wow, really? part prices

[mtdave2]

Really? $500 for a tach dash? I have decided to give my old longhorn some love and fixing things that are long over due and am doing the normal "since I have it apart" thing. I am shocked at prices! they were not this high a few years ago! lol

It reminds me of Harley Davidson, before the 90s they were relatively inexpensive, or at least inline with other bikes. then the fad hit, and all the rich doctors and lawyers thought Harleys were cool, and dam near priced me out of riding. I still have my 95 heritage mostly because I am not spending the sort of cash they want for the new ones. hrumph!

Same seems to be happening to my trucks now. my very first ride was a 72 chevy long step, and I have had one ever since. slowly the "world" has found me, again! Parts are just stupid high, i spent $500 on a rewiring kit, and sighed. Ripping everything apart I now have a list of things I would like to get, unfortunately for me they are all seaming high demand parts, for example AM/FM radio, Tach dash.

I now have a need for skiing vehicle for me and my friends to get to the mountains, and like you guys, my thought goes to a 4x4 suburban. so I start looking and was shocked again at prices....I keep asking...really? ugh

It is not like I am broke, I could buy everything I am wanting but dam! the reason i have some money is that I am frugal. It is the nature progression of life i guess, every old guy complains about prices right?

[davepl]

Well, there's two things you can do. Pay the prices asked or start your own business selling them cheaper. That's the beauty of capitalism... if the prices are too high, they'll sort themselves out almost on their own by magic.

Remember too you might be comparing the memory of junkyard parts (cheap) to reproduction parts (not cheap).

I know how you feel about spending money though: like Bill Gates said on the Simpsons, "I didn't get rich by writing a lot of checks".

[54blackhornet]

It's not just things like dashes or wiring harnesses that are getting expensive ! Simple small things like the tiny light bulb in side markers, local NAPA store asks $1.00 a bulb. Not long ago same bulb was 4 for a $1.00 ? Expensive gas drove up prices on everything but I don't see them going down in the future.

[toolboxchev]

Originally Posted by 54blackhornet

It's not just things like dashes or wiring harnesses that are getting expensive ! Simple small things like the tiny light bulb in side markers, local NAPA store asks $1.00 a bulb. Not long ago same bulb was 4 for a $1.00 ? Expensive gas drove up prices on everything but I don't see them going down in the future.

A Dollar A Bulb? Last pack I bought out of necessity was something like $4.99 for 2!

I know some are getting a ton of money out of parts, even rusted up OEM stuff. I found a tach at one of my employers garage. It was new, still in the box, never installed. He gave it to me! What a deal!

Edelbrock wanted me to change my trans kickdown cable and use their manifold kickdown mount at a total cost of over 145 bucks! WTF???????

I got smart and used my old cable, mounting stud (from my old Quadrajet)to the carb, and modified the Edelbrock Dodge Carb adapter for a whopping 9 BUCKS! HA! It does not look too hookey, and has been performing for over 7 years, no issues.

Sometimes we get away with it. I aint telling Edelbrock thats for sure.

[Rod Run]

Originally Posted by 54blackhornet

Simple small things like the tiny light bulb in side markers, local NAPA store asks $1.00 a bulb. Not long ago same bulb was 4 for a $1.00 ?

I want to live where you do. $1/bulb and not long ago 4 for dollar?

I can't even remember if/when the last time I ever saw 4 for a dollar, never mind even just a dollar!

In the bigger picture, I still think these trucks are super cheap to build compared to 90% of the other options out there

[mtdave2]

oh i get it, I am a big fan of the market. Im just one that usually find things to like that most others dont so it is cheap. Just whining lol

[special-K]

Dave, I know exactly what you are feeling and am with you 100%. The "owners" came along and killed the Harley thing for the working men who kept them alive when not so acceptable. Same thing with trucks in general, but especially these. People newer to these have no perspective on where it was and where it is now. The one flaw with capitalism is it breeds greed, and plenty of that going around these trucks. I know people who wouldn't be caught dead in a pickup truck or anywhere near a Harley and now they own both. Remember when Progressive, Geico, and all those refused to write policies for Harleys and older vehicles that aren't antique yet? I couldn't get full coverage on my cherry '63 Riviera because it was over 5 years old but not yet historic. Same with dozens of old vehicles I've had

[flashed]

There are deals to be had on parts here like tach dashes ,tilt columns ,etc ,just have to be the first to see them .

