Crewsin in my 63 GMC Crew Cab

[1963c-10]

Sounds good. Im still keeping my eyes peeled for one myself. Im in no time rush though due to my current projects and budget

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by 66Gilbert

Can't wait to see what LILRED66 and company do to this Jimmy!! They will have their hands full with the restoration of this one. You can bet this will be a 10 when completed. I am not sure if Tony has ever restored a GMC or a Crew Cab? I sure wish he would come back to the boards and keep us updated on this one.

not sure exactly what happened, but I know his account was suspended...that said, I wish he was back as well...he's a great source for these trucks & their restorations

I remember seeing pics posted of this thing a good while back but didn't realize someone had purchased it...can't wait to see the progress, & I feel like it's in good hands with Tony....good luck with everything!

[66-PMD-GMC]

Originally Posted by cetacean6

Not a lot going on. I shipped the trucks to Kansas City so that we could get started this winter. Tony gave me an estimate of $44-$48k for a restoration. Bottom line I won't be able to go that high. I've already got $13k into the truck, and have asked him to tell me what he can do with another $20k. That was about 2-3 weeks ago, and I'm still waiting for him to get back to me. I'm hoping that will cover rust repair at the least.
Also, I've sent him the pink slip to the dually. He's going to trade me for good, used parts for the crew so we don't have to cut that other one up.

That would be a ton of money for structural work only.
Just sayin..........

[FetchMeAPepsi]

Originally Posted by 66-PMD-GMC

That would be a ton of money for structural work only.
Just sayin..........

That's a ton of money for your mortal soul. Holy cow!

I'd chew my truck up bite by bite and poop a hundai for that kind of money.
I'm sure the work would be great, but it sure makes ya squinch up a little in the tail end.

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by FetchMeAPepsi

That's a ton of money for your mortal soul. Holy cow!

I'd chew my truck up bite by bite and poop a hundai for that kind of money.
I'm sure the work would be great, but it sure makes ya squinch up a little in the tail end.

.....i have no idea on the specifics of how much it costs to 100% restore something like this today, but I know it ain't cheap...even if you do much of the work yourself....but it's something so unique that I'd almost always be willing to give it a go rather than buy some of the new things rolling off the line today...it's just too bad my wallet isn't that deep

[66-PMD-GMC]

Originally Posted by likaroc13

.....i have no idea on the specifics of how much it costs to 100% restore something like this today, but I know it ain't cheap...even if you do much of the work yourself....but it's something so unique that I'd almost always be willing to give it a go rather than buy some of the new things rolling off the line today...it's just too bad my wallet isn't that deep

Here is the thing that concerns me about today's restoration prices... Greed and uninformed builders...
I replaced the entire floor, rockers (inner and outer) and cab corners in a truck for a guy took the cab to have it media blasted and sealed it in and out for less than 10% of your 20K budget.
I understand that much of a crewcab floor structure needs to be fabricated. After all, crewcabs were not factory built anyway so it should be expected. The cost of quality paint is outrageous now so I understand.
My best friends 66 gto came to over $30K when all was said and done and that was a rotisserie build, frame off, no expense spared.
My advice would be to have the structural completed on the cab and tackle the chassis and drive train yourself. It is easy enough that a kid could do it...
These trucks are 100% easier than doing a frame off car project IMHO..

[66-PMD-GMC]

My previous post is not a judgement of or about anyone.
I have witnessed many would be car and truck builds gone wrong and well meaning builders and owners projects going sideways...
My comment about greed and inexperienced owners was a general statement and not directed at any specific individual.
My point is that when someone has a shop or builder do a project, that someone needs to do extensive research and get more than 1 bid on the project.
Just sayin....

[Captainfab]

All the work I have seen Tony do is top quality for sure. Doing a quality job takes more time that doing a not so nice job, and time is money. And that's not to mention the cost of parts and materials.

[cetacean6]

I'm in a unique situation. It was very hard for me to find someone to do this restoration. I had a couple of people suggested to me when the truck was in Washington State, but the bottom line is I felt most comfortable with Tony. Remember--I'm in Hawaii and can't really haul this thing around getting bids. In fact, I've never even seen this truck in person. If I'm going to bring this truck to Hawaii, I have to be 100% certain it's done correctly or it won't last 5 years here.
On that note--Tony does have a reluctance about cutting up donor trucks. I almost wish he didn't, because I think it might be cheaper to cut up a donor cab/bed than to do all the fabrication work. Then again, when it comes to body work I'm completely talking out of my ass. That's why I want to get (at a minimum) all the rust repaired.
It'll take longer, but I'd like to think I can take care of the rest.
Posted via Mobile Device

[jonzcustomshop]

his reluctance might be that even though a donor looks real good , it would still need to be gone through. I have seen pics of one tony did, "rust free", and it was , looked real nice, problem is is that gm did not prep the inside of any metal in 60-66, this truck tony had, needed a rocker replaced because of a hole from a forklift... when he got the "rust free" rocker off , it was all scaly and surface rusty on the inside, all our trucks look like this to some extent when cut apart.

to get your truck to last in hawaii, I would look into sealing it up as much as possible , and if there is any way to "dip" it in primer, I would look into that.

that said if tony uses new coated patch panels , and lots of weld through primer, you should have a good head start on keeping it nice.

