One of the mortal enemies of a restoration is the guy who brings out a toolbox and dismantles a vehicle with absolutely no game plan about the project.
‘These guys dive into a vehicle and undo something that took a herd of engineers and an assembly plant team a fair amount of time to complete from drawing board to a drive out the factory exit doors.’
Many idiots have managed to disassemble vehicles in a relatively short period of time but they are way over their heads in the reassembly phase.
So many parts- so few IQ points.
Eventually the scattered mess is thrown haphazardly into boxes and the next owner is left to put together a big puzzle without all of the pieces.
Lyle Blair found himself staring down the barrel of just such a problem when he found his 1954 Dodge “half -assed and half- done” pick up. The truck’s components were boxed up and the cab was chock full of body parts.
Some assembly required.
The Dodge was right at the crossroads of its future fate where it would either become a roadworthy project or a mother lode of parts for another guy who had a truck in one piece with much less assembly required.
Lyle decided to save the truck and thus began a journey to the finish line for Lyle and his venerable Dodge truck. Lyle is obviously a guy who likes a challenge and lesser men might have hung the Parts for Sale sign early in the game, but not Lyle.
The happy ending for the truck is its new life as a roadworthy retro-mod with Dodge truck skin sitting on an Oldsmobile sub frame powered by a small block Olds 305.
None of the puzzle was easy for Lyle as he revived a project that began as a concept for another guy armed with a set of wrenches and no clue.
Good thing Lyle was around to pick up the pieces.
Jim Sutherland
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