First Project & Intro

[TurnKey]

Hello everyone. My name is Nick and I'm completely new to this game but have been wanting to start a project for a while now. Got the wife on board and started my hunt for a cool truck to start with. After a couple deals fell through, a friend of mine told me that he had this '68 C20 that he sold to his parents new while working for a dealership when he was in college. It has stayed in his family ever since. His son's friend blew the engine while borrowing it, so it was completely rebuilt about 4 years ago. It's been sitting for the last 3 1/2 years. He gave it to me and I'm looking forward to getting her in to form. Like I said, I'm new to this so I'm sure I'll be around reading a lot and asking questions. I'll be picking it up on Saturday. So far all I know about it is that it has a 327 with a 4-speed manual tranny and a pretty decent rust hole in the upper windshield area (A-pillar?) And some rust in other places as well. It is also missing the tailgate, but you can't beat free.

[LockDoc]

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Looks like a good project. Just do some looking around for the parts and pieces you will need to do the repairs first. Then lay down a plan to get the work done. What it will take to repair the problem areas depends on how much of the work you can do yourself. Good luck on your project and do a lot of reading and asking questions.

Welcome!

LockDoc

[68bowtie]

welcome to the forum! neat truck. post some more pics when you pick it up, including one of the sticker in the glove box. what are the plans?

[flashed]

Welcome and you cant beat free.

[TurnKey]

Not completely sure of plans yet. It will be a slow project I'm sure. These 3 kids take too much of my money. Lol. It will definitely be lowered, just not sure how much yet. My Brother is shipping me a 400 small block i was going to use for something else, but i may throw it in this one for fun. We shall see. I'm really liking the pics of the other trucks in the threads that have been bagged so that is a possibility.

[68bowtie]

i hear that. i have 3 little ones too. had to sell my "project" because i had no time or money for a garage full of parts...

[El Dorado Jim]

Originally Posted by TurnKey

Hello everyone. My name is Nick and I'm completely new to this game but have been wanting to start a project for a while now. Got the wife on board and started my hunt for a cool truck to start with. After a couple deals fell through, a friend of mine told me that he had this '68 C20 that he sold to his parents new while working for a dealership when he was in college. It has stayed in his family ever since. His son's friend blew the engine while borrowing it, so it was completely rebuilt about 4 years ago. It's been sitting for the last 3 1/2 years. He gave it to me and I'm looking forward to getting her in to form. Like I said, I'm new to this so I'm sure I'll be around reading a lot and asking questions. I'll be picking it up on Saturday. So far all I know about it is that it has a 327 with a 4-speed manual tranny and a pretty decent rust hole in the upper windshield area (A-pillar?) And some rust in other places as well. It is also missing the tailgate, but you can't beat free.

Very nice truck, welcome and sooo cool that it was given to you,,,,,I buy alot of my parts from http://truckandcarshop.com/ they are in southern ,Ca have pretty good quality parts.....Jim

[Tinkermc]

Welcome to the Forum, You can't beat the price.

[alsriv2]

Can't beat the free part of the equation, but you will really like that 327 especially in front of a TH400 or one of the newer automatic transmissions. I suspect that paint color to be the 50th anniversary color combination so please post some pics of the interior and the SPID label inside the glovebox.
Enjoy your truck. Understand $ crunches and such, Make it reliable and safe to drive then tackle changes like engine swaps etc.

[Longhorn 70]

I'll give you 5 times what you paid for it .

Welcome. Looks like a nice project and it'll be great fun and a lot of rewarding work too.

[TurnKey]

I will get more pics up as soon as I get her home. I plan on changing all the fluids since it's been sitting for a while, and then driving it when the weather is decent. It's got about 77k original miles. From what I've been reading, the current transmission is a Muncie M20. Does that sound right? I am pleased to see that parts are readily available. My last "project" was a 1980 Porsche 931. That thing was a nightmare when it came to parts.

[justin4260]

looks like the 50th anniversary paint definitely. need more pictures for sure

[crisisred]

looks like a fun project

and cool color

[TurnKey]

I've been trying to wait until I actually had the truck home, but this question is nagging at me. How will I go about fixing the rust "hole" at the top of the cab pillar in the picture. I don't know exactly what the "pillar" is called and I'm not having any luck searching online. Can a replacement be ordered and welded into place, or will I need to find another cab and steal from it? Thanks for all the help.

[flashed]

I think you will need a piece from a donor cab or make the patch panel yourself.

[TurnKey]

Went and picked up the truck yesterday. Going to change the oil and coolant today before installing the new battery and attempting to start it up. It's been sitting for a few years so we will see how it goes. I have quite a bit of body rust to deal with, but I'm in no hurry so I'll just fix it piece by piece. There is rust in Pretty much every body panel. Gotta love living on the coast.

[mechanicalman]

Originally Posted by TurnKey

I will get more pics up as soon as I get her home. I plan on changing all the fluids since it's been sitting for a while, and then driving it when the weather is decent. It's got about 77k original miles. From what I've been reading, the current transmission is a Muncie M20. Does that sound right? I am pleased to see that parts are readily available. My last "project" was a 1980 Porsche 931. That thing was a nightmare when it came to parts.

M20 is a wide-ration 4 speed from that takes a different type shifter than the "granny" 4 speed.

I doubt that it came from the factory with that but not 100% sure.

[mechanicalman]

Whatever rust you see on the outside if going to be worse when you tear into it, and that's an understatement. I would not start any repairs on the cab until you know what you are getting into.

I was going to say rip out the front carpet and see what's under it but not sure that's a good idea now. I'd get under it with some safety glasses on and probe what rust you can see from underneath before repairing anything.

I assume you have the title that matches the cab. If not, get a donor cab that comes with a title.

Otherwise get a donor cab and try to salvage the door jamb panel that holds the VIN plate. Then replace the rest of the cab as a whole and short-cut the labor and costs. You are best served either buying someone's un-finished project or traveling to a dry climate and finding a good cab. Lots here in AZ but so far away for a trailer trip. Guess it depends on how far away you are.

[mechanicalman]

While you are under there look over the frame as well. Try to get a good overall picture of the truck before you sink any money into it. Maybe a "parts truck" in your future.

[collin70k/20]

Good Luck on the upcoming project.

[TurnKey]

Just went out and tried to get it started. It will fire and run off of gas poured into the carb but dies right after that is gone. It's raining like crazy here so I'll find the fuel issue tomorrow. I will also be evaluating the rust and determining if it's worth fixing. Otherwise, I'll part her out and keep the motor for something else. We shall see.