# First work truck



## Dpeckplb

Well I made the leap and went and bought a van. It's a 2011 in excellent condition. It only has about 108,000mi. I was searching auto trader for some cheaper older trucks and this one popped up. It is newer than I wanted but the one owner(also a plumber), took excellent care of it. He even threw in shelving, ladder rack and the cab divider.


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## Debo22

Nice looking van


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## bulldozer

Nice catch!


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## KoleckeINC

Nice! I just got a 2001 3500. Wish I had the greasable hinges like yours. I had to air chisel out the old ones and it took forever. Does yours have power locks or cruise? That's on my punch list along with swapping the doors out to eliminate the Windows.


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## Dpeckplb

KoleckeINC said:


> Nice! I just got a 2001 3500. Wish I had the greasable hinges like yours. I had to air chisel out the old ones and it took forever. Does yours have power locks or cruise? That's on my punch list along with swapping the doors out to eliminate the Windows.


I know what you mean by the old hinges, my first boss has a 2003 and his were the exact same. Yeah its fully loaded, power windows(woopie), locks(a must on my list), cruise, heated rear windows and heated mirrors. Then it came with Adrian steel shelving and cab divider. 
My only wish list was the upgraded front end and power locks.


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## KoleckeINC

These vans all need cruise and keyless. The actuators were 25$ for 4. I paid more for switches. As soon as the weather breaks I'll post some pics of how I do.


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## Dpeckplb

What is the weather like there? Did you get factory parts or aftermarket? I'm not sure what it is with those stone deflectors up here they all seem to break in that same spot. My buddy has been through seven of them.


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## KoleckeINC

I bought cheap actuators and switches on eBay. I've had some since 08 on my van and they hold up just fine. I'm in Chicago. Nowhere to work on my truck yet. My garage is too small. One day I'll own a lift-one day


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## Dpeckplb

I see, me either, I have to park it at a buddies garage. I want to put a alarm and remote start in it. I can't wait to get to work making it mine.


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## ShtRnsdownhill

Congrats on the van....looks real clean..thats always a plus pulling up to customers in a nice truck ...


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## spcwaters

We bought the same van at my company 2 years ago, it was our first nice truck. It's a service machine! You'll love it!


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## sierra2000

Just don't ever work out of box truck cause then you'll never be able to work out of a van again. Haha. I tried to down grade to a pickup truck with a cab on it and just could not last more than three months.


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## Dpeckplb

sierra2000 said:


> Just don't ever work out of box truck cause then you'll never be able to work out of a van again. Haha. I tried to down grade to a pickup truck with a cab on it and just could not last more than three months.


I work out of a step van at the place that I work for. It's nice to have the room but the standard stuff that I go for on a regular basis I can fit in the van. I haven't been able to actually start stocking it up yet but I worked out of one for 5 years before. This is a start for me, maybe one day I'll be able to go bigger and better.


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## Dpeckplb

spcwaters said:


> We bought the same van at my company 2 years ago, it was our first nice truck. It's a service machine! You'll love it!
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Is yours a 2500 or 3500? Mine is a 3500 with the big 6.0l engine, this thing has a ton of power. It will probably slow down once I get it fully loaded.


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## spcwaters

2500, and it's got the 6.0. I remember when we picked ours up, that thing would fly. Once we put a pipe rack on the top and got all the shelving in, it's pretty slow. I wish we would of went diesel. But it still gets the job done!


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## Kpwplumb

Nice... Good luck with it.


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## Dpeckplb

spcwaters said:


> 2500, and it's got the 6.0. I remember when we picked ours up, that thing would fly. Once we put a pipe rack on the top and got all the shelving in, it's pretty slow. I wish we would of went diesel. But it still gets the job done!
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


It is probably going to be a while before I get mine loaded down. I'm starting to stock it up a little bit.


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## spcwaters

In no time lol


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## Dpeckplb

I have the same Adrian steel shelves as you, they seem nice so far.


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## spcwaters

They are awesome just keep them locked, every turn you make they'll fly open lmao. Was yours a geek squad van before? That's where ours came from. 


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## Dpeckplb

Nope, mine was a plumbing truck, the original owner bought it brand new and just sold it to me. I don't have that much stuff to put in it off the bat. Just started my business on December 31st.


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## Dpeckplb

My lettering design.


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## Tommy plumber

Congrats on the van. I have a Chevy 3500. I love it.


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## fixitright

Tommy plumber said:


> Congrats on the van. I have a Chevy 3500. I love it.



Hard to beat a Chevy. Basic, good running product, parts available and most wrenches know how to make em purr. Great for a OMS. 

Love to work out of a Sprinter but their problematic and $$$$$$$$$$ to maintain.


