1971 K10 Stepside - Getting a Roller Roadworthy

[pjmoreland]

I've been looking for a 115" wheelbase K10 at a reasonable price and in need of rehabilitation for a while now. I bought this one locally from a woman who owns a body shop. It appears to me that she and her husband were buying and restoring classic trucks as part of their business. Sadly, her husband, who was young, passed away recently, so she is selling off some vehicles. I hauled it home a few days ago.

The truck is stripped down pretty far. It has no engine, transmission, transfer case or driveshafts. The body, however, appears to have no rust holes anywhere, and that's the main reason I decided to go for it. A Chevy Truck Red Book I've got says there were 1438 of these short wheelbase stepside K10s build in 1971, so it's definitely worth keeping.

My initial plan is to focus just on getting it roadworthy. I'm also going to undo the crazy high lift it's got right now. It's got a 4" body lift, and the leaf brackets have been welded to the frame with sections of box tubing between them and the frame. I will be grinding all of that off so that the brackets can be reinstalled in their original locations.

My plan is to find an NV4500 transmission and an NP205 transfer case. I've got a used l31 Vortec 350 that's in decent condition that I'm going to throw in it. The one bummer is that I'll have to install an electric fuel pump since the l31 block isn't machined for a mechanical pump.

It's going to be a bit slow going at first because I have some other projects I need to finish up. The transmission is removed from my '68 stepside right now, and I'm going to be rebuilding the 4L60 transmission in my '89 over the next couple of weeks.

I ordered a windshield yesterday so that I can get the cab sealed up before the rain comes.

[pjmoreland]

It hasn't been on the road since 2001. The VIN tag, the partial VIN on the frame, the VIN on the SPID and the VIN on the door sticker all match, which will be nice when it comes time to get a VIN verification at the DMV.

[pjmoreland]

Air brakes

[68bowtie]

I like the truck, and good plan.

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by 68bowtie

I like the truck, and good plan.

Thanks. I'm on the fence about going with an NV4500. An SM465 with big tires and 3.73 gears would probably be just fine on the freeway.

[jerry moss]

Pat,
my old 69 K10 that i restored back in 95 had a 350, 465, 205 combination with 3:07 gears with 35 inch tires and on flat ground it got 18+ mpg, in the mountains i seldom used 4th gear pulling hills but off road in 4low first gear it would crawl fine.
looks like a solid project and a good plan you have.

[pjmoreland]

Originally Posted by jerry moss

Pat,
my old 69 K10 that i restored back in 95 had a 350, 465, 205 combination with 3:07 gears with 35 inch tires and on flat ground it got 18+ mpg, in the mountains i seldom used 4th gear pulling hills but off road in 4low first gear it would crawl fine.
looks like a solid project and a good plan you have.

That's impressive gas mileage. I'd be ecstatic if I got even close to that.