No More Singin’ the Blues

SOME THINGS are best left alone, like dark alleys, angry bees and anything in a pickle jar that is not immediately identifiable as a pickle. Some may argue that classic trucks should also be left alone, but of course, as a general rule we’d disagree. JD Arthurs, on the other hand, seems to have found the perfect balance of leaving well enough alone and creating an awesome custom truck.

JD has always been a muscle car kind of guy, specifically Camaros and Novas, but he wanted to build a truck that reminded him of his grandfather’s old C-10. Of course, grandpa’s truck wasn’t laid out on big billets, but the truck would still have to carry that essence of… well, it just had to have soul, ya know?

To JD’s surprise, when he got the truck back home he discovered that it was rust-free, despite other clear signs of age. It was as
perfect, and imperfect, as JD could hope.”

It took a while, but JD eventually stumbled upon a ’71 C-10 in Virginia that had all the right stuff, but as it turned out, the owner was a bit hesitant to sell. It was actually her dad’s truck, so you can imagine that it had a lot of sentimental value. In the end, though, JD was able to convince her that it would be in good hands, and a deal was struck for the truck that JD’s wife later named Elwood after the “Blues Brothers” character.

To JD’s surprise, when he got the truck back home he discovered that it was rust-free, despite other clear signs of age. It was as perfect, and imperfect, as JD could hope. Now came the matter of whom to call on to help out with the project. Only one name came to mind: Kyle Gambrell of Laid Back Recreations. Kyle knows his way around C-10s, and after speaking with JD about the build, it was clear that he was the perfect choice to make JD’s dream a reality.

Saving the best for last, Kyle got a hold of a 6L engine out of a 2007 Silverado and went to town, freshening everything up and adding machined heads from R&P and a host of Texas Speed and Performance goodies in preparation for the Magnuson TVS2300 supercharger.”

Not wanting to erase decades of history, JD made sure that very little was done to change the body’s outward appearance. In fact, just about the only thing done in this regard was a detail and polish of the original finish, as well as the addition of some factory side trim to add a little brightness. In fact, even the factory fuel filler was left intact, even though the truck now has an under-bed Boyd Welding fuel tank with hidden filler.

Anything and everything else was fair game, so Kyle did the bodywork and painted the interior and engine compartment satin blue, with black accents where needed. New glass and weather-stripping from Precision were installed to keep the elements out of the cab, where the new carpet and bench, freshly upholstered in hound’s-tooth, can be found. Although the factory steering wheel had the right look to it, it was shrunk down about an inch for better proportion and comfort. After all, JD planned on driving this truck—a lot!

Once the build was complete, it was kept at the shop just long enough for some shakedown testing before making its way home to JD, who has been racking up tons of miles ever since.”

Underneath, the truck received the full Porterbuilt air ride treatment, with Dropmembers front and rear, as well as Porterbuilt control arms. Extra drop was accomplished with the aid of Classic Performance Products spindles, which were set up with Wilwood braking components for maximum clamping power whenever the need to suddenly and immediately cease being in motion should arise. The lovely brake covers you see are 20- and 22-inch Intro Retro billet wheels capped off with Durun F/1 performance tires.

Saving the best for last, Kyle got a hold of a 6L engine out of a 2007 Silverado and went to town, freshening everything up and adding machined heads from R&P and a host of Texas Speed and Performance goodies in preparation for the Magnuson TVS2300 supercharger. We’re not going to say it makes us pee a little looking at it, but we’ll be right back.

We’re sure his grandfather would be proud to roll in Elwood if he got the chance, but for now, each cruise in the ol’ ’71 will be made in his memory.”

Okay, so yeah, the engine. Kyle detailed it from head to toe with Hugger Orange paint and added a Concept One front-running pulley system and retro- styled valve covers. Then he bolted on a custom one-off intake setup, as well as ceramic-coated Sanderson headers that lead down to a custom Flowmaster exhaust. Dang it, be right back again.

Let’s just talk about the rest of the engine compartment. Aside from the paint detail, JD’s C-10 also has a set of stock-styled front inner fenderwells, a smoothed firewall and custom trim panels, all by Laid Back Recreations. The work is immaculate and fits the high caliber of the rest of the truck perfectly.

Once the build was complete, it was kept at the shop just long enough for some shakedown testing before making its way home to JD, who has been racking up tons of miles ever since. We’re sure his grandfather would be proud to roll in Elwood if he got the chance, but for now, each cruise in the ol’ ’71 will be made in his memory.

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BUILD SPECS

OWNER

JD ARTHURS
Grayson, LA
1971 Chevy C-10

ENGINE

• Work performed by Laid Back Recreations and R&P Machine
• 2007 6.0L LQ engine
• 317 casting cylinder heads
• Texas Speed 224R camshaft
• Texas Speed valves, lifters and pushrods
• Power Master alternator
• Magnuson TVS2300 supercharger
• Ceramic-coated Sanderson headers
• Flowmaster mufflers with custom piping
• Griffin aluminum radiator
• SPAL cooling fans
• Chevy script valve covers
• Concept One front-runner pulley drive system
• Painless Performance wiring
• RPM Stage 6 4L65E transmission
• Yank 3,000-rpm stall torque converter
• Stock shifter modified with Lokar components

CHASSIS & SUSPENSION

• Work performed by Laid Back Recreations
• Porterbuilt front and rear air ride Extreme Dropmembers
• Porterbuilt upper and lower control arms
• KYB shocks front and rear
• CPP drop spindles
• AccuAir e-Level air management system
• Wilwood front and rear big brake kits
• Wilwood master cylinder
• Boyd Welding fuel tank
• Narrowed GM 12-bolt rearend

WHEELS & TIRES

• 20×8.5 and 22×12 Intro Retro billet wheels
• 245/35ZR20 and 315/30ZR22 Durun F/1 tires

BODY & PAINT

• Work performed by Laid Back Recreations
• 1-inch body drop
• Bed floor raised 11 inches
• LED taillights
• Smoothed firewall
• Hills Hot Rods inner fenderwells
• Precision glass and weather- stripping
• Engine compartment painted satin blue and black

INTERIOR

• Work performed by Laid Back Recreations
• Interior metal painted satin blue
• Factory bench seat lowered 1 inch
• Seat covered in hound’s-tooth pattern and blue vinyl
• Dynamat sound deadening material throughout cab
• Medium blue carpet
• Dakota Digital VHX gauges
• Vintage Air kit with custom one- off controls

SPECIAL THANKS FROM THE OWNER: “Special thanks to my wife for allowing me to build Elwood and for naming the truck after Elwood Blues, and to Kyle for bringing Elwood to life. Thanks to Precision for all the glass and weather-stripping.”

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