1957 Chevy Pickup
As featured on
Classic Chevy International
magazine cover March, 2001
This 1957 Model 3600 truck began life as a special order 3/4 ton truck for our local electric company (PEPCO). The bed measures 8 and 1/2 feet long, and sets it apart from any other pickup you will see at a show. Somewhere along the way the Shriners owned it and used it to pull a float in President Nixon’s inaugural parade. It has taken 9 long years to build this beautiful truck.
Linda and I are very proud of our custom 1957 truck. In 2001 we trailered it to Cleveland, Ohio for the Classic Chevy International convention. In the 1000 point judging we took first place with a score of 991. It was a dream comes true! We were also awarded the highest honor of excellence, a platinum certificate.
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In the spring of 2002 we finally made our maiden voyage on its own power. We were going to Ocean City (200 miles) to test it before our scheduled trip to Connecticut later in the summer. The engine broke a push rod just outside of Easton, Maryland. We had it towed 100 miles home and repacked everything into our 55 Chevy and preceded to drive to the show. We were disappointed but had a nice time at the show. The good news is that the trip identified the mismatch of the drive train with the low gears. It was a no brainer that we needed a 350 to keep up with the rest of the club when we cruise together.
I started the drivetrain transplant in the fall of 2003. It took 9 months to get everything changed over and rewired. I painted the front frame 3 times before I was satisfied. I built a dolly to roll the front clip into and out of the garage while I was working on the truck.
2004
Our first driven trip with the new 350/350 drivetrain was to the ALL-GM National in Carlisle, PA. I figured that a 200 mile round trip would be enough to identify any small problems and give the engine a chance to break-in. The truck loves the highway and can do 65-70 mph at around 2,500 rpm’s. Well, we took best in our class and received a special invitation to come back to Carlisle for their All-Truck National show August 6-8, 2004. We will be showcased in the feature building for everyone to admire.
Events planned for 2004
- Southern Delaware Street Rod Show, June 26-27,2004, Harrington, Delaware
- On display in the showroom of Damascus Chevrolet from June 30th thru July 10th. This is in conjunction with our club holding an annual cruise-in on July 10th at Damascus Chevrolet.
- Classic Chevy International Convention, July 20 – 25th, Virginia Beach, VA. The truck will be entered in the 1000 point judging in the driven class.
- All-Truck Nationals at Carlisle, PA, July 6-8th, The 57 Truck will be featured in the main building.
Modifications
- All bolts are polished stainless steel.
- Paint: 1957 car Tropical Turquoise inside and out (2 gallons).
- Rebuilt 350 engine with Vortex double hump heads.
- Elderbrock manifold and 650cfm carb with manual choke.
- 8MM Taylor wires and an Accell HEI distributor
- Ceramic coated block hugger headers with 2.25 exhaust pipes.
- Stainless Steel mufflers and Tailpipes.
- Small high performance starter.
- Turbo 350 Transmission with shift kit.
- Custom 1 piece driveshaft.
- Lokar shifter with 8 inch shifter.
- 2000 CFM Electric fan with variable setting thermostat control.
- Blind bumper mounts front and rear.
- Oak bed with stainless bed strips.
- Custom rear taillights mounted in the rear cross sill.
- Third brake light visible in back window.
- 3 inch lowered mono springs front and rear.
- Power dual master cylinder under the cab.
- Front power disk brakes with conversion to 5 lug bolt pattern.
- Rear end from a 79 Camaro with 2.62 cruising gears.
- Ron Francis wiring harness.
- Electric 2-speed direct drive wipers.
- Custom heater/defroster.
- Am/Fm/Tape with speakers built into a custom overhead panel.
- Original bench seat with extra padding.
- Corvette rally wheels: 15 X 8 inch rear and 15 X 7 front.
- Seat belts.
- Heavy duty 4-core radiator.
- 100 amps 1 pin chrome alternator.
- More custom touches not mentioned above.