Gary Schultz from Salem, Oregon, spent the last three years putting together this '55 Ford F-100--all by himself in a two-car garage! He started with a rusted-out cab and has put together what he feels is a pretty nice truck, and we agree. It has a Volare clip, 9-inch rearend with 3.25:1 gears, a small-block 350 Chevy, Turbo 350 tranny, Vintage Air, one-piece power side glass, and an ididit column.

Trace the lineage of "kustoms" back to where it all began--you'll find a sub-genre that's been there right from the start. That's right, kustom still applies to pickups! Whether they were shop trucks--and let's face it, there's not a better way to promote your business than by having a rolling billboard seen around town--or just kustoms that happened to be commercially inclined, they form an important part of our history, from the R&C Dream Truck, Ala Kart, Kopper Kart, and even the Alexander brothers' Deora. In fact, it was an old stock-bodied but wildly scalloped F-100 painted by Tommy the Greek in 1955 that inspired the appearance of the truck you see splashed across these pages.

We've all had our "firsts". From that initial skinned knee you cried all the way home to mama about to the first time you held another's hand--which quite possibly led to a little more--everything in our past had to start somewhere. Possessions of the four-wheeled persuasion are no exception, either. Though few of us may actually still have the first car or truck that got us into this hobby to begin with, it's fairly safe to say that we'll never forget our firsts.

Kirk Johnson's Spare Parts-Built '71 F-100
I f you have made it this far in the pages of the magazine you are holding most likely you've laid your eyes on Kirk Johnson's silver '68 F-100, which also graces the cover. What you may or may not have noticed on the cover is this lowly flat black F-100. Yes, Kirk owns both trucks and this '71 is the juvenile delinquent, younger brother to what is probably the finest Bumpside built to date.

Two-Fold Fun
Joe Maddox II sent in some pictures of the '74 Chevy Scottsdale he restored. He bought the truck from his ailing father-in-law as an in-progress project just after the frame was finished. It took Joe a year of weekends to get the rest of the truck straightened before he could get around to tackling the two-tone paintjob. This of course made his father-in-law happy, but as it turned out, Joe's own dad had a truck just like this longbed, so it brought back plenty of memories for both sides of the family!

It's an old proverb that runs through the ages that the shoemaker's kids usually go barefoot. The same goes for painters. Well, not the barefoot part, but what the adage applies to painters is that very few drive what they paint. Even some of the most talented body and paint pros don't have any personal vehicles that showcase their talents-or anything close to it.

What qualifies as a proper custom body modification? There are a plethora of custom trucks out there and it may be safe to say most look the part, right? While many are under the belief that the more/extreme mods the better, there are more than a few examples that go for the less is more train of thought. Typicall, the goal is subltety-if someone didn't know any better when walking by such a truck, they wouldn't have any idea the amount of work that had really gone into it.

While some people may have had the fortune of being born with a silver spoon in their mouth, very few are brought into this world with the natural, raw talent to build a custom vehicle from the ground up. It all has to start somewhere, be it schooling or apprenticeship or, in the case of East Coast up-and-comer Mark Giambalvo, some good old trial-and-error learning. With his father Leonard at his side, he dove head-first into a '52 Chevy pickup--but whether he realized it or not at the time, that learning experience is how he'd launch his now-blossoming career as not only a top-notch builder, but a shop owner to boot.

You think just building a classic truck is a tough task? Try restoring one-it's not as easy as it may sound. The majority of street rod/classic truck hobbyists have at their fingertips an abundance of aftermarket manufacturers and suppliers that offer practically everything under the sun to complete an entire vehicle. On the other hand, finicky restorers are typically left with having to hunt down hard-to-find bits and pieces, and in the world of Chevrolet, that translates into rare and expensive accessories. Oftentimes, those collectibles will require you to spend another arm and a leg just to bring them back to life-as opposed to simply opening the package a new part comes wrapped in. No, restoration isn't for everyone, but those who do undertake the daunting task know what they're in for-or better yet, what to expect when all's said and done. Just ask David Franco.

We all know that it's getting harder and harder to do something different to the same old trucks. In fact, it's almost refreshing to see a bone stocker these days since many people out there might not even know what one looks like. Take the '56 Ford F-100, for instance. Most people will say that "the" Effie is the quintessential classic truck, and while it has reigned for all these decades, it seems we've seen `em all...but every once in a while, we get a surprise.

There are many trades that rely on trucks to get things done. From deliveries to towing, construction to the venerable ice cream truck-they just go hand-in-hand with moving and shaking as it were. Joe Stephenson is a successful contractor who has depended on and driven trucks for as long as he can remember; he's always had a truck to drive to work and one to play with alongside his various hot rods over the years-until one day.

