# Chevy Restoration



## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well i have been working on a truck for the past 5 months and have just recently contacted second skin audio to purchase a large amount of product for the interior of the truck. I will show here about 5 months of work compacted into a few posts and all of the info is backdated so its not recent til i am done. i will be doing a very large install of second skin gear with a full write up of how the product was and what a great job it does! Please enjoy! 

Well to make a long story short. My uncle passed away last year, and i bought one of the most loved things he left behind. His truck. He bought it with 2 miles on it. He has everything documented by date and year since 1990. Every oil change, wiper blades, brakes etc. Before his passing some damage was done to the truck and he never got to fix it. There is also some rusted spots that got extremely bad from sitting out in the elements for the past amount of months. It is now officially my truck. I will make a list in the next post showing what will be done to it. \I am not sure if this is possible but i will soon find out. I will be doing ALL work myself except final paint and fixing the rusted rockers and cab corners. ON TO THE PICS as it sits now:


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

PICS!!. 
EXTRA Motor bein rebuilt to a 383!!!!
















Summit Order And Parking Lights








Grill









How i took the bumper off




Front end now.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

And heres the interior of the truck at this point. pretty stock besides the new alpine unit and oollllld bazooka tube. 



























WORK 




















little rust ne one?? took me about 2 hours to get all the old exhaust cut and out

STARTING TO COME TOGETHER


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

well i got bored and uploaded the photos so ill show my hideous beast... she wont be this way for long tho... 




































this was very early in the morning before takin my truck to exhaust.. cant wait to get a pic or two of that as well as some sound clips....

and got my exhaust done today.. 






































and a vid sound clip


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Now for the story and some information behind the build. If your read the first post this truck was my uncles truck and it was his baby. He passed away and did not get to fix the truck back up before his sudden death. I immediatly bought the truck and began working. I have been actually working on the truck for probably about 4 months. Motor is fine, good and strong. How ever there are many changes that are about to happen in the next 2 weeks to the truck. A cowl hood will be painted and put on. roll pan welded in, antenna shaved, rear handle shaved. there is some serious rust on the cab that will all b cut out and replaced with new metal. The bed is coming off and all of that hideous rust will be sanded and por-15d. The truck has headman long tube racing headders with a true dual exhaust and x pipe via magnaflow. In the next months after finishing the exterior of the truck in the ways noted above, i will begin a complete custom interior. everything, and i mean everything will b coming out to begin deadning the cab. after that black carpet will b laid down, bucket racing seats, custom center console with 12 inch woofer, custom door panels and a custom dash, painted black with silver accents. all of this will carry me through the summer at least at which time i hope to drop the truck 2 inches in the front and 4 in the rear mabye 3/5 if i think itll look good. new rims and tires and then finally in about 6 months i will drop a new 383 into the truck. 

ONE main set back was that the tranny had been messin up on me a little bit lately so i took it in and its gettin a complete rebuild the next couple days which is always a big dent on the check book. 

My name is Joe 
I am 19 from Indiana 
My aim sn is Jblackwell64 if you guys have ne questions let me know thanks


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

roll pan will be welded in this weekend. tailgate handle will be shaved entire bed will b painted top and bottom, inside and out. hood will b painted by tom. fenders and bumper will b painted by nxt week. then im gonna put it all back together and try to decide what im doing about the rust!


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## ///Audience (Jan 31, 2007)

welcome to the site man!

Have you checked out www.fullsizechevy.com?

Alot a members here frequent that site as its an amazing site to check out lots of people with Full size chevy's and you can find any and all info you will ever need.

Im pretty sure some people on there would like to see your build up as well.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

BassBaller5 said:


> welcome to the site man!
> 
> Have you checked out www.fullsizechevy.com?
> 
> ...


yea im over there. if not for that place id b stuck! that place helped me so much on learning about these trucks which is half the battle of working on them!


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## syd-monster (Jan 7, 2008)

cool project. Hang in there, it will be worth it.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

syd-monster said:


> cool project. Hang in there, it will be worth it.


yea not to far now. i just cant wait to get the underside of the truck cleaned up all that rust looks horrid!!!


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Joe,

Certainly a project that has my attention. I have a Dodge Dakota that is pretty rare, long story, but it's in a bit better condition than your truck but nonetheless needs a bit of love. About the same vintage. Great project and you are coming along nicely! It's inspiring me to get some stuff ordered for my truck and get started giving it the needed love. It's going to be sort of a father-son project.

Keep us up-to-date man!

Chad


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

chad said:


> Joe,
> 
> Certainly a project that has my attention. I have a Dodge Dakota that is pretty rare, long story, but it's in a bit better condition than your truck but nonetheless needs a bit of love. About the same vintage. Great project and you are coming along nicely! It's inspiring me to get some stuff ordered for my truck and get started giving it the needed love. It's going to be sort of a father-son project.
> 
> ...


Well im glad to hear that. Its been a lot of hard work so far but there is nothing more rewarding than seeing the truck come together now. I am 19 and have paid for every part of this truck and done ALL of the work on it. It slowed down over the summer considerably because i workd 60 hours a week. Unfortuanly i just got off the phone with the tranny shop and its gonna cost 2500 to get the transmission rebuilt w 2 year warranty. At least i can rag on here a bit now and if i blow the tranny im not payin hehe. Well as far as updates ill have a lot this weekend and a lot of good ones in 2 weeks!


