What is the farthest distance you have driven the truck?

[focusedontheprize]

Planning a trip from the truck once it is finished and interested in the road trips you guys have taken yours.

Mine? From San Diego to NY....

[NEWFISHER]

" Mine? From San Diego to NY.... "

Can't get much further than that! I would love to make that trip. I am planning on a West coast Or to SanDiego trip this summer in the Burb with the trailer.

Before, with the worn engine and 4sp truck trans, 450 miles was the furthest but i had only possesed it and had it driving in less than 3 months. Now that the new engine is in ( 2 weeks ago) and the trans last weekend, I did run up 250 miles a couple days ago after work to check the 700r4's longer freeway manners. All good and each weekend will get a little longer.

[ol_skool_chevy]

Portland Oregon To San Diego, Cal 1200 miles.....26 hours.

[bowt1ed]

Smyrna, TN to Jacksonville, FL (@600 miles) for my "test drive" after the 81 Camaro grafting (subframe, 350/350/shifter, 10 bolt, tilt, fuse/wiring). Took a month in between duty stations (USN) and drove her down to meet my new ship! Hey - no guts, no glory! (at least when you're a couple of decades younger than the now wiser me!)

[focusedontheprize]

Originally Posted by NEWFISHER

" Mine? From San Diego to NY.... "

Can't get much further than that! I would love to make that trip. I am planning on a West coast Or to SanDiego trip this summer in the Burb with the trailer.

Before, with the worn engine and 4sp truck trans, 450 miles was the furthest but i had only possesed it and had it driving in less than 3 months. Now that the new engine is in ( 2 weeks ago) and the trans last weekend, I did run up 250 miles a couple days ago after work to check the 700r4's longer freeway manners. All good and each weekend will get a little longer.

Haha well I am planning it out. The fresh 292 and NV3500 should be able to take the haul.

Sounds great you are putting some miles on that Burb. Love the drop you just did on it.

[1project2many]

Longest trip was when I moved from Hardin, MT to Russel, MA. Carried mechanic's toolboxes and lotsa spare parts in trailer. Wheel fell off trailer outside Indy, had to rest in motel for a couple of hours and swap tools/parts into second trailer in morning. Thanks, Uhaul. Left on Dec 18, arrived on Dec 21. Snow and wind so bad in WY that I "drove" truck/trailer combo sideways on highway for what seemed like 20 miles. Oh, yeah... and to add to the excitement, I'd been up 24hrs straight just prior to leaving to assemble bed and put rest of truck together to complete three year restoration for trip back. I don't even think the urethane on the wood was cured when I left.

[LEEVON]

zero miles on my '50 but the plan is to take my Son on a Route 66 trip from Missouri to California and back.

[focusedontheprize]

Originally Posted by LEEVON

zero miles on my '50 but the plan is to take my Son on a Route 66 trip from Missouri to California and back.

Yeah I am debating on trying that when I do the trip in the summer. Just feels right to do it in the '49.


For you guys who have done longer than 250 miles in the truck - what did you pack? I will end up packing a toolbox in the back, jack and jackstand, and a few more things.

[OKGMC4]

Drove from Tulsa, OK to Pigeon Forge, TN for the grand run last september, and plan to do it again next year.

[NEWFISHER]

Originally Posted by focusedontheprize

Yeah I am debating on trying that when I do the trip in the summer. Just feels right to do it in the '49.


For you guys who have done longer than 250 miles in the truck - what did you pack? I will end up packing a toolbox in the back, jack and jackstand, and a few more things.

Cell phone, Visa card and my AAA membership

plus a few hand tools, scissor jack ( lighter than a bottle jack and can fit under lowered trucks, in between spaces etc) tarp to lay on, gallon of water, extra hose clamps clamped around a few common bolts.I put rags, hand soap, 20ft wire, extra fuses, duct tape around a pencil and zip ties in a gallon freezer bag ( for catching rr diff fluid). I tuck an extra fan belt and universal bendable hose in each lower fender corner all the time along with a qt of engine oil and rr diff fluid. Now I need a qt of trans with the 700r4 swap. All of these items I keep on hand in EACH vehicle at all times along with a first aid kit and a 2gl sealed fuel can full of fuel and stabilizer. The tools are cheap ones, the freezer bag holds most everything else and the hose/belt and qts hide in the fenders.

