The Stovebolt Site Forums Welcome! Welcome Centre Issues Im Planning to address while im hear

Well Im Glade i found this place. let me start with some history on my truck in 1996 My grandfather and i took on a project to restore an old pick up when we came across a 1953 GMC. I was the fiance department and the gopher worker, I was 9. We took out a loan and i bought, paid for and worked on this truck for two years when the loan was over and i had finished paying for it i lost interest quickly however In 200 3 my grand father Passed away, the truck has sat untill my parants decied to eather sell it or send it to me i cant let it go, im now 23years old Married and my Mother and Father are sending the truck to my home. it has been taken apart the engine, Front Suspension, and frame are still together but other than that its coming in sections i do not have a shop or a lot of tools but have access to most of I'll need also it will not be under cover. So the first thing i have to do is get the frame, engine, and cab to a point that it is safer sitting in the weather, other body parts will be on my porch. any ideas on this wil be very helpful.
Im looking to make it a daily driver im unsure of if i want to change engine i know i want a 3 or 4 speed transmissionand im not sure if i will be moving the shifter i know i would like to put disc brakes and a little lighter rear end, powersteering in it to make it a truck that a good daily driver and one worth taking on trips in ever the outside shall remain as stock as possible with exception of rhino lining on the bed, as far as the cab goes i would like to move the gas tank and possibly put captions chairs or leave my bench seat and change the steering wheel( im a big guy) and may be a tilt column the dash will remain original with the am radio with a hiddien fm tuner will be adding in a hidden a/c and heat system from jim carter truck parts and also floor insulation and custom molded rubber mats. Now Ive said a lot just to say that that im unsure about how to achive some of these goals so thats what i plan to accomplish while im here, Again i would appreciate some advice on protecting the cab,frame and engine.
thanks i look forward to this project and hearing ideas on it
attaboy

Hi Attaboy, welcome to the 'bolt.
I too was a 'newbie' to this when I first started hangin' out here.
Just look around the forums and use the search feature and you'll dig up some of the answers.
Failing that,ask away in the relevant sections and the guys(and gals!) will chime in with the info you require.
Above all else have fun and try and post some pics if you get the chance.
Heck if I can do it,anyone can!
Good luck,
Jock

attaboy, Welcome to the bolt and remember, you eat a big elephant one bite at a time. So it is with these old trucks. Sounds like you have a pretty goog game plan but I'll bet it will change a little as time goes by.
I'm not the body expert here but I think most would say to sand it down and primer it with that tough expoxy paint???
Never the less, build it like a house. Start with the foundation which in this case would be the chassis/brakes and then take it one step at a time. Do a little each day....even just 10 minutes and it will surprise you how it comes along.
Also, if possible take advantage of special deals on stuff as you run into it to save money as you will eventually use it.
And, visit local car shows, and the bolt, regularly for motivation and even more ideas.
Good luck and let us know how we can help. Thanks for saving a piece of Americana!!

Welcome to the 'bolt attaboy,since you don't have an indoor place to store or work on your truck,I need to ask,how much of the paint is still on the truck,how much bare steel is showing?If you still have paint,but have bare spots, you need to address the bare spots first,by sanding,to clean the metal of any rust,then priming the area with primer/sealer to protect the area from rusting again,then if it's going to be awhile before you do any body and paint work you should put on a couple of coats of clear. When it comes time to do paint and body work you sand off the clear and continue on.Good luck with your project and remember this is suppost to be fun.


Jeff

Welcome to Stovebolt! First thing I would do is get one of those tents that cover everything. We bought a COVERIT 20 years ago. It served as a truck garage,storage place when we where moving,and now it is living it's life out as a fire wood storage place. We have gotten our use out of it!! We stored a 45 2ton in there with no trouble. With lights, it could be a working garage. Ours tied down and the front unzipped. I even put a pully on it so I could roll up the front like a bamboo curtain. Well good luck!

Thanks for the warm welcome Guyes and the tips so far i plan on printing these forum pages to keep as tips in my note book of the truck
Papa J well im not able to see it as i said it will be moveed to my house in the comeing months however i know that the cab is rusted prety bad on top ai know the bottom corners will need to panels and the floor also, for the most part i thing 50% of the bed is in good shape the fenders are stored and thats all i can think of tight now so i guess some is painter some is not