Where did you find your truck?

[Zkast]

Found mine right next door to me 9 years ago. The guy never drove it, so one day I walk over and offer him 300.00 cash. He said "Throw in that Oldsmobile Firenza in your driveway and its a deal" All in all I had a total of 200.00 in the car LOL. Sold the truck 3 years later for 3500.00 to another guy (stupid mistake), then I find out, a year later, he's not driving the truck anymore... gas mileage sucks. So I drive to his house in a 87 pontiac 6000 and offer him a straight trade. I couldnt believe it, HE TOOK IT lol. I had a total of 350.00 in that car. I love the ole truck and would not even concider selling it again....

[Rabid]

Bought mine in Fayetteville, NC while I was stationed at Ft. Bragg. It was at a paint and body shop of all places. Supposedly the guy that owned the truck also worked at the paint shop. He had started to restore it but somehow pissed off his employer and got fired. The guy never came to pick up his last paycheck plus left his truck in the garage. The owner kept it locked up for a while and then decided that the guy wasnt coming to get it and sold it to me. That was back in Feb. 96 and although the marriage has had its moments the truck and I are still together.

[Gee_Emm]

I wasnt planning on buying a truck, I was just looking through the classifieds as I usually do and I spotted it. Went to see it, was in good shape, even thought about parting it out to justify the price and if I had parted it out I figured I would have made my money back so I decided to buy it.

[SWINGSAX68]

I made a bad, bad Ebay choice to start with. Wanted a 68 bad before I even knew anything about auto's (that was like in Dec.) Payed $1200, and then had it shipped from $600 from Florida. That was the most money I have ever wasted in my life.....the body was horribly shot to hell. Rust every where all covered up with a ****y primer and bondo job......man I was discouraged, i was ashamed....i had thown away so much money. The engine smoked bad, big ol hole in the trans hump for a stripped camaro shifter on the floor, ratty beat up buckets welded to little floor brackets and bolted in......FIBERGLASS PATCHES ALL OVER THE ROCKERS, one of the cab frame welding on the passenger side under the dash was broken and looked like a fractured split leg and the door wouldn't close right. Luckily months later my girls dad found a 68 for sale in town. The guy wanted $650 for just a body w/ 3-speed trans and a new windsheild, my dad talked him down to $500 and that is my project right now. We took out the 307 and auto trans from the POS and had the the 307 overhauled. We took of the tires and rims as well. The tires were practically brand new, rims....eh. I've just been stripping that thing since finding some good out of it. I learned a lesson about puchasing anything.......seeing in person is better than taking someones word. I'm glad I have my current truck it is like 100x's better.

[Southpa]

Wow, must be almost 8 years now, my how time flies. I told a mechanic friend of mine to keep his eyes and ears open for a pickup truck for me. A little while later he called me up and mentioned a buddy of his (another mechanic) was selling a 1970 GMC. I never even knew what the hell they looked like and was visioning the earlier models (early 60's) with the big flat hood. Since I got on this board I certainly know the difference now, lol.

When we got there the guy was replacing one of the front brake lines. It needed some body work, as expected, but had Wrangler AT's all around. I took it for a spin afterwards and was impressed, couldn't talk him down from $1500 Cdn. tho. But it was still worth it.

I knew I would be putting more money into it, just goes to show that if I didn't, I wouldn't still be driving it, lol. Anyway, I figure buying from an experienced (and trusty) mechanic has its merits.

[O'l Buck]

I actually turned mine down the first chance i had to buy it.....way too rusty and i wanted a 67 lwb 4x4.....but when i saw it sitting there along the highway with a 4 sale sign in the windshield....well, i just have a soft spot for old junk i guess, i talked the lady down 300 on it, drove it home, and was glad i did, because the POS 87(may it rest in salvage yard hell) evidently got jealous and the transfer case went to transfer case heaven the same day i bought the 72.

