The back half of the truck was also highly modified, first by fabricating an inner
wall on both bedsides that tie into the welded-up and boxed tailgate. Side storage
compartments were then built into the bed floor to house the battery and airbag
components. The whole bed was then shod in LINE-X bedliner. Those modified
original taillights not only look cool, but the driver side seconds as a fuel filler door.
Rear bumperettes were hand formed and Warn ATV driving lights were modified for
use as backup illumination.
With all the custom sheetmetal fabrication completed, it was decided that the
project had really taken on a life of its own, and thus a name was born;
the PHORD PH100. Bob then enlisted the capabilities of
CON2R to fabricate a set of custom emblems donning the
new name, which are visible throughout the truck. A custom
two-tone mix was then brewed up and shot over the
entire ball o’ wax by Mark Rennacker.
Inside, things are business as usual for such a highly modified truck with the dash receiving an equal amount of custom treatment as the exterior of the cab. The most obvious being the lengthened glovebox, but many more minor custom tweaks reside within reach of the driver seat. The instrumentation, though stock in appearance,was completely custom built by CON2R to reflect the original design, but with all new faces, domed glass, and electronics. A JVC sound system was installed, with a remote marine control head located in the dash-mounted tach; the head unit is behind the seat. The front face of the tach tilts up, allowing the driver to access the sound system controls from a safe location. Inside that lengthened glovebox resides an MP3 connection and the airbag controls. To keep things comfortable, CON2R modified a Vintage Air A/C to mount it out of sight. Custom defrost and hidden A/C vents were produced on their rapid prototyping machine as were the control knobs, which mimic the factory dash knobs. To control
the entire system, a hidden, keyless, mechanically interlocked start system was custom designed by CON2R and mated to the Ron Francis wiring kit. One-piece side glass was also installed, deleting the vent windows and converting the door windows to electric in the process. Of course, things wouldn’t be complete without a custom CON2R steering wheel, which is perhaps the most custom component on the truck. A ’94 Ford F-250 bench seat was bolted into place in the Dynamat-lined cab with the stock seat heaters, factory adjustable lumbar support, and fold-down arm rests retained to complement the rest of the contemporary accoutrement.
Every square inch was
then covered in two-tone
Ultraleather and German
wool carpeting by Premier
Upholstery in Estacada,
Oregon, completing the passenger
compartment.
Bob’s Phun PH100 was
built between the busy peak
times at his business with the
help of an extremely talented
and determined crew. Though
Bob says it wasn’t always fun and
games, “as construction time was
limited to when things were slow
in the shop, the most painful part
of the build was being torn between
the business being busy, which is a
good thing, and having time to work
on the truck, which meant business
was slow.”
All in all, the crew was able to build
a completely custom truck just in time
for the 2011 SEMA show, five years
in the making. And while the project
went from being a quick and dirty shop
truck to a full-stop, all-hands-on-deck,
let-us-show-you-what-we-can-do vehicle,
the guys never forgot what it was all
about—phun! CCT