Where's your line? ("Too much rust")

[Chevrolado]

Where is it that you cross your line? What is "too much rust" to you?

I ask this because I'm looking at an 85 Burb that's got more rust than I really would care to conquer.. however, because of its back-story and historical memories tied into it with my inlaw family - it makes me want to throw caution to the wind (and money) and take it on anyways.

So I just have to ask you all.. where is the line for you between "I can handle that" or "That's just a waste of time and money"?

Cheers

 

[Arkansas_V8]

Frame, body swaps are easy. Solid bones for me, are all I need.

But rust down here isn't really a thing. My suburban is from Illinois though. Rusty quarters, and rockers.

Had solid bones though.

 

[Chevrolado]

This is sort of how I'm feeling too.. the frame is solid. Body rust is what is going on. But its not just in the usual rocker places with easy replacements.. Some harder places like door jam, window frame, harder stuff. So the level of difficulty (aka "money") goes up a bit.

Thanks for voicing your opinion though - - I agree.

 

[Arkansas_V8]

This is sort of how I'm feeling too.. the frame is solid. Body rust is what is going on. But its not just in the usual rocker places with easy replacements.. Some harder places like door jam, window frame, harder stuff. So the level of difficulty (aka "money") goes up a bit.

Thanks for voicing your opinion though - - I agree.

Sorry to hear that. That is alot of work. But with the history, a body swap is almost the only reasonable way to try and save it.

 

[RecklessWOT]

As long as the frame is mostly solid I'd be fine. A few holes can be patched, but if it's just a body sitting on top of sheets of scale with nowhere to bolt springs to etc, I'd walk away from that.

Any part of the body can be patched, and if it's too far gone can be replaced. But if the ENTIRE body is rotten, I wouldn't waste my time with that either. Rusty door jambs aren't SO bad and neither is a little window channel rust, but if like the cowl and firewall are gone underneath that window channel then that's a different story. A pickup is easy enough to just throw a new cab or bed on, but the burb is one big piece. Anywhere too bad to patch can always be cut out of a donor truck and welded in though.

I feel like with the truck being sentimental a full body swap isn't in order, I mean if you do that it's basically not the same truck anymore. Sure the frame and driveline are the same, but most people don't have many fond childhood memories of their frame...

 

[Arkansas_V8]

As long as the frame is mostly solid I'd be fine. A few holes can be patched, but if it's just a body sitting on top of sheets of scale with nowhere to bolt springs to etc, I'd walk away from that.

Any part of the body can be patched, and if it's too far gone can be replaced. But if the ENTIRE body is rotten, I wouldn't waste my time with that either. Rusty door jambs aren't SO bad and neither is a little window channel rust, but if like the cowl and firewall are gone underneath that window channel then that's a different story. A pickup is easy enough to just throw a new cab or bed on, but the burb is one big piece. Anywhere too bad to patch can always be cut out of a donor truck and welded in though. I feel like with the truck being sentimental a full body swap isn't in order, I mean if you do that it's basically not the same truck anymore. Sure the frame and driveline are the same, but most people don't have many fond childhood memories of their frame...

Hey I could see the frame through my stepdads floor as a kid. Fond memories of using it to not fall through. LOL

 

[Chevrolado]

As long as the frame is mostly solid I'd be fine. A few holes can be patched, but if it's just a body sitting on top of sheets of scale with nowhere to bolt springs to etc, I'd walk away from that. Any part of the body can be patched, and if it's too far gone can be replaced. But if the ENTIRE body is rotten, I wouldn't waste my time with that either. Rusty door jambs aren't SO bad and neither is a little window channel rust, but if like the cowl and firewall are gone underneath that window channel then that's a different. A pickup is easy enough to just throw a new cab or bed on, but the burb is one big piece. Anywhere too bad to patch can always be cut out of a donor truck and welded in though

Great point on the single piece body of the Burb. Yep.. That was my thought - worse case, I can always buy a donor decent body and start cutting parts out and merge the two.
The one I'm looking at has clean, nice, interior, the fun trim level good options, good frame, and an okay motor.. so it's really just the body and old suspension parts I'm concerned with.
I'll have to check out the cowl/firewall condition. Haven't seen that yet. Good insight.