We live in the NW and drive ALOT. Comming from the OffRoad industry ( think Rubicon trail) we pack like we are going to break down, in the OffRoad rig we pack extra axle shafts, tcase input shaft, tie rod ends, trunion bearings, ujoints, universal brake hose, coolant hose etc. Sometimes you meet the best people when you pull over to help.

[nebdrummer]

Lincoln Nebraska to St. Paul mn on a week old fresh motor. That was just over 1000 miles that weekend. I plan on doing drag week (2000miles in 1 week) this year if everything goes back together as planned.
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[buggy5872]

Big Bertha - Beaver Pa to Ocean City MD towing an 11k lb fifth wheel.... but that's what it was built for. Logged 5k miles total towing last summer. 59 Apache - Beaver , PA to somewhere in CT for a 55-57 car show. Raced my dads 57 Belair the whole way there......it made the trip go quick when both of us wanted to lead.

[mr48chev]

The first road trip out of the box was a week after it was painted and one day after the seat was done. We took it from McGregor Tx to Tulsa for the 1973 NSRA Street Rod Nationals as it's first event as a participant and our first event as participants.

In 1977 my 8 year old son my German Shepard and I came from McGregor Tx to Toppenish, Wa in the truck towing a 16 ft UHaul trailer loaded with everything we owned and my wife flew up a few weeks later after she completed selling the house in Texas.

In 1982 We loaded up the truck and drove to Texas to visit the inlaws and attend four rod runs in three weekends. 2052.2 miles on a fresh 350 and fresh subrframe swap that had 36 miles on it when we left the house I am sitting in after leaving my dog with my Grandfather.

The 48 in front of my inlaws house on South Polk in McGregor Tx with my son and sister in law in the front yard. my wife and daughter were no doubt in the house under the ac after a long hot trip.

The older guys in Texas will tell you that was the year that Texas had 40+ days in a row of over 100 temps.

In 1982 right after I spend a month sanding it slick and painting it we loaded up the kids and headed off to Ogden Utah for the Chevy-GMC Truckin Nationals that Seth Dalton put on. We had a football field full of Chevy and GMC trucks including the Rod and Custom Dream truck.
My then three year old daughter saying "take my picture Daddy". At the KOA in Ogden.


In 1998 I took a solo vacation and drove to Bonneville for Speedweek and then drove from Wendover to Plesanton, Ca for Goodguys and then back up through Oregon to home over a weeks time with a very tired 250 six. I had a great time though. I camped out at the bend in the road at Bonneville and got to attend the races for four days.

I got a Japanese tourist to take my photo while I was parked near the starting line of the long course.

The next long road trip win no doubt be to Central Texas to visit the inlaws and attend a couple of car/truck events not long after the truck is finished and ready for the road.

[NEWFISHER]

Saw that Bonneville pic on the hamb....good times

[meter swinger]

Never driven the 59 out of town. LOL. I have five boys so the 59 gets a lot of rest since we cant all fit in it. Usually its the crew cab or travelall or wife's burb, that makes it out of the county
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[OrrieG]

Original drive train (6, 3 speed). Phoenix to ElPaso to Kanab to SLC to Boise to Portland to LA back to Phoenix in two months, summer 1977.

Converted to 4wd in 85, averaged 7K miles per year until 2000. Longest trips were about 700 miles round trip, but also spent a lot of time off road where you could only average 10-15 miles per hour.

When it gets done this time have longer trips planned, probably towing a small travel trailer; Lincoln Highway, Route 66 and a swing thru the south and eastern US. Trip across Canada from Minnesota to Vancouver would be cool too. "Local" trips will be some of the scenic off road stuff (Magruder Road, Moab/4 corners area and a trip to Bonneville) to revisit places we went in the 70's.

[Divine 59]

Drove my 59 from Arlington, Tx to Rogers, Ar. It's about 380 miles. When I lived in TX my father in law and I would go scour the countryside for salvage yards. He had a 55 and I have my 59. We would swap driving duties. Lots of stories there.

