Jay, I didn't realize that you had a build here. Looking great!

 

I just read where you said you don't push it other wise you will quit.. I have done this a lot! I have been through a lot of cars cause of frustration! Trying not to do that anymore which is why for me I need to have almost everything ready cause for me if its not mobile for too long I will lose interest and sell.. Got to sick with it! I want to see this truck running, its going to rip with this combo!

 

OK, over the past few days, after work, I've been working on adapting my '03 Truck DBW gas pedal to my S10. I started working on making a bracket that would bolt in, hold the pedal in the right orientation, and then planned to chop off the factory pedal and weld my S-10 pedal on to it.


Then I transferred it to graph paper over a piece of non-corrugated cardboard.


But then I watched YouTube...and simplified the whole thing!

I found a guy named "Pmoore" and he did a Gbody swap. And he just cut off the pedal, drilled a 3/8" hole in the top part of the pedal arm, and then put the factory pedal arm through the hole and welded it up.

So, I did basically the same thing...
DBW pedal:


S-10 pedal (which I cut):


And tacked it together to test throw and stuff.


I used the factory S-10 bottom hole, and drilled a new top hole that uses the factory bolts. I need to pull it out to finish welding it, paint it and I might add a triangle shaped brace for reinforcement. Probably.

The level of the pedal is about even (height-wise) with the brake pedal and goes down to just above the floor (I tried to account for future sound deadening and carpet). Seems pretty good to me.

Probably took me about half an hour.

Jay

 

So, I got my '03 Truck DBW gas pedal and my S-10 gas pedal to mate. lol
I cut off a bunch of the factory truck pedal, drilled a hole in it and put the S-10 pedal in the hole, weld, clean, prime, paint.
I ground off as much rust as possible, used one of those rust-converting primers and then painted it flat black.

by Jay McGraw, on Flickr

I have 3 steering columns for my S10. One came in the original green truck (manual, non tilt, lo/hi wipers), a second similar column in the red truck currently, and a column shift/tilt/delay wiper/cruise out of the cab that came with the green truck. I decided to take them apart and see if I could put them together into a manual/tilt/delay/cruise column to work with my Trailblazer floor shifter.

Looks like it should be doable. The plastic housing from the manual column will need to be trimmed about 5/8" and I'll have to figure out mounting it. I got the shift linkage out from the inside of the column today. Hoping to clean and paint everything over the next couple of days. Might order a new wiper stalk, turn signal switch and I already picked up a new ignition cylinder. Figured if I was going to go through the trouble, I might as well do it right.

I figure this is way easier than trying to find a Syclone or Typhoon tilt column. lol


by Jay McGraw, on Flickr




Jay

 

Well, I was looking at my options for eliminating the column shift. I could cut a section out of one of the other shift bowls I have and JB Weld it in the spot where I'd have to cut the column shift mount off. But I didn't like that idea. Decided to save that for last resorts.

I also saw a video on Camaro Rick's YouTube channel where he adapted a C6 steering wheel to his 4th gen Camaro column. That got me thinking...
His video involved using a newer upper steering shaft to get the right splines for the newer steering wheel. I Googled the part number and it came up around $150 (!) new. But the site I was on listed a bunch of other vehicles that used the same part. Decided to head to the junkyard...

So, today I spent 4 hours poking around the yard and got a 1981 Firebird floor shift auto tilt column, a 2008'ish Cobalt leather wrapped steering wheel with airbag/clock spring/steering wheel audio and cruise controls, a dome light out of a Saturn Vue with Homelink buttons, and some random plastic trim pieces for about $80.

I'm off Tuesday and Wednesday, so I'll post some pics up then.

But I'm hoping to use a lot of the F-body parts on the base of my S-10 tilt column and then top it with the clockspring and Cobalt wheel to modernize the interior a little and gain cruise and SWC for the audio system.

