’59 Chevy Apache self-built

No Explanation Needed When You Do It Yourself

Being the boss has its perks. You get to sit back and watch the workers do the duties while you get the credit. But when the workers mess up and you don’t catch it, it falls to you to fix it. Sometimes you have to depend on other people to complete tasks that you know you could do faster and better. But if you have the time, why not do them yourself?

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Being the lead painter for the Airbus aerospace corporation, Cory Shows has experienced all those personalities at least once in his professional painting career. So, when it came time to build a custom truck exactly the way he envisioned, Cory knew that he would be the only one working on it. That removed the stress of something being done incorrectly, and it added the pride of building it himself. Finally, after six years of hard work and an unaccounted-for amount of cash spent, Cory was able to cruise the coast of Mississippi in his self-built ’59 Chevy Apache truck.Cory knew the truck had to run as well as he was going to make it look, but a massive engine or LS swap was not in his mind. Instead, he was thinking about a good ole’ fashioned Chevy big-block…

Naturally, the paint on this build is stunning thanks to Cory’s skillful hands, but before any of the Audi-produced Calla White paint was sprayed, he completely shaved and seamed the factory body lines. Additionally, the doors, fenders and hood were all modified for consistent gaps all the way around. Moving to the suspension, Corey fully boxed the frame and added a Gen2 Camaro front clip, along with a custom-built back half. A full air-ride suspension from Air Lift Performance gets the truck off the ground and custom stainless upper four-link bars allow it to lay flat on the pavement. Some 22×9 and 24×11 Raceline Bandit wheels fill the wheelwells and look great under the fenders. Covering up the modified frame rail is a sheetmetal-framed wood bed floor with an actuated lifting center section for servicing the truck. Adding to the style is a set of modified bumpers from a ’59 Chevy Impala. Pretty trick update!

Cory knew the truck had to run as well as he was going to make it look, but a massive engine or LS swap was not in his mind. Instead, he was thinking about a good ole’ fashioned Chevy big-block, and he decided on a Chevy 468ci engine. Barksdale Performance took care of the build-up, which included TRW connecting rods and pistons with sealed power rings. A CompCams Extreme Energy camshaft with a 555-lift was also added, along with Ported Big Oval heads and an Edelbrock Airgap intake manifold. Fuel injection is managed by an E-Street system from Edelbrock and Patriot headers send the exhaust to the back of the truck using FlowMaster 3-inch pipes. A 700R4 transmission was mated to the motor, but not before Cory had a Monster torque converter installed. Brake upgrades from Classic Performance Products help the truck stop as needed, and the powerplant stays cool thanks to products from Be Cool.

To finish off the build, Cory turned to his wife Jackie for the talent. She installed a set of ’59 Corvette seats with Ermine-colored Ultra Leather skin and Autometer’s vintage style gauges. A Billet Specialties steering wheel added some extra bling, and a new audio system gave the truck some tunes using a Pioneer NEX8000 head unit.

Now that the truck is fully painted and ready to hit the road, Cory has plans to attack the show scene and start collecting trophies. A few of the events where you can see this truck are the Goodguys Rod shows, Scrapin the Coast, Redemption, Orange Beach Invasion and Crusin’ the Coast. We know it is one truck we have to stop and admire, so we figure you’ll want to do the same.