Not meaning to burst your bubble, just a bit of reality. "money is tight" and "show truck" probably don't belong in the same sentence. It can be done, but it'd be very labor intensive and still require a lot of new parts. Some things to consider;

1. Show truck means everything comes apart and gets media blasted to within an inch of it's life.
2. After the blasting, then it's time to grind, sand, fill and smooth every joint and every square inch of the frame an suspension pieces.
3. No rattle can paint, all the small parts get smoothed, filled, and sanded then either powder coated or painted
4. All new hardware, no used nuts and bolts here. Also plan on either cad plated hardware or stainless steel
6. Body work, if you are quite experienced and have all the necessary tools, plan on about 500 hours of fill, smooth, block, high build, smooth, block, high build, smooth, block, and on and on after all the existing damage is repaired. Cheap materials won't cut it, top shelf stuff only!

When you get into the engine and drivetrain the above continues on and on... Then all new wiring and connectors, even faded color on the wiring will cost you points at a show. Also, all new glass, seals, and trim.

The list to go show quality is long and expensive, requires a lot of $$$$$, skill, and patience!!!

I'm not trying to discourage you from your goal, just hate to see you get into a show project thinking that 3 months and $10K will do the truck to show quality....It won't!