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## czplumbing

Nice Truck customers always like a good appearance. got my van in sept but also have a 2004 GMC utility box truck that was my first truck. set them up the way you want them good luck


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## Tommy plumber

fixitright said:


> Hard to beat a Chevy. Basic, good running product, parts available and most wrenches know how to make em purr. Great for a OMS.
> 
> Love to work out of a Sprinter but their problematic and $$$$$$$$$$ to maintain.












When I bought it, it ran well. It burned a little oil. So, I purchased a re-manufactured engine for $3000. The mechanic shop charged $2000 to remove the old engine and install the new one. For a total of $5000 I have a great running truck with a perfect engine. I used conventional motor oil for the break-in, but after that, I have been using Mobil 1 full synthetic motor oil.

I paid cash for the engine work. Beats having a new truck payment for {4} or {5} years; plus my insurance stays low not having a new truck. As people know, when a person finances a new vehicle purchase through a bank, the bank forces the person to have additional insurance coverage on the new vehicle.


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## KoleckeINC

Nice Tommy, Since 08 on my Chevy I've Installed a lot of stuff-but to be fair it was 10 years old with 67000 miles on a 5.0. Only put 90000 on since. I've done Upper ball joints Ignition switch Starter 2 or 3 times Alternator and battery once Radiator twice 3 or 4 trips to a body shop for the door hinges But they finally work great. Tune up twice Cap-no rotor Intake manifold Ignition coil Front and rear brakes complete-drums-calipers and brake hoses All 02 sensors Belt New trans Fuel pump Heater bypass valve Ac recharge Some odd suspension parts-tie rod ends/sleeves pitman arm Recently it wouldn't start after I came back from vacation-ended up being the primary coil wire to the distributor figured and fixed it in 4 hours and went to work-hooray. 90% I did myself. Intake manifold leaked at 40 below zero, trans stuck me on the highway-ignition switch tricked me so I gave those to a local shop. Kills me. I do as much under the hood as I can to save $$$. I do t even have a garage-to work in it's too short for a van all Saturday morning and rockauto


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## Unclog1776

KoleckeINC said:


> Nice Tommy, Since 08 on my Chevy I've Installed a lot of stuff-but to be fair it was 10 years old with 67000 miles on a 5.0. Only put 90000 on since. I've done Upper ball joints Ignition switch Starter 2 or 3 times Alternator and battery once Radiator twice 3 or 4 trips to a body shop for the door hinges But they finally work great. Tune up twice Cap-no rotor Intake manifold Ignition coil Front and rear brakes complete-drums-calipers and brake hoses All 02 sensors Belt New trans Fuel pump Heater bypass valve Ac recharge Some odd suspension parts-tie rod ends/sleeves pitman arm Recently it wouldn't start after I came back from vacation-ended up being the primary coil wire to the distributor figured and fixed it in 4 hours and went to work-hooray. 90% I did myself. Intake manifold leaked at 40 below zero, trans stuck me on the highway-ignition switch tricked me so I gave those to a local shop. Kills me. I do as much under the hood as I can to save $$$. I do t even have a garage-all Saturday morning and rockauto


I used rock auto for the first time last week. Great service


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## KoleckeINC

That's just the work van-got a 95 Chevy pickup for hauling dirt with more in it than what It was bought for-and my wife's Nissan Armada and an 86 corvette on blocks with the 700 r4 trans out on the bench collecting dust. All rock auto parts


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## Dpeckplb

Found this steal at Home Depot last weekend. 75 % off because it has a twist and a couple dents.


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## Dpeckplb

Finally got the lettering done! I think it looks awesome.


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## spcwaters

I'll have some new pics Monday, local Chevy dealer made us an offer we couldn't refuse. As of Monday we'll have an all 3500 fleet. And save money to boot. 

Poor 2500 can't handle pulling the tractor like it should. 


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## Dpeckplb

spcwaters said:


> I'll have some new pics Monday, local Chevy dealer made us an offer we couldn't refuse. As of Monday we'll have an all 3500 fleet. And save money to boot.
> 
> Poor 2500 can't handle pulling the tractor like it should.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


You'll love the 3500, do you have the 6.0? It has a lot of power. Even now that I have it stocked.


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## Dpeckplb

As it sits today. New tires and a custom ladder/pipe rack I bought off a very good friend. I priced having a identical one made up and the fabricator quoted 4500$. ? I have been getting all kinds of compliments on the look from people in the community.


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## PPRI

As you should. It's a sharp looking rig. I like that you out whitewall out.


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## spcwaters

Dpeckplb said:


> You'll love the 3500, do you have the 6.0? It has a lot of power. Even now that I have it stocked.



Yeah we've got one just like this new one (different bed), both are 2015's everything we have has the 6.0 lmao even the van. 












