I have been stressing about whether I ‘ll have the Spartan done for this summer, feeling frustrated that I can’t seem to get anything done. Then, it occurred to me, as I drove the GMC to the hardware store, that I DO get things done, it’s just that some of the things I do are silly and and take up too much time, and that I may underestimate the time and expense a project will gobble up.
A case in point, and one of the reasons the Thunderbird and Rivera aren’t done, and that my Hot Rod Fund is now empty, is my ’76 GMC dually. This thing has eaten up spare time, project money, more time, and more money, than I care to think about.
It started 4 years ago when I sold my rusty ’00 Silverado, and decided to unearth the GMC from the barn at my dad’s where I’d abandoned it 20 years ago. We bought the truck, with a 23’ Diamond REO camper on the extended frame when I was selling cars in ’83. Some guy traded it in on an Escort, and I bought it. We camped in it, my folks drove it to Florida, but we stopped using it in the mid 90’s, and it had been driven in the barn and forgotten about. I needed a pickup, to haul stuff in, pull things with, and here was one, all I had to do was dust it off and go
Easy, right?
When I got it out, it started on 20 year old gas, although it ran pretty poorly and smelled awful. The camper came off, the frame was shortened, I bought a box from Texas, a new hood, patched up the cab corners and shot a unifying coat of Arctic White enamel.
This summer, after three years of abuse, it got 6 new 16″ tires, new wheels, stainless hubcaps, a new stainless exhaust, and a 3.75:1 rear end to replace the 4.56’s (in a futile attempt to help the abysmal fuel consumption). The 454, with 22,000 miles runs like a watch, the transmission (after a new governor gear) shifts crisply, I’ve got a plow for winter and camper for summer, so I should be all set for a hauling needs for another 2 or 3 decades.
Maybe now I’m done spending money, and it’ll last another 2 or three decades…
Cool McCool's Garage 