My LS1/T56 swap into '68 Chevy C-10 stepside


I'm going to go ahead and take the cab off, clean up the framerails completely (properly, the PO of this truck didn't do that) and slide it back in. I'm almost certain this ECE bracket is offset enough to mount in the stock holes... Overall, it's a nice piece they make. Almost everything I've bought from them has been top notch!EDIT: I realize, in retrospect, that the smartest thing I could have done to get a new tranny xmember in WITHOUT any cutting/grinding/sanding and without removing the cab, would have been to use http://www.classicperform.com's tranny crossmember for 60-72 pickups (part# CP9427). This only requires bolts in the bottom of the framerail to go in and gives excellent clearance.
Ah, so the project drags out for yet another week!

PS - in case you want more info about FuelCellGuy's product, please click here for more info:
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...49&postcount=5
That should answer any questions you might have.
Last edited by shifty`; Dec 6, 2006 at 03:03 PM.
, mine's been off 4 times, and still needs to be removed once more..). Good luck with the xmember.. olly
Now comes the fun part! Trying to find some HEADERS that are a direct bolt and and won't give me a problem. I've heard you can modify vette headers but ... I'd pay an extra hundred or two just to find something that will be a direct bolt in with O² bungs....
I'm going with the 18gal and the Walbro in-tank pump setup. Should be here in a month if all goes well. Gonna Line-X the outside of it.
As for progress, not much new, still haven't had the time and motivation to take the cab off, finish the tranny xmember bolt-up and get the drivetrain done. I'd planned on getting the PS hoses done, but I'm budgeting until income tax return comes back. Still trying to pay off the rest of the engine too :\
Anyways, here are some pics of the shifter installed
For what it's worth, I stumbled across another LS1/4L60E into a '72 C10 at Firebird last night...looked like a very nice install in a nicely restored truck. Ran well too, ticked off a 13.7 (drag radials and a positraction...I was running 14.2 - 14.4 with Yokohama Avid S/Ts and a one-tire fryer).
http://hotrodlane.cc/Streetstories/6...ls1camaro1.htm
It's multiple pages of information and is a great swap write-up. There is information on the engine itself, mods like adding a manual temp gauge, etc.
Now, I'm not entirely sure about the TKO tranny you're talking about, but I did notice this tidbit of info at that site:
The T-56 6-Speed is 3 1/2” longer than the muncie. The JTR Book by Mike Knell has the product to adapt the T-56 to a manual speedometer drive. Borg Warner or Visalia offers a shorter tail housing for the T-56. This tail housing will move the shifter location forward 2 3/8"
So it's not only possible to use a manual speedometer, but it's also possible to pop on a diff't tailhousing that will give you almost 3" of forward movement of the shifter itself.
I admit, it's quite uneappealing to have the shifter that far back, but right now I'm more concerned about getting it up and running than dealing with the shifter location
The Best V8 Stories One Small Block at Time
i am now saving at least $700 on parts by not buying new ones 
i've noticed in my case that the driver's side pre-cat O² bung interferes with my brake lines a tad, so I might need to relocate or bend the lines a bit. i wanted to upgrade the brake system anyways when i lowered the truck.
Here are pictures:
The little rusty bit sticking through the heat flange on the header is what needs to be ground down:
http://satellitehead.com/uploads/ls1headers001.jpg
this is a picture of the fitment of the driver side manifold/cat w/o the O² bungs. word of advice: you'll be doing yourself a favor to put this in from underneath the truck and the fitment might not be this good if you're using an auto tranny with column shift, i obviously don't have that burden
:http://satellitehead.com/uploads/ls1headers002.jpg
a picture of the fitment in relation to the brake lines:
http://satellitehead.com/uploads/ls1headers003.jpg
a closeup showing proximity to brake lines. with the pre-cat O² bung installed it stuffs between the two brake lines. i personally want to keep my pre-cat installed and don't care so much about the post-cat, but will use it! i'm not sure if i'll even need to reprogram the PCM using all of this stuff...i guess we'll see. meanwhile, gonna post in the main forum to see what is safe to grind down on that passenger side manifold
http://satellitehead.com/uploads/ls1headers004.jpg
i wasn't even going to bother test fitting them - but i was having problems breaking the cat and manifold apart, so i figured, man this is a pain, i should at least TRY To see why it wont fit!"
this goes to show you - TAKE EVERYTHING WITH A GRAIN OF SALT. question everything anyone tells you when you're doing a swap like this or hell - life in general.
Last edited by shifty`; Feb 25, 2006 at 10:58 PM.
I had those on the truck for a month or so. I didn't use the cats so I just welded up some pipe w/flowmasters. Sounded great. I've now decided to do a frame off resto, so I bought some flowtech longtubes for a LS1 camaro, and I'm making them fit. I had to notch the frame in a couple of spots as well as the top of both motor mounts. I also had to get the last tube on the drivers side cut and moved a bit to clear the lower control arm.
All is going well though. The truck was a blast to drive for that short time.
I should be back on the road in a couple of months.
shifty.......... your truck is going together nicely........ you're a big help.. what are you running as far as brakes and suspension now? in hinesight whould you of pulled the cab off?
Terry
in hindsight, i would have pulled the cab off, but ONLY because i'm using the T56. if I would have done the 4l60e, i probably would not have yanked off the cab. and for the record, i would have first pulled the engine, then taken off the front clip, then popped off the cab, then removed teh tranny and its xmember, then started the install. would have been easier to work on the tranny hump w/the cab out.
i also would have sent the tranny to Keisler automotive in TN to have the tranny redoce for $500 or whatever to have the shifter moved to the forward mount slot. i couldn't have used the Pro 5.0 shifter if I did that, which sucks, but it's a small sacrifice for the convenience of using teh stock bench or being able to use a 40/20/40 bench without making a custom shifter.
this goes to show you - TAKE EVERYTHING WITH A GRAIN OF SALT. question everything anyone tells you when you're doing a swap like this or hell - life in general.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/showthrea...80#post4322580
I went ahead and hacked, but I'm seeing that even if I removed or bent the heat shroud on the passenger side, I would still have clearance issues with the flange - I could probably do some creative grinding and MAKE it fit, but I'm going to give the '98 passenger exh manif a shot before calling it a loss. Still can't get over how much clearance is available on the driver side!
)I'm looking into purchasing the '98 manifolds listed in another thread. I'm going to give them a shot before giving up :thumbs:
I'd rather pay $30 now for stock ones that might work than $500 now for ones that will totally work.
but I digress. Damned UPS busted the package (hate those bastards).Ah, but good news. The stock '98 manifolds fit like a champ with plenty of clearance from what I can tell.