[Blue_71]

uuuum well my stories kinda boring, i was looking at a 72 and then saw a 71 in the paper, went and looked at it and bought it because it had a better interior...i let my dad convince me it cost a fortune to redo a interior b/c he didnt like the guy selling the 72.. but the 72 was a loaded down 72 cheyenne with full trim, it may have even been a super i think... btu then i didnt know that meant anything

got the 72 byu a guy seeing blue sittin in the yard and offering it to me for parts

got the 4x4 by seeing it on the board

got the 70 by asking a guy if he knew of any parts for a 71 and he offered me his tore apart truck.. that trucks going before long

[RALLY FAST]

my first was a 71 chevy long bed . my uncle own it and lived down the road from me, so isaw that truck go up & down our street every mor n & afternoon . then i moved out got married etc. one day mymom called and said the truck was going to be sold so i went and got it . turns out he watches me go up & down the road now . but my 69 short bed i bought, it was in the paper .it was 120 miles up in the mountains of the cherokee national forest, right on the north carolina line. i drove up there looked at came home . a week later it was not in the paper.one month went by and i just sold a horse. i was looking for the papers on the horse and found the guys phone number instead. i said to myself self call him just for the hell of it.turns out the old guy was 2nd owner, and he only ran the add in the paper for a week and he lived too far out, nobody came to look at but me,and he gave up and parked in back of his yard to stay for ever, so i went and got it .could'nt believe it. he had a box of extra parts and a LMC book he gave me. said he wanted to restore the truck but never did. he was 78 years old and he told me when i paid him i think you were meant to have this truck . i could'nt agree more i said

[Randy70C-10]

Got mine from a friend, $900.

[big blue 72]

Bought my 72 GMC 18 years ago for $400 and i found it right around the corner from my house while out walking the dogs.
It is all original with 152k on the ol' 350, which needs some carb work and I'm looking to put in a auto tranny and power steering. i gotta bad back and just dont wanna fight the clutch or turning corners any more.

[hwedding56]

A friend had restored a 67 SWB step and I just had to have one. (bit by the bug ,BAD) Found a 67 SWB step GMC from a poker playing buddie.$500.00 (Should have never traded it in on the 700r4 deal,Still trying to get it back. All original 305 V-6) Started gathering parts and the same guy had a 67 SWB step restored (Note the plane jane) Bad oil leak he had the wires under the valve cover.LOL $1900.00 Drove it for 10 years got hit in the side by a caddie. Was looking for a left rear step fender ( still looking ,for my daughter now). A friend I was working with said he had a 67- Fleet that he was thinking about selling. He drove it to work the next day,talked him down to $1900.00. (something about $1900.00 now that I think about it) had two buddies chomping at the bit wanting it bad and would have gave him the $2500.00 asking price. 67-CST all options minus tach, been restored about 10 years before. That was in 1994. ITS NOT FOR SALE, maybe my estate sale. The kids want it bad, so that probably wont happen. All these have the small back window. Gotta love those! The 68 dump (small window also) Was up the road about ten miles when I needed to haul about 100 loads of dirt. $1500.00 Moter was shot and 150 loads later the moter is still shot. (Note Fast68s soon to be installed. I should probably change that sense it is still on the stand in the shop) Well you know where that came from. Last is the Crew Cab????? Well
I just dont know what to say. I needed something to pull the boat with. Why not save the Crews from Crews. Now you know where it came from. "Thanks Crews" I wasn't going to do anything with it. " but " Have you looked at some of them on this board? Second Thought are in my mind. Fugly Fugly Fugly Truck (Good thread)
Herbie

[RobA]

I had been looking for the right truck for about two years when I spied an ad in the local paper. It was a sealed bid estate sale with a whole whack of items one of them being a 71 GMC 3/4 with a 11.5 foot camper in the box. It was just the truck I wanted; V8, 4 speed, wood box, and nice shape to boot. It had been repainted at some point but the cab looked solid. The camper was a bonus. I bid way too high and still didn't get the truck. They sold it to a family friend instead. One year later and still no truck, I see another ad in the paper for a 71 3/4 ton. I go and look, it's the same truck. Without hesitation, I offer less than half of what I bid before and he takes it. That was over 5 years ago. I may keep this truck forever.

