Bang for the buck Functional Renewal of rust belt '99 C2500

[Caman96]

I also remember that there was a constant debate in all the local papers
about this noise not belonging in their back yard. We were briefed that
if civilians accosted us we were to maintain our military bearing and
redirect their concerns to a base phone number.

I don’t remember the b*****ng, I was in my early 20’s, having too much fun. How many actual people do you remember complaining or was it just the media stirring up trouble as they do now? I think normal people like jets.

 

[Erik the Awful]

So now I'm asking the community what end links did you purchase &
have been satisfied with the performance & longevity? Is it me, or
has buying repair parts devolved into a complete crapshoot?

This is what I put on WCJr a year or two ago. Still looks like new.

More Information for ENERGY SUSPENSION 35178G

 

[Road Trip]

With the amount of rust and wear you see on the underside of your truck, it would require a complete front end overhaul for the working parts to work in unison with each other.

I know -- people not of the rust belt are usually shocked &
dismayed by the underneath of vehicles subjected to year-round
use here in upstate NY. (And sometimes even the top, referring back
to post #1, showing 3 other trucks currently being driven within a few
minutes of home base.)

As a matter of fact, while cleaning up the truck, the difference between
the polished paint on top versus the rust underneath reminded me
of an all-time favorite song of mine: The Who's 'Eminence Front'. (It's a put on)

Speaking of which, if we treated these trucks the same way that mahogany
speedboat owners treat their craft, by now I would have Eminence Front
in a tasteful cursive across the tailgate. Fact. :0)

Currently the truck is/isn't daily driven -- instead, since my DD is a CR-V
that's old enough to drink legally, the truck sits Alert, 24x365. IF the
daily driver fails to proceed, the truck can be immediately pressed into
service. After much experimentation, I've found that the most affordable
way to approximate the reliability of a new car is to have 2 older vehicles
configured as a dual-redundant RAID. (Reliable Array of Inexpensive Drivers.)

So far so good. I keep a battery tender on the truck, and verify that
it still starts every week or so. Back this past February, this
worked flawlessly. I had a brake line blow on the DD, so instead of
lying in frozen slush replacing the bad line in 15-20 degree weather,
working under 'must do' pressure...I instead hopped into the truck
and used it to get to where I needed to be until the weather
cleared ~4 weeks later.

Truck fulfilling function as dual-redundant vehicle in Operation Penguin-Plunge Maintenance Avoidance

You must be registered for see images attach

NOTE: Gov-Lock Ops Check good IAW 99-C2500-FF14-G80.

And the best part of this story? I did replace the DD's bad brake line on my terms
in mid-March on a 55 degree day bathed in full sun. About 1000x better than driving
old w/zero redundancy in the driveway, especially here in upstate NY.

What are my future plans for this truck?

A) Clean & POR-15 the vehicle as needed to preserve functionality. Every fall touch up
the leading edges underneath as needed to maintain protection.

B) IF, despite performing step A the truck eventually loses structural integrity, I will locate
another rust-free version of this truck from down south, bring it back, perform
a completist POR-15 on that one, make every single ground perfect, and then
swap in all the good stuff from this truck & drive that. (Best case scenario for
me would be a non-running rust-free truck that was parked due to a failed
engine/tranny/etc.)

C) A non-choice will be to clean it up so much that I can't drive it in the winter.
I'd love the luxury, but at the moment everything in the fleet must earn it's keep.

One way or the other a big block GMT400 is going to be my final ride, even if
only to the treasure yards & occasional emergency backup duty...they
just drive so good, and the bang for the truck buck can't be beat.

Cheers --

PS: Here's a tasty live version of the song above, complete with subtitles, which
makes the lyrics a bit easier to follow/less humming along.

 

[Road Trip]

I don’t remember the b*****ng, I was in my early 20’s, having too much fun. How many actual people do you remember complaining or was it just the media stirring up trouble as they do now? I think normal people like jets.

Actually, when I was out & about on Cape Cod on drill weekends, folks were
unfailingly pleasant. When someone brought up the noise issue, they were
civilized about it, and I gave them the base phone number that I had
been given. I miss the old days. No smart phones, no doomscrolling,
lots more eye contact when out & about.

So yeah, as a sample size of 1, while the newspapers stirred the pot
for all they were worth, the everyday Joe & Jane were cool & copacetic.

 

[62barsoom]

Greetings fellow GMT400 enthusiasts,

Just about a year ago I heard through the motorhead grapevine that
an unusually clean (for upstate NY) older Chevy pickup was being
offered for sale.