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Ace said:


> Well im glad to hear that. Its been a lot of hard work so far but there is nothing more rewarding than seeing the truck come together now. I am 19 and have paid for every part of this truck and done ALL of the work on it. It slowed down over the summer considerably because i workd 60 hours a week. Unfortuanly i just got off the phone with the tranny shop and its gonna cost 2500 to get the transmission rebuilt w 2 year warranty. At least i can rag on here a bit now and if i blow the tranny im not payin hehe. Well as far as updates ill have a lot this weekend and a lot of good ones in 2 weeks!


We have a transmission builder here in our midst  Maybe he can give you a few pointers.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

chad said:


> We have a transmission builder here in our midst  Maybe he can give you a few pointers.


Well heres the story on it. if you have read some of this build log ull see that i actually bought the truck after my uncles passing. He got the transmission rebuilt 3 or 4 years agon with about 2 thousand miles on the truck since. I get the truck and its kinda jumpy and just not a solid tranny i can tell. i took it in and like all shops they said they wont know for sure until they drop it and dissasemble it but they said it was probably electrical in the transmission. well they dropped it and turns out the previous place my uncle had gone did a BUTCH job on it. So now its gettin all new guts and i know this place is quality because weve taken 3 other trannys there. Just a lot of cash i wasnt plannin on spending


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Ace said:


> Well heres the story on it. if you have read some of this build log ull see that i actually bought the truck after my uncles passing. He got the transmission rebuilt 3 or 4 years agon with about 2 thousand miles on the truck since. I get the truck and its kinda jumpy and just not a solid tranny i can tell. i took it in and like all shops they said they wont know for sure until they drop it and dissasemble it but they said it was probably electrical in the transmission. well they dropped it and turns out the previous place my uncle had gone did a BUTCH job on it. So now its gettin all new guts and i know this place is quality because weve taken 3 other trannys there. Just a lot of cash i wasnt plannin on spending


I can't think of any transmission shops in my area that rock off the top of my head, I'm about 1.5 hours west of you, straight shot on 74. But things MAY be cheaper here out of Indy metro. Sometimes it's the independent guys that are more affordable and willing to take the time and do a good job as opposed to cranking them out one after another.


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## 328iBMW (Aug 16, 2007)

Looks like fun and it sounds good too. Thanks for posting.


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## Beau (Oct 8, 2005)

Would you mind PM-ing me about the grill, and who you purchased it from?


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Everytime i work on the truck lately it seems like its bad news. Today i started takin off the fender flares and my worst nightmare came true... ill let the pics do the talking 


















at least i got my plugs and wires changed... 
OLD 









The gear 


















Didnt get a finished pic yet just one when i was half way done


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

all done. helped a ton old stuff needed changed bad! probably flush the antifreeze tom and disassemble the front to get ready for paint. also takin off the camper and bed to start w the frame


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## Donnie (Feb 2, 2008)

I love what you are doing. Anyone who spends their blood and sweat on a Chevy Resto, gets major props in my book. And trust me, I know what you are going through. I spent three years on a rebuild of a '77 Chevy C-10 4x4. 

P.S. Gotta have love for an bored-over Chevy engine.


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## Mike Hall (Jun 30, 2006)

Drop you a LS1 in that thing. YOu could pick up a complete LS1 package for not much more than it will cost you to get the trany fixed. 

Mike


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Mike Hall said:


> Drop you a LS1 in that thing. YOu could pick up a complete LS1 package for not much more than it will cost you to get the trany fixed.
> 
> Mike


it cost me 2k for the tranny.. if i could find a complete ls1 packaged for that much i would but i cant.


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## Mike Hall (Jun 30, 2006)

What about the LS engines that come in the trucks? I just sold a 02 TA 32k mile LS1 with T56 for $4000 a month ago. It was complete with everything too. You should be able to find a good low miles setup out of a truck for $2500 or so. 

Mike


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Mike Hall said:


> What about the LS engines that come in the trucks? I just sold a 02 TA 32k mile LS1 with T56 for $4000 a month ago. It was complete with everything too. You should be able to find a good low miles setup out of a truck for $2500 or so.
> 
> Mike


i hope i can find one for 2500 thatd b perfect. ill keep my eye out but all the ones i see are much more expensive then that.


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## Mike Hall (Jun 30, 2006)

I will keep my eye open. I know you can find a 5.3 LS motor with an auto trany complete for around $2500 because I have seen them before. 

Mike


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## 96dak (Jan 28, 2008)

if i had a choice between a ls1 and a built 4bolt 383 stroker, sign me up for the 383 any day of the week. properly built they are torque monsters.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

yea i havent even really started comparisons or real researched what engine im lookin at.. right now a 383 lt1 is intersting to me but ill have to keep checking around


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## Matt R (Aug 29, 2007)

Man, I thought that was my truck at first glance. Nice project, mine was in similar condition with a bit less rust. I had trouble sending pics to you but i'll try to send some individually.