[71BBK10]

i got mine from my friends dad, first time i ever saw that truck i was about 14 and it was just sitting in the yard, he didn't drive it anymore cause of his back, but every now and again he would start it up, and lemme tell ya, anybody thats heard a big block with open headers knows what its like, i wanted that truck sooo bad, then about 3 years later i found out he was gonna sell it, i never dreamed back then i would have it. kick ass thread btw

[John Fabris]

I spent around 6 months looking for the right truck. I kept finding trucks that had been modified (cut up), or the owners wanted too much $$ because they dumped a lot of $$ into the engines and left the body to fall to pieces. I found my 67 C10 Custom SWB Fleetside in a classified ad in the Diablo Dealer (Northern California Car classified) and it was about one hour East of where I was. The truck was complete, had not been hacked up, and the only thing changed from stock was the fuel system had been changed to propane (via a valve and host to the top of the air cleaner). The guy wanted $1400, and I talked him down to $1000.

That was January of 2000 and I am still working on it. Doing a complete rebuild from the frame up.

[68gmcjon]

My neighbor had been keeping the truck for his brother-in-law and i went over and saw it. About a year and a half later it was for sale for 2800. So i bought it.

[lukecp]

One of my friends had a '71 that i liked alot, and i was over there one day while they were giving it's 250 a tuneup, and i said that i wouldn't mine getting a 67-72. His stepdad worked at a manufacturing plant that employed a lot of people, and he said he would keep his eyes and ears open for a truck for sale. One day he saw a older guy (about 60) drive in to work in a ochre '72 LWB. He told him that his truck was pretty nice. The guy had just got another '72, and said that he was thinking of selling it. By the end of the week, the truck was in my driveway, before ever hitting the makret .

[blue72stepside]

I found mine at the chevy dealer's lot new in 1971. I payed $3,400.00 out the door. I was 16 at the time. I sold my 65 impala for 1,200.00 as down payment. Then worked the saturday's and the summer to pay the rest off.

[CE20934]

My 83 S10 (may it rot in junkyard hell) had given up the ghost. Again. Who'da thunk a CA-smogger 305 could toast two THM350s & one rear end?

After losing all patience with it (died in Nov 98, left MI Dec 98), and had to get home for Christmas, I started looking for "a truck". F#rd, Dodge, Chevy, Int'l, Jeep, whatever. I just wanted a truck with a 4spd & 4WD. No autos. Since I lived in NW CO, rust was not an issue. Plus there are a lot of beater and quasi-beater trucks running around for cheap.

In Feb 99, saw an ad for a '76 K10 stepside. It had sold well before I go to the local used car dealership (15 mi away), but the owner (who also owned the furniture store next door) said he'd talk to some of his buddies in Denver on his next run to Denver.

Week later he called me up saying there's a '67 C20 in the lot. My father and I took off to Granby to look at it. It had 98,144 miles on the clock, some rust for a CO truck, one cab corner was pretty much gone (but hidden under rags & Bondo, a fact i would not realize for two years), the rockers had some pinholes, no tailgate (damned AirNet thing), greasy engine, cheesy chrome intake, holes in the seat cover, dirt all over the interior, all the trim, almost bald tires, ****ty manual drum brakes (the guy who drove it back said he'd had to use 2rd gear to slow down), no taillights, no parking lights, no b/u lights, burned a quart of oil every 70 miles (did so until 9/01 when the rebuilt engine was first fired up).

I didn't see any of that. If I did, it didn't process. I saw "my truck" w/o 4WD. That's why they invented tire chains. Didn't even drive it until I went back the next day with a check for $2496 ($2400 + tax). Probably a dumb idea, but I didn't care. One, the owner of the dealership went to my church, and two, he's a very respected member of the county. Plus, I had "my truck". Got it stuck three times that day--once bad enough I had to call a tow truck. God Bless blue spruce.

