldn't say that it has an unusually wide turning radius. It's just a little wider than the newer axles. Is your steering not turning the axle all the way to the stops?

Thanks for the input. I've only had this truck about 3 weeks and until the other day it would not even fit in my Garage. Once I get it in there I can get a better idea of what I have. All I know is that the front axle seems to be castered wrong. I don't know if it is hitting the bump stops or not but I'll find out. This is to be expected when mix and match different year models and parts. It might even have some king pin problems. The tie rod from the steering box is shot also. It also lookls like the drive shaft phasing is messed up on the front. The back might need help also. I'm thinking at this point that the fixing the caster will fix the drive shaft phasing but I'm not certain. Going to find out after I finish the brakes.

tw7256 said:

Thanks for the input. I've only had this truck about 3 weeks and until the other day it would not even fit in my Garage. Once I get it in there I can get a better idea of what I have. All I know is that the front axle seems to be castered wrong. I don't know if it is hitting the bump stops or not but I'll find out. This is to be expected when mix and match different year models and parts. It might even have some king pin problems. The tie rod from the steering box is shot also. It also lookls like the drive shaft phasing is messed up on the front. The back might need help also. I'm thinking at this point that the fixing the caster will fix the drive shaft phasing but I'm not certain. Going to find out after I finish the brakes.

Click to expand...

On the drive shaft, the end yokes should be parallel. Look for timing marks on the shaft and the slip yoke. If there are none, then set them so they are parallel, and check for vibration. If there is vibration, pull the slop yoke off and put it on 180 degrees from where it was. If it still vibrates, start looking for bad U-joints, worn splines or a bent shaft.

You probably knew that, right?

I did know that somehow, what I was refering to was the pinion angle still that is something I can look closer at. It seems that they were okay still you never know. As I said earlier its not safe at any speed over 15 MPH! LOL! so I never noticed any vibration. The rear u-joint is shot. It's down the list a ways. Today I ordered some rear shocks and a rear brake hose. maybe I'll get something done over the weekend.

If I remember correctly, the caster on the solid 4x4 axle is supposed to be 4°.
Yup, I just checked. 4°, ±1°

Thanks 4 that input. Thats sound about right from my other projects.

I have not spent much time under this truck yet and almost always the wheels were turned one way or the other. So today I was removing the master cylinder and just happen to notice the tie rod hitting that upper U-clamp block. I have to laugh. Think it drives a little funny?




Anyway I think I can make a new control arm that is shorter and fix 2 problems at one time. One is the obvious and the other would be decreasing the turning radius. I won't need to put a longer pitman arm on the box either.



Here is a shot of that whopping 1/2" of spring travel. I can do better I beleive.

Yikes! That's a sure fire way to a rough and banged up ride.

I'm Pretty much done with the rear shock relocate. I added a cross member and used the shock brackets that were on the axle. The upper brackets were at on time welded to the top of the axle. I also got the master cylinder rebuilt and some brake pressure. There are a couple wheels cylinders that need rebuilt also but I got enough brake to get stopped moving in and out of the shop.





I took this photo just to show the ride height with 3" out of the back. It looks like it might need some angle shims to get the pinion right but I'll know more later.



Next will be working up front some. Those spring plates and the steering arm gotta go! I don't look forward to getting to nuts removed from those U-bolts either, they might get hot wrenched and replaced.

Good old blue tipped wrench.

Today I got it pulled into the shop for some work on the front end. As I was jacking it up I notced the right front wheel mover from negative camber to postive as it came off the ground. Looks like the knuckle joint bearings are shot on that side. These are the ones that work like kingpins. I'm not certian but I beleive I'm dealing with a Dana 44 front axle and a 60 in the back. I found a handy ID chart and will varify that tomorrow when I get some time. It looks like the parts are available.
Plans are to relocate the front shocks, check and correct the front caster. shorten the steering arm so that it don't collide with the U-bolts. Replace the tie rod from the steering box and get the steering wheel centered up. Not to go broke in the process and do it safely. I'll hopefully have pictures next tome

Later.

open knuckle?

If you need a substantial amount of maintenance on that front axle, you may want to consider replacing it with an open knuckled axle. They are a little easier to maintain. I believe my dad's old SRW one ton GMC 4x4 had an open knuckle front axle. Those axles should have same spring perch width as the 1969 one you got. Should be the same up until 1972. A friend told me even later axles are same perch width until 1987, but have never verified for myself...

That's true. I've done a couple of swaps from closed knuckle Dana 44s to open GM corporate axles. It's a piece cake, and you end up with disc brakes, ball joints, and an axle that you can find parts for, including hubs and steering arms.