77 C10 Front end into 66 Burb Help

[GBCustoms]

Ok Guys, I picked up a 77 C10 to switch over the front suspension and disc brakes. First question, do I have to switch the cross member also? It looks like I could just mount the control arms up to the 66 and and hook up the 77 tie rods to the 66 panhard bar and skip on down the road. I know I have to drill a couple of new holes and elongate a couple, butthats all right? thanks for any help!!

[Sonic65]

Ok Guys, I picked up a 77 C10 to switch over the front suspension and disc brakes. First question, do I have to switch the cross member also? It looks like I could just mount the control arms up to the 66 and and hook up the 77 tie rods to the 66 panhard bar and skip on down the road. I know I have to drill a couple of new holes and elongate a couple, butthats all right? thanks for any help!!

GBCustoms,
I have a '65 pickup and I did not need to swap out the cross member. The upper and lower control arms bolted right in (see my Brake Conversion album).
I found that the my '65's suspension components were smaller than the beefier '75's making it difficult to inter-connect. I just swapped everything out, but I also went with power steering and power brakes. I swapped out rear-ends to upgrade and keep the bolt patterns the same. Keep the shim-packs together and transfer them to your '66 in order to keep the alignment within range.
John

[GBCustoms]

GBCustoms,
I have a '65 pickup and I did not need to swap out the cross member. The upper and lower control arms bolted right in (see my Brake Conversion album).
I found that the my '65's suspension components were smaller than the beefier '75's making it difficult to inter-connect. I just swapped everything out, but I also went with power steering and power brakes. I swapped out rear-ends to upgrade and keep the bolt patterns the same. Keep the shim-packs together and transfer them to your '66 in order to keep the alignment within range.
John

Thanks For the info Sonic. What is "everything" tho? I have factory power steering, do I need to pull the 77 steering box, pump, lines, pitman & idler?

[Sonic65]

Thanks For the info Sonic. What is "everything" tho? I have factory power steering, do I need to pull the 77 steering box, pump, lines, pitman & idler?

GBCustoms,
My truck had manual steering, so I used the 75's gearbox as well as all the other components....pitman, idler, center link etc. I found there was a difference in hole diameters between the 65 and 75's components. The fact you have factory power steering makes your setup different than mine. I do know that AutoZone lists different part numbers for a 65 than a 75. I would pop a tie rod loos on each truck and take some measurements of the parts and note the difference.

By no means am I an expert on this subject, I only know what I had to deal with. Also, I bought new tie rod ends, idler arm since they wear and I did not want to put loose parts on my truck. Not to mention all-new MOOG bushings, etc. I basically rebuilt the front end during this particular conversion. I used the 75's brake lines and proportioning valve and brake booster. I bought a rebuilt master cylinder.

John

[GBCustoms]

Hey guys I need some help! I was trying to replace the control arm bushings before putting the 77 C10 Front suspension on the 66 Burb, and destroyed one of the lower control arm shafts. :pullinghairout: So i began looking for replacement pieces and found that C10 control arms are worth more than gold!!! The C20 arms completely ready to go with bushings and ball joints are only $75, But the C10 ones are upwards of $400:ahhhh::ahhhh: The shaft kit alone is $180. Does anyone know a cheaper route or am I just screwed?

[Sonic65]

Is there a wrecking yard nearby?

[kchampagne]

You can try this guy located east of Pueblo, CO. He has a ton of stuff, but his prices are normally a rip off. Worth a try.

http://denver.craigslist.org/pts/5884567594.html

[GBCustoms]

Yeah I figured checking the local yards would be the quickest and easiest. Thanks for the Craigslist ad too!

How did you guys go about removing your lower a-arm bushings?

[Sonic65]

Yeah I figured checking the local yards would be the quickest and easiest. Thanks for the Craigslist ad too!

How did you guys go about removing your lower a-arm bushings?

Air punch/chisel is what I used. I was careful not to sccratch or dent the lower control arm.

[Sonic65]

You can try this guy located east of Pueblo, CO. He has a ton of stuff, but his prices are normally a rip off. Worth a try.

http://denver.craigslist.org/pts/5884567594.html

Also try:

https://www.partshotlines.com/

[Sonic65]

How is this project going?

I ran across this site that offers a tie-rod sleeve adapter. Pretty neat for those who want to keep their original steering components but add later model spindles. See below

https://www.performanceonline.com/1963-70-Chevy-GMC-Truck-Tie-Rod-Adjusting-Sleeves-For-DISC-BRAKE-CONVERSIONS-Pr/

[GBCustoms]

Yeah I got the 77 steering components bolted up to the 66 Burb. Had to rebuild the lower steering shaft bearing and cut down the steering shaft to make everything fit. 4" drop leafs in the rear and the 2.5" drop spindles up front look pretty good.

[Sonic65]

Yeah I got the 77 steering components bolted up to the 66 Burb. Had to rebuild the lower steering shaft bearing and cut down the steering shaft to make everything fit. 4" drop leafs in the rear and the 2.5" drop spindles up front look pretty good.

Sounds like a good stance. Upload a picture sometime