JAKE’S TRUCK
Jake really loved his 1993 Ford Ranger! His dad taught him how to drive a stick in the high school parking lot the night after driving all over southeast PA to find it! Jake practiced a little more on his own and then drove it 4 hours in the middle of the night to Slippery Rock, where he slept in the parking lot of the stadium to attend his first day of football camp!
He really loved his truck and was constantly working on it to keep it running! Jake had dreams of fixing it up and using it on his land some day…We have decided to keep Jake’s truck and turn it into something special! Jake’s Uncle Mike Smits (aka Ratrod Mike) took on the project and we are honored.
Jake’s Truck is a metaphor of how something that was once strong, but has been worn down over time can be restored to greatness once again with the help of many! We can lift this weight together!!
We want to thank everyone who has helped by donating time, parts, and money to make Jake’s truck a reality!
Jake’s truck when it arrived at his Uncle Mike’s garage.
Building the new bumpers, tire mount, and side steps.
Here is what the new bumpers, tire mount, lights and side steps will look like!
The cab was gutted so that the rust could be removed, repaired and the interior completely redone from the electrical panel to the seats.
The seats are going to be reupholstered and will have Jake’s artwork embroidered on them.
Jake’s engine and transmission ended up needing to be replaced. A very tough decision had to be made and we ended up deciding to upgrade to a 5.3 L.S, but Mike was able to also locate a manual transmission to keep the truck stick shift, which Jake loved.
We found an engine that would work perfectly from a red suburban and Mike picked it up with his “Rat Rod Short Bus.”
Mike parted out the truck and when he was taking off the dashboard there was something rattling inside…
3 coins… a quarter and 2 pennies and nothing else…
EXACTLY 27 cents!!
Taking the truck down to the frame.
Fitting the new engine in the frame.
New truck bed.
Picked the engine up from the machine shop!
Jake’s truck needed to have body work done on it. Jimmy’s Uncle David, who has done autobody work for over 50 years, was the perfect person to work on the truck!
Borrowing a trailer and truck, Jake’s truck traveled up to Pennsylvania.
Front panels and doors are painted!!
Many hours of hard put into them to look amazing!
Getting some work done on the frame and under the hood!
Front half of the frame is sanded and then red primer is added.
Front half is now painted black.
Back half of the frame is sanded and then red primer is added.
Back half is now painted black. Now the entire frame is painted!
