New to me 72 K10

[i82much]

Hi all - picked this fella up last night in a town called Dusty, WA. It's not as pretty as the pictures make out, paint is covering some imperfections and has some very minor rust under the molding and lower doors. Still, it is a factory 4x4, everything seems to work, frame seems really solid. Been converted over to a 396, came with a small block.

So the plan is ... drive it. Might fix a few annoying things but I have no grand intentions. Will take it hunting, make it work a little, treat it like ... a truck. I am very happy. I don't know whether I overpaid or not at $5,000 but I am not going to sweat it. Really wanted a factory 4x4 and they are kind of scarce, so I pulled the trigger.

[Ol Blue K20]

Looks nice...congrats on a nice find and I think the price was reasonable

[i82much]

Thanks Dale. It is really cool to have an old one to beat around in again. I have a 65 goat that is pretty nice and I am always trying to make it nicer. This one I just want to get in and go without fussing so much. These old trucks have so much character.

[Mathew21]

Nice truck congrats

[Carl Spangler]

Big congrats on what looks like a very good deal.

cheers
JohnG

[i82much]

Thanks all. I am not sure what to do with myself anymore, I have been spending all of my free time on craigslist. Maybe take up golf.

[Carl Spangler]

Originally Posted by i82much

Thanks all. I am not sure what to do with myself anymore, I have been spending all of my free time on craigslist. Maybe take up golf.

Not to worry..................... ALL of your free time will soon be consumed by your new truck!

[71veronica]

i like it. 5000 doesnt seem bad at all as long as it runs as good as it looks.

[i82much]

Runs pretty good. Has a Carter AFB on top of an iron intake, I assume it's just a basic 396 build. Makes good low end and runs a little better than a similar 350 truck I drove about a year ago, but won't set your hair on fire. I will probably just rebuild the Carter and maybe try to dial in the mixture a bit, convert the points over to a Pertronix or something, and drive it until it wears out.

[flashed]

Nice truck ,I like it a lot .I also like the side steps on it ,can you post pics of how they are mounted ,I want to put some like that on my 1 ton.

[gvw5400]

Looks good to me! I feel the price is fair, you didn't get hurt. Have a blast making this YOUR truck. All the best, Dirk

[i82much]

Originally Posted by flashed

Nice truck ,I like it a lot .I also like the side steps on it ,can you post pics of how they are mounted ,I want to put some like that on my 1 ton.

I will try, winter in Spokane so it might not be too soon!

Good news, we had a snowfall last night and the 4x4 worked like a champ. It is so great to be back in an old one again.

[Tinkermc]

looks like 1 heck of a truck.

[i82much]

Originally Posted by Tinkermc

looks like 1 heck of a truck.

I was surprised to get a truck in that condition for $4800. While it's not perfect, it seems far more solid that most of what I typically see in that price range on ebay and such.

I think what happened is the guy only listed it in on the local Pullman/Moscow craigslist section instead of also listing in neighboring areas such as Spokane, Lewiston, Tri-Cities and such where he might have gotten a lot more action. The truck was for sale for over a month before I contacted him, I honestly don't even know what possessed me to even try looking at the Pullman/Moscow craigslist since most folks in that area would also list in the Spokane section.

[Hawghauler]

I think it's a great deal. Eastern Washington is pretty easy on old iron, and if you'd bought the same truck over here on the coast, it would have twice the rust at least.
The best thing about all these trucks is their versatility
The kind of truck that you can make anything you want with it. When I got mine, I decided that this would probably be the last 4 wheeled vehicle I would need. If I want it to change with time, It's easy to do. Throw a few $ and a little muscle at it. Think about having to pay the monthly payments and insurance on something newer, then in a few years of owning it, sell it or trade it in for pennies on the dollar.
This truck will only be more valuable in that same time period. If you threw those payments at this truck instead, it's value would grow by leaps and bounds.
Make sure you post lots of pictures, we're all picture junkies here.

[9teen69]

Nice 4x4 find for the money

[BlacklandCamper]

Great find! So nice to see someone else who wants to use their truck like a truck.

Would love to see some pics of it at work.

[i82much]

Wow, this is great - thanks everyone. i will try to get a pic of her against the bitteroots in the background this fall during hunting season, or sooner if i make it over.

So tempting to restore it but I think for now i will just drive and tinker. Maybe get that 396 really dialed in. Came with the original wheels and the hubcaps look decent so I might just put those back in with a set of bfg at kos, letters out!

[Tinkermc]

After a few months of fine tuning and fixing small imperfections you will keep it out of the woods.

[68350]

I wouldn't have hesitated at that price. Nice truck!

[i82much]

Originally Posted by Tinkermc

After a few months of fine tuning and fixing small imperfections you will keep it out of the woods.

Nah. There are a few rust spots and ripples in the body work, it is not a perfect truck. I picked it specifically because it was nice enough to drive every day but had enough imperfections that I won't feel too bad using it as a truck. I think a decent truck in the north Idaho mountains is every bit as cool as a perfect truck in a parking lot.

[Keith Seymore]

Welcome!



K

[i82much]

Thanks Keith! Glad to see someone here that appreciates old Pontiacs too

[i82much]

Just a little update. Been driving the truck 3 days a week or so since I bought it. Checked my mileage and it looks like about 7 mpg. Based on the head codes, looks like a 1966 oval port 396.

That mileage is for a 6 mile commute in cold weather, including warming up the truck many mornings before I leave and also idling at the coffee stand in the morning. For reference, my 2013 4 door Wrangler gets about 12 under those conditions.

Right now, the truck has a ratty exhaust, a fan spacer with no clutch, no working heat riser in the exhaust pipe, no thermostatic air cleaner, old points ignition,and a pretty beat Carter carb. Also has the factory intake with a spacer to accommodate the square bore, but before they added the spacer they boogered up the primary side of the intake with a grinder trying to fit the larger primary throttle blades of the Carter!

I am going to install a heavy-duty fan clutch, thermostatic air cleaner, working exhaust heat riser, points conversion electronic ignition, Performer intake, and a wideband. Not sure on the carb yet but I will get it set up with a reasonably lean cruise and around town mixture and see how she does. If I see 10 mpg under the driving circumstances described I will be pleased.

[DeadheadNM]

How quickly does it fire-up in the AM when the temp is below freezing? My trucks are in hibernation for the winter. Every so often I go to start those things (like yesterday was in the 40's here) but it's a real bear even with starting fluid and both rigs have rebuilt Q-jets, HEIs, and complete heat riser setups. The battery does crank slow in the K5 though.