Here is my 63 GMC 1/2 ton pickup.

I have owned this truck for over 16 years, since the fall of 1991.
On the left is a picture of the truck sometime shortly after aquiring it and getting it running (probably 1992). (The strange colored pics are from a webcam) Notice the weird deer skull things painted on the back of the cab-, I have no idea what they were thinking there-people don't do that any more so I've left them there as a reminder of days long gone past. I know it doesnt look like much yet,but I will try to show some of the various things i have done over the years. I've replaced the front clip with a NOS set-up, everything from the firewall forward. The inner fenders and radiator core support are used pieces I reconditioned. These are shots I took back in 1992 of the front clip replacement. There's the front fenders showing the zinc rich primer shot over all this stuff.
There goes the old clip, it was pretty beat up and wasn't exactly straight anymore. Here is the new stuff going back on

Notice the black cowling area, I restored this area really nice and painted it and undercoated it.

Fenders on!

And finally there's the new grill with headlights.

Notice the huge tires!! They did rub the front fenders alittle, they were 33" tall! I ran it that way for about 10 years, now there is smaller diameter but wider tires on. Makes it much easier to drive and I'm going for a different look now, more like a truckrod. In this newer photo you can see the straightened and rechromed front bumper. Also note the difference between the original GMC hood and the 62-66 Chevy hood I have on there now.

After driving it that way for many years I decided it was time to continue restoring the old truck. I finally got a place with a garage and started doing some work on the driver's side door. The driver's door has a new bottom welded on it(inner and outer) inside shots of the hinge reinforcements

There's the completed driver's door complete with new window felts and vent window rubber installed-notice the new reproduction mirror. That's an original type. All the holes have been welded in and smoothed over. Projects for the future will be to replace the latch mechanism with a Bear Claw street rod type, maybe even shave the handles (we'll see how ambitious I get!).
Also replaced the rocker panel on that side,along with the floor section next to it. Here you can see some of the work that went into restoring the rocker panel and other areas. First is cut out the rot-not much left!!

Then it starts going back together. On the floor you can just make out the panel I hand hammer formed to connect the floor with the rocker panel. Here's a couple shots of the finished rocker panel and floor

This is the underneath, that's seam sealer over the seams. Points of interest underneath include the inner rocker panel and cab mount replacement work. It's all solid and quiet again. The bolts you see there are for the seat mounts and seat belts I added. These trucks didn't have seat belts back then!

And finally here's a finished shot, the door (usually-lol) clicks shut very solidly sounding now. Before the project started the door was losing altitude fast as the hinge area was rotted out and the hinge was caving in. Of course there are new hinge pins installed there also.
Love my new scanner-hehe!!
Future projects include doing the same to the passenger side and straightening out the bed some more.

It's got the original unrebuilt 305 V-6 GMC truck motor that runs great but leaks alot of oil (lol)but doesn't burn any oil. This is a totally different engine from the other engines GM has produced over the years so if you have seen one of these it's really different and heavy duty. (yeah it's dirty-original dirt!) The cooling system holds 7 gallons of coolant! Almost 6 gallons of which are in the block.

It has a 2 quart canister oil filter, it doesn't have to be changed every 3,000 miles like the little filters of today.
Takes 6 quarts of oil with filter change! Switching over to a 20W50 for the first time. Seems to be working out better so far.

Still figuring out stuff about this engine even after owning it all these years, recently discovered (with the help of some research ) that there are 2 PCV valves. They are located on both cylinder heads under the valve covers. It makes sense to me now as both cylinder heads on these motors are interchangeable, there is no right and left side heads. I took them both out and cleaned them. Seemed to run better and reduce crankcase pressure some. This trucks running better all the time.

It produces around 145 h.p. and 280 ft.lbs. torque when new-it's a stump puller for sure!I've done some minor mods to it-there's a Pertronix electronic ignition conversion in the distributor, and a 14" K+N airfilter I've adapted to the remanufactured 2 BBL Stromberg (stock) carb. I've got some cool stuff in the interior, will try to put up some interior shots soon.

The NOS front clip came from a guy that bought it from a dealership many years ago and never used. He sold it to me for $350! This is a major score as the price today for one fender alone exceeds $450. I got the two front fenders,grille header, new grille(60-61 Chevy),cowl, and the two cowl side panels. This was before I even bought this truck ( I had a 63 Chevy before this one)so it was over 15 years ago. The headlight "brows" I found in a junkyard many years ago also. You can also make out the body work that I talked about before. There also is a new windshield and seal that me and some friends struggled with putting in. I will pay someone to do it in the future!!
Future projects include getting a 60-61 hood, they had the big twin oval hood scoop looking things in the front.

(looks like this one-not my truck) I've already got the turn signal inserts purchased

and will probably get a fiberglass repro hood since these hoods weigh like 200 pounds (I'm guessing since I can't hardly pick the damn things up). Maybe even get a cowl induction type hood for a racy look. I want to also get some drop spindles and drop shackles to lower it about 2.5 inches all around. Of course straightening out the bed -probably use diamond plate aluminum flooring.

I've also already purchased a roll pan with a license plate recess to finish off the rear. If you look in the interior you can see the poly buckets seats I adapted. Those are cool in a spartan race way, but since we won't be racing it any time soon (hehe), I've got some swivel bucket seats out of a mid-70's Chevy Laguna (I got them from a parts truck I bought-that's where the hood came from for example) reupholstered professionally in black vinyl/cloth just waiting to be put in. If you haven't seen these seats they are cool, I have heard that they may be the only OEM true bucket seats every made. So from a historical perspective that's kind of cool, but I'm putting them in for the looks and convenience of the swivel. They're pimp! I'll try to get some pics soon.

Right now in the middle of working on the Jeep (see Jeep section) so the truck will wait awhile before I tear back into it.
Had it out on the hiway the other day when the weather was still nice, turned off the radio and just listened to it purr along at 70 mph-pure heaven to me!!.

Notice how bright the lights are! That's not a camera trick -I worked on the light system over the years. One trick I found that works well on these old trucks is to use an electronic flasher, and run a ground wire all the way to the back of the truck from the battery. It really makes a difference!

Thanks for looking in-it's an on going project that will not be done for a long time, but I am not one to lose interest- so stay tuned!
Recently got some cool stuff for X-mas- go to the second page to see some of it. Will update with more stuff as I get a chance!