47-59 49 Suburban

[d4hartley]

This is the start of a not so budget build 49 suburban. I sold my 72 c10 to help finance this new project and couldn't be more happy.

Bought out of North Carolina. It was used as a school bus in Alabama at some point in it's life then went to North Carolina where I picked it up as a roller. Only seats it has is the front seats and a gross seat out of a van. I had to rent a uhaul trailer so I got creative and ended up chaining an ATV winch to the trailer and using a snatch block to get it loaded.





Got it home, removed seats, gauges, glovebox, old wiring to clean and brush so I can apply por15 and sound deadening. No major rust on the floors or dash other than surface rust which the wire brush took care of. You can see in one of the pictures I wire brushed around the floor compartment and it looks much better than the floor where I didn't. The wood floor in the back is in good shape. I'm just not sure on what direction I want to go with it yet to protect it and make it look a little better so I'm open for ideas. Need to find a few glass pieces at some point since they were used for target practice.









Also found a cool license plate topper with it I plan on putting on when done.


Drivetrain and suspension wise it has an open rear end which I have no idea what it's from and can't find any stamped numbers. See picture down below. I was going to keep it stock suspension and ls swap but realized quickly it wouldn't work/safe so I ordered the speedway bolt in mustang ii kit. Picked up a 5.3/4l60e from an avalanche that will be put in. Hoping to have more pictures along the way as I install everything. I'm just going to redo the stock harness and an ignition control panel I'll hide somewhere. I do need to source a gas tank that will work with it also and a floor shifter that won't break the bank.




UPS guy dropped off the speedway kit today and I had to make room for all the boxes it came in. Also was able to pull front clip before the rain started.





The only real problem spot body wise is the seam where it meets the roof. The lead filler is cracking and causing holes. Not sure how to repair that just yet. Other than that just small spots in front fenders and running boards.





It looks really good in the rain when it makes it shine. Wished it looked like this all the time but body and paint are almost last on the list.