70 C10 resto-mod (was Chevy culture shock)

[guero_gordo]

At the water crossover area, I do add silicone on both sides of the gasket.

and on the ends of those bolts too? They go into the water jacket IIUC

 

[pdentrem]

Don’t use tape, use plumber thread sealer. The white gummy stuff that comes in a stick form or tooth paste like tube.
Pierre

 

[deakin]

grew up in the chevy dealerships turning wrenches
no sealer is nec. it just makes more work for the next guy. i always used clear spray trim cement to hold the gasket in place so it doesn't move on you
use hi tack or similar on the bolts

 

[guero_gordo]

had a belt squeal rear its ugly head again, so I swapped out alt and PS belts, and since I had to pop the valve cover to slack up the alternator(cuz SBC), I decided to scrape off the cork gasket.
Clamps were loose, gasket extra crispy. There was a layer of black belt dressing that was still pliable between cork and cover, so scraping it wasn't bad.
PCV grommet was hard as a rock, so pulled that off (in fragments) and went ahead and sprayed the cover with DupliColor orange, which matches well. (apparently "Chevy orange" varied from one plant to another ;-) YMMV) Had to order the rubber but will put that back together tomorrow-ish and then do it all again on the passenger side.

 

[guero_gordo]

Also, my CPP disc brake kit showed up today. Wife was thrilled about dragging 3 heavy boxes off the porch.
Neighbor has a power mc, so I just need to measure it out and order a proportioning valve and perhaps a bracket. Might get that done this weekend

 

[guero_gordo]

f'ing job keeps getting in the way
I did get some ugly silver oxidation off the tailgate, so it's pretty uniformly green now. Meg's #2 seems to have the right balance of aggressiveness without tearing through the surviving paint. Removing the tailgate on these beasts requires unbolting the hinge on one side, which is pretty easy, but re-installing is bumpy with only 2 hands.
I discovered that the old rusty trim retainer clips don't survive removal by an idiot. I did find fasteners, so I'll have the trim back on in a few days: https://www.classicindustries.com/product/t1433.html
Apparently, PO didn't have any luck with fasteners either, cuz half the lower trim strip was held on by small screws ;-\ I'm going to try to fill the screw holes with solder, otherwise the little screws will go back in.

Tomorrow, I need to dial in the q-jet secondary airflap tension, then I'll take another look at the choke setup and accelerator pump. My brain can only absorb so much of this stuff at one time, so I'm learning in layers and starting over a lot.

I bought a set of ducts so I can replace those, run vac hose and tighten up the controls at the same time, then I'll figure out whether the heater core is trash.
I also bought a dash pad, which will make for a nice after work project mid-week.
hoping next week to get the front brake swap done, still need a prop valve and bracket

 

[Bone Head]

I've read through your whole thread. Good looking truck. After your journey learning about the mechanical wonders of the small block Chevy and get to drive it a bit; consider re-painting the whole truck. It looks like a keeper to me. Here in SW Ohio you can't find them like that without costing an arm or a leg one way or the other. Us hill billys would be jealous.

 

[guero_gordo]

Got m/c+booster+prop valve last week. Today I was all set to do the disc swap, but it was 111F and I'm only somewhat ashamed to say I just wussed out and stayed inside

 

[guero_gordo]

75F yesterday, started(slowly) on brakes(disc conversion). Spent plenty of time laying parts out and making sure fasteners/zerks/clips/hoses were present and accounted for before starting....scraping 50Y of accumulated grease and road grime off the working areas.
After a 3-hour tour... I started actually wrenching, taking apart the old stuff ;-)
The outer tie rod bearing fought me and the lower ball joint taper in the spindle really fought me. Bottomed the pickle fork but couldn't force the taper out. Being new at this, I was reluctant to apply extra force mindlessly. Eventually, the neighbor shared his wisdom and we broke it free beating on the end of the bolt. In hindsight, I think it just needed a taller pickle fork (or two in opposition, or shims....) to elevate the spindle off the taper and break the magical bonds of time.
I'll add some pix in case my illustrative prose isn't painting a lovely mental picture ;-)

 

[guero_gordo]

Went to mount the first caliper late in the day and NONE of my Allens fit the bolts.
A day later, I am the proud owner of precisely one Allen in a SAE size. I guess it'll live in the glove box.