1953 GMC Model 9314
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| Owned by Ryan Anderson "Transplant" Bolter # 20268 Nova Scotia, Canada |
# 2567
From Ryan :
My 1953 GMC was originally purchased as just a cab, box, fenders, and a box full of parts to be used as spares for a friend's 1954 Chevy build. It turned out, nothing he got was interchangeable. So the '53 sat in his barn for about two years.
In a moment of weakness, my wife at the time agreed to allow me to take on the '53 as a project.
I purchased a 1986 S10 standard cab long bed, and stripped it to the frame and running gear, repairing numerous issues with it along the way.
Once complete, I made the two hour trek to the South Shore of Nova Scotia to collect the '53 in a borrowed truck and trailer. Space was tight in my 2-car garage for a while.
The '53 was solid for an East Coast truck, but had seen some questionable repairs. It was around this time that I became a divorced owner of a '53 GMC, and plans for a complete restoration were abandoned.
With the house up for sale, progress began to simply get the '53 drivable. The floor patches were cleaned up and repaired, custom cab mounts built, and as many S10 parts as possible were retro-fit into the '53.
As of right now, the cab is getting the interior cleaned up and painted, and progress to get the stock '86 S10 engine (2.5 L 4 cylinder) running again has begun.
As many of the original S10 parts and accessories as possible are being used to keep costs down, and make this as short a build as possible. I have given myself a deadline of April 1st to have the truck running and drivable, and the end of May to have the body in primer, and everything finished that is required to register the truck for the roads.
Total cost into the truck at this point is under $2000, and should stay under $3000 to get it on the road ... even after a new set of tires and all new brakes on the S10 running gear.
It's not going to be pretty, but I can't think of anything cooler for a planned trip around the Cabot Trail in the fall than a 1953 GMC.
Here are some more photos .
Ryan Anderson
-30-