[XwalkerX]

i sold my 911 turbo last year...perhaps you should look into porsche parts pricing

IMO these trucks are CHEAP to restore/mod

[aod92]

Originally Posted by XwalkerX

i sold my 911 turbo last year...perhaps you should look into porsche parts pricing

IMO these trucks are CHEAP to restore/mod

I agree....I went from restoring a classic Cadillac to my c10. Parts for this truck seem cheap compared to the Cadillac lol

[REEDS 72]

That why I just went went with a real nice tach on the column plus you can see them a lot better.

[trac209]

You think you have it bad try being Canadian and having a dollar worth 60 cents U.S and we have to buy most stuff states side.

[special-K]

So parts prices for a common old GM Truck are something to compare to Porche and Cadillac prices? Thanks for helping us make our point.

[XwalkerX]

Originally Posted by special-K

So parts prices for a common old GM Truck are something to compare to Porche and Cadillac prices? Thanks for helping us make our point.

no they aren't comparable at all.

I was simply solidifying my point that parts are VERY inexpensive for these trucks.

while im sure prices have gone up, these parts are only worth what someone will pay.

[swamp rat]

Edited by Staff: Please note that all Political and Religious discussions are against site rules. This policy has been in place since June of 2005.

[yuccales]

Originally Posted by mtdave2

It is the nature progression of life i guess, every old guy complains about prices right?

Yep, I miss the days of a $35.00 starter or a good $50.00 tire.

[special-K]

It's true the dollar doesn't spend at all like it used to, and that affects everything. But, we are talking about this bubble here. The devaluation of the dollar isn't what makes a radio delete go from $30 to $60 in one sale. It's not what took a set of disc brake factory wheels from $100 a set to people wanting what the 8" go for ($400).
When you talk about how much less things used to cost someone always says, "Yeah, but people made less money, too". Well, after WWII houses in sub-divisions were going for $7-8k, which is equivalent to $75-80 today. If you find anything around here for under $200k you'll have a project on your hands. New homes start at around $400k. That's 50x more and wages wages have increased under half that much. But that took 70 years to create such a huge wage vs income differential. true, it's only getting worse at a faster pace now.

[67ChevyRedneck]

Originally Posted by special-K

It's true the dollar doesn't spend at all like it used to, and that affects everything. But, we are talking about this bubble here. The devaluation of the dollar isn't what makes a radio delete go from $30 to $60 in one sale. It's not what took a set of disc brake factory wheels from $100 a set to people wanting what the 8" go for ($400).
When you talk about how much less things used to cost someone always says, "Yeah, but people made less money, too". Well, after WWII houses in sub-divisions were going for $7-8k, which is equivalent to $75-80 today. If you find anything around here for under $200k you'll have a project on your hands. New homes start at around $400k. That's 50x more and wages wages have increased under half that much. But that took 70 years to create such a huge wage vs income differential. true, it's only getting worse at a faster pace now.

Those houses built after WWII were also only 1,200 SF. Try selling someone a 1,200 SF house nowadays. We have PLENTY of those 40's-50's neighborhoods around here still, and most of the houses are 1,200-1,500 SF single story. Also, most have no garage, and I'd say about half have a one or two car attached open car port thing.

The standard "norm" for a house now is 2,400-2,800 SF, two story WITH an attached 2 car garage. Not exactly an apples to apples comparison, but you can still buy a very nice +/- 2,000-2,500 SF home here for 150-200K (double the SF of the 50's homes... so about on par???)

Anyway, just thought I'd point that out. Cars have also exceeded inflation in price, buy my God, look at what goes into them now. 60 years ago they were a frame, drivetrain, and some sheetmetal thrown together. I could completely disassemble a 67 C10 by myself in a weekend. I'd be lucky to have the drivetrain out of a 2015 after a weekend.

Anyway, certain parts for these trucks have been crazy high for Years.

Tach dash, factory shoulder belts, and tow hooks are a few that come to mind.

I know some stuff is $$$, but on the flip side, be thankful that you can buy a wiring harness that is plug and play and don't have to make your own, etc. 5-10 years ago you had to splice together a good junkyard harness or a painless harness that is anything but...

[special-K]

Hey mtdave2, do you remember how much you paid for that pair of N.O.S. painted hubcaps for your Longhorn you got from me? Now we have people come here for the sole purpose of tapping into this valuable pool of 67-72 parts buyers to get all they can for their parts. You never see them socializing elsewhere or concerned with making any friends, other than steady customers spending good money. Just here to sell parts or beat prices down so they can make more money selling them on Ebay.

