305 vs 350 - Everyday use

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Crispy

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K25 with a goose is a little more acceptable being a 3/4 ton but that truck is kinda rusty crusty for $3500.

Im about to open up a squarebody dealership in NC man, I'll be retired in a 10 years if the prices keep on that trend.
 

CSFJ

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I would stay away from the K10 with the gooseneck in the bed. Suckers probably been beat to hell. Well, by stay away I mean price it to where you would be comfortable with spending a few more dollars on it if need be.

The k10 with the 305 sure has a nice body and thats worth a lot more to me. $4,000 is still a bit high but if the condition of the body is as good in real life as it looks in pics and you can verify mileage then thats worth buying.

How much do you plan on haulin with the truck? The 305 should be up to the task as long as you arent trying to win up hill slaloms with a loaded bed. I'm not trying to open up a can of worms with this but with a few dollars you can add a few ponies and make the 305 feel a little peppier. Some people refuse to put parts on a 305 but if its low mileage and set for low impact work it should provide you with years of service.

That is a good looking truck. I would be more concerned about the transmission holding up, than the engine being down on hp.
 

Rooster336

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K25 with a goose is a little more acceptable being a 3/4 ton but that truck is kinda rusty crusty for $3500.

Im about to open up a squarebody dealership in NC man, I'll be retired in a 10 years if the prices keep on that trend.

Dude and I only put the ones on here that are quasi reasonable. People asking $2k for rusty trucks that aren't even running.
 

shiftpro

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IMO they never should have used the 305 in these trucks. They just don't have the torque for the weight. It's really hard to spin tires on gravel.
Boat anchors...
 

shiftpro

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Bumperettes gash darn it anyway!:argue:
 

1987 GMC Jimmy

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I’m late, but I’ll flip flop daily driving one or the other, 305 mostly. It won’t win a race, and it can’t handle a lot of timing, but mine’s an L69, which is the pinnacle of the carbed 305s in terms of the specs. I know the TBI ones weren’t that special, but I don’t know about the TPI ones. The truck LE9 comes in second place. If mine was geared better, and I went ahead and did better exhaust and stripped more of the emissions stuff than I already have, it’d be good. I like it. For a daily driver that you need some economy in, the 305 beats every other SBC. It’ll get an average of 23 mpg on the highway. More if you play nicer, less if you don’t. I much prefer a 350, but a good 305 doesn’t deserve all the hate it gets. The LG4 was a piece of crap, but that’s the one they used in non-performance RWD car setups, and it was only because they choked it down so much with garbage heads, anemic exhaust, and emissions. I like both with the understanding of their strengths and weaknesses. In mutual stock forms, those differences are less prevalent.
 

roundhouse

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If the seller doesn't know the gearing do you know the best way for me to figure it out?
if its origional and still has the sticker in the glove box that will tell you, after you de code it.

otherwise you can jack up a wheel and spin it and count how many times the driveshaft spins.
i think if you only jack up one wheel, the drivesaft spins twice as much as it normally does,
someone can chime in and correct me if im wrong.

you may also be able to do it on the front without jackin up , by having someone spin the front driveshaft and while you carefully watch the axle shaft spin at the knuckle
 

bucket

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I’m late, but I’ll flip flop daily driving one or the other, 305 mostly. It won’t win a race, and it can’t handle a lot of timing, but mine’s an L69, which is the pinnacle of the carbed 305s in terms of the specs. I know the TBI ones weren’t that special, but I don’t know about the TPI ones. The truck LE9 comes in second place. If mine was geared better, and I went ahead and did better exhaust and stripped more of the emissions stuff than I already have, it’d be good. I like it. For a daily driver that you need some economy in, the 305 beats every other SBC. It’ll get an average of 23 mpg on the highway. More if you play nicer, less if you don’t. I much prefer a 350, but a good 305 doesn’t deserve all the hate it gets. The LG4 was a piece of crap, but that’s the one they used in non-performance RWD car setups, and it was only because they choked it down so much with garbage heads, anemic exhaust, and emissions. I like both with the understanding of their strengths and weaknesses. In mutual stock forms, those differences are less prevalent.

305's in cars are different animal. My best daily driver I've ever had is a TBI 305 Camaro. The power/reliability/economical ratio was superb. The TPI Camaros were good dailies also, but I've never wanted to drive them in crappy weather.

The stock '84 C10 305 did the job just fine, but it was a slug at low speeds with a 2.56 rear. MPG averaged 14 on my daily commute. It was no Camaro that's for sure, and I never would have wanted to pull a 5-6K trailer behind it.

The K20 Burb could have done that work (very slowly) but it had 4.10 or 4.56 gears.
 

Rooster336

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tell him to throw in the caprice on a package deal. tell him you promise to give it a respectable paint job.
if its origional and still has the sticker in the glove box that will tell you, after you de code it.

otherwise you can jack up a wheel and spin it and count how many times the driveshaft spins.
i think if you only jack up one wheel, the drivesaft spins twice as much as it normally does,
someone can chime in and correct me if im wrong.

you may also be able to do it on the front without jackin up , by having someone spin the front driveshaft and while you carefully watch the axle shaft spin at the knuckle


I had no idea this worked. Spent an hour or so on google reading up on it while I was supposed to be watching a movie with the wife. She was still annoyed this morning....so thanks for that.
 

roundhouse

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I had no idea this worked. Spent an hour or so on google reading up on it while I was supposed to be watching a movie with the wife. She was still annoyed this morning....so thanks for that.
It’s not exact
But it will let you know if the seller is lying about the ratio
Which they often do because 4.11 and 4.56 are a lot more valuable than a 3.73 and 3.08 are worthless with tires taller than 29”
 

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