86 K10 "Karma" - Dont make a purchase under stress!!

[Smallz72project]

First, don't flame me, I made a rushed bad decision under stress. That said:

Background story:
A roommate trying to get on his feet, wrecked his truck, the nice guy I am, I lent him my winter truck to drive (1994 k1500) so he could get job and climbing out of a hole. He drove it for 5 months, until his pregnant wife got homesick and decided they were moving back to N.D. The night before they are leaving to move back, he tells me that out of no where my truck stopped driving. I check it out and find the transmission and transfer case are smoked! The engine needs work as well, radiator is super low but just full of sludge. All this a week before I'm leaving for vacation, and winter fast approaching with now only a lowered 2wd S10 as my means of transportation.

I find an ad for a 1986 K10 lwb that's in great shape body wise, gm crate engine, rebuilt transmission. I try to coordinate with the seller to look at it, turns out he's going to be leaving town soon as well and has a couple different people looking at the truck. The evening before we are both leaving is when we are able to connect, the sun is setting, and I don't have a flashlight. First impression of the truck is its in decent shape for what I can see shy of a few minor issues (so I thought). We make an agreement, I get it for an undisclosed amount, less then he was asking, knowing now though...for way too much.

The next day when its light, I look at the truck again. I realize that I didn't notice that it doesn't have any sun visors (not a big deal I have ones laying around), and that when he arrived and when I drove it he had the windows down and vent windows open, well the driver side vent window is broken off the pivot stud and just hanging from the rivet. The new dash pad isn't attached, its just sitting in place. I'm a little more then annoyed and upset (at myself mainly) at this point. So I decide that I'm going to take the bezel and dash pad out so I can clean up the cluster and put in some LED lights. Its then I notice that there are no ducts going to the A/C vents, and there is some hack wiring done. Its the lack of AC ducting that makes me question and search further. I pull the diverter box/heater core. To my surprise the cab was not an AC cab from the factory. They cut the holes to install the ac components (well some of them), but they didn't do it right. The hole for the non ac that should have been welded shut, is still there.

[cadillac_al]

It photographs well. It looks too pretty for a winter truck. It sounds like the PO was young and just didn't quite know how to do things right. I'm sure with a little tinkering it will be a nice truck. I don't know how critical AC is in MT. My truck still has the Ac hooked up but I almost never use the truck in the summer.

[Smallz72project]

AC isn't super crucial here, gets hot but only for maybe a month and a half. I'm mad cause I needed a vehicle I could just get in and drive, but at the same time I'm glad it was me that bought the truck. I know I can fix it, and its already a really good starting point, just wish I would have noticed and saved some $$ on the front side. Its going to be a really nice truck when I'm done.

Funny thing is, literally a week before I was told about my 94 being junk, I DROVE my 84 k10 (Mater) into the shop and stripped it down to the frame.... had I known, I would have left it alone and just got it running really good. Cause that truck is 100% stock and unmolested (other then from what they did to accommodate the sheriffs.)

[Smallz72project]

For some reason its not letting me upload any more pictures. I'll get some more up when I get home from work.

[Smallz72project]

Here are a few more pictures. Its not a terrible truck, a great starting point. I'm just frustrated that I got it for what I did now knowing that I have to disassemble and weld the firewall. Its going to be a great truck once I am done. This truck is now my daily driver, and coming into winter I need to get the heater fixed. Hoping this next weekend to tear it apart for repair.

First thing I did when I got it, was address the lighting (before I knew about the firewall). I pulled the dash apart and disassembled the cluster, cleaned it all up, sprayed the cluster bucket with a chrome paint and upgraded the dash lights with some blue LED bulbs. And I have some LED headlights on their way. (Gotta see well, there are a lot of deer and elk by my house)

[78_GMC_K25]

We wouldn't be having fun if there wasn't something to work on! And you have that split bench already in. I bought mine without giving a careful enough eye, and I keep finding more and more rust and just now a cracked radiator inlet weld. Looks good, won't take much to be a solid dailyrics, looking forward to the updates.

[old Rusty C10]

well the air conditioning is a let down but all in all unless you way overpaid it doesn't sound like too bad a deal

[Smallz72project]

Thanks guys. I'm afraid I did way overpay for it, considering the things that it needs. Luckily the things it needs is all stuff I can fix myself, and have most of the parts for. So all in all, its not that bad of deal and its going to be one really nice truck when I'm finished with it. I'm just still sour over the entire deal to begin with. I stuck myself out there to help someone, and get shafted royally. This ordeal flipped my entire plan upside down for at least the next 6-8 months. Not only did they (roommates) leave me with no truck, they weren't able to pay rent, and prior they made it seem like they were going to be there for an extended amount of time. So I got rid of my second hand furniture and dining set to let them move theirs in (it was all way nicer then mine) and help them feel a little more at home. When they left they took all of that as well leaving me with no place to sit or to eat lol. That's how I came up with the name Karma for the truck, cause Karma just likes to kick me when I'm down. But trying to stay positive...maybe it was Karma that picked me to get this truck so I could fix it and bring it back to where it needs to be. Opposed to someone that would have gotten really F'd over and counted the truck as a loss. I get to keep one more square on the road!

[Smallz72project]

Might have been bad circumstances that brought me to her, but cant keep me down.