Re-Open the Open Roads - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

71meangreenc10 · 04-06-2018, 12:19 AM

Here is my thread for my 72 GMC 3500 Open Roads Camper. I bought this from a member last year and I gutted the camper to find that the shell and interior were damaged beyond repair. I sent it to a RV Center and that experience was poor. So I decided to bring it home and do it myself. I picked up all the materials to rebuild the sides with Filon Siding and put a new Rubber Roof on the old girl.

This one will get a Gen 5 5.3 with 8L90E and a 14 Bolt 4:10. This project will also have to share time with Sloppy Jo.

Here are some of the photos of when I started to where it is now. First series is from pic up. Put it on a rollback and ensure it makes it home.

Smitty

71meangreenc10 · 04-06-2018, 12:20 AM

More

71meangreenc10 · 04-06-2018, 12:22 AM

Here is the inside damage. Not road worthy at all. At least we got to save the stove and it works fine. Turn it into a grill....

Smitty

71meangreenc10 · 04-06-2018, 12:24 AM

Inside look....Super Clean, rockers have ZERO rust.....

71meangreenc10 · 04-06-2018, 12:26 AM

Here is the tear down and back half rebuild at the RV center.....They could have done better....

Smitty

71meangreenc10 · 04-06-2018, 12:32 AM

So after the last summer and into fall with my truck setting in a bay with no work getting done I decided to close the work order. Glad I did. They built the walls and put no adhesive at all in it. All staples and they were already working themselves out and the walls were loose. The first wall pic you can see the joints they installed with the metal braces on the top. I added more 1X4's and put adhesive on the back and stapled them in. Yes staples, that is how it was built from the factory. Then I built my inner wall with 2x2's and used adhesive and screws to totally tighten up the second wall and straightened it out. There were several warps on the wall and now they are gone.

The RV center did build the rear wall with 2x2's and it is still solid.

Smitty

71meangreenc10 · 04-06-2018, 12:34 AM

More....

Smitty

71meangreenc10 · 04-06-2018, 12:39 AM

Here is the heartbeat for my RV.....Getting the harness built now along with the computers re-flashed.

Smitty

**Advanced Design** · 04-07-2018, 07:36 AM

Looks like some good progress with the camper restoration. Will you be reinstalling the rear porch platform? Tagging along for the rest.

Stickman · 04-07-2018, 10:39 AM

Wow, that is awesome. I'll follow along.

71meangreenc10 · 04-07-2018, 12:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Advanced Design

Looks like some good progress with the camper restoration. Will you be reinstalling the rear porch platform? Tagging along for the rest.

We are canning the rear porch. I have a buddy that has a wild idea for the stove "grill" that he wants to build off the back bumper.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Stickman

Wow, that is awesome. I'll follow along.

Thank you. This is going to be a fun build.

Smitty

RDrancher · 04-07-2018, 06:47 PM

Following along. Looks like an interesting endeavor.

68Gold/white · 04-08-2018, 07:03 PM

Job well done!!!

71meangreenc10 · 04-08-2018, 11:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RDrancher

Following along. Looks like an interesting endeavor.

Quote:

Originally Posted by 68Gold/white

Job well done!!!

Thanks

Smitty

71meangreenc10 · 04-09-2018, 12:00 AM

Well,
Did a lot of work this weekend. Here is a time warp back for the old Green Shag Carpet. Just remember "It's just a jump to the left".......

More pictures to come tomorrow....

Smitty

**Dieselwrencher** · 04-09-2018, 04:05 PM

Nice truck, sorry to see on the camper portion. It stinks the RV place did you so poorly. I've been having bad ideas of building my own since these are so hard to get now. Maybe after all the other projects are done first.

I was hoping you were going to keep that rear door/deck set up. That made those the coolest set ups back then IMO. I'm in to see how the rest turns out!

71meangreenc10 · 04-09-2018, 11:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dieselwrencher

Nice truck, sorry to see on the camper portion. It stinks the RV place did you so poorly. I've been having bad ideas of building my own since these are so hard to get now. Maybe after all the other projects are done first.

I was hoping you were going to keep that rear door/deck set up. That made those the coolest set ups back then IMO. I'm in to see how the rest turns out!

Thanks Dieselwrencher,

Sometimes you take lemons and make lemonade. These things are popping up in AZ on CL a lot. I liked the deck, but I am trying to cut some weight and it had to go in order to make it work out for the family.

