C10 History and Guide | 1968 C10 Build Episode 1
Introducing Our 1968 Chevy C10 Short Bed Truck Build!
Welcome to our Speedway Motors C10 Build! We’re excited to turn this crusty old ’68 shortbox into a neat custom driver. In the above video, we drag it out of the snow and head back home to the shop. Tune in here to watch it all come together.
You might be wondering why we would start with this forlorn old truck. Well, truth is we wanted to start with something that looked like the trucks that so many of us have sitting around, saying to ourselves “I’m going to restore that someday!” In this video series, we’re going to show you what that process looks like, and we couldn’t be more excited.
Though it may be a bit rough around the edges, this truck is actually a great place to start. In this article, we’re going to talk a little about the history of C10 trucks and include a “spotter’s guide” that you might find useful in shopping for your own.
Chevy C10 History and Body Styles
Here is a quick overview of these Chevy trucks, starting in 1960 and going through ’72. Yes, you could still call the Squarebody generation a “C10”, but we’ll save those for another article.
First, a general note about what makes a “C” or a “K.” It’s really simple: for Chevy trucks, a “C” designation means 2-wheel drive, while “K” means 4-wheel drive. Similarly, the number that follows designates ½ ton, ¾ ton, etc. So a C10 is a half-ton 2-wheel drive, a K10 is a ½ ton 4-wheel drive. A C20 is a 2-wheel drive ¾ ton, while a K20 is a ¾ ton 4-wheel drive. A “30” designated truck will be a 1-ton monster.
1960-1966 C10 Pickups
These trucks were a big step toward the modern Chevy truck that we all know and love, introducing independent front suspension and the coil spring, ”truck arm” rear. ‘60s and ‘61s are easy to spot because of the love them or hate them oval eyebrows on the hood. ‘61s added little handlebars to the sides of the marker lights in the hood and “Chevrolet” letters to the grille insert.
In ’62, the hood eyebrows went away, as did the quad headlights of the earlier models. ‘63s added a slightly different grille with a more pronounced “grid” at the center. Big news for us hot rodders is the addition of coil springs to the front suspension. This front suspension will remain largely unchanged through the next generation.
In ’64, the wraparound “knee knocker” windshield went away in favor of more modern, flatter glass. Honestly, there are really only slight cosmetic differences from ’64-’66, mostly in the design and location of the emblems on the sides. You’ll be forgiven by all but the most hardcore Chevy truck nut if you get these mixed up.
1967-1972 C10 Pickups
As a personal note from your author, I have always loved this generation of Chevy trucks. There’s just something about those Harry Bradley penned body lines that really make these trucks stand out. I built one about 17 years ago and still have it. I love them. I’m thrilled that we get to do a ’68 for this project, and since that’s what we’ve got, we’re really going to dig in on this generation.
Visually, most of the changes to ’67-‘72s were made to the front sheet metal. Both ’67s and ‘68s have that cool, clean, molded-looking front grille and the hood has a flatter “slope” in the front. ‘67s don’t have side marker lights in the front fenders or bedsides, but they were added in ’68. A majority of ‘67s also have a smaller back window. By ’68, most trucks switched to the bigger back glass that would remain through ’72.
The story that we’ve always heard was that someone at GM felt that the sloped hood wasn’t “trucky” enough, and that making the slope more abrupt would make these trucks look more rugged. Right or wrong, that’s what happened and the ‘69s got a different hood and grille treatment. The difference is night and day when viewing a ’67-’68 next to the rest. The ’69 grill is anodized aluminum with a plastic grid behind. ‘70s are very similar, with the most noticeable visual difference being a slight change from crosshatch to a series of horizontal bars in the grille.
By ’71, the grille changed again, this time the horizontal “bar” that was so prominent in the ’69 and ’70 trucks was taken away, leaving a clean “egg-crate” center with a big bowtie in the middle. The turn signals and marker lights were also moved to the front bumper. ’71 also marked the addition of front disc brakes and five-lug (5 on 5” bolt circle) hubs. This is a big deal because it really opens up the possibilities for custom wheels. There are aftermarket 5-lug conversion kits available for earlier trucks as well.
The ’72 trucks were virtually unchanged, but the best way that we’re aware of to tell them apart visually is to look at the rearview mirror. ‘72s used a mirror that was glued to the windshield like a modern car, not bolted to the roof of the cab as they had been previously.
What is a Fleetside Bed vs. a Stepside Bed?
All generations of C10’s were available with either a “Fleetside” or “Stepside” bed, and the difference between the two is pretty clear.
Fleetsides are flat and the bodylines follow those of the cab and front sheet metal. ’60-‘66s are purely straight, while ’67-‘72s feature a cool sweeping contour that dips toward the rear of the bedside. On '67-'72 trucks, Fleetsides also feature internal latching mechanisms on the tailgate.
Stepsides are just as the name implies, featuring a narrower bed with external fenders and steps between the fender and cab. Many a stepside owner has had to beg their buddies not to actually "step" on the step and obliterate the paint. Stepsides use chains to secure the tailgate.
Chevy C10 Dimensions
The most critical dimension in the ½ ton C10 truck world is the wheelbase. There are long (LWB) and short (SWB) versions of the half ton chassis, each featuring a different length bed. Short wheelbase trucks features a 115-inch wheelbase, while long wheelbase trucks were 127-inches. These are also referred to as “shortbed” and “longbed” or “shortbox” and “longbox” models. Bed length on SWB trucks is 6 1/2 -feet, while LWB trucks use 8-foot boxes. It’s worth noting that there was also a “Longhorn” version with a 133-inch wheelbase and a few heavier trucks that were even longer, but these are less common.
There are pros and cons to each design, but it’s common for those of us who are building custom street trucks to favor a short wheelbase truck. They are lighter weight and generally regarded as better-looking designs. Of course, the main disadvantage of a SWB truck is a decrease in cargo area. In order to haul a full sheet of plywood, you’ll need to drop the tailgate. Not a huge deal to most, but worth remembering if you actually plan to use your truck.
Now that we're all up to speed on C10's, we hope you tune in next time as we tear into our '68 project truck. As you can see, we've got a lot of work to do...