Hey Leah, welcome to the list and to the "wallet draining" hobby of ole truck
refurbishing. Well,
maybe that's what you didn't want to hear? I don't have a 3/4 ton (53 1/2 ton
here), but I can
sympathize with not wanting to waste a lifes savings on your vehicle. I've
been scrounging the junk
yards as much as possible for my hot rod project. If you're going with the
350, you will have to
change over to a 12 volt electrical system. Adding a bigger engine like this
will take some thought
and engineering, but it's been done plenty of times and there are lots of kits
for this application.
With that size engine, an upgrade to front disk brakes is a good idea, though
not totally necessary.
Look into the TH350 or TH400 transmissions or possibly the 700R4 which has
overdrive if you plan to
swap to an auto tranny. I used an 80's Camaro rear end in mine, might be
usable in a 3/4 ton, I'm
sure others will chime in here to clarify it a bit more. Another good plan is
to find a decent
donor vehicle and use a lot of parts from it, (engine, tranny, rear end, brake
master cylinder
etc.). Alan Gingles on the list is a good example of someone who has gone this
route, he's been a
great help to me when I asked for ideas.
The best advice I can give is to not get overwhelmed by it all, and be happy
with small
accomplishments and little bits of progress. It's easy to get discouraged when
the work doesn't all
happen in a couple of months. I've been working on mine for a year now, and
still have quite a ways
to go. Congrats on your new purchase. Ask lots of questions here, and keep us
updated on all the
work you do.
Wally / Templeton, MA
53 3100 rod project
oletrucks is devoted to Chevy and GM trucks built between 1941 and 1959
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