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74 NovaMan's 1979 Chevy Truck - LS Swap - 5/6 Drop

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  • 74 NovaMan's 1979 Chevy Truck - LS Swap - 5/6 Drop

    I've been thinking for a while (scary, I know) that the 1996 Tahoe we have does more sitting around than anything and that the times we really need a truck are few and far between. We do still need a truck because we have a car trailer and well we all need a truck. So I figured, if we are going to have a truck just sitting around (most of the time) it might as well be something cool or at least cooler.

    After finding a couple of nice looking replacement candidates (see thread here: http://www.bangshift.com/forum/forum...-on-a-73-chevy ) , I discussed this idea with my wife who agreed to the scheme but said "as long as you sell the Tahoe first". As crazy as that sounds, I had a hard time disagreeing with her this time as she was on board with doing this the other way around on the Camaro-Beetle deal.
    I promptly listed the Tahoe which sold for $2,500 about a week and a half later. Including nearly everything we spent on it, the cost to buy and run the Tahoe was about $100/year for 5 years.
    Tahoe:
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    Last edited by 74NovaMan; April 3, 2019, 08:09 AM.
    Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
    74 Nova Project
    66 Mustang GT Project

    92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
    79 Chevy Truck Project
    1956 Cadillac Project

  • #2
    Of course the trucks I was looking at were gone by then, so I spent the next month or so scouring Craigslist all over the country.
    This was our criteria for the truck:
    • 73-79 Chevy or GMC - Earlier is better, although I believe they are fairly interchangeable (we want this grill style)
    • 2 tone with the color separation trim in good condition
    • An attractive 2 colors for the 2 tone
    • Rust free body and paint/patina nice enough so that paint could be years down the road if ever
    • 2 Wheel Drive
    • V8 with an Automatic - 350 preferred though a 454 would be cool.
    • 1/2 ton running gear
    • $2,500 or less
    • Runs and drives well enough to drive home. Coupled with the rust free and budget requirements this is probably 600-1500 miles.
    Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
    74 Nova Project
    66 Mustang GT Project

    92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
    79 Chevy Truck Project
    1956 Cadillac Project

    Comment


    • #3
      We finally found this one and it hung out there long enough for us to have the ability to pick it up.

      AD Text:

      Trade for suburban? perfer older like to have 3rd row seat? 2wd? LOTS NEW! Want to trade my 79 chevy cheyenne for Step van,box van, box truck??? *Need something i can haul household furnishings to another state! *Have nice one family owned shop truck. v8 auto both rebuilt about 17, miles ago! Nice cooper cobra tires with lots of tread and ralley wheels with all rings and caps! Eng and trans work good and it runs strong! Factory air truck but some of ac parts are missing. RUNS AND DRIVES GREAT! straight down the road! Bunch of new stuff!!! Front brakes,calipers,hoses and master cyl! interior is bone stock, all original! a little tired cause it sat out in weather for six years! Body is very straight with only a couple dents! And very little rust! *Could be restored or just keep the orig patina look! Clean title!!!*prefer step van(bread truck style!) or? 2500 obo.

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      Attached Files
      Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
      74 Nova Project
      66 Mustang GT Project

      92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
      79 Chevy Truck Project
      1956 Cadillac Project

      Comment


      • #4
        It seemed to meet all the criteria and was listed for $2,500. I asked for some close up shots and got a bunch. These are the highlights:

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        Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
        74 Nova Project
        66 Mustang GT Project

        92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
        79 Chevy Truck Project
        1956 Cadillac Project

        Comment


        • #5
          We agreed on a price on Wednesday, December 9th and I wired a small deposit to insure that the seller would hold it until Saturday when we could pick it up. I used Walmart’s store to store transfer which was pretty slick. I was able to do it online with a credit card from my end.

          On Friday, we left for Springfield MO at about noon. We stopped for dinner in Kansas City with my wife’s cousin and her husband. We made it to our hotel in downtown Springfield at about 10:30 and we pleasantly surprised to hear that the regular room I had booked with points had been upgraded to a suite. The place was huge! It would have been nice to have spent more time there.

