GMC '52 Fair Price? Long Post: Need Help

[Tod59]

Need some more help here guys on a fair price to pay for a '52 GMC short box 1/2 ton.

I'm a lucky guy because my wife loves the truck, BUT, I'm thinking the price may be at the top end, which for the right truck, I don't mind because we are keeping this truck anyway........you tell me. I'll do my best to describe it and I only have a few pictures. The current owner has owned this truck since about 1998he did a complete body-off (I seen the pictures for proof) and he is a perfectionist and the truck is well built.

All steel is excellent and clean (no rot) and the box is aftermarket.
New front and rear chrome bumpers.
Original chrome grill, but nice.
Smoked tinted glass.
Red oak boards, polished stainless wood dividers.
All lights/blinkers work: LED tail lights and halogen headlights.
NSRA inspected about 4 years ago and passed with flying colors.
Ron Francis wiring kit.
255xr70x15 rear firestones and 225r70x15 front.
Crager classic rims 15x8 and 15x7.
all dash lights work great as does horn.
vent cable to center of hood works fine.
Has Vintage Air and heat. Heat works excellent, but air has not been charged or operated....all parts are installed.
Bulkhead fitting for hoses and very nice workmanship.
Power steering, no power brakes.
Power windows and they work great.
Has all receipts and photos of build since 1998
Dash is customized from a 1954 truck, glove box welded shut and smoothed.
Clear title/current registration in his name with Hagerty insurance carrier.
No radio
VIN matches title
Ford 9" rear non-posi rear end.
front and rear sway bars.
2" lowering blocks in rear with narrower leaf springs.
Drum brakes rear, disc up front. (they work great)
TH 200R4 tranny with overdrive and motor home shift improver kit.
New mirrors inside and out, new door handles.
2 speed wipers and they work
Re-cored radiator with electric pusher fan.
Lowered front suspension: Fatman II with 2" drop spindles/disc brakes
Vent windows need to be adjusted....won't stay open by them selves
Plastic gas tank relocated under rear of bed.
Custom gas door on rear fender
new rubber window seals, door seals. VDO gauges
Custom louvered tailgate.
Gray Primer exterior: Health dictated he couldn't go on with project.
Interior was painted red (he has paint and codes) as was firewall.
Battery relocated inside cab behind passenger seat in a box.
Engine is a 292 straight 6 cylinder (ran great)
5200 Webber carbs (3 of them)
Offenhauser intake
motor all gone through
Brand new head and all ported and gone through.
Electronic ignition HEI
The seats are 60/40 (?) great and out of a dodge 90's car or van.
Ididit tilt column and tons of Lokar stuff (emergency brake, gas pedal, etc)
Has black carpet and headliner that is new but never installed and goes with truck.
Boxed the frame in several areas for more rigidity.

Again, I like the truck, wife loves it, the Gray primer is a blank slate to paint any color you like, or just leave as is.
Door seals are not soft, door sticks out a bit......no big deal
Not sure if the air will work as it's not charged and never has been. Heat worked great.

This owner has been very truthful and honest in his presentation of the truck and he has lots of integrity. He is a perfectionist and the bottom of that truck looks great and you can tell quality of workmanship was present during the build. I Can't say enough good things about him. I'm just a little nervous as it's very hard to compare "apples-to-apples" on line when trying to price this truck. It's a lot of money for us, but we agreed on $19,500 Your opinions?

Thanks

[_Ogre]

Gray Primer exterior: Health dictated he couldn't go on with project.
Interior was painted red (he has paint and codes) as was firewall.

imo, if you do decide to finish paint the truck, it will need to be blown apart again
let that be part of your thought process

[curmudgeon]

The truck is nice and appears well put together, you would spend more than the asking price to duplicate the build starting with a stock vehicle. However, are these modifications what you want? Replied to your other post about swapping in a V8, add the cost of another engine, plus disassembling/assembling the body for paint, factoring in how much work you plan to do yourself, now figure the amount of money you will be spending, not to mention the down time of not being able to enjoy driving the truck around.

[roger55]

Tod.
First let me say that my opinion is just that.

Second, I only have the 3 small photos to go by so that doesn't give me a lot of the details.

A couple of things concern me. My top one is the pusher fan with a/c doesn't sound good at all. I would not ever consider having a pusher at all and the fact it has A/C just about guarantees in won't cool the engine enough in the summer. It's an issue that I would have to fix right away. And, I'd want to have a pretty good idea in my mind of how I would deal with it before I bought it. If the way he built that engine prevented a good puller fan with a full shroud from being installed because of room, that could be a real deal breaker for me.
If he says it doesn't overheat, I wouldn't believe it for a minute. Plus, the a/c has never been charged and that will add a lot of heat when it's running. With him actually doing a pusher fan set-up like this it is also a red flag to me that there might be other flaws in the build.

It seems a little odd that he put disc brakes on it but they are manual. How do they feel? Have you taken the truck on a good test drive? If so, how does it drive and how does the power steering feel?

I'd sure like to see some under hood photos and how the steering and suspension looks. I could get a much better feel for the quality of the build if I could see that. With what you say and what I see, I would be guessing at what the quality is.

It's definitely an unfinished truck (paint, no radio and some other details that need attention) and the most expensive of those is the paint. a decent paint job would cost $3K minimum. Even doing it yourself could cost you that much in supplies easy. If you wanted it really nice and had it done, figure $5K and up.

