Projects 51 Chevy 3100 project

Awesome truck.

Do you have a build thread?

 

i went the cheapest easiest way i could with mine took a 85 caprice that ran cut the body off leaving only the floor to the back of the front seat and the the fire wall to the top of the master cylinder did the same thing to the truck sat the truck body on the car floor welded it together got it done in like 2 weeks and came out with 1950 chevy that has disc power brakes OD trans 350 motor power steerking and AC the cheap and easy way

 

Thanks man,

Coach,
Thanks, no i dont have a build thread but i took pics long the way. It was a quick build nothing to fancy just a nice driver and a good little shop truck.

 

Its not blue is it? x-cab step side? that would be crazy....

Nice work on the trans mount....

 

just found this thread nice project gotta love these trucks hope to finish mine by spring will keep watching yours

 

Simplestone,
Nice build. I just found this thread too and I have a couple questions after reading through it.

After you wire wheeled your frame and suspension pieces, what else did you do before painting the POR on?

I have some KBS and I'm doing much the same on my '55 but lately I've lost steam and need to gt back to it. Your thread is reving me up again, lol!

 

Dan, I know there is a special prep solution you can put on the bare metal before painting, but all I did was wash with water to remove the dust and let dry in the sun.

One thing I wish I had done was top coat the frame after painting. I had heard the POR was UV sensitive but I didn't anticipate having the bed off for so long. I can see where the POR has started to break down on the surface and when I drag my finger across it I get a black powdery residue. I sprayed my transmission cross member with primer about 4-5 hours after painting and then top coated with a black satin for that reason (who knows, someday I may have the cab off exposing it to the sunlight).

Overall, I'm very happy with the POR and the results, though.

Shadams, my S10 is green and regular cab. Whew, I was starting to think maybe I was you.

 

hello,

Actually, your truck doesnt look bad at all. keep us posted on the changes you do to it, any helpful info is needed.

thank you,
marco
my50chevy
nampa,id

http://s645.beta.photobucket.com/user/my50chevy/media/may222009010.jpg.html?sort=6&o=147

 

Yay! My dear wife got me a nice self-darkening welding mask for Christmas.

Unfortunately, my truck has about a foot of snow on it right now....

 

While out shoveling the driveway yesterday I snapped a pic of the truck. I think a little chop is in order.



And even more snow...

 

Well, Spring must be on the way because I finally got some more work done on the 51.
The shift lever that came with the craigslist Carmaro T5 was broken and the shaft was tilted so I knew I was going to have to do some modifications. I had seen threads where guys had shortened the throw by moving the pivot pin about an inch higher so I figured I might as well do that while I was at it.

Since the bend in the shaft was only about 1/2 inch above the original pivot pin I needed to straighten that first. I did that by grinding about 3/4 of the way through the bend, whacking with a hammer until straight, welding, grinding, and filing smooth.
Once that was done I measure up an inch and drilled another hole for the pivot pin.



The picture shows where I am at now, but next I need to remove the upper portion of the shifter (some sort of rubber mounting), and then attach the shift lever I nabbed off ebay.

Feels good to be getting something done again!

 

Got my shifter in and now I'm moving on to the brakes. I already had a two reservoir master cylinder that I had purchased for my 38 coupe a few years back. It was an aftermarket for a 68 Camaro drum/drum setup, and I ended up not using it because I didn't like the looks and it was to be mounted to the firewall. Anyways, I figure this will be a perfect place for it since it will be under the floor and never seen.

So yesterday I got the old one out and started figuring out what I needed to do for a mounting bracket. I figured it would be a simple bracket - I had seen ones for sale made out of two plates at a right angle with a support gusset.
But once I got looking and measuring it appears that this simple bracket won't work if mounted to the same position as the original. The position would place the mc about an inch inboard of where it needs to be to line up with the pedal push rod. Looks like I'll have to modify the original mount plate. Any better ideas?

 

The engine compartment looks like a spider web with all the wires.

 

That's exactly what I thought when I first looked under the hood, Samu23el. I have a wiring harness that will hopefully take care of that.

Here are some pictures of my T5 and shifter installation that I didn't get posted before
.

 

I always check the A-D Truckers group first when I log in. And for some time now I've been thinking that that is where I should have started my build thread. So I'm starting the second year thread over there as well: http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/...discussionid=37829&gmid=622689#gmessage622689

 

Removed the hood, grill, and fenders in preparation for fixing the floor and kick panels.


I definitely have my work cut out for me. The drivers side has rusted enough around the front cab mount so that the cab has dropped about an inch. The passenger side has significant rust through but is at least in the correct position. After tearing things apart I see I will need an additional patch panel. As long as I was ordering that I also got the cab mount kit and some rear tail lights.








Can you say Swiss cheese? haha

 

Got some more time this weekend so I decided to start in on those cab patch panels. Cut out the rusted drivers side floor to see what I had.


