72 K20 Cab Body & Paint Complete!

[72KAY20]

Here are some pics of my 72 K20 cab fresh out of my friend's paint shop. Will have to post some before pics so you can see that the truck has come a long way.

Finally figuring out how to post the correct size pictures!

[72LSK10]

Looks really nice, good color combo.

[CheyenneShop]

Love the color combo. Look forward to this build.

[LooseCannon]

Looks great!

[72KAY20]

Thank you. The truck was all orange before with just the roof white. Definitely like it much better with the two tone hugger orange. Here are some more pictures before paint.

My buddy Bill has done an awesome job fixing all kinds of imperfections on the body. I told him that I wanted the body to look original.

Some of the things he corrected:
- welded radio shaft tabs- previous owner cut the radio area out for a modern rectangular
- PO had installed HEI and hammered out firewall for clearance, Bill smoothed it out so you can't tell it has additional clearance.
- he welded outer lower door skin and lower inside shell on my original GM drivers side door. I was about to buy a replacement Taiwan door. SO Glad I did not. I cannot even tell Bill repaired my door.

[no moa]

wow, that looks great. Nice job.

[DeadheadNM]

Nice! I'm just about done gathering the parts for my 72 hugger orange K20. I hope to send it off for paint in the spring. Will keep an eye on your build for inspiration. Good luck.

What color interior are going with?

[72KAY20]

Interior orange with white door panels, black rubber mat, bench seat is currently black but planning on recovering in black/white houndstooth pattern.

Here are some interior pics.

[DeadheadNM]

Looks awesome! Same color combo as mine. I've attached a pic of my interior from when I picked it up. The houndstooth is still there but beyond repair on the driver side.

What color did you paint the metal portion of the dash between the windshield and dash pad? Mine was matte black.

[CheyenneShop]

72Kay20, what did you put down in your cab for the noise insulator? It looks great.

[72KAY20]

The gray mat is a 3 ply rubber & aluminum sound deadening/insulating material called TPM sold by TP Tools. It applies like dynamat, peel and stick on. You can use a roller to get it to stick on curved areas. The stuff works great.

Here's their link.
http://www.tptools.com/p/2599,354_TP...ction-Mat.html

Here are a couple pictures after I installed the AM radio, heater & defog duct work and box, & black rubber floor mat.

The AM radio is actually a stereo. Sent a stock AM radio to this guy in NJ who takes them apart and rebuilds them as an AM/FM stereo with RCA cable outputs for an amplifier and also MP3 player input. A few years ago I had him rebuild an AM radio for my 69 Camaro and loved it. Can't wait to get this one hooked up and turn it up.

[72KAY20]

Nice truck DeadheadNM. Have you done anything to it since you picked it up? Would love to see some more pictures of it.

[72KAY20]

Some more info on my 72 K20 project.

How it Started:
My brother Paul found me a 72 K20 for sale on craigslist back in March of last year. I called on it and it had everything I was looking for - a heavy duty 71 or 72 4wd, 3/4 ton, 4 speed pickup that ran but needed TLC. I told my brother it was a good deal however my 2 car garage was full and I had no room to restore it. He then said I could restore it in his garage!!!! I said are you sure??? He said no problem but that was a year and 9 months ago. God bless him.

Brought it back on our trailer on 3/20/10, drove it up and down his driveway for about 5 mins, then parked and 4 of us had it stripped down to the frame in 8 hours. It was a lot of work but also a lot of fun. Very thankful for having great friends! Also is nice that they enjoy working on cars too!

We bagged and labeled as much as we could. Also took a bunch of pictures and videos. Highly suggest that to anyone that is starting a restoration. Am constantly going back to the pictures and videos I took that 1st day.

Here are some day 1 pictures.

[Meatman]

Nice truck! Must have been pretty original truck. Still has original shocks on it!

[DeadheadNM]

Originally Posted by 72KAY20

Nice truck DeadheadNM. Have you done anything to it since you picked it up? Would love to see some more pictures of it.

