Losing My Will.

[*Dylan]

As of recently I'm losing my will to do anything on my truck. Every single thing I do ends up fighting me and it seems this thing is nothing but a money pit. I just graduated highschool and I've gone my whole entire senior year bumming rides and not having one of my own because of this truck.

I started off under the impression that when I bought it at the end of my junior year I'd have it running by my senior year. Famous words from my dad "oh it'll only need a tune up and a little bit of stuff here and there and we'll have it going in no time." Well over a year later and a total of over 4,000 into this stupid build I have nothing but an engineless lawn ornament and college approaching fast. I just spent 300.00 on seatbelts and mirrors and I can't even get the mirrors on without a problem because of the stupid P.O. and some rust issues.

It just seems to me that this thing never ends. All I want is something to drive right now and I can't even get that. I'm sick of all of it and these stupid mirrors just pushed me over the edge.

I just needed somewhere to rant and to vent because I really don't feel like listening to my dad after I tell him what's on my mind.

You're pissed off enthusiast,
Dylan

[my67chevytruck]

Hey Bro... thats trial and tribulation, and will make you appreciate it much more when completed.

[big_al_71]

I can relate as I have been there many times..Same reason why I will NEVER build another vehicle. I will buy one finished and make small changes if any. Another reason why I still have not done my air ride and four wheel conversion the truck is runiing excellent and looks ok hard for me to tear into it then the frustrations begin...

Hang in there man.......If you need help ask for it sometimes the stupidiest things I could not get done next thing you know someone came and did it in two secs....

[leddzepp]

I feel you on this. I got tired of all the BS way back when. That's when I decided, no more projects. I won't buy anything unless I can drive it while I am working on it. Good luck man.

[nightmare]

we feel your frustrations. we've all been there with one thing or another. you really can't look at it like there's going to be a problem around every turn. look at it from the perspective that there is one less thing that you have to deal with later. as my67chevytruck, you will appreciate it more later once it is completed.

maybe just take a break for a couple of days, and approach it with a clear head. if there is anything that you need help with, just post on here, and we'll see what we can do.

[19673ontree]

HMM , heard this same story from several other's over the last few year's and all of them have been younger guy's , all I can tell you is that you have to let it get in your blood !
myself I have laid awake at night for the past 25 or so year's thinking of 1955 to 1972 CHEVY built car's and truck's , I NEVER get tired of it I NEVER have a loss of interest , the only thing about this hobby that bother's me is that I want a couple more of the FANTASTIC PIECES OF MECHANICAL MARVELS that GM left us with , right now I have my 1967 RS camaro owned it 10 year's and enjoy it like I just got it yesterday , my 1967 short fleet C10 HECK YEA ! owned it since 05 and like it a little bit more every day !
now I need a 1962 thru 1965 chevy II nova , and then a 1966 or 1967 chevy II nova , and then ,,,,,,,,,,,, and then ,,,,,,,,,,,,,

hang in there man if you are agravated with it just cover it up and forget it for a while ! they say that help's and I believe it , when I go on vacation and don't ride one of my 67's and go a few day's without seeing them it make's me happy when I get home to just look at them

[*Dylan]

Thing is, I've driven my truck hardly any and when I did it ran like absolute crap and I couldn't go more than 15 mph. It would be great if I could say I've actually "driven" or "rode" in one as an actual driver, but I haven't. I can't cover it up and forget about it for a while because I'm on a deadline now and have to have it driving before college starts in August.

I think about my truck all day and night, it's just I keep finding more and more stuff and I'm dumping money into something that doesn't run. I've been patient with it for over a year now and I just want something in return and the only thing I've gotten is the satisfaction of knowing I've done the work myself. It's nice knowing that, but when you can't go around and show what you've done it sucks.

I suppose it will all change with that first drive, but until then I don't know what to think.

[vectorit]

Wow, do I know how you feel. I have been in your shoes a few times already. Each time I have just thrown the cover over the project, and closed the garage door. Then just tried not to think about the things that pissed me off, and believe me there have been some expensive mistakes and misjudgments.
Heck, I have done this a lot... That's why my burb resto has been going on for so long - Over ten years now I think? I dunno, and don't care anymore.

