how did you get hooked?

[Clancy68]

I was wondering how some of us got into the 67-72 chevy trucks. personally i was looking for a nova,chevelle, el camino or camaro for my 406, then my friend told me his dad had a 68 truck at his impound yard, i saw it, thought it was perfect, bought it and have not turned back.
so in a nutshell whats your story?
--Scoot

[2low72]

My parents bought me one in high school. My first truck. It was a 68 longbed with the original 307 and 3 speed auto. They stole it for a whopping $800.00.
I drove it everday to school for 3 years till the motor finally died. So i built a new motor, painted her up just in time for someone to T-bone me and total it.
So I used the insurance money and bought a 72 pro street from a friend.2 years later i joined the Air Force and stupid me, I sold it. So 4 years drag by and the wife finaly lets me buy the one i own now. I've been hooked for quite sometime ever since the 68. hope this didn't bore ya to much.

2low72

[69 Short Fleet]

My best buddy (highschool) and I used to go grouse hunting in his dad's 68 GMC longbox "babyblue" we were like 15 / 16 years old, great times!

[krue]

My first vehicle was a 69 chevy swb stepside with the 250 and 3 on the tree. I beat the he!! out of that truck and it kept coming back for more. I wish I still had it.

[Lippyp]

I'd always wanted a pick-up truck after years of British and European classics and a few moderns, all of the trucks sold in the UK at my price range are either dirty concrete encrusted ex construction wagons (mostly Nissans and Mazdas) or a cute british classics like Mini's, Morris Minors with about 30 bhp and handling to match so I started looking at Americans. In the UK if it is pre 1973 then you don't pay the annual road tax of about £140 and you can get classic insurance, did some research ended up with my 67!

[JIMs70GMC]

When I was about 11-12 my dad had a red 67 w/ side pipes. It was the loudest and baddest truck around. Since then I've always liked the body style. Fast forward 20 years, neighbor has the 70 GMC sitting in his driveway for 2 years, every now and then I'd ask if he'd sell it. One day (my birthday(31)) he tells me to take it for a spin and see if I want it or not. I told him it's not a matter "if" but how much he wants. Worked a deal and now I got 2!

[buckola]

I went to a GM dealer to purchase a new 1/2 ton. The dealer mentioned he was a collector and showed me a couple of his trucks. I asked if the GMC was for sale and he said 'everythings for sale" So... $40,000 cookie cutter or $5,000 head turner. The choice was easy

[Woody]

In '67 my Dad bought a new '67 LWB Fleetside, 6 cyc/ 3 on the tree. That was the first truck I remember him having. He died in it in '71. We moved to KY, & uncle Ron had a '69 SWB Fleetside 6 Cyc 3 on the tree that I learned to drive in. In '75 or so he put a 327 in it. I still remember the problems they had trying to get it in there. This BB would have really helped! Once they got the 327 in there it ran like a scalded dog!

Then in '84 I moved to Concord NC, There was a 69 SWB Fleetside (looked like Uncle Ron's old truck) that was a 350/400t a/c ps pb (21 options) truck on a lot. it had a set of 235/60/15's on 8" fake Cragers and was shining! Man it looked good. I had a POS Ford Fairlane (leaked oil from everywhere) that I had just about had it with. So I traded the Fairlane in on the 69. I've had it ever since. Best decision I've ever made.

[fine69]

Ah. Memories. In 1976 my family moved back to Ohio from Texas. My father was in the Navy. We moved alot so i never really got to meet my Grandparents until 1976. I was 9 years old. When we moved i ended up spending lots of time with my grandfather. Grandpa was 72 or 73 years old when i was born. So this dude was old now. But he knew everything. There were pictures on his living room walls of him and his buddies standing near large Steam traction engines,Thrashing machines. He built them from scratch. Well i started going with him and my grandma to Steam shows. What truck did we take? A 1968 Chevy 3/4 ton. Camper in the back. I learned to drive using this truck. And i still have it today. Grandpa is long gone. Dang that dude was cool. The rest aint hard to figure out. Once you get A Chevy. You will continue to own more.

[Dean]

My dad bought a 71 C10 new. I've been hooked since then. My first was a 71 K20 in high school. I still see my dad's old C10 running around town.

[BobbyK]

I was actually looking for an early Bronco or IH at first...then I saw a 1st gen Blazer with it's top off and that was it for me.

[Bowtie67]

When I was a kid my dad owned a 21 acre junkyard, he primarily drove trucks back and forth, old panels, flatbeds, wreckers and lots of other neat stuff. One day a 59 GMC came in that need very little work to get it running and that thing hauled A$$. It had a 400 Pontiac with an auto. Since then I have always been into trucks. I have had several Chevy trucks from old to brand new. when I found the 67 I really wanted a 56 because I had preffered that supension over the new 60's styles. My 2 boys that are home 11 & 14 are into Covettes, Camaros, of coarse my Pontiac GTP and especially the truck. My 14 year old although he doesn't have his license yet is already bugging me about using the truck.

[srhart71]

I inherited Grampa's 68 3/4ton with a 327 and 4speed. Learned to drive in it, first ticket, first auto accident, first date, etc... 15 years of muscle cars and motorcycles and realized needed a truck. New were too expensive and right deal fell into lap. Rest is history.

[MACKL]

My dad had a 72. When I got my first truck at the age of 16, we bought a 67 work truck with a 283. About a month later, the t-stat stuck and I melted the engine to the ground. (Stupid kid!) We rebuilt the engine, painted it and then drove the wheels off of it. At age 18, I traded it even steven for a 1964 Impala SS convertable. I have wanted another truck ever since. 25 years later, when my son's are approaching 16, 17, any guess what I bought? 1970 SWB fleetside. I hope they have the same great memories with their that I had with mine.

