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PeacemakerJack

Vintage Trucks

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squonk
2 hours ago, Horse Newbie said:

My daily driver @roadapples is also a 1998 K 1500 Chevy Silverado Z-71 4x4. Newest truck I've ever had too. Also had to have transmission rebuilt probably over 100,000 miles ago. I'll have to look in my maintenance log.( I keep one on everything I have that rolls.) Anyway transmission guy said the " sun " gear or "spider " gear or something like that is almost always what breaks in those transmissions. Asked me if I had been spinning the tires on dirt then going to pavement at the same time. Me: nope, at least not on purpose. Anyway they replaced it ( plastic ) with an aftermarket metal one...no problems since with 259,000 miles. When I first got it I hauled nothing but groceries...now I haul just about anything, including two trips from Charlotte NC to Charleston WV packed down pulling a 6x10 trailer packed down. I'll probably drive it until the wheels fall off partly because of the cost, and because I know how it's been maintained.

IMG_20180105_160709147.jpg

I had 94 K1500. Trans broke at 150,000.Sun gear at the very back broke. It was welded very poorly from the factory to a drum. New one was much beefier.it was a bad design. 

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elcamino/wheelhorse

I know some of y'all have been waiting for me to open my mouth about my Hybrid . It is a 1984 El Camino SS Choo Choo. One of 1389 build in 1984. How you ordered one : Go to local Cheby dealer and it was a special order. Car/truck build in Texas , shipped without interior or nose to Chattanooga for installation of bucket seats , floor console with shifter (auto) and nose from Monte Carlo and then shipped to dealer.  Mine has a 305 with the electronic carb ( one of GM's better ideas - controlled by computer prom which also controls the distributor ) Full instrumentation  including a Tic Tac tachometer ( clock housed in Tachometer ) electric windows and door locks. It has a 250C transmission ( yes they made one check Cheby by the numbers book) Purchased in 2001 as my future retirement project HA HA .It was originally black but the paint was dead so here is what has been done .

1. New paint 1984 color

2. New gas tank , new air shocks ( standard equipment)

3. Car rebuild

4. Spray on bed liner

5. New chrome for entire bed ( $$$$$$$$$)

6.Replaced body mounts and bolts ( Urethane - Rough ride now)

7. New seat covers ( found dealer paperwork in passenger seat , placed in back when new cover installed)

8. New electric motors for windows.

9. Replaced a lot of stuff ( Alternator , rotors,heater core , fan motor etc, etc etc. 

 

Crud I can't find the pictures .

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elcamino/wheelhorse

@953 nut Dick , you are a master of many hobbies. I am sure your restored Fire Truck looked as good as the above photo.

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steelman

If I had an old girl like that I would love her too:text-coolphotos:

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ClassicTractorProfessor

Since the topic of accidents came up earlier in this thread...I dug up these pictures of the 89 GMC 4x4 that tried it's best to kill me back on July 3, 2013. The first picture was in front of the house I was working on remodeling at the time, about an hour after picking it up from the local mechanic for getting a new flywheel. Little did I or anyone else know that less than 12 hrs from when this pic was taken that the truck would be on top of me. Not sure how many times I rolled her, but was ejected and the truck landed upside down, pinning my left leg from the hip down for around 12 hrs before someone came along and found me. I was promptly put on a helicopter and airlifted to OU Medical Center in Oklahoma City. Suffered a broken collar bone, fractured neck, fractured pelvis, four broken ribs, a broken wrist, and severe soft tissue damage in my leg from blood flow being cut off for so long. Spent a month in the hospital and countless surgeries to save my leg, was told I would be in a wheelchair for 6 months to a year, would always have to wear some sort of brace on my left foot, and would never be able to drive anything but an automatic as I would never have the strength to push a clutch. Within three weeks I was up walking with a cane, 2 months to the day after I was released I began another large remodeling job, and writhing 6 months I was driving a log truck...just goes to show that with a little perseverance and a lot of God's grace and healing power anything is possibleFB_IMG_1515212433281.jpg.a314908319433ea9364ef708c6d32cec.jpgFB_IMG_1515212234661.jpg.d7f8d7688cfc727efadb367e1ea045b7.jpgFB_IMG_1515212239888.jpg.25996160e196d7a181bee9badc28baf7.jpg

