Owner: Jeff Lewis
When I purchased the truck 3 years ago the engine had been rebuilt ( a 1960 235 inline 6) and installed and a feeble attempt had been made on the body work. The interior had to be completely de-rusted. The bed sides that came with the truck were not usable in my estimation so I purchased new bedsides, bed front and tailgate from Jim Carter.
The bed wood came from Jim Carter and is yellow pine stained with lampblack and linseed oil as the originals were. I did use stainless bed strips which are not original to the truck. I painted the truck myself and quickly found out that there is a steep learning curve on the painting but I stuck it out and it came out pretty good. I bought a used HVLP system but if the truth be known, other than the cab and the bedsides everything else was painted using the disposable PreVal sprayers!! They work great.
I worked three winters on the truck. I had to replace the brakes and lines and opted for the stainless steel brake lines. I purchased a few items on eBay but the majority from Jim Carter. I was fortunate in that I live about an hour from Jim Carter and was able to make several trips there and develop a relationship with Mike Taylor. Mike would let me roam around in the basement where all the used parts are, and there were times when I would spend practically the whole day there. Mike went out of his way to help me find difficult to find parts that are not available reproduction. Most people don't realize the Jim Carter has much more than what is shown in his catalog. They have a huge basement and several yards filled with cabs and used parts. People should check with him first before bidding on eBay for used parts!
