Slick 60's

Thanks for the kind words, Michelle!

The PTO cover's surface had been warped by overtightened bolts; not sure if this was my doing or if it had happenned before. I discovered this after two quarts into the refill; I noticed a drip forming on the side of the tranny . I hope I can be forgiven for this, but I used some Toyota gasket maker/sealer I had on hand with a fresh gasket to compensate for the surface irregulaities.

Although my job conspired to take all my free time this week, my son and I were able to get the truck road worthy enough to take to the body shop this morning. After their work is finished this next Wednesday, final reassembly can begin! Let me tell you, that T98 never worked better! How great it was to be able to shift gears without holding the lever just right. And going down the road to town with a pit-free windshield was pretty nice too!

I snapped a few pictures on my way to the body shop. I'm still trying to decide on wheels. I'm thinking about buying some 8" steel wheels and painting them white or blue with stainless rings and baby moon hubcaps. I'm leaning toward blue to kind of break up the white a little. Any opinions?

Looking good !!! It sure looks like one solid truck.

Don, I`m with you on the blue wheel`s!, the grille looks real sharp to!, maybe a little black on the latch support brackets!, imo!

maybe a little black on the latch support brackets!, imo!

You're right! Those brackets really stand out! I was thinking about cleaning that area up and painting it black before I put the grill back on. I'll have to pull the grill and fix that when I get it back home.

I've got both doors mostly reassembled. I found it easiest to put the division bar (I put masking tape over the chrom to protect the finish) in first without bolting it down, bolt in the wind wing, mold the window felt to the glass and then set the window inside the door with a towel over it to protect it, hand-tighten the division bar in place, place the window felt, place the belt line anti-rattlers, adjust and tighten the division bar, slide the window up and tape it (not really needed, it's pretty snug) to the top of the door, clip the excess window felt and place the track at the rear of the door. Maneuver the window crank around the front and inside of the division bar and fasten it down, roll the crank down and then slide window down to where you may easily snap the roller into place. It took less than half the time to do the driver door after I figured this routine out while working on the passenger side.

My pictures are crummy, I hope to get it out into the sunlight soon and take some good ones with my wife's camera.





I changed the oil pressure sending unit from the idiot light switch to be used with the factory gauge. My grandpa modified the this too, placing a tee before the sending unit to install a gauge that can be read in the engine compartment. I believe he did this after he overhauled the engine to keep tabs on the oil pressure.



I tried a couple methods of painting the hood emblem, but ended up masking the thing off (very tedious) and spraying it with a rattle can. I cleaned up a few areas with paint thinner and steel wool.



Next will be wiring the oil and ammeter gauges and installing the gauge cluster. I have been periodically wiping the rubber gasket with silicone lube and it has done a remarkable job with making the rubber somewhat plyable again.

Looking good !!! I'm dreading taking my doors apart, but I need to put new passenger side glass in (from Ice) and to take everything out for painting. Thanks for the explanation.

We've been extremely busy here lately, so the little free time I've had has been used for working on the truck instead of writting about it. I have had time at work to see what everyone else has been up to; lookin' good fellas!

I'm still having some trouble with my o-p gauge, but I think the problem is with the gauge itself; everything else seems to be in order. The interior is about 95% finished. I have some detail work to do to the kick panels, a few bolts/screws to put in, and need to tack down the carpet and modify the driver side floor mat to fit around the steering column and gas pedal.

I've located a local company that manufactures smoothies and plan to order a set in 15x8 powder coated in dark blue. I'll cap those off with baby moons and stainless trim rings. I'll replace the rubber brake lines and check/service the brakes while I changed the wheels.

Here are a few pictures of some of what I've been up to.

The original headliner had lost most of its color (gray and white, I believe). I had some gray hammered finish paint left over from a project on my 4-runner that was close to the original gray. After I soaked and flattened the warps out of the headliner, I painted and installed it. (the picture was taken after the first coat)


The original saddle brown armrest was pretty gross and clashed with grandpa's blue door panels. I had hope for a darker vinyl paint, but I sprayed it anyway. My wife hates it! I'm still on the look-out for a darker blue vinyl paint.





