[ihc] B-130...new owner!

[David Raistrick <keen@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Hey folks.

I went out to look at the B-130 in St. Augustine this weekend.

Looked it over, took pictures, talked to the owner, took it for a
drive...talked money, found his bottom dollar, and turned it down.

Went to lunch, walked around town, went swimming at the beach...all this
time talking it over with my SO.

We finally decided to buy it, though it was $300 more then the most I
wanted to pay for it (dodge bed and all..).  Decided that, based on the
other trucks that were currently for sale, the price wasn't so bad for a
truck I could drive home that day...and I wouldn't have to fly to WY, NE,
or OR to drive it back, either.

Really is a /solid/ truck.  Not rust free, but pretty close.

NO rust under the floormats, seats, or in the cowl vents. (ok, surface
rust from 44 year old paint..)  Floor mat is in excellent shape, with what
appears to be the original pedal covers, etc.  All indications are that
the PO-claimed 74590 miles at the time of purchase are original.

Odometer works, though the speed needle is stuck above 100mph.

Line card was included:
http://www.icantclick.org/gallery/b130/60_b130_linesheet2

Truck did start life as a flatbed, as you can see in this picture from
1968:

http://www.icantclick.org/gallery/b130/60_b130_1968


Still has the 1 ton rear axle, but all of the wheels have been replaced.
The rear duals are included, but they're crusty.  Spare also included,
which matches the wheel style on the truck.  You can see in the '68
picture that the front wheels don't match the front wheels on the truck
now.

...and as for those wild towing stories?  How about this one, from this
trucks past:

http://www.icantclick.org/gallery/b130/60_b130_pulling

Pulled a mobile home for a reported 50 miles or so.

http://www.icantclick.org/gallery/b130/60_b130_pulling_back


Truck has some crusty rust behind the front bumper:

http://www.icantclick.org/gallery/b130/20040424_101133

And the pass. rear cab corner looks to be rusted through:

http://www.icantclick.org/gallery/b130/20040424_101650


A massive trailer hitch is welded to the rear of the frame, but I didn't
get a good picture of it yet:

http://www.icantclick.org/gallery/b130/20040424_101526


Passenger side window is cracked, and drivers vent window also. A
replacement vent window is included.  Passenger side lower door hinge is
broken, but a hinge is also included.

The missing emblems below the hood are included...it also has some emblem
holes /in/ the hood, which can just be seen here:

http://www.icantclick.org/gallery/b130/20040424_101119

I don't know what would go here..comparing to the other B trucks I can
find pictures of, there isn't anything there!

All of the pictures can be seen here:

http://www.icantclick.org/gallery/b130

It needs tires. Running around on 30? year old (haven't looked for the
date codes) bias plys is not my idea of fun.....and the front's are not
entirely round.  I know I saw a FAQ on this somewhere but I cannot find
it...what's the modern replacement size for the 7.5x16's? I'll measuire
current tire circumference and start comparing, I suppose.. What load
rating to I need to look for? No less then D at least, I assume.

Need to try to fix the speedo.

It has a bit of a fuel-starvation issue if you get into the throttle, or
at the amount of throttle required for 60 mph (according to my girlfriend
in the car I was following...:)

Drives nice..for out of round tires and a 1 ton suspension, at least. :)




--
        David Raistrick    http://www.netmeister.org/news/learn2quote.html
keen@domain.elided	   http://www.expita.com/nomime.html