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## JohnHager

Dpeckplb said:


> As it sits today. New tires and a custom ladder/pipe rack I bought off a very good friend. I priced having a identical one made up and the fabricator quoted 4500$. ? I have been getting all kinds of compliments on the look from people in the community.


Very nice van and I like the way you decor for it !


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## Dpeckplb

spcwaters said:


> Yeah we've got one just like this new one (different bed), both are 2015's everything we have has the 6.0 lmao even the van.
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> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Does that truck have two gas tanks?


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## spcwaters

Dpeckplb said:


> Does that truck have two gas tanks?



Yep, this one does. The one we bought earlier in the year only has one. 

One cool thing about the new one, there's a 120v outlet in the cab, you can plug up your battery kit charger and keep your batteries charged while rolling down the road!


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## Dpeckplb

spcwaters said:


> Yep, this one does. The one we bought earlier in the year only has one.
> 
> One cool thing about the new one, there's a 120v outlet in the cab, you can plug up your battery kit charger and keep your batteries charged while rolling down the road!
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


I wish my van had that. I'm just going to look for an inverter to install in the truck. That way I don't have to lug a generator around taking up space. The truck looks very nice btw.


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## Letterrip

If you only want to charge your cordless batteries, then a 400 watt inverter that plugs into your 12v outlet on the dash usually works fine. Can't run a power tool off of it, but a laptop or charger works well. 


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## Dpeckplb

Letterrip said:


> If you only want to charge your cordless batteries, then a 400 watt inverter that plugs into your 12v outlet on the dash usually works fine. Can't run a power tool off of it, but a laptop or charger works well.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Charging the batteries would be the main duty of it. Other than that it would be nice to have for undergrounds if I had to run the rotary with the spoon or a sump pump. Being a van I only have so much space so not having to cart a genny around would be awesome. The place I'm at now has 4500 watt inverters.


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## spcwaters

Dpeckplb said:


> Charging the batteries would be the main duty of it. Other than that it would be nice to have for undergrounds if I had to run the rotary with the spoon or a sump pump. Being a van I only have so much space so not having to cart a genny around would be awesome.



I think it will come in handy on the rough/slab truck. That's what she's designated for at the time. 

Charging batteries, and being able to run the compressor on a slab with no need for a generator is cool AF if you ask me hahaha


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## Dpeckplb

spcwaters said:


> I think it will come in handy on the rough/slab truck. That's what she's designated for at the time.
> 
> Charging batteries, and being able to run the compressor on a slab with no need for a generator is cool AF if you ask me hahaha
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Yeah I'll pay the extra fuel cost to not listen to a generator. Every truck at the other place i work has one except mine(it got wet) :whistling2: it is very nice to not have to load and unload a genny when by yourself.


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## Shoot'N'Plumber

I've got the 120v outlet on my 2015 express as well...haven't tried it but I assumed there's not enough juice to run a generator..am I wrong?


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## Letterrip

Shoot'N'Plumber said:


> I've got the 120v outlet on my 2015 express as well...haven't tried it but I assumed there's not enough juice to run a generator..am I wrong?



You need to know the wattage of the inverter to know what you can run. If you want to run a k60 for example, it draws like 9 amps IIRC. So 9 amps multiplied by the 120 volts means that you need a minimum of 1080 watts, or 1100 watt inverter. That inverter needs to be properly attached to the battery to allow for enough power to be supplied to the inverter. But be careful. Extended use of an inverter can leave you stranded with a dead battery if you don't have it set up on an auxiliary battery instead of your main engine battery. 


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## Dpeckplb

Well now that I have some time invested working out of this truck there isn't much that I would like to change. I still have to make a few minor changes to the way I have things set up. I'll post interior pics later but I have it set up so that all the tools are at the back door. Except for my cordless kit. I didnt want to give up the case.


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## supakingDFW

No interior pic=worthless...
Seriously though, what made you decide on a van as opposed to something larger? I worked out of a van for years and wondering if you tried something else and came back to the van? I'm in a truck/trailer combo now and am looking to get into something else...


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## spcwaters

He's got some bad ass Adrian steel boxes back there.

We have the same ones. Vans are awesome for keeping everything out of the rain, and if ya gotta crap in a bucket you got some privacy. Lol 

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## Dpeckplb

supakingDFW said:


> No interior pic=worthless...
> Seriously though, what made you decide on a van as opposed to something larger? I worked out of a van for years and wondering if you tried something else and came back to the van? I'm in a truck/trailer combo now and am looking to get into something else...


I'm working out of a 14' utilimaster step van, it is warm in the summer and freezing in the winter. Since I'm just starting out I don't have the need for anything bigger. I find that having the room is nice but I find I carry more stock on the truck then what I use on a regular basis. What I use on a regular day I can easily fit in a van. I carry a length of 3"-2"- 1 1/2" abs and three sticks of 3/4 and 1/2" copper in the tube on the roof.


