New guy, and dont know where to start

[echastain88]

Hey all, new guy here from Oklahoma. I am purchasing an 83 K10 Custom Deluxe from my father. This truck has been in our family since it was brand new. I had been contemplating asking my dad about buying it off him for a while now and today he mentioned that he was thinking about selling to someone else. Well, I couldn't let that happen, i mean heck, the truck has been in the family longer than I have. lol.
Anyways I'm going over to my parents place tomorrow to get it and take it to our family mechanic to see what all will need to be done to it.
I plan on doing a lot of the restoration myself. The truck overall is about a 5 on a scale of 1 to 10. It still runs and drives pretty well, when you can get it started. The body is rough, it was used primarily as a farm truck and only has a little over 100k miles on it. I plan on doing a complete overhaul. Interior, exterior, motor, trans, body etc. Little bits at a time. This wont be my dd, it will be my bad weather/ work truck. My other vehicle is a 2-14 Mustang GT, so on days when it cant get around in the snow, ice or whatever, the truck will be the go to.
I guess to start off I will be doing whatever maintenance it needs to be a reliable vehicle. After that ill move on to working on the engine, tranny, 4wd and then eventually the body.
Anyways, nice to be here and ill post up some pics tomorrow (or i guess later today since it is after midnight now lol)

[Captkaos]

welcome.

[Kren420]

Welcome!

[DnStClr]

 You've come to the right place for help with the restoration. Good luck with it. Capt Kaos has a lot of aftermarket parts in the store.

[Jason S]

Howdy from Kansas.  Do you have any photos of your '83?

[echastain88]

Here is a pic of it. Found out its actually a K20 Heavy Duty. Has a 350, not 305. Had to replace the battery today. After that and some cranking it fired up. Took it to our family mechanic and he us gonna look it over and take a look at the clutch. Little loud in first, but other than that it is pretty mechanically sound.

[Jason S]

It looks like you have a pretty solid truck to start with.

[echastain88]

Thanks Jason! I can't wait to get started, only problem is i have no idea where to start. The inside is pretty dirty and beat up from years of being a farm truck. I may start there and get the interior restored them work my way outside.

[Jason S]

I've been there. The worst cleanup I've had was a '64 F-100 in a barn, rats had got into and built nests in the cab and headliner using sheep manure... Cleaning out my brothers truck was a close second though...

My $0.02,
Whenever I get a 'new' (i.e., another old truck), I usually spend a day or more just cleaning things out and washing away old crud.  This may entail taking the seat, mat/carpet and door escutcheon (step plate/trim panel) and just hosing the floor out.  Then I'll move to the rest of the truck to try to wash off any caked on mud, grease, etc.  I figure cleaning it up from the start will make any later repairs or maintenance less of a hassle (no dirt falling in eyes, not getting covered in grease/dirt, etc.).

Once I got it clean I go through and check or change fluids, including differential and transmission.  While the covers are off the differentials, you can inspect the wear on the ring gear and get an idea of the overall condition.  I also will check or replace the ignition system parts such as the cap and rotor, plug wires and plugs as well as replace fuel filters (or add additional filters) and the air filter.

Whatever route you choose, take lots of photos.  It can be amazing how one forgets what the project looked like at the beginning.

[Captkaos]

I do the same thing Jason does.  Clean it first, check the fluids, inspect and repair/replace wear parts.

[Engineer]

1) Sell the boring, cookie cutter Mustang.

2) Use the money to restore the classic Chevy.

3) Get ready to be mobbed by the ladies.