Hey Obs truck lovers,
Welcome to my build thread! This is the story of the Mayne Queen. A truck that previously resided in on Mayne island, one of the small islands of the West Coast of BC. This pick up truck is a 1995 Chevrolet k2500 that was purchased by my grandpa "Buppy" in the fall of 1999 in Delta, BC. It spend most of its life running around this 25 kilometer long island or sleeping in an insulated garage. It resulted in a truck that by 2019 was completely rust free and with 130000 kilometers on it!
Unfortunately, my grandparents were getting old and it was time for them to move closer to family. After the move, buppy handed me the keys to his truck. Now me being me... I am stupid and can't leave anything alone. So the research and planning began...
Almost immediately, it was clear how old the tech and the support was for the TBI was. Luckily the research that Brian Harris compiled, and from this forum gave me the confidence that I can do it!
I had three key goals for this build:
-Keep the trucks exterior as original as possible
-Create a truck with modern performance with old school reliability
-Keep the budget as reasonable as possible
As much as this build thread is about sharing my progress, it is also a place for feedback along the way. Please feel free to suggest, critique, and inspire along the way.
Enjoy!
Chapter one: The Covid Times
The first year of owning the truck not many kilometers were really gathered due to us being locked in during March-May 2020. It was a great opportunity for me to work remotely and in between
There were some key problems that had to be addressed right away:
-There was a major exhaust manifold leak
-A lot of the early 2000 accessories were damaging the paint (Canopy, running boards, bug deflectors, and box liner)
-The tires had tread... but they were manufactured in 1998
-All the brake lines were leaking (How did I survive the drive home from the lower mainland!)
So the work began...
-The manifold was replaced with a Flowtech standard header and y pipe. A sobering experience to install. (Thanks for Eric Ernst for the video tutorial on youtube)
-Brake lines were cut out and replaced. (I payed the man) Maybe in the future I'll consider doing this again myself
-All accesories were removed and sold
-Dynamax 3" exhaust installed (Quiet enough to keep the wife happy)
-Tires were replaced with 32" Duratracs and I kept the OE Steelies. I am unsure if I will continue OE as they are beginning to rust.. I do love the look of them.
-Ignition was gone through and replaced. Flamethrower coil, street fire wires, shiny brass ac delco cap. (The flamethrower coil lasted me maybe 3 months)
-AEM Cold Air Intake was installed with a spacer that came with the intake.
- Installed a Edelbrock TBI intake that I found on facebook Marketplace for EIGHTY DOLLARS!
-Ultimate TBI Mods and a 14psi spring from the TBI Shop on Amazon
I felt really rewarded with all the work that I did over that year. However, performance wise, I can't say I felt a significant difference. However, I feel that it laid the ground work for the future of this build... Chapter Two!
Chapter two: Open Heart Surgery
The hope for chapter two is to dig deeper into the truck with a focus on the motor.
I was (and still am) torn between getting an LS engine and swapping it, or building up the TBI 350.
I ran into my former shop teacher at a tournament I was coaching at and he suggested the LS... warning me of the challenges and hidden costs around a 350 top end refresh. After a long week of debating back and forth I decided to stay with the Original 350. I figured that the future maintenance and trouble shooting would be a lot easier. I also thought that it would nice to keep the truck in its original glory. (Again feel free to chime in if you think otherwise)
I am currently getting ready to do the vortec head swap. I spend my weekend at the local pick n pull harvesting vortec heads and youtubing how to do it. 120 CAD for Vortec heads made me feel like the price was right. While I was there I also grabbed some dog bones and a spider. I'll need to return to grab roller lifters... (Unless you guys recommend me purchase roller lifters new) 48 hours later I think I might of finally removed all the grease from my jeans...
Once the heads are all cleaned up, I plan to send the heads to get them magna fluxed. Stay tuned for the rest of the journey!
