first truck, 71 gmc "Ashley"

[STPrider]

Hey everyone, been browsing this site for a while now, you guys all seem super friendly and helpful, seems like a bunch of happy people on here, cool to see I've been seeing these build threads everywhere, and although it might be a bit late for me to start one, I thought i would do it anyway just because its a rainy Sunday afternoon in spring break I'll introduce myself a bit; my name is Derek, I'm 16 and Ashley is my first vehicle, i bought her in October of 09 but really got working on her this winter, I've held a job for over 3 years now, and mowed lawns etc before that, and this is how i like to spend that money I love mountain biking, a passion I share with my brother, and we have 4 or 5 bikes between us also. Ashley is a 71 longbox, i bought her primered with the body work pretty much done, looking for that classic, old school look with lots of character and clean lines shaved doors and trim, 5 or 6" drop I cant really remember what springs etc i got anymore (dismal i know forgive me ) Pretty much I have a mechanic friend that I hired to help, we went through and did a lot of mechanical work, underbed gas tank w/ custom filler, new shocks and springs all around, completely cleaned, wire brushed and painted front engine bay, swapped the old rusted out 307 for a modified 350 (currently over 300 horse,) painted her a metallic midnight blue with a pearl white roof, and pretty soon we'll be going in for glass work and replacing the wiring harness completely with a "keep it clean" kit needless to say, IM STOKED and having a TON of fun, learning a lot, and I love her <3 sorry for the essay heres some pics:

[mjensen]

That's nice looking!

[STPrider]

thanks man! another thing i forgot to mention, I'm trying to decide on rims, opinions are appreciated! looking to go with something a little more classic (no blingy 24's please, cheers ) First choice so far is the Team III Lt-1 wheels, I also like torque thrusts but they're too cliche in my opinion.
Cheers,
-Derek

[STPrider]

Hey everyone, just an update on progress and future workings in the next month or so, just because i have time now and I wont later big orders coming in from LMC to get a few things going, lots of work yet and lots of shiny things coming in i have an electrician lined up for the end of the month so im pretty pumped to finally get that all done, im replacing the entire wiring harness for new wiring throughout the truck and its gonna be sweet! door solenoids are gonna be hooked up, stereo will have power (but no sound) lights getting wired up, etc. Im all fired up for that! hoping to get some glass in, wipers working, some interior components in there like carpets, window cranks, etc, so the wiring guy can pretty much get in there, do his thing, and get out so far timing is great, and we just might even be done by early summer! thanks for reading, cheers
-Derek

[463]

nice looking truck with some cool mods. i to shaved the handels on my truck back in 1983 and there still working good. i did retrofit to a remote keyless entry apx 4 years ago. i see you have a lot of new parts to inatall. keep us updated with your pics as you progress.

[oldblue1968chevy]

Wow, nice truck man. Good work.

What're the specs on the motor?

[Slick67]

Nice! Paint looks good!

[trukzguy]

Lookin pretty sweet, keep up the good work.

[(joey)]

solid start.any new updates?

[thor]

Welcome Derek! Nice truck ya got there. Cool to see you ride too. North 'Couv? Whistler?

Anyway, it's summer break. Any mods?

-your neighbor to the south (WA that is)

[yuccales]

You have a great looking truck! My first car sure didn't look that good. Keep up the good work.

[STPrider]

thanks everyone!! sorry i've been lazy and haven't been updating, prefer to look at other nicer trucks for motor specs; i dont know much, i got a friend who's an engine builder at a local machine shop to build it for me, i know its a 90's-ish 350 block bored to about 355ci, roller cam, edelbrock intake, holley carb, aftermarket exhaust (might be custom, came with the truck, 3" side pipe that you can see in the 3rd pic.) Anyways, all the electrical is done, with one door opening perfectly, ill probably wire the second one tonight, a new grant steering wheel in, engine bay cleaned up (WOO!) and pretty much generally ready to drive! just needs glass and a good wheel alignment! oh and some issues with converting to electronic gauges, the speedo sending unit wont fit, so my friends making me an adapter, and the fuel sending unit and fuel gauge arent on good terms right now sooo im gonna try real hard to get some new pictures happening, one of these days its got to turn sunny right? and thor: yeah! fellow riders/truck lovers!! yeah ill be spending a lot of time in whistler this summer, and a couple days in sun peaks, but never been to north van, i have my own mini-north shore (vedder mountain in chilliwack) that ill be riding more this summer too cheers!
-Derek

[bosco200]

Nice truck man.

[CaptMadDog]

nice truck man. did the seat come with the truck like that or did u have it done i like how that looks in there!!

[STPrider]

Originally Posted by CaptMadDog

nice truck man. did the seat come with the truck like that or did u have it done i like how that looks in there!!

thanks, yeah i got the seat custom covered, the old seat had one of those mexican blanket things awesome, but not the style im looking for i pretty much dropped the guy the naked frame and a bunch of cash and he came up with that! super happy with how it turned out

[STPrider]

oh also in case anyones wondering i think ill be going with either Torque thrust IIs or coys c5's, 18's and 20's, something like "jcaugmented" has set up on his truck here: http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=461209 buddy if your reading this: youre my hero but for now im just gonna paint the steels white with beauty rings and caps if i can find some anyone know where to find any spray-can pearl paints? also any opinions are welcome!

[CaptMadDog]

nice well im diggin it keep up the good work

[FRENCHBLUE72]

Clean looking ride...

[STPrider]

all righty! whoa! been a long time since I posted haha but heres some pics of how I drove her for the summer! Wheels ended up being ridler 695's, and ran out of time to do air bags this winter with school and stuff, but hopefully next winter!

[thor]

looks good man!

[nibs]

Kind of a late one, but WELCOME! Clean truck and I like the staggered fitment you chose for the wheels!

[JAA]

Truck looks great!! Also, good to see another MTB'r here! I here/see on the internet that BC has some awesome places to ride.

[s11sean11]

nice truck and we have alot in common haha mountain biking and old trucks are my favorite things and my 62 was also my first tuck i just wish i could make the trip to BC one day

[Tinkermc]

well that's one very nice truck esp. for your first my first was a 63 Rambler blue metal flake with chrome reverse wheels and red line goodyear tires and 1 heck of a sterio it was a station wagon and had a sticker in the back windo that read 9 out of 10 mothers agree this car is not a safe plqce for their daughters. Keep up the good work.

[Low Elco]

Cool truck! Hope it runs good for you. So, do modern HS chix love it or hate it?