New upgrades on the way for Slick

[Slick68]

Well, Slick is getting another upgrade!! Some TCI Engineering suspension goodies will be here before too long. I'll use this thread to post updates.

[Slick68]

As I said above, my 68(I call Slick) is getting the full TCI suspension treatment. I don't have much to post right now, but I'll add photos and comments as updates are available. I'm hoping to have it all installed and running in a couple months and start hitting the autocrosses hard by summer.

The front will be receiving 13" 6 piston Wilwoods, but the rear is getting a different rear disc setup. I didn't want to spend the big bucks for rear brakes until I upgrade to the Currie rear later down the road. So, for the rear, I opted for CaptainFab's D52 bracket setup.




I also plan to install a Lokar shifter, so I got a new Ididit column. It also has a shorter shaft to have a better steering shaft angle.



I started removing parts getting the bed ready for removal. I plan to do the rear first. In the meantime, the bed will be getting some touchups and I'm having wheel tubs put in, just in case I go 11" wheels and 315 rubber in the future.




Most of the parts arrived today!! Others will be here tomorrow.



All unpacked and checked off. It's like a jigsaw puzzle right now.



More progress pics to come.......stay tuned.

[bs46488]

That's some nice looking parts to add!

[Slick68]

Some photos to show. Bed is off. Rear suspension removed. i spent quite a bit of time yesterday removing rivets. Those little buggers don't want to give up without a fight!!!! I may need to upgrade my air compressor, though. It only goes to about 130 psi, so the chisel may not be working at optimal levels. Anyway, I may have to borrow a plasma cutter to cut out for the C-notches.




Pile O' parts!




Rear brake rotors arrived from www.rockauto.com.

[Guyt699]

I was removing rivets last week also. I used a cut off wheel and made an "x" on the domed part then came back with the chisel and it drove them right off. My compressor only pushes about 130psi also. Good luck with the upgrades. Really like your truck.

[Slick68]

I was removing rivets last week also. I used a cut off wheel and made an "x" on the domed part then came back with the chisel and it drove them right off. My compressor only pushes about 130psi also. Good luck with the upgrades. Really like your truck.

That's the method I'm using. The chisel breaks the head off just fine. It's punching them out that's the problem.

[Guyt699]

I don't know the technical name but to knock them out I use a straight punch that goes in the air hammer and it drove them right out. Good luck.

[lightningcow]

I center punch the rivet and drill into the head with 1/2" bit. Once you get through the head you can just punch it out.

[Slick68]

WHEW!!!! All rivets FINALLY removed! For the rear section anyway. I also finally put all the used parts in a plastic bin and scrap metal in another and cleaned up a bit to have a somewhat clean workspace.

C-notches cut out, but wrestling with the lower section of the plates to get them lined up.


Front trailing arm mounts are loosely bolted in, along with the trailing arm links.


Since I was at a standstill with the C-notches, I decided to go ahead and move forward with the rearend. Fluid drained, rear drum assemblies removed, new CaptainFab rear disc brackets installed, torque arm plate temporarily installed. I may go ahead and clean and paint the rearend and torque arm bracket and finish it up. I see no reason for any of this to come back off.

[Slick68]

I got the rear parts painted in a gray hammered finish.




Thanks to the help of a friend, I made a lot of progress Thursday night. We got the C-notched and all brackets installed. After he left, I put in the rearend and hooked everything up. I still have adjustments to make, and I still have to tighten everything down, but at least it's all in!!






At this point, I couldn't stand it. I had to throw the wheels on and get it back on the ground!!

[HotRod47]

Looks great, sharp looking truck!!

[Slick68]

OK, progress was very slow the past couple weeks. i never got much time to work on the truck long enough to make noticeable gains. It was mostly preparing to pull the engine.



I got the engine pulled on Wednesday during my lunch break. It sure was dirty!!




That evening, I got the inner fenders removed, then tore out all the old suspension.





She naked, now!!




I also went ahead and started test fitting the new cradle/crossmember.

[Slick68]

More progress this week! Front suspension is pretty much installed. I still have some adjustments to make for the sway bar, and none of the brake lines, etc are hooked up. Also, the rack isn't really centered up. All that will come at the alignment shop.

Either way, she's back on all four feet!!! I can start fine tuning some stuff, tightening stuff down, and start getting other stuff done.

[Slick68]

She's back on her shoes!! I was finally able to get her off the stands and rolled out! Judging by the way she looks now, she's gonna sit a bit lower than before!! Now to start getting other stuff in order and back together.

[Slick68]

I got my repaired fuel tank from Rob at NoLimit. Not only did he fix the broken baffles, but also installed an in-tank pump.




I figured I'd paint it to cover up all the oxidation.




My Dirty Dingo Sliders came in Monday. Figured I'd test fit before paint and installation.



I also repainted my engine. I'm going with a simpler route this time around, so a few changes will be made. I decided to paint the engine cast iron gray. It should compliment well with the other dark gray accents throughout the truck.

[RBEAST]

nice build hope to see you out at an autocross this year

[YAMATHUMP]

Very nice build, can't wait to see the progress

[Slick68]

It seems like once the big stuff was done, the small stuff is taking forever. I'm down to making brake lines and installing tid bit stuff and it's moving at a snail's pace lately. At least here's some things I have been able to accomplish.

I was able to get the Lokar shifter in place and bolted down. The linkage isn't hooked up yet because I need to wait until the engine is in and the trans is in position. I think it's sitting too high, right now.





I originally intended to just stick the engine back in after the suspension was in place, but I decided to make some upgrades that I didn't do the first time. New lifters/lifter trays, Comp Cams roller trunion upgrade, ARP head bolts, and new head gaskets. It also looks as if I'll be getting some new AFR heads to compliment the other upgrades. I was going to install all this stuff myself, but I ended up taking the engine to the machine shop to be inspected and professionally reassembled. I did, however, install the Improved Racing oil pan baffle kit and the crank scraper/windage tray kit.





For those that don't know, this is why you need to do a trunion upgrade for the rockers. Imagine all these needle bearing falling into your engine while it's spinning at 5500 rpm!!



I also picked up up a Corbeau Forza seat to install to keep me in place during hard cornering. Don't be hating on my 2x4 mock up process. haha




Next up was getting the new Wilwood master cylinder installed. The old booster bracket left some ugly impressions in the paint, so I made an aluminum plate to cover it up.






I'm hoping to get fuel and brake lines finished up this week, along with other odds and ends.

[Slick68]

I got the fuel pressure regulator mounted.



I also finally got the bed back from the painter. He did the wheel tubs so it'll clear 315's when I'm able to upgrade to wider 18x11 wheels. Now I need to refinish the boards.

[Slick68]

The bed boards weren't very cooperative at all. I was going for a gray color by using a thinned out black stain for more of a "washed" look. Because of the previously varnished wood, even the black wash stain kept coming out dark brown. It ended up very dark, but with some grain showing through the black. It'll still look good, even if not exactly what I was shooting for.

Here's how they looked sanded down. The weathered spots were deep in the grain, and couldn't be sanded out without taking material away.



This is after a second coat of black stain. I loved this color and the look.



However, the first coat of varnish absorbed the black and showed more grain than I wanted.



The second coat of varnish was mixed with some black stain to darken it back up. The last three coats of varnish didn't change it any from this pic.



- - - Updated - - -

I was finally able to get the new Ididit column mounted, and the steering shaft cut and installed.



Since the engine is at the machine shop getting some attention, the big brown truck delivered a package of POWAHH!!!