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| Purveyors of fine restored and restorodded Chevrolet Pickup Trucks, circa 1937-1957 |
| 1950 |
| Background |
| Between the mid thirties and the end of the fifties, America, and notably Chevrolet, built the most distinctive pickup trucks ever produced anywhere in the world. The unique lines of these old trucks, the swooping fenders and the stunning grills......the simplicity of their design and pure functionality make them every bit as desirable as the classic autos of the 40s and 50s. Everybody here has been restoring, driving, selling (or sleeping in) antique vehicles for years. The trucks caught and held our interest so we founded Classic Truckworks. We started out doing stock restorations and then began to make hotrod type trucks but found that our customers wanted something a bit different---something in between the two types that offered improved performance but totally original appearance with the value that quality restoration imparts. |
| Restorods |
| We've been building trucks exclusively for the past ten years. We've tried pretty much everything that's been done to them. Here's some of what we've learned: quality restored classic trucks and restorods (original appearing trucks with mostly invisible improvements to mechanical systems) go up in value. Hotrods don't. That may or may not be rational, but its true. Over the past fifteen years or so trucks seemed to be going up in value more than almost any other antique vehicles, in what was a largely static market after the big Japanese buy up. Then about three years ago the whole market just seemed to come back---most of the old stuff is up, and the trucks continue to go up, so they represent a good investment value. |
| The original trucks from the thirties through the fifties are really cool to look at----but they are scary as hell to drive. The first thing you notice when you drive them is the brakes---they just don't work very well. You find yourself trying to maintain a lot of distance between yourself and other vehicles out of fear for your life, and it ruins the fun of driving an old truck. They wander and hop around the road and damn near tip over when you corner. They require a lot of muscle to steer, get lousy gas milage, and will only cruise at 50 mph. The wipers work at a geriatric speed and don't work at all when you're going uphill. They're noisy and the heat from the engine comes right through the firewall. Let them sit awhile and they can gum up---then they may not start at all or may start spewing gas out the overflow hole which can result in a fire. |
| 1946 |
| Hotrod builders have been addressing these problems for years, but mostly they have been trying to turn them into cars. There are a number of ways to go about it. |
| Everybody's different of course, and people want different stuff. There's a lot of value in innovation. We've worked hard to figure out ways to use and improve the existant systems in these antique trucks and to combine that with our knowledge of restoration techniques to solve the inherent problems to come up with beautiful, original appearing trucks that won't try to kill you every time you hop in them and turn on the key. We've paid particular attention to maintaining a simplicity that allows our customers to work on them themselves, or to send them to the corner mechanic without worrying that he won't be able to figure out an outmoded system.We tried for the longest time to keep them completely free of electronics, but so few people now know how to deal with points that we have decided to use electronic ignitions. Still, You can crawl under them or open the hood and have plenty of room to turn a wrench----there's no better vehicle on which to teach your daughter or grandson how a car works. |
| We can tweak and stabilize the original front ends, upgrade the bearings and shocks and soften the springs to improve the way they handle; you get one handed steering that's not squirrely. They handle like a sixties truck, which seems to us like a good place to be----safer, easier, tighter, but still with the old truck feeling. We worked hard to make that system work, but the rules have apparently changed now so we can stay in the restorod category but go to an independent front suspension system with discs, improving handling exponentially. We regear the rear end for better milage and put on modern radial tires that look like they should, not fat low profile monsters that adversely effect handling. |
| We convert most of our trucks to V8's. This is an area where we can get away with radical improvements without going out of the restorod class---Chevy trucks from our era didn't have matching numbers on the engines so upgrading this way is acceptable. We use new GM 350 crate replacement motors with 36000 mile warranties that are far superior to anything else available. We use side dumpers so there are no cuts in the fender liners. If you should prefer a straight six we go to 250s rather than the more commmon 235s---far superior and long lasting. |
| 1951 |
| We can give you an ethanol conversion kit with your truck, and hopefully we will soon have a safe brown gas (hydrogen) system available We can put in an automatic transmission with a shifter that looks like the original four speed, or we can stick to a manual tranny. Shifters are in the middle of the floor where they belong and the pedals are in the original location. We can give you improved drum brakes or discs. The wiring is converted to 12 volt but kept simple and clean. Gauges are upgraded but completely original in appearance, as are all the door handles, window cranks and knobs. We use stainless steel bolts and screws wherever they are called for--anywhere where real strength is required we use grade 5 or above. Anything that's altered is hidden. |
| 1954 |
| The seats are restored and improved----you pick the covering from the best leather or vinyl available. Our signature hardwood beds really dress the trucks up. We normally use highly figured Ipe, which is incredibly hard and adds weight to the rear end for improved stability. We use an oil finish that is easy to maintain and repair. Other woods are available. |
| Our objective is to produce a great looking, original appearing truck that handles better and is safer than the originals, but that lacks the complexity and obsolence that the hotrod application brings. They are restored with care and with the best quality materials. We are constantly thinking of ways to improve them---the latest thing Mike came up with is spring loaded door handles so they never droop. We think we've solved most of the problems but kept the virtues of the original trucks. This is good stuff that will last a long, long time and go up in value steadily. We think its worth the pricetag. Our trucks aren't cheap, but if you want the best truck available they are worth it. We've been doing this a long time and have decided to only do a couple trucks a year now----they will run about $60,000.00 each. They are all special order trucks---you pick the year, color, motor, etc---we locate them and take them apart for restoration and conversion. |
| If one of our restorods is too pricey for you we understand---please check out our specials section----we try to keep exceptional stock restored or hot rodded trucks on hand at reasonable prices. If we don't have anything there that trips your switch, please use the link at the bottom of the website to drop us a line and let us know what you want---we probably know where to find it, and we're so picky about what we send off that you're guaranteed a quality truck you might not be able to find or assess yourself. We're proud of what we build and the systems we've evolved. We hope something we have will suit you. Please E-mail us with your needs. |
| 1954 |
FOR SALE
