First build

[chevycheetah]

So my first post on the forum will be about my first ever build, or full true build anyway. I don't have too many pictures to post but I will take some more later tonight and post them so y'all can see.
Is there any good advice on where to start, etc? I will need to totally redo the brake lines and most likely the brake lines (which I just did on my '07), some electrical work to get the engine cranking, and I have to replace a U-joint; however (though I am skeptical) the guy I bought the truck off of still remains adamant that it will start up without a problem. I opened up the engine and noticed the valves are a little burnt and will need to be redone at some point but aside from that I'm fairly impressed with the engine.
The floor pans have this truck looking like it could be a flintstones truck soon. Whats the best option to replace these? I looked into ordering online but freight charges to my house are $175 which I will not pay just to get some metal for a floor. I was thinking of cutting up an old welding table I have and using that? Any issues going to come along? It's stainless steel and in good shape. Aside from the bed, floor pans, cab corners, rocker panels, and the lower half of the doors, the rust isn't too bad.
Sorry for the inane rambling that probably did not make much sense as well, I'm a little out of my mind sometimes

[chevycheetah]

Here are some pics of what I am working with

[chevycheetah]

And some more:

[KY_GMC]

Welcome to the board!

You are just down the road from me!

It looks like you have a lot of work ahead of you, just to get things sorted out.

The first thing to do is decide on what your plans are, total frame off, or just fix the major stuff and get it moving again. Then make a plan on what to attack first.

As far as parts, Inline tube makes some quality brake lines that are pre-bent and far easier to install than make your own.

Download the service manual from the FAQ's so that you have a reference to go by for mechanical and electrical issues.

For sheet metal, it is best to by the pieces you need at one time to save on shipping. Another option is to hit up KOI Auto Parts and see if you can order them and them pick them up at a store. May save on shipping charges.

For the drive line, I took my complete two piece assembly down to Cincinnati Drive Line downtown and they rebuild the whole thing with new u-joints and center bearing, balanced and painted it for around $200! Best money I spent on the whole project!

I've got some leftover parts from my build (see link in my signature) that I will be putting up for sale in the classifieds soon. PM me with your needs and if I have what you need, we can work something out.

Good luck!

[chevycheetah]

As far as whether or not to do a frame on or frame off, I've been very conflicted. I am thinking of keeping the frame on and do as much as possible like that BUT I am thinking of taking the bed off anyway because it has so many rust holes, it may not even be worth keeping on there but I don't know. The entire bed floor is riddled with holes and some of the supports have rusted to the point of falling apart so it may be wiser to use my wood working skills and come up with something unique rather than fix it.
I was going to start with the brakes and drive line, then up to the engine to fix the electrical problems. The guy I bought it from started it the day before he brought it to me with a battery off his diesel truck... Needless to say, these wires couldn't quite handle the charge and got fried pretty good. This should be an easy-ish fix from what I can tell.
My main confliction is whether to leave the dash in or go through the trouble of taking it out; I've not taken a dash entirely out but the last time I got close it was a royal pain in the arse
Is there any easy way to fix the floor pans? Would it be smarter/ easier to take the cab off the frame?

[swamp rat]

Taking the bed off is easy and i would recommend it, it looks pretty rusty, it should be taken apart and all the parts blasted, rust repaired as necessary and primed with 2K. Judging from the pic i think the amount of rust on the floor and where it bolts to the bedsides you may be looking for another floor.

The cab, most of the repair can be done on the frame, but depending on if the cab supports need replaced then the cab mounts need to be unbolted anyway, its easier to do the floor repair with the cab off the frame and on a dolly where you can tip the cab over for better access, it just depends on how much rust damage there is.

The front fenders hood and cowl need to be removed to do the rust replacement, the areas below the cowl need to be addressed.

The freight is for a complete floor pan, there are replacement panels available that would amount to just UPS shipping and not the $175 freight. Even a complete floor pan will have to be fitted, it won't be perfect, but it can save some time. I would do a little research to see if there is a parts place near enough to you that you could drive there and pick up the floor pan to save the shipping.

So my take is get it running, get the brakes working first, get it drivable. While your doing that start reading thru other builds , learn what these guys are doing, learn about the truck, learn about how the body is taken apart and put back together, figure out what is involved and then ask yourself if you have the time and money, or the ability to tackle what your truck needs done.