For many, the love and passion for custom machines begins at a young age - and it only gets stronger as time goes on. This has been the case for Benny Edwards of Peoria, Arizona. He and his two brothers, Dillard and Jeffrey, have shared their passion for custom cars, trucks, and motorcycles since they were knee-high to a bumper. Over the years, Benny has built customs for everybody, including his brothers. But he has always dreamed of building a cool custom from the ground up. What you see here is Benny's '57 Chevy - the result of four and a half years of effort.
By using a '75 Camaro front clip and boxed framerails, Performance Suspension in Phoenix was able to add extra strength. Perry Peters from Glendale, Arizona, was responsible for the polyurethane suspension mods, as well as a pair of PSC 2-inch drop spindles with Camaro disc brakes featuring stainless steel solid and braided lines. KYB nitrogen-filled shocks damp the front suspension, and a pair of Koni nitrogen-filled coilover shocks now control the rear suspension. To eliminate any rear wheel hop, ladder bars were installed. An RCI 16-gallon fuel cell is safely located between the rear framerails. American Racing 15x3.5 polished aluminum Torq-Thrust II wheels are wrapped with Mickey Thompson 26/750 Sportsman rubber. Massive rear 29x18.5x17 Mickey Thompson meats will plant and hook up the torque and horsepower during launch. A narrowed Ford 9-inch rearend is stuffed with Richmond 4.11 gears, a Detroit locker, and Strange axles.
The massive '70 Chevrolet, 468ci engine was machined by the spot-on crew at LTB Engine Works. The cast-iron cylinder heads have been ported and polished for a better air/fuel ratio. The engine block and cylinders have been aligned, bored, and honed. The steel crankshaft, bearings, H-beam connecting rods, pistons, and rings are all internally balanced for smooth rotation. A Competition Cam 280 duration with 288 at 0.547 lift produces the engine's heartbeat. Two Edelbrock Q-Jet 850-cfm carburetors are mounted atop the B&M 6-71 blower that produces 10 pounds of boost. An MSD Electronic distributor is linked up to an MSD Retard Boost Box and ignition wires. Ceramic-coated 2-inch-diameter Hooker headers were bolted up, and the cylinder heads flow into a 3-inch-diameter exhaust and Flowmaster mufflers.