K-5 as a work truck?

[gsfgf]

I'm buying a house and will need some sort of truck for everyday hauling, running to the Home Depot, etc. Given that I'm in the market for a truck, my first thought is to obviously get a K-5, but I wanted to ask y'all a few questions to make sure that it will work as a practical truck as well as a toy. I would be keeping my current car as a daily driver.

1. How hard are the back seats to get in and out? Are they easily removable like in a suburban?

2. Will I be able to get the top on and off by myself?

3. Is everything mechanical on a K-5 parts compatible with pickups of the era, or am I going to find myself needing to find rare/expensive parts?

And I'd appreciate any other advice y'all have for a potential K-5 owner.

Thanks!

 

[Stomis]

But seriously its probably not a practical idea. Could you make it work? Yes. With the tailgate down you could probably do plywood. If you want a k5 buy a k5, a hitch and a 5x10 trailer.

Taking the top off yourself is not going to happen either. You can build a rigging on a joist or good sturdy tree though.

But yes they are all the same parts as a pickup. Theres nothing rare or expensive about them.

 

[kennyw]

Replace the hard top with a soft top, install a pickup tailgate, and pull the rear seat. As long as you do not need to haul anything heavy, you could make it work.

 

[ktmoutfront]

I used mine for work. Had 400 pounds of tools in it every day. Had to use a small trailer to haul anything of any length. It worked, but I wanted a truck way too many times. Now that I switched consulting jobs, I'm OK with the K5.

 

[tRustyK5]

It can work, it's basically a half ton...

Is a pick-up more practical, yes. I have removed the hardtop myself many many times, it ain't pretty, but if you're motivated it's not that terrible.

 

[paratrooper307]

The outside bed of a pickup lends itself much better to working than the interior of an SUV IMO. The rear seat is pretty easy to deal with. It folds and flips forward, and unbolts from the floor pretty easily.

While the top is removable, it is an endeavor that takes a little time and effort. It's not really something you want to have to do everytime you need to haul something. I installed a big eyebolt through the top and rigged up a Harbor Freight pulley on a joist to make the job easier.

 

[evolve991]

Nothing really constructive to add here just Hats Off to ya! I've been using my 85 'burb as a work beast for 8 years now, it has disadvantages compared to a pickup,yeah, but I don't have to cap it to keep my tools safe either. Innovative ideas and personal prefs go a long way. Anyone with money can buy a cookie cutter work truck but you show imagination and determination going the untraveled paths.

 

[Rtull32]

For what you are using it for I think it will work fine if it was going to be for your everyday job I would stray away.

 

[bigjbear]

First, welcome. Second, are you in the city of Atlanta?

As to using a K5 for DIY home improvement projects there are a couple things to consider. The seat is easy to deal with, do the "fold & tumble" and you've got a 5' bed. The floor and back seat changed in '78 and is a bit more user friendly as a truck. Make sure the back window works- very important if you are keeping the hard top. If you need to remove the seat for that last foot it's not hard to do, as long as the hardware isn't rusted in place.

If you are going to be hauling things like bulk dirt/mulch you would want to ditch the carpet and build a bulkhead at the front of the cargo area. If it's bagged stuff, lumber, etc just fold up the seat and call it good.

Now, on the top and the Atlanta question. I live in Marietta and would leave my top off for a good part of the year. If you're in the city, keeping the hard top is great way to stop folks with sticky fingers. If you do need to take the top off by yourself, it's not that bad on the '76-91, on the '69-73 forget it. Of course, with the top off things like a stove or fridge are no problem.

As far as interchangeability, it's just a 1/2 ton pick-up with a short, integrated bed. Nothing you would replace is different. If you put on a soft top you may want to swap to a pick-up truck tailgate (I did). If you do, get the hardware that goes with the gate. There was change to the hardware in '81 (IIRC), but you can use any year truck gate ('73-87) on any K5 ('73-91) as long as you get the hardware that goes with that year gate.

 

[Mastiff]

I guess it's all been said, but... I have a CUCV and a K5. The main problems with the K5 would be the big ass heavy tailgate and the fact that loose/dirty things can find their way up front. You'd need to figure a way to build a bulkhead (as was mentioned). Also, short beds suck. The fact that you almost never see an 8' bed these days is sad IMO. Stuff comes in 8' lengths. Also, you can take the tailgate off a pickup if needed (in 2 seconds on the CUCV years), but the K5 tailgate is note practical to remove.

I'd get a single cab old pickup and be happy because they are mostly the same as K5 and cool in their own way. Hmm. Unless you are really concerned about stuff getting ripped off, then it's a whole different ballgame. Have you consider a barn-door suburban?

 

[evolve991]

Yeah short beds DO suck. Almost a waste of a truck having less than 8' beds. If you're good with fabbing stuff you may be able to build a 'slider' in the back, like garage door rails and a platform, it would extend out over the gate and the material could sag a little up front so it doesn't tend to slide out. Or if you're able to plan ahead a sheet of plywood and a few 2x's underneath will work but you won't want to ride around with that hanging out much.

 

[diesel4me]

A barn door Burb is better than a K-5,but not very much--it'll let an 8 foot plank or panel fit inside it,but the loading height still is too low to haul anything like a fridge,or a riding mower...a full sized van isn't much better really in that respect either..

A lot of guys here buy old bread or potato chip P-30 step vans and convert them into a mobile shop inside,with plenty of room left over to haul a riding mower,a fridge,etc,and keep all the tools and supplies locked up safely inside..

The only downside is they kind of suck to drive as far as comfort and visibility goes..you can get them with anything from a 250 straight six,to a 454 or 6.2 diesel--some even had cummins coversions!..SM465 or TH400 in most of them factory--simple to work on...I have seen a few converted to 4WD and one guy even plows parking lots with his when its winter and not much construction work is being done..

A plus is many have all aluminum bodies ,so no rust worries too..and if you look around,you might find one for sale cheap when a fleet upgrades to newer trucks..

 

[Mastiff]

Looks cool. And if all else fails you can convert it to a food truck and sell tacos.

 

[evolve991]

Eeeeasy on the 'burbs there Diesel J/K I refuse to haul drywall in mine even though I can and have. I DID haul our fridge when we moved though.
Everyone seems to think I fabbed my rack platform up top to haul drywall....uhhh nooooo....scaffold maybe !?!??





I love those old bread trucks!! Crazy potential. I'd Cheech n Chong the H*LL outta one

 

[MrSchaeferPants]

The title says work truck. So will you be hauling materials everyday, will it actually be a work truck. Or you just talking about every once in a while hauling 2x4s and plywood and drywall for home projects?

For a work work truck, it's not practical. A 8 foot long bed is practical. For occasional home projects and the like, it'll be just fine. Full sheets of plywood go in w/o a problem. I remove the seat, fold and tumble you still lose almost 2 feet, and with the tailgate down and seat out, only about 2 feet stick out, so it's nice and flat and secure. You can also leave the tailgate up, but you're limited on the quantity as the window/topper starts to taper off.

2x4x12s are no problem as well, anything smaller and the window can be closed.

80s models 2 bolts remove the seat, one more bolt for the locking mechanism. Easy to get to, easy to re install. Like others said, you CAN remove the topper by yourself, I've done it a few times. You really can't put it back on yourself w/o help. Unless you've rigged something up to help you, then you can easily do it yourself on and off.