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squonk
12 hours ago, elcamino/wheelhorse said:

I know some of y'all have been waiting for me to open my mouth about my Hybrid . It is a 1984 El Camino SS Choo Choo. One of 1389 build in 1984. How you ordered one : Go to local Cheby dealer and it was a special order. Car/truck build in Texas , shipped without interior or nose to Chattanooga for installation of bucket seats , floor console with shifter (auto) and nose from Monte Carlo and then shipped to dealer.  Mine has a 305 with the electronic carb ( one of GM's better ideas - controlled by computer prom which also controls the distributor ) Full instrumentation  including a Tic Tac tachometer ( clock housed in Tachometer ) electric windows and door locks. It has a 250C transmission ( yes they made one check Cheby by the numbers book) Purchased in 2001 as my future retirement project HA HA .It was originally black but the paint was dead so here is what has been done .

1. New paint 1984 color

2. New gas tank , new air shocks ( standard equipment)

3. Car rebuild

4. Spray on bed liner

5. New chrome for entire bed ( $$$$$$$$$)

6.Replaced body mounts and bolts ( Urethane - Rough ride now)

7. New seat covers ( found dealer paperwork in passenger seat , placed in back when new cover installed)

8. New electric motors for windows.

9. Replaced a lot of stuff ( Alternator , rotors,heater core , fan motor etc, etc etc. 

 

Crud I can't find the pictures .

I remember the days working on the Choo Choo's and the rest of the GM lineup in the early 80's The Chevy dealer I worked at was a small hole in the wall place but he had some kind of odd arrangement with GM. He was the first in our area to get anything new. He loved the EL C's and Vettes. We were the first to get an 82 Vette with the new tuned port injected V-8. So new in fact guys from Rochester Products were at the shop waiting for it to get unloaded because they were taking it to the R & D center to try to find out why the Mustang was faster! :auto-swerve:Car never even made it into the parking lot! Shop owner had a red Choo Choo and a black one for his wife. When they closed I bought all the engine management tooling they had. I made good money in the 90's working on the local garages computer carb nightmares. Finally sold it all when the market dried up after 2000

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WVHillbilly520H

@PeacemakerJack, Josh look what I found in my "back yard" today, '69-'70 C/20 (on the fender) didn't get out to count the lugs though, Jeff.

IMAG3937.jpg

Edited by WVHillbilly520H
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PeacemakerJack

The fact of how little of the hub is showing and yet I spy 3 lugs—looks like an 8bolt to me.  It is all the rage to convert the 8 bolts to half ton but that isn’t my goal with Ken’s old truck. I want to stay heavy duty—it will make a fun horse hauler in the summer time! His has a wood bed—I’m looking forward to completely overhauling that.  I’ll have to come up with some kind of a covering to lay (rubber gym floor maybe?) over the top to protect it when I put anything else in there (not that it will be a “work truck” but I will periodically use the bed to haul stuff so looking for ideas...)

 

Jeff, that one definitely has potential-thanks for sharing!

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PeacemakerJack

Was looking through my old photo albums—remember those?  3x5 or 4x6 photos in a book!!! Now a photo album is on an electronic device!  How things have changed!  Anyway found some pics I’d like to share...F8A1ED26-D2B0-493F-A3E9-FE5965EA768A.jpeg.17010607ad034286b96a34f7ab04d816.jpeg

This beautiful Chev was completely restored by the guy in the white shirt.  Being a car kid from birth on, I was always talking cars with families as we traveled.  Sometimes, the folks we were staying with had a vintage vehicle.  If the weather was conducive, I would often get a ride.  That was the case here, I’m sitting in the passenger seat, probably about 12 years old. That truck was amazing and a lot of fun to ride in.