I didn't get my hopes up, because it seemed that other people's
definition of 'clean' didn't seem to jibe with my own...by a long
shot! FWIW, my personal Prime Directive for buying my next
ride can be simply stated in 2 simple rules:

1) Don't care about the miles or the current state of the
mechanicals, but it has to be rust free.

2) it has to have a manual transmission!

Rust is bad juju. While I've been fortunate in buying
a series of low-cost vehicles that have given me more than they
have gotten...I eventually lost every single one of them
to rust. Not the outer surface cosmetic issues, but
the no-kidding showstopper stuff. (ie: the unibody where
the lower control arm is supposed to connect to is MIA.)

Of course, getting rid of a car that broke your piggy
bank and gave you nothing in return is always pure
joy to jettison. But when you lose a faithful
traveling companion that would run for you even
when it shouldn't have...that is the very definition of
sadness. (No doubt anyone reading this in an old
truck forum is picking up what I'm putting down. :0)

...but I digress. If you go here you can see a brief
description of the '99 C2500 drivetrain in my
Introduction thread.

But when I saw the truck in person, the truck just exuded
a quiet, heavy duty minimalism...the zen of a proper
work truck. (!) When the big block fired right up and
rumbled like Niagara Falls, I knew that this was going to
follow me home. :0)

Like my favorite aircraft (F-106 & SR-71) the GMT400
series has the same kind of classic 'form follows function'
styling that never gets old -- I actually prefer this less
busy look to today's offerings?

Finally -- enough of the setup. First, here's the truck after
a good cleaning / wet-sanding / machine polishing using
the Meguiar's Mirror Glaze product line:

You must be registered for see images attach

But in order to truly appreciate what a (relatively) rust-free unicorn
that this truck is here in Salt City, take a look at three other trucks
still on the road that I picked at random, all within 5 minutes of where
I'm typing this in:

Mechanic's daily driver at my favorite tire store. (Note: Photo taken late November '22 -- a frosty commute)

You must be registered for see images attach

Local Plow Truck:

You must be registered for see images attach

(Neighbor's newer lashed-up pickup)

You must be registered for see images attach

The Moral of the Story? Anything > 10 years old in Syracuse
is rarely seen. And almost always, if seen they aren't clean.

So...if my following posts seem to show successful old truck
ownership as an unrelenting focus on stopping rust before it turns steel to dust...
remember that I have no fear of mechanical issues, but at the same time these photos
definitely keep me up at night. :0)

Who'da thunk? Neil Young was right...

I'll take the Hustler and the Blackbird for a hundred. I feel your affinity to Neil Young as well. I've an engine donor 03 silverado that has a surprisingly good frame, but I'm scared to drive it as the cab might roll off if corned to hard. Last year I picked up a 97 k1500 for parts. Things fall off if the wind gets up. Went to salvage the ac condenser and it fell apart when I lofted it out of the mounts. I'm north of you deep in the WV mountains.

 

[johnckhall]

I know -- people not of the rust belt are usually shocked &
dismayed by the underneath of vehicles subjected to year-round
use here in upstate NY. (And sometimes even the top, referring back
to post #1, showing 3 other trucks currently being driven within a few
minutes of home base.)

As a matter of fact, while cleaning up the truck, the difference between
the polished paint on top versus the rust underneath reminded me
of an all-time favorite song of mine: The Who's 'Eminence Front'. (It's a put on)

Speaking of which, if we treated these trucks the same way that mahogany
speedboat owners treat their craft, by now I would have Eminence Front
in a tasteful cursive across the tailgate. Fact. :0)

Currently the truck is/isn't daily driven -- instead, since my DD is a CR-V
that's old enough to drink legally, the truck sits Alert, 24x365. IF the
daily driver fails to proceed, the truck can be immediately pressed into
service. After much experimentation, I've found that the most affordable
way to approximate the reliability of a new car is to have 2 older vehicles
configured as a dual-redundant RAID. (Reliable Array of Inexpensive Drivers.)

So far so good. I keep a battery tender on the truck, and verify that
it still starts every week or so. Back this past February, this
worked flawlessly. I had a brake line blow on the DD, so instead of
lying in frozen slush replacing the bad line in 15-20 degree weather,
working under 'must do' pressure...I instead hopped into the truck
and used it to get to where I needed to be until the weather
cleared ~4 weeks later.

Truck fulfilling function as dual-redundant vehicle in Operation Penguin-Plunge Maintenance Avoidance

You must be registered for see images attach

NOTE: Gov-Lock Ops Check good IAW 99-C2500-FF14-G80.