[mr48chev]

Originally Posted by NEWFISHER

Saw that Bonneville pic on the hamb....good times

I had a lot of fun on that trip and a couple of small breakdowns to make it interesting.

Between Bonneville and Plesanton I took close to 20 rolls of 35 mm photos that took me about three weeks to get developed a handful at a time.

Somewhere there is a video of me driving though six inches of water at roads end to get back on the pavement on Thursday during the cloudburst that soaked the salt and everyone on it. I got into Wendover and stopped for gas and the truck wouldn't start because of a dead battery. It turned out that one of the wires to the alternator had broken and it wasn't charging. I hauled the battery on the shuttle bus to the other end of town to a station with a charge and had him charge it for a couple of hours while I walked across the street and had a burger. The bus driver picked me up at the station and after riding the senic route dropped me right beside my truck. Fifteen minutes later I was headed west until I decided I needed to sleep or wreck and stopped at a rest area were I gave the truck drivers a good laugh a few hours later when the sprinkler head popped up right beside my sleeping bag.

I hooked up with a red 32 Ford Hiboy roadster pulling out of Winnemucca and we cruised together to Reno where he pulled off. I hit Plesanton about 4 in the afternoon, spent the evening at the fairgrounds and all day Saturday at the fairgrounds and headed North towards home getting home on Sunday evening an going back to work at 07:00 on Monday.

[Hubscrub]

Originally Posted by LEEVON

zero miles on my '50 but the plan is to take my Son on a Route 66 trip from Missouri to California and back.

Originally Posted by focusedontheprize

Yeah I am debating on trying that when I do the trip in the summer. Just feels right to do it in the '49.


For you guys who have done longer than 250 miles in the truck - what did you pack? I will end up packing a toolbox in the back, jack and jackstand, and a few more things.

you won't regret it, just get a trip guide because some states the route is poorly marked or signs stolen. Wife and i have done Chicago to Albuquerque NM so far, plan to go to albuquerque to la this year.

[jjzepplin]

Drove my 72 Blazer from Oakland CALI. to Tampa FL. in 2004, fresh 406ci-700r4 w/lockup and 203-205 crawl box and 4.10 gears 36" new 10ply Swampers. Had my Snap-on box in the back and roof top carrier full of big rubbermaid containers and a hitch hauler with a 1969 Honda Z-50 and two 5gal "Jerry" cans of gas on it. All tolled about 1.5 tons of stuff. Had 1 ton gear so I was all good. Rough ride but no one could hear me singing over the engine and tires!!! BTW 2901 miles=42 hours if I drove every minute. 35 gallon tank. Guess about 12 mpg=drafting big rigs the whole time and took 5 days..lots of rest and site seeing.
P.S. anyone ever see that 30' tall bird at the I-10 rest stop in New Mexico? built with old shoes and chicken wire? Darndest thing I ever saw....

Did it again with my Range Rover 6 months later.
NEVER takin a bus to Cali again!

[_Ogre]

drove my 59 panel 3800 from kalispell montana to key west fl, 3500 miles one way, with all stock drive train (top speed 45 mph) and a 63 283 of unknown mileage.
that panel went coast to coast, border to border, zig zagged all over the country.

drove my 56 chevy 48 passenger camper 9000 miles in 30 days on a vacation. NC to AZ to CA to WA to WI back to NC
with lots of side trips. grand canyon, saw a shuttle land in CA, crater lake, rushmore, devils tower

hot rod power tour 2011 and 2012, roughly 3200 miles for each one

[focusedontheprize]

Great replies. Yeah I am looking forward to this trip with Lucile. Looks like I will be putting that A/C unit in earlier than I suspected. Between a small toolbox in the back, a jack, jackstand and a few more things - we are trying to travel as light as possible.

My main issue was not being able to lock up anything in the back (bags or extra stuff), but the more I think about it we can just toss it in the cab if we need to.

Need to figure out the door lock situation on this '49 though. Only have one lock on the passenger side door haha.

[LDO]

Fayetteville NC to Pensacola FL. About 750 miles according to mapquest but I wasn't counting. It was a blast!