Crappy running 85 GMC.

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HotRodPC

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85 K20 LWB
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Didn't this truck sit for a long time before you got it? I firmly beleive, a vehicle sitting for months and months and does about as much damage as putting miles on them. Especially an older dated vehicle where the seals, rubber etc has just flat gotten old and dried out without any use or lubrication. You'll probably be replacing things on that truck for awhile, but there will come a time when you can't get it break down eventually.
 

Irishman999

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Yea, the whole reason it sat is crazy. My uncle just had a fresh 305 out of a low mileage wreck put in it. He said the power steering pump started leaking and he said **** this truck and parked it, even the tires had full tread so that leads me to believe he just had tires put on it before it got parked.

It sat in his yard without moving for 15 years.
 

Old77

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In a lot of ways just sitting can be harder on a vehicle than getting driven on a daily basis.
 

HotRodPC

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Yea, the whole reason it sat is crazy. My uncle just had a fresh 305 out of a low mileage wreck put in it. He said the power steering pump started leaking and he said **** this truck and parked it, even the tires had full tread so that leads me to believe he just had tires put on it before it got parked.

It sat in his yard without moving for 15 years.

Sitting for 15 years is bad bad. Other than surface rust though, that truck is farily straight and rust free isn't??? Sounds like it just needs a good going over. Replace all the suspension parts, brakes, replace the motor, all fuel lines, all vac lines etc etc, and it should be in good shape worth some body and paint work.
 

Irishman999

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After I towed it to Las Cruces my crazy mexican friends and I were drunk, we put a charged battery in it, poured gas down the carb and the the started right up and idled. Miracle truck. If i can get the carb issue settled and find somewhere to live with a garage I plan on giving it a good paint job.

I will do a writeup, hopefully we have a camera. It should not be that hard on this particular truck, the body is incredibly straight. Behind the rear wheel wells are all screwed up, Im thinking of just cutting it out and weld in new panels. As long as you dont have a ton of body work painting a car is not so bad.
 
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Swims350

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Irishman999

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Swims350

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that's the same kit I bought.

not the air cleaner though.
 

Swims350

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as for body work, that's easy it's just labor mostly sanding, paint is very easy. I'm almost blind and I can do it, actually I'm legally blind.
 

Irishman999

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Hopefully soon I will have a little bit of fundage to go get all this crap.

My experience with paint taught me its 90% prep work. You can **** up the paint while spraying it real quick too. Alot of technique in the wrist action and keeping the gun a specific distance from your work.
 

HotRodPC

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Yep, but once you get that wrist technique down, you got it. And it does not take long to get it. A guy showed me how to do it one time with an airless sprayer painting walls and he said its just like painting a car. Keepin the same distance from what you are painting and making full even sweeps. I guess I was lucky. He thought I actually had painted before. At the end of the day he asked who I had painted for before since I told him I painted before. I told him, oh just my own house helping the parents paint. And he asked, they used an airless? I said, just roller and brush. LMAO, he then said oh hell, when you said you painted before I thought it was for a company, and today was your first day with an airless? I said yep. He said, Damn you're a fuggin natural, I thought you probably had at least 3 or 4 years experience. Guess, I got lucky, but if I can do it, anyone can. I did a primer job with a spray gun once it turned out awesome with no runs or light spots but I never got enough balls to do actual paint because of the big expense and not having an enclosed place to do it.
 

Swims350

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IMo the way I look at it, is if you mess it up you can fix it. I lay on enough to cut and buff it anyways so if I get a run I sand it out, if I get dry spots or whatever or bugs I sand em out. I have to do all mine outside so it gets junk in it. I just wet sand and buff and you never know anything was wrong.
 

Irishman999

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IMo the way I look at it, is if you mess it up you can fix it. I lay on enough to cut and buff it anyways so if I get a run I sand it out, if I get dry spots or whatever or bugs I sand em out. I have to do all mine outside so it gets junk in it. I just wet sand and buff and you never know anything was wrong.

Thats acrylic enamel, old style paint. (if I remember right thats what its called).

I was taught to spray base coat clear coat. I like it more, but if you **** it up you have to wait for it to dry and start over again. If you dont have the right reducer for the humidity that day it will run.

I painted my 96 dodge over and over and over until it was done, I wasted about a gallon of paint. The important thing is I learned how to do a basic good paint job, the truck is now in a wrecking yard.
 

Swims350

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That's all I spray is single stage but you can cut and buff bc/cc too, just not soo much the bc, you would have to let it dry sand and respray. I always let mine dry anyways then check it out, wet sand it perfect and if it messes up i reshoot. Had to redo dad's hood due to bugs.
 

Irishman999

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Okay, The carb overhaul was a success. Its working like it is supposed to but I still have hesitation when I first start to accelerate. Im open to suggestions on what it could be. Its the same thing as before, after I drive the truck around for a while and everything gets warm it stumbles when I push on the gas.

Tomorrow I am going to pull all my spark plugs to figure out if there is a cylinder not firing right, I do hear a loose rocker. When I rev the truck from under the hood and let off I can hear ticking. Im going to try adjusting the valves I messed with last summer. I just dont understand why its hesitating like that.

The truck runs absolutely perfect now, after a while of driving it just starts running worse. Im baffled.
 

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