All that said above, I think the price is certainly on the high-end for an unfinished truck. But if the mods he made suit you very well and the receipts he has add up to more than he's asking for the truck, it may be worth it to you. At $19,500, a person could easily have nearly $30K into it to get it completed to a top notch level. A lot of people like me, would want to start cheaper and build the truck to my own specs and probably end up with about the same in it. A lot of others would only consider a finished truck. Usually when a project is unfinished, the price has to be cheap as the people in that market really look to pick up great deals on them.

Since the market for the truck is limited, I think most people would want it for maybe $15K. But if he's determined to sit on it until that "right person" comes along, I could see it maybe bringing the $19,500 price. My maybe's here depend on all those things I don't know based on the limited info I have nor do I know what his receipt total is.

You may be that right person. You seem a little emotional about it. It's probably best to keep it all like business and hold back the emotions until it's yours. Hard to do but usually better for getting what you want for the price you want.

[lv2tri2]

If I were looking for AD, it would be hard to walk away from. The price is probably what the owner could reasonably hope to get, but what a nice truck. The dash is 54 GMC and really looks good in that cab. For me, having the wife's approval, makes it a done deal. Good luck.

[OrrieG]

Unfinished project. Primer is not water resistant so under the primer surface rust has been forming, to paint right it will need to be taken down to metal. Before I bought it I would pull a vacuum on the AC system. If you have a leak, especially in the under dash unit it is a lot of work to pull and fix. Sometimes when they have sat uncharged the expansion valve gets stuck and on the VA set ups you need to pull the unit to fix. Pusher fan is suspicious, especially with a stock six, screams potential over heating. And if you are thinking about changing the engine, that will affect just about every thing under the hood and require refabrication of the brackets, cooling, etc.

But all the parts and work done, if good are probably in that 15K range. I could hang the rest of my tin, toss in a bed, and shoot another coat of primer and mine would be similar. I have about 12K in parts in mine, but $75 column vs 400, and lots of my own fabrication.

Find someone here who knows these trucks to go take a look at it with you for an unemotional analysis. Magnet and flashlight will tell a lot. Since it hasn't flown off the shelf at 19.5, an offer should fly unless they guy has time to wait.

[joedoh]

there is a lot of attention to detail in that truck. The only thing I dont like is the wheels and thats cheap to fix.

[roger55]

Originally Posted by OrrieG

.. Primer is not water resistant so under the primer surface rust has been forming, to paint right it will need to be taken down to metal...

I think you and I are pretty much seeing this truck the same way.

Just wanted to point out that if it's epoxy primer, that is water proof and it would be good to go with a scuff, another coat of epoxy and topcoat if the blocking is complete. If it still needs blocking, then add that to the cost of a paint job. Can cost a lot too.

Being left in primer isn't good even if it's epoxy because the sun would eat it up pretty quick. No UV protection at all.

I also agree with Ogre in that it all needs to come apart before paint.

Still like to see more photos.

[chopit]

I imagine you are, but really watch the market on what is out there to c ome up with your number. Rarely is someone going to get what they have in a build back out of it, especially when its unfinished. An asking price is an asking price. That is all it is. With that in mind do a large radius search to see what others are asking in different conditions and stages of build.

For example, in my area I think this truck is a bit overpriced, yet he has most parts to finish. The guy selling it is non negotiable. I'm a tightwad and want a bargain price if its unfinished. Next guy might think its a great price. Bottom line is any vehicle is worth the price that the seller is willing to take and the buyer is willing to pay.

It is somewhat of a comp to yours though.

https://springfield.craigslist.org/cto/5224484204.html

[roger55]

What are your thoughts at this point Tod?

[mr48chev]

Nice basic truck that a lot of us would be proud to drive either as is or with a few simple upgrades.

With that it's a bit spendy for a primered truck even with the parts list that it has. It's not a great deal if you plan to swap the 292 for a V8 before you wear it out. Swapping it out for a V8 after driving it for five years isn't a bad deal though.

For me I'm seeing a nice 10/12 K truck that you can jump in and drive as is and then make your own over a year or two but even though he has a lot of very nice parts and pieces in it it's pretty well a 15 to 20 year old build that is clearly dated in that time frame.

[Tod59]

I want to thank all of you for your advice and wisdom.....I would have gotten back with all of you yesterday, but I was away from a computer.

Based upon the advice of our members, my wife and I took a "step back" and reevaluated our position.....with that in mind, we have decided to pass on this truck. My "gut" and brain told me this truck was too high, in price, but our (my wife's and I) heart really liked it. It drove nice and there were absolutely no problems with the drive and the owner was very upfront and honest.

But.....it does need to be finished and I like a V8 between the fenders. Nothing wrong with the six cylinder at all, a SBC V8 is just my personal preference.

Again, THANK YOU to all of you from my wife Nancy and I.....we REALLY appreciate your thoughtfulness to help us so quickly.

Regards,
Tod & Nancy

[Softpatch]

Tod My advice is when ever your wife tell you to buy a Truck....BUY THE TRUCK.!
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just on question.? Does she have a sister.?
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These truck are very popular lately to find a straight one for a reasonable price is getting hard
Here is a CL ad for one in my region.
I'm in no way affiliated with this truck................ Sp
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http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/cto/5232958541.html
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[roger55]

Wow! That's a gorgeous truck!!!!!

If that could be negotiated down to around $26K, I think it would be a good deal.

A truck like that would do well at an auction too.