Greetings. This is my first Chevy Truck. I had a 67 -68 camaro's back in High school but since then it has all been Fords. I have a attraction to both breeds. So I picked up this Apache. A 1960 Apache Fleetside v-8 w/ 4speed. I have always been a big fan of this truck. Some may call it ugly. I call it artistic. The lines alone got my Wife's attention. Even thought its appearance is rather...lets say Rat rodish. Plans for it were just to be a hay hauling truck. We had two new Fords but decided to go old school. I looked around at Fords but I found only a few pre 65's I really liked. Or should I say were not in my budget. I have two other projects right now so the Apache really looked pleasing. Our plans for the truck are disc brake upgrade, transmission w/over drive. We actually like the truck so much I am sure it will be completely redone. I was wondering the direction on a few items. Convert the 6 lug to 5 lug disc? Or convert the 6 lug drums to 6 lug disc? Any advantage for 5 lug? I adjusted the brakes and went to replace teh wheels beardings.. I repacked then and reinstalled. Convert the sbc 4 speed to a sbc 5 speed. What Tremec style is adaptable. Didn't the 1500 series P/u's and Z71 models come with 5 speeds? Wiring!!! This was a generator truck obviously ...but it now has an alternator. Of course it is hacked and destroyed. Is there a decent kit out there...IE Ron francis or Ez wiring...? Thanks for any commnets or suggestions. I will post a few pics of the beast later.
Welcome, I also looked at Fords, but I only liked the pre 60's bodystyles and they were either way too expensive or pushed out into the field trees growing through them. As far as your question about the 5 or 6 lug conversion, it depends on what kind of rim you want. You have much more variety with 5 lug.
Hmm yeah I was looking at a 5 lug conversion. Any ideas on the transmission. Or has everyone went he auto route? I would prefer not to ..ATF makes me break out in a rash.
Welcome to the forum and congratulations on your fine taste in vehicles. The problem you will have with the Tremic's, or Borge Warner, 5 speeds will be the shifter location. Located at the back of the tailshaft, it will get the shifter arm coming up through the floor very close to the seat. You will also need a new crossmember to support the tailshaft, but a aftermarket automatic crossmember will work there. You should start to think about replacing the hydralic clutch setup with a modern version. EZ-wire is a good choice and can be installed in a few days if you plan it out in advance of installation. Get the wire kit that uses GM color codes. Trust me, it's a lot easier to re-wire, and later diagnose problems, if you are looking at a color coded wire instead of trying to read the tiny writing on black wire. As for the front end,, I'm not a huge fan of front clip conversions having done the homework on disk brake kits vs front crossmember swap. From a cost perspective the savings you hope to achieve by using used parts over a kit quickly evorate when you need to rebuild old parts. Then there is the time it taks to install. I installed an Early Classic kit in my 64 in less than 8 hrs, start to finish. The front end was already apart and new ball joints and bushings already installed, but less than 8 hrs !! ? That includes new Master Cylinder, and brake lines and bleeding.. I determined I could have saved a few hundered dollars by piecing together a setup out of used parts and that assumed only minimal rebuilding of rotors and pads. The time I saved was worth the $200 extra to me. dval
Modern 5 speeds I just put a 5 speed in my 59 from these guys. http://www.keislerauto.com/ They machine them and rework the cases to fit about anything. They are a bit spendy, but I really love how mine drives behind the new 350 small block I put in at the same time. They have just started selling one that is a bit less expensive called the t-45. If you're not going too high on the horsepower that's the one to get. They can fix them up for "mid-shifting" in a pickup. You still have to modify the transcover some to get the shifter through and it is closer to the seat, but a new bent shift handle and mine fits great. Stan
Hey thanks guys. The Kiesler link is perfect. I am also building a Sunbeam Tiger clone and a 37 Ford with a y-block. All of course will be manual cars. I had a TK-500 in my road race mustang. Very nice upgrade from a top loader. Has anyone put in a muncie? I am not really needing to go 140 mph but something over 60 would be nice. The day was spent correcting wiring. I had parking lights. brake and stop light. Then Nothing. This thing is hacked all to hell and back. I have been looking at a wiring harness from www.rbsauto.com the price is $449. It says a direct replacement for 60-66 GM trucks plus additional circuits for air and audio and power windows. Anyone know of another one? Cheaper. Dval I hear you on the conversion. I could opt for the 5 -lug kit from CPP. Making it all a snap. I kinda think the torsion bar suspension is pretty cool. I could add a sway up front and out back making this truck really handle. Which I kinda need up here in the hills.
Go with the EZ-wire kit. It sounds like you are doing a "rod-storation" so an original harness is moot. $165 for a mini 20 circuit harness. MORE than enough for that truck. In my humble opinion the Early Classic kit is better than the CCP version. Quality built with American made products, and customer service you will not believe. Call them on their 800 number and ask for Stan with pre-sales questions... Tell him Dennis from Sacramento referred you.. Then,, try calling CCP with the same pre-sales questions... You be the judge.. Early Classic specializes only in our trucks, and were the FIRST to offer dropped spindles and disk brakes for our trucks. The front sway bar will make a huge difference in how the truck will carve up curves. ( new control arm bushings, and idler arm are a must ! ) The rear bar will be of less importance as there is little weight over the rear wheels for th sway bar to control. The rear bar is nice, but less important than a front bar. dval
Dennis I will check into the EZ-wire harness. Today I had all the wiring working. Light, brake lights, stop lights and it would crank and shut off. Then I let it sit for about two hours. Then no lights and then it wouldn't shut off. Yep this harness is coming out. Gutting the whole pile of crap and then going the EZ route.
Nah I ride a motorcycle to and from work. Rain X will have to work for now. But yes I do need a wiper motor. What years will fit ? I don't even have a core to compare. Actually we did get some rain last night. It looked like it would dump all day yesterday but the from 1500 on up the on shore breeze kept the clouds dumping in the mountains.
Thanks . Wipers are on the list. Right now Window drivers side. Defrost and heater. disc brakes tires and wheels wipers. transmission
TREMEC 5 Speed Mid shift Pete, I know my 59 is different from your truck, but I though you might light to see the before and after shots of where my shifter is located after I installed the 5 speed trans in it. Picture 1 is the before with the shifter in the stock location (complete with soup can patch over the starter hole). Picture 2 is the new location in 1st gear. Picture 3 is the new location in 2nd gear. Stan
Stan you can change all of that with the right stick. Raise that stick up and forward. That will get it off the seat. Looks good