 

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This “shark nose” Chev was restored by the guy on the left.  I met him out in Montana in about 1993.  He had four Chev vehicles that he had restored but they had one strange thing about them, they all were powered by 455 Buick motors. All were making north of 500hp and had loads of torque.  His son on the right took me for a ride in the 1969 Nova and scorched the tires for a city block:auto-layrubber:

 

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This was my first truck!  It was a 1976 K5 with a 350/350TH.  6” suspension lift and 2” of Body lift running on 35-12.50-15 BFG’s. Those KC Daylighters were awesome and the truck was in pretty good shape for being about 20 years old when I owned it.  I wish I could’ve kept it as a “play vehicle” but that just wasn’t meant to be after I bought my GTO.  Those turbine mags were all the rage back then and people tell me that they are sought after today.  I loved taking the top off in the summer and cruise around with my buddies. I wish I had more pics of it but I just didn’t take much.  I might come across a couple more and I’ll post them here if I do.  I don’t know if you guys will be able to read the license plate but not long after I bought it, someone said to me, “that thing looks like and extra large Tonka truck!” That fit and I got the plate “XL TONKA”!

 

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c-series don

Well it's not a Tonka, it's a Nylint but it's the best I could do!!!

image.jpeg

image.jpeg

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PeacemakerJack

:text-goodpost: that’s a neat toy right there!  Thanks for the pics...

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c-series don

Had it since I was a little boy. Original owner!!! 

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PeacemakerJack

Don—I’m sorry you had to sell it but given the conditions, you did the right thing. Thanks for sharing the story and the pics. What a beautiful truck!

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ebinmaine
11 hours ago, WVHillbilly520H said:

@PeacemakerJack, Josh look what I found in my "back yard" today, '69-'70 C/20 (on the fender) didn't get out to count the lugs though, Jeff.

 

Seems to me All the 20/30 were 8 lug back then.

The 6 vs 8 lugs on 3/4 tons was something that started for the most part in the late 80's for marketing/cost savings/emissions/insurance fooling reasons.

I've had a 68 and 69 Chevrolet. Both were C20's, and both were 8 lugs.

 

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ACman

Even though I’ve owned some Ford’s and a Dodge I’ve always been a GM guy. When I was a kid my nose was always buried in a Chevy high-performance or super Chevy magazine . Here’s my son’s high school truck before somehow the frame got bent :bitch: 98 K1500 .

 

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This is his 2015 Silverado 

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Best picture I have of the 97 S10 beater truck .

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Here’s my cousins we call big ugly....a 88 K1500 that has a transplanted heart from his 94 with almost 400k on it . Currently doing snow removal duties and still running strong as ever.

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my daughter has a 2003 Silverado K1500 that’s been a really good truck. I wish I had some pics.

 

@WVHillbilly520H I have a good buddy who’s sister graduated in 1987 and was giving a new mustang for graduation. His dad ask him what he wanted when he graduated (he was in 5th grade) . He answered that maroon short bed down at the Chevy dealer . Well his dad went down and bought that 87 K1500 Silverado short bed and he’s had it ever since. He’s managed to keep it through two divorces and I think he loves it more than his kids as it sits on blocks in the garage. It still has the plastic covering the interior, window sticker and 13 actual miles (could be a little higher now). It has racing fuel in the tank and gets started and run through the gears to keep everything lubed up . A true time capsule and maybe one of the finest examples of a square body truck out there. I’ll see if he can send me some pictures .

