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May 5, 2005

This is an update. The December 13, 2004 version is still available, and this is  mostly only a refinement of that plan.

The Dually has solidified somewhat. The proposed running gear donor is a '78 Chevrolet  P30 chassis and associated stuff, all pulled out from under a motorhome.  I think a 454/475 Turbo and a 12,300 LB GVW should be adequate. I expect  to combine the body and bed from a '52 Chevy 2-ton truck combined with parts from my '52 Suburban parts truck to create an extended cab dually.

Two things have changed. First, it is definitely going to be a pickup. I've acquired  a '51 1-ton panel, which gives me a cargo compartment with the smooth  lines of a modern pickup bed, styled in the 40's. I'll trim the upper (window on a Suburban) area off, and separate the cargo area from the cab area to create the bed. I'm thinking I'll use the rear of a cab to form the front of the bed. Simply turn it around and weld it in place  (at least one or two hours work).

The rear fenders will need to be extended to cover the duals. That too is just  a few hours work...

I'm also thinking this truck does not need IFS. Instead of figuring out how to  put IFS under it I'm going to put disk brakes on the 1-ton straight axle  under the panel that is providing both the box and the frame.

Now since  I'm building this dually I feel I can make make some changes in the OldSub  plan. It no longer needs a big block or the suspension to support towing heavy loads. Its load capacity needs to be adequate to support four adults with luggage and a smaller trailer. I had begun to see a 50's look for  the OldSub, but have returned to thinking it should have a modern look.

For those  who are offended by modern looking hot rods I need to mention that at least one of the other two will either have a 50's look and perhaps a  patina left over from about then.

The Little Red Truck has become the Little Suede Truck, meaning it will not be finish painted, and will not carry its current patina. It's changed in some in design also. I've long wanted to build a g-machine or pro-touring car. This truck is going to be it.

That means the modifications to the Monte Carlo underpinnings will take a little  different form. Preserving the handling and structural integrity of the frame moves for a 10 to a 12 in order to achieve superior handling. Instead  of cutting the frame to lengthen it, I'm going to shorten the truck to  fit the wheelbase of the car. I've been spending a lot of time looking, measuring and thinking. More details when I feel I have an adequate handle on them.

This web site is about my truck toys, not the life occurrences that might distract  me from these projects. However one summer '04 event which consumed a lot of time was also a truck project. My friend Gene moved his family  (wife, two kids, mother and mother-in-law) about 1,500 miles to resettle  in Colorado. My '72 Chevy pickup made the 3,000+ mile round trip as part  of a '55-'57 Chevy convoy. I towed a '57 two-door. Also made numerous trips to both the dump and the local junk yard to help dispose of stuff  that wasn't worth moving. The whole thing was a lot of fun, but it also  delayed the projects you come here to read about. Please accept my humble apologies.

Okay, here is the current plan!

Little Suede Truck

OldSub

Dually

Primary  Driver

Teri

Steve

Steve

Basic  Concept

Car  for general use locally, and occasional run to a car show.  Must  be comfortable for Teri to drive, since after all, this is her truck!  Don't tell her, but I think it will lean toward the g-machine performance concept. Not so much that it will have more power, but I'm rethinking  wheels, tires and brakes.

Light  truck, with some capability for pulling a trailer.  Also might get used for family trips of two hundred to six hundred miles.

Heavy  truck, with capability for heavier use such as pulling a loaded trailer.  Also might get used for iron retrieval trips hundreds of miles. Probably with some tool boxes to give a service truck look.

Basic  Look

Original,  lowered with stock bumpers.  Standard door handles and such. Suede  paint.

Classic  body built today.  Implies modern bumpers, smoothed doors, smoked glass, low as the driveway will allow.  Hidden gas cap.  Leave the  gutters because we live in a rain forest.

Original 50 years of patina, NW rusted body held together with tape and bailing  wire. But its an extended cab model with a bed that few have ever  seen. And won't see till I build it...

Engine

Spunky,  but mild mannered and very reliable.  Chevy 305 maybe, but probably a 350.

Torque with power to pull a trailer with a truck on it.  350 Chevy. Ready  to cruise 70+ all day long. Possible alternative is a Cadillac Northstar. Maybe.

454  Chevy (from the motorhome). No muss or fuss, just lots of power.

Transmission

Automatic.   Turbo 350*.  Lokar classic type floor shift.

Automatic  (Turbo 350 or 700R4).

Automatic  (Turbo 475 from motorhome).

Front  Suspension

g-body Subframe

S-10 pickup stuff.

1-ton  panel straight axle with disk brakes (from the P30 IFS?).

Rear Suspension

g-body Subframe

S-10 pickup stuff.

P30  rear

Brakes

Disk/Drum

Disk/Drum

Disk/Drum

Wheels/Tires

The  big slots I've been hanging onto for 20 years...

Classic  look: beauty rings, red paint and Chevy hub caps.

Stock  painted P30 wheels. Probably painted black to match stock wheels  on the 2-ton truck.

Steering

Power  with tilt wheel and performance type steering wheel.

Power  with Tilt and modern fat wheel. Or maybe classic wheel.

Power  with Tilt and some wheel.

Electrical

12v  with alternator sized for the need

12v  with Alternator sized for the need.  Multiple stereos, power seats,  windows, door locks…  Needs a big alternator and battery.

12v  with Alternator sized for the need.

Comforts

Air  conditioning, heater and defroster.

Air  conditioning, heater and defroster, power windows, door locks, power mirrors.  Cruise control.  Rear heater/defrost.

Seats, heater and defrost.

Seating  and Interior

Heated,  power, leather seat from a Cadillac Sedan Deville.

Four leather buckets (power!).  Posh with everything upholstered and  power everything.

Yes.

Sound

AM/FM  Stereo with CD Player

At least an AM radio…  Full stereo system with Cassette/CD, and should  have separate front and rear audio.

At least an AM radio… 

Glass

Stock  clear glass

Tinted glass in front, mini-van type windows on sides and back.

Yes.

Dash Board

As stock as possible

Modern instruments in stock look dash panel.

Stock. Maybe just stock look...

Controls

Updated  stock type, maybe some column mounted.

Modern,  column mounted.  Heater controls with the three dial approach.

Whatever

Bumpers

Stock

Wrap around with modern look.

Big.

Exterior Lights

Stock  look with modern turn signals and side markers

Halogen  and LED.

Halogen  and LED and side, top and rear marker lights.

Time Frame

Start  as soon as Sub is a driver again…

Driver now, customization begins when ’54 is a driver.

Back burner for now.

Donor  Car?

’78  Chevy Monte Carlo.  Its mostly gone except for the parts I kept...

I  need an S-10...

'78  Chevy P30 Motorhome.

Last updated: December 31, 2006

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