 

[Chevrolado]

I feel like with the truck being sentimental a full body swap isn't in order, I mean if you do that it's basically not the same truck anymore. Sure the frame and driveline are the same, but most people don't have many fond childhood memories of their frame...

hahah this is true. But if I swap over all the interior from the old to a new body.. the memories could still be in tact, right? hah.

 

[legopnuematic]

It all depends on your level of ability to do the repairs. Personally I don't like the idea of condemning things that are savable. This is my friends 75' K5 that I just started on the metal work on, it is getting new inner/outer rockers, kick panels, wheel tubs, wheel arches, lower bedsides, top of the tailgate, front fenders, hood, top rails, door bottoms. It is otherwise a really solid truck, the floor is really nice, firewall decent, a-pillars are nice too. Its worth it since its a full convertible blazer.

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Other rocker is a lot worse than this one.

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Then here is my 79 Big Ten, which I have/will do the floors, toe board, kick panels, floor braces, floor side supports, nearly the whole firewall, inner/outer rockers, A-pillars, B-pillar roof seam delete, graft a back of a cab in, inner/outer cab corners, inner fenders. Thats not even including the bed (since it was too far gone even by my standards.

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[legopnuematic]

If the truck is sentimental, It may be worth it. Pictures would help in this case quite a bit

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[1987 GMC Jimmy]

Is the style sentimental to you or the actual vehicle itself? If it’s the latter, you have to do it. If it’s just Suburbans, it’s not as strong of a commitment to doing it in my opinion. That being said, if the vehicle is just your pet project and not something that you have a specified demand for at this time, I’d take it. It’s one thing if it’s in traction, and you desperately need it, but it’s a totally different thing if your plan is to go in there at night or weekends/holidays to work on it till it gets done. Finally, I would consider space (do you have enough where this won’t be a problem) and cost (can I acquire this and do the work without screwing my pocketbook). Too much rust is when it’s lost structural integrity due to the rust, but if it’s mostly solid, has rust in tricky areas, but it’s not drowning in it, and it passes the aforementioned hurdles, I’d say get it. Pictures would be helpful, too, if you could get some.

 

[Arkansas_V8]

As long as the frame is mostly solid I'd be fine. A few holes can be patched, but if it's just a body sitting on top of sheets of scale with nowhere to bolt springs to etc, I'd walk away from that.

Any part of the body can be patched, and if it's too far gone can be replaced. But if the ENTIRE body is rotten, I wouldn't waste my time with that either. Rusty door jambs aren't SO bad and neither is a little window channel rust, but if like the cowl and firewall are gone underneath that window channel then that's a different story. A pickup is easy enough to just throw a new cab or bed on, but the burb is one big piece. Anywhere too bad to patch can always be cut out of a donor truck and welded in though.

I feel like with the truck being sentimental a full body swap isn't in order, I mean if you do that it's basically not the same truck anymore. Sure the frame and driveline are the same, but most people don't have many fond childhood memories of their frame...

I have thought a lot about it.

Those memories are not him and his. Those memories are his inlaws. With a body swap he gets to make memories with his family, and still keep the bones that helped make his inlaws memories.

I have nothing better to do, and I am right. Lol

I thought alot because the pills, but also because sentiment is fading nowadays.

 

[gotyourgoat]

It all depends on your level of ability to do the repairs. Personally I don't like the idea of condemning things that are savable. This is my friends 75' K5 that I just started on the metal work on, it is getting new inner/outer rockers, kick panels, wheel tubs, wheel arches, lower bedsides, top of the tailgate, front fenders, hood, top rails, door bottoms. It is otherwise a really solid truck, the floor is really nice, firewall decent, a-pillars are nice too. Its worth it since its a full convertible blazer.

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Other rocker is a lot worse than this one.

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Then here is my 79 Big Ten, which I have/will do the floors, toe board, kick panels, floor braces, floor side supports, nearly the whole firewall, inner/outer rockers, A-pillars, B-pillar roof seam delete, graft a back of a cab in, inner/outer cab corners, inner fenders. Thats not even including the bed (since it was too far gone even by my standards.

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Not everyone was born with a welder and a cut off wheel in their hands like you though.

 

[Joe T]

I would park it somewhere as is. Build a lean 2 shed off the side of a barn.


Thats just me though. I would talk about how I am going to restore it one day. Maybe get around to spraying some phospho on the rust.

 

[Joe T]

As far as tackling rust personally... probably cab corners only unless the truck is rare.