The 'Burban Chronicles.....

[Average Joe]

I had looked at this Suburban earlier in the year with my wife. I really liked it but could not justify the asking price. It was priced fair and I didnt feel right trying to talk Frank, the PO, down in price. So the hunt continued. I had been looking for a 67-72 3 door for a couple of years at this point. I had a '69 C10 pickup that I had owned since '95 but the family had outgrown it. I felt what better to replace it than a Burb from the same era.

Fast forward 3 weeks. I just got home from work when I hear a knock on the door. It was a friend from work who wanted to show me his "new" toy. There, in the drive, is the very Suburban I had looked at just a few weeks earlier. My heart sank. I felt sick and elated for him at the same time. My jealously eventually got the better of me as I stammered "but, but, but I wanted to buy that." He said "I know!" With that an awkward silence began. In the next 30 seconds I began questioning my friendship with said co worker. But thankfully before I could say or do anything foolish, he replied "its yours!" I was speechless.

As it turned out, I was the recipient of an elaborate prank that my wife had perpetrated. She saw how dissapointed I was after looking at the Suburban earlier in the month. I probably would have purchased it then but the reality of a year of medical bills for my youngest daughter had dissuaded me.

My youngest daughter had been on a portable breathing monitor for the previous 7 months. At this point my daughter was doing well, but the medical bills were rolling in. I felt spending money on a then 40 year old SUV was not the wisest move. Oh well I thought. Another one will eventually come along I told myself. However this was a '67 with barn doors and very solid. I resigned myself to wait for a better time financially.

My wife had other plans. The previous owner called me a week after I looked at it. He said he would be willing to take $2,000 for it. I explained to him my financial situation and that I would love to own it but financial reality was sinking in. He said he understood and wished me and my family best wishes. Unbeknownst to me my wife called him the next day and struck a deal to buy it. She had procured a loan through family to purchase it for me. She had also gotten the price down another $400. Mind you this was in early 2009 and the housing bubble was quickly deflating. Frank, the prior owner, worked in construction and was liquidating his extra toys.

Long story no longer so short, my friend was merely a pawn in my wife's scheme to surprise me. Mission accomplished Kitty!

[Average Joe]

So,
Enough rambling already Brian! BTW thats my real name. I truly believe I am an average joe though.

My 'Burb came to me as a very minimal optioned '67. No P/S, no P/B, factory 2 barrel 283, SM420 granny low 4 speed, and 3.73 gears. Apparently a passenger side sun viser was also an option that mine did not have. It still doesnt. Nor are there any holes to mount one.

The interior had been replaced at some point in the last 15 years. The front seat had been recovered to match the second row Chevy Astro seat. A full custom gray headliner and carpet kit were in place as well.

[HO455]

Officially tuned in and watching! :

[Average Joe]

Originally Posted by HO455

Officially tuned in and watching! :

Thank you sir! You have set the bar very high with your WMB thread!

So, at this point, I am the proud owner of what I believe to be a 3 owner 1967 C10 Suburban. In an attempt to market the Suburban to a wider audience the PO gave the Burb a fresh rattle can paint job as well as spray painting the inside of the back windows black. While the outside spray bomb job looked reasonably good, it was done with paint designed for wicker furniture. This was the color that came closest to matching the GM 503 paint code at Wally World I think. Consequently the paint has all but worn off in the last 9 years since I have owned it. What hasnt gives it a nice faux 'tina look. If your into that sorta thing.

The rear "tint" job had to go. While it looked good, it was downright annoying. I had almost zero visibility out the back. One of my first projects was scraping off all the paint. Thanks to a post I started in the paint and body forum I got steered in the right direction. Lots of lube in the form of window cleaner and Sharp razor blades got the job done with minimal scratches.

I should have mentioned earlier on in the story that I have minimal pictures of the early days of ownership. I will try and sprinkle a few in here and there though. 'Cause everyone loves pics!! Unfortunately from here out they will most likly be out of chronological order. So here is a shot from the Oregon Coast taken a few years back on a family vacation.

[Average Joe]

Over the next year I replaced the rear home made trailer hitch, heater core and hoses, mirrors, and added a tach. I gots to have me a tachometer in my old rigs!
I also degreased the motor and replaced the battery cables. I was basically looking to insure its reliability and trying to figure out what direction I wanted to go with it. I knew I wanted power steering and brakes. ideally front disc brakes. However money is always tight in our household and I would have to be resourceful.

Enter my friend Moose. A great hulk of a man with a heart of gold. He just so happened to have a '86 C20 Burb he had been trying to sell for over a year. He offered it to me for $120. Now this was no peach. It came from "Joysey" and had copius amounts of rust. The tranny was questionable and it had a habbit of overheating in the summer months. However it drove well and had its obligatory front sway bar, fold flat second seat, and receiver hitch. These were all parts I could use on my '67. Granted they may require a lil "messaging" to fit. I figured I could part out the rest and scrap the remainder. My condolences to the '80's square body crowd here. Believe me though, It was pretty far gone.

Unfortunatly I have no pics of it. However a google search of rusty '80's Burbs turned up this:

[HO455]

You are too generous with your praise. I remember one east coast square body. It was in the early 80's and I went past a long bed on the freeway in Virginia. From behind it looked like the truck was trying to take flight as the bed sides were flapping so much. As I drove past I realized that I could see the scenery on the the other side of the truck through both sides of the bed above the rear wheels. They were only doing 45 mph but even that seemed like too much.

[Average Joe]

^^lol^^

This one wasnt quite that bad.

With the information on this board I was able to determine the steering box from the '86 would bolt right up. My '67 must have been a later model because no spacers were needed as it already had the raised mounting holes, unlike most other '67's. It came from the Freemont plant. Perhaps they had gotten a supply of '68 frame rails earlier than the other GM plants. I really dont know. Either way I was pleasantly surprised and only had to notch the front bumper mount for clearance.

The box being an '86 was set up for metric fittings iirc. With the info I gleaned from one of TXFirefighter threads, I learned I could swap the fitting in the back of the '68 power steering pump, I had aquired off CL, to the metric fitting from the '86 pump. If memory serves the pumps were similar but the bracketry was different and I wanted to keep the short water pump/driver side alternator set up.

I purchased new hoses for an '86 model and bam I had power steering. Lol!

I utilized the power booster and mc as well. I gave them a Krylon overhaul and modified the brake pushrod to work via a coupling nut and a few tacks from my lil wire feed. Bam! Now I had power brakes. Still drum but power assisted from the dual diaphram '86 booster.