69 K10 From the Field

[landarts]

This 69 K10 will be the next build now that the "Fix and Sale 72 GMC 3/4 ton 4x4 K2500" has been sold. This truck is in really good shape and no visible signs of rust. The truck currently has a 350 V8 motor, however the SPID says from factory it was a 292. So here is the story on the two truck deal that led me to this K10.

I was surfing Craigslist for potential 4x4 build projects and came across a 1972 K10 Cheyenne with 557 paint code, which is a Light Olive roof and Dark Olive body. Nice truck with all original metal and Rally rims. Called the owner and made the drive out which is about a 2.5 hour drive from my place. Once I got there I noticed the pictures that I saved from the ad must of been taken several years ago when the truck was in better shape. Talked with the owner and he said it was his in high school so I figured he must of had an emotional attachment for the price he was asking. I made an offer and he was not going to budge on the deal.

So I also noticed the Light Blue K10 on the property and asked what the deal was with it. He mentioned that it was dropped off there for paint and body work five years ago and the person never came back, he stated that he tried to reach him several times with no luck. He then said I will throw in the Blue truck if you give me full price for the 72 K10. We haggled back and forth a little and finally came to this deal. Then he said do you need a motor, I said what do you have, he said I have a completely rebuilt 292 motor in the other out building. Was recently rebuilt by his father that passed away, I checked it out and verified it was a fresh rebuild. So I said I will pay the the $3000 as long as you can get title for the blue truck.

The owner stated that he was the owner of the body shop and he would apply for mechanics lean and have a title in about 4 to 6 weeks. We kept in touch over that time period and finally all the paperwork arrived. I made two trips to haul back both trucks and the 292 motor. Both trucks have clean titles in my name.

I got lucky on this deal and most of all being patient and allowing the deal to develop. You never know whats out there until you really look. So now you know the history of the truck and the two truck deal. When I was pulling out on the second load the owner said hang on a minute I have a few parts that can go with the truck that I will not be needing. I said sure if you don't want or need them. He threw them in the back of the bed and a few in the cab of the truck. I really could not see what it was since I was still in the tow vehicle and enjoying the AC. Got home and found a complete stock AC system, extra grill, few light bezels and some other small items in the bed. When I looked in the cab after unloading there was two boxes of parts. Everything in the boxes were NOS items like tail light lens, radiator holding clamps, dome lens, turn signal setup and a few other small items all in the original GM boxes. I really feel like I hit the jackpot on this one.

[landarts]

Here are a few pictures from me hauling it home.
-hauling it home with rental truck
-292 motor in the back
-SPID picture pretty faded- I will try to get a better one later

[renegade6]

That is a great deal. Looking forward to the build.

[72ironmike]

Originally Posted by renegade6

That is a great deal. Looking forward to the build.

Times two.

[GSP7]

what is the story on the green truck that was parked next to it in the picture?.


.

[landarts]

Originally Posted by GSP7

what is the story on the green truck that was parked next to it in the picture?.
.

I purchased that K10 truck also, it will be next inline for a build. that truck was all original, missing the 350 motor, has a TH350 automatic trans, Rally wheels and the full Cheyenne package. It will need a few things done like inner and outer rockers, possible a little bottom of door repair. Grill and front bumper are toast, frame and core support no problems. It is a 557 paint code Dark Olive and Light Olive. Which I will bring back to life with original paint scheme.

[GSP7]

Originally Posted by landarts

I purchased that K10 truck also, it will be next inline for a build. that truck was all original, missing the 350 motor, has a TH350 automatic trans, Rally wheels and the full Cheyenne package. It will need a few things done like inner and outer rockers, possible a little bottom of door repair. Grill and front bumper are toast, frame and core support no problems. It is a 557 paint code Dark Olive and Light Olive. Which I will bring back to life with original paint scheme.

Cool, glad to see there are still older trucks laying around in Idaho.

There was 50s Napco truck and a late 40s early 50s chevy 4x4 sitting near the oregon border in a small town(secret). I google mapped the location recently and couldnt find them. Might be gone now

.

[Lokin4AReason]

sounds like that you made out well with this purchase ... esp with the extra part(s)

[landarts]

I had a break towards the end of the GMC K20 build to drag this over for a weekend and pull the front clip off to get a better look at the motor, frame, mounts, etc. Very clean truck, look at how clean the cowl and firewall is after about 5 minutes of scrubbing with soap and water and power washing.

