My 1973 C20 Fleetside 350 3/4 ton

[TheGreenCoyote]

Hello everyone. I'm new to the site but have been itching for a couple years to join and finally did. Thanks for the warm welcome!

I thought I would post a few photos of my '73 that I have owned since 2003. I am only the second owner. A great friend of mine named Ron sold me the truck. It just so happens that it is the same year model and color Chevy that my dad drove when I was just a boy. I remember it well. The original color was lime green & white combo.

The first owner had the truck repainted--a different green. It was obviously not an expensive paint job and it began oxidizing badly. In these photos you can see the 2nd green paint on the front of the cab.

I started a couple years back fixing my old '73 up a little at a time. I took the original bed off because someone had run into it while I was parked at the bar. I was working at the time...it totaled the other guy's vehicle but my green truck lived to see another day.

As strong as that old steel is it was easier for me just to find a newer bed ('87 I think) and install it. Unfortunately, while installing the newer bed, we damaged the back of the cab. Man, that hurt me to see the serious gouges we put in it. I have since fixed with some minor bodywork--that took me waaaay too long as a beginner.

Although I never drove very far I did use this truck as my daily driver. It's main duty was to haul kegs of beer and cases of liquor to the bar I managed.

There are only 147,000 original miles on it. I think it used to take a few trips to Las Vegas and back. I lived in Southern California at the time and that is where I bought it.

These pics include pre-bed-install while I was painting the back frame portion with Rust Bullet. That stuff is some heavy material to work with but I think it will provide some good protection.

Almost everything is original. I have replaced the U-joins recently, repaired the radiator, replaced the front brake calipers and pads, replaced the left valve cover (I'm in the process of tightening rocker arms), and I've done lots of sanding and priming!

I have chosen to go with a color called "Rescue Green Metallic" which was color offered on Jeeps recently. I wanted to keep the original green "vibe" but give it an updated look.

I will followup with lots more pics! Any comments are much appreciated.

[Driveway Dreams]

Cool truck! The Rescue Green will work well on there.

[zimmstoy]

I dig it. Nice ride!

[TheGreenCoyote]

Thanks for the nice feedback! In order to keep me motivated AND protect the back of the cab and front of the new bed I went ahead and used the relatively expensive Rescue Green paint that I bought from TCP Global. I think it is going to look great when it is done. By the way, I had to spend hours on fixing the dents and gouges on the back of the cab caused by the old bed catching on the cab while we tried to remove it.

[TheGreenCoyote]

Here are some shots of the newer bed I put on my '73 and after I installed it. It only took three of us to lower it down safely on to the frame but once again we did some damage to the back of the cab. Not nearly as bad this time. It will be easy to fix now that I have days and days of experience with fixing it the first time around.

[TheGreenCoyote]

Updated photo. I stripped off most of the old paint. Added body filler here and there where needed. Lots and lots of sanding. Finally covered most of the truck with TCP's DTM epoxy primer. Next step will be some more body filler and then 2K high-build primer. Still planning on Rescue Green Metallic for color. I know I know. Should have masked off the windows and the tires. Believe me, once this epoxy sets on the windows it is TOUGH to remove it.