Will McCloskey estimates that he's built 70 to 80 custom rides in the nearly 20 years he's been into customizing trucks. He got his start back in '89, when chrome fender trim and 15s were king, by dropping a spankin' new Isuzu P'up. His mom helped him buy the new mini, and soon it had a walk-through, low-pro rubber, and 18-inch subs. These days, Will is onto bigger and better things as the owner of Aces & 8s Customs in Fresno, California. His skill set has grown along with his toolbox, so he's taken another stab at building an Isuzu-but on a much grander scale.
The white standard cab was bought for $1,350, complete with a utility rack. Will, Sergio, and Fat Nick blew the mini apart in a weekend and spent the next six weekends laying the mofo out hard. Fueled by coffee and cigarettes, and with a heavy-metal soundtrack to the build keeping them motivated, the trio performed a 2.25-inch channel job on the cab. Combined with a set of Art Morrison mandrel-bent framerails and a relocated core support, the body was lowered enough to set the pinch weld on the ground when the air is gone from the suspension.
The fab work includes a sectioned front crossmember and custom-built control arms. The front end pivots thanks to Slam Specialties RE-6 'bags and Chassis Tech drop spindles. Out back, 24 inches of suspension travel with less than 2 degrees of pinion-angle change is made possible by an amazing link system. The mounts are built from 1.5-inch tubing with a maze of compound bends. The suspension consists of an upper wishbone and lower parallel link bars, with lift coming from another set of Slam Specialties airbags. The ride is tuned not only by Monroe dampers on custom pivoting mounts, but also by a pair of air cylinders mounted atop the airbags. By varying the air pressure within the 'bags and cylinders, Will says he can tailor the ride any way he likes.
The suspension on this truck is what got it into Busted Knuckles. And although Isuzus offer more vertical front-end clearance for big wheels than most other minis, the fact that Will parked his truck on deuce-deuces also got our attention. Will expects to finish the truck by the end of summer. We can't wait to see it.