It started as a dream when I was a kid cemented through seeing similar trucks in movies and then put into action because of what I learned from an episode of TRUCKS on power nation.

Primarily what held me back from starting a project truck was the body work. I do not have the skill set to do all the body work and my biggest fear was spending a lot of money to have someone else do it only to have the finish scratched and dented through day to day life. I always have had a soft spot for the first two generations of the F1. I remember seeing expendables and being blown away by how Stallone’s second gen looked.

One day while watching TRUCKS on power nation they did a segment on paint. They walked through the ins and out of Patina paint jobs or “Fauxtina” as they called it. These paint jobs were meant to be sloppy, looked like you had just pulled the truck out of a field and if anything happened you could always add more paint and sand it off. That coupled with the fact you could change the look of your truck on regularly at low cost got me very excited to begin this project.

I decided I wanted the look of old with the tech of new. I purchased an old farm truck that was sunk in a field and I intend to take the body from it and put it on the chassis from an 06 explorer. This will give me a practical daily driver that has all of the amenities a newer vehicle would provide. Heated leather seats, 4×4 on the fly, power locks, power windows. All while maintaining the original look. I even opted for the 3v 4.6 V8 to give it some get up and go! I have just started this project and can see there is a long road ahead but I am confident in my abilities and am excited for the drivable product. I have plenty of hurtles left such has HVAC and gauges but I take on every challenge as it comes. I am happy to have found LMC truck which provides diagrams and access to hard to find parts.