On a side note, I've been thinking of colors/wheels/etc. that I might want to use, and right now I'm considering Michigan State Police blue, with black Soft 8's and a front push bar. GMC Sonoma grill with custom mesh insert and maybe smoothing out the tail lights to help modernize the lines a little. If I change my mind and run the old school grill, It will be blacked out and I'll have someone 3d print me a new badge for under the headlight. Instead of "2.5L Fuel Injection" it will say "6.0L Fuel Injection." in the same font. I have plenty of time to change my mind, but I kinda like the idea...plus the wheels I really want are WAY more money. lol

Jay

 

OK, so my original idea to use manual column parts and column shift parts to make a non column shift tilt column wasn't going to work the way I wanted. It appears the "linkage" for the auto trans keeps the retainer plate centered. So I headed over to my favorite junkyard on Sunday and picked up some stuff.

Mainly, I found a Tilt/floor shift column in an '81 Firebird.



I also picked up a leather steering wheel with radio and cruise control buttons out of an '09 Cobalt. Got the clock spring and wiring pigtails too. No plan to integrate the airbag. lol

I was watching a video on YouTube by Camaro Rick where he updates his early 4th Gen Camaro with a C6 Corvette Steering wheel. It requires an upper shaft from a late model GM product. He mentions 2002+ Express/Savanna vans...and list the part number, which is $150 (!) new. I found a website that lists other cars/trucks that use the same part. I grabbed one out of an '09 Buick Lucerne. $10.

I also grabbed a dome light with HomeLink buttons. Next time I go, I'm going to look for a compass mirror (maybe with the screen for a backup camera...but at least a compass)

I picked up some random small plastic trim pieces, a turn signal cancellation cam (not broke like mine all seem to be) and a spring I needed inside the column. Not sure what it's called. It's kind of linked to the mechanical part of the ignition cylinder.

Whole trip cost me about $80.

Today I was disassembling the column and when I tried to pull the tilt pins, the first one went fine. Second one, the tool broke off flush in the pin. I tried welding to it several times and finally just cut the housing apart. I figured I'd be same with the cheap tool for 3 or 4 columns, but I guess not. Oh well. I have the parts from the S-10 Tilt column I have.

Hope fully I can get it primed and painted tomorrow and give it til Sunday to dry. Then reassembly.

For anyone else considering it, the shaft if the same length between the 2nd Gen Fbody and the S10, so I think it would be easier to separate the plate where it bolts to the firewall and swap it for one from an S10.

Jay

 

Well, didn't work on the column today. Had planned on hitting up the junkyard to pick up a clock spring (the one I have doesn't have a hole for the cancellation cam/horn contacts.) But apparently, it's Easter for normal people. My GF's family is Russian Orthodox and for them, Easter is NEXT weekend this year. I'm agnostic. Easter is an inconvenience for me. lol

Anyway, I've been looking at various clock springs so I have some idea what car I need to grab them out of.

I ordered my driver's side floor pan replacement from LMC. Should be here early this week.

Got everything painted for the column with VHT Chassis and Roll Bar paint in Satin Black. Reasonably happy with the finish except for a couple of runs. Might assemble most of it and wet sand out the runs and shoot another couple of coats on it after it's to that point. I want to get it in the truck and see if they're even visible.

I bought a cheap wardrobe organizer at Target to hang parts from.



The shift bowl thing from the Firebird needed some body work.



I also drilled out the spot welds and removed the shift arm, since I won't need it.



One less thing to potentially be in the way.

Think I'll need to shrink the diameter of this retainer plate to make room for the wiring for
the steering wheel controls, but when I grab my clock spring, the car I grab it out of might have a smaller one.



Also planning to replace the turn signal/wiper, high beam and ignition switch (electrical side) Since I don't want to have to take this apart again. Ever. lol

Jay

 

So, last Friday I went to the Junkyard and grabbed the clock spring and lock plate out of a '95 Grand Prix with steering wheel controls and a few other things (unrelated to my truck.) The lock plate has a smaller diameter to clear the wiring for the steering wheel controls inside the column.

