Very Very Very Rare 69 CST Shortbed

[bigvinnie]

I have no doubt that there's an "enthusiast" out there who's willing to build an entirely new truck around a big block and a 3 speed, cuz we all know there's plenty of people with more money than brains... using that logic, any pile of rust is "restorable", even though it's really not restoring when the final product only has 10% of its original parts...

One man's junk is another fool's treasure... a big block with a "tree" speed just ain't that cool IMHO... who will be first to start the bidding war for this "rough diamond"...???

If someone is so hung up on saving this truck for "chevy truck posterity", the only difference between rebuilding this rust bucket, and swapping the parts to another solid truck would be a whole lotta time and money...

Like they say, there's one born every minute...

[ky kowboy]

Thanks Guys

My turn to take the heat.

I felt the same way but didnt want to piss nobody off. Kinda makes me wanna fix it up now and say look here. You just don't find trucks everyday with these options at least around here. Talked to the old owner of the truck today. He reassured me that the vinyl top was original. Someone in his family bought the truck new and custom ordered the top. It came that way straight from GM. . Later they traded it in and he bought it. Seen another truck on ebay today with a vinyl top in which they claimed it to be original and I wouldn't doubt it. I would like to see the glove box on that one and see if it shows a vinyl top. Granted the top killed the cab but in my opinion makes the truck worth a whole lot more. Plus the guy I bought it from called today and said he has the 8-track player thet goes with it.

Seems like anytime there is a truck like this someone always wants to strip her down for parts. Sure you can always add these things to a plain jain truck but that truck would not be original. I guess it is whatever you want. Personally I like to see them look like they did from the factory and the more options it has the better.

Just my $.02.

[CPNE]

I think the initial dissent here was over the asking price of $2700 for what is either a major project or an excellent donor vehicle. It may be more than the market will bring, or at least that was my point. I'm not making this point in order to "steal" it from you as I have no way of transporting if I had the extra $$ to purchase. As a matter of fact if you do get $2700 fo it, God bless you and the free enterprise system!

I think everybody has made valid points here and I thank you for sharing such an interesting truck with us.

If it were me, I'd keep it and refurbish/rebuild what I could and put a new body on it from a donor vehicle/aftermarket parts. That's assuming that the frame is solid and you have the patience/skill/$$ to see it through. If not, it may be in your best interest to sell it as either a major project or parts donor. In that way it can at least bring other projects along.

If you do contemplate parting it piece-by-piece take this advise from someone who has done this with many trucks. You may end up with more total $$ than selling it whole but you have the added hassles of finding buyers, shipping, and disposing of the "carcass" once stripped.

Please let us know what you decide to do with it. I wish I had your dilemma!

[Gene]

Back to the vinyl top issue, if it's not listed on the option sheet it wasnt "factory" right? I am of the opinion that the top was added back in the 70's when they were popular by a dealer, or a dealer vendor. I think with all the knowledgeable people on this board when it comes to our trucks one of them would have known about this "rare" option. I hope it is some unknown rare option but I have my doubts.

[540 Stroker]

Originally posted by bigvinnie
I have no doubt that there's an "enthusiast" out there who's willing to build an entirely new truck around a big block and a 3 speed, cuz we all know there's plenty of people with more money than brains... using that logic, any pile of rust is "restorable", even though it's really not restoring when the final product only has 10% of its original parts...

One man's junk is another fool's treasure... a big block with a "tree" speed just ain't that cool IMHO... who will be first to start the bidding war for this "rough diamond"...???

If someone is so hung up on saving this truck for "chevy truck posterity", the only difference between rebuilding this rust bucket, and swapping the parts to another solid truck would be a whole lotta time and money...

Like they say, there's one born every minute...

Yeah it's rough, but it's not past the point where it can't be restored. Sure the parts and labor to fix the cancer will likely total more than the truck is worth on the market, but that's the way the restoration business is unless you're dealing with ultra rare or low production cars that can sell for thousands over the resto costs. If you've ever dealt with the musclecar restoration business/market you will know what I'm talking about. If not, you won't. More times than not owners restore "run of the mill" or common musclecars to showroom condition only to find themselves taking a hard hit in the wallet when they decide to sell and find out the market is below what they paid to restore the car. That's why there's two different types of people in this hobby. You have the people in the hobby for quick money and/or the investment potential and then there's the other people that are in it purely for the enjoyment of the cars/trucks. Anyways, the main reason I suggested he restore it rather than let it become parted out is because it's such a mutt/oddball. I've never seen a truck optioned like his before and that weirdness is a good reason to restore it. It would be a head scratcher at truck shows for sure.

