Here is the truck as it sat when first picked up and what we had to start with.

This is what it looked like when we pulled it into my father's garage and the madness began.

This is the original 216 engine that was in the truck.

This is the transmission and old cab floor.

Another picture of the old cab before we stripped it clean.

Here is the donor car we used for the engine, transmission, driveshaft, and rear-end. It is a 1969 Mercury Montego MX. The car ran great, was free, had a high compression 302 engine and would give the Chevy truck an against the grain drivetrain you rarely find transplanted.

Some of the parts pulled from donor car that we would be using on the truck. You will see we saved the radiator because we wanted one that was designed for the engine setup and would be easily and inexpensively replaced if needed. This turned out to be good forethought as we had to install a new radiator just prior to putting the grille and front fenders on the truck during the build.

Here is the engine after rebuild awaiting being mounted in the truck. This Ford drivetrain choice turned out to be great since we did not have to modify the firewall for the distributor as with Chevy V8s and the decision to keep the stock manifolds made the custom steering setup we had to design a bit easier on clearance issues.

Here is the transmission now ready to be put back into the truck. We had to buy a universal transmission mount as well as motor mounts that we had to modify and then decide where to mount these on the frame. We needed to be very careful and set the cab back on the frame to mark up where the mounts would need to go for clearance.

Here you can see the IFS after it was installed as well as the universal transmission mounts and motor mounts after we installed them. We rebuilt the Pacer IFS including new rotors, brake hardware, ball joints and tie rods.

This is when we finalized the locations of the mounts and then could finish cleaning, priming, and painting the frame and components now on it.

Here is the drivetrain permanently mounted in and the Montego radiator installed into the stock 1946 radiator frame. It took some customizing of the frame and trimming of the radiator but it sat very nicely in its place. The best thing is that the radiator has the transmission coolor lines that were designed for the transmission and the radiator hoses can be purchased at any auto parts store using the stock parts for the Montego.

After cutting the driveshaft to length, welding it up and installing it with new universal joints we were ready to start on the exhaust. Here is Pop having his coffee while we get ready to do the pipes.

Here is the rear-end as we were working on the exhaust. You can see in this picture the Ford 8" rear we used from the donor car. The leaf springs are the stock one from the 46 as well as the helper springs that were used back then for heavy loads. You can see that we made shock mounts and installed shocks on the rear as well though to give the truck an updated ride feel.

Here is the exhaust revision 1 completed with the straight back pipes and 22" glass packs. I did make new head pipes to connect to the exhaust manifolds and also had to make new rear mounts to give more clearance over the rearend.

Here we placed the cab back on so we could work on fabricating steering, gas pedal, brake setup, etc for many things that needed to be designed. The truck stayed in this form for quite a while.

Here is the truck after we finished my garage and moved it to my house from my fathers. I need to thank my family for all the help building my garage and moving the old truck from CT.

This is the fuse panel from the EZwire wiring harness kit I purchased and installed. The kit worked out well and all wiring was replaced on the truck. It was converted all to 12v except the heater and fuel tank sending unit. Those items have voltage reducers installed on them to make them work properly. Just a couple of more wires to finish up in the picture.

Well there was a period of time with no pictures taken while I was cutting out rotted sections of the cab. I had to replace the sections at the front lower corners of the cab where the fenders mount. I had to make a new cab corner and weld it in. Also the whole bottom rear section of about 4 inches had to be replaced on the back of the cab. I also had to reskin the driver side door and do a lot of tweeking with Pop to get the doors to shut correctly. Next was to actually rebuild the whole guts of the door and install new window channels, window regulators and all rubber. Also all the rubber stops and windlace on the doors.

Here is the set of Dolphin gauges installed and the dash insert. All the gauges were wired up and tested. We then got new glass for the windshield after cleaning and fixing the frame. The installation of the windshield and rubber was easier than expected. We then installed the rear window which was much more difficult and I would hire a professional the next time. The rubber was hard but the rubber locking strip was extremely difficult.

