K20 basket case resurrection

[Osker]

What's up everybody,

Here it goes.....While parts hunting on Craigslist I came across a ’72 K20. I had always wanted a K series and a few weeks before seeing this ad I had actually almost bought a K10 that was down the road from me. It was a running truck, but the price was too high for the condition in my opinion, and the seller wouldn’t budge so I moved on. In the meantime, I had sold my motorcycle a Suzuki SV650 and increased my available budget. The K20 showed up and I decided to take a look and ended up buying it. There was no one sane reason for buying it except that these trucks are cool, the price was right, and why not? That's three great reasons.

The last time was registered was in 2001. The truck had been disassembled about 11 years ago. All the major parts were still “there” and most of the smaller items bagged and boxed and had been stored in the previous owner’s (PO’s) shop. The truck came with the engine, trans and transfer case. Only major part missing was the windshield because PO said he broke it when taking it out. The truck had sat outside for a couple of winters and the PO decided it was time to let it go since he was interested in some other projects. The truck had been his fathers-in-law at one point, and he had bought it from him.

The cab was decent on initial inspection. First once over showed it needing driver side rocker and cab corner and floor panels. Passenger side was “completed” by the PO and looked OK. The overall value for me was in the running gear and the frame. The fenders were in good shape and the bedsides were not too bad either. The bed floor was rusty and so was the tailgate. I liked the fact that the tuck was stripped down, and the parts boxed up. I realized there could be little things missing as I work through the project, but the PO appeared organized with the teardown and storing of the parts. I paid the PO, we signed the title and set a date to return the next weekend to pick up the truck. I took as many boxes as possible and totes worth of parts that I could and would get the rest next weekend along with the rolling hulk.

All the boxes and totes I brought home I inventoried and wrote down what I had. I figured if did that I could refer to the list later and help figure out what I needed to find that was missing as I got to the point in time when whatever it is, I’m looking for needs to get back on the truck. Parts will sit in boxes for a long time and I will forget what I saw before I stash it away again.

My goal is to get back into running condition as a capable daily driver and use it as a truck. It will stay blue and maybe a slight lift, wood bed and stock wheels unless I find something I really like. Since it’s a basket case I’m not going to be a purist. I’ll keep it within the realm of possibility for the era, but I am not opposed to building it like I want it to be. I’m decent with and turning a wrench. I have had a C10 in the past and have another one now, but they were/are running trucks. I have not undertaken a project of this magnitude like this ever, but I am willing.

This board has been a great resource to me that I wanted to contribute to the content and document the journey. Maybe something I show will help someone else just like all the posts here have helped me. In addition, I will appreciate some advice and wisdom from those that have prior experience to keep me motivated and learning.