Porterville, California, is a small town located about 50 miles north of Bakersfield, on Interstate 65, and it has had more custom trucks built there in the past 50 years than any other place on the planet. Here are two of Porterville's latest.
We know the '67-'72 GM trucks have always been among the favorites of early-model custom-truck enthusiasts. The straight, smooth, and simple bodylines make a clean canvas for whoever wishes to partake in a fairly effortless creation. Just drop it, add wheels and tires, body, paint, and interior. They are a timeless generation of American iron.
Mark McDonald Jr. from Porterville shared the first buildup of the '69 GMC with his dad, Mark Sr., as a father and son project after Mark Jr. bought it in 1993. After years of cruisin' and showin', it was retired for some updated modifications.
The revision consisted of sending the truck to the crew at KRZ Customs in Fresno, where it was disassembled down to the bare frame. The front suspension crossmember was raised 3 inches and fitted with a pair of custom-built lower control arms. To achieve a rocker-scrapin' stance, a pair of Early Chassis 2-inch drop spindles were fitted between the custom lower and stock upper control arms. The front stopping power is handled by an Early Classic disc-brake conversion kit. A pair of Nitro Drop gas shocks were relocated on the framerails. The stock transmission crossmember was removed and replaced with a raised transmission crossmember. These frame and suspension modifications were all major factors in the slammed suspension equation. To finish it off, a pair of Firestone pneumatic 'bags were installed. The front suspension rolls on a pair of Boyd Coddington Smoothie 20x8-inch aluminum wheels, which were then wrapped with Continental P245/40R20 rubber.
To achieve a slammed four-corner stance, the factory framerails were cut off just behind the cab. New 2x4-inch rear framerails were designed with major 14-inch step notches, allowing the 12-bolt rear-end housing that was stuffed with 2:73 gears and new five-lug Early Chassis 31-spline axles ample clearance when the 'bags are fully deflated. The rear framerails were spud-welded for insured strength and rigidity. KRZ Customs fabricated custom brackets for the four-link Panhard bar rear suspension. A pair of Pro Shock absorbers were teamed up with a pair of Firestone pneumatic 'bags, that are huffed and puffed by two Viair compressors with 3/8-inch valves and hard lines to give Mark the ability to perform its rocker scraping athleticism. A pair of chubby Goodyear Eagle P275/45R20 rear tires provide the grip on the power end.
The stout '69 Chevy 350ci small-block was freshened up by the team at Shetler Machine, which internally balanced, blueprinted, and assembled the entire engine. Shetler decked the engine block, and machined the block's cylinder bores 0.040-inch over factory spec. An Edlebrock camshaft was carefully inserted into the new cam bearings. TRW pistons with new rings were dropped into each cylinder. An Edelbrock bump stick was carefully inserted through the cam bearings. A complete Edelbrock valve train, including intake manifold and 650cfm carburetor, were then bolted on. The electrical power is supplied by an Optima Yellow Top battery. A re-curved HEI distributor and ignition create enough voltage to fire and maintain the mighty 350ci engine. A pair of ram-horn exhaust manifolds were Jet-Hot coated, then bolted up to the cylinder heads exhaust ports. The 2-1/2-inch-diameter exhaust flows into a pair of Flowmaster Delta Flow mufflers.