TIME Warp | 1955 Divco Milk Truck

1955 Divco milk truck named Time Warp, Delivering Smiles on the Daily.

Growing up around the lowrider and mini-truck scene, it was only natural for Jeff Basey to blend some of the styles of each with his own builds. The longer you stare at his trucks, the more custom lowrider and mini-truck styling you can identify and remember from back in the day. On this particular custom—a 1955 Divco milk truck—a man named Don from Time Warp Customs in Alpharetta, Georgia, is responsible for the unique starting point that Jeff was looking for.

Back in the day, Jeff noticed a cool custom milk truck at a local show and instantly knew that one day he had to have one. Eventually, he came across this partially finished truck that he and his buddy Mike Nicholson knew they could complete. After making a great deal with Don, Jeff took the truck home and the brainstorming began. With a plan in place and a crew on board, Restore-It-Customs was formed and “Time Warp” was born.

Starting with the rolling chassis of a 4-wheel-drive ’13 Dodge Ram 1500, the frame was stripped and shortened 30 inches so the milk truck body could sit perfectly center and square. Before selling the truck to Jeff, Don tuned up the original motor to make it a daily driver and safe for anyone to operate. The complete original dash from the Dodge 1500 was installed into the milk truck to make sure the electronics worked flawlessly. And after a new set of custom seat covers were slipped on, the factory Dodge bucket seats were bolted into the milk truck’s cabin as well.

Around six months and 2,700 hours went into doing the bodywork, forming the unique body line and smoothing the entire chassis before preparing it for paint. It took nearly four weeks alone to build the custom range hood. Mike Nicholson and Patrick Valdez from Restore-It-Customs are responsible for laying down the custom PPG Blue and Green paint before adding the multiple coats of clear. How nice it is to have painters on staff! For that custom hotrod look, Jeff had Jay C Designs paint on some one-of-a-kind Gasser Ratfink designs. (Fun fact: Jay C is in the pinstriper hall of fame.) With Jay C finished, the clear was laid down, cut, and finally buffed to a mirror shine.

With the outside finished, it was time to focus on the inside of the cab. Jeff sent the truck to Ultimate Audio for a full multi-color leather interior consisting of gray, blue and green shades. They also installed LED lights all throughout the inside of the milk truck, underneath the body and even in the wheel wells. All these lights have the ability to change color in unison, which is fun to watch. Last but not least, the time came to choose a wheel for this piece of art. Jeff once had a set of US Mags on an old Impala he once owned, so he went with 20-inch US Mags wrapped in 245/50/R20 NEXEN Tires for Time Warp as well. Great choice!

Just like the real milkmen of years gone by, the weather won’t stop this show winning milk truck from hitting the streets. Luckily the push-button 4WD transmission is still in working order so even the houses in the country can get deliveries. All new suspension and steering components were installed to make sure it can be driven cross country reliably. With a cross between lowriders and mini-trucks, Jeff has managed to merge the two into a 4WD milk truck you have to see in person.

Just like the real milkmen of years gone by, the weather won’t stop this show winning milk truck from hitting the streets. Luckily the push button 4WD transmission is still in working order so even the houses in the country can get deliveries.  

“I want to give thanks to my wife Ruby; Mike Nicholson, Jay C., Shawn at Ultimate Audio, Don at Time Warp Customs, Joe at Palmetto Paint Specialists and my Dad Ricky for giving me the idea to start a custom paint and body shop.”