1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Well, FB Marketplace made me buy another C10. This one popped up the other day, so I went to look at it. Turns out it was one of my neighbors next door to my old house. It looks like hell, well used but mechanically it has been taken care of. Runs well, trans shifts good, brakes work well. We are hoping the dents in the doors pop out well enough as to not be such a visual impact as they are now. Looks like the driver's door was repainted with base/clear at some point, but the rest is factory paint with well worn patina. Plan is to push out the big dents, clean and buff out what paint is there.

I go to pick it up after work today, plan is to drive it home, about 16 miles, and then give it a deep cleaning before we start to do anything to it.

As you can see on the SPID, pretty basic truck.

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Good Luck..Luv those first time drives home.

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Great luck! Congrats!

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

First drive home was in the rain and a bit sketchy above 50mph...There is a bad shake above that...

Overall very please. Everything works except the AC does not blow cold. Lights all work except the reverse lights (might just be a fuse or bulbs).

There was a big dent in BOTH doors in about the same spot. The DS door looks to have been repainted at some point using Base/Clear. Got home and it was not really raining, so I went and grabbed my HF Suction Cup with handle and a few paper towels and a little cleaner. Rubbed the dent on the PS door clean, applied the suction cup in the lowest part of the dent, a quick pull, and POP no more dent. You can sorta see the dent in the rear 3/4 view above in the first post.

The DS dent is a little worse in that there is a crease at the bottom and the top of the largest part of the dent. You can see it in the front 3/4 picture above. I used the suction cup on the center of the biggest part and popped that out, but there is a slight ripple at the bottom, but hard to see. The top of the dent is along the body line and will need some attention from the inside of the door while pulling with the suction cup on the outside. For a patina truck, this should be good enough if we can get the cleared door scuffed down to blend with the rest of the truck. You can see what is left of the DS dent in the last couple of pictures...

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Looks way better!

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Got home yesterday and it had quit raining, so we got out there and started scrubbing with Comet, Green Scotch Brites and some Simple Green. Hit is with the power washer too. Got all the scum off and noticed that the PO had used some rattle can redish orange primer on a lot of areas. Most of it came off, but some areas where thicker than others, so we left it. Degreased the underhood area too. Since Korbin looked like a drowned rat, he got the bright idea to get under it and power wash the underside. We have a short steep slope to the road, so we parked the truck half in the road half in the yard, he had about 20" clearance under the truck. Not sure what it looks like yet, cause it was dark when we finished and has been raining since about 10pm last night. Forecast is for rain till sometime Friday...

No pictures of the work or the results...

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Karl,
very cool!! nice "pickup". planning on following on this as well...

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Nice start for a truck. You got it looking way better already. I can honestly say I have never seen a full size truck come with 195 tires. That is some tiny sikinny things that would handle like a turd.

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Karl,
Good luck with your new to you truck. It looks solid. How many miles. Stock under the hood?

Les

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

That's a neat truck, good grab! I had similar dents in one of my trucks. The PO lost his wife to cancer, blamed the doctor, went out and took it out on his truck. Now my truck. Would be 95% straight, clean, and factory finish – well maybe 91%, if not for that episode. But life messes with us sometimes and that pain and anger has to go somewhere. I've done my best to massage it back out of the truck, but my results are similar to yours on the driver side, but a little worse. If you figure out how to get the ripples out without going full bodywork, please post here. I have the isolated panel of basecoat/clearcoat syndrome on another truck, haha. I think your plan of bringing the other paint up as far as you can and then scuffing the clear down is a good plan. I'm going to try it.

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Truck is all stock under the hood and from what I can tell the underside too except for a recent muffler and dual tailpipes. Still has the factory cat before the new muffler. Honestly, the only thing that is NOT stock is the radio. Even all the wiring so far looks to be untouched. We will know more once we did into the interior, hopefully this weekend we can get in there...

Odometer shows 61k, but the owner thinks it is at least 161k, but could be 261k. Original owner was the father in law of the guy I got it from. His father even had it for a bit. So 3 owners, but all family...

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Can't wait to see her shined on! Nice find.

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

We have named the red '86, Red Dawg. We figured out the starting issue after replacing the ignition switch, which when using a volt meter lead us to that being the issue, turns out the two fusible links at the starter where toast and the PO had made an attempt to repair, there was enough to read voltage, but the load was to much once you tried to start the truck. Got those replaced with new fusible links and the truck start fine now. The picture is the "fusible links" that the PO had repaired...

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Here are some before pictures once we got it home. We are just about to start cleaning the outside of it when we took these. the two pics that are upside down are from my son, they are not upside down on my PC...

As you can see in the close ups, there is a good layer of nasty on the truck...

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Here is the interior as we started the cleaning of it. The seat was trashed, so out it came first to see what we had inside. Found 67 cents!

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Here is the clean interior. We decided for now not to replace the carpet. The seat is one we had that was in good shape. It is actually a rear seat from a 1977 Crew Cab. Pleased with what it looks like now, its not perfect, but the idea is to sell this one and let the next owner do the interior the way they see fit. If we did keep it, we would find the correct color carpet, dash pad, and redo the see. Recolor the rest of the interior plastics.

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

I'd want to keep it!

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

:agree:

That boy cleaned up real nice!

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Korbin and I are both fighting the urge to keep it. We both have reasons to keep it and both have reasons to sell to hopefully make a few dollars.

Right now, I have to tell myself "Sell it, you need a car hauler!" after every time I work on it or clean on it...:lol:

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Well, if you don't really need it, hopefully you can find it a good home.

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Well we finished up the cleaning and got it listed this past Saturday. We sold it Sunday to an old friend of mine. He bought it to fix up for his girlfriend. Here are the pictures that Korbin put together with before and after our work on it. We had it a total of 19 days.

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

Here are a few pictures of the engine bay after cleaning it up and repairing some wires.

Sorry these are upside down, my son took them.

Re: 1986 GMC Sierra Classic Step Side
 

nice job!!! so did you teach the kid the ol' "wax on wax off" routine?...:lol: well I guess it is time to look for another project!!;) :metal: