He's gonna get a Chevy!

[READYFORTHEGRIDLOCK]

Alright, I have dropped the superficial vanity of owning a BMW and am now going to my country roots, or at least I wish my roots were country.

Pending the sale of my car, I am looking towards buying a mid 70's - early 90's truck. I just do not know where to truly begin. So here I go a thunderin with questions:

btw, I did plenty of searches on the board, but have yet to find answers to my questions.

1. Best yrs. for a chevy truck? Short box / long box? ( I prefer short box)
2. Best type of 350 engine? 2 bolt or 4 bolt main?
3. Reliability of 2 bolt or 4 bolt engines?
4. Best trannies?
5. Best places online to purchase engine/tranny rebuild parts?
6. Best places online to buy body parts? (I am already checking out the local wrecking yards!)
7. Best oils to use for engine, tranny, diffy?
8. Chevy truck chapters/groups in AZ?
9. Best tires to use? (mainly city driving, but do go up to the mountains and drive on unpaved roads.)
10. Carb, TBI, or FI? I am learning towards Carb!
11. If i buy a S-10, difficulty of swapping in a v8 engine/tranny/diffy?!

I am buying a chevy truck damn it, and that's that, so all help and advice much appreciated!