New 69 Longhorn owner

[Longhorn Paul]

New to the world of old trucks - and old cars in general. Big fan of modern cars until recently. Loved the look of the old Chevy's - particuarly the 64-71 trucks. Bot a very original 69 Longhorn w/ a 396, custom camper model.

Never had a v8 before. The previous owner added dual pipes, chrome mags, and had it repainted back to a near original gold-white. Still has the original wood bed, ac, heater (which doesn't seem to work) and a light mounted on the drivers side with no handle... and that's it.

I love the burble of the engine. Seems to run alright but the temp gauge doesn't move much past the first 1/4 of the range. Getting little spots of oil in the drive but not much to speak of.

I have to say I have owned 15 cars now and I have never had a bigger smile on my face then when I get out of this rattling, drafty, cold old truck. Why the hell did I wait so long to get one!

Any suggestions for a very much newbie (but motivated) owner is appreciated. Common issues and things I should do some PM on.

Altho I like the burble from the motor, I think it can be more pronounced w/out being obnxious. Ideas?

Any proven performance improvments I can make to get more out w/out making major changes?

It has drums all around and it stops okay... opinions on switching to disk or should I just leave it stock?

Also interested in licence plate suggestions also welcome. It's a 69 and 6" longer than everyone else... my fav so far is MINESXL

Paul