[LongBox]

Originally Posted by sherm6413

I don't see how some of you got to your numbers but if you say so... MY biggest expense was body/paint work, that was all metal replace by me except for one fender bottom. I did everything else myself besides that work and have a little over $15k in it. My 69 swb rolling frame with cab was $1200, good fleetside bed bought separately was $600, and good front clip separately for $500- so my basic starting truck was only $2300. From there i redid everything down to bushings, body mounts, etc. Not everything on mine is original GM or NOS stuff butt some is like grille, and a lot of smaller stuff so there is a price difference there. I also bought a 5.3 from a salvage yard employee for $450 and a 4l60e for $350. I did save some money by buying parts trucks to rob stuff like 5 lug disk setup, 5 lug rearend, autowire harness, and so on and then sold other stuff and the trucks when i was done to basically pay for some of my parts or very close to it.
My truck in total at 15k is very good in my opinion as it has been frame off restored, newer LS drivetrain with overdrive, and is just what i wanted but without spending $25k plus... Depending on your skill level it can be done for far less than some are saying in my opinion, and my truck was appraised at 25K by a classic car appraiser.

All good points here, but I am left wondering how many hours of labour you have invested in your truck, and what value you place on that time. And, I do realize that there was probably an enjoyment factor involved in this project.