#based on one of the paintings on their bed on Penrose

[noctilia]

“Before I met Elster, I never believed I would find someone I could fall in love with like that.”

[itsworn]

This Fire-Breathing 1960 Chevy C10 Rewrites the Book on Wicked

Imagine, if you will, waking up one morning and making the decision to act on decades of inspiration by taking on a challenge that so few people have attempted. When you look at the world of motorsports you can easily reference racing formats that include quarter-mile, oval, land speed, and road course, to name but a few. One of the most grueling, adrenalin-laced speed challenges you might not readily think of is the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, known to many as The Race to the Clouds. Taking place in Cascade, Colorado, its rich history runs deep, having started in 1916. Promoted by Spencer Penrose who awarded the first Penrose trophy to Ray Lentz with a finished time of 20:55.6.

Let’s take into consideration that the course is 12.42 miles long with 156 corners with an elevation gain of almost 5,000 feet to the top of the peak at 14,115 feet where racers wrestled with the action on dirt and gravel roads until final paving was completed in 2012. By then best times to the top were established in the 8-minute range. For Justin Nichols of Watseka, Illinois, growing up in an automotive family the majority of his earliest memories revolve around working in the home garage with his dad and friends surrounded by hopped-up V-8s. Inspired by those around him he honed his skills as the years passed, eventually taking on the build of a 1931 Ford pickup with his dad. Frequent visits to watch drag racing at US41 and Route 66 Motorplex further fueled the fire with a heavy dose of nitro hanging in the air. The turning point however came from seeing a number of older friends successfully take on Pikes Peak. He became so heavily influenced that he knew he’d eventually make the move to map out his very own build.

As owner of Nichols Paint & Fabrication located in Watseka he’s used to channeling his vision on a daily basis, building some of the hottest custom trucks, hot rods, and muscle cars around. The challenges were even greater, however, when following the official rulebook and mapping out the build of a race truck to take on flat-out speed and handling to get to the top. Having always been a fan of ’60s-era Chevy C10s, he sourced a suitable 1960 donor truck in Oklahoma to get started with. It had surely seen better days, but it was a perfect candidate to get cut up. Surrounded by his highly skilled team at the shop, including Nick Roberts, Greg “Ziggy” Huizenga, Maegan Ashline, Dave Webster, and Donnie Jensen, they fabricated a spine that could meet the technical regulations and handle all the abuse. Starting with 2×3-inch boxed steel tubing they designed a custom base and crossmembers. A Currie Enterprises 9-inch hangs out back packed with 31-spline axles turning 4.10:1 gears suspended in place by tubular trailing arms from Performance Online, a Currie antiroll bar, and VariShock QuickSet 2 double-adjustable coilover shocks. To get the frontend low with razor-sharp handling a Fatman Fabrications IFS was combined with Wilwood Engineering forged 2-inch dropped spindles along with a Performance Online antiroll bar and VariShock QuickSet 2 double-adjustable coilover shocks with steering through rack-and-pinion. Fast braking ability is a must so a Wilwood dual master pushes fluid through stainless lines to matching 13-inch drilled-and-vented discs at each corner with six-piston calipers in front, accented by four-piston units out back. With high-speed needs and 156 corners to carve a set of 18-inch Billet Specialties B-Forged wheels are wrapped with sticky low-profile Nitto rubber to complete the formula.

Needing to bring plenty of aggressive performance to the mix, Justin contacted NicKey Performance of St. Charles to assemble a bulletproof 6.0L Chevy LS V-8. Starting with a 2002 block massaged to perfection by Auto Machine of St. Charles it was packed with a stock crank linked to matching rods capped with forged aluminum pistons from DSS Racing to generate a solid 9.8:1 compression ratio. A NicKey Performance Stage 2 cam sets a heavy beat while a set of ported and polished LSA aluminum heads generate plenty of seamless power. The knockout punch up top comes from a Magnusson TVS2300 Heartbeat Supercharger fed by NicKey Performance K900 injectors and an 85mm overdrive pulley. The tire shredding combination is good for 1,000 hp to the rear wheels. The fire sparks with a modified ignition and dumps gases through a set of custom Nichols headers to a 2-1/2-inch stainless exhaust with Flowmaster Super 10-series mufflers. To move the goods an American Powertrain TREMEC TKO600 Road Race five-speed trans with a dual disc clutch links to an exclusive QA1 REV Series carbon-fiber driveshaft.

