Tailgate Identification - What year do I have?

[Bitzer!]

If you can arrange the shipping Chris I'm sure we can sort something out- serious  I'll have a right hand fender too while your at it!!

[Captkaos]

That's the catch, you would have to arrange the shipping so I could send it to them to ship over to you.

[lowbucktruck]

I have a '73 C10 with original tailgate, can shot a pic of it for you later tonight.

[Fordeatinz71]

i'll try to get a decent pic of the tailgate hinge setup on my truck...it's an '83 with 79K original miles, tailgate is in great shape...original paint even, so i know the tailgate was never changed...

this pic is old, when i first got it with all the crap still on it...


note-at some point in time the make logo embossed in the metal was moved from the center to the side...it was sometime in the 81-87 gates...note how mine is on the left side and not in the center...

[Bitzer!]

That's the catch, you would have to arrange the shipping so I could send it to them to ship over to you.

ooops! we've had this conversation haven't we!

[lowbucktruck]

Here are some pics of the original tailgate from my '73 Chevy C10 LWB (sorry for low light, was burning daylight there) 
My gate is still on my truck, of course.

[lowbucktruck]

And here is one more pic of my 73's tailgate.

[123 pugsy]

Here's a couple of pics showing the newer gate with the door style bottom edge as was mentioned in a previous post.

[Captkaos]

Not sure what year tailgate you have, well here is how to tell.  There are actually 4 versions of tailgates for the 73-87(91) pickup trucks.  This is how you tell the difference:

1) 73-74 - This version has a top guide welded on, the bottom of the tailgate is round, has a separate hinge mount bolt, the bottom trunion has no slot, so to remove it you must unbolt it from the truck. and the latch attaches with 2 bolts.  CHEVROLET Script centered on the tailgate.  It looks like this:


2) 75-76 - This version has the same setup as the 1973-74, BUT it has a relief slot in the trunion allowing you to remove the tailgate without any tools.


3) 77-80 - This version has the same setup on the bottom as the 75-76 allowing the removal, but the latch portion is now all one piece and bolts in the same spot as the hinge slot on the 73-76 and the upper latch bolt.  It doesn't have the hole where the lower latch bolt used to be.  The welded guide was dropped and integrated into the latch.  So now the latch has the hinge mount bolt and guide built in.



4) 81-91 - This version has the same upper setup as the 77-80, but new for this year the bottom of the tailgate is no longer rounded, it is flat, and CHEVROLET Script offset to the right on the tailgate, AND the latch assembly is no longer welded to the bottom of the tailgate, it is bolted.

[VileZambonie]

Adding a few more details to this post:

73-80 has a dip in the area next to the taillight while the 81 up version is flat in this area and then recesses in. Tailgate bands change and the tailgate handle is different 73-80/81-87 (91)

73-74 GMC has the raised script in the upper left corner. 75 up GMC is centered script in the recess.

All regarding fleetside, as far as I know stepside differences is just the script.