Imagine that you are a high school kid and you’re looking for your first car to be a classic truck, but you weren’t born into the lucky sperm club, so you’ll have to go the low buck route. The trick is going to be finding something cool without paying the premium for a mainstream choice, like a square-body Chevrolet.
It’s called that other white meat, the square-body Dodge Ram. That was the premise for the story of the high school custom when this 1986 Dodge Ram pickup was first introduced to Custom Classic Trucks readers almost 10 years ago; it was to be a common cents approach for a kid buying his first truck.
The best-selling classic truck magazines in the world 10 years ago were Custom Classic Trucks and Classic Trucks, and the same company published them both. It didn’t start out that way; Custom Classic Trucks was born out of Petersen’s Rod & Custom and Classic Trucks spun off from Primedia’s Truckin. It was after one publisher owned the two classic truck magazines that I became the editor of Custom Classic Trucks in 2005, and I wanted to do a few things to distinguish CCT’s direction from CT. The first change was raising the newest model year covered from 1972 to 1987 to include the emerging later styles.
The first tech article in Custom Classic Trucks was on how to do a major service on an old truck a person just bought. The Dodge pickup name changed to Dodge Ram in 1981 and the highly storied, fast-shifting Chrysler Torgueflite three-speed automatic transmission was called a LoadFlite in trucks. We made the required adjustments to the LoadFlite, installed a shift kit, Fram transmission filter, and filled it with Royal Purple synthetic transmission fluid. The wide-ratio gearing is 2.74:1 in First, 1.54 in Second, and 1.00 in Third with a lockup torque converter … it now shifts fast and hard. Regarding the rearend, a weak memory recollects a Dana 44, but can’t remember the gearing … it was refilled with Royal Purple synthetic gear oil.
During the course of 10 years I used the truck for tech articles in Custom Classic Trucks, Classic Trucks, and LMC Truck’s American Truck. I couldn’t always stick to the low buck built for a school kid theme. Sometimes I used what we call “editor dollars,” and there are parts on this Dodge that money can’t buy. High-end upgrades were thanks to industry connections; the MagnaFlow dual exhaust is a one-off stainless steel system custom fabricated in Magnaflow’s R&D center.
For the body and paint the students in Riverside City College’s autobody program got busy. The RCC instructors spearheading the project were Jerry Sievers and Mark Williams. The Dodge was at the college in Riverside, California, for almost a dozen semesters and provided numerous students a hands-on experience bodyworking and painting a “complete” from start to finish. The Dodge was a great starting platform: an original-owner truck with low mileage, original paint, and zero rust. The students shaved the DOT marker lights and the gas door by welding in steel blanks.
An army of students grabbed double-action sanders and sanded it to the bare metal. Then Summit Racing’s DTM epoxy primer went on, followed by blocking out numerous guidecoats. Auto Air Color’s waterbased sealer and Auto Air Color’s VOC-free waterbased basecoat black was topped with Summit Racing’s high-solids, fast-drying urethane clear. Afterward the students used Mothers rubbing compounds and polishes to color sand and rub the paint out.
The interior features the stock 1986 Dodge Ram bench seat and door panels reupholstered in black vinyl by the students in Riverside City College’s auto upholstery class. The carpeting and sound-deadening mat was done for a tech article in Classic Trucks using Eastwood’s Thermo-Coustic mat on top of an incredibly rust-free floor and LMC Truck black loop carpeting over that. The steering wheel is a “shrunken” Dodge Charger wheel by Grant.
In 1985 Dodge upgraded its 318-inch V-8 with a roller cam and fast-burn heads. For this 1986 318 we sourced from LMC Truck, and Summit Racing Equipment an Edelbrock aluminum intake with an Edelbrock four-barrel carb it replicates the factory police option. The distributor curved to the cam is a Performance Distributors unit complete with Davis Unified Ignition coil. The charging system is also from Performance Distributors featuring a Mr. Amp high-output alternator, and Dyna-Batt battery. The chrome valve covers and air cleaner are from LMC Truck.
The custom-made 17-inch steel wheels by Stockton Wheels were powdercoated gloss black by Ludikris Kustom of Fontana, California, and mounted with Toyo Proxes II 255R80-17 110V tires.
In 2016 I sold the High School Custom to my friend Harold Clay of Enid, Oklahoma. Harold owns Harold’s Hot Rod Shop and we shot more tech articles on the Dodge in Enid. George Gordon installed the custom 200mm halogen headlights and factory replacement parking/turn signal lenses straight from the pages of LMC Truck’s Dodge catalog. The LMC heavy-duty wiring harness ensures a full charge meets the halogen headlights. At the rear Gordon made brackets and installed a new chrome rear bumper and taillight lens with chrome bezels. A lowering kit from O’Reilly Auto Parts in Enid dropped the level with the front.
Clay liked the RT bedside graphics portrayed in Chris Brown’s concept illustration, an important part of the 1986 Dodge’s unique identity, and commissioned Terrall Prince’s Royal Signs to bring them to life. The story can be found in the Sep. ’17 issue of Classic Trucks.
Clay says it’s time for someone else to own this shortbed Dodge Ram and has it up for sale at $9,995, a price any school kid should be able to afford.
1986 Dodge Ram D-150RT
Harold Clay
CHASSIS
Frame: Steely Dan
Rearend / Ratio: 3.43
Rear Suspension: O’Reilly Auto Parts drop kit
Rear Brakes: Drum
Front Suspension: IFS
Front Brakes: Disc
Front Wheels: Stockton Wheel
Rear Wheels: Stockton Wheel
Front Tires: Toyo Proxes II 255R80-17 110V
Rear Tires: Toyo Proxes II 255R80-17 110V
DRIVETRAIN
Engine: 318-inch
Heads: Dodge
Valve Covers: LMC Truck chrome
Radiator: Continental
Fan: Mechanical
Headers: Cast iron
Exhaust / Mufflers: Stainless steel / MagnaFlow
Transmission: LoadFlite
Shifter: Column
BODY
Style: Sweptside
Fenders: OE
Hood: OE
Grille: LMC Truck
Bed: Steel
Paint: Summit Racing / Auto Air Colors
Paint Type / Color: Urethane and waterbased / Black
Headlights / Taillights: LMC Truck / LMC Truck
Bumpers: LMC Truck
INTERIOR
Dashboard: LMC Truck cover
Gauges: Dodge Ram
Steering Wheel: Grant shrunken Dodge Charger
Steering Column: Dodge Ram
Seats: Bench
Upholstery by: Riverside City College students
Material / Color: Vinyl / Black
Carpet / Color: LMC Truck / Black loop
Air Conditioning: Dodge Ram
Wiring: OE
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