The once ugly duckling '57 Ford F100 was transformed into a beautiful swan by chopping the top two inches above the windshield. The hood was extended, sectioned, and pancaked. A pair of Hummer H2 headlights flank the sectioned grille, which was then chromed. The cab and front fenders were sectioned two inches below the door handles. A donor bed's outer skin was used to form the bed's inner wall, creating a double-wall bed. A set of Ford letter dies were fabricated, then used to emboss the new double-wall outer tailgate skin. The custom bed features mahogany wood planks separated with stainless steel stringers and hardware. The wooden bed floor is remotely activated, tilting up, exposing the carpeted sub-storage compartment underneath the bed floor, between the framerails. Handmade fuel tanks are mounted below and in front of the bed, outside of the framerails. Steve Fisbie showed the pride he takes in his work by cutting and tucking both front and rear bumpers as tight as possible to the contour of the body's skin.
All of the body mods were performed at Steve's Auto Restoration. The choice of color was House of Kolors Blue Blood Red. Given ample time to dry, it was then wet-sanded before receiving multiple coats of clear, developing a gloss finish. The entire surface was then power-buffed and polished, creating a brilliant high-gloss, deep mirror finish.
Paul Reichen at Cedardale Upholstery in Mt. Vernon, Oregon, showed off his talents in stitching by creating the plush, custom tan leather interior. Looking up at the tan leather headliner, we notice the ribs match the spacing of the hood ribs and bed floor stainless steel stringers. (Cool!) The dash was shaved smooth, then modified to accept the '96 Cobra Mustang instrumentation. The dash was then covered in tan leather. All electrical wires were hidden behind leather-covered panels behind the Glide seat. The Clarion AM/FM/CD stereo head unit, Vintage Air controls, and wiper controls were hidden inside the glove box. Audio speakers are mounted in the kick panels and in the cab corners. An ididit steering column with shifter was installed and capped with a leather-covered Flaming River steering wheel.
What you see before you is Gary Coe's '57-'59 Ford F100 custom prototype created by the talented team at Steve's Automotive Restoration. Gary's '57 was unveiled at this year's Portland Roadster Show, where it won "The King of Custom." Then, at its second showing at the Goodguys Del Mar show it received both the Goodguys D'Elegance finalist for "Truck of the Year" and Boyd Coddington's "Pro's Pick." This envisioned effort has definitely established the benchmark for the thousands of Ford '57 F100's waiting to be customized. "From a wallflower to a prom queen."