this is Howard Knapp

I bought this truck from 21 Willys on here...if you have any stuff you need shipped hit him up...

first thing was to try and save the stock rear end and swap out the gears with a set of 4.10's...





it didnt work....



1985 K5 Blazer fits just nice....and it was free...







rock auto for the Blazer shocks...


before

after

had to swap out the front end for a 1/2 ton one....axle from Kentucky and springs and hangers from Conn...





everything was wore out...




cobbed up a ebrake bracket...I am trying to keep it as much stock 1953 Chevy truck as possible...



floor patches...



under fender patches...





cowl patches...

Disc brakes came next...A kit from CPP was ordered...



Kinda nice but it still didnt fit...I have not driven this truck yet and I gotta tell you I have 2 stripped studs on the passenger side...



gotta pair of vintique wheels to make it all fit...



master cylinder...buy one that mounts on the firewall where they belong...this is a joke under the floor...





had to cobb up a door too...



new 12 volt 1 wire alternator with brackets from Jim Carter truck parts...



gotta EZ-wire kit....had a bunch of extra wire left over....should have bought the original one...live and learn..



rear tailight were from a 1985 CJ7 Jeep...



used the old brackets too...

new and old shown here...



had to stretch the rear frame rails as I was putting and original 9 foot box back on it...





need to add brackets to hold up the new step side box....



box sides were built in sections...





had to buy 6 stake pockets...thank you Jim Carter truck parts....like $300.00 when all was said and done..

side shot of the cobbed up bed sides...





lots of crossmembers need to hold all this stuff up...



can you believe they hold this bed up with blocks of wood???...I never would have thought this...I guess GM still like using wood...



it was like $800.00 to get the wood and all the trimmings for the rear box...Southern Yellow pine....



next were rear fenders...



gotta pair from a guy 2 hours away...




rear bumper....thanks to facebook...I ask and the stuff shows up at the door...this was like $125.00 with shipping..






all cut and chopped to fit...1/2 ton stuff doesnt fit on 1 ton frames...lots of cutting to make ti fit...

running boards....try finding a set for a 9 foot box....oh boy...next best thing...facebook to the rescue...gotta set from Maine...cut and chopped and every thing fits now...









shoot gotta have brackets to hold the extra long running boards up...facebook to the rescue...gotta set of 6 from a fellow in Florida...

Another quick cob job...S10 front fender braces...







all installed....



another view installed for running board brackets....



next came a pair of Altman latches....thank you facebook there too...found a fellow who sold me a set for less than $350.00 (I think)....







the only problem was the fact that the striker plate was too short...


had to add a little metal to make up for it...



Passenger side....

this is what my wife calls me...not sure if I like it or not...



rear lights work....yahoo...



side view of the 9 foot box...almost looks like a GM box...

3 point seat belts from Julianios (not sure about the spelling)....

awesome awesome awesome stuff...made in the USA....




latch end



mounting point on bottom...



Mounting plate on the bottom of cab...

trailer hitch....how about a 1990's Chevy full size....

almost looks like it fit there....gotta be able to tow stuff right???

fuel system....



all new thanks to Jim Carter trcuk parts...



before the rebuild.....carb went to Florida....



now that is clean....


Newport wipers...supposed to be bolt in...dont believe everything you hear...





now the rear window....a nice slider to let the hot air out of the cab...



not the best fit thats for sure....



A little black urethane and I hope it is sealed...
got all the side glass in by myself....thank you classic industries....



then the door fell off...

new hinges from classic industries again...



all better



new front glass too...from classic...with help from my daughter Megan on her winter vacation....gosh I miss her...she did great work...took 3 times...but it is in...



this blew my mind....I have never in my 40 plus years fiddling with cars seen an exhaust system with solid mounts....but leave it up to the GM engineers and they did it...all solid...front to back...



tail pipe solid....



solid middle hanger too...



had to cut the middle of it to fit in where I put the cross member in for the shocks...





cooling system...

this didnt look good at all....



local shop wanted $670.00 to recore...

Jim carter truck had a made in the USA one for $420.00 delivered to my house...

next came the cob of the overflow tank...came off of a S10 truck...



after the cob


new coolant hoses too...



finally last week got the hood to shut for the first time in months...



I am waiting for the upholsterer to get the stock bench seat done...that's another $675.00 plus tax....

Now I gotta find some who wants to drive it...I don't want to...this thing is huge...I used to S10's and Dodge Neons...

any body wanna drive it...you gotta drive Howard Knapp nice and easy...he was born December 1952 so he is a 1953...63 years ago...

MikeC

You've done a ton of nice work on that old heavyweight. You better use it and enjoy it.

looking good from where I sit
How do new glass and rubbers in the doors fit? How realistic is it to get these cabs wind whisle-free?

Looks great! You gotta drive it.

Looking good, nice work. Boy you get to buy a lot of new stuff. I just have to bang out old crap and weld it up.

that is a lot of work you did there ... I like it ... drive it till it dont drive no more [P the 49 I had ,,, it had the 216 in it , that looks to be the 230 or 235 ,if I'm correct ? its been 34 - 35 years since I played with mine . if that is the 230 or 235 this is the better engine .

Nice work on a good 'ol truck Mike. Just needs a little something to personalize it.

Yankee Transplant said:

that is a lot of work you did there ... I like it ... drive it till it dont drive no more [P the 49 I had ,,, it had the 216 in it , that looks to be the 230 or 235 ,if I'm correct ? its been 34 - 35 years since I played with mine . if that is the 230 or 235 this is the better engine .

Click to expand...

Looks like a 235. 230 is a whole different animal

HI Everybody

I didnt think it was as big as it was until I pulled it into my garage...takes up one whole stall...this thing is massive...I am not use to these big old trucks...

We will see...I think this is gonna be my last one to rebuild...I am too old to keep doing this stuff...I am glad it is just about done tho...I lost many a night of sleep while I was rebuilding it...

thanks for the kind comments...

yes I was told it is a 1958 235 cu in motor out of a Chevy car....

MikeC