Often older trucks like these are bound to have a long history. Back in the day when '63 Chevy C10 Stepside trucks first rolled off the assembly line, they had no idea about the two different types of fate in store for them. These trucks were used and abused, which often ended in a trip to the crusher afterward. The lucky ones would eventually be cherished by someone in their distant future.
This truck was originally purchased for use in a working environment, just as the designers at GM intended. The Stepside made its way to the Road Department of Kingman, Arizona, and was used to help make the roads that are still driven on today. There, it was maintained and kept in decent condition while being driven to haul. When it became old and less strong, it was stored in the back of the parking lot, taking up precious space.
Just before it was to hit its 20-year anniversary, one of local enforcers named Darrell Campbell, spotted the truck wasting away. He inquired about it and convinced the Road Department into selling the truck to him for 50 dollars. Once again, it was put to use and helped in hauling junk around in.
After years of abuse, the truck blew its motor and was stored in Darrell's backyard. As his son Jason grew into adolescence, he had the itch to have a vehicle of his own for transportation. Jason knew of the truck in his dad's backyard and knew that with a little hard work it could be in running condition again. With the promise of keeping up his grades and staying out of trouble, Jason found himself the new owner.
First thing on his list was to get the beast working again, and 200 dollars later he got it rolling with a used 305-cid Chevy engine. Once he got the feel for the truck, he realized that there was more to the machine other than getting him from place to place. Jason then decided that he wanted to make it look better by fixing it up a bit. In order to do that, he had to pull some low-budget tricks out of his sleeves that didn't really work too well.
While cruising around with his brother James, the two of them ran into the boys of Timeless Cruisers club. They ended up hanging out together with their shared interest, which jump-started Jason on stepping it up a notch with his customizing. First on the list was to transplant a 383-cid V-8 Chevy engine into the truck, then some airbagging to get the truck down lower than ever. Once he learned how to weld and work sheetmetal, he started a total reshaping of his bed. The fenders and steps were used as the starting point on the metalwork. Then, after two years of having mixed ideas on how to shape the bed, Jason completed it and covered it in DuPont primer.
Four decades later, this '63 is still around because it made its way to someone who has a love for it. Jason initially wanted to use it as transportation, but he ended up falling in love with it along the way. And through his time with it, he has made it even better by customizing it with his own ideas. Even though it's looking good now, Jason still plans on taking it further with more bodywork and eventually a mint-green paintjob, and we'll be there to present it to you when it happens.