[Grumpy old man]

A checklist ? ,No not really what I do is continually buy "the good deal" trucks the failed projects and like just this past week Ol Rusty for $500 a 68 V-8 shortbed with a good title (she came with a 6) .I build 67's and I keep a running parts list in my head everytime I go to look at one of these "good deal" trucks to see exactly what is there that I need and what there is I can sell that is still in good condition .to recoup my $500.and still have all the parts I needed off of it .Let's look at Ol Rusty for an example .

Truck and cost to bring it home---------------------------------------$600.00
Removed rusty sheet metal and scrapped ---------------------+$ 76.00
Sold cab and short bed frame --------------------------------+$650.00
Sold radio delete /heater box /seat belts /seat/dash -----------+$340.00
________
+$1,066.00
So On Ol Rusty Not only did I recoup my initial $600.00 but made $466.00 and I kept the drive line the manual cross member /suspension a full set of 15" 4 nub wheels and a 12 bolt factory leaf spring rear I needed for another truck and a ton of extra good factory parts and pieces for free. The clear glass is still good and I gave that away for free to another member close by (good Kharma) And Ol Rusty will live on Cab/frame and title as a ground up resto mod build in NC

When you start adding up all the good saved parts your way ahead towards your build from just 1 rusty old junk truck that was actually in much better shape than she looked in pictures . So as far as a check list start with your stash of free parts and go from there with the good solid frame as your starting point . ANY FRAME UP project should start with a clean painted frame ( how many times do you see someone start bolting thousands of dollars of suspension and wheels on an old rusty frame ? )after that it's one part at a time with the initial goal of getting it rolling first and installing the systems one at a time Brakes/fuel/electrical before you start hanging sheet metal on it

All Mechanical /suspension/brakes/electrical first it's a lot easier to work on when it moves under it's own power
then start hanging and fitting sheet metal
glass and interior should be last .

The problem I'm having now is parts trucks I bought a few years back are now in better condition than many I see being restored today after just a few short years and I'm having to go back out and find trucks like Ol Rusty to use for parts to rebuild my "parts trucks" It's an addiction ! The hardest part of all of it is deciding what to save and what to sell off At this point I'm already hoarding parts for trucks I won't drag out of the barn for years .and if I don't get to build them the next owner will have all the hard to find parts tucked away in the dry stored cab ! It's better than money in the bank !