Mitch Atkinson bought a 1963 GMC short box pickup during the early 1980s for 600 bucks and found out why it was so cheap early in the game.
Pickup trucks were built for hard work and used up along the way, so the ’63 GMC’s last duties were hauling carpet, according to Mitch.
Jim Sutherland
The reason it was so cheap was the truck’s fenders were held together by Bondo, duct tape and optimism-and they all fell off. Consequently, the vintage GMC needed a ton of work to restore the pickup to its former glory. However, Mitch had a different game plan for his 61-year-old truck and chose to upgrade the GMC in a big way.
His game plan included a front end donated by a 1973 truck so he could have a front disc/rear drum combination, along with crisper steering and a more comfortable ride. Additionally, Mitch wanted to boost the horses under the GMC’s hood, so he swapped out its mild-mannered small block for an aftermarket Fast Burn 385 (a GM-based small block rated at 385 horsepower and 385 ft lbs of torque) to significantly bump the truck’s performance.
Mitch also realized his engine swap required a major transmission upgrade, along with a beefy rear end, so he added a 700 R-4 automatic overdrive transmission and a posi-traction rear end with 3:73 gears. The net result is tire-melting performance combined with a very effective overdrive system that drops the RPMs on the highway.
The truck is very capable of highway speeds but will run at just under 2000 RPMs along the way, according to Mitch.
His GMC is bagged (an added air suspension system) so it can get very low whenever the spirit moves Mitch. It also has a wild yellow paint job that really makes the GMC stand out in a crowd when Mitch takes the truck out on the street, highway, or to shows. Mitch added the ’63 gets “plenty of attention” whenever he drives it.
As mentioned, Mitch has owned his vintage GMC for over 40 years and its road to a very cool custom pickup truck has not been an easy one at times because he went through “dozens of body men and parts went missing”, in his words.
However, Mitch was finally able to find the right body guy and transform the ’63 GMC into a bright yellow masterpiece from its former factory green. Initially, Mitch wanted a red and black two-tone paint scheme on the truck but headed in a different direction because a neighbor had red and black paint on his new truck.
We at MyStarCollectorCar believe Mitch made the right choice with his yellow paint job.
The interior of the GMC is a combination of original components and new features such as custom gauges and tilt steering.
A question arose when Mitch formulated his plan for the GMC: “Do you want a show truck or a driver”? It was an easy one to answer for Mitch because he wanted to drive his custom pickup and has put over 30,000 miles on it over the past 11 years since its transformation.
It was an excellent decision in our opinion here at MyStarCollectorCar.
Jim Sutherland
BY: Jim Sutherland
Jim Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer whose work has been published by many major print and online publications. The list includes Calgary Herald, The Truth About Cars, Red Deer Advocate, RPM Magazine, Edmonton Journal, Montreal Gazette, Windsor Star, Vancouver Province, and Post Media Wheels Section.
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