Gone a while, back with something "new."

[Werewolf]

I disappeared off these forums several months ago; I'm kind of fickle when it comes to staying on forums for long. I've actually been dedicating more to my Caprice wagon than worrying about the trucks. Then I wrecked the wagon...

Anyway, I sold the two '68 Chevy trucks I had, and gave away the mess of a 4x4. I came to the realization that I had too many bloody cars, and, quite frankly, I was not in the position to put the work into my CST that it really did need. It would've taken years and thousands to get it how I wanted it.

I got a good haul off of the trucks when I sold them, but for some reason, I immediately started exploring eBay for other trucks. I figured that maybe I could pick up a driver condition truck for a good price. And I ended up finding a truck that was pretty much everything I've always been looking for, in a lot better than "driver condition."

So, after dealing with the owner, in California, for two months, and trying to get it shipped for a few weeks, it came in today. Here's a couple of initial shots; the truck is filthy from the trip across the country.





'68 of course, CST, stock 396 rebuilt only 11k miles ago, TH-400, 3/4 ton Camper Special, reupholstered interior, black trim. Buddy buckets. Factory tach and speed warning. Working factory air.

Cali truck all of it's life, so there is virtually *zero* rust on it. I found a little bubbling on the top of one of the rockers. Other than that, the factory rockers, backing plates, cab mounts, and even the radiator support looks perfect. The paint looks a bit old, but that's not a big deal.

Plans: Fix the Front Turn Signals! I don't know why they're in the top... 20x8 or 20x10 wheels to fill up the wheel wells better. Maybe a slightly larger cam and headers plus aluminum intake. Somebody welded in a sheet of metal over the stock wood bed floor, so that'll have to get removed, and I'd like to put one of those oak kits in. Past that, I don't know. This is the way I like these trucks, relatively stock looking with all the chrome.

Anyway, thought y'all might want to take a look or maybe offer suggestions.

I'm a bit thrown on where to get a different set of wheels, considering most are set up for 1/2 tons, or at least, newer 3/4 tons without that massive axle hub that these have. One of my pet peeves is seeing a center cap or hub sticking out beyond the edge of the wheel or tire, so I'm specifically hoping to get a deep, tall wheel that has a decent looking center cap with it. Anybody have any ideas?

Thanks.

[Palf70Step]

Welcome back. Very nice ride too!!

[72BlckButy]

Glad to have you back, and looks like a nice score!

[kxnomore]

Beautiful truck. Does anyone know if those are the stock mirrors? I don't see any extra mirror holes in the door, and it looks like it might be original paint.

[Longhorn Man]

auto zone mirrors.... and I am 99.9% sure it isn't original paint.

[fine69]

Ditch those hideous steps below the doors.

[Jtrux]

I really like that truck but I can't stand those silly bed covers. Also, I just don't think 20's would make that truck look tough enough, I vote keep those ones on there or something similar but that's just me.

[manimal]

Very nice truck, and welcome back my LYCAN friend.
-Lance

[rambler]

nice looking truck...

[Werewolf]

Thanks for the replies so far. THE STEPS GO, yes! Those are shots taken pretty much as the truck rolled off the carrier. I have a *lot* of cleaning to do, and a few modifications to make. Like moving the turn signals.

The steps will come off when I change the oil.

To answer some observations: First, no, the paint isn't original, however, the previous owner(s) did have the truck completely taken apart to get it painted. The firewall is that teal, as is every piece of the interior (including the inside of the glove compartment door) and inside the bed, which has some cheap carpeting in it. Believe it or not the truck was originally that "off white" yellow color. It's still listed on the options label.

No, the mirrors also aren't original. I'm not too fond of them, especially as they are very cheap and are rusting. But I'm also not into exposed drill holes in my doors, so they'll be on the truck indefinitely. I imagine that the truck probably had those large mirrors that bolted to the door's pillar, considering it's a camper special, and there's evidence that the truck was used for that at some point. I haven't looked over the doors for putty on the pillars, but I know the doors are very clean, so I'm thinking the truck didn't have mirrors in the stock location. I'll take a look at some point.