Smitty

71meangreenc10 · 04-09-2018, 11:21 PM

So this weekend I pulled the old powertrain out. The wife helped seal up the inner walls with some old paint. Today we got the cab off and it is in the garage getting prepped for some new color and fix all the holes in the cab. This week the filon should be on along with some more wood repairs.

Smitty

**Advanced Design** · 04-10-2018, 03:01 AM

Good progress...you move along quickly!

71meangreenc10 · 04-10-2018, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Advanced Design

Good progress...you move along quickly!

Thank you. I am retired and life is good.

Smitty

**Ol Blue K20** · 04-10-2018, 02:24 PM

Nice ....I'm following along too

**3757chevy** · 04-10-2018, 02:56 PM

Looking good. You said new color? I guess your staying with a green theme with that nice original interior... And it looks like you are building around the love seat/couch. Quite a task.

71meangreenc10 · 04-10-2018, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ol Blue K20

Nice ....I'm following along too

Thanks

Quote:

Originally Posted by 3757chevy

Looking good. You said new color? I guess your staying with a green theme with that nice original interior... And it looks like you are building around the love seat/couch. Quite a task.

Thanks,
I am using the factor green on this one. Will also shoot a stripe down the side. The couch also folds out into a bed. I picked it up from a Hotel that was renovating. Near perfect condition. I had the RV center build the walls around it once they torn them down.

Smitty

68Gold/white · 04-10-2018, 04:33 PM

You could mount the couch on top of the camper body, and let Ellie Mae, and Granny ride up there...

Carry on the good life!!!

71meangreenc10 · 04-10-2018, 11:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 68Gold/white

You could mount the couch on top of the camper body, and let Ellie Mae, and Granny ride up there...

Carry on the good life!!!

No Clampett's in this area.......

Smitty

04-06-2018, 12:19 AM	#1
71meangreenc10 Its a Truck Thing...... Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sierra Vista, Arizona Posts: 3,179	Re-Open the Open Roads Here is my thread for my 72 GMC 3500 Open Roads Camper. I bought this from a member last year and I gutted the camper to find that the shell and interior were damaged beyond repair. I sent it to a RV Center and that experience was poor. So I decided to bring it home and do it myself. I picked up all the materials to rebuild the sides with Filon Siding and put a new Rubber Roof on the old girl. This one will get a Gen 5 5.3 with 8L90E and a 14 Bolt 4:10. This project will also have to share time with Sloppy Jo. Here are some of the photos of when I started to where it is now. First series is from pic up. Put it on a rollback and ensure it makes it home. Smitty Attached Images __________________ 71 C10 283/3SPD Full Resto 71 GMC 1500 Sierra Grande http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=518599 70 C10 Suburban Former military GSA truck. 72 Chevy Blazer 4X4, Sloppy Jo, Mountain Climber. Wife says no more trucks. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=707378 72 GMC 1 Ton Motor Home, wife said no more trucks until she saw this one. Gen 3 6.0/4L80E 4.10 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=761110 68 GMC Suburban was 3/4 ton, now 1/2.Wife shook her head 71 C30 Wrecker 71 C20 Scott-Bilt As weird as it gets..BB Cheyenne AC Truck 68 GMC Long Stepside. They keep following me home 69 C30 Former Motor Home, Flat Bed time 70 G20 Red-E-Kamp Conversion "I'm your Boogy Van"

04-06-2018, 12:20 AM	#2
71meangreenc10 Its a Truck Thing...... Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sierra Vista, Arizona Posts: 3,179	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads More Attached Images __________________ 71 C10 283/3SPD Full Resto 71 GMC 1500 Sierra Grande http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=518599 70 C10 Suburban Former military GSA truck. 72 Chevy Blazer 4X4, Sloppy Jo, Mountain Climber. Wife says no more trucks. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=707378 72 GMC 1 Ton Motor Home, wife said no more trucks until she saw this one. Gen 3 6.0/4L80E 4.10 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=761110 68 GMC Suburban was 3/4 ton, now 1/2.Wife shook her head 71 C30 Wrecker 71 C20 Scott-Bilt As weird as it gets..BB Cheyenne AC Truck 68 GMC Long Stepside. They keep following me home 69 C30 Former Motor Home, Flat Bed time 70 G20 Red-E-Kamp Conversion "I'm your Boogy Van"