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          Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
          74 Nova Project
          66 Mustang GT Project

          92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
          79 Chevy Truck Project
          1956 Cadillac Project

          Comment


          • #6
            After not enough sleep that was sometimes interrupted by Ricers trying to sound fast and sirens we were up at 6 am and back on the road at 7 am to Hollister, MO to get the truck. We pulled around the corner and my first though upon seeing the truck was “Oh good, there really is a truck!” The owner was already outside and was cleaning the windows on the truck. We looked the truck over, took it for a short spin, traded $ for the title and we were on our way by 8:45. Stopped for gas at 9 and hit the highway toward Kansas City. The first leg was about 225 mile and the truck ran great. The only issue was a bit of a miss or stumble at 70-80 mph when trying to maintain speed going uphill. Here are the few pics I took from the road:

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            Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
            74 Nova Project
            66 Mustang GT Project

            92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
            79 Chevy Truck Project
            1956 Cadillac Project

            Comment


            • #7
              2 more gas stops and one drive through for lunch and 450 more miles put us in our driveway by 7 pm. We covered 1,350 miles in just over 31 hours. The ride home was a bit more grueling than I had expected. One of the big reasons for this is that the truck did not have a functional radio or cigarette lighter socket so I couldn’t play music or make many calls while driving. I need to remember to listen to my wife when she offers and ipod to take with on the trip next time. The truck ran great and all things considered the trip could not have gone much better. That being said, we are in no hurry to do it again any time soon.

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              Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
              74 Nova Project
              66 Mustang GT Project

              92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
              79 Chevy Truck Project
              1956 Cadillac Project

              Comment


              • #8
                The patina is pretty nice but there are a few areas that have us leaning toward a complete redo and possible color change in the future. That being said, we blew our car budget buying the truck and we will be focusing on functionality and cheap upgrades for the foreseeable future. Bad spots:

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                Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
                74 Nova Project
                66 Mustang GT Project

                92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
                79 Chevy Truck Project
                1956 Cadillac Project

                Comment


                • #9
                  Darn nice starting point and I'm glad you found it. Even a MAACO job wouldn't be a bad place to start if you do the prep - you know the drill on that. The big deal would be to keep the rust from spreading.

                  I'll bet your misfire might go away with a good tune-up - plugs, wires, filters, cap, rotor, etc. Just maintenance.

                  Looks like an honest truck. Needs a name, though.

                  Dan
                  Last edited by DanStokes; December 16, 2015, 02:49 PM.

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Way to go Chris. You can sand those runs in the paint and treat the rust with a encapser then buff the thing out. That is what I did on the Catalina. I'm sure the miss is nothing as Dan said. You have the same seat covers as I do. Very convienient. Looks like a lot of fun, the trucks that have that race track trim to separate the time tone are the best. You can do a lot with a color scheme on that. Good luck with it as it looks like you got a good one.
                    Visit my sons blog:
                    www.driftundertheradar.com

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      I know what this is... any guesses??? what caused the damage where the light primer is...
                      Patrick & Tammy
                      - Long Haulin' 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014...Addicting isn't it...??

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Garage door fell off the tracks?

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          nice

                          someone dropped something on it.
                          Doing it all wrong since 1966

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            That would probably be a alternator pulley come loose maybe.

                            Another thing Chris. I heard that a red pad and some CLR would lighten up that surface rust to where you could clear over it. Something I've considered on the rear of my car.
                            Visit my sons blog:
                            www.driftundertheradar.com

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Thanks for the feedback - The hood stuff is odd as its on both sides and almost in the same place. The issue I have is that someone slathered bondo on those two spots as opposed to leaving them alone. They didn't even bother to sand them down. If I start touching any of that I am thinking full bodywork and paint.

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                              Attached Files
                              Chris - HRPT Long Haul 03, 04, 05, 13, 14, 15,16 & 18
                              74 Nova Project
                              66 Mustang GT Project

                              92 Camaro RS Convertible Project
                              79 Chevy Truck Project
                              1956 Cadillac Project

                              Comment

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