After installing the carpet, my wife helped me put in the new seat belts and the seat. Even though it was late, I sacrificed some sleep to put the new steering wheel on. I took the truck to town the next evening to visit a friend in the hospital and found two guys checking it out when I came out of the ER. On my way home, a guy in a Kia voiced his approval at a stop light. I forgot what driving a classic car/truck was like! I snapped these two with my cell phone at work the next day.

By the way, has anyone seen another truck with the same spears on the hood as mine has? These have been on the truck as long as I've been around, but I don't recall seeing another '64 (or any other truck) that has them. My truck was built in August of '63 if that helps.

The armrests look way better now than before. Nice job!

Nice work that truck is really looking sharp. Hope mine comes out looking that good. Is that color corinthian white. Thats the stock color mine will be.

She is looking realy nice!

Are those speers the same as on the CC?

Looks REALLY good. I like how you've trimmed the interior, looks very neat and the shiney dash really sets it off.

INCREDIBLE!!!!!!

you could get away with black armrests if you couldn't find the right blue

64shortbed wrote:I'm still trying to decide on wheels. I'm thinking about buying some 8" steel wheels and painting them white or blue with stainless rings and baby moon hubcaps. I'm leaning toward blue to kind of break up the white a little. Any opinions?

I am parcial because they are on my truck but that would look good with the same wheels. 7" wide up front 8" in the back.. They are just 80s 150/bronco wheels with aftermaket trim rings.

I found some spray paint that is close to the blue on my truck, so I painted the wheels on the right side to see how it might look if I went blue. I still have to use my imagination to see the baby moons and stainless rings, but at least I have an idea of what it might look like and I can ask others opinions before I commit. I was hoping to get some pictures today to post here, but it has been raining all afternoon. I've seen pictures of slicks with wheels from 80's & 90's f-trucks on them and really like the look, but I think I like the "period look" better. I hope to order the new wheels around the beginning of November and have them ready to go on when I'm done working on the brakes.

I've started going through the brakes. They have been adequate, but I have been slowly losing fluid for some time and they occasionally pull to the left a bit. The fluid is very dirty and looks as if it hasn't been replaced in a long time. I have a leaky wheel cylinder on the right rear and the drums are grooved in the front, so it looks like I have some parts to chase. I've already got new rubber lines for the front and rear. I've read posts about converting the master cylinder to '67 mustang two chamber reservoir and replumbing the system accordingly. That may be a near future upgrade, so the steel lines and single pot master cylinder will remain for now. I'm planning to flush the system with the old parts in place, replace the hoses and wheel cylinder/s, then flush the lines again before bleeding the brakes.

The brake job is the first in a string of driveability issues I want to address. The wheel replacement will help as I am going with a taller and wider tire (215's on there now) that should lower the RPMs somewhat at highway speeds. I may also have a higher gear set installed in the rear end. The clutch is at its adjustment limit and although it functions without slippage, it engages kind of rough at anything above 1000RPM. I figure linkage or maybe a leaky rear main seal; not sure yet. Finally, I plan to 'breathe' on the 262 a little with a Clifford 6=8 intake and exhaust kit, plant a four barrel on the intake, run dual exhaust out back, and maybe run a mild cam, if I can find one. I love V8s, but the idea of a hot six and its relative rarity intrigues me. Plus it's hard to ditch a good running original engine!

I've done a few other 'penny-annie' things here and there. Someone here sent me a link for replacement centers on the dash knobs and so I've dug out the broken ones and replaced them. The driver door is finally completed; I have finally found another hinge bolt to replace the one I was missing. Details, details. Eventually, I'm going to have to pull the grill back off and paint the radiator supports black .

This is the kind of thread that makes these forums worth reading. If I wasn't a diehard bump fan, I would have a slick uni, but that still might happen. Another inspiring truck build. Thanks.

Lookin Good
Enjoy your slick

don, keep the pics and stories coming. love it .