[Maximum Overdrive]

The person who ordered the truck could have very well asked for a vinyl top and got it but it did not come from the factory that way. If it did it would be stated on the option tag. Dealers added on many things to these trucks and I'm more than sure a dealer would vinyl a top to make a sale.

Thousands of these trucks were produced and options were added to most of them. The trucks with lots of options are more an oddball then they are rare. The reason I say this is because short of actual dealership paperwork stating how it was ordered it is way too easy to produce a "rare" truck using any one of these trucks. There is really no way to verify if a rebuilt truck was fully optioned from the factory or not because there is no way to cross reference the options to anything but dealer paperwork. One could look at the option tag but nothing is to stop someone from printing up a new tag or taking a option tag and vin tag from a junker and putting it on another truck.

[JayDubBlazer]

I agree with the dealer option for the top. I have yet to hear of this option being a factory option. It is more than likely a dealer option just like the spot light on the window frame.

[JayDubBlazer]

I agree with the dealer option for the top. I have yet to hear of this option being a factory option. It is more than likely a dealer option just like the spot light on the window frame.

[Hardrock2]

Hi guys,

Just had to add more fuel to the fire! LOL!
What you have there is a truck that WAS a fairly rare optioned truck in it's day. But, like on alot of things, time has taken its toll!
As mentioned, these trucks can be "optioned" almost any way you want when being restored, so it's a safe bet that there are probably more '69 SWB BB CST's with A/C and buckets now than ever left the factory in '69! As far as the 3-speed thing, I had a '69 Bel-Air 4-door that left the factory with a 427,no A/C, or radio, and a 3 on the tree! Rare, but who wants one?? LOL!
I might be able to shed some light on the vinyl top mystery.
I have parted and or drove alot of these trucks, over the years, and have had, or know of a few with vinyl top trucks. Most , if not all, were high option trucks to begin with. Although I would have to agree with the guys here, this one has to be "dealer" or aftermarket installed.
ALL of the original vinyl top trucks I have seen were "SPRAYED-ON! Just like the factory vinyl top option on the same year FURDS.
I don't recall what the option # was on the glove box, (if any) and I have never seen this option listed in any sales or order literature, so all the sprayed on tops might be dealer items as well. I believe it was offered clear up until the '75 model year, as I owned a silver C-10 with a black sprayed vinyl top, and it DID have an option code in the glove box. Never have seen a TRUE (glued-on) vinyl top these years...........until now!
A good example of one of these sprayed on tops is on a truck that was on e-Bay a few months back. A Texas truck, I think. Gold, BB, LWB, short bumper guards,............rough shape, but mostly all there. It migh be the truck shown above.
At any rate, if you do decide to part it out, let me know. The sheetmetal looks to be shot, but if the paper (title, VIN) is clear, and the frame is straight, never been wrecked, I would be a buyer for the frame and gutted cab with paper.
Mike

[Hooter]

parting out rare vehicles really angers especially being a first gen Monte afficianado, too many Monte's have been parted out to make Chevelle's seem rarer than they are, but when you see that there were over 300 000+ plus Chevelles but only 100 000 montes made in 1970 you really see what the truley rare car is.

Keeping a rare original factory vehicle intact seems a lot more important then coneverting a plain jane custom 10 into a cst10 because these vehicles keep getting older and older and we owe it to ourselves to preserve these pieces of Americana as opposed to being greedy and try to make a cheap buck on a dash or headliner trim.

