60-66 or 67-72 Quandary

[cericd]

Wasn’t sure where to post this… I spend most of my time on the forum in the 67-72 section but am seriously considering a 60-66 so I thought I’d put it here.

So I’ve had my 1970 C/10 for just over 2 years now and have done basically nothing with it (aside from collecting parts). The truck is in the same shape as when I bought it. House and daily driver repairs have hit me pretty hard over the last couple years so my truck had to sit on the back burner (in my garage). During that time I’ve collected several parts and tried to educate myself on all things 67-72 Chevy trucks.

My original plan was to find a clean unmolested/unmodified truck and repair/replace what was necessary to have it look original with a lower stance. Well, it took a while but I found a nice clean example in my 70. Problem is, lately I find myself liking the styling of the 63-66’s more than my current truck and I’m wondering how difficult it would be to find the same thing in a 63-66? (I say 63-66 because I think I read that the 60-62 grille is different.)

Should I try to find someone willing to trade a 63-66 in similar condition to mine straight up or sell mine as it sits and look for a 63-66 as clean as my 70 to buy?

Is it more expensive or difficult to add things like A/C, front discs, 5-lugs all around, power steering, power brakes, lowered ride height, etc. to a pre-67. I originally planned to add these things to my 70 but since I can only have one toy right now and since I haven't done too much with mine, maybe I should start looking into the earlier model trucks before I buy too many more parts.

Thanks for any insight or advice in advance. This site has been a wealth of knowledge.

[Turtleman]

Seems like your 70 is in really nice shape as it is.... so why find a project to do if you haven't had the time to do anything to the 70?
If your really loving the style's of the 60's and are just burnt out on the 70.. dont look for a 60's as nice as your 70.. find one that only has a clean body and use the 70 as a total parts store.

[jayoldschool]

You've got a truck now, and you're not doing anything with it. It will be the same with a different year truck. Please don't take that as an insult, it's not. Many of us (me included) have vehicles that sit around for a long time. Either do some work on your truck, or sell it, sell the parts, and look for something that you'll actually use, perhaps something that someone has already done some work on previously.

Separate the 60-63s and the 64-66s in your search. Enough differences to make two categories.

I will say that the 64-66s are really coming on desirability/price, much like the 67-72s did.

[cericd]

Thanks for the response Turtleman. I'm thinking you had a look at the thread for my truck and several people have been confused by it. There are a couple pretty convincing photoshops of the truck that make it look like it's "all fixed up." It's actually still a base model, no pwr steer, no pwr brake, no A/C, 6-lug truck. So I'm not sure what parts would be of any benefit. I'm sure it would be better left whole. Here are a couple pics from my thread that represent the truck in it's current form. (I hate to post these in the 60-66 area and only do so for clarification.)

[lolife99]

If you decide to sell your truck,... let me know.

[cericd]

Hey jayoldschool, no offense taken. I had nearly that exact response in my mind as I typed my original post. So, I knew it would come up. It's certainly a valid point. As I've said before "never buy a fixer-up house and a fixer-up ride at the same time." I mean unless you have wads of cash which I sadly do not. Unfortunately for me, this made the first of each.

Also thanks for the heads up on the 60-63 and 64-66 separation info.

[jayoldschool]

Damn, that truck is nice (as you can tell from post #5!). If it were mine, I'd just get it running, and drive it and enjoy. Don't feel that you "need" all the mods to enjoy it. Would it drive better with AC, power, discs, etc, etc? Sure. But... it will drive just fine the way it is!

[american revolution]

That truck looks good...drive the hell out of it ....I got a blazer for trade

[duallyjams]

Keep what you already have, you live in one of the best state for finding good trucks, it's free to look for a 64-66 if you happen to find one that you would be interested in then decide what you want to do.

[spacedebris]

If it helps....

Typically the 67-72 have easier times finding parts. While more and more 60-66 parts are slowly becoming available, the 67 and on have a greater aftermarket support. Of course, the 60-66 are just cooler

Also, the big difference in the 60-63 and 64-66 is the cab. The earlier had the wrap around windshield (Knee Knockers) and the later models have the standard windshield/cab design. As for the grills, they are pretty much inter-changeable throughout. So if you like a 66 grill for example, it can be put onto any of the 60-66 fairly easily. There are many examples of the early cab design with the later grill/hood combos here on the board. I dont have the link handy but there was a thread a while ago specifically about the different hood/grill combos possible.

In the end it really comes down to what you want. What I would do is to drive the one you have for now, enjoy it, and while doing so, watch CL, Ebay, and other sources for one of the 60-66 in the condition your looking for and once you find one, then make your decision if you want to trade up or not.

[cericd]

Just a little biased spacedebris? It's okay though, you're just saying the things I've been thinking lately. Thanks for the insight on some of the differences. And thanks to everyone for the complements on my 70.

[spacedebris]

Originally Posted by cericd

Just a little biased spacedebris?

Well this is the 60-66 section after all Besides I'm partial to knee knockers



Here is the link for the hood/grill combos I mentioned. http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...ght=hood+grill

[danheit]

Well, funny that you post this. I was in the same boat as you, and even had my 71 up for trade. Thankfully, I could never pull the trigger on trading my 71 for a 60-66. I love my 71, and have poured blood, sweat, and tears into it. Here's what I did. I keep my 71 in the garage. Nice, pretty, loud, fast truck that gets driven every couple weeks. I also kept my eyes open on Craigslist for C10's in general, as I'm always looking for parts. About 3 hours from my house, a 66 C10 longbed 6cyl 3spd popped up for $800. I made the drive, with a uhaul trailer in tow, and met the seller. The truck was 10 times worse than what he represented it as, and what he told me. I was told that the pass. side rocker was a little rough, but that's about it. The entire cab floor is nearly gone, the fuel tank was rotted out, the seat was trash, the pass. side door needs a full skin, in and out, and the pass. side bed is all ate up with rust. There are no brakes, and the truck ran like crap due to a bad carb rebuild (that the guy did 20mins prior to my arrival). I offered him $500. He said yes, and home I went! The big difference here is the plan/purpose I have intended for the truck. Originally I was going to wash it down with CLR, chop the bed down to a swb, powerdercoat the steelies red and do a 4/6 drop. Now it's turning into a rust repair job, full brake job, full fuel system job, just to get it moving. Then I'll do the other stuff. I will be under $1,000 all said and done though, and I get to have BOTH trucks! Just a thought for you. If you don't mind a project, keep your 70, and find a project 60-66.

[HemiChallenger71]

Thats an awfully nice 70 to want to get rid of it.

The 67-72 trucks have higher resale.

63-66 in similar condition will be A LOT harder to find.

[cericd]

Originally Posted by spacedebris

Well this is the 60-66 section after all Besides I'm partial to knee knockers

What's a little ribbing amongst truck buddies? Thanks for the link!

Originally Posted by danheit

Well, funny that you post this...

Thanks for the insight. I'm starting to have a feeling I may go a similar direction.

Originally Posted by HemiChallenger71

Thats an awfully nice 70 to want to get rid of it.

63-66 in similar condition will be A LOT harder to find.

Thanks for the compliment.

I had a feeling that the "similar condition issue" might be a problem.