HOME-BUILT HEROES
Garage Build Showcase
This last-model-year Slick Side marks the second year of production for the factory crew cab and the first year it was available for non-government use. The original owner special ordered the truck for logging, hunting and camping with his family. It sat in the same barn every night from the time it was purchased up until the day Kyle bought it in 2019. The ’66 has a 300 straight-six with a T89 4-speed manual transmission and a Dana 60 rear axle 410 gear ratio. This original paint crew now lives its life in a small town as a daily driven lunchand parts-getter with the occasional weekend out as a family cruiser.
WITH QUITE A FEW TRUCK BUILDS UNDER HIS BELT, KYLE DELFEL IS A FORD CREW CAB ENTHUSIAST TO SAY THE LEAST.
His goal was to build something he could drive and something to be proud of—to be able to say, “Yeah, I did that.” The engine is a Ford FE 352 with a stock rotating assembly and a lot of tricks done on the inside of the block, a “Big Mutha Thumpa” cam with 390 GT heads that flow really well with the old school Edelbrock Cross Ram X-F66. The transmission is a T5 that has been built to handle everything else. The rear gear is a Detroit Locker out of a Winston Cup car with 4.00 gears, and wheels are American Racing Salt Flat two-piece 18x8 and 18x10 with 5x5.5 bolt pattern. Ed lowered the truck using DJM 3/4 drop and took out a rear leaf and installed a big front and rear sway bar that really helps the truck to handle well in the corners. The interior is TMI bucket seats with a newer F-150 center console and dark jade green carpet with everything matching the Ivy Glow exterior paint, which is an original color. As a driver, Ed’s favorite additions are the Vintage Air A/C and a JL Audio system that made it easy to clock more than 10,000 miles over the past two years.
ED BARCZY BUILT THIS TRUCK FROM THE FRAME UP USING PARTS THAT HE GATHERED OVER THE YEARS.
Dave and his wife, Jennifer, were looking for an older truck for Jennifer to drive and Dave to tinker with. They looked for several months before Jen found this purple Ford truck. Dave said, “It’s a Ford and it’s purple,” and dismissed the truck. They kept looking at truck after truck with no luck. Jen kept coming back to this old purple truck and, well, Dave likes old Ford trucks. His dad drove one when he was a kid, but he knew they were a little more difficult to build. After doing some research, Dave found that not many people were building these trucks, so they decided to buy it. Dave tinkered with it here and there for a while before Jen decided she didn’t really want to drive an old truck that lacked modern conveniences. So, Dave decided he would take over on it and ended up falling in love with the Purple People Eater, as they affectionately call it. The truck has a 302 and AOD transmission out of a newer F-150. The truck has drop I-beams and a fourlink riding on air all around. Dave is now planning a Crown Vic swap and looking into a coyote swap to get some more modern reliability. Dave would love to take the old purple truck to some local road course and timed parking lot races just to see people shake their heads. People either love it or hate it, but in Dave’s case—he loves the old girl.
TO BE HONEST, THIS TRUCK WAS NOT BUILT BY DAVE.
It was parked when the motor locked up and left to sit. After Mark’s uncle passed away in 2007, his dad vowed to never get rid of their truck. It sat out back all the way up until 2016, when he finally let Mark start working on it here and there. The project quickly spiraled, and Mark vowed to make his uncle proud with a complete build.
The stock chassis is long gone and in its place are a second-generation Camaro front clip with McGaughy’s drop spindles and a third-gen Camaro rear axle sporting 3:73 gears. The new 3/4 custom fabricated chassis along with a one-off rear wishbone 3-link suspension setup and Air Lift ‘bags meet with a Slam Specialties manifold fed by an EDC. All the air-ride is tucked under a custom bed featuring beadroll work and a wooden access panel. A custom stainless fuel cell sends the juice to a 300 straight-6 backed by a C4 transmission. The paint was done by Andy McBrian; the patina on the truck from years of use as well as neglect has been left untouched and simply clearcoated over. The roof, hood and tailgate feature a beautiful silver base, flaked and candypainted serape blanket and other patterns. We’d say Mark has done his uncle more than proud with this build!
THIS TRUCK WAS OWNED BY MARK’S FATHER AND UNCLE SINCE THE EARLY ’80S, BACK WHEN THEY WORKED IN THE FIELDS AND ORCHARDS.