‘ve always preached—and will continue doing so as long as I have this literary pulpit in which to do so—that we all need to do whatever it takes to keep the next generation(s) involved in the hobby … and at the very least involved with cars/trucks in some facet or another other than just knowing how to drive them! I truly think it’s important for us to instill the perspective that these vehicles we all love so dearly are much more than simply modes of transportation—that is, if they even have any interest in them to begin with.

hen thinking of how your truck handles, the first components that come to mind are likely suspension parts. New shocks or coilovers, control arms or sway bars, all have a direct effect on the handling prowess of your truck; however, there’s another important part to consider: the steering.

Your truck’s steering capabilities are a huge part in not only the handling but also its overall driving characteristics and safety. To be honest, we didn’t put much thought into what a difference the steering performance can make to a truck until we upgraded our original steering box with a new quick-ratio box from Borgeson Universal Company. The quicker-turning ratio is definitely a benefit, but the overall steering feel is now tighter and delivers improved control and feel while driving.

ot rod builder Mike Swaney didn’t think twice about gifting his 14-year-old son Brad with the rusty 1971 Chevy C10 he had lying around, as well as the cruddy pile of parts that went with it. It had sat dormant for way too many years and he just figured his mechanically competent teenager could throw it all back together for some basic transportation. Even good ol’ Pop would have a hard time believing what the very needy pickup would metamorphosize into under the direction of his talented son.

ou get what you pay for.” We’ve heard that before. It’s generally true, and by now we ought to know that penny-pinching can be costly. In this particular instance, however, Kalispell, Montana’s Colten Hart wasn’t exactly pinchin’ pennies when he ordered up door seals from Brand-X online.

ou get what you pay for.” We’ve heard that before. It’s generally true, and by now we ought to know that penny-pinching can be costly. In this particular instance, however, Kalispell, Montana’s Colten Hart wasn’t exactly pinchin’ pennies when he ordered up door seals from Brand-X online.

hile my father’s influence on me was mainly through racing (local dirt track/stock car, NASCAR, and off-road), he was still pivotal in my becoming the “autoholic” that I am today. Given the chance over again, as there were many opportunities looking back, I’d have built a car or truck for him to enjoy before he died, which wasn’t until he was the ripe old age of 94.

efinition of brainbuilding: the designing or constructing of something (perhaps an old pickup) within one’s brain. Some old pickups are built in professional shops, some are built in residential garages, while others are built beneath shade trees, and so on. Now ordinarily, they’ve got one thing in common: They’ve been brainbuilt first.

No doubt, our word du jour will catch on with copyrighting copycats who’ll make it all their own. Let’s use it while we can to kickstart this story, following a brief introduction to the head of this operation’s brainbuilding department.