New Frame

[AfterThoughtVideo]

The frame on my '76 is pretty rough, and I plan on bagging my truck..I just started tearing it apart and realized the frame is way worse than I thought

is there anything I can do to strengthen it or get rid of all the rust, if not where would my best bet be to get a new frame..a junk yard? anyone bought one and have a clue how much I'm looking at spending?

[old Rusty C10]

first off welcome to the board
i agree its prolly too much work to try and fix what ya have so id look for either another parts truck with a good frame or check our classifieds and see whats there.. junkyards work ok too but youll prolly have a ton of work to do any frame up.. you can also search on here for tips for lowered trucks
keep us updated on your progress and lots of pics are always appreciated

[Rollinsqrbdy]

WELCOME. WOWWWWWWW THAT FRAMES GOT TO GO. I AINT EVER SEE ONE THAT BAD. AROUND HERE U CAN PRETTY MUCK GET A LONG BED FOR FREE AS LONG AS U GET IT OUT OF THE PEOPLES YARD. NOW THE SHORTIES THATS A DIFFERENT STORY.

[AfterThoughtVideo]

yeah its a long bed...I been checking craigslist but nobody has anything in Michigan, the truck was my great grandpas he bought it from the dealer new in '76 and he never really drove it a whole lot and gave it to me before he died and its mainly been sitting for 3 or 4 years it only has like 60,000 miles and it runs good but I was really disapointed when I took the bed off and seen the frame

I got big plans for this truck, hopefully I can find a parts truck or frame for cheap

I HATE MICHIGAN WEATHER AND WHAT IT DOES TO TRUCKS! haha good thing I'm moving to South Carolina next year and wont have to deal with the snow as much

[old Rusty C10]

Originally Posted by AfterThoughtVideo

I HATE MICHIGAN WEATHER AND WHAT IT DOES TO TRUCKS!

NY aint much better for trucks lol you should see the underneath of mine!!

[84 400]

neither is NH. Search cregislist for an entire truck. You could probably find a non running one fro under 500. This might get you a bed that is in better shape. I am not sure how much you have to spend....... Also might try ebay. This would be a great time to switch to a short bed or make a big change like that if you want to.

[N2TRUX]

It really depends on how badly you want to save it. I would suggest you look in the nearest state that doesn't salt their roads for a replacement truck. If it weren't your grandpa's truck I would consider saving what you can and move on.

From what I can see you need a lot of patch panels. If you are capable of doing the work it won't be too bad. If you have to pay someone it's not going to be cheap.

[AfterThoughtVideo]

yeah I can do all the work myself..if it wasent my great grandpas truck I would 100% move on because I've seen bagged C10's on craigslist cheaper than I could do body work on this this truck it sucks

I think Indiana uses sand instead of salt for their roads

good point it would be a good chance to go the short bed route..didnt think about that, but for some reason I kind of like long beds

[impalamark]

Guess I should go into business shipping these truck up to north '
to you guys . I'm getting solid running trucks for average of
$500.00 to $800.00 down here for for two wheel drive
MARK

[AfterThoughtVideo]

yeah you could probably make some good money, I know I'm currently looking for either '65 or '67 C10 I like both body styles and most are too far gone to even bother

[spudz]

wait till u get down here to south carolina....I'll get ya hooked up with a solid frame...

[84 400]

yeah that is always the case. I figured that out and bought mine in TX and brought it back here cost me about the same as a decent local truck and mine has no rust.

saw this 64 in MI a while back
http://detroit.craigslist.org/cto/855810247.html

[AfterThoughtVideo]

yeah I saw that too, but I dont like step sides

I was hoping to have it done before I got to South Carolina since I'll probably in a dorm room and have no place to work on it..so I guess we'll see how that goes..theres a company not too far from me called Southern Truck and sell they all kinds of parts and stuff for the older trucks that they get from the southern states so I sent them an email to see what they got

[AfterThoughtVideo]

anyone know what hub caps these are where to get them?



and this really has nothing to do with this topic but here are some of my favorite trucks, I almost bought the teal one or whatever color that is but he sold it to a guy in Indiana and then he re sold it to a guy in Illinois I've been trying to track it down

[D13]

Welcome from Port Huron! I have a similar condition, I have my dad's old truck and it's only value is scrap and sentiment.

I'd say that's a pretty typical MI frame. I've driven worse LOL!

I bought my 82 with a nice frame and cab for $500 off Craigslist. Also bought my 84 frame with running L6 and TH350 for $550 off Craigslist, a low mile truck that was stripped for its body. So they are out there.

Unfortunately I don't know the yards in your area, but there are a ton of these out there and I can't imagine you won't be able to find a frame. Probably $300 or so, mostly because of the work to pull it. There are a lot of 4x4 frames, and you can (with some drilling) swap the suspensions. There's a thread on this in here somewhere...

Best suggestion, put an add on craigslist, offer $200 for frame no axles, and I bet you can get one.

[D13]

For example - this just popped up on craigslist detroit:
http://detroit.craigslist.org/cto/862066039.html
Sell the 4x4 stuff, clean and paint the frame, and swap your parts.

Or this:
http://flint.craigslist.org/cto/845677400.html

See if the frame is good, should be able to get $300 or so for the rest of it as parts.

Good luck and happy hunting.

[abebummy26]

I've seen a 64 Chevelle 4 Door, That was bought New at a dealership in town. The frame was completely rotted in half. My neighbor took the front clip off, and the front bumper fell to the ground. It rusted in half at inbetween the gap where the front door and fenders met. To take it to the scrap yard, He had to put steel plates on the frame and hold it on with wire. St. Louis has pretty mild winters compared to most of you guys.

[nico]

I would definitely look for a replacement frame... I'm always blown away by the rust issues northern trucks face. In Oklahoma and Texas, it seems like there are always rust free longbeds for $200-300. My brother and I have bought and parted out or crushed at least ten LWBs and Blazers in the last year. His recent score is a very clean 1985 LWB with factory black interior (with clock and all the options) and 80K miles for $500.

[smashingchuck]

I have one that is in pretty good shape and I'm 2.5 hours away... shoot me a PM.

[Richard D]

Definitely a new frame, and a short bed while you are at it.

[AfterThoughtVideo]

I dunno I love long beds for some reason..maybe just because its diffrent the most out there.. not sure



basically this is my inspiration..my is going to be similar (flat black, white walls, black hubs, but with some red and white pin striping, red dash, wood bed, mexican blanket seat cover..etc) I got a guy from around here working on a rendering of what it will look like when finished he said should be done it 2 weeks so I'll throw that up here when hes done

the frame on his truck (the one in the pict) is already Z'd and he said if he can find another frame he'll sell it to me so that'd save me a lot of work for the body drop

[AfterThoughtVideo]

[budgetstperformance]

[QUOTE=AfterThoughtVideo;2911660]anyone know what hub caps these are where to get them?



looks like asto van or older s10 hub caps, im with you on the long bed thing. maybe cuz most people like short bed and i like to be different or because the sheet of plywood dosen't stick out. but i think i prefer a long bed because when the truck is droped it has a long streached look thats 2' feet more truck to love.

[Albatrossian]

I would clean the crap out of that frame and then look at it.. you could probably fix it and box it in while you're there.. just my $.02

[AfterThoughtVideo]

what would you suggest to clean it with?

wouldnt hurt anything so mid as well try it, but if I can get a decent price on the Z'd frame that'll be a huge help he said he just wants to break even on what it costs him to buy another frame