It was over before I got started!

[ChadBice]

Well, it looks like it was over before it even got started.

I took the box off from my ’71 SWB stepside last week and right away, noticed some things that didn’t look right. The rear end appears to be from something else (you can see where some brackets were cut off. The bed mounts are missing from the frame. There was 1 tow hook on the back and a hole where the other was cut from the frame. Nothing major, but just not right.

Tonight I had a friend come over and help me remove the front clip and cab. The clip came for fairly easily, but one of the mounts for the radiator support on the frame was rusted away. The clip (there were no inner fenders) was in pretty decent shape, for Michigan. There were two horizontally mounted tow hooks in the front.

Then there was the cab…

Apparently, there was nothing holding the cab in place except the bed and clip. All four mounting bolts (or should I say the floor around them) were rusted away. The cab is beyond repair. At least beyond my repair.

After looking at this disassembled pile of 37 year old rusted metal, I finally realized that I was in over my head.

I bought the truck with no engine or transmission. I figured I would put a drivetrain in it and drive it for a while, making improvements as my budget and time allowed. I figured wrong. I read the build threads on here and I think, “I can do that.” but, alas, I found I can’t. I guess the lesson learned is, “Know you abilities.”

So it looks like it’s on to the junk yard for my truck and the search is on for a nicer truck I can drive. I got clearance from the tower to head on a weekend trip to the southern states in search of a decent project to drive home as soon as I raise the needed $$$. I think the important part is that I need to find a driver to keep my morale up. I minutes of highway therapy in a running truck would help to keep me motivated. Looking at a pile of parts and not seeing an end in sight, well...doesn't.