"I will not build a vehicle...
"I will not build a vehicle that I won't drive - if it's on a trailer, then I ask why." -Mike Reeves
While on location in Florida for show coverage, we came across this clean, little Toyota. We happened to track down the owner and asked him the usual questions. Is it done, and can we shoot it for a feature? Mike Reeves then shrugged his shoulders and told us "Sure, but it's just a shop truck." It sat there looking amazing with a body drop, a clean interior, and a smoothed bed with rounded corners, so we knew better that it deserved recognition here.
So, we followed up with Mike and chatted a little while with him on how everything came to be. He told us that originally he got into the truck scene at the age of 15, when he and his buddy ditched school. While out being devious kids, they saw a hammered-down mid-'80s Toyota in a parking lot, and they just went bananas over it. His buddy went home and told his parents about the truck, and they bought it for him that very night. Even though the slammed Toyota rode like it had no suspension travel, the two of them cruised in it throughout the state of Georgia.
Mike had already seen the light and was hooked on the trucks, indefinitely. Now he was on a mission to find a truck of his own, worthy of cutting and cruising. He wound up purchasing an '87 Ford Ranger, and he set about building it without any previous experience. Juiced up and channeled down, he was on his way with the Ranger. Though it was his first project, Mike admits that it was a hack job, but he did it all himself and learned from it.
A few trucks later, Mike gained more fabricating experience and opened up his own shop in Dallas, Georgia. Under the name Endless Fabrications, he now builds custom rides for everyone else who likes to go clean and low, as well. Because he is too busy making ends meet by working on customer's vehicles, Mike doesn't get much opportunity to build something for himself.
He got his chance to have his own truck again when he heard about one of his friends selling off a '93 Toyota that was in pieces. The owner of the truck was very wishy washy and lost interest in it altogether. Mike then took the opportunity to snag the Toy from him for 1,200 dollars. It was then off to the shop to get redone and assembled back together again. Since Mike's wife Kristen is his accountant, she made sure the shop got paid even when he was working on his own truck. Thus, he had to shell out three grand to pay his own shop to build it.
Mike finished the truck in just three weeks and now drives it daily. And even though it is pretty damn clean, he truly does use it to haul junk for his shop. He is the real deal and doesn't wimp out on using the truck for its intended purpose.
The 411
Owner/hometown: Mike Reeves / Dallas,Georgia
Year/make/model: '93 Toyota pickup
Engine/drivetrain: Four-cylinder / five-speed manual
Wheels/tires: Boyd Coddington Shadow (Front) 18x7-inch, (Rear) 19x8-inch / Toyo Proxes
Suspension: 3-1/4-inch traditional body drop / (Front) Firestone airbags / Belltech drop spindles / (Rear) Slam Specialties airbags / four-link suspension / full handmade back half from 2x2-inch boxed steel
Fabricator: Mike Reeves of Endless Fabrication in Dallas, Georgia
Body Mods: Shaved door handles / mirrors / rear Grant Customs combo / wipers / rain seals /gas door behind frenched license plate
Custom Paint: Two-tone with white and orange
Bodywork/paintwork: Joe Man and Mike Reeves of Endless Fabrication in Dallas, Georgia
Interior: Stock bench re-covered in orange and white vinyl / black carpet / door panels handbuilt by Chris Maynard / fiberglassed dash by Adrian / Grant steering wheel / window tinting by Gregory's Quality Printing of Powder Springs, Georgia
Upholsterer: Gary of Auto & Marine Upholstery in Dallas, Georgia
Audio/video: Pioneer head unit / Pioneer 6x9-inch speakers
Installer: Endless Fabrication in Dallas, Georgia