a little update on the '53 project

nadams

Just thought I'd update you guys on the '53 Chevy project truck. My dad hasn't had a lot of time to work on it, but I have... The engine is ready to come out, I just need to get my neighbor come over and give me a hand with his front end loader...

Here's a short progression of pictures...


After I removed the radiator and front grille.


Took the right fender off, plus rad core support.


As it stands today... unbolted from the tranny, water pump and other plumbing removed, completely free from any connections to anything else


I removed the pushrods and rockers to help prevent damage to them in the move, plus they were going to come out once the engine was on a stand anyway...


An organization block that I made for the pushrods and rocker assembly. This keeps everything in order for when we reassemble the engine.

It seems like it's come a long way, but it still has YEARS to go before we get it finished... maybe even before we get it running if things don't go well...

I really enjoy working on it though, and do so whenever I don't have other responsibilities

F1nut

Cool stuff! Have you considered dropping a small block V8 into it?

michael_w

Very cool. Make sure to take lots of pics and keep us posted.

My friend and I are actually planning on picking up a 54 bel air (4 door I believe) on a little camping trip / road trip. We're going to drive, camp, drive, camp some more and then finally arrive at edmonton and pick up the car. Then we'll trailer it back to Vancouver. :eek: It should be interesting.

Drumingman

Looks real nice.

ohskigod

F1nut wrote:

Cool stuff! Have you considered dropping a small block V8 into it?

that would be my route. sure, play with the old engine and get it running if you can, but Chevy still makes crate engines from what I understand that would probably bolt right in there. easily too since you got all the body panels andd stuff off.

ohskigod

will leave you valuable time you are going to need on that body work.

tonyb

WOW!! You have your work cut out for ya.I admire
anyone who can take a car/truck apart and make it
look better than new.Good luck on the project.:)

nadams

My dad would like to keep the original engine in the truck, though that engine is not actually original to the truck... it's a 235, which were only offered from 54 on, meaning the original 216 died at some point.

At any rate, to do the v-8 swap, you're also going to be looking at a full frame swap. The stock braking systems on these trucks are nowhere near beefy enough to handle high speeds that a v-8 might subject it to. What most guys reccommend is buying a rolling s-10 chassis, which, with a little modification, will fit right under the '53 body. Then you have disc brakes, modern suspension and steering, plus there are tons of v-8 swap kits for the s-10 frames.

That would still leave needing to do a lot of body work... In order to finish this project, I'm going to need to buy a welder and teach myself how to use it, so that I can replace the worst sections (like the bottom of the passenger cab corner) with patch panels. And for right now, I don't have the money to do any of that!

noimposse

Just think of what it will look like when finished though...wow.


My dad rebuilt a 37 chevy, took him about 3 years doing everything himself in his spare time. It came out wonderful. Had his friend do a custom green apple color with dark green trim and and custom embroidered leather seats. Nice stuff.

I would love to rebuild a car, but I wouldn't have a clue what to do.

szhleppy

Very nice project.

My dad and I have a "never ending" project of restoring a 1950 Chevy truck. Throughout the process, we have bought 3 other trucks for parts, along with a cab that has the corner windows in good shape.

Good luck with the welding! Just make sure you practice a lot on scrap before tackling the patch panels.

I'll take some pictures to share next time I'm at the shop.

nadams

Here's a few more updated pictures, as I decided to spend some time ripping it apart further. What I found is that it appears that the original issue is related to a headgasket leak and water getting into the second cylinder from the back. as you will see in the next pics, it's much rustier than the others.













Looks like that cylinder's been froze up for awhile... btw, the liquid in the cylinders now is some 5w20 to try to free them up a little...

madmax

I think everyone should have to rebuild a vehicle at some point in their life. We would have a lot fewer dumb asses out there! I must say, you really got your work cut out for you with this one.
Good luck!
madmax

faster100

Cool truck

However as max said... alot of work.. The motor im afraid is shot. doubt you could hone those cylinders out from all that rust.. and the frame has some extensive rust. some OLd cars aren't always restorable.. BUt its fun none the less to tear them apart and learn from it.. even if you can't restore it, It will be fun getting into it and learning alot... Have fun

schwarcw

Cool project Noah! When is the last time the track ran?

nadams

Well, the last time it was inspected was April 1986, so sometime between then, and April, 1987

nadams

Now I just have to get the bellhousing, clutch, and flywheel off so that I can put it on the engine stand. It's going to be a real trick since the engine is froze up... not so easy to remove the clutch bolts.













Safety? Bah!!!

Not even any close calls with this job