Saturday, I was sick. Like sick enough to call in to work for the first time in over 10 years. Spent 24 hours in bed, then managed to move to the couch for Sunday.

Took this weekend (Th-Sun) off to work on the truck. Goal? Get the driver's side floor in.

The before pics:




The holes at the bottom are from me, with a screwdriver. Sigh.

That lead me to find some more soft metal that I could poke through, or other rust severe enough to require
replacing metal.

Like the top of the body mount plate. The body mount itself looks fine...but I only know that because I can see into it.



So I cut a 4.5" square hole in the top of it (since I needed to fix it and make sure the captive nut was usable) and cleaned it out and sprayed the inside with Rustoleum Rust Reformer. Probably won't do anything, but I feel better about it.



So, here's what else needs to be replaced/repaired:



While I had the bottom of the kick panel removed, I figured I could vacuum out the inside and check it out.
Looks perfect on the outside. Not so much on the inside. Then I stuck a screwdriver through that too.

Looks like I'll be replacing the rocker panel as well. Joy.



Below the hinge is where I came through with the screwdriver.



While disappointing, not totally unexpected. The rockers both have minor rust bubbles, and I haven't felt out
of my comfort zone (even tho I've never really replaced floors...well, I did a VW Bug like 15 years ago, but those are pretty easy.) So, I guess I'll keep plugging away.

The passenger side has some rust but isn't as bad, but I'm going to get into it before I order any parts....it's solid enough it can wait for a while.

Jay

 

OK. Got the column assembled.
Basically it would be all stock from the lower section down to the firewall.
The upper shaft came out of an '09 Lucerne (fits many other cars and trucks as well. GM P/N 26074286)
It has the later spline pattern for newer steering wheels.
I also used the spring loaded plastic ball from the Buick instead of the older style one with the clip.



The lower shift bowl (I think that's what it's called...the part the column shift would normally attach to) is from
a 1981 Firebird with floorshift automatic. I'm sure others would work as well...was originally thinking 3rd gen F-body, but the only 3rd gen at the yard I go to was a stick. I've also seen people cut off the column shift and tig up the hole.



Clock Spring and lock plate are from a 1995 Grand Prix with steering wheel controls.
The clock spring has the extra wires for the SWC's, and the lock plate is 1/4" smaller around to allow room for the wires and the part of the clock spring that they come out of. I also used the turn signal cancellation cam from the Grand Prix.



Steering wheel is a leather wrapped unit from a 2007 Cobalt LT with cruise and SWC buttons.



Everything is basically assembled, except the bracket that bolts the column to the truck body and the Steering Wheel will have to come back off. And I need to order a turn signal lever.

With the clockspring and everything assembled, there is a 7/8" gap from the back of the wheel to the upper column piece. I'm planning to order some 1" acrylic and fashion a cover and then paint it to match. But I needed it all together to measure.



I also removed the shift lever from the engine compartment side of the column because I won't need it. I had to use the inner tube/shift linkage to center the lower shift bowl, however.

I'm going to be using a Trailblazer floor shifter. But I need to fill in the hole where the factory stick shift came in.
Not sure if I want to weld it up, or make a panel to screw in, in case I switch to a manual later.

Jay

 

I'm always a huge fan of LS swapped S10s. Keep up the great work!!

 

Got the top of the body mount patched up, and started filling in the hole for the shifter.

Cut out my patch:



treated the back side with weld through primer. Also, I ground down the spots where I
was going to rosette weld the patch to the mount. Also treated with 3M weld through primer.



Welded up:



Shifter hole:



Jay

 

Well, when I was looking in the kick panel area it was rustier than I suspected, and had to wait until I could get a look inside.
From where I could reach, it seemed pretty rusty. Rusty enough that the structural integrity of the bottom hinge is questionable.

So, first thing I did was build a jig that locates both hinges to a point on the a pillar.



