There are several ways for you to take the first steps toward the restoration of your old truck. One of these steps is to start thinking about the restoration even before you buy the truck you want. Do you want to keep the truck original or replace the engine, transmission, suspension, brakes and so on? Make up your mind before buying the truck and you’ll have a better idea of where to start the restoration.

But if you already own an old truck and want to restore it you may also have to do a lot of thinking before you do any work. Do you want to do the restoration yourself? If so your first step is to decide where you’re going to do it. You can’t restore an old truck in your driveway and much less in the parking lot of your building. You will need a shop, a warehouse or a large garage.

Does your truck ride well or does it have problems? A truck that rides well can be restored in steps or all at once. It may need new tires, new shock absorbers, new springs, new glasses, a new paint job and so on. Start by doing whatever you feel is more urgent. Or if you can afford it, go ahead and do everything that has to be done, starting by the hardest part of the project. If your truck needs a rebuilt engine plus shock absorbers, tires and a new paint job, do the engine first. Paint it while the engine is out and install the new ties and shock absorbers after the truck has been painted and the engine rebuilt and installed.

If your truck has problems you may consider a restoration that will start by fixing the problems first. Decide what would be more urgent and start there. The drivetrain may seem like the most difficult part of a restoration project but it is not. Bodywork is more complicated because it may require you to remove everything, from the engine to the transmission, front and rear end and everything else. You may have to remove the body and the cargo bed from the frame, in what is called a “frame off” restoration. This expression means that the truck is going to go through a “complete” or “total” restoration. painted

Only you can decide where to start. It may all depend on the balance of your savings account. If you can afford, do everything at once. If you can’t, do whatever you can afford to do, starting by what you feel is most urgent.

Now let’s suppose you don’t want to do the work yourself or you don’t have a place where you can restore your truck. In this case you’ll have to look for somebody else you can hire to do the job. If you know somebody who can do it, great. If not, take your time and search carefully. I’m sure you don’t want to give our truck to somebody who don’t know what to do.

Let’s imagine that you are going to take your truck to a shop that will tackle the complete restoration project, one that has the knowledge of where to get classic and antique truck parts and that has done a fair number of restorations.

In this case you’re probably going to talk to a person who will give you the details of what is going to be done and also give you the estimated cost of the whole project. Mind you that the cost involved in a truck restoration will only be an estimate based upon the number of hours needed for the job at a certain price per hour. It’s not going to be cheap and it’s going to take long. Naturally, the shop should not make you pay for the hours your truck just sits there, but for the hours actually spent on the job of restoring it.

This is the first problem. A reputable restorer will have a system to control the hours each specialist works on your truck and you’ll have access to that information. Others aren’t as honest and may charge you more than the actual hours worked. How can you know?

It’s like going to the doctor and getting bad news. Ask for a second opinion. Talk to several restorers or find people who had their cars and/or trucks restored and ask them. Bad news spread fast and you’ll find out if a restorer is out to grab your wallet. And if you have any doubts go somewhere else.

Finding the right parts for your truck restoration is important too. You’ll save time and the quality of the work may depend on the right parts.

If you have a truck whose parts aren’t readily available, be patient and look everywhere. Surf the Internet, get in touch with other owners of the same model of truck as yours, visit all the junkyards and keep looking. And if the part simply doesn’t exist you can always resort to fabrication. Find a good machine shop and have the part made to order. It may be expensive but you will have the right part in the right place. Your restoration will be much better than if you adapted something that wasn’t right for your truck.

An old truck restoration is not the same as the work performed on a newer truck. Your can’t simply hook up a computer to the vehicle and find out what’s wrong with it. And you don’t just replace parts on a classic pickup. You have to rebuild the thing and not every mechanic is able to do that.

This is another problem. Many modern mechanics who never worked on an old car or truck may think that it will be easy to do an old truck restoration since the vehicle is so simple and basic. But that is not the case. And if you hire a person like that to do your restoration you may end up with a terrible headache. It may cost you less than going to a professional restorer but it will take a lot longer to have the project finished and the result will not make you happy.

By this we don’t mean to say that every mechanic out there is incapable of restoring an old truck. In fact, anybody can restore an old truck given the time to do it with the right tools, the right parts and the right attitude. The right attitude? By this we mean that if you want to restore an old truck you have to love it and love the work that has to be done. The money that will be paid for the job will only be a consequence of a job well done.

We have great artists who can customize your truck and turn it into a dream. And we also have wonderful restorers who can bring your truck back to its original condition and make it look like it just came out of the showroom floor. Maybe even better than that!

If you want your old truck customized or restored to its original condition you shouldn’t take it to any mechanic that says he or she can do the job. Make sure the mechanic has done similar jobs in the past and if possible talk to the owners of the cars or trucks he or she worked on. Only then you should agree to leave your truck in his(her) hands.

Only an artist could work on a FordModel A engine and leave it looking like this.

Our 1954 Chevy model 3100 has just been restored for the second time in years and we will be driving it to a few car shows and swap meets in the near future. Maybe we’ll see you in one of these events.

Another reason why I decided to publish this page was my experience with the restoration of my truck. I have made some mistakes and would like to put this experience to the service of other old truck owners who need to restore their trucks. It is important for me to advise you and to warn you against the mechanics out there who will offer to restore your truck but should never have a chance to touch it. Classic cars and trucks are very different from modern cars and although the guy may be a good mechanic with modern cars he will have problems with your old truck if he has never done a restoration before.

The most important advice I can give is this: look for a professional restorer who can show you his/her previous work. Don’t trust anybody who just says he/she can do what you want. It may look like you’re saving money but you will actually be throwing your money away. Don’t to that. If you can’t afford to do what has to be done, wait until you can do it and never leave your truck in the hands of somebody who is only after your money and doesn’t care about your passion for your truck. Make sure you are dealing with someone who knows what to do.

If money is your problem you can look for a professional restorer who can do the work in installments, so to speak. Do the drive train first, then the body work, then the paint and after that the interior. Whatever, as long as your truck is in the hands of somebody who really knows what to do.

One final word: we are not associated in any way with any of the companies mentioned in this Website. Their links are here only to inform our visitor and to allow him(her) to surf through the realm of old trucks on the Internet and learn more about classic trucks, new and used parts and what goes on in the restoration scene.

So, welcome and make yourself at home in our website.