"Big Red"

[HawkDsl]

Full Build and story coming soon...

 

[fancyTBI]

 

[HawkDsl]

When I was 16, I bought a 1965 Chevy C10 with a 292 straight 6 and a four speed on the floor. Super clean, but the front fenders had the traditional rust weight reduction behind the tires. I had a friend who knew a friend who could fix the holes, paint it (whole truck) for 500. I had to get the steel for the patches. Did a quick trip to the yard, and bought a hood to replace the one that had lower lip rust through, and the old one became the metal donor.

Thus started my love affair with Chevy trucks. Keep in mind, that first truck only had 34k miles on it. With the exception of the fenders, it was in perfect condition.... and it's the one that got away. Young and dumb me wanted a V8 so bad.. Silly to think about that now. The guy I sold it to, wrapped it around a telephone poll two months later.

Everyone has one that got away.. but mine was particularly painful. I may have been stupid, but even then I knew that was a major mistake. I followed that up with a 64 C10 that was pure junk, and a C&P Telephone Dodge van (stick shift on the floor.. in a van!).

In 1988, I was 23, and the new Chevy truck had just been introduced in the fall. I got the fever right away. I bought every magazine that said anything about the new Chevy's. Actually walked into a dealer, and grabbed all the promo material (wish I still had it). Let me tell you, the color options were crap. I really wanted a blue one, but the blue they offered was just terrible. In the promo material from the dealer, there was a picture of a burgundy 4X4 sitting on a hill, and even though I was no fan of red colors, there was no doubt this was the best color. It looked similar to this:

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So I dreamed the dream... and time passed. When your 20 something you are two things.. Young, and broke... and I was really broke. There was no way I could afford a new truck. In 1989, I was 24, working as a delivery truck driver, and I was finally making a buck. One particular day, I had finished early, and decided to have a bite sitting in the grocery store parking lot. Directly across the street, was a Chevy dealer.

I just starred at it... Then I said to myself.. Fk it.. let's buy a truck. I walked over there, flung open the doors like a WWF wrestler (it's still the 80's after all), and said I need a salesman! I must have looked like the trophy Bass, because there was a commotion of badly dressed old guys trying to get to me first. I can't remember the guys last name, but his first was Richard... and when I told Richard I wanted to buy a truck RIGHT NOW, he quickly shot me down.. They.. they were sold out. I made a face, said thanks, and started out the door.. Then I heard him say "But you can order one!". I never heard of such a thing (24 years old you know).. I was like... How does that work? He said, give me 200 bucks, I'll write down what you want, and in 3 to 4 months it'll be here!

PERFECT! I can order this thing, secure a loan... and it's gonna be GREAT! And wouldn't you know it... I had exactly 200 bucks in my pocket. Either it was divine providence, or the dude had x-ray vision.

Going through the options was really cool. The guy knew his stuff, and I have to say, he kept me from braking the bank. I knew there was 6 things I absolutely wanted: 4 head lights, stick shift, V8 350, 4X4, 3/4 ton, and the best radio they had. In the end, I had those things written up, and a rear slider window was thrown in for free. I had ordered my dream truck, and by March of 1989, I was going to have to pay for it... All 15,700.00 worth. Yes Sir, that's what a brand new Chevy GMT 400 4X4 was going for back then. At the time, that sounded like 1 trillion dollars to me.. But the salesman was assuring.. Kid, you got three months before it gets here. I got you with GMAC if you need it, but save every dime until it gets here. I managed to save 2k, and secure a loan at my bank when "Big Red" showed up on 4/18/1989....

to be continued;

 

[HawkDsl]

Part 2:

When Big Red Showed up, I had my Dad take me to the dealer to pick it up. I did some paperwork, handed over the check, and they walked me out to the back. The Sales person gleefully said, "Well here's your truck!"... I looked at it, and I was filled with immediate disgust. "That's not my truck.. I ordered 4 head lights..." You could cut the air with a knife, as it was filled with awkward. Big red showed up with the "standard" front appearance, which was single headlights. I was pretty livid, as I had specifically ordered the quad head lights. We went back inside, and pulled the original order sheet my salesman had filled out (my original salesman had left the dealer before my truck came in). Right there in black in white was checked... Deluxe FRONT BUMPER. Argh! He made a mistake, the option he should have checked was Deluxe FRONT APPEARANCE. The DFB is a front bumper with the rubber strip (like you see in my previous post, but without the two bumper guards). I asked if they could switch it, and the salesman went to talk to the boss. While I waited, my Dad said it was a minor thing.. It was new, and all mine, and I should just drive it out'a there (which was another way of my Dad saying he didn't want to make another trip, haha).

The salesman came back, and I could see it in his face.. not good. He laid out changes they would need to make, and even though it was a mistake on their part, they couldn't cover the full cost... Offering 50% for the change, my part being around 1,200 - I took it home as it was, but it was always in the back of my mind for the entire ownership.

Big Red was my one and only ride for the next 11 years, until my mother passed away. I took her car (1995 Chevy Cavalier) as my daily to give Big Red a break. On one particular day in 2004, I was washing Big Red, and an entire sheet of clear coat slid off the hood.. Almost like it was ice. I must of stared at it for an hour... I mean, this was my baby, and she was cleaned and waxed at least monthly. I looked her over real good.. She had 190k of party's, weddings, beech fishing, four wheeling, boat towing, camping, and sad trips. Not once did she leave me stranded. Not once. No matter how cold it was, how deep the snow was, how hot it was, no matter what.. Big Red got me there.. Single headlights and all.

The company I worked for used to employee a body man. He now owned his own private shop, and he was certainly one of the top painters in my area. Flaky, but did some serious good work. I called him, and after a few pleas for help, he agreed to take on the job. The problem was, he had moved into bucket truck work, and he wouldn't be able to finish the job on any kind of schedule. I though that was fine, and dropped the truck off. It went south in a hurry. Months turned into years, and I made another deal with 'em. I would rebuild the truck between body time. He agreed, and the full restoration was on. That stretched into more years. Then he calls me, and said he's moving out. I had to get the truck out ASAP. By this time, Big Red was in boxes.. Parts spread out over 50 miles! Talk about a panic. My brother from another mother saved the day... He knew a good shop he had work done before, and we flat bed'ed Big Red to there. Getting the parts together was a nightmare, even having to break into the old shop to get the rest of it.

Sorry that was so long, but here is the pay off.. Time for Pics! They are in start to finish order.. More to come:

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[HawkDsl]

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[HawkDsl]

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[HawkDsl]

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[HawkDsl]

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More Later (got to get them out of my phone, Ha).

 

[Orpedcrow]

Really cool story. I’m excited to see how it comes along!