Newbie: red flags when shopping

[afterglow]

I'm going to be taking a look at a 69 Stepside in the next few days. Owner says it has no rust, complete, discs and coils on all corners, tilt wheel.

I'm a newbie and would like to know what should I look out for in terms of problem areas. I've been needing a parts hauler for a while but the plan is to shave and slam, nice wood bed, custom paint and full custom interior.

[cdowns]

WELCOME TO THE BOARD

a 69 with discs is a modifyed truck they only came with drum brakes so check that the front and rear axels have the same bolt pattern and also check to see if they work properly in a panic stop// NO RUST i've seen some norust owners that alto theres huge gapping holes from cancer still look you in the eye and tell you how solid it is// basically its like buying any 40 yearold vehicle expect the worse ask questions and if they cant show reciepts for stuff they claim to have had done chances are its a story// just needs a good tuneup usually means in a thousand miles or less you get to replace the engine ETC ETC

[wibilly]

make sure you crawl under it and look at the inner rockers , cab suppurts and floor pans. lookk real close at the kick panels and below the bottom door hindges. also look at the inner roof around the windshield rubber. i'm not saying there is not any no rust trucks of this vintage but there is not many that have not been patched up. it's a matter of the workmenship on the ones that have been patched. as was stated before 69's did not come with disk brakes so ask ?s find out what parts were used to convert and check bolt patterns on the wheels you don't want to have two carry two spares

[crzngmychvy]

Welcome from socal!

[shifty]

what they said ^^

except i want to add something.

look under the battery tray, the radiator support and inner fender rusth there frequently.

knock on the rear cab corners and see if they sound solid (i.e. filler was used) or if they sound hollow.

reach inside the rear cab corners to feel for rust. expect to find other stuff.

[xshadow]

I've gone to look at very little rust or no rust trucks. Its almost amazing. I understand that someone can say it's a beuatiful color, and when I look at it I hate the color. but rust isn't an opinion it has it or it doesn't. I was looking at two gmc project trucks. while the guy was showing me the trucks telling me it has no rust I was looking at rusted holes and very very very noticable bodo. as if it was never sanded. he was saying perfect bed and it had gapping holes or one long hole above the wheels. the other "rust free truck's" cab was shot. No really not worth trying to fix.
Then again I went to look at a "rust bucket" for 100 bucks. It had a solid floor with some signs of rust just starting on the rockers. only very minor surface rust in a couple places on the bed. BUT the wood bed was rotted. There were places with no wood. When I got there he pointed out the inside of the bed and said how bad the rust was on the floor and you could see all the way to the ground......I didn't know wood could rust like that (lol) I didn't try to talk him down and snatched it up.
both doors were gool also. A nice find for trucks rust here in VA.

[72armyswbtruck]

Take a magnet with you, put it on the cab corners, the rockers, the front fenders, over the wheel wells, look under the turkc ont he floor and cab supports etc. Good luck and get us some pics.

[chris71]

dont forget the tailgate. from what i have heard new tailgates are pricey and dont fit right and lack strength, used good tailgates are pricey and hard to find. look at the bottom of the gate

[stllookn]

Well...GM never coated the inside of the rockers, a-b pillars or roof panels so they all have rust...it's just a matter of wheter or not it has shown up yet! I am very skeptical after having restored several apparently "rust free" cabs! Unless it has the original faded paint...expect the worst. Get under the cab and check the two cab supports on either side and the inner rockers. Push a small thin knife or stiff wire into the drain vents on the bottom edge of the rockers until you see the rust come out...it will happen. Pull down the seal on the windshield on the inside to check the rust around the windshield opening on top. Check to see if the drip rail sealer is cracked. Check the firewall and see if there is any rust coming through on top. Check the kick panels on either side to see if the vertical spot weld joints are starting to swell (rust under them). Those are the expensive and troubling areas to fix if you don't have welding and restoration experience.

Ooops sorry wibilly...did not read your post.