SECOND CHANCE

You know that old proverb that touches on letting things go if you love them? If that thing in question finds its way back to you, then it should suggest that it was truly meant to be – at least that’s how the sentiment goes. While it’s an inspiring saying to keep in the back of your mind, sometimes you just have to come to grips with reality and predict that the chances of certain things making a return trip to your front door are slim to none – especially if it’s a ’72 Chevy C10 that was let go of. 

Karl Lange once found himself in the precarious situation of placing a special truck for sale that he and his sons had once invested a lot of work and time in. “I’ve been a devoted admirer and builder of classics cars since I was 14”, Karl says. “I have developed a particular soft spot for C10 pickups in that time. I have owned a few of them and have come to appreciate the sentimental value they hold.” 

When Karl found his ’72 back in 1997, it was all original and unmodified. The truck’s second owner had run a classified ad for it in a local newspaper in the small North Idaho town of Sandpoint with a meager price tag of $1,700 attached to it. It was a different time back then when opportunities like this were commonplace but this one was exciting enough for Karl to make the purchase.

“The truck retained its original bronze and white color and was in pristine condition without any rust or dents. It came equipped with a camper installed in the bed, had a running factory big block engine, factory A/C, tilt steering and a tachometer too. With its impressive features and perfect condition, it was a long bed truck, which I didn’t really prefer but it was an ideal starting point for the transformation I had envisioned.” 

While he did like his ’72 as-is the way it was, Karl was really set on molding the Chevy into what he truly wanted out of it. “Together with my two young boys Nick and Drew, I took a small toolbox to a local wrecking yard with a unique purpose: to salvage the frame of a restorable short box pickup.” Again, this is when these trucks were more plentiful – even as a rusted carcass. 

Karl did find what he was looking for that fateful day, as they located an ideal donor truck that someone had already plucked the motor and transmission out of.  All they had to do was strip it down to the frame, which they ended up doing and up hauling away before sundown. “We got the chassis for $100, and I later found a short box bed to match in Belgrade, Montana soon after for $350”, Karl adds. “The fact that we disassembled a potentially great restoration candidate at that junk yard, considering the rarity of such trucks today, is indeed astonishing to think about but we only took what we needed and went from there.” 

As the project progressed, Karl reached out to friend Garrett Johnson, a seasoned body and paint professional with 40 years experience under his belt to take on the truck’s upcoming metalwork and painting tasks. “Interestingly, Garrett remarked that the bed I found for the truck was the finest original box he had come across in many years”, Karl admits. 

“It wasn’t much longer after this point that the project took a sharp turn, however. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I was compelled to sell the C10, but luckily it didn’t go too far since Garrett was willing to take it off my hands. The truck was in final primer at that point and was still in unrestored condition. Surprisingly, the truck remained untouched for about 21 years until Garrett sold the truck to another friend of ours, Casey Batman, who made significant progress in advancing the build. He played a crucial role in making decisions regarding the paint color, wheel and tire combination, as well as the motor and transmission setup.” 

In August of 2022, some 25 years after Karl originally purchased the ’72, he was presented with the very unique opportunity to reacquire his ex-truck. “At this point, the truck had been freshly painted, and the motor and transmission had just been installed, which brought the truck to about 85% completion”, he estimates. 

Over the next 10-month period, Karl felt a refreshed inspiration to bring his truck up to 100%. “I had new glass installed, reached out to Tom Bidle to get the upholstery in order, got the A/C blasting cold air again, addressed any paint imperfections, and fixed all the little quirks and issues that typically arise during a fresh build.” By May 2023, the restoration of the ’72 was finally completed, as it was morphed into a magnificent state that Karl had always wanted to see come to life.  

Even though Karl wasn’t there to personally oversee a great deal of his C10’s progression over the last two and a half decades, he couldn’t imagine changing a single thing about the entire journey. “The final result has brought me immense joy and satisfaction, surpassing any expectations that I had”, he admits. The remarkable turn of events that led to reacquiring the truck was nothing short of a blessing. When I had to part ways with the truck initially, I never thought that one day it would find its way back into my hands. As a consequence of the series of extraordinary events, the truck was bestowed with a fitting and meaningful name; Chance.”

The love of custom classics that Karl has pursued his entire adult life has come to influence his two sons to chase after their own trucks to build to add to the Lange fleet. “So along with my ’72, my youngest son is working on restoring a ’71 and my oldest is engaged in restoring a ‘70”, Karl boasts proudly. “It’s truly exciting that we’ll soon have a trio of these beauties, which will provide us with opportunities to enjoy our shared passion together as a family, and that is truly the best end result of this whole 25-year process.”