It Followed me home......

[Gary66]

ok- well i found my old truck- lost for about 6 years... really long story. in a nutshell it ended up on a trailer today-- 98 freakin degrees outside- 283 350 turbo- floors patched, new rockers and cabcorners- alot of extra parts- doors tailgate, interior parts etc- needs glass front and read- and i also could use a set of fenders- steel or glass if anyone has them and is (reasonably) close by for pickup= anyway here are a couple of shots i took when i got it home on the trailer- plans: well get it running and driving again hookup all the wiring *it has a new harness* it is lowered has disk brakes on the front, 5 lug all the way around- gonna be a fun little project- needless to say my wife is THRILLED!!lol

[1985-GMC]

That's pretty cool you got your old truck back. 98 degrees that must be nice, almost like springtime!

[Gary66]

Originally Posted by 1985-GMC

That's pretty cool you got your old truck back. 98 degrees that must be nice, almost like springtime!

yeah spring time with 110% HUMIDITY

[likaroc13]

cool, good luck with it...and if this is your old truck, tell us the story

[Sillyoldman]

Nice deal. I wish you were closer. I have a set of F-Glass fenders but shipping would be a killer.

[Gary66]

ok it all started in 1994. i had a 65 SWB small back window. i got mad and sold it. fast forward 1999 a buddy of mine called me said he had a 66 fleetside BBW for sale and he needed cash. Off to Arkansas i went. super solid truck lots of extra parts factory steering assist, A/C A/T- solid truck. so OFF to the body shop it went. Half *$* upfront. no problem- the guy had painted a 72 chevelle for me a couple years earlier so i THOUGHT it would be a good job. *WRONG* 19 months later- truck had been sand blasted bondo'D and left outside- i guess i should have checked on it more often. so the guy calls me up wanting more money- i show up to look at it and i almost cried- my vintage air was missing, NOS parts GONE- intake and carb GONE-needless to say i was not happy. i asked where my parts went and he blamed it on his brother. so i get a trailer take what is left of my truck and take it to my Dad's barn. Shortly after, i get married. truck gets put on back burner- i buy a couple more 65's and a 66 for parts- thinking i would "get right on it"........so my Dad sells my parts truck, and the guy that came to pick it up helps himself to some of my goodies stuck back. Dad brings me by some $$ said a guy wanted my parts truck- i say OK- the guy paid $250 more for the parts truck than i had bought it for so I thought good deal- UNTIL i find out the guy stole some of my parts. Frustration again. so my Dad sells his place- i have to find storage- i end up selling the other trucks and retain "old Faithfull" so I put Old Faithfull at my Dad's new barn- inside in the dry with the parts in the bed- So time moves on- now have kids- so i go out to my Dads house in the barn... look for old Faithfull... not there...hmmm look outside it is in the weeds no tarp, no cover, glass broke out. i think OMG... now pissed off, a couple days later i get a call from a guy, saw ur old truck in a field talked to ur dad. yadda yadda. he makes an offer- i take it- Fast Forward 5 years-So on Monday my Dad calls- says hey- i saw your old truck behind this old house.. I go and look SURE ENOUGH there is old faithful- the guy that bought it- put the suspension stuff i had on it- rebuild the motor and trans, and changed out the hood- and then put it OUTSIDE- so i talked to the lady at the house- the guy that bought it died- the son did not want it so i got it back for her asking price which was 500 cheaper than i had sold it- SO now i have Old Faithfull sitting in the garage. looking at her- i am going to drain the gas, change the filters, check the oil and antifreeze and see if i can get her started this weekend. i am needing front and rear glass- a little exhaust hooked up- i need a better set of front fenders, some nuts and bolts to put things back together- some carpet- and i think i will be on the road-

[Gary66]

Moral of the Story... DON'T LEAVE YOU TRUCK AT YOUR DADS!

[WellBilt Kustoms]

Originally Posted by Gary66

ok it all started in 1994. i had a 65 SWB small back window. i got mad and sold it. fast forward 1999 a buddy of mine called me said he had a 66 fleetside BBW for sale and he needed cash. Off to Arkansas i went. super solid truck lots of extra parts factory steering assist, A/C A/T- solid truck. so OFF to the body shop it went. Half *$* upfront. no problem- the guy had painted a 72 chevelle for me a couple years earlier so i THOUGHT it would be a good job. *WRONG* 19 months later- truck had been sand blasted bondo'D and left outside- i guess i should have checked on it more often. so the guy calls me up wanting more money- i show up to look at it and i almost cried- my vintage air was missing, NOS parts GONE- intake and carb GONE-needless to say i was not happy. i asked where my parts went and he blamed it on his brother. so i get a trailer take what is left of my truck and take it to my Dad's barn. Shortly after, i get married. truck gets put on back burner- i buy a couple more 65's and a 66 for parts- thinking i would "get right on it"........so my Dad sells my parts truck, and the guy that came to pick it up helps himself to some of my goodies stuck back. Dad brings me by some $$ said a guy wanted my parts truck- i say OK- the guy paid $250 more for the parts truck than i had bought it for so I thought good deal- UNTIL i find out the guy stole some of my parts. Frustration again. so my Dad sells his place- i have to find storage- i end up selling the other trucks and retain "old Faithfull" so I put Old Faithfull at my Dad's new barn- inside in the dry with the parts in the bed- So time moves on- now have kids- so i go out to my Dads house in the barn... look for old Faithfull... not there...hmmm look outside it is in the weeds no tarp, no cover, glass broke out. i think OMG... now pissed off, a couple days later i get a call from a guy, saw ur old truck in a field talked to ur dad. yadda yadda. he makes an offer- i take it- Fast Forward 5 years-So on Monday my Dad calls- says hey- i saw your old truck behind this old house.. I go and look SURE ENOUGH there is old faithful- the guy that bought it- put the suspension stuff i had on it- rebuild the motor and trans, and changed out the hood- and then put it OUTSIDE- so i talked to the lady at the house- the guy that bought it died- the son did not want it so i got it back for her asking price which was 500 cheaper than i had sold it- SO now i have Old Faithfull sitting in the garage. looking at her- i am going to drain the gas, change the filters, check the oil and antifreeze and see if i can get her started this weekend. i am needing front and rear glass- a little exhaust hooked up- i need a better set of front fenders, some nuts and bolts to put things back together- some carpet- and i think i will be on the road-

Cool story! Really happy for you that you got your original truck back! Bet you won't let her out of your sight this time huh? lol.

