For starters let me give you some back ground. Have a big run in May that friends have ask me to go on for the last 4 years, but with the kids school and stuff I havent been able to make it. So this year the kids are off to coolege and I have the time to go. I started out just going to make the interier of the truck alittle nicer for the wife to ride in, after starting to take the inside apart I found alot of broken stuff, so I took a step back and tried to figure out what to do.

With my truck having other issues I have tried to put bandaids on because it was a everyday work truck for surveying out in the raw desert, I knew if I just fixed the lastest it would just be more bandaids to correct later.

Some of the big issuses was the side gas tank was busted (one of the plastic ones that no one makes a replacement for), Instrument cluster fell apart, ect. ect. ect.....

At 4:30 am today our damn cat woke me up and would not let me go back to sleep. So I got up a sat outside looking at the truck as the sun came up. Around 7:30 to 8 o'clock I notice that I have been work my but off for the last 3 hours and didnt see the sun rise, but when I stood back I had a smile on my face. I notice that I had finished cutting the inside and I had the bed of the truck completely stripped of every thing and just need man power to lift it off. The frame off resto I wanted to start 3 to 4 years ago was at a point of no return. I ran into the house grabed the keys to my other truck and took off for a drive to the salvage yards in the area, which the closes one is a 2 hour drive.

I knew of three yards in the area, it would take me all day just to drive to each one to see what the might have and I was ready for the run. Plan was to not get any parts just go to all of them to see what they had. I made it to the first one alittle after 10:00. After getting to the first one and looking around I notice a perfect side tank setting in the back of one of the beds. I told myself grap it now its out of the truck it will be gone soon. Before I knew it I had remove about 6 parts I needed and made a list of what I would came back for next Sat.

I never made it out of the first salvage yard. They had about 10 73 to 79 trucks there. Each one crashed or missing something the next wasnt.

The best part is today I got a Side Gas tank with metal basket (no rust), Instrument Cluster, Side fresh air vents, and a few small parts. Plus picked up a nice looking set of headlight doors for a friend that needed some new ones. Got up to the office, the guy comes out looks at what I had and only charges my $75 for it all. The cherry on top of all this is that there was a fully restored 79 f250 sitting in the locked area of the yard and the guy said that was his bosses baby that he was restoring for the last 3 years.

Next Sat run I will get new trim for the truck, they have 2 sitting there that looks great. I as also going to try to find a better tailgate, grill parts and on and on. I will take my camera next time to show you guys my find.

Just needed to share my day with someome, My truck just rolls hers eyes when I talk.

 

Awesome. I just love the feeling of a good find. Yours is especially excellent since you drove so far.

 

i'd hate to be that far from a good junk yard!!