Thread: HELP on 57 Chevy 3100

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Hey everyone, I'm a newbie at this but want to learn so I'm updating a truck that means a lot to me. Its not much but I want it to go fast and stop hard but stay as true to itself as possible. My question is what
Engine/ Manual Transmisson combo will help me do this? And also, can I simply change the gears in the rear end or will I have to do a rear axle swap?
Any help is greatly appreciated
Drew T.

Hi Drew, welcome to CHR. The '57 3100 is a very cool truck, and getting more popular day by day it seems. I'll let the bowtie guys jump in with recommendations on specifics, but a takeout package from a wrecked later model 'vette or Camaro would be something to consider. If it's stock, the rear is going to be the ten bolt third member type where the "pumpkin" drops out the front and it has an 8.2" ring gear, all the same '57-64. It'll hold up OK unless you get crazy with the power, or unless you want to do something like pro-street the truck (I hope not....) with huge rear meats and tons of power, too. You can swap in a GM 12 or 14 bolt for a little more beef, or horror of horrors, a 9" Ford!!
Looking forward to seeing pictures of the truck!

Welcome Aboard Drew! What is it that you want the truck to do? "Go Fast" is a very broad statement, what's fast to you may not be fast to me and one thing we all learn is speed costs money! How "fast" can you afford to go??? 8-)

Brakes are always a wise investment! SO no skimping there.. You'll need to decide a path forward, make a plan with a set of goals that you know are achievable.

Then it becomes more managable, and you'll feel more confident to continue.

Hope you enjoy your stay with us!

Welcome to CHR Drew. Disc brake set ups are available for your 57, but they are(unless you have them redrilled)5 bolt. If your looking for a good strong rear get a 12 bolt GM or a 9" Ford, either way you'll be doing or having some one do some fabrication on the rear. Post some pictures if you can

Wow thanks for the feedback, I honestly didn't think it would be this fast. This being a hot rod forum hopefully I wont get any bad looks when I say Id like it to be kinda rat rod/ racer/ stock look. So my plans include to keep rusted patina but yet interior upgraded stock. and under the hood possibly a 5.7L. Please keep in mind that im really new to this. When you start talking gear ratios and outputs and etc, im reading with my jaw on the floor because i feel so overwhelmed.
im really trying to keep this project on a budget. but i do want disc brakes all the way around and a manual trans. i plan on doing a leaf spring axle swap that i can get that 3'' drop. Please tell me if you have any better ideas to achieve looks and performance cheap.
Once i figure out how to post pictures on here i will.

Lowering blocks are the cheapest way to go. The taller the block the lower the truck. Just need blocks and longer U bolts. The front end is a little more difficult. You may want to use a sub frame. That will get you disc brakes and lower at same time. And 5 lug axles

Grab a clipboard.

Write down your budget

Start pricing what you know you want.

Disc conversion ( your stock wheels won't fit over the rotors )
Used wheels, New tires

Engine/ trans ( buy a complete vehicle, maybe something that's been wrecked)
Suspension parts ( consider the donor vehicle carefully )
Tools/equipment ( you'll need a hydraulic flare tool for that disc conversion)
Interior ( you doing it, or farming it out?)
Take the total, times it by %20 and add it together(conservatively)

If the numbers don't jive, then you've got some thinking to do.

Well I work at a parts store, so parts will come a little bit cheaper than normal. What do you mean by a 12 bolt rear end? The number of bolts that are on the rear housing cover?
Any suggestions on a vehicle that could be my total package?
firebird77clone im getting seats redone and painting the interior back to original, rhino lining the floors and trying to re use all of the original gauges.

Well, the "Old Man" is late to the party, as usual. My last "rod" was a '59 Apache 3100, and I owned it and played with it for 40 years. There were many others during those 40 years, but that old truck was a part of me, it seemed.

Here is a good place to start looking to see what sort of upgrade and mod stuff is available for it:

Classic Chevy Truck Parts-1947-1954 Parts. The Finest in Suspension, Brakes, Steering and Accessories.

First thing: what engine and transmission is currently in your truck? What it is has bearing on how you can go about things and possibly stay within a decent budget, and not overwhelm yourself in the mechanical expertise department.

If your truck has a 265 or 283 original v-8 engine and a three speed, shifter on the column transmission, you are in pretty good shape for fairly easy performance up grades without having to do a whole lot of major modification and fabrication. If it has a six cylinder engine, then the engine mounts will have to be changed, and possibly the bell housing, to put a first generation small block in it. Second generation engines might also go in on the same mounts, but I am not certain about that. If you have the v-8 already, find yourself a good 350 (5.7L) engine, either a good used one, rebuild one yourself, or get a fully assembled crate engine from any number of different sources; get new "stock" front and rear mounts from CPP, Brothers, or other places, pull your old engine, swap the mount hardware from the front of the old engine to the new one, swap the bellhousing from the old to the new, replace the bellhousing to frame mounts, and drop the new engine right back in place of the old one. All of the clutch linkage will go right back in place as original, the throttle linkage will fit with minor mods, most of the wiring will go right back in place - although I would seriously consider rewiring a truck that old, and you could change it over to an alternator at the same time, if it has not already been done. Your old flywheel should work, but you should have it surface ground at a machine shop and balanced, and pput in a new clutch at the same time. Your old three speed wil fit right back, too,but there are other simple options you can consider. A Saginaw, or a Muncie four speed will bolt right up like it was meant to be there, and the driveshaft should fit like stock - rebuild the U-joints while you have it out. You will have to get a shifter for the four speed, most common is the Hurst unit, and do a little modification and cutting on the floor to fit it correctly. Your stock rear end will stand up to some pretty hard use, but not abuse; if you want to get into doing big smoky burnouts and speed shifting, you are going to have to spend some extra sheckles to upgrade stuff: rear end, tranny, clutch, and on, and on.

