My new toy (long story)

[cypress TX 72]

I know you guys will appreciate this story:
Monday night my buddy and I went to Dallas (we live in Houston) for a meeting early Tuesday AM. On the way around Corsicanna, I see a 4X4 K5 off the side of I-45 for sale. It was about 1:00 in the morning so I didn't stop to ask about it, but I figured I would stop on my way back and see how much he wanted for it, and see what shape it was in..
Well the next day we attend our meeting, then we set out for home, I almost forgot to stop, but then I seen it, there in the same spot as the night before.
We pull in and start looking at it, and inspecting every inch as I know you guys do. This truck was in bad, bad shape... The DS floor board was completely gone and had a piece of plywood in its place. the carb had mud dobber nests in the secondaries and there was no rubber under the hood, I mean no hoses, no vacuum lines, no wires no nothing.... we won't even get into the interior... I would never say that one of these trucks is ready for the scrapper, but this one was UNREPAIRABLE - Period.
Just as we were getting into my 72 Cheyenne Super to continue the jouney home, the owner comes driving up and blocks us in.
I tell him we were just looking (I didn't want to hurt his feelings) and that I look at every one I see.. Well he asks if I am in to old trucks and muscle cars.. after my obvious answer, he says that his son is selling an old yellow car "but I aint sure what make it is, Im thinken its a chevrolet" he says.
well we figure what the hell, right we've gone this far. So we follow him to his house about a quarter mile down this dirt road that we are on, to his barn/shop that is surrounded by un-running and junk farm equipment.
He honks his horn and his son comes out of the house to meet us at the front of the barn... The old man tells the boy that we want to see his car thats for sale.
The son is probably about 25 - 29 and is a slight more educated than his ol man, and turns out to be a gear head like us. He starts to tell me about the car he has for sale as he is un-doing the latch that opens the bar..
Boys -- I almost soiled my shorts when I saw what he was talking about.
1972 Chevelle Super Sport - Canary Yellow with Black SS strips.

The young man went on to tell me that he purchased this car from a Decon at his church, and that the Decon was the original owner. He tells me that he has all the papers on the car and every reciept for everything ever done to this car. He tells me that he has the protecto plate and that the decon had been filing all the records to Chevrolet until they stopped the Protecto plate program.

Now, I wish I could tell you that it was one of those stories were the little ol lady didn't know what they had and she let me have it for $200 - But this guy knew exactly what he had. But he was selling it (wait until you hear this)
because he needed the money to post bail for his Mother and his girl friend !!!
---- Can you believe that.
I didn't ask -- or I would tell you..
Well after telling me how much the car was worth, and how much the Earl Shives paint job that he put on it.. he wanted 15,000 for it.
I told him that I would give him 7,500 cash, in less than 3hrs. (Time to get back to Dallas and the Bank)
Well after he stopped laughing, and he could talk again, we went back and forth, until we settled on $8,000, an old 350 long block that I had in storage, a cap for his K5, (that was not in good shape, but better than his) and that I would pick up 2 Bucket seats that he had bought on ebay and were in Houston and bring them back when I bring the rest of the stuff and the money.

I went home got the money, loaded my car hauler with the crap I gave him, went and picked up his seats, and headed out.

This 1972 Chevrolet Chevelle Documented SS now belongs to me.
and is in my garage.
And as far as I know his mother and girl friend are out on bail ???

This is an absolutly true story and stands as a testament that you should alway attempt to save any 67-72 chevrolet pickup, blazer or burb... you never know where it will take you...

After talking to alot of people about these cars it seems that the average cost for these: restored, but not show restored, should bring about 20 - 30K
Please tell me this is true.

Here is a picture of the car....