Kechi 1949 3100 4.3 4L60e

[joedoh]

thanks a ton fellas!


bed day! I start by clearing out all the wood and strips and crossmembers.

the AD bed measures just at 50" so thats what I cut the S10 floor to. this is a shortbed s10, so I will have to add some length to the front or the back, maybe both!

the s10 floor sits a little higher in the bed than the wood does, just a scootch. so I have to take off the riveted angle strips on the bed sides. a couple screwdrivers pops the spots. I also rough cut clearance for the tires, the bedsides will hit the tires before it is in the right position.

slide the bed on first, then the floor from the top. its easier than trying to let the bed down over the floor.

I called out all 4 of my son in laws to help line it up. curiously they are all named "jack"

looking like rain, so I pushed it in and stopped for the day. it was muggy as heck out there today and I sweat through a couple shirts. cant wait to have HVAC and power and lights in the new shop.

interestingly, with the center fender bolt lined up with the center of the axle, the rear of the s10 floor lined up perfectly with the notch for the wood floor. I need to trim it down, so the floor can go down slightly, its too high right now, but I did find it interesting.

 

[bob w]

That worked out really nice.

 

[Torchie]

Really nice. Thanks for posting that.
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Torchie

 

[DozerII]

That fits in there really good. [P[P

 

[Skip]

Yup. Looks good. I like the way it steps up in the back. [cl

 

[joedoh]

thanks all!

I had some new property things going on, so no work till today.

I got back on the bed floor, I hadnt chased the s10 bed mounts with a tap, of course the first one snapped the tap. yes, my fault for using the drill motor

there was enough thread left to chase all the remaining holes. another one was cheap but the drive would have killed momentum.

the rear still looked really tall, so I got a ratchet strap and pulled the frame down using the rear axle and tightened up all the leaf bolts that were still loose waiting for some weight on the chassis to tighten. that actually worked out great. I hooked up the shocks and I painted the rest of the frame while the bed floor was off

i couldnt remember how deep the bed was on the last one, that is important so the running boards line up correctly. 12 inches deep sounded right, I tacked it in there just to hold it because I cant test fit the running board with the jack in the way.

dont worry about the gaps on the tubs, leaning the floor on the sides while chasing holes with a tap bent them in slightly, they come back in line with hand pressure.

looks like 12" deep was the number!

so tomorrow I will pop the fenders on and finish my cab corner welds, and shorten the gas filler. I hope my welding gas holds out, its on like 100lbs till monday.

more to come!

 

[Torchie]

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Torchie

 

[BillM]

Looking good Joe...you sure can make stuff happen quickly.

 

[kenny c]

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[Old Iron]

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[Burgerman]

Looking good Joe...you sure can make stuff happen quickly.

Yep. Them son-in-laws helping is a good thing.

 

[joedoh]

well my "free day" was claimed by my wife. i guess her mom sold her house and is going to be our renter in 30 days, so we have to get more done at the new place. we have done the outside almost completely, and the inside has new walls and paint and cabinets and tile, all except HVAC and floors, but today we loaded a flatbed and 10x12 trailer full of brush.

 

[joedoh]

still busy at the new place. 41 cases of flooring yesterday and a flatbed dump trip worthy of the opening credits of beverly hillbillies. i got a few hours today, shortened the filler neck and cut a 3" hole in the bedside for it.

worked out fine, I also finished up the cab corner welding and gave em a spritz so the bed it ready to be bolted down forever.

I also picked up some wheels, may not go on this truck, they would look better on a bagged truck with some paint, or even my M3, they are the right offset. need tires, but the deal was good. Foose outcast chrome in 20"

the house still needs more work, so I am in a hurry there.

 

[Torchie]

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Torchie

 

[Old Iron]

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[joedoh]

well mom moved in and we have been ***** and elbows getting stuff done, some needed done like floors and trim and others are real emergencies like the plumbing that turned out to have been done by a former brain donor. there was a 10ft pipe that went UPHILL from the kitchen sink to the main sewer line, in it was the foulest miasma of 4 year old water and ground up food that had no chance of draining, they must have thought the water lines worked on pressure so the sewer lines did too. I managed to save the floor by dumping most of it (2-3 gallons!) on myself. it put me off eating for a few days, that is no lie.

but heat works, water heater does too, plumbing is flushing, mom is warm and safe, life is great. no one ever remembers pain anyway.

I did some truck work, drilling out broken bolts and getting all the pieces ready to install. I tapped all the holes for new hardware, should go quuuick.

 

[Burgerman]

Nice job gaining ground with the home rehab. Way to go looking after mom.

 

[Old Iron]

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[Dr Crankenstein]

Nothing like a good plumbing story. [cl

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[Torchie]

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Torchie