swapping 82 instrument cluster into 79 ?

[roundhouse]

we have a 79ish, 4wd stepside,  not sure of the exact year it has a state issued VIN rivited to the door frame and we cant find the frame VIN.

anyhoo, it spent its life in AZ and the instruments are cooked, faded, cracked etc

we have a cluster from a 82 diesel that looks brand new.

is it easier to swap the 82 gauges into the 79 panel cluster or swap the whole thing,  the 79 has the mech oil pressure , the 82 has the electric,

not sure about which wire to swap where on the plug for the oil press gauge, and dont know if the rest are the same or need to be moved.

havent been able to find any good diagrams, but I know there on the site here somewhere.

[Irish_Alley]

post some pictures of the truck. we can pretty much tell you what year it is by looking at the outside and inside. the cluster problem as you have seen all ready would require some rewiring. not hard but it can take some time. i dont know where the diagrams are at but i know we have them also and they will be posted on this post shortly

[roundhouse]

i can post some pics,   pretty sure the cab and front fenders have been swapped.

decal on the rad support says its a 80  with a six cylinder,
has a 350  4 speed and the clutch pivot is rivited to the frame, not bolted like a conversion.
but the floor is all hacked up to fit the manual trans tunnel  cover plate on.

has a D-44 front axle, they stopped using them in 77 right?

[Irish_Alley]

well yes and no. gm started to phase out the 44 in 77 but used it till 80. the 4x2 cab was prob swapped over to a 4x4 frame. and the axle/frame could be 76 but the cab might be newer

[bake74]

     73 - 77 trucks had the mechanical oil gauges.  So if it has the mechanical oil gauge the cab at least is one of those years.

[roundhouse]

or they swapped it in from the previous cab,

is the VIN on the cab anywhere besides the dash?

and where is it on the frame?



we found a great diagram that shows which wire was in what pin location for each year. so we should be able to get the cluster swapped in.

the 82 diesel donor was free, and the interior was in pretty good condition except for the carpet and the dash has some cracks.
still has the 23 channel CB with upper and lower SSB and the mechanical trailer brake controller, the one thats plumbed into the brake lines.

[roundhouse]

 brown one is donating the interior,
the black one is my brothers, and  what started the search,  when my 15 yr old son saw it he flipped out,  thought it was the coolest vehicle on the planet.
purple one is the one with the mish mash of who knows what

[roundhouse]

he thought this one was the coolest vehicle on the planet.

[roundhouse]

ok,  heres what I got so far.

this diagram was very helpful, hope its accurate
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=20543

but makes no mention of the voltmeter

where does it go??

heres my notes for what needs to be moved.

[Irish_Alley]

stock location for a 73-77 vin is on the door jam, and that front clip looks like a 73-77.

[bake74]

     The frame vin# on both my 74 & 77 k10's are on the top of the passenger frame rail, right before the cab.  So if you were to look down from the passenger front fender to the top of the frame rail and right before the frame rail disappears beneath the cab.  You will probably have to clean it really well to see it, the etching is not very deep in either of my frames.
     If you could take some pics of the interior of the truck and post, especially the inside doors, we can at least tell you what year doors you have.  The beds swap out all through the years so that is no help.

[roundhouse]

these wiring diagrams, dont seem to have the info for  the heater fan
http://forum.73-87chevytrucks.com/smforum/index.php?topic=11766.0

anyone know where to find this ?

we found a few wires under the dash that the PO cut,  a yellow and a grey

[bake74]

these wiring diagrams, dont seem to have the info for  the heater fan
http://forum.73-87chevytrucks.com/smforum/index.php?topic=11766.0

anyone know where to find this ?

we found a few wires under the dash that the PO cut,  a yellow and a grey

     Well that will depend on what year truck yours is.  Since you say you have a mechanical oil "hard" line, in the 73-76 wiring diagrams it is found on the page listed "73-76_firewall_junct.jpg , middle top of the page "blo mtr just to left of the front of dash line.
     In the 77-80 wiring diagrams it is located on the page listed as 77-80_SBC_eng.jpg, top right of page, also to the left of the front of dash line listed as blower motor.
     The heater motors are listed as blower motors in the diagrams and are located in the engine bay on the firewall.

[roundhouse]

     The frame vin# on both my 74 & 77 k10's are on the top of the passenger frame rail, right before the cab.  So if you were to look down from the passenger front fender to the top of the frame rail and right before the frame rail disappears beneath the cab.  You will probably have to clean it really well to see it, the etching is not very deep in either of my frames.
     If you could take some pics of the interior of the truck and post, especially the inside doors, we can at least tell you what year doors you have.  The beds swap out all through the years so that is no help.

Looks like doors are from pre 77 ?
Bullet holes?

[bake74]

     73-76 doors are the same basically, 77-91 doors will swap with each other.  See this thread. 
http://forum.73-87chevytrucks.com/smforum/index.php/topic,14625.0.html

     Your door shell does look to be 73-76.