Rebirth of "The Heartbeat"

[Colorado K15]

Hi Everyone,

First of all wanted to say I am looking forward to being a member of the forum. I have been browsing for awhile and have found tons of useful information, and believe me I am going to need it.

So without further ado...

This truck is a 1971 GMC K1500, 4x4 SWB. My dad bought me this truck when I was 16, and with the exception of my little brother driving for a couple of years while I was gone to college, it has been mine ever since.

I have recently decided to start restoring it, which I am finding out is going to be a very big challenge. It has a rebuilt 350, and it ran well when it was parked about 7 years ago.

I have been working on it for about the past month. I started off repairing the power steering with a new pump and steering box. It now works better than it ever has. So that was my first restoration victory.

I have started working on repairing the brakes (new pistons, calipers, and pads up front. New shoes, springs and wheel cylinders in the rear). I also replaced the power brake booster and master cylinder. I have bled the brakes several times and am having difficulty getting the brakes back to as good as they were before (any advice would be welcomed).

My goal for now is not to make this a show truck, but to make it a solid daily driver, that doesn't look too bad. I am thinking about trying to paint it myself, although I have no experience doing so.

Thanks for looking, I'll be talking to you!