Things that would get me motivated out of the funk you are currently in, is to go to car/truck shows and just look at similar trucks to yours and talk to the owners.
You may not come running out of that show all fired up to work on your project, but your mind will begin to think about more possitive aspects of your truck and the project.

You may be feeling a bit lost, or scattered about where to start. Which is adding to your overwhelmed feeling, so just take a few steps back and re think your project plans.

Maybe take a few pictures of the work area, along with all the things needing to be done on your truck. Post them here and let all of us help you get some new project plans, since a fresh set of eyes always seems to help get a new perspective.

Keep in mind;
You can't eat an elephant in one bite, it takes many small ones to get it done!

Keep the faith!

[LUV2XCLR8]

Change a few parts, a few descriptions, add some cuss words, and you just described my build. Hang in there

[19673ontree]

OK , let's get down to basic's then ,
if being able to drive it is what is bothering you put the six banger in it and drive it !
I have not read your whole build thread but I think you said you had the six cylinder ? and to be clear those are THE BEST EASIEST TO WORK ON MOST DEPENDABLE motor's ever made , oh yea and CHEAP TO WORK ON !
you can take a wore out 250 (IF THERE IS SUCH A THING) and put new point's plug's and wire's on it , clean the carb AND DRIVE !!!!!!!

I would do that and work on the rest of it a small bit at a time ,,,

[chevy_mike]

Yep, I remember those days. Young and impatient. You'll either get through it or you'll get out of the car hobby.

One big thing that has changed for me over the last 26 years (being that I started doing this at age 15) is that none of my project vehicles are my primary daily drivers. I always have a good reliable driver that does not need work, so I know I can get to my job or wherever else I need to.

Doing this allows projects to take whatever time it takes to get finished. With that pressure off, it makes the projects more fun and less stressful.

I know this is not always an option when you're young but you'll get there in time.

Hang in there.

[19673ontree]

DANG IT I SAY HANG IN THERE !

here is some thing's to remember
#1 do it a little at a time nobody said you had to do it all at once
#2 look what you will have when you get it fixed (SORRY BUT THERE AIN'T NO SUCH THING AS DONE)

[vectorit]

Ok, I just realized you had a build link in your sig.
I didn't read every post, since I was more interested in what stage your truck was in.
From what I saw it looks like it's pretty road worthy right now? Heck my burb looked like that when I was driving it as a DD.

Perhaps you are being a little to hard on yourself?

['72customdeluxe]

Murphy's law sticks with me on everything i do. Of course my grandma claims that was because I broke that mirror. But anyway, when something goes wrong I just leave it for a day or so and get back to it ready to go again. It's hard because I had school before and now in summer it's too hot to even bother at times. Good luck with your project though.

[UltraBlue71]

Heh Bro, just remeber anybody can buy a finished truck and say they built it themselves, It takes a man to bust knuckles, stretch every dollar they have to the max, and build a cool ride, Have you thought about buying a cheap running beater, as in a whole nuther auto? It really sucks when you are trying to wrench on what you need to drive everyday, I can remeber a old 76 swb 4x4 I had, I would wrench on that heap of crap half the night to get it working good enough to drive to work to wrench on jets all day for the Air Force, everybody gets burnt out, just step back and take a breath, dont give up someday you'll be glad you made the sacrifices you did, just .2 cents from someone that has been there!

[ll____b0t____ll]

I feel you Man I was going through the same feelings a very short time ago.
These guys around here and this forum is a 99% positive thing and a 1% negative.
99% Because they have a wealth of experiance and most are willing to share it to help a fellow .
1% negative because some here are just so proficiant with this trade that they make alot of it look easy and that can get you in a boat without paddles to.

For me I had to decide weather or not I was fooling myself about ever seeing the days My truck would be in a state of completion I could be happy with.
In the end ,at my core, in my blood, in my dreams and deep in my soul I knew I had to go the long yards and keep the word I gave to my past self and get back the truck and love I mistakenly sold as a young man.