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## Dpeckplb

Those carryall's are stocked full of 1/2 and 3/4 copper fittings, the same with pex. R stops, ball valves tail pieces on the top. Back shelve is toilet and sink/ shower repair parts. I'm still working on stocking that stuff. At the back is all my tools, glues, silicone, paper towels, drop cloths there is a big pull out drawer with pipe wrenches, hammers, strap wrenches and a small clamp on vice. The other two are pipe storage, one 3' the other 6'.


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## Dpeckplb

The truck is still a work in progress, the rear door area has been develop more since that picture was taken. When I was taking the pictures I had a emergency waterline repair and forgot to take a picture when I got home.


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## Dpeckplb

The drawer


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## GREENPLUM

Looks like you could double stack those Dewalt boxes


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## Dpeckplb

Yes they will double stack on the bottom two shelves. The top one cuts in.


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## GREENPLUM

I'm sure you'll need more room soon enuff


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## GREENPLUM

Screw together more bins on top of those blue ones


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## Dpeckplb

When I get some down time I plan on building a few more shelve rows.


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## Finnegans'_way

Dpeckplb said:


> My lettering design.


Nice to see guys putting thier names on trucks. Around here everything is ABC plumbing or apex or some other bs. It shows you take pride in your work when you put your name on your company.


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## ShtRnsdownhill

Dpeckplb said:


> Those carryall's are stocked full of 1/2 and 3/4 copper fittings, the same with pex. R stops, ball valves tail pieces on the top. Back shelve is toilet and sink/ shower repair parts. I'm still working on stocking that stuff. At the back is all my tools, glues, silicone, paper towels, drop cloths there is a big pull out drawer with pipe wrenches, hammers, strap wrenches and a small clamp on vice. The other two are pipe storage, one 3' the other 6'.


how do you get a water heater or boiler in the back of that van?


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## Dpeckplb

ShtRnsdownhill said:


> how do you get a water heater or boiler in the back of that van?


They still fit through the side door. I can fit a 60 gallon in it. Boiler I use nti so they sit between my abs bin and the platform from the back.


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## Dpeckplb

Finnegans'_way said:


> Nice to see guys putting thier names on trucks. Around here everything is ABC plumbing or apex or some other bs. It shows you take pride in your work when you put your name on your company.


I take the most pride in work as possible. When I do something I do it 100% or not at all. I want my reputation to be that I do high quality work as opposed to the 29.00$ service call. I have been told that I have been highly recommended by a heating contractor. I'd like to continue building on that.


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## Letterrip

Shoot'N'Plumber said:


> I've got the 120v outlet on my 2015 express as well...haven't tried it but I assumed there's not enough juice to run a generator..am I wrong?




I just looked at a 2015 express. The outlet says 150 watts. That's only about 1.36 amps. Not particularly useful.


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## newyorkcity

Anyone remember these? I just saw one in the neighborhood.


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## Dpeckplb

Letterrip said:


> I just looked at a 2015 express. The outlet says 150 watts. That's only about 1.36 amps. Not particularly useful.


I've just purchased a 2500 watt inverter. I have yet to install it but I think I'm going to bolt it to the cab divider behind the drivers seat. I'll pay to have the truck run for a few hours on a rough in to not have to cart around the generator.


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## Letterrip

My father has a sprinter with a 3000 watt inverter set up on its own deep cycle battery. It can run for a bit without the engine being on. When it gets low, he can crank the truck up, and it will charge it. But it won't draw on the truck battery to run the inverter. May be worth looking into if you think you will need the power often. 


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## spcwaters

Man I miss that truck lmao, I'm back to my 2005 crew cab Chevy with not a d*** thing but hand tools on it.

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## shlomy81

I got a 3000 watt inverter installed with 2 20 ah deep cycle batteries and upgraded altnator on a Chevrolet utility works awesome


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## Dpeckplb

That little inverter has saved me numerous times. Twice I've had boiler trouble calls and lost hydro in the middle of it. Also saved my freezer full of meat and sump pump twice this fall and winter. It's pretty much paid for it's self there. haha


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## Dpeckplb

newyorkcity said:


> Anyone remember these? I just saw one in the neighborhood.
> View attachment 85314


We have a guy in town with one. The guy I apprenticed with and (now helps me since he's semi retired) started his career in 1984 in one of these trucks. I would love to buy one of these to restore and set him up in.


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## Dpeckplb

Green plumb was right, I needed more room after 13 months. I had a slow week about three months ago. So I decided that I was going to build new shelves. The rattling of the Adrian steel shelves drove me to drink. So I re built the shelves on the driver side. So now I have room for 30 blue bins and 12 dewalt carry all.
So far I am very happy with the outcome.


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