It was now time to focus on the cab and bed since the truck had a tough life, blasting it clean to expose any compromised sheetmetal issues. Once the rockers were replaced the factory sheetmetal was brought back to like-new condition. This is when the team stirred the cauldron, infusing plenty of wickedness. For ease of serviceability Justin designed a one-off steel tilt frontend complete with extensive structural reinforcement while also molding the fenders to the hood. A custom hood was fabricated to include both vents and heat extractors while also incorporating a custom grille packing air ducts and Xenon headlights as well as a handbuilt spoiler. The bed was then converted from a Stepside to a Fleetside along with exhaust vents added just ahead of the rear wheels. Out back you’ll find a custom bed cover wrapped around the rear rollcage as well as additional cooling for the supercharger. An exclusive tailgate by Maegan adds the final touch along with a rollpan. Once the team gapped and metal-finished the body, Justin laid down the signature coating of Matrix custom-mixed Street Slime Green bringing it all to life. The final icing was added by Fastlane Wraps of Chebanse who laid out the eye-catching artwork across the cab and bed to complete the look.

Inside the truck is all business and the office doesn’t disappoint. The factory dash was treated to a number of removable inserts along with custom-made gauges from Dakota Digital prominently displayed to monitor all the vitals. A MOMO steering wheel carves the course, linked to a custom column while shifts slam through a Hurst stick. Regulation cage-work is visible throughout the interior and the wiring to bring it all to life is by American Autowire. To add comfort and support when summoned into action, VOS Upholstery and Custom Auto Trim of Lansing reworked seats from Glide Engineering to add plenty of extra support and covered them in durable black vinyl. Multi-point wrap-around-style harnesses from JAZ Products make sure there plenty of safety on board. We can hardly wait to see the C10 in action when Justin takes on Pikes Peak in 2019 blazing a path to the top!

Facts & Figures Justin Nichols 1960 Chevy C10 Pickup

CHASSIS Frame: Built to race specs, 2×3-inch steel with custom crossmembers by Nichols Paint & Fab Rearend / Ratio: Currie Enterprises 9-inch / 4.10 Rear Suspension: Tubular trailing arms, Currie antiroll bar, VariShock QuickSet 2 double-adjustable coilover shocks Rear Brakes: Wilwood Engineering 13-inch drilled-and-vented rotors, four-piston calipers Front Suspension: Fatman Fabrication IFS, Wilwood 2-inch dropped spindles, VariShock QuickSet 2 double-adjustable coilover shocks Front Brakes: Wilwood Engineering 13-inch drilled-and-vented rotors with six-piston calipers Steering Box: Rack-and-pinion Front Wheels: Billet Specialties B-Forged 18×10 Rear Wheels: Billet Specialties B-Forged 18×12 Front Tires: Nitto NT555 Extreme 275/40ZR18 Rear Tires: Nitto NT555 G2 295/40ZR18 Gas Tank: JAZ 25-gallon

DRIVETRAIN Engine: 2002 GM 6.0L LS V-8 Heads: LSA aluminum, ported and polished Valve Covers: NicKey Performance Manifold / Induction: Magnuson / Magnuson TVS2300 Heartbeat Supercharger Ignition: Stock Headers: Custom, Nichols Paint & Fab Exhaust / Mufflers: Flowmaster 2-1/2-inch / Flowmaster Super 10 Transmission: American Powertrain TKO600 Road Race five-speed Shifter: American Powertrain

BODY Style: Pickup Modifications: Custom steel tilt frontend, front and rear steel spoilers, tailgate all by Nichols Paint & Fab Fenders front / rear: Stock, modified with side-exhaust ports Hood: Stock with custom vents and heat extractors Grille: Custom with supercharger intakes Bodywork and Paint by: Nichols Paint & Fab Paint Type / Color: Matrix / Custom Street Slime Green Headlights / Taillights: Xenon / Stock Outside Mirrors: None Bumpers: Custom front bumper and rear rollpan

INTERIOR Dashboard: Stock with custom metal inserts Gauges: Custom Dakota Digital Air Conditioning: None Stereo: Supercharged LS Steering Wheel: MOMO Steering Column: Race column Seats: Custom race Upholstery by: Vos Upholstery & Custom Auto Trim Material / Color: Black / Vinyl Carpet: Gray powdercoated steel inserts

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