Rick May out of North Plains, Oregon, has built a collection of outstanding customs, all done historically for the period but with concession to modern safety such as disc brakes, 12-volt electronics, and airbags. His current project is no exception to his guidelines and adds one more beautiful car to a garage full of vehicles, many of which Rick rarely sells.
He started with a solid car, but in his words, it was a "basic, ugly old '50 Chevy two-door" he drove back to his home in the hills. After going up a short hill and past a quiet pond, there stands an old barn that houses future projects. Just beyond that is a traditional-style home and a two-door garage that belies the fact that there is a downstairs to the place, housing a dozen or so finished cars, a couple of new daily drivers, and a Vette or two. Rick does all his own work when it comes to building his cars, and then he takes them to a few craftsmen for body and paintwork and upholstery. He builds one car a year, and at this rate is going to have to add some more garage space.
The little '50 Chevy was totally taken apart and restored from bottom to top in concours quality. The original chassis was modified in the front with Fatman dropped spindles, KYB shocks, and airbags. The rear rides on an '89 Pontiac Grand Prix axle with 3:00 gears and airbags by Air Ride Technologies. In between, the power comes from a '55 Chevy 235-inch six-cylinder engine, which is basically stock, with the addition of an Offenhauser dual-intake manifold and Holley-Weber two-barrel carbs with progressive linkage. An Offy valve cover crowns this cool-looking setup, while an '89 Chevy S-10 five-speed transmission is used instead of the old three-on-the-tree transmission-whose linkage was prone to hang up between gears-and it really helps the six keep in its power curve.
The ugly duckling comes to life on the outside. It has many style cues taken from the time when guys would buy a brand-new car, take it right to the body shop, and start cutting it up-try that now with the price tags hovering at more than 40 grand. The headlights are '54 Merc bezels molded into the stock fenders, and taillights are '52 Buick with the same treatment. The hood is stock in appearance, but it has many mods, including being made into one piece, peaking in the front, and the corners being rounded, front and rear. The entire front splash apron and fenders are one piece, with a '53 Chevy surround molded in to enclose the '57 Corvette grille. Kevin Bischoff of Vancouver, Washington, even rounded off the bottoms of the doors, also removing the door handles, just before he sprayed the body with Sikkens two-tone blue. The bumpers were filled and smoothed, with the front one installed upside down for a more custom appearance.
Using the stock dash and seats follows the overall theme, but adding tuck 'n' roll upholstery in blue and white Naugahyde from Al Lyda gives the interior a unique quality. Steering wheels are frequently the last thought on a car, and a wrong choice is often made. Rick is not one to make bad design decisions and certainly followed through here with an icon of steering wheel design-the '59 Impala.
Chevys of the 1950s have always been custom fodder and are still holding their own into the 21st century. Rick May's '50 model is truly representative of the time when a few body modifications and a way-cool tuck 'n' roll interior could transport a standard street car into a standout.