[VTKidder]

Cripes....there are far too many questions about this truck. My gut feeling on it is that it may be a hodge-podge job. Many of our senior members here have VAST knowledge of these trucks, and can answer the toughest questions in a heartbeat. Sometimes it scares me! This specs and options on this truck have stumped damn near everyone. The pisser about this truck is the documentation. Nearly everybody has been before by the guy that says "...thing's got a '70 Corvette BB in it..." only to find it's a 454 from a school bus. I'd trust this board a heck of a lot further than I'd trust the guy who sold you the truck. IF you could prove through numbers that yes, the 8 track player was factory, that the vinly top was dealer installed, that the BB was mated to a tree speed, etc., then I'd say to do anything you can to get this truck on the road. If you can't prove that everything is factory or dealer installed, then I'd just use it as a parts truck. The cab is junk. No tap-dancing around that. I thought mine was as bad as I've ever seen before I saw this one! Never seen rot in the upper door pillars before!

Again, IF you can prove that these options are factory, then indeed you do have probably the rarest CST out there. As I see it, about the only way to come close to making your money back restoring this truck is to do one of those "$30k invested in recent frame-off" restorations, get the truck looking showroom fresh, and assuming options are factory, hope you find someone with a chubby for these trucks that is willing to spend big money on a rare truck. If not, that, cut your losses. My $0.02.

[VTKidder]

Oh....forgot. Check with Captain Obvious first and look under the seat for the factory build sheet. Probably a longshot, but why not take a gander? That build sheet would be GOLD if you found it. I LOVE GOOOOOOLD!

[Hardrock2]

I hate to stir things, but can someone tell me what the difference is between replacing every single piece of sheetmetal on a truck such as this,....... and swapping all the options over to a solid shell? (besides a ton more hours and a truckload more money)

I understand the part about preserving the originality of these trucks. I'm all for that, but "original" to me means "THE ORIGINAL". There is absolutely no way this truck will ever be "ORIGINAL", if someone foolishly tries to restore it.
Fact is, very few of our trucks ARE "original".
If you were to replace EVERYTHING on it with parts from 12 different trucks, what would you have?? I don't see an original anymore, do you?
On the other hand, if you were to part it out, and put all the options on a solid truck of a similar vintage, you would at least, then, have a halfway original truck with "options added"
A far better value in my book.
And yes, this is a hobby, but, yes, it is also about money.
If you are one of the lucky few who can just spend endless amounts of money on anything that comes along, then it really wouldn't be too much of a loss to spend $15,000 on a truck that may end up being worth $7500.
The rest of us have to make wise investments. The rest of us DO make a buck or two on trim, parts, and other items to help finance our truck rebuilding endeavors, although I don't think it is all "fast bucks". I, for one, would offer no excuses as to how I wish to invest my money, or fund my projects.
I have no problem spending $15,000 to build a truck, if it's one that will be worth somewhere around $10,000 when I decide to sell it. Trucks like that are built on good, solid foundations to start with.
I hear alot of guys going on and on about numbers matching, correctness, originality, etc. That's fine, I like 100% stock truck too!............ If you've got a 25,000 mile creampuff that hasn't seen daylight in 30 years, then by all means, call around for days to find that "correct" silk screened AC fuel line, or that "correctly"
stamped alt. case!
I just hope we haven't taken our old truck hobby to the same level as the Corvette Clowns. If you have ever stood at a vendor's counter.... and listened to two 'Vette guys discuss in great detail, for hours on end, just exactly how many die marks are correct for a given year fuel tank strap, or watched them debate the number of knurled teeth in the outside edge if a radioknob, then you know where I'm coming from! LOL!
Our trucks are built, in most cases, to showcase our talents and abilities, our personal tastes, etc. But most of all to have FUN with and ENJOY!
Gotta agree with MO on this one!
I don't think it's time to call the Smithsonian, just yet.

Thanks for the vent,
Mike

[CPNE]

I have no doubt the drivetrain is original. It's what you got when you ticked off big block and did not tick off and optional tranny when ordering. At least in a 1/2 ton. It's simply a fact that most BB were ordered with the optional automatic tranny

[kxmotox247]

Dang...this is an interesting thread.

I have a 68' with a 396 and no power brakes. Is that rare???

[1970cstblazer]

I would fix it. I have seen a lot worse condition trucks restored, and it is after all a big block short wheelbase, which is the most desirable.

[67chevemall]

I 2nd that
Just fix it
Could have been all apart by now!!LOL