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Old 03-17-2018, 08:34 PM   #1
blindbug
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Project "Blue Dog" - 86' Custom Deluxe

What is going on guys and gals. I guess if I don't start my build thread soon, I will never get it started. So here goes nothing!

The Primer - Why am I here?

Well, to say that I've been dreaming about getting my hands on an old truck (or car) for the last 15+ years would be an understatement. I have always been into cars and trucks, and have always wanted to get into the hobby (for lack of a better term).

My affinity towards the GM Squarebody, of all the possibilities, came from my father. He owns a 1986 GMC Sierra 1500 in black, and has owned that truck since I was 4 years old. I have fond memories of that truck, and after 10 years of pestering him to pass it on to me, I finally had to give in and pursue my own Squarebody.

Finding 'Blue Dog'

For the last 5 years or so, I've been putting aside money and SEARCHING. Searching for an old truck, specifically... I had my eyes on a 85-87 C10 or Sierra, a 78-79' Big Ten, or a 64' C10. In that time, I've only came across (3) trucks that passed my refined eye (and more importantly my budget). One of those sold out from under me before I could take it for a test drive, and the other was an owner without a title.

Finally, one day last fall my brother (who knows my affection to the square bodies) messaged me with a picture of a Facebook ad he had saw. It was an 1986 C10 Short Bed Custom Deluxe, and from what I could tell it was nearly RUST FREE... which is hard to come by in the great state of Kentucky. I asked him to set up a meet time and the next morning I headed out on a 3 hour drive to see this thing, and hopefully finally satisfy this itch that I've had for so long.

I get there, and am greeted with 'there's a problem'... UH OH, here we go again! Turns out, the owner has misplaced the keys and therefore we can't start it. While the owner is in the house looking for the keys, my brother, father and I inspect the truck to confirm it is rust free, with a 350 v8 (swapped from a 1975 C20 I now know) and meets all the qualifications I was looking for (rust free being a huge one).

At this point, I am ready to buy the truck IF we can start it so we decided that we would go into town and buy a new ignition switch to replace the one on the truck. But PRESTO, the owner emerged from the house with the fabled key. Put it in the ignition and it starts up from cold on the first try!

Needless to say, it has issues. Power Steering Fluid has a leak somewhere (I think it's the gearbox), Oil leaks a little bit from some place (the front oil pan?), Radiator might be leaky as well, it needed an new battery and plenty of fluids. Yes, its a bit degraded, but there's no rust... and by george, it's MINE and I love it!

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Old 03-17-2018, 08:47 PM   #2
blindbug
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Re: Project "Blue Dog" - 86' Custom Deluxe

The Day I bought her...

So there I was, there was Blue Dog. Together at last like it was meant to be.

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Alas, I must wait...

Unfortunately, I had to drive 3 hours to buy her, and my father and brother also had to drive 3 hours to meet me to buy her, and from a different city. We didn't have a hauler, so that meant I only got to spend a few hours with Blue Dog before my father took her back to his place (2 hours from me) and stored Blue Dog in his garage.

Luckily for me, if you had been paying attention, my dad also has a squarebody from the same year, and has had one since 1986. This meant that Blue Dog was in good hands. By the time I would get Blue Dog back in my possession, a few things would occur:
  1. Battery replaced
  2. New Distributor
  3. Door Striker Adjustments

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Old 04-17-2018, 06:48 AM   #3
LT7A
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Re: Project "Blue Dog" - 86' Custom Deluxe

Looks like a cool truck and a good find. More blue dog stories!
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Old 04-17-2018, 07:07 AM   #4
Gotenntitans
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Re: Project "Blue Dog" - 86' Custom Deluxe

Looks like a good old truck. There's one down here in south Arkansas exactly like it, except the guy has wider tires on it and it has a red hood. I've been seeing it for years!

Good luck with Blue Dog.
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Old 04-17-2018, 07:56 AM   #5
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Re: Project "Blue Dog" - 86' Custom Deluxe

congrats on your find! Excellent starting point!
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Old 04-18-2018, 09:09 AM   #6
blindbug
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Re: Project "Blue Dog" - 86' Custom Deluxe

Quote:
Originally Posted by LT7A View Post
Looks like a cool truck and a good find. More blue dog stories!
Ha, I've been so busy lately, getting time to sit down and write this stuff up is hard, if not impossible!

Funny enough, I am currently using Blue Dog as my daily driver, taking a toddler and a 3 year old to daycare... these trucks aren't meant to house car seats very well! My wife had an accident in her car, so it's in the shop. Nothing major, but enough damage that it's gonna take over a week, and I'm not paying $30 a day for a rental.

I'll get this thing back on track soon. I have all my details down to the mileage written down with everything that I do.
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Old 04-19-2018, 08:28 PM   #7
blindbug
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Re: Project "Blue Dog" - 86' Custom Deluxe

Come to me my pretty...

Well my time had came. It had been 2 weeks since I last parted, and now I got to make the trip to get Blue Dog in my greedy hands!

I was able to order some parts from LMC for Blue Dog. Unfortunately I didn't pay close enough attention and didn't see that 'Req'd' line on the book. This meant that I only ordered a single cab door seal . Also, look at the great carpet that I had professionally installed .

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What have I got myself into?

I will admit, I was totally pumped at this point. But now that I had a better chance to see what I was getting, I must say it was worrisome. I know this thing is in great condition, but I tend to be a perfectionist, so when I look I see way too much!

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Old 04-19-2018, 08:40 PM   #8
blindbug
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Re: Project "Blue Dog" - 86' Custom Deluxe

So many things...

Oh god, there are so many little things to do!

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At least the cab corners are good!

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Old 04-19-2018, 08:45 PM   #9
blindbug
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Re: Project "Blue Dog" - 86' Custom Deluxe

The exterior

Although it had a bit of primer here and there... the exterior wasn't too shabby. I finally figured out why there's primer on the bed rails and primer on the rear passenger fender. The bed rails are because a previous owner filled in the bed post holes. After I figured it out, I kinda like the way it looks. The passenger fender looks like someone was in a fender bender and pushed the bedside into the cab. Uh oh, I hope that didn't cause any other big damage (hint: it didn't, that I can tell).

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A shine test

While the paint is a bit dull, I decided to see what the paint might look like if I were to polish it as-is. Surprisingly, it looks pretty fair. Now I have to decide to go with patina or go with a fresh look!

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Old 04-20-2018, 09:52 AM   #10
LT7A
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Re: Project "Blue Dog" - 86' Custom Deluxe

I am a recovering perfectionist myself. So post your dilemmas and we'll give you some ideas. Local to me there is an auto paint store that will match and mix paint and put it into spray cans. Maybe you have a store like that too? I think for the moment, that getting something like that to cover up the primer would work really well. You could match the faded paint and even have them mix in a little flattening agent if you wanted to match the weathered gloss of the original.

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