These days, some people may find it hard to believe that a pickup like Fred Perez's-a beautifully restored piece of true Americana-used to be nothing more than an old workhorse, a farm truck if you will. That's something that can be interpreted in different ways, but mainly it might suggest that they cannot believe something as nice as this would have ever set tire tread on a dirty old farm, let alone be forced to hard labor on one. On the other hand, there are folk who have a difficult time accepting the fact that anyone would even consider taking the time to turn a beat-up farm implement into a thing of such rolling beauty. But as you and I already know, those ain't no car folk, otherwise, about the only things they'd be wondering is where Fred found all those rare accessories he's proudly displaying on his '54 Chevy!

How many times have we told ourselves, "I'll never do that again!"? More often than not, this type of resolution immediately follows some sort of life-altering event-and we're not talking about the positive kind, either. But just as quickly as the vow's made, it's usually broken, isn't that right?

If you have a Classic Cruiser and want to see it here, email at least six high-resolution photos and background info to the email address above, or mail prints to: Classic Trucks, Attn: Grant Peterson, 774 S. Placentia Ave., Placentia, CA 92870.

If you have a Classic Cruiser and want to see it here, email at least six high-resolution photos and background info to the email address above, or mail prints to: Classic Trucks, Attn: Grant Peterson, 774 S. Placentia Ave., Placentia, CA 92870.

What to do with such a rarity? If you had yourself a vehicle of such unique heritage, like a '37 Studebaker Coupe Express, for example, you'd probably be forced with the same quandary as Colorado's Steve Doerschlag was back at the dawn of the new millennium: restore or hot-rod? With all apologies to the astute purists out there, we're rather pleased that he and his wife, Sandy, made the right decision and did both!

A t age 15, Ventura, California, construction services contractor Jim Wachsman purchased his "first car" (actually a '49 Ford F-1 pickup) from his father for the princely sum of $250. The truck had been originally used as a work vehicle for Wachsman SR's electrical business; however, Jim had other plans.

I nspiration for a build can be found in just about any place; maybe it was something on the way to work, at a car show, in a movie, or even from an advertiser in the pages of CLASSIC TRUCKS. That's right, those spots between our features and tech articles could be fodder for your next truck. Mike Carpenter from Farmington, New Mexico, had been keen on the trucks that now-defunct RB's Obsolete would build to showcase the products they sold for many years (up until recently). In particular, Mike dreamt about the early or First Series '55 Chevy trucks that used up the last of the '54 body crop before the Task Force models were ready to roll off the line. There was something about the `54-55s that Mike found intriguing--perhaps it was the low production numbers or maybe the thrill of the hunt. But whatever it was, he knew he had to have one in five-window attire.

Over 25 years ago, Bill Kerekes spotted a rough '55 Chevy big-window on a used car lot in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, that was traded in for a '62 Chevy. The 1300 series (Canadian 3100) Chevy spent most of its life hauling wood, and despite its battered body it ran well and was rust-free. The last point was enough for Bill to sign over the paperwork and drive the truck 700 miles back home to Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Where does the time go? From the date on some of the "Attention: DIY Corner" envelopes I dug up in my office, it has been about two years since the column's introduction. After reopening one of the aforementioned envelopes, I remembered the pictures of James Vigil's white '77 C-10 that were again in my hands. I also remember scrawling "possible DIY" on the package. James was one of the first to write in to us on the subject, and not only was his a possible candidate, it was a sure thing ... until it got lost in the abyss of my office. Well, James, at long last--here is your 15 minutes ... or shall we say, pages in the mag!

You can surely take the trash outta the boy, but you can't take the boy outta the trash! In this case, that boy is Scott Bryant, a county waste management worker by trade who does indeed take himself outta the daily trash routine-in his mild white custom '54 F-100. (For those of you who immediately assumed the title of this here story had any negative racial connotations, shame on you!)

Knowing what you want in life eliminates a great deal of the woulda/shoulda/coulda syndrome. The only problem with this is that one usually has to go through a fair amount of life's lessons to figure out what it is they really want. Just ask 69-year-old John Quill, or "T," as he prefers. In and around the early '80s, T had a '56 F-100 he drove for the better part of six years, but of course wound up selling, and he has wanted another ever since. For many out there, this is probably a common "problem."

Regardless how or where we grew up, each and every one of us will have certain fond-and some not so fond-memories that stand out more than the rest. For some, they'll never forget that first kiss; others may graphically recall the day they were called to service; but for some, reminiscing about a particular vehicle that played an important part of their past, well, it's often accompanied by a desire to bring that memory back to life decades later. For Eddie Tovar, his remembrance of Grandpa Pedro's '54 Chevy pickup fueled his motivation for recreation.

If you have a Classic Cruiser and want to see it here, email at least six high-resolution photos and background info to the email address above, or mail prints to: Classic Trucks, Attn: Grant Peterson, 774 S. Placentia Ave., Placentia, CA 92870.