Restoring a truck to daily drive?????

[Slowtruk]

Guys...I'm in a bit of a bind in my mind.

I've got my 85 silverado C20, which is in great shape and I DD it everyday. People always love the truck and want to buy it. I enjoy driving it for that reason among others. I'm the kind of guy that would rather have 10 "good" condition trucks than 1 "immaculate" restoration.

With that in mind, I've come to a crossroads. I bought this 65 short wide to restore, not a perfect resto but carshow quality nonetheless. To be driven on sunny days, not to be left in the mall parking lot or at the gravel contractors gate at the refinery I work at. BUT!!!!!

I keep seeing these threads where guys find a truck in a barn, air up the tires and tune it up and drive it. They have moderately good paint and patina....not a lot of cancer. I want that kind of truck. But my 65 was in too bad of shape, not as far as much cancer than the usual lower doors and rockers but it had been repainted, chipping paint, tons of bondo under the paint, then primered...it just wasnt pretty. Had no motor or trans or driveshaft.

original plan was to strip it, have the frame and chassis parts sandblasted, painted black, and all new bushings and steering parts added. Power steering and braking added. That part is still part of the plan whether I go full resto or not. The, have the entire body blasted, worked over with replacement panels and painted the color of my choice. new glass, BBW conversion, all the necessary insulation and carpet in the cab, new seat, etc. New wood floor...I'm already having a 700r4 rebuilt for it and am ordering a crate 350 for it soon...the whole 9 yards. Something you wouldnt want to drive in the rain.

But now I want to drive it to work or to the mall or anywhere, as long as its sunny. I dont want to be limited to just the weekend cruise.

Can I still do all of this work and daily it? I like to think I could but when it got the first scratch Id be pissed.

On one hand, thats a lot of work and money to put into something and drive it everyday and potentially harm it, but its also a lot of work and money to let it sit in the garage all the time.

ANyone else out there who daily drives a restored truck, any year? Id like to hear from you. SHould I just find another truck to throw a motor in and drive instead?

Sorry for the novel, heres my 65 before I tore it down, its about to be blasted soon


after a wash-from the back it looks like a nice candidate for a kinda used and abused cool looking DD, but on the front a lot of primer and primer over bondo under the doors and stuff. Plus Im not crazy about the army green.






Heres some trucks I pulled from new threads where guys found them and just drive em! kinda what I want.



again sorry for the novel dang it got long

[awbrown]

Well , here's how I see it ... you go out and plunk down what 20-25 k on a new truck .. and guess what , you drive it .... so whats the difference if you put 5-10 K in a 60-66 and drive it ?? it will look the same in 10 years as the new truck , it wuill have scratches,maybe some dents ,and scrapes , but you expect it ,right?? and since you rebuilt it once , why cant you do it again??? I can answer for my self ... because I am lazy .. thats why I like driving mine and throwing stuff in the back , because I will never have one that looks that good to worry about .. but I can dream.... did I mention I lack motivation?

[Slowtruk]

Originally Posted by awbrown

Well , here's how I see it ... you go out and plunk down what 20-25 k on a new truck .. and guess what , you drive it .... so whats the difference if you put 5-10 K in a 60-66 and drive it ?? it will look the same in 10 years as the new truck , it wuill have scratches,maybe some dents ,and scrapes , but you expect it ,right?? and since you rebuilt it once , why cant you do it again??? I can answer for my self ... because I am lazy .. thats why I like driving mine and throwing stuff in the back , because I will never have one that looks that good to worry about .. but I can dream.... did I mention I lack motivation?

True that, hell when the truck was new, smeone drove it this long and enjoyed it.

[pdxhall]

I have to agree with awbrown. Trucks were made to be driven. I'm going along much the same road as you. I have a truck to haul things and do all that truck stuff with and I am doing a full restore on my 66. I might not take it out in real foul weather but I will drive it when I feel like it and not just let it sit in the garage waiting for the nexe show or cruise in. Let's have fun with these trucks and if and when they break, just fix it and drive it some more.

[Slowtruk]

I agreee completely. I am getting excited! lol. Cant wait to get it going. This overtime lately will help

[samuellg1977]

The guys on this forum never cease to amaze me!! Buy em cheap, clean em up, drive em hard!! I am more impressed by the old, beaten DD truck that a guy built or maintains in his driveway with hand tools and iron determination, than anything a million-dollar shop could ever roll out with. All you need is a little bit of "know-how", and whole lot of "will-do". This truck forum has tons of that to spare!!

