introducing myself :)

Hey guys! happy to come aboard! i will probably be needing a lot of help here in the next...well many years probably lol. its been a long time since ive owned a classic vehicle but ive missed it so much.

I bought a 1975 chevy truck back when i was 18 and spent the next 7 years making it my own...it all started with wanting to make it move faster. Four engines later i finally built my first engine, a 383 with some dirt track heads. that thing really did move after all that,although getting enough timing without clatter, with those tiny head chambers was always a challenge. From there i finally jumped on the body, i replaced nearly every panel on that thing, fenders, doors, hood...everything was rusted away..i cut pieces out of the bed and welded in my own replacements. i really loved the truck but finally sold it when i decided to move to nc with my current girlfriend. at the time i just didnt have the money to bring it with me, and the money it brought basically made the move possible.

Ive always been a car guy since i can remember, so once we moved here it wasnt long before i had something else..a 1995 firebird transam. which i have went the same route with. i built a 350 lt1 for it and did all the normal mods, cam, headers, rocker arms, even did my own computer tuning, but it wasnt enough so i finally decided to spray it...lets just say now ive developed quite the nitrous oxide problem lol. We take it to the drag strip often, and drive it back home, even when things dont quite go our way. We have spent more than a few late nights at the drag strip making repairs to be able to bring it home.
My girlfriend loves cars as well so after some serious debate she decided she wanted a new beetle. So we picked up a 1999 on the cheap and made it hers with a bigger turbo, a tune, wheels, and some serious custom interior mods. including a touch screen double din conversion im pretty proud of. I chopped the dash up and made a new housing from fiber glass.

after all this i got a call from an old friend back in texas the other day saying he had just the vehicle for me...a 1953 chevy panel truck, though this isnt the sort of thing i may have ever pictured myself in...I have recently acquired a new job working on classic cars, and after driving some really old stuff..50,s 40s, and 30s, i have realized this is exactly what i want! how he knew, i couldnt tell you but i guess it was just all meant to be. So with a little discussion i made it official tonight. It will be on its way to me as soon as i find someone willing to haul it for a decent price. Then we will begin to make it our own like the rest of them.

Anyways, sorry for the long novel, i doubt many people will make it this far but i just wanted to give a good description of myself. I hope to get to know all of you well and im sure i will see some of you in person in the future if i havent already!

Have a great night everyone, and we will see you around !

 

Welcome aboard post some pictures when you get your 53!

 

Welcome! Post up some shots of the panel.

 

Thanks for the welcomes here you go guys! We are in love with it already, can't wait to get it here and touch it

 

welcome !

 

Welcome. There is nothing like the soul you feel in an old car. It has a history in time that you cannot get with a newer car.

 

Welcome aboard!! Looks like a great project. Even better that she is also on board!!!

 

Welcome to the H.A.M.B..


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Welcome to the HAMB, what are your plans for the panel? Make certain you post plenty of pictures of the journey when you get your build in progress, we love pictures here!

 

ahmen to that! i just love the memories that come with old stuff, even if we dont necisarily know what they were. there is something about bringing it back to life...just gives me chills when thinking about it

im not 100% sure on plans for the panel yet, but i am into driving anything i own, and working on it along the way.
appparently this truck was used as a fleischmann's yeast display prop for years in texas, so they have dont some wierd stuff to the suspension to make it look alive.
depending on if the suspension is able to be brought back to life, first step will probably be getting a donor s10 and setting it on that frame. i will also lower it a little of course, nothing crazy but just enough to make it look right

then we will figure out a drivetrain, i would love to go with an ls set up, but it just depends how much a whole drivetrain cost me, and just rebuild the engine and trans and make it really reliable. if im scared away by the prices of the ls, i will end up just going sbc or even lt1 is an option...i do have an lt1 block sitting in the garage that could be built easy and cheap.
it probably wont look much different than it does now when we start driving it, just cleaned up. the body on it seems to be really solid. though i think i would like to restore the lettering on the side..im a big fan of that look.
then maybe down the road a bit we can throw on some nitrous...cause i have so much extra nitrous stuff...and why not?

Thanks again for all the warm welcomes guys! so happy to be here

 

Welcome aboard,
Nice project you have there. I always liked panel trucks.
Put you location in your profile... you would be suprised at how many folks on here are in your area... and once you get past the crumudgen exterior most guys here are quick to lend a hand...
Chappy

 

Does she have a sister?
Post pictures

Have a friend with a panel like yours. Learning about his as we go.

One thing, you won't get any love here doing a frame swap.

 

Welcome !

 

Howdy. I like trucks.

 

My dad had a 53 panel for the shop for years, unfortunately he sold it off. This is a piece that @rusty1 did for me. I wish that truck was never sold.
Welcome from Colorado.

 

if you could pull that off. the making it look right part, it would be the first old vehicle on newer frame swap that i've ever seen that looked like it belonged.

 

Welcome.

 

Welcome to the site.

Take a few minutes and read the rules of the site and get a feel for the how it works. HRP

RULES

 

Welcome to the zoo! I love me some panel truck.
I've got 2 of 'em. A '50 and a '52. The 2-tone is listed in the For Sale section right now, also located in Texas.

 

Cool
Big and ugly is the way to go

 

welcome to the party .....

 

Thanks again for all the warm welcomes guys! Yall are awesome!

I apologize for not reading the rules appropriately before posting I've just been so excited about this thing I wanted to share it with everyone! I will do my best to follow the rules from here out and keep and cutting or nitrous I do on the down low
It may honestly end up period correct I don't even know for sure at this point, I love the price of a lot of the older stuff I just like the driveability of a lot of the newer stuff

 

Welcome to the list.
Bob

 

Welcome from Vineland - nice panel truck

 

Welcome

Lots of folks are moving to your state from the Northeast - Midwest - California - Florida.

Just dropped off in Leicester last Saturday ....


Jim

 

Welcome to the HAMB...

Not a fan of cheap wimpy S10's, it's a trend right now, not a good one, but it's your truck. The panel definitely has some potential. I hope that you build it well.



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Now those are some vintage cars! Wow!

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thats awesome jim! wish i had saw you a week ago. i just paid someone to start hauling it this way. it should be here monday you didnt just haul a 24 buick to a shop in charlotte did you? looked a lot like your rollback that hauled it in but i didnt personally speak with the guy. probably not but i figured i would ask

as far as the s10 frame, im really leaning away from it thanks to you guys, but i just have to get it here first and see what im working with on the frame thats under it.

i spoke to a friend today who happens to have a lot of chevy parts laying in the garage gathering dust. one thing is a sbc that doesnt have mid engine mount bolts on it? ive never seen such a thing. it does appear to have some good parts on it, double hump heads, edelbrock intake. he says he started it and it sounded good. but whats the deal with no bolt holes on the side?
ive been looking around to try and find info but cant seem to find any info on a block without the bolt holes in the side. i see there are possibilities like front and rear mounts, is this possibly something i could make work?

i guess i may need to make a new post and im not sure this is even appropriate for here, but i appreciate any advice you guys are awesome, i can hardly believe all the warm welcomes! so glad to be here!

 

Could be a 55-56 265 or 57 283, they had front engine mounts and no provisions for side mounts! Either one would be great for your build, definitely traditional engines and yes they will work in your new truck!