Edited by ACman
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WVHillbilly520H

@ACman,  I leased my '14 and just last week financed it outright with extended warranties ,only 36k on it now and being Topaz Blue Metallic only year color it's a keeper, in hindsight I probably should have kept the pewter 2000 5pd also as it was paid for oh well, I like the stance of your boy's '15 leveling kit? or actual lift? I plan on the Rancho Quick Lift and next size up tire then maybe a tuner and catback dual exhaust and drive it as long as I can, Jeff.

IMAG1527.jpg

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ACman

@WVHillbilly520H ... rough country 2 1/2 “ level kit along with a 1 1/2” BDS body lift (very easy to install and heavy duty bumper brackets )  . He’s also added the aftermarket 20” GMC oem style wheels , tuner , K&N filter kit and a Flowmaster cat back exhaust with 44 series mufflers . Since this photo he’s also color matched the bumpers with Rinoliner to match the oem color matched grill (it was cheaper and faster than having it painted). He did however pull the chrome off the headlights and had them painted. He gets lots of :handgestures-thumbupright: wherever he goes. For a present we bought him Covercraft seat covers  https://www.covercraft.com/us/en/seat-covers and Weather tech floor liners . One of the best investments you can do to save your interior from wear and tear.

Edited by ACman
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shallowwatersailor

Took me a while but I finally located the initial photos of my 3/4-ton 1995 Chevrolet C2500 Suburban. These were taken on the December 1998 day I brought it home. Th spots on the driveway are from something else. Even though it had a 350 and 3.73 rear, it was still like pushing a brick through the air with the mpg.  The previous owner had put 80K miles on it, spotted it at a dealer about 100 miles from home, and bought it.  At the time I was selling fire apparatus (which was a cut-throat business!!!) so it had to be red. I used to be out in all kinds of weather, including Northern Illinois blizzards, with a 2WD truck - but never got stuck. Barn doors are the only way to go on a Suburban! Wish I still had it.

 

My second truck is my 3/4-ton 2001 GMC Sierra 2500HD, also 2WD. Again, photos when I brought it home. Notice Terry's Wheel Horse emblem on it before I even had MD plates. I bought this in 2010 with 29K on it. Today, seven years later it only has 56K! At this rate I should have about 82K on it when it is considered an antique. This truck gets worse mileage than the Suburban did. Maybe the 8.1 Liter engine and 4.10 rear has something to do with it. :)

 

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ebinmaine
8 hours ago, WVHillbilly520H said:

Guess I should have elaborated a bit more, C/20 on the fender could just mean a replacement fender on a 6 lug 1/2 ton C/10,

Ahh yes... I gotcha....

8 hours ago, WVHillbilly520H said:

 

IMAG0115.jpg

 

 

Right GORGEOUS truck there jeff !!!

 

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WVHillbilly520H
6 minutes ago, ebinmaine said:

 

Right GORGEOUS truck there jeff !!!

 

It's a 30 footer , I believe it'll be going to the stepson when he graduates high school ,now the red and white one sits in a garage 360 days a year maybe a 10 footer...

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PeacemakerJack

Those square body Chevys are a classic design for sure and those are a couple of really nice examples there Jeff, thanks for sharing.  

 

@ACman that ‘98 your son had was a cherry looking machine... my goal this summer is to work on my 1995 (post #1 above) and freshen it up.  It may not look quite as good as his since it has led a pretty rough life and is still used daily as a work truck but I want it to look presentable as I’m out on site.  I have owned a lot of newer trucks through the years but I have found that while using them daily in years salt belt that rust becomes a problem in a fairly short time.  I have also found that no matter how hard I try, construction is hard on a truck both inside and out.  So, I figured I’d buy a “reliable beater” fix it up to my liking and drive it as long as I can.  The newer trucks are beautiful but costly and my industry is hard on them...

 

@shallowwatersailor I had a 2001 Chevy K2500 LT with the mighty 8.1L and the Allison tranny. It too had the 4.10 rear gears.  That was a super fun truck and pulled loads almost like a diesel.  Very impressive vehicle...

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