Driving "Miss Daisy" - 68 SWB Stepper

[NoNeck]

Well guys, my son Chad (CC69Rat) and I bit the bullet and bought a 1968 C10 short step side from some nice folks up in Wears Valley, Tennessee. If someone else on the forums has used the title "Miss Daisy" for their truck before, I apologize. But, this truck kind of fits the profile.

I am 61 years old, an unemployed Graphic Designer with a BA in Graphic Design from Ringling School of Art in Sarasota, Florida. My company replaced my 32 years experience with a couple of Technical College kids... making much less than I earned. And, no one wants to hire a 61 year old these days. So, to make good use of my "forced retirement", I will be spending my time trying to bring this old truck back to life.

The truck had been in the same family for many years and was used to get their son back and forth to school until a couple of years ago. They said that this truck was the only vehicle he had owned that didn't leave him stranded. He lost interest, and the truck sat completely hidden in thick brush and trees at the base of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

If there had been a barn nearby, you could actually classify it as a true "Barn Find". We thought it was a pretty cool truck, so we worked out a deal.

It is pretty solid except for the usual cab corners and rockers. It has a 327 engine with a newly rebuilt Muncie 4 speed transmission. I'm not sure if it is an M-20, M-21, or M-22... I will check the numbers once I get it in the air so I can decipher the numbers. It has the spare tire mounted behind the cab, which I think is kind of "old school".

All we know for sure is it that it ran really well, and trans shifted like silk with absolutely no slop in the Hurst shifter. The truck was originally three on the tree. The brakes were soft, but I will be going through the system to make sure this old girl stops as good as it runs.

I will update at various stages, so... stay tuned!

Thanks guys. NoNeck