With the push of a button, a handheld remote will instantly open F-this like a Swiss Army Knife.
Two custom trucks may look the same from a distance, but when scanned closely, their differences become clearer and clearer. As Truckin' editors, we travel to shows all over the country, and in doing so, have the privilege of admiring the most beautiful custom trucks on the planet.
Having been exposed to thousands of custom trucks, both early and late-models over the years, we sometimes tend to take the incredible craftsmanship for granted. But when we came across Rick and Retha Clutters' immaculate '56 Ford F-100 at the Goodguys Show 'n' Shine in Del Mar, California, it stopped us dead in our tracks. The smooth, glistening Spanish Gold Effie exposed its Swiss Army Knife pose for all to admire. Presently, Rick is retired and enjoying his life's journey in Lancaster, California. Rick owned three new-car dealerships and 15 franchises for some 30 years, during which time he owned numerous custom cars, trucks, trains, and planes. While looking for another builder to create his latest dream, a staff editor friend from Hot Rod directed Rick to Jordon Quintal of Super Rides, in Escondido, California. Rick had Jordon build his previous custom, Envy, a '57 Chevy BelAir. His respect and appreciation for Jordon's talented craftsmanship throttled Rick to have him work his magic again, building Rick's current pristine passion.
Jordon worked with visionary artist and builder Chip Foose to sketch four renderings of the '56 Ford F-100 big-window. Rick and Jordon pondered over the renderings, taking segments from each drawing and compiling them into this final result.
The framerails and crossmembers were constructed from 2x6-inch rectangular tubing. To achieve the sleek, smooth mono frame appearance, each TIG-welded joint was filled and sanded smooth to create a seamless custom frame. A Heidt's front suspension crossmember was fused between the framerails. A pair of Heidt's Mustang II front drop spindles were linked between the upper and lower control arms with ball joints and urethane bushings. A Heidt's steering rack was teamed up with a Chevrolet type II power steering unit. The Wilwood master cylinder feeds four Wilwood twin-piston calipers that apply the pressure to the Wilwood 13-inch rotors. All of the brake lines were made of hand-bent stainless steel that was then chrome-plated. F-this, as it is known, rolls on a set of one-off 18x8-inch Boyd Coddington billet aluminum wheels up front, wrapped in BFGoodrich 235/40ZR18 rubber. Jordon arched and notched each framerail to allow plenty of clearance between the framerails and rearend axle housings. When the Air Ride Technologies Shock Wave pneumatic shocks are deflated, a Heidt's triangulated rear suspension and Panhard bar anchors the smoothed, plated, and painted Currie rearend that's stuffed with 3.10 gears. An Air Ride Technologies Shock Wave shock system allows the rearend's ride height to be pneumatically adjusted. To hook up the asphalt on the power end, a set of one-off Mickey Thompson Sportsman Radial prototypes 31/18XR20 LT mask two, one-of-a-kind Boyd Coddington 20x15-inch one-piece billet aluminum wheels.
The mountain of an engine started with a Chevy 502ci cast-iron block that was machined, bored, and stroked by Greg Scott Racing Engines to the equivalent of 540ci. A pair of Edelbrock aluminum cylinder heads were ported, polished, and deburred. An Isky cam with 280/280-duration and .680/.680 lift delivers an aggressive heartbeat for the 540ci power plant. The 871 BDS Blower houses the internal injectors and is capped by a Hilborn bug catcher. Jordon then designed and fabricated the 2-1/8-inch headers that merge into 4-inch collectors. The headers were sent off to Doug Brown for coating and chroming. The exhaust flows into a pair of polished, stainless Borla mufflers and exits out the side of the running boards. A manual Richmond six-speed transmission distributes firm shifts to the Oceanside Driveline chromed driveshaft linking the 800 hp to the beefed-up Currie rearend. The polished billet aluminum shifter was designed and machined by Jordon.