That's where I got side-tracked. Once I saw I had easy access to the brake master cylinder location I decided it was a good a time as any to make a mc bracket to mount the dual mc.
First I cut the original mount because I didn't want to have the mc offset from the piston rod and have to worry about that, too.


Then I started looking around for some heavy sheet to use for the bracket. You'll have to forgive me, but I saw that the transmission mounting plate would work perfectly for what I needed. So I cut a hunk off of that.


I found another piece that a PO had rigged up to mount the spare tire under the bed. Welded the two of them together to get this.


I had to lengthen the original piston rod about 1 3/4 inches so I used some rod that came from my shifting linkage. Here it is all mocked up.


I know it's not going to win any awards for beauty, but it's good and strong. I just need to weld in another chunk and it will be good to go.

So, I didn't get any patch panels in, but I feel like I made some good progress anyways. Raining today, and probably will for the next couple, so I'll have to find something else to do in the mean time.

 

I feel your pain...I replaced all those same panels, but mine wasn't as bad as yours is. Doesn't change what needs to be done though. Let me know if you have any questions. Master looks good, I applaud your creativity. I am working on developing my own that so I can stop having to rely on having to buy things that can be made. Getting better though. Anyway, nice work, good to see some updates.

 

Truck is looking good. Have you modified the input shaft on the 5 speed yet?

 

I didn't need to modify the input shaft on my 5 speed since it came from a NWC from an 86 Camaro. From my reading, those input shafts were shorter, and I didn't have any problems sliding it in and bolting it up.

Shadams, it's nice to have threads like yours for reference. I've been through yours more than a few times!

Ok, so I've been working a few hours at a time whenever I get the chance.
The drivers side sill is thin in spots with a few holes, but I I'm just going to clean it up the best I can and POR15 it. I did have to make the patch for the front part where the cab mount attaches since it was completely gone.


I'm going to re-use the cab mounts so I ground down the spot welds and removed it from the old floor panel. Before I put it in I'll wire brush it, and it will get a couple coats of POR15.


I hope to do some grinding the next couple of days to coat the whole driver's side area before I start putting things back together.

I was going to use the whole driver's floor patch panel, but since the original upper portion where the pedals go through was still in good shape I decided to cut around that area. Here it is for a test fit. Feels good to finally have that hole filled! hey, that's what she said.


I hope by the end of this weekend I will have the driver's side of the cab supported by the cab mount & have this panel welded in. That is, if it doesn't rain...

 

Removed the gas tank and seat rails. Then spent a lot of time wire wheeling the cab floor before having to stop due to a thunderstorm. Lots of pin holes.




Also noticed this decal on my dash a couple of days ago. With all the rust it was pretty hard to see. Snapped a picture, cleaned it up some, and then snapped another. Makes you wonder what type of life this old truck had in it's early years.

 

haha that's a cool decal.... tattoo idea?

 

I would be a cool tattoo, but I think I'll just stick to replacing it on the truck after I finish the dash.
I did a google search and found the decal available on etsy for $12.00. Says it is a vintage 50s decal.

 

Cool Truck!

I really like the decal story and the fact that you are going to put a new one in.

 

that's cool you found a new decal

 

Man, looks like fun! It's coming along nicely.

 

I must be insane, but I just couldn't pass up a good deal.
On Sunday my son & I went to look at a 51 pickup that popped up on craigslist. It was less than 2 hrs away and the asking price was only $1200. From the one picture he sent me I expected it to be really, rough but figured I better satisfy my curiosity anyways.


But after seeing it I was pleasantly surprised. It was in much better shape than the one I'm currently working on!
It was a father & son project that hadn't been touched in 5 years so they decided to pass it on. Frame & running gear had all been sandblasted/painted, and all new brakes and brake lines were installed.
Before they tore it down it was a complete running/driving truck. It has a 216 (they told me it did smoke quite a bit, though) with 3 spd manual. Probably won't be using any of that since I've already got my 235 with the t5. Cab is much more solid than what I've got, and it's a 5 window to boot! Doors have no rust through on the inside bottom like my current ones, and bed box & tailgate are also in much, much better shape. Only thing I could see that was in worse shape were the fenders & running boards.

I explained that I was looking mainly for parts, but understandably, they didn't want to get into parting it out. I ended up offering $800 for everything, and they accepted. Additionally, they offered to pack, load, and deliver it all for an addtional $200. Since I knew I would be making multiple trips back & forth (or renting a trailer of some sort), in order to avoid that whole scenario I accepted that offer.

Now I've only got a couple of weeks to figure out where I'm going to put the thing!

Oh man, it's a disease... *sigh*

 

With over 3acres,shouldn't be a problem,time for another shed maybe!

 

Your truck is coming along great! Love it and following along!

 

The truck looks nice. We owned one a few years back painted mint green with IFS, 350, TH350, 10 bolt, tilt/tele shift column and the original bench seat.
Got to finish back surgery recovery, then it's the body style I'll be looking for.