I would say that you have a unique situation with trying to keep it nice in a tropical climate.
we sent my sisters 78 camaro with her to hawaii,and after 3 years the nice dry camaro was a piece of junk, rusted through the roof, and other places (she had no garage).

[66-PMD-GMC]

As I said, I wasn't saying anything about anyone specific. I don't know Tony and haven't seen his work.
I was only saying what I tell anyone who comes to me for work. Get informed on your project as best you can and get different bids.
If you are in Hawaii and the truck is stateside you have a marked disadvantage.
These trucks have inherent weaknesses.. bottom rear fenders rust, cab corners and rockers, etc.. You can take precautions to minimize and eliminate much but the bottom line is maintenance and care after the truck is done.
My suggestion of getting structural and chassis done and finishing up the rest yourself was because of your budget. 20K won't finish that truck. The motor (V6) will be a quarter of that budget at least, if you do it correctly. Parts for that old beast (the V6) are expensive. Of course you could go the Chevy V8 route but thats not what the truck came with so it isn't a restoration at that point.
I understand why someone wouldn't want to butcher a donor too. GMC trucks are getting rare and chopping one up is something I wouldn't do either.
I have several Chevy cabs and parts for donor sheet metal. I love your build, wish I had one too.. (the crew cab) Cap Fab and Jon are right.. it takes time to do structural rework especially on a rare bird like you have.. I only caution people because of what I have seen in the 3+ decades of building cars and trucks.. Sounds like Tony has a good rep.. that is a good starting point for a build.. Good luck

[cetacean6]

Tony should be tearing down the crew cab very soon. Keep an eye out for pictures on his Flickr page (link in my signature). Woo-Hoo!

[cetacean6]

Whoah! What happened to all my pictures? I had them on webshots, but I guess they must have deleted them all? That sucks!
I've downloaded all the pictures onto Flickr and put links to them instead of having them all here. Hopefully everyone can still see them.

[Preacherman5555]

I have the same truck for the most part only mine was in much worse shape, If the truck wasnt so rare I wouldnt have even messed with trying to bring it back but these crew cabs are rare. I feel you on the money it takes to bring it back to life. Im real close to finishing mine now 6 weeks I will have it on the road.

I had to replace fenders, front, hood, door skins, front half of the roof, the one thing that was real good was the cab floors, only rust i ran into was about 8" into the drivers side floor the rest was perfect.

Good luck on your project.

[cetacean6]

Still waiting....Things were supposed to start back in January, but it's June and I haven't seen any updates from Tony. He's not answering my e-mails...

[64shortc10]

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sourc...eGP6V1lzTN7mAw

Tony from Norcal
Posted via Mobile Device

[Novalicious]

Subscibing...... love to see some updates as they come.

[joe231]

Originally Posted by cetacean6

Still waiting....Things were supposed to start back in January, but it's June and I haven't seen any updates from Tony. He's not answering my e-mails...

Have you tried to call him?
There is a reason he was banned from this site....
I hope everything works out for you.

I gotta get me a crew one of these days!!!
Posted via Mobile Device

[diablo03]

Man, that's a nice truck....a crew cab would be awesome to find around here
Posted via Mobile Device

[cetacean6]

Tee Hee Hee! IT HAS BEGUN!!!!


Thank you to everyone on this forum who reached out and offered help! Album link at the bottom of my signature.


DSC03559 DSC03537

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by cetacean6

Tee Hee Hee! IT HAS BEGUN!!!!


Thank you to everyone on this forum who reached out and offered help! Album link at the bottom of my signature.

Yay for you! So Tony still has it?

[1963c-10]

Glad the issue was resolved on where the truck was. Nice to see the build underway and I'm sure Tony will do a top notch job like he does on all his projects.

Bet that rear floormat is a tough item to find. Nice to see its still in there.

[64chevycrewcab]

Thumbs up, glad it was saved.

[Dinos63]

nnnice let the fun begin!

[duallyjams]

sweet