04-06-2018, 12:22 AM	#3
71meangreenc10 Its a Truck Thing...... Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sierra Vista, Arizona Posts: 3,179	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Here is the inside damage. Not road worthy at all. At least we got to save the stove and it works fine. Turn it into a grill.... Smitty Attached Images __________________ 71 C10 283/3SPD Full Resto 71 GMC 1500 Sierra Grande http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=518599 70 C10 Suburban Former military GSA truck. 72 Chevy Blazer 4X4, Sloppy Jo, Mountain Climber. Wife says no more trucks. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=707378 72 GMC 1 Ton Motor Home, wife said no more trucks until she saw this one. Gen 3 6.0/4L80E 4.10 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=761110 68 GMC Suburban was 3/4 ton, now 1/2.Wife shook her head 71 C30 Wrecker 71 C20 Scott-Bilt As weird as it gets..BB Cheyenne AC Truck 68 GMC Long Stepside. They keep following me home 69 C30 Former Motor Home, Flat Bed time 70 G20 Red-E-Kamp Conversion "I'm your Boogy Van"

04-06-2018, 12:24 AM	#4
71meangreenc10 Its a Truck Thing...... Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sierra Vista, Arizona Posts: 3,179	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Inside look....Super Clean, rockers have ZERO rust..... Attached Images __________________ 71 C10 283/3SPD Full Resto 71 GMC 1500 Sierra Grande http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=518599 70 C10 Suburban Former military GSA truck. 72 Chevy Blazer 4X4, Sloppy Jo, Mountain Climber. Wife says no more trucks. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=707378 72 GMC 1 Ton Motor Home, wife said no more trucks until she saw this one. Gen 3 6.0/4L80E 4.10 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=761110 68 GMC Suburban was 3/4 ton, now 1/2.Wife shook her head 71 C30 Wrecker 71 C20 Scott-Bilt As weird as it gets..BB Cheyenne AC Truck 68 GMC Long Stepside. They keep following me home 69 C30 Former Motor Home, Flat Bed time 70 G20 Red-E-Kamp Conversion "I'm your Boogy Van"

04-06-2018, 12:26 AM	#5
71meangreenc10 Its a Truck Thing...... Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sierra Vista, Arizona Posts: 3,179	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Here is the tear down and back half rebuild at the RV center.....They could have done better.... Smitty Attached Images __________________ 71 C10 283/3SPD Full Resto 71 GMC 1500 Sierra Grande http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=518599 70 C10 Suburban Former military GSA truck. 72 Chevy Blazer 4X4, Sloppy Jo, Mountain Climber. Wife says no more trucks. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=707378 72 GMC 1 Ton Motor Home, wife said no more trucks until she saw this one. Gen 3 6.0/4L80E 4.10 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=761110 68 GMC Suburban was 3/4 ton, now 1/2.Wife shook her head 71 C30 Wrecker 71 C20 Scott-Bilt As weird as it gets..BB Cheyenne AC Truck 68 GMC Long Stepside. They keep following me home 69 C30 Former Motor Home, Flat Bed time 70 G20 Red-E-Kamp Conversion "I'm your Boogy Van"

04-06-2018, 12:32 AM	#6
71meangreenc10 Its a Truck Thing...... Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sierra Vista, Arizona Posts: 3,179	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads So after the last summer and into fall with my truck setting in a bay with no work getting done I decided to close the work order. Glad I did. They built the walls and put no adhesive at all in it. All staples and they were already working themselves out and the walls were loose. The first wall pic you can see the joints they installed with the metal braces on the top. I added more 1X4's and put adhesive on the back and stapled them in. Yes staples, that is how it was built from the factory. Then I built my inner wall with 2x2's and used adhesive and screws to totally tighten up the second wall and straightened it out. There were several warps on the wall and now they are gone. The RV center did build the rear wall with 2x2's and it is still solid. Smitty Attached Images __________________ 71 C10 283/3SPD Full Resto 71 GMC 1500 Sierra Grande http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=518599 70 C10 Suburban Former military GSA truck. 72 Chevy Blazer 4X4, Sloppy Jo, Mountain Climber. Wife says no more trucks. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=707378 72 GMC 1 Ton Motor Home, wife said no more trucks until she saw this one. Gen 3 6.0/4L80E 4.10 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=761110 68 GMC Suburban was 3/4 ton, now 1/2.Wife shook her head 71 C30 Wrecker 71 C20 Scott-Bilt As weird as it gets..BB Cheyenne AC Truck 68 GMC Long Stepside. They keep following me home 69 C30 Former Motor Home, Flat Bed time 70 G20 Red-E-Kamp Conversion "I'm your Boogy Van"

