You have all heard about "barnfind" cars - those cars that have been hidden away for decades only to be discovered again.  Well, this is actually one of those stories.  Found by a customer in Arkansas, this car wasn't actually in a barn, but beside it.  Having sat there since sometime in the early 80s, this car was covered with leafs and dirt, but otherwise complete.  It was pulled out, tires aired up (then replaced), and returned to running condition.  Last used as a drag race car, it had quite a few modifications to it (race-oriented flat-tappet cam engine, big headers, stripped down interior with aftermarket "race" shifter, and some rust.  Wasn't much interior left, but a good start.  The neat part - original paint, original vinyl top and lots of old decals from the 70s - including a couple participant decals from NHRA Fall nationals in 77 & 78 !!!

This is what it looked like upon arrival...

First we swapped the rusted out headers for new, put stock valve covers back on, and changed to a more street-friendly intake manifold...aiming to give the car a more stock appearance.  Installed a factory appearing aluminum radiator and shroud, and a few other odds and ends that were missint to make everything work as it would have from the factory...

The hardest part of this build was the rust - we had to fix it and make the final product look like it was as old as the rest of the metal and paint, but without the rust.  The worst areas were the passenger lower fender, rear window corners, and trunk drip rails.  Some selective and careful metal replacement, and some creative painting made it look like it had never rusted, but the paint had faded like the rest of the car...

The interior received a new headliner, seats were recovered, new carpet, doorpanels reconditioned, and console restored.  The truck was cleaned up, got a new mat, original jack and new spare tire...

Now back on the road as a street car once again...