By: Jon Stalnaker
AKA The Studebaker Dude
So now I find myself with two Studebakers, a car and a truck. Both are potentially very nice classic vehicles. I had already decided the bullet nose would be the one that would get the most attention and it would be a complete, frame-off restoration. I was still struggling with how far to take it. Should it be a complete restoration back to its original condition or should I modify it with modern running gear? Luckily for me, Roger was slow to get to it, so I changed my mind several times. Meanwhile, I acquired this beautiful truck, and I could get it going right away. It already was a good running truck and my intention from the beginning was to use it as a truck.
I had some “body working” skills and a few tools so I fixed what dents I could and started a primer paint job. I was going to paint it two-tone flat red and flat black primer. I separated the two colors with a flame lick. I got what I could, done and decided to take the truck to a local body shop to get the fenders fixed. They were beyond my skills, abilities, and tools to repair myself. When I took it to Chavez Body Shop in Dixon, Guillermo Chavez came out of his office to look over the truck and give me an estimate.
His entire face lit up and he told me it was just like the trucks of his youth in the old country. I knew immediately that he was the man to do this job. I could see it was a labor of love for him. I would stop by his shop after work and see the progress. He was doing a great job and the truck was all disassembled while the fenders were all being returned to the glory of their original shape. I thought to myself, “since it is already apart, now would be a great time to put a real paint job on it”. I asked Guillermo and he offered to paint it for a very reasonable extra charge. The next thing I knew, I was in his office reviewing paint chip books. I found this lovely shade of green that was a 70s GMC color. When I finally took it home, it was a gorgeous truck that got a lot of attention. I would find out years later that the color I chose was almost exactly the same color as an original color.
I was thrilled and finished the look with the bed boards and a set of classic steelie wheels made to match the color I had selected for the grill and tailgate letters. When it was done, I set out early one morning and drove around the rural areas of Dixon with my Nikon camera looking for the perfect background for an awesome picture. I had some experience with photography, enough to be able to recognize a great picture when I see one. I had several good ones but the one I chose to send to Turning Wheels along with my story about the truck was good enough to be chosen for the magazine cover. In April 2008, my truck was displayed on the inside front cover of the prestigious magazine that represents the Studebaker Drivers Club. Strike that one off the bucket list. Now I’m starting to feel like a true car guy.
I did the right thing with that truck as it went on to win many awards at cars shows. At first, I was happy to pick up a second-place award as that was about the level I built it to. But I didn’t stop with just a paint job. I kept getting carried away and one day I was coming home from a car show and driving into a head wind, all I could do was 45 MPH. I had a string of cars following me on a single lane highway with no turnoffs for miles. That was embarrassing, and that was when I decided to put modern running gear into it. From that point on it was first place all the way. And it was the 5.3L/4L60E version of this truck that landed it and me on the My Classic Car TV show. It also received a first-place award at a Studebaker event, so it has received the blessing of the mother club for Studebakers.