You must be registered for see images attach
Welcome to my build thread! This is the story of the Mayne Queen. A truck that previously resided in on Mayne island, one of the small islands of the West Coast of BC. This pick up truck is a 1995 Chevrolet k2500 that was purchased by my grandpa "Buppy" in the fall of 1999 in Delta, BC. It spend most of its life running around this 25 kilometer long island or sleeping in an insulated garage. It resulted in a truck that by 2019 was completely rust free and with 130000 kilometers on it!
Unfortunately, my grandparents were getting old and it was time for them to move closer to family. After the move, buppy handed me the keys to his truck. Now me being me... I am stupid and can't leave anything alone. So the research and planning began...
Almost immediately, it was clear how old the tech and the support was for the TBI was. Luckily the research that Brian Harris compiled, and from this forum gave me the confidence that I can do it!
You must be registered for see images attach
I had three key goals for this build:
-Keep the trucks exterior as original as possible
-Create a truck with modern performance with old school reliability
-Keep the budget as reasonable as possible
As much as this build thread is about sharing my progress, it is also a place for feedback along the way. Please feel free to suggest, critique, and inspire along the way.
Enjoy!
Chapter one: The Covid Times
The first year of owning the truck not many kilometers were really gathered due to us being locked in during March-May 2020. It was a great opportunity for me to work remotely and in between
You must be registered for see images attach
meetings, crawl under the truck and start modifying and restoring.There were some key problems that had to be addressed right away:
-There was a major exhaust manifold leak
-A lot of the early 2000 accessories were damaging the paint (Canopy, running boards, bug deflectors, and box liner)
-The tires had tread... but they were manufactured in 1998
-All the brake lines were leaking (How did I survive the drive home from the lower mainland!)
So the work began...
-The manifold was replaced with a Flowtech standard header and y pipe. A sobering experience to install. (Thanks for Eric Ernst for the video tutorial on youtube)
-Brake lines were cut out and replaced. (I payed the man) Maybe in the future I'll consider doing this again myself
-All accesories were removed and sold
-Dynamax 3" exhaust installed (Quiet enough to keep the wife happy)
-Tires were replaced with 32" Duratracs and I kept the OE Steelies. I am unsure if I will continue OE as they are beginning to rust.. I do love the look of them.
-Ignition was gone through and replaced. Flamethrower coil, street fire wires, shiny brass ac delco cap. (The flamethrower coil lasted me maybe 3 months)
-AEM Cold Air Intake was installed with a spacer that came with the intake.
- Installed a Edelbrock TBI intake that I found on facebook Marketplace for EIGHTY DOLLARS!
-Ultimate TBI Mods and a 14psi spring from the TBI Shop on Amazon
You must be registered for see images attach
I felt really rewarded with all the work that I did over that year. However, performance wise, I can't say I felt a significant difference. However, I feel that it laid the ground work for the future of this build... Chapter Two!
Chapter two: Open Heart Surgery
The hope for chapter two is to dig deeper into the truck with a focus on the motor.
I was (and still am) torn between getting an LS engine and swapping it, or building up the TBI 350.
I ran into my former shop teacher at a tournament I was coaching at and he suggested the LS... warning me of the challenges and hidden costs around a 350 top end refresh. After a long week of debating back and forth I decided to stay with the Original 350. I figured that the future maintenance and trouble shooting would be a lot easier. I also thought that it would nice to keep the truck in its original glory. (Again feel free to chime in if you think otherwise)
I am currently getting ready to do the vortec head swap. I spend my weekend at the local pick n pull harvesting vortec heads and youtubing how to do it. 120 CAD for Vortec heads made me feel like the price was right. While I was there I also grabbed some dog bones and a spider. I'll need to return to grab roller lifters... (Unless you guys recommend me purchase roller lifters new) 48 hours later I think I might of finally removed all the grease from my jeans...
Once the heads are all cleaned up, I plan to send the heads to get them magna fluxed. Stay tuned for the rest of the journey!