Those headers and the ignition look good, keep up the good work.

Matt


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Matt R said:


> Man, I thought that was my truck at first glance. Nice project, mine was in similar condition with a bit less rust. I had trouble sending pics to you but i'll try to send some individually.
> 
> Those headers and the ignition look good, keep up the good work.
> 
> Matt


thanks man. yea i was checking yours out and it looks reallly nice. I Like your ideas witht hte interior especially alot of my ideas you did too. only differnce is i think im gonna have the console angle up to the dash and im gonna put a avic d 3 in there.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

had a little fun today. got the cap off and im startin to disassemble the doors for paint as well as the trim on the inside of the doors.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

GOT THE HOOD DONE TODAY TOO WOOOOOT!!!


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

truck was dropped off at paint on tuesday february 12th. should take about 3 weeks to be done.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

UPDATE!!!!
Got it up on the rack today and started stripping it down.








I got the bed, pass side fender removed. 

I then started shaving the antenna on the pass side fender. 
























Got it all welded up and ready for a coat of glaze and primer.


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## Matt R (Aug 29, 2007)

Sweet man, if you get it done in 3 weeks, that is awesome. I had a nightmare with my truck, it was over 6 months for me and I ended up doing most of the work. That hood looks real good.

Matt


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## LastResort (Oct 24, 2007)

I've got a 92 extended cab, short box that needs almost as much work. One of these days.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Ok Got the cab corners and rockers glued in. Had to make new backers for them also. 
























Used the stud gun and got 95% of the damage to the front of the door out. Filled it and also fixed a couple other dents while I was at it. Then sprayed some primer on it and guide coated it.
















After blocking, filling, blocking, filling, blocking, filling again and again my arm fell off:luke: But the dented pass side fender was ready for primer!








After Primer dried, I blocked it again and found 2 more small dents that got filled. Another 3 coats of primer were sprayed and now it is ready to be edged in and wet sanded for paint.








Also got the driver side fender blocked and primered. I will get it blocked and primer it again maybe today so it will be ready to edge it all in at the same time.


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## 328iBMW (Aug 16, 2007)

Nice work.


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## wildhair (Mar 8, 2007)

good choice on the front clip and exhaust. this looks like its going to be a cool truck when your done. so often these kinds of things get lost in the shuffle. its good to see someone take intrest in a situation such as yours. good luck


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

thanks fellas.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Found 7 more dents on the roof after primer and another blocking
















Cab ready for paint tomorrow:clap: 

Painted parts. Dont mind the bondo dust on them:naughty:


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## 96dak (Jan 28, 2008)

right on, looks good so far.


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## werner406 (Jan 8, 2008)

i love it ! good work man, go on and show us what's next


what will you do about the rusted frame/chassis ?


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

frame will get some serious love once i get the truck back. ill go to town with a wire wheel and some sand paper and such and after gettin it cleaned up im probobly gonna knotch it and maybe box in the frame and under coat the crap out of it.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Got some new pics today finally coming together. decided to cut n buff it but that hasnt been started yet. looks good few imperfections here and there that the cut n buff will fix. lookin really good just a couple fitment issues with the drivers side fender got flatened out a bit but should be fine. hopefully ill have the exterior completely done and back on the road by friday if parts come in on time! let me know what you fellas think 





























and a picture of my next upcoming project. 

YIIIKES


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## riceaterslc (Sep 9, 2007)

wow amazing progress so far. nice work!


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## DaveRulz (Jun 22, 2006)

Have you heard of POR 15? I've seen them use it on ******* TV before (powerblock TV on Spike) and it supposedly stops rust, that may work better than undercoating. It's expensive, but probably because it actually works.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

i already have a gallon of por 15 already, but im not gonna use it until i know my final set up for my suspension and undercoat is easy to take off with its remover. so im gonna try to clean the frame as much as possible then undercoat it until i finalize my suspension setup.


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## 328iBMW (Aug 16, 2007)

nice work. keep posting prease.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

well the front half is about 90 percent done but i put a quick pause on to get the transmission checked again since it was messed up already after i put a new one in. tmorrow the bed comes off to take care of all the rust. and might b mocking up some new door panels tomorrow as well.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

got a new intake so i got alittle sound clip, its hard to hear from the clip but its quite a bit deeper now. i like it a lot hopefully it will get even deeper when i get the intake manifold on next weekend.

Intake









clip


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

body work and paint completely finished yesterday. once it stops rainin ill snap better pics 
tint and rims in the next couple weeks.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Took a few hours today washed and waxed the truck. 
































































As you can see i still have not had the time to get my exhaust shortened since the roll pan went on.


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## riceaterslc (Sep 9, 2007)

nice work! are you going to keep your exhaust tips like that? i would be scared of damage from parallel parkers.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

no no no if u read under the last pic they are only like that cause i used to have a bumper now with the roll pan it is shortened up a lot in the back so i need to shorten them n just havent had time yet.


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## piston (Apr 7, 2007)

Good job fixing it up. looks so much better, almost like a new truck off the lot.

So when you doing a stereo?

Jason


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

stereo is probably about a year from now haha. its the last thing im worried about right now. i want it to be fast and 100% reliable first.


