Progress, however slow... but isn't it about the JOURNEY?

Progress, WITH PICTURES

Hello all,
If Penny (my '53) wasn't an antique when I started on her, she'd certainly be by the time I am done.

But now she has a drivetrain, in a rolling chassis.


1989 S10 longbed frame.
BellTech 3" drop leaves out back holding up a Colorado rear end


BellTech 2" drop-spindles (to be installed next), QA1 coilovers (need actual vehicle weight to order w/ the correct springs) holding up a
2004 LM7 5.3L "LS" motor, on custom-fabbed mounts, (mounts just tacked in, will be fully boxed soon) with a
2004 4L60E transmission, on a custom transmission crossmember behind it.

mounts just tacked in place for mockup.
A shortened aluminum driveshaft out of a late-model Silverado was the plan, but shortening it would have required a 3-state roadtrip, so I had a custom driveshaft fabbed.


LOKAR provided the linkage to couple the stock column-shift to the tranny.


And then there is the wheel-and-tire dilemma.

The plan all along has been to run STOCK 16x5.5's, with ~P225/70R16 blackwall tires, with mid-40's Chevrolet CAR hubcaps (I like 'em better). But the (6) original wheels I have are, quite frankly, shot.

So I started to look for a suitable 6-lug, 16" replacement. Wheel Vintiques, Stockton, etc., no joy. 1990's up to mid-2000's GM truck steel 16's? Not the right look. Aluminum wheels don't look correct (to me) on an AD.

The bigger problem was that with a 29.5" tall tire (original tire height), and a 16-inch rim, 6.75" of sidewall wasn't doing it for me. Driving a late-model Pontiac with 40-series tires on 19-inch wheels may be responsible for my delusions, so I expanded my search to larger (diameter) wheels.

17-inch?
Late-model GM trucks run a 17-inch steelie, but the sidewall would only shrink to 6.25".

18-inch?
Some Import trucks run an 18" steelie, and this was more like what I was looking for. I ordered a used 18" rim online... and received... (accidentally)...

a 20"x8", 6-lug steel wheel. Stamped NISSAN. From an Infiniti QX56 SUV.

Nate, I know you are shaking your head. It'll be OK.

A set of 4/ P245/50R20 take-offs opportuned themselves, and with the 40's Chevy hubcap, the 20-inch, BLACK, Steel wheels with low-profile tires look modern, yet fitting to me. I was worried at first. Not now!


Mike

 

O.K. Mike

At least you're not running FUGLY alloy wheels....

Carry on then .

I guess I'll never again rattle & wheeze an old American made Inline 6 Banger Pickup Truck down a narrow New England back road in the fall with the 200 gallon syrup tank in the back sloshing as it squeaks and groans from the rust....

Memories , ah those halycon dayze long gone by , thanx for bringing the back to me Mike ! .

 

You're absolutely right Mike, it's about the journey! At least that's what I keep telling myself anyway. HA! Hope to see some photos of your truck soon, and I'll be following your progress. Good luck!

Damon

 

The Journey

You're so right ! .

I hope to be able to make at least one more drive to TEXAS in my '69 before I get stuck driving In Town only .

No hurry , load up the truck with your dog and grand kids and rattle & wheeze it on down the road.............

 

I'm to the point where I hope to see if I'm putting the nut on the right friggin post under the dash! My eyesight just isn't happening in the 2-3 foot range.
Still doesn't explain why I have a G though, does it?

 

To be perfectly honest....the journey starts when you turn the key and roll out of the garage................Zig!!! LOL

 

Says you~

I tried that. All I got was grass clippings all over my shirt! Thanks!
By the way, my "garage" doesn't have a driveway poured yet. I probably wouldn't have got so dirty if I did.
I'm sure my neighbors appreciated my efforts, however.

 

pictures of the wheel and tire combo... AT LAST

OK guys,
Here are some quick pictures of the new rolling stock. Not on the truck, as she is getting ready to go to the body shop for CAB work, as a HUGE pile of parts arrived from our host last Friday. Interestingly, the mere utterance of the word "stovebolt" netted me 10% off my parts! (make note of that)

I included an original rim next to the mounted one for comparison. Keep in mind the diameter of the new setup is nearly exact to the height of a 6.50-16 (29.3" for the original, 29.5" for the new setup), so the fender-fill will look correct.

 

so those are Infiniti SUV rims? they look good eith the hub caps. i dig them

 

Skeeter,
the wheel in question is a spare from a QX56, the Infiniti version of a Nissan Armada as I recall. They are a bit heavy, but my truck isn't going to be a canyon-carving Corvette killer (only in my dreams).

 

looks killer wasp

 

Eyes of the tiger


Zig
Longsighted people whom need reading glasses concentrate better on the nuts and bolts but sometimes they "skrue up". I did this test a while agoo and am in the same gategory using extra time zooming in on objects!

Life starts at the fifty welcome aboard

 

I love it!

I should pass along this eye test to my Dr. I'm sure he would use it! Can you just imagine hearing, "Okay, read the smallest line you can."
Patient says, "OMGWTF". HAAAA!!!! Tears are rolling out of my eyes right now! THANKS!!!

 

Canyon Carving

Doesn't need to be in your dreams , don't need to sweat the 'Vette guys neither .

I only have a weeny little 250 CI.D.L6 engine & Turbo-Hydro Slushbox but I always do just fine in the hills & canyons , many folks have eyes like dinner plates as I pess thm in their junky moderns .

It was the same in my '49 3100 too ~ good rubber , good brakes and tight suspension , trust GM as they designed these trucks to be driven hard to market fully loaded and far worse roads than you can find now .

Yes , the JOURNEY is the thing . why I hate to take my truck apart for major repairs , I'm too busy driving and enjoying it .

 

I think those will look great! It sure is about the journey. Mine is I just love driving mine around. Just last week, I got a bed full of native rocks, to line some of our landscaping with. There is just something about the way the truck rides when its loaded. So smooth and shifts better as well. Just seems to line everything up

Keep us posted on the progress of the rest of it! Can't wait to see it all put together

 

enjoy the pictures I added in the first post!

 

Thanks for adding the pictures! Looking forward to more updates on your progress.

Damon

 

Pictures are *good*

They keep us up to date and our minds going...

Like, "Hmmmm.... a V8...."

Thanks for posting them!

 

more pictures!

OK, so with Zig just going CRAZY with cutting, and now welding, I just couldn't let him have all the fun...
So I did the math, fabbed some spacers, mounted the 20" wheels, threw the bed on the frame, added a fender for measurement purposes, and here's what I have:

(can someone tell me how to make these pic's BIGGER?)
and just so Zig would get all excited, I did MORE math, fabbed a temporary spacer for the hubcap clips, and slapped one on. This is the hubcab I like. I compressed the suspension to get the stance as you see it.

 

but I think...

the wheels will need to be body-color. Too much black, and no crisp delineation between rim and tire. But I am LIKING the look!