Chevy pick up 1955 - 1959 custom & mild custom

55 Chevrolet very custom pickup. southern California truck rust free. It looks like a real 50s time capsule like something that was done by rat fink or von dutch. Done classy rat rod or rockabilly style! It is a rust free truck new 350 and 350 tranny headers dual exhaust, b/m shifter, Chopped top, 1959 Impala batwing style bed rails and 59 Impala cat eye style taillights. It has a 51 style 3 piece wrap around rear window. Side windows are power. 1951 Cadillac steering wheel/ Door handles were shaved remote key fob door poppers. Has dual flame thrower exhaust that shoots wild flames, a custom hand made spider web tailgate with spider web rear body accents also hand made. Polished diamond plate in the bed, wheels metal flake painted to match paint. Gangster white wall bias ply tires. Headers, with dual exhaust, aluminum intake with 4bbl carb. Brake system redone, Custom whiteface gauges and dash. Gorgeous 1 off spider web seat upholstery and one off spider web headliner. Draws a huge crowd with lots of thumbs up going down the road. Custom candy paint with low rider paint patterns in metal flake. Maltese surfer cross rear view mirrors. Legendary Ron Hernandez hand pin striping inside and out truck.

Some vehicles seem like they have a bad aura. Not only can they be hiding a lot of complications that aren't readily apparent at point of purchase, but for some reason the entire build process seems like there's no light at the end of the tunnel. Sometimes it's spending more way money t


han we anticipated, getting injured while working on it, or a combination of things that makes us wonder why we purchased said project in the first place. But in the end, we usually realize it was worth the effort.



Kevin Bleth didn't imagine 14 years would go by and that he'd break a toe on his cherry picker during the buildup when he first clapped eyes on this 1958 Chevrolet Apache. But hey, if you ask Kevin if it was worth it, he'd tell you the truck came out exactly the way he wanted. After being forced to leave behind a '46 F-1 when he moved to Washington, he started looking for a new project and found this one at a dealership in Lewiston, Idaho. Although the previous owner had riveted sheetmetal panels on to fix sections that were damaged, and the underlying body rot was substantial when he got into it, he never gave up on turning this thing around.


At first, the plan was a daily driver, but as the receipts kept adding up, he realized that spending this much money wasn't conducive to those initial intentions, so he decided to go with more of a show truck theme. For suspension underpinnings, Kevin's first thought was to do a flipped rear axle and monoleaf setup in front, but after going that route he realized the ride quality was far below par. He started over and used a TCI Mustang II unit in the front and switched to a Chevy 12-bolt with a TCI four-link in the rear. When it was all completed, Kevin was finally satisfied with the feel and performance.



Although the truck came with a 350/350 combo, Kevin ditched the engine for a '76 454 that he outfitted with a bigger Edelbrock Torker cam, Air Gap intake, and 750-cfm carb. A Pete Jackson gear drive, Moroso electric water pump, Accel ignition, Doug's headers, and Billet Specialties dress-up accessories round out the package. Kevin rebuilt the previous 350 trans and added a stall kit as well. A No Limit Engineering gas tank was also snapped up and put under the Brothers Trucks bed wood. Now there's no shortage of power to put to the pavement.



The body on this thing was pretty sad, so about the only things that could be saved were the cab, doors, and hood. Fiberglass front and rear fenders were added along with a Gaylord's tonneau cover, a custom Glory grille, Eckler's tailgate, and Lokar LED taillights. The cowl was smoothed, emblems and door handles were shaved, and one-piece side windows installed. The paint was a combo of PPG custom-mixed Ivory and White Crystal with Shimmering Shamrock for the scallops. Sitting on those shiny Wheel Vintiques smoothies makes for a nice early '60s custom look.

The interior was tricked out with Dakota Gauges and their remote entry kit along with Bear Claw latches on the doors, a '78 Camaro steering column, Billet Specialties wheel, and RetroSound stereo. A modified 2005 Buick LeSabre front seat was covered in white vinyl and looks right at home next to the B&M Pro Ratchet shifter and Watson's StreetWorks switches on the console. Kevin also adorned the cab with more scallops that he patterned out and it ends up getting lots of attention.


So after almost a decade and a half, and lots of money spent on trial and error (and a hospital bill), Kevin finally got the truck where he wanted it. Perseverance pays off, even when your new vehicle seems to throw every objection it can at the process along the way. Satisfaction is truly a priceless commodity.

Facts & Figures
1958 Chevy Apache
Kevin Bleth

Chassis
Frame: stock, modified
Rearend / Ratio: Chevy 12-bolt / 3.73:1
Rear suspension: TCI four-link
Rear brakes: 11-inch disc
Front suspension: TCI IFS
Front brakes: 11-inch disc
Wheels: Wheel Vintiques smoothies 17x8
Tires: Firestone Firehawk Wide Oval Indy 500 245/45R17
Gas tank: 21-gallon No Limit Engineering

Drivetrain
Engine: 454
Heads: stock
Valve covers: Billet Specialties
Manifold / Induction: Edelbrock / Edelbrock 750
Exhaust / Mufflers: Doug's Headers / Cherry Bombs
Transmission: 350

Body
Style: stepside
Modifications: fiberglass fenders, Eckler's tailgate, smoothed cowl, shaved emblems and handles, Gaylords' tonneau cover
Bed: Brothers Trucks oak
Bodywork and paint by: Beau Grillo, Luke Thomas, Les Vale, owner
Paint type / Color: PPG / Ivory and White Crystal, Shimmering Shamrock
Headlights / Taillights: stock / Lokar LED
Rear bumper: stock
Grille: Glory Grills

Interior
Dashboard: Stock
Gauges: Dakota Digital
Stereo: RetroSound
Steering wheel: Billet Specialties Street Lite
Steering column: '78 Camaro
Shifter: B&M Pro Ratchet
Seats: 2005 Buick LeSabre and console
Upholstery by: Frank's Upholstery, Clarkston, WA
Material / Color: vinyl / white pearl
Carpet: gray

Custom 1959 Chevy truck.Chopped top,lowered, bucket seats,shaved door handles,french head lights, Continental kit, sun roof, power windows, 59 Cadillac tail lights, 350 engine.

1957 Chevy pickup full kustom
60's gm front clip with power disc brakes
350 engine & 700-r4 transmission
front&back airride setup
kustom fadeaway paint job with PPG & HOK products