Keep us posted on the progress!!!

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by Gary66

Moral of the Story... DON'T LEAVE YOU TRUCK AT YOUR DADS!

true dat, lol....quite a story, but i'm glad u got "old faithful" back

[enick72]

Originally Posted by Gary66

Moral of the Story... DON'T LEAVE YOU TRUCK AT YOUR DADS!

Good to hear you got it back.

[andyh1956]

dude what a horror story! no tellin what $ that truck has cost , but at least you have it back. kinda like the story of the two boys in the mule business. every month they sold a mule, the same mule back & forth to each other. they marked the price up $10 each time they sold it. they were both making money! question- where / what kind of alt mount is on your 283? does it use a short or long water pump? thanks!
andy

[REDNOSE65]

Man!!! That was alot to read.
Glad you got it back though. Sounds like it's in good hands now.
Keep us posted.

[Gary66]

Originally Posted by andyh1956

dude what a horror story! no tellin what $ that truck has cost , but at least you have it back. kinda like the story of the two boys in the mule business. every month they sold a mule, the same mule back & forth to each other. they marked the price up $10 each time they sold it. they were both making money! question- where / what kind of alt mount is on your 283? does it use a short or long water pump? thanks!
andy

yeah there has been some cash put into it- that is an understatment- BUT- with a little TLC and some time...oh and more money- lol- i should have it started rumbling by Tuesday- i hope=

[Captainfab]

That alternator mount is an aftermarket mount marketed towards the streetrod guys. You will likely find that one or one similar from this guy...

http://www.alangrovecomponents.com

That is a short water pump.

Originally Posted by andyh1956

question- where / what kind of alt mount is on your 283? does it use a short or long water pump? thanks!
andy

[fryer1979]

Man, that was a rough go-around the first time, hopefully this one will go much smoother. Congrats on getting your old truck back though, many will never be so fortunate.

[Gary66]

Originally Posted by Captainfab

That alternator mount is an aftermarket mount marketed towards the streetrod guys. You will likely find that one or one similar from this guy...

http://www.alangrovecomponents.com

That is a short water pump.

yes AlanGrove is where i got it- great ppl to deal with!!

[markeb01]

What a saga! Sure hope you have better luck this time. Look forward to the progress updates.

[Gary66]

So, Today i thought was going to be a GREAT day. wrong. i go to the garage and start checking things out on the truck- the idea was to get it started today- so- drained the gas- no problem, looked at the filter, and it looked good- checked the radiator- could not see any fluid- thought ok- i will take the hose off of the bottom and drain whatever is left- took off the hose- nothing- hmm i though ok- lets take off the water neck and check the thermostat-and i found RUST- ??? i thought so=took off the heater hoses-= found more rust- the powdered kind- i thought well maybe it is from the steel water neck- trying to keep positive- so got the thermostat out and flushed it with water- 15 gallons or so- looked ok- cleaned up no dirty water so i was relieved- put in a new battery- tried to turn the motor over by hand and it didnt turn over- i thought well maybe it needs a little help= so i bumped the switch and it turned over a little- put jumper cables on it incase the battery was a little week- no better- so then i got out my big ole screwdriver and headed for the flywheel- needless to say that did not work- so with flashlight in hand i started to look around- and THERE IT WAS- a crack in the block right above the starter!!!!!to needless to say my day is ruined and i am out some $$$$$ now have a truck that wont run-= needs a new motor= so what do i do sell it for parts- it has a great frame and alot of parts- there are some good parts on the motor= edelbrock carb and intake- ac and alt brackets- aluminum pullies, HEI, new starter, just a cracked block! GRRRRRR maybe i should just sell it and buy something that is already finished!~ needless to say i am Very discouraged-- anyone want a truck?

[Bugeyev8]

just get a new SBC engine, they are cheap and easy to find, other than the engine I would not let that stop you from building the truck, looks like a great truck, keep with it !!

[Captainfab]

A bad engine isn't the end of the world even though it may seem that way to you right now. It sounds like you've got some decent top end parts to work with, so all you need is a good running short block. There must be some small block Chevy's to choose from in your area? The small block was used from 1955 thru 1999 (02 for vans) so there's millions of them out there. What about wrecking yards, or Craigslist? You don't have to have a new engine if it isn't in the budget, just a decent running one.

[fryer1979]

A replacement engine can be a lot cheaper than a lot of the body work that is common to most trucks of this age. A cracked block is a bummer no doubt, but no reason to abandon a project. I'm pretty sure a 283 is still the standard small block configuration, so a runner (305ci or 350ci) can be found at local salvage yards for a couple hundred fairly easily (especially if you can pull it yourself). Rebuilts are pretty comon and available through any auto parts retailer, some even come with very reasonable warranties. And of course there are quite a few options on brand new "crate" engines. There is all kinds of options for all types of budgets, don't get too discouraged, it is only a minor setback in the grand scheme of things. Keep your head up and the wrenches turning.