Joe Reko's 1946 Chevy |
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My 46 was purchased by an aquaintance from an old gentleman in Kansas. The old guy had a furniture business and used the truck for deliveries. After the truck was purchased it moved to Loveland Colorado and sat in a storage yard for about 8 years. I saw the truck each day on my way to work and dreamed of how beautiful it would be restored. The day came when I asked the yard manager if he knew who owned the truck. He put me in contact with the owner and I was able to buy the truck for $1800. |
| A change of oil, a new 6 volt battery, a little gas in the tank and carb and the truck fired right up. All fired up and no place to go, the brakes were frozen. Needless to say going through and rebuilding master and slave brake cylinders was my first priority.I actually drove the truck for a couple years while I began restoration of the cab interior. Then came the time to "get serious". A friend and I tore the truck down to the frame and over the course of a year and a half spent almost every Saturday working on it. 50 years after it rolled off the assembly line, it's as good as new. Only a very good friend and his understanding wife would tolerate this time commitment. |
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As you can see by the before pictures, the truck was pretty rough and I'm convinced that the old man drove in "granny gear" and god help anything in his path. We've attempted to keep the truck as original as possible right down to the low gear rear end and 4 speed "crashbox transmission." I even rebuilt the original 216 inline 6 cylinder which turned out to be a strong runner. The bed and running boards were Rhino coated to save alot of work and it looks good too. Also notice the Rhino coat on each end of the front bumper. The original chrome on the bumper was peeling at each end and this was a budget saving idea towards the end of the restoration. |
| The Front View |
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