When Andrew Rosemark of Rochester, Minnesota, set out to build his first custom car, it would be the custom truck of his dreams. But first, he had to convince the toughest of critics around-his father-in-law, James Klein. The truck had been put through its paces as a farm truck and was in rough shape. Where others might have seen a heap of rust and broken-down farm implements, Andrew saw a gem just waiting to be polished. Andrew, along with his wife, Karen, picked up the '54 Chevrolet 3100 pickup for a whopping $500. It ran-poorly-so they had to limp it home from North Dakota.
Andrew stored the truck in his garage as he schemed to make a truck into one he could call his own. Remember that this was Andrew's first build and he knew it had to be epic so when a chance encounter with Bob Lampher of Bob's Rod Shop in Savage, Minnesota, turned the tide in his quest for the ultimate hot rod truck. Andrew had been dreaming of this since he was a boy so he knew exactly what he wanted as he handed the truck over to Bob. Andrew said the hardest part was picking out which monster engine he wanted to power his dream ride.
The stock frame was boxed and the chassis was loaded with miles of braided hose. Andrew had Bob shave every emblem as well as the door handles. Bob frenched the headlights and added a third brake light. He then removed the vent windows, smoothed the firewall, and filled the cowl vent panel. The front bumper came from Chevs of the 40's and was polished to a high shine.
Painted by Bruce Tschida of Lakeville, Minnesota, the Sikkens Capri Blue color came from the Mercedes-Benz palette, giving this truck a very upscale and regal look. The turn signals are molded into the side rearview mirrors, allowing for a cleaner looking grille. Rounding out the rear of the truck Andrew used red oak bed wood purchased from Bruce Horkey's Wood and Parts. Boxing all that goodness is a smoothed tailgate. A custom vanity plate of "DREWS54" leaves no question as to whose truck this is.
The interior matches the exterior in quality as occupants are greeted by a full Dakota Digital gauge cluster behind an ididit steering column topped with a Billet Specialties Rail steering wheel. Paul Lovas of Rivertown Upholstery in Stillwater, Minnesota, filled the interior with many custom amenities. He covered the Tea's Design split bucket seats with ostrich pleats inset on imported vinyl. Bob smoothed the dash and created a custom panel hidden in the glovebox to house the radio, headlight switch, wiper controls, and an extra power outlet. The tunes are supplied from a Secretaudio stereo system from Custom Autosound. Two 61/2-inch JL TR 600 CXI speakers front and rear bring the thump.