truck rebuild. thoughts welcome.

Welcome to Gearhead Central @stunner2145 .

I love old trucks. Do you have pictures of it?

As far as your questions go. With the research I have done, most claim Apitong is the best wood. Long lasting and very durable. Not sure how it would compare in strength and cost compared to the cherry or black maple. It would really come down to how you want to use it. Do you plan on using the flat deck a lot or do you want it to be a bit more of a show piece?

You would have a lot of options for engines in that truck I'm sure. That would come down to budget and what you want to do with it. I know you say that you want it to be a daily driver and racer. If your block it still good you could rebuild it. The question is, can you build it to reach the power levels you might be looking for or would other options be better or cheaper? I found some rebuild kits for less then $300. Are you going to do the work yourself or get a builder to do the work? If you are getting it done I would talk to some builders and find out costs and potential hp and tq numbers. Then you can compare that to some crate engine options.

I want to build a 427 Cobra one day. I have spent many nights searching crate engines. They can be $4000 or so and go up. Way up. The engine factory has a 383 stroker for $11000. That puts out 500 hp. I have found 440 hp 350's for $8000 or so. The sky is the limit.

James

 

You're welcome. For that budget I would rebuild unless you can find a great deal on the engine you want. You could look for under prized vehicles with an engine you want and part out the rest. That search might take a while so the fastest would be to rebuild.

Looking forward to seeing the pictures of it. If you have the time it would be great to see a build thread to follow along with the project.

Thanks. I hope to do it one day. For now I will work on building up my Jeep.

James