Originally Posted by 67ChevyRedneck

Those houses built after WWII were also only 1,200 SF. Try selling someone a 1,200 SF house nowadays. We have PLENTY of those 40's-50's neighborhoods around here still, and most of the houses are 1,200-1,500 SF single story. Also, most have no garage, and I'd say about half have a one or two car attached open car port thing.

The standard "norm" for a house now is 2,400-2,800 SF, two story WITH an attached 2 car garage. Not exactly an apples to apples comparison, but you can still buy a very nice +/- 2,000-2,500 SF home here for 150-200K (double the SF of the 50's homes... so about on par???)

I didn't give all the details, but my example was for Levittown, NY and I'm talking about the exact same house. Look on Zillow or whatever homes site for listings in Levittown, NY and see what they go for now. They seem to be in the $300-400k range.

I live in a small house like that and I raised my three children here, just like my parents did for me, my brother, and five sisters. We were so happy we never knew we were living sub-standard. I'm baffled at why the mass of people choose to pay so much for so much they don't need. It's the price of land that drives the cost of houses up and why they need to be such huge wasteful things... on a little bit of land.

[stepbox]

In my opinion the prices for parts for these type of vehicles are not bad in cost.
Try restoring an early car (30s ford,or tri 5 chevy,or late 50s buicks)those prices are out of site.C-10 parts are getting higher but they are very popular now and used parts are getting harder to find.As most here know looking around at swap meets and on-line forums are a great source for parts.

[71CHEVYSHORTBED402]

Originally Posted by stepbox

In my opinion the prices for parts for these type of vehicles are not bad in cost.
Try restoring an early car (30s ford,or tri 5 chevy,or late 50s buicks)those prices are out of site.C-10 parts are getting higher but they are very popular now and used parts are getting harder to find.As most here know looking around at swap meets and on-line forums are a great source for parts.

I agree. When I first dove into this I soon discovered the going rate for a nice NOS lens is about $50-75 (was half that three years ago). Then I thought about my Toyota Tundra with new parts readily available. A taillight lens is around $160.

From what I've seen, assuming you can get them, the prices for NOS pieces are still reasonable, especially when you put it into perspective, by considering what a common part costs for a newer vehicle. There are exceptions, which are expensive, because they're rare and desirable. For example, an NOS expansion kit, Cargo light kit, Radio kit.

[Synestran]

Originally Posted by 71CHEVYSHORTBED402

I agree. When I first dove into this I soon discovered the going rate for a nice NOS lens is about $50-75 (was half that three years ago). Then I thought about my Toyota Tundra with new parts readily available. A taillight lens is around $160.

From what I've seen, assuming you can get them, the prices for NOS pieces are still reasonable, especially when you put it into perspective, by considering what a common part costs for a newer vehicle. There are exceptions, which are expensive, because they're rare and desirable. For example, an NOS expansion kit, Cargo light kit, Radio kit.

As someone who has worked in the Parts Department for a Toyota Dealership...prices are ridiculous. We would sell wheel covers for around $100....per wheel cover...and anything electronic related,may as well take out a loan... Maybe working there has lessened the blow to me about pricing for the trucks.

[ETsC10]

Originally Posted by stepbox

In my opinion the prices for parts for these type of vehicles are not bad in cost.
..................As most here know looking around at swap meets and on-line forums are a great source for parts.

We should be happy with the foresight and good taste that made us all love these trucks! We are driving very popular trucks in the still early stage of collectibility. Can you imagine what looking for even good OEM parts might be like 20 years from now?

Originally Posted by CG

It is what it is. Something gets popular the prices go up. If it affects your hobby, its irritating for sure. .....

In my mind, you and I live in an area where the trucks are still common and cheap...and in great shape! Smart of us!

[bronze 72 super]

Being off work because of a work related injure, I've sold a lot of my stock piled parts. The extra money I made this summer come in nice. Some of the parts I sold were under current prices, just trying to move parts and generate sells. Still off work after a year, might go back this spring, not sure yet.
I still have parts on here for sale not too high priced I think. If a person wants something bad enough, they'll pay the price, no matter what.
As for those $1.00 a piece marker light bulbs, I want too a estate auction years ago and bought A.C. DELCO cabinet full of bulbs for $13.00!! I think it has over $200 worth of bulbs in it at todays prices!!

[CG]

It is what it is. Something gets popular the prices go up. If it affects your hobby, its irritating for sure.

Used to be you only got to see whatever auto/truck you were in to in the monthly magazines, or the occasional car show. Now all you have to do is fire up the computer, cell phone, tablet and you can see stuff from every type of auto hobby from every nook and cranny around the globe. This is what has driven the prices up ... accessibility to everyone.