04-06-2018, 12:34 AM	#7
71meangreenc10 Its a Truck Thing...... Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sierra Vista, Arizona Posts: 3,179	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads More.... Smitty Attached Images __________________ 71 C10 283/3SPD Full Resto 71 GMC 1500 Sierra Grande http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=518599 70 C10 Suburban Former military GSA truck. 72 Chevy Blazer 4X4, Sloppy Jo, Mountain Climber. Wife says no more trucks. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=707378 72 GMC 1 Ton Motor Home, wife said no more trucks until she saw this one. Gen 3 6.0/4L80E 4.10 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=761110 68 GMC Suburban was 3/4 ton, now 1/2.Wife shook her head 71 C30 Wrecker 71 C20 Scott-Bilt As weird as it gets..BB Cheyenne AC Truck 68 GMC Long Stepside. They keep following me home 69 C30 Former Motor Home, Flat Bed time 70 G20 Red-E-Kamp Conversion "I'm your Boogy Van"

04-06-2018, 12:39 AM	#8
71meangreenc10 Its a Truck Thing...... Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sierra Vista, Arizona Posts: 3,179	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Here is the heartbeat for my RV.....Getting the harness built now along with the computers re-flashed. Smitty Attached Images __________________ 71 C10 283/3SPD Full Resto 71 GMC 1500 Sierra Grande http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=518599 70 C10 Suburban Former military GSA truck. 72 Chevy Blazer 4X4, Sloppy Jo, Mountain Climber. Wife says no more trucks. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=707378 72 GMC 1 Ton Motor Home, wife said no more trucks until she saw this one. Gen 3 6.0/4L80E 4.10 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=761110 68 GMC Suburban was 3/4 ton, now 1/2.Wife shook her head 71 C30 Wrecker 71 C20 Scott-Bilt As weird as it gets..BB Cheyenne AC Truck 68 GMC Long Stepside. They keep following me home 69 C30 Former Motor Home, Flat Bed time 70 G20 Red-E-Kamp Conversion "I'm your Boogy Van"

04-07-2018, 07:36 AM	#9
Advanced Design Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Oblong, Illinois Posts: 7,028	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Looks like some good progress with the camper restoration. Will you be reinstalling the rear porch platform? Tagging along for the rest. __________________ Doug Advanced Design’s 1977 Blazer Build Advanced Design's '48 'Burb Build Mrs Advanced Design's '72 Suburban Advanced Design's 56 BelAir LS swap

04-07-2018, 10:39 AM	#10
Stickman Registered User Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Chandler,AZ Posts: 576	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Wow, that is awesome. I'll follow along.

04-07-2018, 06:47 PM	#12
RDrancher Registered User Join Date: Aug 2014 Location: Decatur, Texas Posts: 673	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Following along. Looks like an interesting endeavor. __________________ Romans 10:9 - The Truth

04-08-2018, 07:03 PM	#13
68Gold/white Registered User Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Ark City, Kansas Posts: 3,405	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Job well done!!!

04-09-2018, 12:00 AM	#15
71meangreenc10 Its a Truck Thing...... Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sierra Vista, Arizona Posts: 3,179	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Well, Did a lot of work this weekend. Here is a time warp back for the old Green Shag Carpet. Just remember "It's just a jump to the left"....... More pictures to come tomorrow.... Smitty Attached Images __________________ 71 C10 283/3SPD Full Resto 71 GMC 1500 Sierra Grande http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=518599 70 C10 Suburban Former military GSA truck. 72 Chevy Blazer 4X4, Sloppy Jo, Mountain Climber. Wife says no more trucks. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=707378 72 GMC 1 Ton Motor Home, wife said no more trucks until she saw this one. Gen 3 6.0/4L80E 4.10 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=761110 68 GMC Suburban was 3/4 ton, now 1/2.Wife shook her head 71 C30 Wrecker 71 C20 Scott-Bilt As weird as it gets..BB Cheyenne AC Truck 68 GMC Long Stepside. They keep following me home 69 C30 Former Motor Home, Flat Bed time 70 G20 Red-E-Kamp Conversion "I'm your Boogy Van"

