More from Marfa

Hector Sanchez is making progress on the 1986 Custom Deluxe. He sent these photographs today from his shop in Marfa, Texas where the truck is being repainted.  Hector is a very thorough guy and one of those people who seem to have a gift for doing what they do--it's not just a job, it's a calling. I look forward to seeing the cars and trucks coming out of Hector's shop in the future. I think he's got some big ideas. Meanwhile, the old Chevy is looking pretty darn good.

I like originals: so, steel wheels, and stock hubcaps.

Between it's schoolbus-yellow factory fleet color, and the aged primer gray it wore when we bought it, the truck was white. White makes sense for Texas sun and heat. So white it is, again.

 You can see a trace of the schoolbus yellow here.

 Painted the bumper silver/aluminum. which is sort of the vernacular for these bumpers. I like everything plain-jane stock. Never liked chrome anything.

 The old steel wheels, repainted.

Exactly right. I love the great plain-jane sleeper cars, classic example being a stripped-down '61 Biscayne with small hubcaps and a 409 tucked under the hood? I could buy 65 old West Texas trucks for the asking prices I've seen on those.

Well our Chevy truck is a sleeper that really is asleep, with a 305 under there. I actually think the 305 is an underrated engine: steady, reliable, and less thirsty than a 350. It's not very glamorous, though.