I know it might be hard to tell but the truck was originally a 292 motor install from factory, somewhere along the way they removed the 292 motor, 292 4x4 crossmember and mounts. Then they installed a 350 V8 in place by the way of using 63-66 motor mounts that extend from the frame with no crossmember. I have spent the last few months trying to locate the right 292 crossmember for a 4x4 and have had no luck on that subject. I have a few ideas up my sleeve on fabbing one from a DIY4x4 kit or from a V8 4x4 crossmember. I also will not give up on finding the factory correct one.

One solution I am willing to try is the motor mount adapter for a 292 motor from 12bolt.com, it is listed under accessories. What it does is replace the mount on the passenger side and move the location to the stock V* location instead of the offset. One downside is that it blocks the stock fuel pump location and forces you to use an electric fuel pump. I will do some mock ups and testing to see which direction it takes me.

I will post a few more pictures of the mounts close up that are on the truck now and a few of what I am thinking about doing.

[Turnip Truck]

Nice find!

[landarts]

So went back over to where the truck is at storage to check on a few items and tried to get a better picture of the SPID. No matter what I did it was just hard to read from a photo. So I removed the glove box lid to get better lighting and a magnifying glass back at home . Here is the results of playing Sherlock Holmes. It will be a few more days and the truck from the field will be the truck in the garage. More to come!

First Column Options:
BX2 -B Side Mldg-Wide Lwr
F76 -Frt Wheel Locking Hubs
M20 -4 Speed Trans
Z62 -Cust-Conf & Conv EQ
607 -Blue Custom Cloth Trim

Second Column:
A11 -Tinted Glass
B85 -Body Side Molding
L25 -292 C.U. in. L6 engine
Z53 -Amm. Oil Gauge
537 -White/Light Blue

Note: Was not sure what the Z62 was so it translates to this ( Foam seat, Nylon Trim, Lighter, Arm rest, Door Lock, Sun Shade, Insulation)

Model No: KS10934 ( think this was right hard to tell 100%

Vin: KS149Z****** K=4WD S=I6 motor 1= 1/2ton 4= Pickup 9= 1969 Z= Freemont CA ******=serial number starting at 100001

[GSP7]

I had a cherry, all Original, 1969, CST/396 short bed, no rust calif truck

I should have never sold that truck


.

[landarts]

Originally Posted by GSP7

I had a cherry, all Original, 1969, CST/396 short bed, no rust calif truck

I should have never sold that truck


.

I know the feeling so well. I had a 72 stock K5 blazer missing the motor that I bought for $900. Had it at my storage lot for about three years waiting to get to it to make into my daily driver, put it up on Craigslist for $4500 and sold it in about an hour. Yes I made great money on it, but I will never find one as clean as it was. I do regret that sell the most.

[72 tigger]

Following along- nice project

[landarts]

OK finally got a few things wrapped up on my long term project Fixrupr and back on the road. This weekend I purchased a used long bed for future project needs, in really good shape has a wood bed that will need to be redone if used. I purchased for the purpose of using panels off of it if needed. Then I got the "69 K10 From the Field" moved into the garage and ready for tear down.

[landarts]

Sunday I was able to get into the project for some of the tear down discovery phase. First item was to remove the farmer bumper with the wrap around sides that were crunched. Clean out the dirt, mud and miscellaneous items left in the back of the truck from previous owner. Was able to break off the first two bed bolts the rest I used 4.5" angle grinder and a large punch to remove. After that I was able to attempt the removal of the P.O. installed Gooseneck hitch. The Gooseneck hitch was built out of heavy duty plate steal and bolted to through the frame directly over the axle. The only problem was it was a dirt and moisture trap that destroyed the bed in that location. I will need to cut out that section, then treat and weld in a section of bed floor. Not sure yet if I will need to replace that bed support until i get it onto the bed dolly for further inspection.