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## FrankstonCarAudio (Feb 2, 2008)

So the whole purpose of your thread, on this DIY Car Audio site was......? 

Why didn't you post it on some truck rebuilding site?.. 'cos that's all we've seen since Jan 2008... waiting for some great system to be installed.

Now we find out that *"its the last thing im worried about right now"*, and is *"is probably about a year from now haha"*

What a waste! 

Mark


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Sorry to waste your time.


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## riceaterslc (Sep 9, 2007)

Ace said:


> Sorry to waste your time.


don't let that guy bum you out. since this is a MOBILE audio forum it's perfectly fine to work on the mobile part before the audio part. no sense in having a great system in a half assed car. keep up the great work!


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## 03KingRanch21811 (Mar 18, 2008)

FrankstonCarAudio said:


> So the whole purpose of your thread, on this DIY Car Audio site was......?
> 
> Why didn't you post it on some truck rebuilding site?.. 'cos that's all we've seen since Jan 2008... waiting for some great system to be installed.
> 
> ...


Way to be a dick. I understand this is a mobile audio site first, but as mentioned above, you need a running reliable vehicle to be MOBILE, do you not? The man is simply restoring a truck that has some strong memories attached to it, so give him a ****ing break. I swear the internet Nazis seem to pop up more and more here.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

I see what he means but liek u fellas said im just building up the truck for the audio.. prepping the surface if you will... id rather not have a ****ter that rattles and looks like dirt. Cause when i see those i cringe. But audio is probably a little closer then a year so hopefully u guys will stick around cause it should be pretty sweet.


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## FrankstonCarAudio (Feb 2, 2008)

The logo says it all....
Don't see anything about truck restoration..

Don't get me wrong, what ace has done with his family heirloom is great.. the work he has put into it is to be commended, but this is an *Audio* site, and unfortunately the only mention of audio in this whole thread was for him to say:
*"its the last thing im worried about right now"*, and *"is probably about a year from now haha"*

From those statements, can we assume that we will have another 12 months of ace "washing and waxing" his truck photos, before he starts his *Audio* system? (if he can be "worried about" it then..)


EDIT: this was in progress before ace's last post... I will be looking forward to seeing your Audio system.. if the install is like the work put into the truck, it will be worth waiting for


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

FrankstonCarAudio said:


> The logo says it all....
> Don't see anything about truck restoration..
> 
> Don't get me wrong, what ace has done with his family heirloom is great.. the work he has put into it is to be commended, but this is an *Audio* site, and unfortunately the only mention of audio in this whole thread was for him to say:
> ...


actually i am puttin in an lt1/ls1 before i put in a system so i can make sure i have enough power with a single alt etc and dont have to rework anything. as well as putting new suspension and brakes on the truck with audio being in there somewhere. if you dont like the thread or the time it takes me to get to the point of audio u dont need to watch or ill notify u when i do get the audio completed. right now everything is up n the air with time as to how long it takes to raise funds for the system.


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## ron2002si (Dec 4, 2007)

I love seeing all the progress!~ Some of us here care about the whole picture and not just the audio (even though this is an audio site)!

If you don't like seeing the progress just don't click on the thread!

Keep us posted!


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

heres the rims i think im goin with just for an idea









and the audio isnt TOO far off now so if u can wait a couple months


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

My neighbor had a truck like that, it was a long bed and lowered a tad so it was sleek as hell, I always envied it but mine was redder than red and way quicker. The black looks soooo good, but living at the end of a 1/4 mile gravel road.... not gonna happen 

Very well done, when it's time to re-do "redder tha red" I'm gonna need some pointers 

Got a garage to finish first so it's a bit off, and by then the boy will be able to get into some of the heavy work


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## lowpoke (Jun 1, 2008)

Nice work man, like a few others on this site I'm into cars as well as audio (seems we're in the minority though ), so am more than happy happy to go along for the ride.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

lowpoke said:


> Nice work man, like a few others on this site I'm into cars as well as audio (seems we're in the minority though ), so am more than happy happy to go along for the ride.


haha thanks man. Ill get to audio before too long. hopefully at least have some set ideas and deadning in by end of summer


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## SQram (Aug 17, 2007)

Great thread, and great work! Keep the pics comming...


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## chithead (Mar 19, 2008)

That is one slick project. Very nice work and choice on the grill, lights, and paint scheme. I am a fan of the tint also, especialy on a black truck. Those wheels though, are a bit different. Maybe a little too much black for my taste? Good choice on the exhaust, and I vote 383 also! 

Isn't that the 700R4 transmission? I did not know it was that pricey to have those rebuilt. I remember B&M and TCI offering versions of those for half that much. Of course it has been a while since I owned a GM product (96 Yukon, black also). 

I look forward to the audio install, but am enjoying the ENTIRE build progress...


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## matt62485 (Jun 7, 2008)

slick truck man, i like where its going. my dad has a 94 z71, shortbed, single cab, stepside in emmaculate condition, im trying to get my hands on that thing one day. if money wasnt an issue you could drop a lq9 out of an escalade in there, 6.0 iron block, or better yet get the forged 409, . i wanna see someone baller stick a ls7 in one of these trucks personally. lol. keep us updated man, i too would love to see the build as a whole.


