K1's build thread

[k1rodeoboater]

Figured I spend enough time on this website I may as well create a build thread of my own to help me get ideas down and brainstorm with people...and also serve as motivation when it starts to dwindle. Before I get to the truck here's a little about me...

I'm a 23yr old single male currently station at Ft Bragg in North Carolina. I've been in the Army about 1.5 years now and I'm an Infantry guy who is dumb enough to jump out of a perfectly good airplane. Before the Army I was a full time college student and I've got a BA in Psychology with minor studies in Management (specifically team dynamics). I worked as a kayak instructor and raft guide for about 8 years, a landscaper for about 3, and owned my own gunsmithing business while I was in college (closed up shop when I enlisted). Between those jobs and my non-traditional high school career as a professional whitewater kayaker I've learned some pretty bizarre and unique skills. I'm a tinkerer by nature, always have been and always will be. If I don't have something I'm messing with I'm usually not happy. One of my goals has always been to restore a classic vehicle...and after seeing a buddies 66 GMC I fell in love with the look of the 1st Gen C10 longbed stepsides. 8 months after seeing his truck I had one of my very own.

Now onto my truck. It's a bare bones 1966 C10 longbed stepside with a 250 I6 and 3 on the tree trans. I paid $1800 for it in Nov of 2010, some may say I overpaid but I drove it 130mi back the night I bought it...and considering I don't have a tow vehicle it limited my options as far as project vehicles goes. I'm doing all of the work on this truck either in the barracks parking lot, my buddies places, or at the base auto shop. Because of this I'm limited in the tools I have available to me. The auto shop rents lift time at $7 an hour and tool rentals are free. They have a decent selection too so I likely will not need to buy anything. However they do not allow for welding or bodywork so for that I'm either going to have to buy a welder or borrow a friends. Right now it's looking like buying is my best bet even though I don't really want to. I have a tentative budget of $8K for the build, tool purchases are not factored into that figure. Here are some pics from when I first got the truck, and I'll admit that not much has changed in the last 4 months I've owned it.










(sorry, just tilt your head)

Mostly what I've been doing over the last 4 months has been acquiring parts and doing things here and there on the truck. So far this is what I've done.


-removed ghetto bucket seats, swapped in a 69 GMC seat as a temporary (have a 65 seat in PA)
-swapped the carb out and added a stock air cleaner I got from geezer (Thanks again http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/i...lies/metal.gif), the old one was leaking and mounting bracket was missing hence the ghetto rigged filter
-replaced the battery
-got new tires on the stock steelies, the rears in the pic are gonna get sold
-remounted the rear bumper (it was in the bed)
-removed the ghetto stereo and all of the ghetto wiring
-rewired the turn signal harness (temp job, it's not pretty but it works)


My near future plans are as follows


-disc brake conversion (staying 6 lug) with new rims (still TBD)
-mount up a 69 Camaro gas tank in the rear with the filler behind the license plate
-new repo inner and outer fenders
-replace the tails with stock repos
-replace the turn signal column switch
-replace the door and ignition switches
-replace the windshield
-replace the wipers
-give the engine a tune up
-Get a 36" gang box from Lowes and mount it in the bed to hold my tools (got cited on the last barracks inspection for tools and parts in my room)

Once I have all of the above done really all I have left to do is the rust repair on the cab and any engine/driveline work that may need to be done. Currently I'm sitting about about $3.5K invested including the purchase price of the vehicle and with all of the parts I've acquired so far (95% of which are not listed) In the next 6 to 8 weeks that will likely jump up to be in the neighborhood of about $5K. After rust repair I'm hoping to be sitting about about $2K left which will be used to fix up any mechanical issues I may have left on the truck. Paint will likely be a rustoleum roll on job for the time being to tide me over for a few years. The truck currently has spray bomb on it so it'll have to all be stripped off when it goes for it's real deal paint job. This will also allow me to test out the paint job I eventually want to do on the truck.

My ultimate end goal is to have this truck more or less done by November of 2012 doing as much of the work myself as possible. My end vision of this truck is to have it a two tone like the originals with the stock dark blue and white. Wheels will be a conservative aftermarket set. Truck will not be lowered at all, I need the payload capacity to hold my Harley. A short stake side on the bed, possibly with a vintage looking sign in the middle of it. And I want to keep the I6 and 3 on the tree in the truck. I'm still undecided as for what I'll be doing with the interior, part of me wants to keep it stock scheme, but part of me wants to go custom. After I finish the truck I would like to give it to my dad.

My next post will contain my project log up till today. I'll have to add pictures to it at a later date