After all that I removed the tail light housings, cut all wiring to the rear of the bed and removed trim from passenger side of bed where there was some damage. Lifted up the bed and put two 2x4 runners underneath to get it ready to move over to the bed dolly for future repairs. Not worried about the old wiring since this truck will also get a new American Autowire Classic Update 510089 harness. As I remove the old harness I will be salvaging any of the connector bodies that are still good for future repairs or replacements.

img 1 - Shows the Gooseneck location

img 2 - shows the damage it did to center of bed

img 3 - shows me holding a straight edge to the rear passenger corner panel area to show how far it was pushed in

img 4 - shows the small tear in the fender on the passenger side where the damage started

[landarts]

Also was able to remove the seat and pull out the trashed carpeting to inspect floors and rockers. Here are the rocker areas, replacement on passenger side for sure and possible the same on drivers. Under side of truck is spotless, cab mounts look great.

[landarts]

Here are the floor sections in great shape, only repair on inside is the passenger kick panel below the kick panel vent. Will do a general clean up, repair metal, re-coat and install weather proofing/ sound deadening material before new carpet.

[landarts]

Well when I got home yesterday it looks like the Brown Santa visited my house. I purchased a 292 4x4 cross member from 72IronMike. He knew I was looking for one for the project and he snatched it up and then offered it to me....what a great deal. Thought about possibly taking a few measurements and fabricating up a backup. This would be the time to do it while I am almost ready to pull the V8 and put in the 292. Thanks Mike!

[msgross]

nice

[landarts]

Started this morning with completing a few repairs on the bed dolly and the bed lift. Once that was done I was able to remove the bed and place it on the dolly cart. Now I had access to the large bolts that were going through the frame that held the Gooseneck hitch on. P.O. had welded them on top and bottom of the frame. I removed with a angle grinder cutting bit and then cleaned up residual with a flap disc. Next I will cut a plug for one of them and weld anything left of the holes shut. Then grind and dress them so they can be sealed. Rest of the frame looks great in the rear, the only thing I saw that was kinda farmer was the mufflers were wired up with bailing wire. Heck as a kid on my grandpa's farm we used bailing wire for everything, that was before duct tape became the go to fix-all.

[BlueBullet]

Subbed

[landarts]

Today was a successful day of tear down. Removed all bolts holding motor to transmission. Removed bolts to motor mounts and disconnected clutch rod, oil pressure line and other items necessary to remove motor. Cut the exhaust lose, removed all four cab mount rubbers and jacked up the cab about 4 inches and put on blocks on frame. That really helped in getting to all the bolts on back of motor going into the transmission. After all was completed I moved back to the interior and removed the transmission tunnel, seat belts, door panels and gas tank. Gas tank needed to come out so I could inspect the floor areas and cab corners as well as get rid of all the bad gas and see if the fuel sender is good or not.

So what I found was that the cab corners were good, all four body supports were good, only small portions of each rocker was bad, small area about 1/2 inch or so on the bottom of drivers door bad, passenger inner kick panel below vent about a 2"x3" area bad, firewall good and complete floor good. Will inspect inner rockers and A & B pillar when I open up for rocker replacement.

Going to be placing an order with A&D metal direct for all body panels needed. I will also place an order for a few items I will need for the 67 GMC K15 that I purchased. AMD charges a flat fee of $200 for shipping freight no matter how much I order so I will try to combine my order to save on paying freight twice. I am pretty excited about the GMC since it is number 100 off the assembly line and is all original.

Next in order is to push back out into drive and power wash frame, interior and anywhere I can so I can get rid of all the farm dirt once and for all. After that I will scrub down the entire truck with some Simple Green and Citrus Orange spray especially in the interior where I found some rat droppings and about an inch of dirt. Then pull the motor and prepare it for storage.

[72ironmike]

Sounds like a full workday, maybe even some overtime !

[landarts]

Originally Posted by 72ironmike;remove all four cab support bushings8473830

Sounds like a full workday, maybe even some overtime !

I know, actually it was a good 5 hours of solid work. I had a few items give me a challenge. On the K10 and 20's the motor sits back really close to the firewall. I was fighting it for about an hour then I decided to remove the cab support bushings and jack the cab up about additional 3 to 4 inches. Once I did that it was pretty easy going. the other item was the screws that hold on the arm rest, spent about 20 minutes each on getting them off. Tomorrow afternoon will be good to get it outside and power wash it and get the smell out of the cab from rat droppings.