[Rich 5150 69]

Slowtruk, mine is a dailey driver, has been sinse I bought it in `92, in `93 went thru everything and been driving the wheels off of it sinse, now its time to go thru several things again, about 200,000 on motor / trany, time for a BB and interior and paint, but would rather do that than buy a new one, you ought to see their face when I pull into the landscaping yards and ask for a load of top soil or bark....LOL

[losthope]

i have a on going car project that has sat for years that i used to drive daily but did a body swap on and been sitting while i work on it here and there when time and money are not a problem which they always are.(finally driving again 4 years later)......and then had the 65 c10 i just dropped a reman motor and trans in and just drove it everywhere rain or shine putting new stuff on when i wanted to. and now just trying to get the 66 driving so i can drive the wheels off of it......me personally find it easier and much more fun working on a vehicle when its driving ,and the hot rodder in me believes that a car/truck is meant to be driven and not worry too much about things like nicking the paint, but im not a collector or going for points or trying to win and collect trophys im it it for the fun and life style....if i had the money or space and tools id rather do something like delmo does and build something with all new suspension and drivetrain,reliable but with a O.G. body that looks *****en and drive the damn thing and enjoy it without worrys of harming it.....but thats just me!!! Dont get me wrong id take a restored truck also but dont think id build one.

[markeb01]

I’m of the same mindset. I’ve built all my cars to be used. In the early days, this was how I justified having a cool car. Buying an old car was always cheaper than a new car payment, and left money in the budget for fixing it up. Whatever I owned served as family transportation so I got to enjoy the vehicle every day instead of just once in a while.

In addition to the driving experience, I’ve had more satisfaction from random encounters with strangers than going to car shows and graffiti nights. A few examples – moving my mother to a retirement community and having dozens of residents come up asking questions or offering compliments about the truck, encounters at the gas station from admirers, or people that miss the one they grew up in or owned years ago. And many want to take the time to appreciate all the work and upgrades that have gone into the build.

Almost every classic car or truck I’ve built stayed around at least 5 years before I moved on to something else. Our previous family car (a 46 Ford sedan street rod) lasted 8 years and covered 300,000 miles before we moved on to the GMC. We’ve put about 150k on the 60 in nearly 20 years, many of those years as a daily driver for one of us. It can still be used to go to work or haul plywood, but it can also go scary fast if desired. Over time they all ended up with nicks and chips and worn out parts. I just fixed whatever was wrong and repainted the cosmetics. I don’t want to just own something cool - I want to experience the thrill of being in it, going places and doing stuff with it.

[kieth]

This is now my daily driver, why own them if you cannot drive them.....I sold a 2006 crew cab and now drive my 66 gmc-------why not ? Kieth

http://kieth.smugmug.com/Trucks/66-G..._nS2QZT6-XL-LB

[awbrown]

My green 63 that I have a few pics of on here somewhere , was my DD in Maine , til I moved to Detroit in 97, I am putting floorboards in it now .. it may become a crew cab ,if I get the ambition,I already have the spare cab ... like I said about being lazy... my other 63 is without an engine since saturday and I already miss it ...

[jimmydean]

I drove the piss out of my '69. My '66 will get driven when the weather doesn't work for the motorcycle. It will also haul stuff (no towing), LOTS of stuff. If I didn't NEED a truck, I would have built a Camaro.

[64fleetside]

I'm building mine for a driver, I added PS, discs on front & updated the AC system. I have driven it on sunny days(no side windows yet), love it.

[Surfdaddy]

I'm restoring mine to OEM but driving it on weekends and once in a while to work for some show and tell, doing the work while driving it, unless it's raining. I made that choise after asking a simular queston. After reading all the replies I decided to drive it as I'm working on it. Made sence since having something sitting around for a while can cause you to lose your motivation.

[jimmydean]

Originally Posted by Surfdaddy

I'm restoring mine to OEM but driving it on weekends and once in a while to work for some show and tell, doing the work while driving it, unless it's raining. I made that choise after asking a simular queston. After reading all the replies I decided to drive it as I'm working on it. Made sence since having something sitting around for a while can cause you to lose your motivation.

I was driving mine until the weather got nice for the motorcycle. I will put it back together and drive it through winter then tear it down for Srping in hopes of having it done by Summer.

[kc0kfg]

My feeling is why own it if you cant drive it anytime , its not going to melt in the rain.

Once upon a time I showed my panel truck and was moving towards making it a show only truck, then one day it dawned on me it was no longer fun.