The cover stays on the bed unless, or until, I find something better. I may remove it someday, when I get the wood floor and an actual garage to put the truck in.

Those wheels gotta go, I hate them. I might even prefer a set of deep stockers with the chrome hubcaps on the truck in the interim, but I don't like those.

My old '67 C-20 had a set of custom 15's on it, thin up front and very wide in the back. I removed the center caps because they stuck out so far on the front wheel.

For instance:

That's a bit better than these, but they're still wagon wheels.

One of the reasons I want to go with 20's is that they generally look pretty good on trucks, and I'm not planning on lowering this one, so I want to fill up the wheel wells nicely while not doing it with a lot of rubber. That, and I was hoping to find a wheel that would take attention off the massive hubs, front and rear. Make it look a little less like an old, heavy workhorse. Without changing over to 1/2 ton stuff.

I like it original, yes, but I'm hoping to update the appearance a little bit while getting a little more "sport" attitude out of it.

[72 Super]

welcome back ! looks like you found a super nice solid truck this time around.

Ray

[truckdude239]

looks like the grillw as installed upside down

[Werewolf]

Finally got around to doing a little washing and detailing - wanted to get to a local (not judged) show to show it off - got rained out *on* the way in. :P

At least it was clean for a little while. I used some spray on wax, it came out pretty well, but is still waiting for a good paste wax job, possibly a good buffing.

Also lost the ugly steps, and did a little under hood detailing. And I know! I still haven't taken the grille apart! I'm now waiting to get a new front bumper .. and time.

[Longhorn Man]

I hate the fact that we have been dissin your truck in this thread. I just looked the thread over and that's what a majority of us (myself included) have been doing.
The reality, is it is a pretty nace truck.
HOWEVER... I HAVE to point something out to you that could cause a HUGE FIRE.
(got your attention?)
I am a fan of the glass fuel filters... many are not. When installed and serviced properly, they are a great tool.
HOWEVER... yours is ZIP TIED TO THE ENGINE.
As the engine runs, it vibrates on the metal. BAD IDEA. There is no way to zip tie it tight enough to keep bad things from happening.
I would recomend;
short term, replace that filter with a steel or plastic one.
Long term, replace that stupid rubber hose. It's a fire hazzard in it's self.
If you have the filter spliced into a hard line (cheap and super easy to do) and the line supports the glass filter to where nothing can hoit it, and it can't hit anything.... and you tighten it when everr you service it... then you'll be good to go.
Run it as is for a long time, and you WILL get to meet some firefighters one night.



Like i said, I hate the fact we have been raggin on your rig. It is a nice truck that someone tried to add too much stuff from catalogs... back in the day we called it K-mart rash. None the less, it is 10 times nicer than anything I have ever owned.

[thirdstreettito]

Nice truck! I live in Fuquay! Ya know that stupid town 30min from you...

[Werewolf]

Well I never said it wouldn't take some work. I bought the truck knowing I'd have to do some redecorating.

It's easier to pull off excess crap on a truck than it is to cut off rusty panels, in my opinion. This is one of the most rust-free trucks I've ever come across.

Nice catch on the filter, I hadn't even noticed that at all. I glanced at it, thought "filter," and moved on. That'll get fixed before I take the truck out next. I'll probably stick with the rubber lines for now, as I've had plenty of cars with them, and they've not been a problem until they get older. Just got to keep an eye on them.

As for "Kmart Rash," I'm curious - what all does the truck have that you don't approve of?

I know the obvious; I hate the rear bumper, mirrors, "shades" over the windows, really don't like the bed cover, and *hate* the wheels. So all that's going to go in time. I'm still planning on getting the grille fixed so that the signals are sitting right, and I even intend to replace the air filter assembly with something that looks more decent. What else is there? All the "chrome" is stock...