Road TRIP! Headed west after a 69 GMC

[Chrome8]

I've been a board member for quite a while but I got away from the hobby when I sold my 72 2WD LWB after getting rear ended at a stop light in it back in 06-07. I've been lurking the last year or so when I got the itch to buy another truck. I've been looking high and low for a nice truck in original paint that wasn't rusty. About a year ago I had one pinned down that I found in Wyoming but right before I pulled the trigger some family problems came up and had to drop the idea on the spot. I work for my dad at his Chevrolet Buick dealership and always have since high school, I started in the shop doing light duty work, brakes, exhaust and oil changes and cleaning. Eventually, I moved up to sales then management but I have always had an appreciation for what goes on in the back. One of our Techs can take credit for getting me into 67-72 trucks, Chad has built a 70 K10 from the ground up and owned many others. He shares that 67-72 maniac bug that many of us have caught long ago. He's been with us for 15 years and has become a good friend and a great ear over the years. We've been talking about building a shop truck for like 10 years, how to do this and that and the other with a hypothetical rust free truck that I would find some day, so we can have the coolest truck to plow snow and run after parts and such. So to make a long story longer, I was back chatting with him about the truck that got away about a year ago....the 69 GMC 2WD in original paint that appeared to be rust free from the 45 pictures that the owner sent to my iPhone. He says "text them, what the hell you got to lose"? Well, I texted them back and BOOM they are just getting ready to advertise it again to try to sell it. We were pretty floored by this, I couldn't believe they still had it! So off we go on a "ROADIE", Chads coming with me to drive 15 hours out to wyoming to pick up the truck with the dealership's flatbed car hauler we use for Dealer Trades. I am going to grab a used Duramax truck off the lot to pull it with. We leave on Friday afternoon but if the shop slows down we can sneak out a little earlier. Wooo HOO Road trip, I'm excited to see the truck in person and look it over. We have big plans for the truck and I've already started finding some of the parts we need, this will be an evening and weekend project that any of the guys that work for me can help with if they choose. I'm buying all the parts. Chad will be the gate keeper of the keys when it's done. If I'm not driving it of course!

[mmiddle]

ROAD TRIP
I love a good road trip! Especially to get a prize and bring it back home.

I did that with two 87 IROC's for my oldest daughter. Nothing better for a dad than to drive 200 miles each way with a 16 year old girl so happy she cant stand it!

[MusicMan70]

That looks pristine and a Close ratio HD 4speed too.

[too much stuff]

Nice, clean looking truck!

[DeadheadNM]

Good deal - looks like 16.5 x 9.75 wheels on the rear too...

[Chrome8]

Thanks guys, I'm hoping it is as clean as the pics show when I get there. I've ran into hidden rust before on trucks that looked right in the pics. If there is rust I'll try to work that out with the seller when I get there. DeadheadNM I just assumed that the rear wheels were swapped out at some point and not stock. Is there something special about those wide rear wheels?

[DeadheadNM]

Originally Posted by Chrome8

DeadheadNM I just assumed that the rear wheels were swapped out at some point and not stock. Is there something special about those wide rear wheels?

From what I know the rear wheels were a dealer and/or aftermarket add-on not uncommon for use on trucks with slide-in campers. For fun, ask the owner or look for evidence that it hauled a camper once upon a time. The wheels themselves are desirable for some folks (http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=480631) as they're real deep but finding tires for the 16.5 diameter is tough anymore outside BFG ATs - not bad if you have a 4x4 though. I have a set of these tires new for my K20 build. If those are indeed 16.5 x 9.75's you're probably better off selling them and going with a 16" or so wheel. Good luck on the trip.

[SuperC10Tex]

Another saved !!!!!!!

[Chrome8]

We are rolling blacktop now! We left about 6 Central and headed west with the tow rig and trailer behind us. Really a nice evening tonight. We didn't get 90 miles from home before we saw a 67 LWB 2WD 3/4 ton with a 327 on the side of the road for sale, it's a sickness we had to stop and check it out. Not a bad truck, it did have what looked like factory overload springs in the back. They were the half leaf spring type. We are going to drive till around midnight and find a place to sleep for a few hours then back on the road.

[70cst]

Keep us updated and the best of luck.

[vtapaul]

Is the truck in WY? Did I miss where youre roadtriping to?

[Chrome8]

Yea it's in Wyoming sorry if I didn't make that real clear. We are just west of Watertown SD right now.
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[vtapaul]

Yeah real nice truck. Keep us posted on the progres
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[71sierragrande]

Have fun on the trip. I moved my truck 2500 miles a couple yrs ago and it was the funnest trip Ive had. Something about looking out the mirror and seeing that beauty coming home is an unbeatable rush.

[Chrome8]

Well, we are getting there despite a wrong turn that set us back about an hour. We spied a 67 next to an antique shop on the side of the road and stopped to check it out. It turned out to be someone's daily driver but it did have 2 16.5 rims on it without the lock rings, which we will need eventually. So after getting distracted by that we missed a turn. We got some cool photo's of an area in nebraska we drove through right after a pretty major hail storm. Then we stopped at Carhenge in Alliance Nebraska. That wasn't planned, we just saw a bunch of Junk cars sticking out of the ground on the side of the road and had to stop and check it out. Very cool, They are lined up just like Stonehenge in England.

[Chrome8]

I think after we pick up the truck we might have to head for Texas! LOL. Lot's of bikes on the road heading for Sturgis in the rain today, it's been gloomy and rainy all day today. I feel for those guys and gals getting soaked on their bikes.

[yote1234]

hope the hail didnt hurt your truck!! and very kool pic on the cars!

[Chrome8]

Thanks, actually the hail hit right before we came through the area. We rolled up on thick fog and haze rising from the piles of hail in the ditches. There was grass all over the road, it was surreal. We had to pull over just to look it over and watch the storm roll out of sight. I did end up buying the truck, I'll post some pics of it in the daylight in a few we have to stop for fuel.

[Chrome8]

When we got to the truck finally I was pleasantly surprised about it's condition. The owners sent photos of the truck in a dark storage building. When we got the truck out in the daylight the finish looked cleaner and in better shape. The paint is faded but there is less surface rust than I was expecting and less corrosion. This is the most rust free truck both Chad and I have ever seen. It is very straight with just a few dings here and there. Some trim pieces have dings and the grill has 2 small dings in the middle. I was really amazed to tell you the truth. It is 100% rust free, everywhere we looked. Here are some pics. We are rolling back to Minnesota now, we aren't going to push so hard on the way back.

[1972RedNeck]

You're keeping the flaps, right?

[MusicMan70]

That was SO worth the Trip; as you said it looks much better then the earlier posted pics.

[72 tigger]

Nice unmolested truck- well worth the drive

[Expat_dude]

Nice score!!!!
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[swamp rat]

Nice and clean truck!

[oklalawnboy]

Looks like a fun trip. That pile of cars is way better than the one in Texas. I was living in Canada when I drove to Oklahoma to pick up my 72. Nothing like a road trip to pick up an ole truck, EH