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## maxxis (Jun 10, 2008)

Excellent start to what will surely be a great truck.

I love how the build starts the truck and will move into audio install.

Great work. Keep it up man.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

matt62485 said:


> slick truck man, i like where its going. my dad has a 94 z71, shortbed, single cab, stepside in emmaculate condition, im trying to get my hands on that thing one day. if money wasnt an issue you could drop a lq9 out of an escalade in there, 6.0 iron block, or better yet get the forged 409, . i wanna see someone baller stick a ls7 in one of these trucks personally. lol. keep us updated man, i too would love to see the build as a whole.


id love to put a any of those motors in. at 19 with my bills i dont think those will happen. built ls1 is how its lookn right now


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## 328iBMW (Aug 16, 2007)

Ace said:


> heres the rims i think im goin with just for an idea
> 
> 
> 
> ...


Nice truck all around.

Are those rims a photoshop?


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

yea rims are a photoshop, so are brakes. hopefully the rims wont b shortly tho


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## 328iBMW (Aug 16, 2007)

When are you dropping it? 

Photoshop that prease.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

im lowering it not dropping it. itll b a 3/4 drop. heres what my truck would look like on abt a 6/8 ish drop much lower then this truck will ever be.


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## 96dak (Jan 28, 2008)

dump that thing in the weeds you wimp........j/k


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

well i got rearended and it bent the frame.


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Aw-haw MAN! That BLOWS! All that work 

I feel for ya


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## matt62485 (Jun 7, 2008)

well instead of lowering it jack it up like our k5, next time someone rearends you, throw it in reverse :-D and gravedigger them bitches.  sorry about the accident bro, are they going to total it out due to the bent frame??


chevy FTW. no intent to jack ur thread though bud. goodluck with the truck.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

i would if i would ever use that kind of truck, but i never will. I live in the city and have never even had an opportunity to go off roading so i wanna keep it realistic.


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## matt62485 (Jun 7, 2008)

Ace said:


> i would if i would ever use that kind of truck, but i never will. I live in the city and have never even had an opportunity to go off roading so i wanna keep it realistic.


come visit here then


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## Audiomechanic (Jun 5, 2008)

I'm not a Chevy guy, but that truck is looking SICK! Really like what you're doing!


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

haha the gas to get there would force me to file for bankruptcy


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well i knew these rims were not that great looking and had been neglected so far in their lives so i bought some polish and cleaners for them. 









Before any polishing. 









This is after a first round of the big stuff still havent done anything to it by hand which i have to do the creases of the spokes and the lip by hand. Im also going to do everything twice. 


















Just noticed the water drops that would be my sweat from it being unbearable out side. Part of the reason that this is taking me all day to do. Its hard to tell the difference because my camera is now 3 years old but they look a lot better. still a lot more work on them to do tho. 

AND THIS IS THE LAST THING I DO BEFORE THE INTERIOR WORK BEGINS!


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well for any of you guys that have polished aluminum wheels you know how hard it is to make them pop. These have been sitting for the last couple years with no love and were just terribly gunked up and dirty and zero shine. 
They are abt 85 percent done now.










salute to you fine folks


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## margarine518 (Jun 4, 2008)

I'm assuming that since you posted pics of the rims before and after polish, that you're continuing with the build? What's the deal with the accident?


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

yea i think i already posted abt it but its at the shop for the next two weeks getting the frame fixed and body work done as well as shaving to door handles. Once it comes back to me the drop and frame cleaning begins. hope tohave all the rims ready by the time it gets back, looks like its gonna take me about a day per rim and i dont have that much free time so.


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## skibum (Aug 24, 2005)

If you want to make polished wheels pop go buy a 6" lambswool polishing bonnet for that drill and use metal polish with it. It will make an amazing difference. It works much better than the ball.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

ill check that out cause i still have water stains and some grime build up.


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## skibum (Aug 24, 2005)

It will get quite messy esp with a new bonnet. But the effort is well worth the reward. Mine would look like almost like chrome. As much flat surface those wheels have they should pop like chrome. Get some extremely fine steel wool to get the water stains out just be careful and don`t get too crazy. Then proceed with metal polish. Imo the powerball and mini ball are useless on wheel detail. Bought one and gave it away cuz it wouldn`t give the results the lambswool bonnet gave me.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

the powerball actually did quite a good job on the flat open spots but wont get into where the lip and spoke meet each other. Then again they were pretty bad off and im sure there is better stuff out there but for the price i was please.


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## quest51210 (Dec 27, 2007)

care to do a write up on that? i have factory polished cobalt ss wheels with a large face that need some work and would be interested. thanks


skibum said:


> It will get quite messy esp with a new bonnet. But the effort is well worth the reward. Mine would look like almost like chrome. As much flat surface those wheels have they should pop like chrome. Get some extremely fine steel wool to get the water stains out just be careful and don`t get too crazy. Then proceed with metal polish. Imo the powerball and mini ball are useless on wheel detail. Bought one and gave it away cuz it wouldn`t give the results the lambswool bonnet gave me.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

i actually started wetsanding some today with 800 grit. It DEFINANTLY started takin out some water stains and gettin the wheels more to where i wanted them. After i get all 4 done to where the first one is i will check with the products u were talking about and tryin them out to see how i liked them. At first i was worried because the 800 grit made it really dull, but as soon as i polished them again boom looks like chrome. I have 1200 grit too that im gonna do after 800.