I made it from scrap pieces I had lying around. It bolts to the two front hinge mounts where the fender bolts on, and has a
third locator where I drilled a hole (centered where the door boot would be). As long as I keep the top hinge in place and the 3rd locator, the bottom hinge should go right back to it's stock location.

Then I removed most of the rocker panel, and found this:





]

It looks like the inner structure is pretty bad. The outer rocker goes up to just below the hinge, but it looks like there are some inner structure pieces I'll need.

Maybe I'll start looking for someone that can cut the lower a-pillar out of a rust free donor.

The lower rocker is lightly rusty back to the middle of the seat. After that, it's pretty clean.
There are a couple of minor spots on the inner rocker I can patch easily enough.

Jay

 

Well, I got sick of waiting for the second rocker panel to show up, so I decided to start fixing the inner rocker panel.

]



There were 3 drain slots in the original panel, so I made a jig to press them into the new piece I made.
It looked like there were 4, so that was how I made the jig, but upon closer inspection, it turned out there were only 3,
so I flattened out the extra one.



Pressed them with my Harbor Freight 20 Ton press.



Clamped in place



Welded up (not as pretty as I'd like, I was playing with welder adjustments, but it should clean up ok)



Then I went to dinner with my GF.

Need to make a patch panel for the front part of the inner rocker panel, then I need to make the inner kick panel and hopefully the other rocker panel will be here.

Jay

 

Wow. I really need to catch this thread up. Probably tomorrow, after I see how actually putting the floor in goes.

Jay

 

Subscribed. I built a couple v8 s-10’s back in the late 80’s early 90’s and they are a blast. Keep it up.

 

Since it is too early to run the grinder, let me explain. No, there is too much, let me sum up...

The project sat for a while since the inner rocker structure needed rebuilt as well, and no one makes those parts.
Then I got motivated, ordered a second rocker, made my inner structure from that and finally got moving on it again.




Cleaned and painted the inside of the body mount.






Can't find a pic of it, but I cut that rocker panel that is marked with a Sharpie to fit inside a second rocker panel, to emulate the factory piece.


Put the hinge back on. I made a jig before I took it off. Used it to put it back on. Worked perfectly. Door opens and closes nicely.



Sadly, the rocker sticks out a little at the front of the door. It goes from flush to out about 3/16" (looks worse in the pic) at the front.
This is where it stalled again for a while. I spent a lot of time obsessing about how to fix it without having to cut it all apart and start
over. The gap is also a little tighter at the front along the bottom. But with all this quarantine business and me being off work for the next
2+ weeks, I decided to get back on it. I finally decided to leave it for now, and I'll worry about fixing it later. For my first time replacing
body panels, I'll consider it a learning experience and fix it later.





So, last night I closed up the inner rocker and test fitted the floor pan. I think I might add some access panels to the rockers to I can get in to paint/coat the insides
so they don't rust. But I can do that later, too.

Jay

 

When I view this, it's showing 2 of every pic. Anyone else? When I go to edit it, it only shows one. Weird.

 

I'm seeing double as well...

 

OK. Fixed it. I forgot about how Flickr works with this forum software. When you copy the "share" link from Flickr, it has two URL tags in it for some reason. I have to delete the second tag for it to work right.
Only seems to do it with this software, tho.

Have to remember that for future reference.

Jay

 

@rpturbo I know it's probably WAAAY too late, but I think I'm going to re-do the trans crossmember. For one, I think the 1/4" plate I made the brackets out of is WAY overkill,
and for two I'd like something that mounts into the factory mounts so I can more easily access brake and fuel line runs. While this idea WOULD work (and has been holding the trans
up for a couple years now) I think I might make some different brackets that bolt to the factory spots, and maybe widen the Stiffler's crossmember. Or maybe I'll just by the over-priced
but proven crossmember from G-force. All in all, I think it was a good idea, but I think I could do better now.

Jay