83RustyRed
Junior Member
- Joined
- Sep 7, 2012
- Posts
- 9
- Reaction score
- 0
- Location
- Boise Idaho
- First Name
- sam
- Truck Year
- 1983
- Truck Model
- c20
- Engine Size
- 5.7 350 HD
Hi there, my name is Sam and this is my 1983 chevy gmc C20. Picked it up 2 weeks ago for 1800$ Bit of a frankenChevy, found 3 different VINs on it, the front end is from an 86 K20. Odometer says 12843, but I'm pretty sure that's rolled over once, which is still barely broke in! It's also the first truck I have ever driven, let alone owned. As soon as I heard it had a 350 with a 700r4 overdrive automatic, I had to have it. 8600 GVWR also means NO EMISSIONS!! 
Engine code M for Heavy Duty 350. What exactly makes it heavy duty? Four bolt main? Not sure what that means.
I've been having a lot of fun getting my friends family and neighbors to come over and teach me about it. I've been in, on, and around old trucks like this my whole life, and the smell of that exhaust compares to nothing else!! Never worked on a vehicle before, but I managed to do the plugs and wires with only a little help in about 45 minutes! I also had to laugh when the guys at meineke told me an intake manifold gasket would run 600$ to do. I said "Gasket?! That's a piece of cork, right? I'll do that in the drive way, thank you very much!" 40$ later I've got new gaskets for the intake and the valve covers.
Gotta love cheap parts. So here's some of the things going on with it, and what I'm trying to figure out.
1. Trying to give it a lot of power up hill, or trying to get to 65 in less than ten minutes makes it stall and cut out. I let off the gas, ease it back on, and it's back to normal. Just doesn't use the guts I know it's got. Thinking maybe dirty gas tanks since it sat for at least 3 months, and who knows how long before that. Already changed the fuel filter, which was DEFINITELY caked!
Which explains why she wouldn't do 35 on the test drive.
Or maybe, with the four barrel quadra jet, that the back two barrels aren't coming open, and it's running too rich when I give it all that gas. I can rev it high as I want in neutral, but under load, it only wants a little bit of gas.
Bartered for another rochester carb, gonna get the kit and diagram and learn how to rebuild a carburetor. Hoping it's the fuel filter, since I did have it up to eighty for 20-30 mins without stalling after changing that first one, and then since then I can barely maintain 65-70 in a head wind.
I also get what we call the "WOM WOMS" at about 35, weird rhythmic vibrations from the right front. Wheel bearings?? Viscous converter clutch??
Also, there's a ton of stuff disconnected under there, most of which I'm told is emissions crap. Which I would love to remove, so I can have extra room to crawl around in that engine compartment.
So other than that, I found a Demon intake for 25$, want to get headers (?) and chrome dual exhausts to replace the rusty ones that look like blown off shotgun barrels. Still sounds mean! Also need to figure out oil and transmission coolers for when I get to towing. So here's the pics, and it's good to be here!
Sam
Engine code M for Heavy Duty 350. What exactly makes it heavy duty? Four bolt main? Not sure what that means.I've been having a lot of fun getting my friends family and neighbors to come over and teach me about it. I've been in, on, and around old trucks like this my whole life, and the smell of that exhaust compares to nothing else!! Never worked on a vehicle before, but I managed to do the plugs and wires with only a little help in about 45 minutes! I also had to laugh when the guys at meineke told me an intake manifold gasket would run 600$ to do. I said "Gasket?! That's a piece of cork, right? I'll do that in the drive way, thank you very much!" 40$ later I've got new gaskets for the intake and the valve covers.
Gotta love cheap parts. So here's some of the things going on with it, and what I'm trying to figure out.
1. Trying to give it a lot of power up hill, or trying to get to 65 in less than ten minutes makes it stall and cut out. I let off the gas, ease it back on, and it's back to normal. Just doesn't use the guts I know it's got. Thinking maybe dirty gas tanks since it sat for at least 3 months, and who knows how long before that. Already changed the fuel filter, which was DEFINITELY caked!
Which explains why she wouldn't do 35 on the test drive.
Or maybe, with the four barrel quadra jet, that the back two barrels aren't coming open, and it's running too rich when I give it all that gas. I can rev it high as I want in neutral, but under load, it only wants a little bit of gas.
Bartered for another rochester carb, gonna get the kit and diagram and learn how to rebuild a carburetor. Hoping it's the fuel filter, since I did have it up to eighty for 20-30 mins without stalling after changing that first one, and then since then I can barely maintain 65-70 in a head wind.
I also get what we call the "WOM WOMS" at about 35, weird rhythmic vibrations from the right front. Wheel bearings?? Viscous converter clutch??
Also, there's a ton of stuff disconnected under there, most of which I'm told is emissions crap. Which I would love to remove, so I can have extra room to crawl around in that engine compartment.
So other than that, I found a Demon intake for 25$, want to get headers (?) and chrome dual exhausts to replace the rusty ones that look like blown off shotgun barrels. Still sounds mean! Also need to figure out oil and transmission coolers for when I get to towing. So here's the pics, and it's good to be here!
Sam
very cool truck!