[stingray72]

My dad's 72 Cheyenne was about the only thing I was allowed to drive when I turned 16. All my friends called it the RNAV (RedNeck Assault Vehicle). I loved it, runs good and is a nice truck. I've got my own 70 now and am looking for a blazer or jimmy

[Palf70Step]

I guess I'm a late bloomer. I've always been into cars and trucks, no matter who or what made it. I loved them all. I wanted to get back into a "toy" or project again and initially I was looking at the 48-55 type GM trucks. A friend at the church had his dad's old truck and debated on getting rid of it. I did not go head over heels for it, but when he decided to sell it to me the 70 had grown on me and now has matured to a full fledged something or other. It might even be a truck again once all the pieces get back together.

[Putter]

When I was born, my grandpa's '69 C-10 was already 3-years old. That was the first truck I ever laid eyes on. For the first 10-15 years, it was just "grandpa's old truck". Nothing special, just a truck. In high school I was all about my '52 Chevy truck. 327 with a powerglide. Bad as could be from redlight to redlight....sucked at anything over 60mph. After H/S, I sold it (mistake) and bought a Jap-truck (mistake). Found a '69 short/wide with a 350/350. Un-assed $1000 and drove it for a while....all the while, grandpa's truck was just sitting there under the 'truck-shed'. (he never had a car, so it was a truck shed instead of a car port). I was always told I could have it when he passed, but with that condition set on it, I really was not too anxious to get it. Well, the day came, and I ended up getting it the hard way. I titled it in my name, but left it in Arkansas for grandma to drive for something like 8-10 more years. I paid for all the tags, inspections, tires, maintenance, etc... She decided she was unable to wrestle the three speed, manual steering and manual brakes any more, so I hauled it home to Mississippi, and have driven it every day since. Not much of a story I guess, but that's how it laid out over the years.

[vtblazer]

I'm a Blazer but, same, same.
My wife asked me to take my son for his first year check up which was out of town...saw the blazer sitting in a parking lot on the way down and stopped to look on the way home...yep, I bought it.
Ya think my wife wishes she'd made the trip instead...?

[Yukon Jack]

I've always liked trucks but what really hooked me on the 67-72's is my buddy Tony's 1 ton dually that he converted to 4wd. It's all his fault!!!

[70ChevyLongbed]

I was out looking for an older truck to buy and use as a daily driver and weekend hauler... Drove out to a garage that always had older cars and trucks for sale but they were closed. I didn't know the area that well but I turned off the main road and figured I'd make my way back by cutting through a residential area, turned a corner and there sat my 70 longbed in someones front yard. Pulled in the driveway to look at it and a week or so later paid for it and took it home.

[krazy_texan]

the day my parents bought my 71 c/20 was the day i got the bug, i was and still am a very big fan of the 60-66 style as that was all that grandpa ever had and my first truck was grandpas 65 4x4 gmc v6, i sold it to my cousin when my dad moved the family over seas after we got back. i had found a truck in the next town, one day i was in school dad was on his way to buy the 71 ford swb 351clevland motor,4spd truck and saw my 71 at another dealer on the way to buy the ford, he turned around, bought the truck and surprised me at school with it that day.

[71Rat]

when i was about 14 my dad wanted to get a father son project. he remembered seeing an old k-5 blazer at a local shop and thought it was really clean... well a few days later he saw one in the paper that met the discription of the one he saw, so we looked at it and bought it(middle of winter so we didnt look under it). We get it home and i start pulling it apart... to only find out the floor is rotted and the rocker boxes are 1/2 gone also. we got prices to fix them but he didnt want to put that much money into just floors. so i cleaned it up and we sold it for a couple grand more then we paid. i was pissed because my dad made me sell it, i loved it(besides the floor that '70 was mint).... so about a year and a 1/2 ago i bought my 71 long bed at carlilse and have been playing with it ever since.... one day i am going to get another blazer


Rat

[dubie]

When I was in high school there was a local guy that had a 72 GMC that was painted a metallic medium blue with a whole lotta chrome. When I saw that truck, I was hooked!!! It wasn't till about 7 years later that I actually bought one. It's a 72 Chevy that now has a 67 GMC front clip on it. I was addicted to the look of that big chrome GMC grille. But right after I bought the truck, I intended on just using it as a beater for the rest of it's life. That was until I found this site. Then the addiction got worse and worse and eventually I ended up tearing the truck down to a rolling chassis and treating the ol girl to some new parts. And here we sit today, almost back together and it will be ready to cruise this summer

[Nima]

Hi to eveybody
I bought my 67 C20 (with 327 engine and 3 on 3)couple of months ago. Unlike most of you, I didn't/don't have any previous history with old American trucks. I neede a pickup for my weekend project (I consider myself handyman!) and I like 67-72 bodies!. Couple of months ago I found this truck, which was the first one I looked at!, and I bought it!. It is very straight but everything on it need to be changed or upgraded. Although it is not running perfect nowand is not in perfect body condition, But I love it. You are gona hear from me a lot since I am in need of lot's of help.
I also want to take advantage and let you all know that this is great website and you are all a great help.
Thanks.

[sider68]

Originally Posted by Lippyp

I'd always wanted a pick-up truck after years of British and European classics and a few moderns, all of the trucks sold in the UK at my price range are either dirty concrete encrusted ex construction wagons (mostly Nissans and Mazdas) or a cute british classics like Mini's, Morris Minors with about 30 bhp and handling to match so I started looking at Americans. In the UK if it is pre 1973 then you don't pay the annual road tax of about £140 and you can get classic insurance, did some research ended up with my 67!

But how is it to drive when you are are on the wrong side of the road?