I had the most fun when my panel was driven and used.

Now she's still in primer and far from a show truck but I love her because I use it.

[gearheads78]

The real problem with DD a nice restored car / is insurance. The companies that will insure them for what they are really worth don't want them to be DD. You can always get liability but when someone runs a red light and plows in to you if you are lucky enough that they have insurance you will still never come out on top in the deal.

Thats why I decided to build an old Suburban. I can make it cool enough that I get a smile on my face every time I drive it but if the unisured idiot on the road takes me out I am not out any real money and I go find something else.

I've been driving a $1500.00 gas sipping beater for almost two years now. I'm sick of it and sooo ready to be back in something cool.

[bama63]

drive it alot work on it a little when you can and enjoy it.i learned the hard way,i had a perfectly good running truck,blew it apart 2 years ago to restore it and guess what?....its still torn apart and no where near finished,i could have been driving and enjoying my truck for the past 2 years but i made the wrong decision to undertake a huge project at one time instead of doing small things as time and finances allow and i truly regret it, take my advice DRIVE IT!

[k1rodeoboater]

I'm building mine to hopefully one day be my daily driver, and I'm doing as much of the work myself as possible. Maybe one day way down the line I'll turn her into a show truck but not right now as it's not practical or economical.

[48richard]

Interesting thread. A couple of years ago I sold my "new" truck and bought a 71 longbed that someone else had done a "restoration" on. The paint job was not the best, but he'd put a lot of money into the transmission, wheels, tires, brakes, SS exhaust, and so on.
Since then I've made sure everything works, added A/C (I live in Phoenix), put in a new interior (that's where I sit), and drive it every day. It's quick, reliable, and fun to drive, and I get a lot of "nice truck!"s in parking lots. If I need parts, they are cheap and easy to get. No $500 headlights or $1000 computers. I've thought about having it painted, but then my $10,000 truck, which I'm not afraid to haul lumber or dirt in, would be a $15,000 truck that I would be afraid to use as a truck.
So, my perspective is - make it good enough so that it works as a comfortable, reliable driver, and then enjoy it.

[steverino66]

I agree 100% with the majority of these replies - I have no use for something that's "too nice to drive" (what museums are for); I'll park my truck away from the tight parking spaces when it's back on the frame, but I'll be driving it.

[samuellg1977]

I drive mine everyday to work and home mostly, but I have made a few day trips south to Nashville (65 Miles) and once north to Paducah (50 or so miles). Runs awesome. I wish I could put a nice paint job on it and clean it up, but like others have said "I would probably be too scared to drive it then." What is the point of having such a good running truck collecting dust in the garage because of the "what-if's" and "maybe's"? I love my truck and it so much fun to drive... Aside from throwing a coat of satin black on it to go "stealth", I'm gonna drive it til the wheels fold up.

[Surfdaddy]

Make it as nice as you want. drive it as you go. The only reason I won't drive it in the rain is that in So Cal it doesn't rain for 9 months then, when it does, all the oil and crap comes out and makes it real sketchy with drum brakes that aren't too good. With the nuts out there who don't realize it's slick and they drive just as fast..... it's better that I drive one of my newer cars.

[Slowtruk]

Thanks for the replies guys, I agree 100% that I need to drive it.

Its already almost down to the frame, and the money I'm making on this turn-around right now I have enough to have the frame sandblasted and painted, power steering and brakes added, new steering componants, and the 700r4 is being rebuilt right now in a reputable shop. I will also have enough to buy my crate 350 and have a driveshaft made, So itll be driving. ALready have coated headers, new (original-rebuilt) radiator and heater core...I have everything to attach to the motor including new pumps and dist cap and rotor, plugs and wires, etc...new heater fan and motor, etc.

I'll have enough for all that, then I plan on having the cab sandblasted and epoxy primed, then have the bodyman start his work. He will get the cab, then the front end, then the bed, and itll all be painted at once.

Once all thats done (hopefully in 4 months) then I'll put it back together and drive her. Then I can piece things together quickly like new bumpers, interior pieces and AC one day. I'm pretty motivated and work on it each day I get off which isnt much right now with all this overtime. But I really hope to have it at least running on 4 wheels again by spring. Then like I said go from there.

I am really thinking of that turquoise and white, I had a 64 burb that color and loved it.

I think once its on the road I'll drive it whenever I want, and when it gets a chip, I wont worry , and when something breaks I'll fix it. Cant wait.