I
f classified ads were honest, the
one Chris Church responded to
would’ve read: “’64 C10, rusty,
torched springs, electrical
problems, shifts poorly, brush-painted
beige.” But it might not have mattered
anyway; “I had to have it,” Chris says.
This truck thing, it is indeed a sickness.
But it’s a noble sickness. “I always
wanted a truck with this body style,”
Chris says. His uncle had one, as well as
a ’68 Mustang fastback under restoration
when Chris was but 10 years old. “I’d ride
my skateboard down to his house to help
as often as I could.”
Chris finally gave in to the C10 bug in
2014 by buying from a Craigslist ad that
wasn’t quite as honest as our example.
It begat a full restoration, an extensive
one in light of the decrepit beginnings.
To make the most of an exhaustive
professional schedule, Chris split the
duties with Portland’s Carolina Kustoms.
The truck got reduced to its bare
frame. Classic Performance Products’
tubular arms replaced the stamped ones.
A Borgeson integrated-power steering
box replaced the Armstrong gear, and
Wilwood discs replaced the iffy drums.
Chris retained the proven trailing-arm
suspension but replaced the axle with a
later and wider 8½-inch unit. It now spins
a 3.73:1 gear set on an Eaton TrueTrac
limited-slip carrier. The rear got a bolt-in
C-notch for axle clearance, and both ends
got RideTech air springs and Hotchkis
anti-roll bars. The chassis has potential.
To make the most of that poten-
tial, AC Nutter Racing Engines in
Vancouver, Washington, bored an
LS 6.0 to 6.2. With ported heads and
a Chevrolet Performance Gen 3 Hot
Cam, the mill is basically an LS3 on
anabolics. Rather than gather the LS3
intake components, Chris converted to
a Holley induction system, including
a mid-rise manifold, fuel rails, and
105mm throttle-body. A Katech Per-
formance kit relocated the coils.
A Drive Junky accessory drive spins
a Powermaster Motorsports alternator,
a Jones Racing power-steering pump,
and an Edelbrock water pump. That
pump circulates coolant through a
PRC Hot Rod radiator with a Spal fan
and shroud. Chris backed the 6.2 with
an ’02 4L65E with a Lead Foot Diesel
Performance clutch package. The Doug
Thorley Tri-Y headers flanking that
trans lead to 2½-inch stainless pipes
with Magnaflow mufflers.Talent, Cash,
and a Touch
of Miracle