Ok let me set the mood here. It's 1990 I'm 15 years old, out on my own(have been for a year now), still going to school and making the grades like a good boy should. All the while spending every free minute farming @$3.50/hr NO OT.
Well I finaly save up the quid to buy me a truck. 1967 Chev. 3/4T 4x4 straight off the farm. It had split rim wheels, steel flat bed w/wood floor, peeling paint, 3" pipe bumper w/a very rusty chrome push bar welded to it, and mis-matched seats. Nissian drivers seat, Camaro pass. and old milk crate in the middle(aka Hide stool). lol I drove it like this for a while but I had a buddy that was a painter/bodyman and we needed a project. We preped the the frontend and blowed some bc/cc red paint on her, boy did she shine. We rattle canned the flat bed black, threw a tool box on the back and drug up some 1 piece wheels that we rattled white. We were young and I was on a budget so the inside of the cab had to stay blue to so I could finance the beer which fueled our desires. I drove it like this untill about 1992 when I blew up the big block, which went well with the rest of her drunk bumps. I sold the rat broke and all to buy another truck and so she sat for a few years. In 1994 the the truck I had replace her with went down on me due to an extremely worn drivetrain. Well I pulled the 350 out of it and dropped it into the 67 to get her rolling again. And like Evan stated it just wasen't the power I wanted and never really seemed quite right but at this time I was already an alcoholic and I devoted all my funds to incoherantcy. I got by somehow untill June 8 1995. On this day a big ole tornado had me in its crosshairs and proceed to rip apart most of what was left of my miserable life at the time. Somehow the only thing It didn't completly destroy was my 67. It was severly sandblasted and had some dents and broken windows but repairable none the less. It had been setting in front of my house which was where I found it but what was left of my house was about 100 yards away.
I got some disaster relief and decided to by a new truck . I had 3500 miles on that one and one payment under my belt when I totaled it due to the bottle.
Rather than get anther new truck I decided to rebuild the 67 yet again in late 95.
This time I'm going to do it right I say...so here I go. I strip it down to the frame except for the cab. I rebuilt the entire frontend, rearend, steering and brakes. I had the tranny and x-fer case rebuilt. Bought a 6" Skyjacker Softride suspesion lift for it, all spring lift, 3" bodylift, dual stabilizers, 35/14.50/16.5 MT Baja's, and 16.5x14 Bart Supertrucker wheels. I wound up buying back the same motor I had sold out of it several years eariler and totaly rebuilt it myself. It was hot before but I had a bonfire in mind this time and thats what I did. Chrome top to bottom and when I was done it would smoke Cobra Mustangs through 1st and 2nd gear. It was time for new paint again and a new bed. I started building a new flat be for it and had all but finished when I was ready to paint the truck. We rolled the truck into the paint shop one night with the intensions of spraying her bright red once again. We were drunk as always and it looked like a party instead of a paint shop, it seems like I've had an audiance everytime I do something? The whole time were getting it ready everyone is trying to convince me we need to flame it. After many hell no's I finally say, "let me have a few more beers and I'll think about it." The reply.....? "SOMEBODY GET CATFISH A BEER!" Well we get the basecoat on it and break for more beer, about 12 to be exact. Just as expected the question came up again and I say why not. Another buddy of mine drew the flames out free hand....(He had to, there was a beer in the other one.) we got it all taped off and wound up passing out for the night. The next morning, still drunk, my painter asked me if I still wanted to do it? Well surely we didnt do all that for nothing? He goes to blowing paint again and ended up with more than I had ever imagined. The paint work came out so well I determined that I could not screw it up with a flatbed. I sold the one I had built and went on the hunt for a suitable fleetside. I got it and fitted it with a roll pan, smoothed the tailgate and added custom graphics. I also added the chrome Warn Enforcer front bumper and chrome diff. covers. when we were finished it was a show quaility, head turner. I had to carry a bat with me to keep the women at bay. lol j/k. I did have some really good times with it like this but I belive it was around 1997 when I started wanting more. 6 more acctually, inches that is. I got a Superlift 12" suspension lift and retired the 6" skyjacker. I also added 4:56 gears and lock-rite lockers to both ends. There proved to be only one thing that could stop this thing now. A seat full of drunk ignorance. In 1999 at the Canadian River Sand Drags and Mud Bog I once again blew up the 396. This time it sat for 4 years before I would touch it again. Most of you have seen the pictures and write up on it in its most recent state. I guess things really do get better with age.
Catfish8)
April 1996
Febuary 1997, Brady-my best friend and painter/builder on the left and me.
Summer 1998
2004
Oh yeah..... It's still not done. I want bigger. lolboger