And the best part of this story? I did replace the DD's bad brake line on my terms
in mid-March on a 55 degree day bathed in full sun. About 1000x better than driving
old w/zero redundancy in the driveway, especially here in upstate NY.

What are my future plans for this truck?

A) Clean & POR-15 the vehicle as needed to preserve functionality. Every fall touch up
the leading edges underneath as needed to maintain protection.

B) IF, despite performing step A the truck eventually loses structural integrity, I will locate
another rust-free version of this truck from down south, bring it back, perform
a completist POR-15 on that one, make every single ground perfect, and then
swap in all the good stuff from this truck & drive that. (Best case scenario for
me would be a non-running rust-free truck that was parked due to a failed
engine/tranny/etc.)

C) A non-choice will be to clean it up so much that I can't drive it in the winter.
I'd love the luxury, but at the moment everything in the fleet must earn it's keep.

One way or the other a big block GMT400 is going to be my final ride, even if
only to the treasure yards & occasional emergency backup duty...they
just drive so good, and the bang for the truck buck can't be beat.

Cheers --

PS: Here's a tasty live version of the song above, complete with subtitles, which
makes the lyrics a bit easier to follow/less humming along.

Believe me, I do understand. My truck came out of the upper Missouri / lower Iowa area. In restoring mine, I’ve spent probably triple the time under the truck as I have on the paint and visible exterior. Here’s a couple of before and after pics to compare. Some of that is old undercoating that’s flaking off, but there was plenty of surface rust in other places I had to grind away to fresh metal.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[Boots97]

Believe me, I do understand. My truck came out of the upper Missouri / lower Iowa area. In restoring mine, I’ve spent probably triple the time under the truck as I have on the paint and visible exterior. Here’s a couple of before and after pics to compare. Some of that is old undercoating that’s flaking off, but there was plenty of surface rust in other places I had to grind away to fresh metal.

You must be registered for see images attach

You must be registered for see images attach

I don't mean to condescend to you at all. I really appreciate all the work you've done on your truck, but my truck is from central MO and the frame has about that much scale as your before picture. I'd honestly say that your truck before looks fine compared to some here in MN. I don't even think my truck is all that rust free and everyone compliments me on how clean my truck is. Trucks around here don't look as bad as the examples that OP showed, but they're much worse than what you used to have and what I have right now.

 

[johnckhall]

I don't mean to condescend to you at all. I really appreciate all the work you've done on your truck, but my truck is from central MO and the frame has about that much scale as your before picture. I'd honestly say that your truck before looks fine compared to some here in MN. I don't even think my truck is all that rust free and everyone compliments me on how clean my truck is. Trucks around here don't look as bad as the examples that OP showed, but they're much worse than what you used to have and what I have right now.

No offense taken. Being from South GA, we don’t have road salt and rust isn’t an issue at all. My truck surely doesn’t look like the OP by any means. I was just pointing out that to make it right, I understand how much effort it will take OP. Much more effort than I’ve undertaken for sure. In many cases, swapping out extremely rusted parts may be the only resolution.

 

[Boots97]

No offense taken. Being from South GA, we don’t have road salt and rust isn’t an issue at all. My truck surely doesn’t look like the OP by any means. I was just pointing out that to make it right, I understand how much effort it will take OP. Much more effort than I’ve undertaken for sure. In many cases, swapping out extremely rusted parts may be the only resolution.

Brake lines are a HUGE issue here in the rust belt. Be prepared to do a brake line overhaul if you haven't already.

I redid all my hard lines except the top 2 lines that connect to the MC and I plan on replacing my soft lines with braided stainless steel lines once I get my truck back. When I pulled the long main line alongside of the frame of my truck, I folded the line to fit into my scrap metal bin, this is what happened after one light fold.

You must be registered for see images attach

I couldn't believe that's how close I was to having a brake line burst. Again, I bought this truck from MO for less rust and couldn't believe how close I was to having that line burst.

I stood there for about 10 minutes motionless wondering what could've happened to me had I not changed that line and it burst while I was driving down the road.

This may be overkill for you living in South GA, but I'd highly recommend using NiCopp brake lines if you need to replace brake lines for any reason. NiCopp is made of Nickel-Copper (hence the name) and oxidizes green over time, but never rusts. Again, may be overkill for you living in the south, but this stuff is VITAL when living in the Midwest or Northeast. I've had one line of NiCopp leak from the roll, but it's so easy to form, I made a new line in 5 minutes so it wasn't too big of a deal.

 

[Caman96]

Stainless Steel… once and done.