Still drive it, has never lefty me stranded. Tried to kill me once, but I've never had a major problem that couldn't be ignored until I could fix it (7 months w/o a clutch and my truck never complained loudly). Since I moved to MI, the rust has blossomed, but the frame, trans, engine, and rear end are still strong. It's been a real learning experience. I probably spent too much $$$ with all the problems I inherited from the 8+ previous owners, but what can I do about it? I'm happy.

[72MARIO]

Got mine from the auto wreckers for $350 sold 300 bucks of parts from it so far

[Suicide-D]

Mentioned to a co-worker that I had always wanted a 67-72 chevy or GMC since my great-uncle has a 72 that I had always loved. He told me of a friend of his who's dad was trying to get rid of one. I went by and looked at it and then bought it without permission from the wife...I drove it home... $500.00 bucks. Needless to say the wife used it against me in divorce court... BUT I STILL HAVE MY TRUCK!!! and one less headache. Best money ever spent... wish that was all it cost me. The new girl friend loves my truck and even gives me money to buy stuff for it. ( she is a keeper!!)

[King_Cobra]

I got my for free it was sitting back out behind one of the fertilizer plants around here. Needs some work. But hey another car won't hurt me.

[68 with 350 TPI]

Free is good Very good.


Great stories.

Any about the one that got away?

I had a chance to get a nice 67 step a few years ago and blew it

The guy was wanting 1,600 for it and it was in pretty good shape.
I still see that truck running around calling my name asking me why I dident save it from the guy who has it now

The guy has some stickers on the bumbers,windows,cab,bed,and it has mismatched wheels

Turned into a real dung heap.

To bad it was a 4 speed/396

[72'BBGMCSGCC]

I got my 72' GMC Sierra Grande, Custom Camper 3/4 from my Grandparents which bought it new in 72' from Calif.All origional with 65,500 miles ,402BB,Turbo 400,A/.C,PS,PB,Duals,etc. Just took it out tonight and the Manager at the local Kentucky fried chicken wanted to buy it and yesterday I took it to a car show and a kid wanted to buy it, but I had to tell them no,that my 2 year old owns it.

[Lippyp]

Found mine in the classifieds in a specialist magazine over here called Classic American. Travelled about 250 miles from just north of Manchester to Norfolk to look at it and drove it back. Norfolk (east side of UK) has (or had) lots of US airbases so there are a lot of American vehicles in that part of the country. It may well be that my truck came over with a serviceman, or it may have been a private import.

A friend of mine had a US spec VW rabbit (Golf to us Brits) a few years ago that he bought from an Airman based at Greenham Common (cruise missile base!) I have to say at the time I was very tempted by an ex USAF police car, but couldn't have afforded the fuel at the time!

[Woody]

Well my love affair with these trucks came as a boy growing up. My father had a 67 LWB that I always liked. He wrecked and died in it in fall of 71. I was a only 11, we up and moved to KY where my Dad's family lived. Uncle Ron had a 69 SWB Fleet, 6cyc, 3 on the tree. I watched as he and a few others put a 327 and a ZOOM racing clutch in it. Now with those 6 cyc gears under it, that truck would run! Also my best buddy's Dad had a 69 or 70 Custom Deluxe (350, a/c). I was driving anything I could around the farm (12-15 years old).

Fast Forward to the mid-80's.....I had just moved to Concord NC and was driving a POS Fairmont wagon when I drove past a used car lot with a 69 SWB Fleetside (same color as Uncle Ron's). Went back the next day and looked at it. It had 21 options!!! It was over priced but the wife liked it as much as I did so I traded the wagon for it. That was Dec. '84. It will go to one of my boys when I go to that big wrecking yard in the sky. Wonder if God drives a 67-72 Chevy??