What I have described is pretty much the way my truck was set up. It started out as a 283 with a three speed, and 3.90 gears in the rear end; stone stock as it came from the factory. I bought a wrecked 1967 Camaro and took the 327 and Muncie M21 out of it and put it into my truck just the way I described; everything bolted right into place, even the driveshaft. I added a set of cheap headers, and went right back to driving it daily as a commuter and toy. Eventually, the old 327 got tired and wheezy, so I bought a new 350, took it apart and blueprinted it, added a cam and new intake, plug wires and other appurtenant stuff, and when it was tuned by a pro, it ran like stink - still on the original stock rear end. I never converted to front disc brakes, but I should have - there are different opinions about changing the rear brakes to disc, but in my opinion, it is not cost effective unless you are going to go to extreme performance levels, and then, you are going to be replacing the entire drivetrain anyway. I lowered my front about three inches with a set of springs from Posies, and had my rear springs rebuilt and three leaves taken out of the packs by a local spring shop; that dropped the rear about two inches. I never converted to power brakes or steering, either, and the truck handled fine, and didn't give me too much trouble stopping as long as I behaved myself, but the disc brake fronts are absolutely a really good idea. I also rebuilt the front axle with new king pins, spindles, roller bearing conversion, and other usual items like tie rod ends, shackles, etc. I did not change over to five lug wheels, because I retained the stock rear end with the six lug axles - just bought a set of six lug aluminum wheels instead.

That is probably about as economical as you can go on one of these trucks.

From there, the sky is the limit: "clipping" the front with the whole subframe from a first or second generation Camaro, finding a sound late model Corvette and using the front and rear suspension assemblies - they are almost a bolt in. Rear ends are fairly easy to swap; find one that has the same, or nearly the same, width, relocate the spring perches to fit your truck and bolt in your choice - Ford 9 inch, Dana, or GM 10 or 12 bolt. All of these things have been done, and they all have their proponents; there is just no limit if you have the desire, money and ability.

Good luck, and please, keep us posted; we all like to see what guys are doing with their stuff.

Rumbler, I wish you lived closer cause I can tell I'm going to need more help than I thought.
At the moment it has a stock inline 6 not the V8 so by your message ill have to change the motor mounts. As you were saying I do want this truck to be a daily commuter and also one that can burn a set a tires off of it. This build may take me awhile but I want to do it right.
Should I take the body off and sand and repaint the frame and all the original mounts and stuff I plan to keep or just keep the body on and degrease and power wash? To save time and money of course.

Originally Posted by TRCC

Rumbler, I wish you lived closer cause I can tell I'm going to need more help than I thought.
At the moment it has a stock inline 6 not the V8 so by your message ill have to change the motor mounts. As you were saying I do want this truck to be a daily commuter and also one that can burn a set a tires off of it. This build may take me awhile but I want to do it right.
Should I take the body off and sand and repaint the frame and all the original mounts and stuff I plan to keep or just keep the body on and degrease and power wash? To save time and money of course.

Save paint and upholstery for the very last things you do to the truck. You might turn out like me, once I get the vehicle running, handling and stopping, I seldom paint them or worry about the interior. I don't build hot rods to please other people, I build them to please myself.

I strongly suggest that you begin a regimen of reading. That's how many of us on this board learned what to do and what not to do.
Learning how to rebuild a small block Chevy can be found here....
How to Rebuild Your Small-Block Chevy: David Vizard: 9781557880291: Amazon.com: Books
Manual transmissions....
How to Rebuild and Modify High-Performance Manual Transmissions (Workbench How to): Paul Cangialosi: 9781934709290: Amazon.com: Books
Rearends.....
High-Perf Differentials, Axles, and Drivelines: Joe Palazzolo: 9781934709023: Amazon.com: Books
Chassis, suspension, steering, brakes....
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...condition=used
Steering, suspension and alignment....
Amazon.com: Buying Choices: Automotive Steering, Suspension, and Alignment, Third Edition
Wiring and electrical....
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...condition=used
And my all-time favorite for understanding how steering geometry and suspension geometry work.....
Amazon.com: Buying Choices: Tune to Win: The art and science of race car development and tuning
Carroll Smith was the crew chief for Ford Motor Company when they went to LeMans in 1965 and 1966 and whipped the Ferraris with Ford GT40's. If you can get wrapped aroung this fellow's mind, you will have more knowledge than 99% of the hot rodders out there.

I buy used books any time I can. They still have the same info as a new book, but they're cheaper.....and I'm basically cheap.

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