What started as a simple electrical troubleshooting project quickly turned into a full-blown restoration.
This truck is titled as a 1963 Chevrolet C20 dump truck according to the cab tag, although it wears a 1964 windshield. When I brought it home in 2021, I thought I was chasing a wiring issue. The electrical problem eventually traced back to the steering column wiring harness, but by then I had discovered the truck needed much more than electrical work.
The cab was in rough shape. The cab supports and cab mounts had long since disappeared, leaving what I jokingly call "Bluetooth cab mounts." The floors were held together with sheet metal patches, rust, and prayer. A small hole in the roof had allowed water to enter for years, causing extensive rust damage throughout the cab. The windshield trim was damaged, the windshield itself had several BB holes, and rust had spread into nearly every structural area of the cab.
For the last three years, the cab has spent more time upside down on a cart in my garage than it has sitting on the frame. During that time, I replaced both floor pans, both outer rockers, front and rear cab pillars on both sides, cab corners, front cab mounts, rear cab mounts, and floor supports on both sides. Once the metal work was complete, the entire floor received a POR-15 rust preventative treatment along with sound deadening material.
As I dug deeper into the truck, evidence of previous repairs appeared everywhere. One former owner seemed particularly fond of using a hammer as a bodywork tool. There are large hammer dents in the firewall where someone apparently made room to install a distributor, and the transmission tunnel shows similar abuse.
The front sheet metal required significant work as well. Both inner and outer fenders were replaced along with the grille support and radiator support. At some point in the truck's life, it had been towed improperly, which bent portions of the front structure. I had to pull and straighten parts of the frame and front supports before everything would align properly again.
Mechanically, the truck features a 350 small block Chevrolet swap that has been one of the bright spots of the project. The engine fires up every time and has proven extremely reliable. A new radiator was installed, and the truck still retains its PTO-driven dump bed operating through the original manual transmission.
The project is far from finished. I'm currently working through the windows, door mechanisms, and trim pieces. The bottom of the passenger-side door still needs repair, and there are countless small details left to address. But after years of rust repair, fabrication, and rebuilding, the truck is finally starting to resemble the workhorse Chevrolet intended it to be over sixty years ago.
It's been a long journey from a "simple electrical issue" to a complete cab reconstruction, but seeing this old dump truck come back to life has made every hour worth it.
