'85 S15, '88 S10 Blazer, Pro Touring '79 Olds Cutlass wagon, '77 Squarebody Suburban
Joined
·
35 Posts
Hey all, I'm Ben and am into modifying S10s and G-bodies. For the most part my builds are all in the Pro Touring arena but I like to both autocross and drag race. I currently have several projects in the works or on deck, my newest is "Gary" - an '85 S15 long bed, "Pumkinator" is my main autocross '79 Cutlass G-body wagon, "Grandpa" is another Cutlass 4 door getting suspension upgrades and a big block Chevy and "Jimbo" is my '88 S10 Blazer. My oldest son also has a 78 Cutlass wagon and an '84 Pro Touring S10 short bed. We also have a '77 Suburban, 2 more G-bodies and a '73 Nova build waiting in line. I run a rendering business called Street Rod Designs so with all my projects the first step is designing the build. Here's my line up, the last two are my son's.
![Car Automotive parking light Vehicle Land vehicle Tire]()
This build thread will be about Gary, a truck I was able to pick up in November. Here's the story...
After moving to St George, UT 8 years ago I noticed a 1st gen GMC S15 (Chevy S10 cousin) sitting in a car port not far from where we live, buried under a bunch of boxes and trash. Over the years on a regular basis I've driven past and thought I'd like to own that when I'm in a position to pick up another project. A few months ago I noticed a large dumpster in the driveway full of garbage and the boxes and junk removed off the truck. I stopped by a couple times and knocked on the door but no answer. Looking around the yard and how the house appeared to be maintained it was likely an older person or someone not quite together lived there. My guess was that the truck was broken down and therefore sitting long enough for the tires to go flat and badly dry rot. No luck with talking to anyone so I let it go, but kept on eye out to make sure it was still there whenever I drove past
Running Saturday errands in November I noticed another dumpster full of trash in the driveway, I guessed they're cleaning out the house because someone isn't living there anymore and figured it's now or never. I dropped by, luckily this time finding Karen, the gray haired wife of the grandson of the deceased owner of the home and truck. Her husband's grandmother had passed away in 2009 and his granddad then in 2010. She was 92, he was 94 (!). Karen and her husband are in charge of the trust, and she was there to start gutting the home to prepare for renovating to start renting it out. She said Granddad bought the truck new in '85 at a local car dealership here in town. This man's younger brother took over the home and truck when they passed, and lived there until about 4 years ago. He was a hoarder, had some other health/ mental issues, and has been living in a facility for about 4 years now. Apparently he didn't use the truck much at all, 2009 was the last year it was registered, was parked sometime in 2010, he left the keys in the ignition, locked and shut the doors, and there it sat. Here's some initial pics after it was unburied from all the junk...
![Tire Wheel Car Vehicle Automotive tire]()
![Car Tire Wheel Land vehicle Vehicle]()
This build thread will be about Gary, a truck I was able to pick up in November. Here's the story...
After moving to St George, UT 8 years ago I noticed a 1st gen GMC S15 (Chevy S10 cousin) sitting in a car port not far from where we live, buried under a bunch of boxes and trash. Over the years on a regular basis I've driven past and thought I'd like to own that when I'm in a position to pick up another project. A few months ago I noticed a large dumpster in the driveway full of garbage and the boxes and junk removed off the truck. I stopped by a couple times and knocked on the door but no answer. Looking around the yard and how the house appeared to be maintained it was likely an older person or someone not quite together lived there. My guess was that the truck was broken down and therefore sitting long enough for the tires to go flat and badly dry rot. No luck with talking to anyone so I let it go, but kept on eye out to make sure it was still there whenever I drove past
Running Saturday errands in November I noticed another dumpster full of trash in the driveway, I guessed they're cleaning out the house because someone isn't living there anymore and figured it's now or never. I dropped by, luckily this time finding Karen, the gray haired wife of the grandson of the deceased owner of the home and truck. Her husband's grandmother had passed away in 2009 and his granddad then in 2010. She was 92, he was 94 (!). Karen and her husband are in charge of the trust, and she was there to start gutting the home to prepare for renovating to start renting it out. She said Granddad bought the truck new in '85 at a local car dealership here in town. This man's younger brother took over the home and truck when they passed, and lived there until about 4 years ago. He was a hoarder, had some other health/ mental issues, and has been living in a facility for about 4 years now. Apparently he didn't use the truck much at all, 2009 was the last year it was registered, was parked sometime in 2010, he left the keys in the ignition, locked and shut the doors, and there it sat. Here's some initial pics after it was unburied from all the junk...