This is another view of the dash. You will also see the windshield in and the wiper installed. I installed a 12v electric kit that fits under the filler panel above the windshield. The kit has an on off switch on the motor that would require you leave the cover off the panel. I did not want that so left the switch in the on position and installed a headlight switch where the stock choke switch was on the dash. The headlight switch then turns on the wiper when you pull the stock choke nob out. The stock throttle knob is just a dummy knob now. The ignition switch is a 1946 stock style that just has an on and an accessory and I have a push button hid under the dash that you push to activate the starter.

This is another view of the inside. You can see the sound proofing material from Fatmat. Also you can see the knob and switches better. There is the working updated cig lighter, the previously mentioned switches and the push button horn. That little push button horn you see on the side of the ignition switch is the same push button I have on the underside of the dash for the starter. As you can see we are keeping the stock bench seat in the truck and we just had it recovered. We are trying to keep it as stock looking as possible.

Another picture of the inside so you can see the stock dimmer switch setup, the custom brake pedal setup and the custom gas pedal setup. Also you can see the Mustang floor shifter for the transmission.

This is the view of the wiper filler panel and the rear-view mirror we added in. I wanted an old style looking mirror and since this truck did not have a mirror when built at the factory I chose one from a mid 50's Desoto that I could make work. Also just barely visible above the rear window is a small portion of a dome light. These trucks also had no dome light. I wanted one that I could just push a button on right on the light so I modified one to accpet a little push button.

What is a decent ride without a radio right? I had pulled my stock radio from my 2001 Toyota Spyder and decided to use it. The old stock cardboard glove boxes these trucks had was missing and I wanted something a bit more sturdy so I made a metal box and mounted the radio out of sight inside.

And what is a radio without speakers. I had limited space behind the stock bench seat so I had to make a thin speaker box and used the stock speakers from my Spyder.

Here is the old stock heater installed, wired up and defroster ducting hooked up. The heater is a little noisy but it IS 60 years old. It blows a fair amount of air on both the heater and defroster so it should work well.

Here is the mirror installed and it makes the truck look better already.

I was finally able to find baby moon caps to fit the mopar rims. Once the new whitewall tires are installed and the rims are painted red they should look very sharp with these installed.

Here is the truck as the front assembly of the fenders, grille, lights etc. are in progress.

Here is the truck after it is all assembled on the cab and now the bodywork needs to begin in more detail. You can see the various colors of primer from the truck being peiced together from many parts. It will soon be in one color primer and painted flat black old school style.

Here is how she sits right now. I can tell you this truck hauls ass down the road. It looks, drives and sounds great trucking down the road.

Truck in olive filler primer so we could fix a lot of finish body issues.

Picture of the interior. Still needs the carpet and headliner installed.

A closer picture of the dash with the two-tone black and gray I decided to paint it. I like the color contrast against the black interior.

Here is the truck as it now stands with flat black paint. The bed needs to be finished now and mounted so we can put the rear bumper and taillights on it. This is after fresh paint job and needs to be washed. The new whitewall tires need to be installed and a front end alignment.

Here is the truck again after the fresh paint.

Here it is washed a few days after painting to clean it up some.

Here is the bed on the truck now. Just need to do the fenders, tailgate and rear bumper.

The rear of the truck after bed installed, new wood, taillights, backup lights and license plate. In the bed you see the old army mermite containers. The one on the right is the battery box housing a full size batter and the one on the left is now a cooler.

Here is the interior after putting in the carpet, headliner and shoulder seatbelts.

A little better picture of the headliner. The only thing that me and Pop did not do ourselves was the headliner installation, the carpet installation and the recovering of the seat.

Here the truck is after putting the rear fenders on and rear bumper. Pop was right. The truck looks very nice with the rear fenders on.

Here is a rear view of the truck with the fenders and bumper put on.