Came Oh so close..To new take off Tailgate...

[Swbman]

Yesterday, I saw this new looking Chevrolet 72 3/4 ton with this huge camper on the back on it, it was being driven by this real ole gentleman he was getting out of his truck so I said what the hell, so I stop and talked with him come to find out he bought it brand new it still had the original paint he keeps it in a barn of all things,I asked him did he still have the original tailgate,he tells me he does its in his garage and its been there since he took it off when he put the camper on two weeks after he bought the truck.I ask would he like to sell it,he thinks about it for a moment,and then says no he better keep it, Oh so close...but no cigar, at least not this time.

[1969 GMC]

I know what you mean...one day I was out driving, and where the street I live on dead ends into another street, there is a small corner market that sells groceries. The guy that owns the market is pretty cool, he has 3-4 '73-'87 4x4s that he tools around in, and a really nice '70s K5 with a snowplow, and is a really nice guy. Anyway, there was a '72 Cheyenne/20 Super sitting in front of the store, almost eaten up with rust, that had an aftermarket liftgate put on it. I asked the guy about the truck, and it turns out that his father bought it brand new, and that he had learned to drive in it, etc. I asked about the tailgate, and the guy says, "oh sure I still got it...dad took it off about 10 minutes after he bought the truck, and went and had the liftgate installed. he still has the tailgate in the garage."
so he showed me the tailgate, MINT shape, has the woodgrain band and stainless handle. two tone orange and white. absolutely beautiful. i asked him what he was doing with the truck and he told me that he had already sold it to a friend, who was going to use parts from it to restore his '72 C/10. in a strange twist, when i started at my new job one of the guys i work with told me about the '72 he had just bought with a mint tailgate...he said he bought the truck just for the tailgate because his was shot and he didnt like the repros. and yeah, it was the guy...he said that he is keeping the trucks engine (claimed to be an "original" 400 sb, but who knows...i'm guessing 402, but i didnt see fender emblems) and the tailgate, and will let me strip anything i want off of it for real cheap. Sorry it was so long, but i had to share.

[krue]

When I bought my truck it had toolbox fenders on it, the original fenders had been in a barn since the day he bought it. They are the best looking thing on my truck!