FOREVER

What was your first truck? Did you get something cool when you turned 16 or was your first ride a clapped out Chevy Cavalier? For Justin Rose of Winchester, Tennessee, his first truck was this one: a 1987 Chevrolet R10. And while it wasn’t perfect, it would end up becoming a central fixture in his life. 

See, back when he was 15 his father had all sorts of vehicles but was fond of seeing pictures of a 1987 GMC truck he used to own. Justin loved the look of it, and he wanted one just like it. But this was the early 2010s, and squarebodies were on the rise. Smart people were holding onto them knowing their value would increase. Whether or not Justin could find one of his own — much less the rare, one year only R10 — was another question. 

Turns out he could. A local guy in town was trying to raise bail money for his son, and Justin’s dad bought a truck from him for $2,200. It was an R10, just like he wanted, complete with the TBI, V8, and a very faded burgundy interior that almost looked pink. It needed some work, but it drove just fine, and that was good enough for Justin — at least for the moment. 

It wasn’t long before he started working on the truck in earnest. Now he had a lot going on at the time, what with high school and baseball practice afterwards, but he did what he could. The first iteration of the interior happened back then, replacing his pink upholstery with something more modern, and on with some 15X10-inch wide wheels because that’s what you do when you’re 16. 

By the time his senior year hit things were changing a lot in his life. He had applied to colleges and been accepted, so that was a step forward. His cousin — second? Third? Justin isn’t sure — owned a bodyshop, and after months of asking, he finally let Justin paint the truck at his spot. It took him two weeks to get the thing down to bare metal, but eventually it did get done. The timing was good too, because he had just met a girl, and he didn’t want to take her to prom in anything other than his newly-painted R10. Fortunately, the stars aligned and with a fresh coat of 2012 Dodge Flame Red PR4, the couple went to the big event in his truck and had a good time. 

Then came college and the truck sat for a few years, which is understandable; Justin wanted to get his degree, and he didn’t have time to do the other things he wanted to on the R10. But once he got done around 2017, it was time to get going again. Out came the TBI and in went a new 383 small block with a bunch of custom goodies to crank up the horsepower. The Gearstar 200-4R Level 3 transmission ensures those ponies get to the ground. He bought new 22-inch wheels, too. Justin and his dad also changed out the suspension to the coil-overs it has today, which gave it the look and performance he wanted. Things were really moving along. 

A few years later in 2020 he met Nathan Coker at Coker’s Rod Shop, and he smoothed the firewall, fixed up the Slosh Tubs, and wired the whole thing to perfection. While the truck was just about right, in late 2023 he decided to ditch the 22s and go with something a little bit smaller with more tire. That’s when he installed the 20-inch Schott Grid eXL s.concave wheels with tungsten centers and polished hoops that are on it today. It was the perfect finishing touch. 

Fifteen or so years later, and a lot of things have changed in his life. He’s now a working professional in his early 30s. That girl he took to prom? Her name is Samantha, and she’s now his wife. They left their wedding in the truck, which she’s nicknamed “Dale” for reasons that are still inexplicable to Justin. They have two little boys now too, who both love getting into the R10 and going to car shows. 

So, is it done? No. But Justin doesn’t think he’ll ever get rid of it at this point. How could he? After all, trucks like this are never quite done, are they? And that’s OK. He’ll spend the time tweaking and tuning it because it’s part of the process. After all, it’s going to be with him forever. Why stop now?