Daily Slideshow: 1929 Pickup Easily Takes Trophies Home

Easy to see why it wins

Dennis Portka, like so many other truck owners whose pickups we've featured, started this build out as just a shop truck before it took on a life of its own. This truck, which began as a project back in 1989, ended up one of the 2017 Pirelli Great 8 in Detroit Autorama's annual Don Ridler Memorial competition. While this may look like a stock Model A, it actually us a coach-built pickup with every panel and part touched by the builder's hand in some capacity. The build took a total of 3,500 hours but oh how sweet this labor of love is. 

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An amazing bespoke build

The cab, which was designed with a more contemporary flair, has modern style door jams, weather stripping, and latches. Occupants can easily stretch out since the cabin has been extended 2-inches for extra leg room and the rear window was enlarged to make life just a bit easier. The doors and windshield are flush fit with a handmade windshield frame with visor that looks so good Henry Ford himself would give it a thumbs up. The hood on the pickup was designed to sit ridged with its own framework. Just before the framework was bent Dennis milled a 1/8-inch groove in the 3/8-inch rod so that he could use the O-ring material to keep the paint safe. The result is a free-standing hood without a cowl or grille lacing. The grille shell was built from scratch from a one-piece stainless steel molding over a powder coated steel honeycombed mesh insert. 

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Each piece given the greatest care

The front fenders were then redesigned in order to cover the frame horns with stainless steel nerf bars, they smartly act as skis to protect the lower sheet metal from damage. At the rear of the pickup, we find running boards milled from aluminum, drilled and tapped to bolt right to the fenders. The rear fenders were widened and then cut into 11 pieces to fit perfectly flush to the pickup box. That box was also scratch built in aluminum, and the underside mimics the furniture grade wood finish of the bed. The latch, hood braces, and exterior handles were all machined by Dennis to put the finishing touches on the unit. It is commendable to note that Dennis metal-finished all the panels of the pickup without the use of body filler. 

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Ummm that engine choice...

Inside the pickup is a Chevy 383ci motor with fuel injection heads and Rochester Tri-power induction. Dennis added custom an aluminum air cleaner, and then bent his own stainless exhaust without clamps, using that head-heat O-ring system. The truck uses Wilwood disc brakes that have the word "Phoenix" milled into them. The bird representing rebirth is found throughout the inside and outside of the truck as a symbol of the new life that the classic truck now enjoys. The transmission hooked up to the engine is a 700R-4 and is shifted by a Gennie shifter. 

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Red in, red out

On the interior, the custom dash and moldings encase Stewart Warner Wings gauges, and the much modified Wheel Shop steering wheel sits atop a machined column. The floor mat is made from Rhino coating and is enhanced by bespoke stainless sills and moldings. Lower, an original Stewart Warner heater houses the fan for the A/C and heat but also hides the ignition coil and A/C thermostat. The passenger seat is from Glide and was stitched by Z-Best out in Lancaster, New York. The depiction of the "Phoenix" that can be seen on the panels in the doors cane from two wood carved female pieces. A male mold was made from each of the wood pieces and was then cast into fiberglass. Finally, that image was press molded into the aluminum door panels before being painted. 

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This build lasted longer than some marriages!

This pickup that you see before you was built by Dennis right in his garage over the span of a 20-year period. Since finishing the project, the truck has logged over 400 trouble-free miles and Dennis is looking to add many more. In this world of pro-built vehicles, it's nice to see one that was actually garage built with the quality to stack up to any expensive sponsored build. 

>>Join the conversation about this classic F-100 Nemesis right here in the Ford-Trucks forum.

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