My dad is getting a new car soon so I was thinking about taking his current truck and rebuilding it. It has chevy rust on the bed sides and the good ol 305 with a auto. Do you guys have any comments on how easy/hard/bad idea it is for a 18 year old to rebuild a truck? Luckily my school has a welding class and I'm sure I could get the teacher to take on rebuilding the bed as a class project since I'm right next door in machine tool. It has 155,000 miles on it but I figure that's ok because there isn't anything to break on these trucks. I'm thinking about buying a GM crate motor and dropping it in and getting a tranny rebuild or maybe buying one from Jegs. Is it a good idea to get the rear end checked out, new bearings, gaskets and such? I need new doors and window mechanics and a new windshield. I'd also like to put discs on the rear and re do the interrior. Luckily I don't have to tear much out because it's a work truck with no cloth at all and no A/C. any comments are appreciated, thanks.
My dad and I have a '77 that we're rebuilding and I think it's very much worth it if you have the time and money to do it right. Mine came with that dreaded 305 also so we bought a new 350 crate motor with 330 HP from GM and it is a really sweet engine. So if you have the cash, it's worth the investment. One thing I will caution you about, though, is fix anything that might leak and stuff with the transmission while everything is out. I found out the hard way that it's a big pain to find out something in the tranny needed fixing after you have everything back in and running again. So you should definitely do it. There are a TON of parts out there for these trucks to do a nice rebuild on them. We just got ours last november so ours is in the early stages of the build up also. I can't wait til it's done, though good luck on your '82
If rust is a major problem, like in northern states (we just have mud in the south) find a donar vehicle with good sheetmetal but no running gear. I have two parts vehicles that I am using to bring my truck to OEM conditon. One I bought for $300 and one was given to me if I just hauled it off. Both are running. With 155K, ditch the 305. GM has a nice NEW 260HP long block for $1299 in Jegs. The auto should be overhauled if it has not been already. My biggest expense to date has been the front suspension. You can drive with worn parts, but after a complete front-end overhaul the 128K on the OD are not felt. New bushings, pitman, idler, springs, ect. make for a different riding experience. With my experience, 155k is not terribly bad on a 1/2 ton axle. Check your ring and pinion lash. I had a 77' GMC that had a long life with a full load a my work truck. My axle stubs had grooves worn where the bearings sat. Good luck 79 C20 Bonanza 350/400 4bbl Q-Jet 3.73 14-Bolt Corp.
[updated:LAST EDITED ON Aug-27-04 AT 07:14 PM (CST)]Watch out, working on trucks is contagious and expensive. No matter how much you spend and the time you put into the build, it's never enough. You would have good project on your hands. The main thing about rebuilding anything is planning. Think of what YOU want and what you want out of it. Take the engine for example...if you want something to cruise up and down the road, you'll want something with some gas mileage and maybe a little performance. If you want an engine with enough power to blow away the sport compacts, then forget about a crate engine. First figure out what you want or would like to have then go from there. If you want to save money go to summitracing.com, and stay away from Jeg's (somebody has to pay for all of the advertising).
One word... Sponsors. That is where Jegs gets a lot of advertising money. Both are good sources. 79 C20 Bonanza 350/400 4bbl Q-Jet 3.73 14-Bolt Corp.
I think you have a GREAT project! I love the 70-80's GM trucks. The sky is the limit on what you can do. I agree with a previous post that you need to have a plan and build what YOU want. I am a firm believer in the GM Crate motors. Something to think about, instead of rebuilding the original tranny, install a 700R4. That is a common switch. The 700R4 has a lower first gear than the TH350 and has the overdrive. You can reduce you rear end ratio and still maintain decent fuel mileage. Good luck, Brian Show Low, Arizona