I got my K20 earlier this year while back home in NM on vacation (I was living in Boston at the time). It was a work truck no doubt and I've since collected a better bed but the cab had a only a tiny spot of rust on a cab corner and it's a genuine Cheyenne Super in its original hugger orange. After I pulled the bed though found this cab damage I hadn't noticed: http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=473680

While in Boston and since returning to live in NM in July I've been in the parts gathering phase for the build and the truck has sat while I tinker with my K10. I'm nearly done collecting the parts I want including a correct motor from a K20 Suburban, buckets, tilt, tow hooks, NOS trim, NOS tailgate, NOS inner/outer grill, 72 aux tank pieces, etc. Hopefully, I can get the truck into the body shop this spring. We'll see how the drive train rebuild goes.

Sorry to hijack your thread. You've got a great truck and your posts are motivational to say the least. Good luck!

[67cheby]

great looking project, keep up the good work !

[72KAY20]

Very nice truck DeadheadNM!! Your floor is in really good shape. Much better than mine was as you can see below. Enjoyed checking out your link.

The holes in the cab behind your seat can be repaired so you can't even tell. Suggest taking a hammer to one side with a metal block on the other and flattening the dents and raised metal as much as possible and then welding small patches in or filing small holes with POR15 2 part epoxy. Then grind smooth, fill, and sand. Looking forward to seeing updates on your link.

Here are some pictures of the rust repairs on my floor.

[72KAY20]

Was wondering if anyone else has found production numbers written in different areas on your 67-72 trucks? The build number on my K20 must have been 329. When tearing my truck down I found 329 marked on the following:

- firewall above heater box, looks like "BK" was written on the firewall under the heater box
- stamped into top edge of firewall on drivers side
- behind dash on steering wheel support
- on top of bell housing
- on gas tank

[DeadheadNM]

Originally Posted by 72KAY20

Very nice truck DeadheadNM!! Your floor is in really good shape. Much better than mine was as you can see below. Enjoyed checking out your link.

The holes in the cab behind your seat can be repaired so you can't even tell. Suggest taking a hammer to one side with a metal block on the other and flattening the dents and raised metal as much as possible and then welding small patches in or filing small holes with POR15 2 part epoxy. Then grind smooth, fill, and sand. Looking forward to seeing updates on your link.

Here are some pictures of the rust repairs on my floor.

72KAY20 -Thanks and I appreciate the tips on cab repair! Living in NM we get spoiled with rust free sheet metal. After seeing what you and others on the forum have been through with rust repair I'm not as wound up about my cab damage.

[72KAY20]

Below are pictures before and after sandblasting the frame. I had Crystal Clean Media blast in Joppa, MD do the sandblasting and was very happy with the results. The frame was covered in rust and was worried that there may be rust weakened areas. When I picked it up was told that the frame was in excellent shape and definitely no problems from rust. Was one of the few frames he had seen of that year in that good of shape. Made me feel much better.

My brother and I then metal etched the whole frame and applied POR 15. I have been using POR15 since 1991 and highly recommend it. Best rust preventative I have found. Easy to use just don't get it on you or good clothes.

[67cheby]

nice !!

[72KAY20]

More pictures of progress after sandblasting frame.

[72KAY20]

Here is a link to a pdf file with pictures of the body and paint work that my buddy Bill has done to the front half of my truck. I call it The Bill Price Chapter of the 72 K20 Restoration. Have been very very pleased with what Bill has done with this worn out truck.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/20956188/72%...%20Chapter.pdf

He currently has the bed at his shop and is getting it ready for paint. Will be adding more pics to The Bill Price Chapter in the near future.

[72KAY20]

I relocated the fuel tank from behind the bench seat to the rear of the frame. Did not like having a fuel tank directly behind my seat. Some pictures below of the modification required to the bottom of the bed so it would fit over top the fuel tank. The stock fuel filler is still behind the driver's door, it just does not go anywhere. Bill plugged the bottom of the filler tube so the cab could not filled by gas accidentally. My plan is to have the new filler tube be accessible inside the passenger side wheel well.

[CheyenneShop]

[QUOTE=72KAY20;5047764]The gray mat is a 3 ply rubber & aluminum sound deadening/insulating material called TPM sold by TP Tools. It applies like dynamat, peel and stick on. You can use a roller to get it to stick on curved areas. The stuff works great.

Here's their link.
http://www.tptools.com/p/2599,354_TP...ction-Mat.html

Thanks - your cab looks great. I like how your truck gets snadblasted and all of a sudden the entire frame is cleaned up and painted. Man I need to go to that guy!