04-09-2018, 04:05 PM	#16
Dieselwrencher 6>8 Plugless........ Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Prairie City, Ia Posts: 17,142	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Nice truck, sorry to see on the camper portion. It stinks the RV place did you so poorly. I've been having bad ideas of building my own since these are so hard to get now. Maybe after all the other projects are done first. I was hoping you were going to keep that rear door/deck set up. That made those the coolest set ups back then IMO. I'm in to see how the rest turns out! __________________ Ryan 1972 Chevy Longhorn K30 Cheyenne Super, 359 Inline 6 cylinder, Auto Trans, Tilt, Diesel Tach/Vach, Buckets, Rare Rear 4-link and air ride option Build Thread 1972 GMC Sierra Grande Longhorn 4x4 1972 Chevy Cheyenne Super K20 Long Step side tilt, tach, tow hooks, AC, 350 4 speed 1972 C10 Suburban Custom Deluxe 1969 Chevy milk truck 1971 Camaro RS 5.3 BTR STG3 Cam Super T10 1940 Ford 354 Hemi 46RH Ford 9" on air ride huge project *Tired of spark plugs? Check this out.*

04-09-2018, 11:21 PM	#18
71meangreenc10 Its a Truck Thing...... Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Sierra Vista, Arizona Posts: 3,179	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads So this weekend I pulled the old powertrain out. The wife helped seal up the inner walls with some old paint. Today we got the cab off and it is in the garage getting prepped for some new color and fix all the holes in the cab. This week the filon should be on along with some more wood repairs. Smitty Attached Images __________________ 71 C10 283/3SPD Full Resto 71 GMC 1500 Sierra Grande http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=518599 70 C10 Suburban Former military GSA truck. 72 Chevy Blazer 4X4, Sloppy Jo, Mountain Climber. Wife says no more trucks. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=707378 72 GMC 1 Ton Motor Home, wife said no more trucks until she saw this one. Gen 3 6.0/4L80E 4.10 http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=761110 68 GMC Suburban was 3/4 ton, now 1/2.Wife shook her head 71 C30 Wrecker 71 C20 Scott-Bilt As weird as it gets..BB Cheyenne AC Truck 68 GMC Long Stepside. They keep following me home 69 C30 Former Motor Home, Flat Bed time 70 G20 Red-E-Kamp Conversion "I'm your Boogy Van"



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04-10-2018, 03:01 AM	#19
Advanced Design Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Oblong, Illinois Posts: 7,028	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Good progress...you move along quickly! __________________ Doug Advanced Design’s 1977 Blazer Build Advanced Design's '48 'Burb Build Mrs Advanced Design's '72 Suburban Advanced Design's 56 BelAir LS swap

04-10-2018, 02:24 PM	#21
Ol Blue K20 Proprietor of Dale's Corner Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Vacaville , CA Posts: 16,245	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Nice ....I'm following along too __________________ "Some Days Chickens And Some Days Feathers" Dale XNGH ECV Sam Brannan 1004 R.I.P. 67ChevyRedneck R.I.P. Grumpy Old Man R.I.P. FleetsidePaul

04-10-2018, 02:56 PM	#22
3757chevy Senior Member Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: Near Canon City ,Colorado Posts: 4,056	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads Looking good. You said new color? I guess your staying with a green theme with that nice original interior... And it looks like you are building around the love seat/couch. Quite a task. __________________ '35 1/2 ton Pickup (bought 2020) '68 C10 Suburban (bought 2021) '72 K5 Blazer (bought 2013) '67 Stepside (bought 1997-sold 2021) '96 Bronco Eddie Bauer (inherited 2010) My 1st day here-'67 C10(sold)and '72 K5 Blazer http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=702056 "Another Blue Chevy"(1935) http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=799203 '68 Burb...https://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/...d.php?t=822994 MIKE

04-10-2018, 04:33 PM	#24
68Gold/white Registered User Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Ark City, Kansas Posts: 3,405	Re: Re-Open the Open Roads You could mount the couch on top of the camper body, and let Ellie Mae, and Granny ride up there... Carry on the good life!!!

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