Checking in from Louisiana

[kolgeirr]

Welcome from Florida! Sick rig, she got a big block under that hood?

 

[rockR67]

Thanks all -

Welcome from Florida! Sick rig, she got a big block under that hood?

Yeah, this thing was set up to tow, complete with 454. I don't know if it was standard or option for these, but it has a G80 posi code on it too.

What part of the Midwest did your truck come from? The midwest is part of the "salt belt" but not all salt belt states are the same. MN is really rough on vehicles, but my truck is from central MO and I had it shipped up here when I bought it at auction. Some stuff is rusty, but is FAR less so than here. My friend was a little jealous of how much less rust my MO truck had compared to his MN truck.

It's spent about the last 20 years in Iowa, so it's a mix of sand and salt. I personally spent a few years in Illinois and at least at the time, it was salt only. So I know what you mean - not all salt states are as bad as others. And I know there were days when it just sat because there was a Subaru Outback to drive in the mess instead. So it didn't get the full blast of it even then.

My goal with my truck is to semi-restore it and add "factory mods". I want to get rid of body and frame rust, but keep the scratches, dents, and worn paint finish. You just can't buy that kind of look. It's earned through years of work. I also want to add factory parts that came on other trucks/SUV's/Vans of this era. I'm getting a 9.5 inch 14 bolt rear axle installed at a shop right now and I plan on replacing my oil pan gasket with a new gasket and an oil filter adapter off a 1997 C2500 I pulled out of a junkyard and installing new cooler lines and a engine oil cooler that came on 96-02 Chevrolet Express/GMC Savana 2500/3500 vans. I also want to add auxbeam LEDs bc they're the only LEDs that work well in factory headlamps w/o adjusting and they don't scatter light like most of them do.

That's a great plan. I think I'm probably going to end up going in a similar direction. I'd like to make it as good as I can for a '99 and then improve a few things beyond that. I've done that a bit to the Roadmaster Wagon in the sig line. It's got a police package steering gear in it as an example. So at least new running boards, tow mirrors, lights need help, stereo could use some upgrade (within reason, nothing crazy). I really like the rear sway bar in my Tundra, not sure if I'll try and pursue something like that on this though. That could be too much, I'm not even sure it would be very noticeable. On the Tundras though, it's almost necessary.

100% agree. A/C in Louisiana is NECESSARY especially with the kind of summers y'all have down there. Summers get hot here in SE MN too, but southern summers are another breed of summer.

Yeah - I could talk myself into bad air or partial air in other parts of the country ... not here.

 

[Oldman69]

Newbie checking in from Calif. Going to give my girl some love. Flush cooling and new Blistiens should make her happy. Really great to see all the love.
Franz