I was contacted by a fellow hoping to sell his father’s pickup. His Dad bought the truck brand new at the local dealership in Polo, IL in 1972. It is still on the original title.
His father is in his late 80’s. Spry and sharp. The fellow that contacted me is in his mid-60’s! They are fourth generation grain farmers. The owner of the truck still lives on the farm where he was raised.
He ordered this truck. It is certainly a no-frills plain-jane farmer-style pickup. It is equipped with the 307V8, THM350 automatic transmission, no power steering or brakes. He ordered it with vinyl floor mat and seat covering. But as a farmer, he knew to order the gauge package, heavy duty shocks and springs, posi-traction differential with 3.08 gearing, front stabilizer and an AM pushbutton radio. I am not sure why he choose the short wheelbase with the 6.5 foot box. But that is a good thing!
He drove this daily until 1988, when he purchased the truck he is currently driving. Funny thing, his wife is driving a new Cadillac. Three years ago, he commissioned a restoration of his first new truck.
The engine was rebuilt locally. The exhaust was replaced. New brakes were installed. They had the seat reupholstered. New arm rests and sill plates were installed. All to original standards.
The body had some rust. They cut out what they could and patched it. Some parts were replaced with aftermarket pieces. The truck was completely painted to the original Dark Green with White roof. The box was treated to a spray-in bedliner and Aluminum tailgate guard. They installed a new front bumper and replaced the old farmer tow bumper with a new SureStep rear bumper.
The intent was that the grandsons would enjoy showing off their grandfather’s truck. It was hoped that the truck would be the reason to spend some quality time together. Unfortunately, it didn’t work out that way.
During the three years since the restoration, it has only been driven a bit over 500 miles. Now the odometer reads 30,644. It is actually 130,644, but there are only 5 digits. It has sat in the granary for most of the time that has passed since the restoration. It became a point of contention with his wife, so it needed to be sold.
It is not a perfect truck. You can see just a couple of chips in the paint. If you look, you can tell where the rocker panels were replaced. The tires are mis-matched and due for replacement. I decided not to do that, in case the next owner wants a fancy wheel to replace the stock steel wheels with hubcaps.
This is a nice old truck that was used, yet cared for. It looks good and runs good. It is ready to be enjoyed if the tires are replaced. Obviously the short wheelbase makes it desirable.