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## quest51210 (Dec 27, 2007)

awesome man, take some pics...appreciate it


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

quest51210 said:


> care to do a write up on that? i have factory polished cobalt ss wheels with a large face that need some work and would be interested. thanks


I had a set of 97+ dakota/durango wheels polished at one time for my truck, there are sooo many stupid spots that suck to get at.

Best thing I found was pure elbow grease, with some Nevr-dull and more polish 

There was no easy way.. those rims are long gone for that very reason, they sure looked good though.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

yea i will do a write up on the final two wheels ill be using differnt products for the final two to see which i think is best as i have seen a LOT of products and opinions. ill throw a link up here


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/showthread.php?t=42491 here you go quest


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

oops. 

Well its finished. THeres a couple spots that i cant tell if its dry wax or needs to be touched up some, but it looks good and im happy as hell to finally have it back. I think im going to detail it some time in the next week or so and then put the rims back on as well as the bucket seats in. Wait did i say bucket seats, yes i did. Brand new leather freshly wrapped. QUITE comfy too. Heres what you really care about... pics 




























and the seats. I have to clean up the brackets and rails still but that will be done tomorrow.


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## Audiomechanic (Jun 5, 2008)

NIIIIIIIIIIICE! That's a sharp truck right there.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

thanks once i get the buckets in the audio begins


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## ron2002si (Dec 4, 2007)

Those seats look good! You have done an amazing job so far! Can't wait to see the finished product!~ Keep us all posted!


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## sirsleepsalot (Mar 1, 2007)

Amazing !

Seeing that kinda gets me wanting to try that... but, I don't exactly have the proper space / equipment to do so.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

thanks for all the compliments should have some new and improved pics today!!


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

got a bunch done in about 3 hours today. Ill let the pics do the talking. 

one of the corner covers came off... cheap ebay corners. 


















Got the seats set in for now. Tested and both seats have power, but i need to repaint both bases i hurried up to be able to drive the truck abit before the sun was all the way down. 



















and heres one with the windows rolled up 









After lookin over the truck a LOT closer today in the sun light there are a few areas that i may have to get re cleared. Looks like someone that was doing the final sanding went all the way through the clear in a couple places so ill have to get that straightened out.


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## grinditout (Aug 2, 2008)

Nice setup.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

thanks. still a lot to do but i feel like im finaly gettin some where on it


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## AUr6 (Apr 10, 2007)

wow, you've done a lot of great work with this truck... 

I remember you talking about attacking the frame... have you done that yet? I'm interested to see how the progress with that part goes. 

Great job attacking every aspect of this truck. It's really coming together well.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

WELLL ive decided i cant stay home from work anymore. I did today for my first weekday off work all summer. I spent wayyy too much money.
I bought:
Front and rear gears 3.73 and master install kits
Truetrak for the rear with necessary HD bearings
LS1 E fans and flexalite new controller
New disc brakes up front by rotoworks w pads.
Russle ss brake lines
Line of fire led for the back
new black carpet
anddd por 15 marine clean and metal prep. Big spending day for me. Pretty much setting up to get all this done in the next month before school.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

well spent 1300 today on the truck on the new parts then went out and worked for 2 hours on one seat mount. I finally took them off and am gettin them ready for final install and i drilled the holes for the other side of the seat... only had one side mounted for the day that i drove it. Tomorrow i think the rear end is comin out. well see.

First thing my dads gotten me for this build and by far one of the most needed. 











And some pics of where im at on the driver side mount... this stock paint is like concrete.


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## msjwild3 (Jul 11, 2008)

Looks good man. You should get one of those fiberglass box covers. Would look nice.


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## jonnyanalog (Nov 14, 2007)

great looking truck!!

I love that body style.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

gotta love summits shipping times. less then 24 hours and


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

well ive been on vacation since saturday and came home to some new goodies. I also got a LITTLE work done.
I finished out the mount and all the bolt holes for the fans and mounting to the stock mounting points. Let me tell you this, it is not pretty. I dont have the tools to keep it lookin nice. I am going to media blast it and por 15 it and try to smooth it out a bit. On to the pics. 


















the tool used to make the mount. 









fans 









Yessss new brakes 









and my rear gears. waiting for the install kits and locker and locker install kit


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Dont wanna leave u guys hanging, FINALLY SOME PROGRESS ON THE DROP. Took me 3 hours to get out 2 bolts. 
Pictures. 


















one of the god forsaken bolts. the other one is MIA because it shot out like a dart and idk where it went and its too late to go lookin. 









the tools, hammer lasted 2 seconds. 


















tomorrow im gonna try to figure out a better way to get the top bolts out and get the front of the springs unmounted paint the frame saturday and possible reassembly w drop kit on sunday??


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## chad (Jun 30, 2005)

Ace said:


>


When i was in TN in a gift shop I found a tin sign that said:

The Busted Knuckle Garage
Repair And Despair Under One Roof

Ever have those days?


