Ken Berg's

1966 Chevrolet Longbed Fleetside


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15 March  2003

From Ken :

           My 1966 Chevy C-10 Fleetside was purchased brand new from Gridley Chevrolet in Spanish Fork, Utah in October of 1966 by my Father-in-law. It was a dealer's demo so it sat on the lot for a year before he bought it. He traded his 1961 Impala Sport Sedan in on it. It was given to me, at no cost, by my Mother-in-law when my FIL passed away in 1998.  

           I have the original sales receipt.  The options listed on the receipt that I can remember are: step rear bumper, custom comfort interior, heavy duty rear springs, 4 speed tranny, 292 six, and side moldings. I also have the original Owner's Manual and Protect-O-Plate. 

           My FIL painted the stripe between the side molding strips turquoise because he had a turquoise and white camper on it during the summers. They looked pretty sharp together. I have since returned the stripe to it's original color of white. 

           The hubcaps I have since found on old advertisements of 1961 Fleetsides so I don't know if they were still being factory installed in 1966 or he replaced the original caps with some older ones. Anyway, they were original to the truck when I got it in 1998. 

           The wood bed is still in pretty good shape but I had to replace a couple of boards including the one over the tail pipe. I won't ever replace the original hard yellow pine boards with oak because I love original. I had repainted the bed gloss black but since discovered the factory paint was flat black so I'll make the change when I repaint it again. 

           My FIL had split rims on the rear which had to go. He also had big California style side mirrors and a plastic bug shield (remember those?) fastened to the hood. They had to go, also. 

           The upholstery is original but getting brittle so I've covered it with a seat cover. 

           My FIL replaced the original 292 six himself in 1978 at 214,800 miles with a rebuilt 292 six, which now has about 70,000 miles on it. 

           he body has the typical rust on the rockers, fenders, doors and headlight brackets, but it's pretty clean and I get a lot of comments on it when I drive it around. The UT 66 plates weren't original to it but I found them on eBay from a seller in Phoenix. I scanned them and inserted the image into this picture and they are now on the truck. They turn a few heads, too. 

           It was a daily driver for a few years but now it sits in the garage most of the time except when I need it to haul big stuff. Someday when I do a frame-off restoration, I will have it repainted but it will stay original -- no power steering or brakes or any retrofits. 

           You have a great web site! Thanks for adding the newer 1960's and 1970's trucks! Hopefully you'll be able to stay around for a long time. 

Ken Berg
"c-10ken"
Bolter # 15278
Riverton, Utah

           Ken, that is a nice looking Fleetside. Thanks for telling your truck's story and making a great Stovebolt submission!" ~~ Curator


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