Power wagon's are cool, macho truck's are cooler ! big block 4 speed factory orange, Arizona truck with 0000 # rust no floor replacement on this truck .

I'm afraid to comment

Still see near rust free 72-80 Dodges around here in the Pacific Northwest. Almost makes me wanna cry when I go to Pull and Save in Spokane Washington and see these trucks being scrapped with no rust issues. But I sure have bought a lot of nice body parts from there. Montana is also a great place to find unrusted 72-80 Dodges. Judging by all the cool old Dodge trucks I find, this corner of the US must have had some high volume Dodge Truck dealers in the 60's and 70's. Last summer I bought a 77 Macho Power Wagon in northern Alberta Canada. 400 automatic, sport mirrors, vacuum guage, cargo lamp etc. Its a beat up original paint farm truck, but other than the drivers floor, its virtually rust free. Unfortunately, it was so pounded on the farm, that it needs most panels replaced.
My 75 Power Wagon 440 shortbed is also a beat up original paint truck, with minimal rust

About 5 years ago

Drill the spot welds out and take the rear quarters off the box sides and you'll find the rust on any of these trucks. They had no internal galvanizing or paint on the hidden substructures, so even when you find a good looking truck that seems to have no rust and no holes, it's there and it's started .I put a mirror up inside my 85 w-150 and its the same. A friend of mine has a never winter driven 92 cummins holiday truck,the rockers and cab corners are out of it.
My ramcharger was a pretty clean pacific northwest truck with a few rust blems. When the bodyshop went digging they found the internal metal uncoated the surfaces covered in rust and some of the structural eaten away. The tub was disassembled, blasted, welded back together and epoxy coated.

That's interesting... I would agree that $28K would be at the top of the market 5 years ago but I would venture to guess that nationally it is much higher than that today. Again, I am no expert on truck values but from what I have seen, the popularity and values of all trucks has exploded over the last few years. I bought this truck 4 years ago, making a few small improvements over the years and would say it has at least doubled in value since then!

You really can't make such a sweeping generalization of all trucks just because of your experience with a few trucks. There are rust free vehicles out there all over the place! It all depends on the climate and storage conditions the vehicle has been in during it's life.

There's no coating under the skins, doesnt matter if its from the 70's' 80's or 90's.
These things were built to last maybe 7 years and it shows.

Yes, most of the time but not in all cases. There are exceptions, many exceptions.

No you're kidding yourself here, chrysler workmanship was never going to go the extra mile, the body shop even said from the start,the inner rust is what gets these trucks and makes bringing them back from the dead so expensive.
My RC was a solid truck, looked like minor rust repair, you can't leave raw metal anywhere and think it wont develop rust and won't spread.
The least a person could do on these trucks without total disassembly, is to maybe find a way to por 15 the inner structures through the bottom drain plugs and through the tail light openings. They weren't even sealing the seams all the way through or the entire length of the seams.
It doesn't matter if it spent it's life in the sahara desert, one car wash and the rust is started.

Absolutely agree

I see that you are in Canada. Yes, trucks will have a hard time surviving in your climate.

My RC is an American truck, friends cummins never saw winter.

So you just haven’t experienced a rust free classic truck yet, that’s OK!

If all 70's truck started rusting almost immediately there wouldn't be any around now without some intervention within a few years of new. They'd have completely rusted away by now. But there are some that are original body and even paint that have not withered away with rust such as my '79 from California. Yes cars and trucks from that era and of most makes were prone to rust but luckily many are "survivors".

An autobody friend of mine said that "Once bare metal is exposed to air, it'll start rusting in 20 seconds. You probably can't see it, and might be very insignificant, but it's there." Not sure if that's true or not, but I could imagine any moisture in the air will end up on it. If inner panels aren't protected, It could have started rusting before it leaves the sales lot when it's brand new! Probably insignificant at first, but as years go by, and depending on the atmosphere the vehicle is exposed to, will dictate the rate that rust accelerates.

If out of the weather bare metal does not rust very much in 5-10% humidity which is what we have here.

Yes it will start rusting with any moisture. We can see that on our disc brakes. But I'm not understanding what the point is here. If you have a nice solid outwardly appearing rust free truck that is kept dry 99% of the time as my '79 is, what should I do? It has survived for over 40 years without this supposed hidden rust extending to the outer panels but is the implication here that I need to start drilling out rivets and removing skins to treat the inner panels?

Mine was considered a " survivor" . There just isn't much point into pumping 15-20k into the outside resto when you know rust is lurking within. This truck could have been prettied up and been nice 9/10 for another 5-8 years before the rust made itself known in the structure again. I'm in for another 8k over the origianl resto guestimate, but I will not only have a truly rust free truck but also a rust resistant truck. It's treated, sealed and rhino lined inside and out, as I intend to use it year round. It will now outlast me.

Sorry to inform you but if you intend to use your truck year round it will not last in your climate. Tiny rock chips and metal welds stressing will invite rust in no time and you will quickly be back in the same position before you started. That is just the unfortunate reality using a steel vehicle year round in a harsh climate...