1968 Chevrolet C10 | Chopped, Smoothed and Full-Blown Customized

Like many of us, Dave Seeney dreamed of one day building his very own custom truck to share with his family and friends. While at a car show in Kansas City back in 2001, Dave noticed the growing popularity of custom 1967-’72 Chevy C10 pickups and knew instantly that he wanted one. A truck from the show that really piqued his interest was a “Chop-Top” 1968 Chevrolet C10, and it inspired him to build his own someday.

Well, that “someday” came sooner than Dave had planned for. He got word about a project 1968 Chevrolet C10 truck that had been sitting in a garage for some time, and the owner had lost interest in it. So, Dave contacted the trucks owner and set up a time to go see just what kind of a “project” truck it was.

Once in the gentleman’s garage, it turned out that the C10 project truck had already received a 3-inch chop, smoothed doors and a smoothed-out dash. The truck was clean with no rust, which is a rare find these days. Dave and the seller worked out a reasonable price and the deal was done.

With the help from some of his friends, they loaded up all the parts and truck onto a trailer and hauled it home to Dave’s garage, where it took up residence for approximately 16 years. During that time, Dave accumulated all the finishing parts, from a fuel tank to custom tubular suspension components. Originally the truck came with a tuned port engine and engine package that was going out of date for performance parts. It was the perfect time to toss out the old powerplant and swap it out for the newer LS platforms.

Approximately two years ago, while going through social media, Dave found Jason Vannatta at Vannatta Fabrications. He specializes in building custom C10 trucks. After setting up a meeting with Jason about finishing his project truck, an agreement was made. Jason took the mods that were already done to the cab and built on those to smooth out the look of the truck. What had started as a daily driver was now growing into a full-blown custom build. It was decided to discard the stock frame and opted for a custom chassis from ACME Chassis Shop, giving the truck more ground scraping attitude.

A call to ACME Chassis in Houston, Texas, was made and soon the frame was shipped to Jason’s shop. The frame came complete with a fuel tank, air bag suspension, a 9-inch posi rear end, and all the steering components and shocks installed. The engine/transmission combination came as a “Connect and Cruise” combo from Scoggin Dickey Chevrolet with a 480 hp LS3 engine and a 4L80E transmission. The engine had accessories from Concept One and Scott’s Hotrods on it. With input from the builder, the choice was made to use TMI as an upholstery supplier for the interior components, as well as Dakota Digital for instrumentation. Lokar provided the shifter and engine management pedal components. Jason put in his own custom metal fabrication touches to the engine bay, bed and interior to give Dave’s truck its own unique style.

Looking back at the finished product, Dave felt he had achieved what he had set out to accomplish with a custom C10 that showed off all the style cues he had dreamed of. Dave would like to thank his wife Beverly for all her support in this 15-year-long project, as well as Jason Vannatta and Dave’s son Sean with helping him complete his journey to completion.

Build Specs

OWNER

Dave Seeney
Truck specs: 1968 Chevrolet C10
Truck name: Chebby
Hometown: Lebo, KS
Club: Genuine Chevy GMC Truck Club of KC
Builder: Jason Vannatta, Sedalia, MO

Chassis

Frame: Body dropped ACME tube steel custom full frame by ACME Chassis in Houston, TX
Rear End: Shortened Currie 9-inch w/ 3.73 gears
Rear Suspension: Custom four-link bars, Slam Specialties bags, KYB shocks
Front Suspension: CPP 2-inch drop spindles, Slam Specialties bags
Air Management: Accuair E-Level CVT (compressor, valve, tank)
Steering Column: Ididit
Gas Tank: Custom Aluminum 22-gallon tank between rear frame rails
Battery: ODYSSEY located in custom rear compartments

Wheels

Rims: Billet Specialties SLD89 20×8.5 inches (f), 20×10 inches(r)
Tires: Nitto INVO 265/35/20 (f), 315/35/20 (r)

Engine

Make: 2012 GM LS-3 376 cu-in
Cam: GM LS 480 hp camshaft
Radiator: Entropy dual flow radiator, Entropy dual fans
Alternator: 140-amp Powermaster
Wires: Taylor
Exhaust: 1-7/8-inch headers, 2.5-inch tube Jet coated Magna flow mufflers
Engine Dress-up: Scott’s Finned valve covers, K&N air filter, Concept One brackets, American Auto wire

Transmission

Make: GM 2010 4L80E w/ 2800 stall
Shifter: Lokar floor kit
Drive Shaft: Custom made

Body

Make: 1968 C10
Chop: 3-inch chopped, custom hand cut glass
Grille: 1968 factory shell w/ custom mesh screen
Bumpers: Custom metal formed front and rear bumpers
Hood: Cowl hood
Door Handles: Kindigit smooth handles
Mirrors: 2015 Ford Mustang
Lights: LED headlights, LED taillights

Paint

Paint Color: GM “Perfect Blue”
Engine Bay Modifications: Titanium painted hood color inset

Interior

Upholstery: Tan/beige two tone vinyl, tan carpet
Seats: TMI bucket seats
Dashboard: Custom TMI padded
Gauges: Dakota Digital
Steering wheel: LaCarra
Power features: Cruise, E-brake, Vintage Air A/C

Stereo

Head unit: Kenwood
Speakers: 6-1/2-inch Kicker components in custom kick panels and back wall enclosure
Sub: Kicker 10-inch
Amplifier: Kicker