New owner of 1966 C10 Camper Special

[hairdog]

Hi all. I used to own a 72 C10 but sold it back in 2007. Been truckless since then, until last night when I won an eBay auction for this 66. It's original everything, has quite a "patina" and some rust in the usual places. It runs pretty well but needs new tires right away. I have some plans for it (replace the wood in the bed, maybe weld new steel on the lower fenders which have rusted through) but not planning to do a restore. I'm just happy to be back here as a truck owner. Going to pick it up in Boulder next week. I looked at it this week and decided to make it mine.

[bigmoe]

Cool. Got a link to the listing? or pictures?

[hairdog]

Here it is:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/255487327115

[factorystock]

Congratulations. Not easy to find one that is clean and original, the Custom Camper automatically comes with a nice list of comfort and convenience options. Interesting to see the SPID (decal on inside of glove box) for additional factory options. It is a 20 series pickup, the 10 is a listing error. It appears somebody went to the trouble to add clips to modern solid 8 lug bump style wheels to get the original hubcaps to mount, got to give the previous owner credit for doing that, originally, '66 Custom Campers came with 2 piece lock ring 16" wheels with clips.

[hairdog]

The seller said he changed out the original split rims because nobody would service them.

So it's a C20?

I'll post the SPID when I pick her up next week.

[Braunschweiger]

Congratulations, its a nice truck

[MikeN]

Neat truck!

[cwcarpenter98]

Nice purchase! Yes, it should be a C20. Like what factorystock said, the wheels are later model wheels that accept nub style 3/4 ton caps. I hope he added some clips for the hubcaps. Another member here bought a 3/4 ton with later model wheels that had stock hubcaps glued on to the wheels

[jocko]

Congrats, I saw that one too - nice and original original - enjoy!
Definitely a C20 (7500 gvwr).

[hairdog]

Really appreciate everyone's welcome, observations, and advice. Feels so good to be a truck owner again.

[factorystock]

Another observation, appears to be a 327, note the bypass hose to the pump.

[sodly]

We have sister '66 Custom Campers from Murphy Mahoney in Denver! Maybe they sat on the lot together. Mine is also a 327 but with at TH400 automatic. Yours is the only other Murphy Mahoney Chevy truck I've run across. Fun to see another original truck!

[hairdog]

Originally Posted by sodly

We have sister '66 Custom Campers from Murphy Mahoney in Denver! Maybe they sat on the lot together. Mine is also a 327 but with at TH400 automatic. Yours is the only other Murphy Mahoney Chevy truck I've run across. Fun to see another original truck!

Howdy sister! You've put a lot of work into her, obviously. Thanks for the pics

[factorystock]

Originally Posted by hairdog

You've put a lot of work into her, obviously.

A lot of elbow grease work, that is a well preserved original. We never get enough glimpses of that one! Thanks, Sodly!

[sodly]

Looks like the same "Sports-Liner" rear bumper as mine.

[my04]

Congrats, very cool truck! Welcome to the club...

[EdWeeds]

Shouldn't the engine be sea foam green in color rather than Chevy orange or was that just in the C10s?

[factorystock]

Yes, should be a greenish color originally, engine rebuilders usually always paint older Chevy V8's orange.

[hairdog]

Finally got her to her new home. First stop will be new wheels and tires, probably next week. Then, it seems like a new battery is in order and probably a tune up. As I recall from my 72 Chevy pickup, this can be an expensive hobby.

[cwcarpenter98]

Smoking real bad on startup is usually bad valve seals. You could have some other oil control issues if it's smoking all the time

[hairdog]

Originally Posted by cwcarpenter98

Smoking real bad on startup is usually bad valve seals. You could have some other oil control issues if it's smoking all the time

Is that remedied by a valve job? (Sorry, but I am obviously not mechanically inclined).

[cwcarpenter98]

Originally Posted by hairdog

Is that remedied by a valve job? (Sorry, but I am obviously not mechanically inclined).

No worries! There's some valve seals that go on the valve stem under the valve springs to help control the oil. Over time, the valve seals can wear out and allow oil to leak down into the combustion chamber during operation, but especially after sitting.
A valve job usually refers to cleaning up the valve seats on the combustion chamber side of the engine and replacing or cleaning up the valves.

[hairdog]

Originally Posted by cwcarpenter98

No worries! There's some valve seals that go on the valve stem under the valve springs to help control the oil. Over time, the valve seals can wear out and allow oil to leak down into the combustion chamber during operation, but especially after sitting.
A valve job usually refers to cleaning up the valve seats on the combustion chamber side of the engine and replacing or cleaning up the valves.

Thank you for the clarification.

[cwcarpenter98]

Happy to help!

[bigmoe]

You can change valve seals without removing the heads. It involves putting an air fitting in the spark plug hole. Air pressure applied keeps the valve from falling down when you remove the valve spring. I've never done it but there's videos on youtube.

Edit: You can also accomplish the same thing by feeding some rope in the spark plug hole while raising the piston until the piston and rope come up tight on the valve, holding it up.