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

hahaha. classic.


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## 1000aire (Jun 18, 2008)

WOW man, quite a project! You've done a ton of work to the truck! Looking good.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

i got a LOT done today compared to what i had been getting done which was very slow. 
well heres the pics








Drivers side









Passenger side 









tank 








everything on the truck started like this, most of it is much better but i still have some clean up to do tomorrow before paint, if u can see one of the lines straight snapped from how badly it was rusted so i ordered a whole new sending unit.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well i got the back half COMPLETLY stripped. I also painted one section while following the directions with marine clean and metal prep products. 4 coats of por 15 and im gonna see what its like tomorrow to make sure everythings lookin good before i do the rest of the frame. 

preped ready for paint 









4 coats.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

well i got a good amount of work done today. Also ordered about 500ish in new parts, new springs, new stock bushings, new fuel pump, and fuel line as well as a bunch of hardware for boths that i know once i take off will not be reusable. 
Pics
Passenger side









Drivers side









there are a couple spots where it dosent look nice and smooth, but its still strong and nice and solid. i may redo them when i finish up with the insides of the frame and cross members. gettin close to done, just waitin on parts now.


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## Audiomechanic (Jun 5, 2008)

OUTSTANDING work!


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## matt62485 (Jun 7, 2008)

lookin good bro. what are u using to strip the frame? sand blaster would make ur life a lot easier


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

im usin a media blaster with aluminum oxide media, and air powered sander.


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## matt62485 (Jun 7, 2008)

ahhh, nice. good work man


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well i got a good bit done, but also took a bit of a step back. I punched a hole in my radiator so i upgraded to a 34 inch so i need to make yet another mount for the fans. How ever in the last 2 days i DID get the e fan controller mounted and have it wired just waiting for the final placement of the fans to finish the wiring and clean it all up as it looks like a jungle right now. I also finished painting the frame for now, there is one cross member and most of the inside of the drivers side that is not painted but the rest is w 4-5 layers. tomorrow all the new suspension hardware will go on gas tank will go back in and hopefully the radiator will be here and i can go buy the new hoses and make a new mount for the fans. basically i wanna have EVERYTHING as far as suspenion and the fan done and put back together tomorrow, just waitin on springs. Enough ramblin onto the pics. 

new shocks compared to old ones... reaaallly old ones 









frame 


















Losely wired and mounted e fan conroller


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

gettin real close... all im waitin on is the paint to dry for the mounting pieces for the u bolts and itll be able to roll. i coach football for my old gradeschool so ill b doin that for the next 2 hours then home to finish everything up. 













































YESSSSSS still waitin on my new radiator tho


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well i still have the underside of both cross members, drive shaft, inside of drivers side frame rail and rear end to por 15, but thats it. Tomorrow im going to power wash everything then put the gas tank back in, put the new radiator in and new hoses. Thatll b it for tomorrow then thursday ill hopefully be able to drive the truck around the block once, THROUGHLY CLEAN THE SHOP, then pull it back in and rip the front end apart to do the drop up there. as well as por 15 as much as i can. thats enough rambling heres the pictures and let me say words do not describe my happiness that i finally got this out of the shop. 





































grrrr and its dirty. 









I dont know if its the fact that the bumper is off or just where its sitting on my drive or the fact that the ass went down so much it made the rear lift but check out the HUGE wheel gap up front.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well i finally got my SS EOC lines run, fan mount finished up, and wired. Truck started and got the fans set to turn on with the flex a lite fan controller, boy the ls1 fans push a LOT of air. Some pics and a vid... hopefully get the underside of the bed painted and put back on by tomorow. 

Old rad out









New Rad


















SS Lines









Still gotta clean up my wiring and fix a leak on the tranny cooler lines which is probably just o rings.

and i made the truck much quieter too, 
hehe


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

well dosent seem like a big deal to you guys probably but i got the back garage cleaned and lots of free space, but i finally got the bed switched to the back garage, and ready to be cleaned. Also ironed out all of little problems in the front and tied everything up. Also had to change the o ring for the oil filter adapter. Got the bench seat put back in and bolted down because i dont wanna rush finishin up the seat brackets. Tomorrow i hope to clean and prep the underside of the bed for paint, just havent decided what im gonna paint it with. got a couple of the underside of the bed just so u can see what i gotta work with.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well today was by far my most productive 3 hours in a long time. Im just gonna let the pics do the talking for me.

Before.





















i think its time to get those new brakes on YIIKES


















Well what do we have here. Horrible pics but its been rainin for 3 days and i was just happy to see her sittin lowwwww. Still need to make some adjustmants on the passenger side.




























Just picture it w a bumper and grille









Some bolts on this truck scarrreee meee.









Trash









And i thank you for looking.


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## crux131 (Feb 27, 2007)

looks good!


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well i had some free time at school today between classes so i decided to make a very large TO DO list. 

