First Van! 1964 Chevy G10

[MicroMachinery]

Hey everyone! I've just now broken into the Vintage Van scene. It's the first van I've ever owned, so I guess I could say this is my debut into the van scene in general. Anyhow, about my victim: It was originally from Missouri, but made it's way to the Pacific Northwest in the 70's. It's a 1964 Chevy, and from what I'm told, it's been upgraded from the 153 L4 to the 194 L6. Also, it's been given a synchro 3-spd, which is a huge plus. Pretty complete and solid overall, with some bumps and bruises for character. I am concerned about the amount of rust above the windshield, but hopefully I can address that before the glass falls out

[TheVolt]

Welcome Aboard

Welcome, cool van with a nice patina. You have landed in the right spot. Everything I know about my van is from reading and asking on this site. The locals on this site past and present literally know everything about these vans. This website is an invaluable source. I suggest, getting to know the “Advanced Search” feature and search topic titles. Literally everything you can think of has been discussed. Also, don’t be afraid to ask questions the dudes around here are ready and willing to help.

[66BeachCruiser]

Welcome aboard!!! Nice van, congratulations!!!

[smiley]

Great looking van! Please ask all you need, and and welcome!

[SAVAGE]

Welcome to the world of VCV's
Few VCVC van members out your way.
Your van doesn't look too bad . post pics of the bad spots.
Around windshield is kind of a bad spot, on both 1st & 2nd gen vans(I had to redo both my 64 & 68)
If you got questions, or looking for part's ask. & post more van pics(we all like pics)

[MicroMachinery]

Thank you for the warm welcome everybody! I'm super excited to dive into this project as requested, here are some pics I took the day I got it. I'll take some more as soon as I have some time with it again.

[cruzbox]

Welcome !

You can’t beat Mother Natures patina!

[MicroMachinery]

Hmm.. not really sure why those pics are on their side?




Think I figured out why.. site doesn't like tall pictures, I think.

[MicroMachinery]

Yeah, I love that patina on this thing! I think there's a bit too much "patina" above the windshield though, unfortunately; it's completely rusted to the point where the inner support isn't even attached anymore

[SAVAGE]

See you have the knee buster bumper hitch/step, had one on the 65 from NY(ouch)
your windshield rust is common after the windshield gasket dry's out & water gets in,
had to deal with same thing on my 64 Nodoor. (can't see much in pic)
Its not perfect but it works. It was the last part I did(keep putting it off) did mine in Lot of small pieces(corners).
I'll see if I can find Old pics You'll get good at welding. You Still have a Nice van to bring back.

[BILLS66]

MicroMachinery welcome aboard ! Glad to see another vanner In Salem,OR ! Great people here ! Bill

[MicroMachinery]

Thank you! Yeah, I'm still jazzed about it, even with the rust. I have a mig welder, but I think I'm gonna need to invest in a metal shrinker/stretcher and a brake. With those,I believe I should be able to fumble my way through it 😁

[APedue]

great looking van! congrats and have fun with it

[108VanGuy]

Welcome

Welcome aboard.
108VanGuy...

[kookykrispy]

Welcome!!

That windshield rust is very common. Check out my wikivan rust repair thread. I had to cut out old metal and weld in a patch from a donor van. Mine was worse than yours. The problem was that this seam was filled with putty from the factory, not welded. So when the putty went away after 50+ years, then water starts getting in there, and causing rust. If you still have decent metal, you can grind it down, POR-15, and cover with the short hair fiberglass bondo. If it is advanced like my van was to the point where you have large holes, you will need to cut out the bad spots and weld in new metal. Either way is time consuming, but it is good to kill that rust before it gets any worse.