ctober officially marks my 30th anniversary in the automotive publishing industry. Reflecting back on the past three decades, it amazes me not only how things have changed dramatically, but it also makes me feel blessed that there’s still a hobby to enjoy—and put food on the table.

To put things into perspective for the younger readers, when I started out back in 1993, the word “digital” was not in the magazine business dictionary. (Heck, the Internet wasn’t either!) I photographed everything with a non-metered Canon F1 SLR, wrote everything on an IBM 286 PC, and printed everything on dot matrix paper to be proofread by hand with a red grease pencil. But that was just the article preparation portion of being a magazine editor.

ack in 2020, Roadster Shop began the R&D process of developing their Legend Series chassis. Using a ’73 C/K10 as a vehicular guinea pig, they constructed a 2×6 “laser rail” frame using—get this—late-model (’17) Chevy Silverado suspension and brakes, with the ultimate goal of creating—as they put it—their “most complete, full rolling chassis with modern comfort for classic trucks with the durability and serviceability of modern OEM (GM) components.”

ou know that old adage about a glass being half full versus half empty? Well, imagine how it applies to a project vehicle, if you will.

When Michael Petramalo and his family originally acquired their ’72 Chevy Suburban, they were under the impression it was, as they put it, a “nearly complete build” (glass half full, as it were). But upon further inspection once it was in their possession, “it didn’t take long for me to come to the realization that our definition of nearly complete was vastly different!” Michael admits.

ver the past couple decades classic trucks have taken on new identities, ranging from meticulously detailed show trucks to drag racing trucks to corner-carving autocross trucks. Occasionally, a truck will roll out that gets everyone talking and that’s exactly what happened when Joe Gregory debuted his ’86 Chevrolet Stepside pickup. The color combo, the race-ready stance, and the Stepside bed turns heads wherever it goes. The main goal with the build was extreme performance on the autocross course, but Joe added details that took this Squarebody Chevy to the next level.