It took me being more honest with myself and the work at hand for example i got caught up in deciding what to replace and work on in what order and well the truck knew better.
Didnt do me any good to have new fenders and gauges and all kids of nice parts to make it look better when it wasnt running at all.
In the end i said let it stay rusted and dented and looking ruff but let me get this running like a top and be done with every single part from the radiator to the rear end and then go back to a restore.

But all that said in the end your going to have to look deep inside you and find out weather there is or isnt a C-10 in your heart, if there is than your choice is made and you know it, if there isnt than by all means save yourself because only the love of this hobby and that truck can get you through the days it sucks your very blood and tears and spits out a bill.

Good luck and I hope you find the path thats right for you.

C-10 for life!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[HighwayHum72]

here's a personal recipe little man...
1) quit using cheap tools.
2) organize your garage and actually put things back in their place.
3) clean the motor and have an area designated for cleaning parts only
4) get yourself a nice bright light and a headlamp, you'll be working late
5) your bathroom should have books by guys like Vizard, some catalogs, mags, etc... read the books over and over again until you can understand and answer the question, "why does camshaft "A" require 10:1 compression, headers, 4.11's and a 3500 stall?"
6)no more painting, painting is last and forget about the stereo right now
7) clean up oil, fluids and whatever else dripped or spilled the same day
8) don't start working on the body
9) don't tighten stuff too tight, tighten it just right
10) read the forums and ask specific questions, not knowing or not remembering something is unacceptable, complaining about it will not help.
11) prepare to spend thousands of dollars and then some money for gas, oil and coolant.

you are old enough to do it so do it and then do it some more until you can do it right over and over.

[mikajo39]

Its tough BUT HANG IN THERE! My truck is pretty much torn down right now new drivline and everything waiting to go in, and sometimes I look at it and go "how on earth am I going to get this thing running again" but sometimes you just got to take a break for a day or two, plans things out,organize, have a strong cup of black coffee and git er' done!

[VDOG]

I've been working on mine for over 10 years, and most of the work has been done over the last 2 years, and I got you in age by 30 years or more. My point, take your time, I know you want to drive it to school.
Make a list, of what needs to be done first. I see you have your suspension done, its lowered, and do you have good brakes? Dont worry about looks right now, get it running where it will start up and be reliable everyday. Then go to your looks, cause it sounds like your going to drive this to school.
And if you have question, submit constantly to the board, someone will give some advice.

[big mike71]

I don't know why Highwayhum72 had to insult you by calling little man, But you're to young to lose your will. I probably sound like your dad but if all you have to worry about is your truck and college you got it made.

[my67chevytruck]

Dylan,

Wish you were not soo far away, I would give you a hand ...... Keep your Chin up!

[Shyguy]

What works for me is when I first get an old truck I work on getting it roadworthy, licensed and insured.

Then I drive it a while and decide which direction I want to go on it and start gathering parts.

Usually cosmetics is the last thing I worry about.

I don't know why but I can not stand to have either one of my trucks undriveable for any length of time.

I am lucky because I have some one that lives close by to help me when I hit a snag when working on the trucks.

The guys and gals on this forum will be happy to give you what ever advice they can.

Danny

[jamieg]

busted knuckles

tested patience

an empty wallet

if its got tits or tires it will leave you with these predicaments. After all the blood sweat and tears when your sitting in a drive through just trying to get a coffee and you keep getting people running up to you to say how nice your ride is, it makes all that work worth it.

just please dont ask for advice on the woman part of this post LOL as i am clueless, or at least thats what my wife says daily

[*Dylan]

Thanks for all the kind words of encouragement guys, it means a lot to me! I think the main thing that's getting to me is I've had it this long and I've been trying to get the old 250 I had to run right and nothing we did made it run right. So, we're going to get a new 250 tomorrow and hopefully that will solve my problems and help me crest this hill.

I figure after I get to drive it and hear it run decent for that first time it will all be downhill from there as my suspension is completely done. Once it starts running good I'll just enjoy it and do the bodywork later.

Again, I really appreciate all of the kind words you guys are giving me!

[ChevLoRay]

I feel your pain....

My truck is disassembled. 'Nuff said about that.

So, I went to a swap meet to get some inspiration. Here's one pic that I took that made me want to get mine finished.