To Do. 
Interior:
Paint bucket seat brackets
Replace carpet to black
sand and paint all interior parts black
new seat belts
fab up new door panels
fiberglass console w subwoofer and touch screen double din
steering wheel 
gauges
sound deadner


Exterior:
pc rims black
shave door handles 
shave gas tank door
tint windsheild 35 
maybe gmc grille

Audio:

1 12 in console
Amp rack behind seats
O gauge wire
Avic Double Din

Performance
Install new pads and rotors and caliper
New 11 inch drums in rear 
install SS line for brakes 
New Front and Rear gears with trutrac in rear 
LQ4 built (end of next summer)


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well school and work are really killing me on gettin time to work on the truck, but i got a pretty good amount of stuff done today. Found someplace to finally align it had lots of people turn me down for what seemed like pretty bogus reasons. So i got it aligned, preped and undercoated the bed with 2 coats and turned out pretty good still some touch up to do tomorrow but not mcuh. Also got the rear end shimmed and finally got around to adding the shock mount extenders and checking all my bolts and that kinda thing. Got all the wiring and lights off the frame in preperation for putting the bed back on tomorrow. So with anyluck tomorrow night i will have a exteriorly completed truck. Few pics 

I thought this was a pretty cool pic i took today. 










bed 2 coats and some touchup. it goes on brown and dries black. pretty ****ty picture of it cause it was dark and i didnt wanna move a car to get a better pic.


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## syd-monster (Jan 7, 2008)

Hang in there man... its a cool thread nontheless. Just because we don't post mean we don't read it. Most of us just relate to the audio stuff a little better. . Keep up the good work.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

i hear that. audio comes in the colder months when i have to work inside!


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well all these came out like poop idk y they are all so blurry, probably cause my camera is too old and crappy to get pics in that kinda setting, im gonna post them ne way cause u can see etter then the others.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Today.


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## CodeMan (Oct 31, 2007)

I don't have much time to browse this site these days, and I pretty much only come in from time to time to see how this thread's progressing. I think it's a great build so far. Your being 19 makes it even more impressive. What are the plans for the 383?


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

i actually changed my mind to a 500 rwhp lq4 build. im going to buy it in a couple months and hopefully have it built and ready to do the swap next summer.


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## CodeMan (Oct 31, 2007)

Did you wind up spending the money to rebuild the 700R4? There's no way it will take 500WHP. You'd be better off with a 4L80E by far.


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## garvinzoom (Mar 23, 2008)

Wow, truck is looking killer! Thanks for the great build up thread. With the AWESOME work you have done getting the trucking looking A1 and mechanically solid I am sure the audio will be top notch when you get to it.

Jason


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

CodeMan said:


> Did you wind up spending the money to rebuild the 700R4? There's no way it will take 500WHP. You'd be better off with a 4L80E by far.



oh i know, a new built transmission will be going in as well. My current motor will get freshened up and the motor tranny will go into my next project which is a 1981 chevy c 10.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

well i got the girl in her winter attire and cleaned her garage yesterday. kinda a ****ty pic but u get the idea i think


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## ron2002si (Dec 4, 2007)

Look great... I like the black on black look!


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## sanitys (Oct 23, 2008)

checked out the whole thread, nice progress keep up the good work


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

black on black on black on black on ok enough blacks. But yea its black thanks for the compliments i got a job today so hopefully i can order some stuff in the next couple weeks for the interior.


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## nikkp (Aug 17, 2008)

truly good work on this truck. i have a blacked out ride as well(black on black with some more black, can't get enough) and had to do substantial bodywork on my project as well. it's worth it in the end. can't wait to see those rims pc'd and some audio to fall into this beast. 
also, i'd suggest blacking out the front corners even further and disabling the marker lamps so when the headlights are on the markers won't be on, but then when you hit the turn signal they come on, i saw it on a schoolmate's truck and it looked cool to not have the orange light until you need it.
keep up the work and have fun with it.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

nikkp said:


> truly good work on this truck. i have a blacked out ride as well(black on black with some more black, can't get enough) and had to do substantial bodywork on my project as well. it's worth it in the end. can't wait to see those rims pc'd and some audio to fall into this beast.
> also, i'd suggest blacking out the front corners even further and disabling the marker lamps so when the headlights are on the markers won't be on, but then when you hit the turn signal they come on, i saw it on a schoolmate's truck and it looked cool to not have the orange light until you need it.
> keep up the work and have fun with it.


thanks for the suggestion, however i rather like them and im gonna put led amber lights in the top corners too. I like the lights being on. Maybe its just me


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## syd-monster (Jan 7, 2008)

Certainly has come along way!... good luck with the rest


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

Well its been a while since i actually did ne thing but i have this week off school so i wanna get quite a few things done ive been puttin off. 
Got my new HD drilled and slotted rotors, performance pads, HD calipers, and new SS lines on today. Didnt have anyone around to help me bleed them so that will happen tomorrow. 
































































The rest of the week i hope to deaden the cab and put in the new black carpet, paint the bucket seat frames and install those since i cant sell them. And start on making the center console. I also hope to polish and seal the rims, wash, clay bar, and wax the truck as well.


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## Ace (Jan 29, 2008)

well i ended up not sellin the wheels  Deal fell through so if anyone is lookin for new leather seats or some 20 inch wheels PM ME! 
Got the brakes all done. ended up not bein able to use the original set up i had so ill b sellin that and lookin for a big brake kit in the next few months.


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