John Mata Jr. July 14, 2023 Feature Stories
Things that are truly considered “cool” have a life cycle. It’s true in fashion, it’s true in home décor and furnishing, and it’s especially true in the world of custom trucks. What was once thought of as old hat and unhip is now back to being trendy again.
It was a fairly plain 305 truck, so we quickly disassembled it and added all the Belltech goodies to lower it in a hurry…
Of course, we’re talking about OBS pickups and their height of popularity back in the late ’80s and all throughout the ’90s. These were the new trucks on the block back then, and the youthful fan base surrounding the pickups were enthusiastic about personalizing every aspect of them from top to bottom.
David Bacher of Urbana, Ohio, remembers those days fondly. In 1989, he was running his own custom shop, Autobach’s Otto Group, where he was offering window tint, installing sunroofs and lowering kits, as well as spraying custom paintwork for those really looking to change the looks of their new truck.
“I was also caught up in the craze of those Ratical Hot Tops and became an Ohio dealer,” David adds. “Hindsight—there isn’t much call for leaky convertible trucks in Ohio, but I thought it was cool seeing my name on the ads in the magazines.”
Luckily enough, David was keeping himself busy and his business was truckin’ along just fine. Before long, a local dealership noticed one of his advertisements and gave him a call to inquire about a possible collaboration.
“The truck manager at Bud’s Chevrolet in St. Mary’s, Ohio, reached out to have me paint a few Astro vans and used S10s,” David says. “We never ended up doing a convertible truck (surprise), but I did end up attending the SEMA Show with the guys at the dealership in 1990 where we saw a lot of customized OBS trucks by Belltech and all of the other leading parts manufacturers of this era. I had already known about the sport truck craze that was taking off everywhere, but seeing all of this in person really opened the eyes of the guys I was at the show with. When we got back home, we really ramped up our customization game.”
I remember sitting at my desk drinking a 7 UP when I took notice of the graphics on the can. I thought I could build on the can’s graduating rows of ‘dots’ or bubbles into a new-age scallop-style graphic.
Together, David and the team at the dealership began lowering more S10s, started adding ground effects, and played around more with custom wheels and paint styles. The dealership even allowed him to work on a new C1500 that arrived at the lot, which happens to be the exact truck seen here.
“It was a fairly plain 305 truck, so we quickly disassembled it and added all the Belltech goodies to lower it in a hurry,” David says. “After we were done with that, I remember sitting at my desk drinking a 7 UP when I took notice of the graphics on the can. I thought I could build on the can’s graduating rows of ‘dots’ or bubbles into a new-age scallop-style graphic. The only issue I ran into was how to recreate that dot pattern. Not everybody had a vinyl cutter and could make signs and such back in 1990, so I really had to search for someone who would understand what I was trying to do.”
I worked out an understanding with the owner that if he ever thought about reselling the truck, I would get first dibs on it.
David did find someone to make a template he could use to start with the polkadot paintjob that he had been fixated on.
“I started by painting the entire lower portion of the truck with HOK Kandy Purple before painstakingly laying each row of the vinyl bubble pattern over the top,” he recalls. “I didn’t want the paintjob to be too loud, so I chose a HOK black color to spray over the purple. After removing the vinyl and covering the paint under multiple coats of clear, I was able to finally see that my idea had worked out pretty good.”
The whole ’90s look with the wheels make it feel a little too outdated…
To show off their freshly restyled C1500, the guys took it out to the Carl Casper Indoor show at Hara Arena in Dayton, Ohio, during the winter of ’91. After that event, David and the crew then took the Chevy to the Hot Rod Super Nats in Canfield, which then snowballed into going to other events in the region. Their work was well received, and after the mini-tour around the local show circuit was over, the truck was brought back to the dealership and listed for sale.
“A friend of mine who worked at a local auto parts store bought the truck,” David says. “It was nice to see the truck go to someone I knew. After that guy changed a few things like swapping the wheels, he took it out to a few other shows, but it was soon tucked away in his garage for a brief hiatus. I worked out an understanding with the owner that if he ever thought about reselling the truck, I would get first dibs on it.”
Other than the wheels, a few small touchups on the lower edge of the truck, and the GM paint still on the roof, it still is just as I built it in 1990…
David patiently waited many years until 2017 when he finally had the opportunity to take advantage of said dibs. His friend kept his word, and after pulling some strings to make it happen, David found himself the new (dare we say rightful) owner of a truck that once defined his identity in the custom scene decades earlier.
It only took 30 years for this truck to be cool again, but that’s OK…
“I really didn’t like driving the truck when I first got it through,” David admits. “The whole ’90s look with the wheels made it feel a little too outdated, so I traded Boris at Street Machinery a ’66 C10 for a set of Billet Specialties Speedway wheels. I was more comfortable with those wheels on the truck and I fell in love with it all over again.”
David re-debuted the truck at the 2021 Goodguys Lone Star show in Dallas—30 years after its first-time showing at a large automotive event. To his surprise, the accolades the truck received were a tad bit overwhelming.
“Other than the wheels, a few small touchups on the lower edge of the truck, and the GM paint still on the roof, it still is just as I built it in 1990,” David exclaims. “It only took 30 years for this truck to be cool again, but that’s OK. Oh, and by the way, the truck still only has 14K original miles on the odometer.”
Like What You See? Pre Order This Magazine Issue Now!
https://engagedmedia.store/product/obs-builders-guide-2023/
TRUCK SPECS
OWNER
David Bacher
1990 Chevy C1500 Truck
Urbana, OH
ENGINE/POWERTRAIN
CHASSIS/SUSPENSION
WHEELS, TIRES, & BRAKES
EXTERIOR/PAINT
INTERIOR/SOUND
Please wait...