Kip Rogers bought his very rusty old 1956 Chevrolet 1300 pickup truck for 200 dollars back in 1976.
The truck became priceless along the way to its restoration because Kip got to spend time with his two sons during the project.
Initially the truck was a working stiff because Kip used the truck for yard work around his house.
He became attached to the Chevy over the years and decided to restore the truck. He took a long road trip to buy parts in Independence, Mo. for the truck and it was game-on for the restoration.
One of Kip’s sons did the mechanical work on the truck because he was qualified to do the work, but Kip and both his sons played a huge part in the restoration as a family effort. This entire project was clearly important to Kip because the actual restoration process meant that he got to spend more time with his boys.
The truck was a frame-off restoration that took a great deal of effort from all three of the Rogers clan to reach the completed stage. It was done on a well-planned budget that paid close attention to cost along the way.
The extra bonus in this family project is a finished product that is a high quality restoration and a big part of Kip’s retirement lifestyle because he loves to jump behind the wheel of the truck and head out on a road trip with his wife in the shotgun seat.
There is no clear choice about which of Kip’s sons likes the truck more in Kip’s opinion, but one of the boys is 6 feet 8 and he has a little trouble fitting into the cab of the truck.
We asked Kip about his plate choice which reads “5634”. The “56” is the year the truck was built, while “34” is the number of years Kip worked until his well-earned retirement.
Kip gave us his three rules to a quality restoration; “time, inclination and money”. He added a few more personal words of wisdom to the three rules of restoration;“No matter what you think of the first two-you need the third one.” Every car guy who has taken the restoration journey would nod in agreement.
The restoration process was a fairly lengthy process for Kip and he included one more nugget of car guy advice; “There is no such thing as can’t-it just takes a little longer.” This insight from Kip is yet another concept that every car guy will understand very well during a restoration.
The truck is a beauty and we commend the enormous effort put forth by the Rogers to save a rusty old truck from the wrecker. We also commend Kip because he now drives the finished truck and has taken it off the trailer when he attends local shows.
The small block Chevy 265 is will propel Kip and his wife to any show at a comfortable 70 mph, so he is able to drive along with the traffic flow unless he chooses to slow down and enjoy the scenery along the way.
The fact is that Kip was never in a hurry to finish his truck in the first place, because he wanted to do the job right and he wanted to spend time with his boys.
Mission accomplished Kip.
Jim Sutherland
