Family '64 long bed

[Wildcats_95]

Hi all,

New to the forum and am just starting to restore a '64 Chevy long bed. This truck was bought new by my wife's grandpa in '64. It then transferred to her dad and now we have it. It is a little rough now, but am going to get it running again. Appreciate all the advice anyone wants to give along the way. Hopefully the pictures will load correctly.

[Captainfab]

Welcome to the forum

Looks like a good truck to work with. It looks reasonably straight and rust free. I like hearing about these keeping them in the family stories.

There are plenty of members here that can answer questions when you have them. All you have to do is ask.

[andyspinstriping]

I love the "family tradition" trucks and this one looks like a beauty! Good luck!

[LostMy65]

I also love to see family trucks passed down to appreciative children.

Welcome

[markeb01]

Excellent. You've come to the right place, welcome to the forum.

[Wildcats_95]

Thanks all! The other part of the story is that my grandpa also gave me a '64 just like this one, but I was only 16 at the time and didn't appreciate what I had so let it get away from me. Kick myself everyday for that boneheaded move.

Can't wait to get started on this. Going to put a 350 engine in, new suspension, and disc brakes to start with so I can get it road worthy again to drive. From there not sure just what I want to do with it.

['63GENIII]

Welcome! Nice rig. I like the armrests. I was just thinking that I needed a set of those. It's great you're going to keep it in the family. When I was 17, I let go of a '68 convertible Cadillac that my Gramps gave me. I'm pretty sure that will be on the top 5 list of regrets in my life. Enjoy this restoration and if you find that it's too much work... send me the armrests! Ha Ha!

[erock805]

Nice Truck...looks great.

[Clyde65]

ruff? that thing is awesome! Family pass me downs are fantastic!

Welcome from Texas!

[Stringer]

Nice looking truck! I just bought a 64 as well. I'm with you: this is a great place to learn.

[Wildcats_95]

Update: Got the truck loaded and hauled to the shop. Now the fun begins. I found a 350 engine out of a '72 Chevy C10 for $100. Looking to tear it down and rebuild it ... BUT, I also like the option to go with a GM Performance 350 HO Turnkey. Any thoughts on which is the "better" way to go? I am open to suggestions as I see the merits of both paths. Then want to marry it up with a 700R4 transmission.

Also looking at the brakes as a starting place. What are your thoughts on this? : http://www.performanceonline.com/196...d-6-LUG-16671/

Struggling on what to do with the rear end though if I go with the above.

My goal is to get is road worthy and running before I work on the cosmetic pieces. While I have the bed and front clip off, I will sand/grind down the frame and seal/coat it then work back up from there.

Appreciate any and all suggestions ... but keep in mind, that I know just enough to get myself in trouble. Thanks.

[Captainfab]

It's pretty hard to beat the price of that kit. I have priced buying the parts from my local auto parts supplier, and the cost is a bit more, not including the dropped spindles. Although I can not speak for what the quality of the parts are from POL.

As an alternative, you can purchase a used '73-'87 C10 front suspension, add the dropped spindles, and replace only what needs replaced, and put it all under your truck. Often times you can pick up a complete '73-'87 C10 quite reasonable. Then you also have the power steering, braking system, and a 5x5 rear end.

[Wildcats_95]

Thanks Captainfab for the suggestions. I thought the kit was pretty good as well, but like you I don't know about the quality of the products from POL.

So if I went with the drop spindles on the front, how many inches would one drop the rear end? front is a 2.5 inch drop.

Thanks again.

[badblu97]

That kinda depends on how far you wanna go with the drop, and what size tire/wheel combo you are planning on going with. You can get 1,2,3" drop coils from Classic Performance Parts (CPP) for $95, and there is a thread on here to make cheap but reliable drop blocks for the trailing arms if you want more. Or you can go the expensive route and get drop trailing arms. Just depends on your taste and budget. I agree with CaptainFab, the easiest way to do it would get at least the front clip from a 73-87, that way you have everything you need, and can go the local auto parts store to get replacement parts. (this is the route I went)

Good luck and keep on posting pics!!

[Wildcats_95]

Thanks badblu97! I guess I need to research this more as I don't know what size tire/wheel combo I want (also don't know what my options are). I think the 15" on there now are too small, but don't like getting up in the 20" range on rims either. Also don't know what the widest tire I can put on the back is and still leave enough clearance (don't really want to cut the bed just to get tires to fit.

Thanks for the advise, and I plan to keep posting pics as I go through this project.

[Wildcats_95]

Update: Got to work on the truck today. Started to take the front end apart. Here are some pictures. The guy in the one pic is my father in law...he got the truck from his father in law. Been in the family since it rolled off the showroom floor in '64