tilitarian by nature, trucks were originally designed as workhorses. Through the years we’ve seen the number of classic truck enthusiasts grow by the thousands, as old trucks are plentiful and relatively affordable. The downside of low cost of entry is that they usually have rust issues in the cab, beat-up beds, and an essentially useless suspension. Charlie Simpson, a resident of Chattanooga, found this 1957 Chevy 3100 pickup through a friend in Nashville, and embarked on a two-year journey to scratch-build a killer truck with an intense level of detail.

tilitarian by nature, trucks were originally designed as workhorses. Through the years we’ve seen the number of classic truck enthusiasts grow by the thousands, as old trucks are plentiful and relatively affordable. The downside of low cost of entry is that they usually have rust issues in the cab, beat-up beds, and an essentially useless suspension. Charlie Simpson, a resident of Chattanooga, found this 1957 Chevy 3100 pickup through a friend in Nashville, and embarked on a two-year journey to scratch-build a killer truck with an intense level of detail.

After lots of research, he found that a 10-bolt rearend from a 2001 Chevy Blazer 4×4 would fit the truck without having it narrowed. There was still quite a bit of fabrication work on his to-do list, as he stripped the rearend of its original brackets and added new mounts for the airbags, shocks, four-link bars, and brake calipers. He also upgraded the inside of the rearend with a Yukon differential and 3.73:1 gears. Wilwood 12-inch, drilled-and-slotted rotors and four-piston calipers are hidden by 20×8 Detroit Steel wheels, which feature black powdercoating, thin trim rings, and bullet center caps.

The dark wheels offer a sinister look to go along with the gray exterior. After Charlie stripped off the yellow paint, he realized just how many hours he’d have tied up in restoring the body. He welded in new rocker panels, cab corners, inner and outer door patch panels, and portions of the floor. After he repaired the rust, he enlisted the help of Justin Armstrong to finish the bodywork and apply the Nason (by Axalta) base/clear paint materials. Charlie said he picked the plain gray color out of an Axalta paint color book, and it certainly fits this truck well, especially after sanding, buffing, and polishing.

From there, Charlie installed new windows, including one-piece door glass, from Brothers Trucks. He upgraded to LED headlights and taillights and then reassembled the truck using new trim parts and components from Brothers. Out back, he built a custom frame to enclose the wooden bed floor and then fabricated a hinge system and mounts for linear actuators, so the entire bed floor could raise and lower. Due to the truck’s chassis modifications and air-ride system, Charlie raised the bed floor to keep it all hidden. The wood bed floor kit came from Classic Parts of America. Charlie stained it with black automotive paint and then cleared it for a distinct look to match the rest of the truck’s black trimwork. Most of the black items on the truck were powdercoated by Jason Williams at Top Notch Customs in Flintstone, Georgia.