mrbeetle
Newbie
Howdy! New to the forum, so sorry if this isn't posted in the right place, but I have an odd question:
I'm considering buying an Advance Design truck and turning it into a crew cab truck (bear with me, I know this is a GMT400 site). To do this I would most likely buy two 1 ton or bigger trucks. The end goal is to have a daily driver that has room for the family and can tow my 25' enclosed car trailer about 10X a year (10K axles). The '47-'55 trucks that I'm thinking of had straight axle, leaf spring, drum brake front ends...not ideal for what I want. I dont think that a Mustang II or Dakota front suspension would be appropriate swaps for a vehicle that will be used as a TRUCK. I know the old truck frame is a flat ladder type and the GMT400 has a low spot for the cab, but swapping to a GMT400 crew cab frame would give me a heavy duty frame with modern suspension and driveline. I realize that this would take serious fabrication, but finally brings me to my question:
Most of the crew cab trucks I'm finding have high miles on them. Other than inspecting for cracks or crash damage, is there a limit to how long these frames will be reliable for towing and daily driving? For example, I found a crew cab C3500 454/4L80E with about 350,000 miles on it; I would be rebuilding the entire driveline and suspension anyway so does the mileage matter? When I say "rebuilding the entire driveline" I mean rebuilt engine, trans, rear end, springs, shocks, etc.
Yes, a new to me/ used truck would probably cost less, but I'm sick of all of the computers in new cars and figure I can build exactly what I want for less than a brand new truck. (Flame suit is on, lemme have it)
I'm considering buying an Advance Design truck and turning it into a crew cab truck (bear with me, I know this is a GMT400 site). To do this I would most likely buy two 1 ton or bigger trucks. The end goal is to have a daily driver that has room for the family and can tow my 25' enclosed car trailer about 10X a year (10K axles). The '47-'55 trucks that I'm thinking of had straight axle, leaf spring, drum brake front ends...not ideal for what I want. I dont think that a Mustang II or Dakota front suspension would be appropriate swaps for a vehicle that will be used as a TRUCK. I know the old truck frame is a flat ladder type and the GMT400 has a low spot for the cab, but swapping to a GMT400 crew cab frame would give me a heavy duty frame with modern suspension and driveline. I realize that this would take serious fabrication, but finally brings me to my question:
Most of the crew cab trucks I'm finding have high miles on them. Other than inspecting for cracks or crash damage, is there a limit to how long these frames will be reliable for towing and daily driving? For example, I found a crew cab C3500 454/4L80E with about 350,000 miles on it; I would be rebuilding the entire driveline and suspension anyway so does the mileage matter? When I say "rebuilding the entire driveline" I mean rebuilt engine, trans, rear end, springs, shocks, etc.
Yes, a new to me/ used truck would probably cost less, but I'm sick of all of the computers in new cars and figure I can build exactly what I want for less than a brand new truck. (Flame suit is on, lemme have it)