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Then 40 years passed as Dave built Thunderbird Press, a successful printing business started in his basement and worked to complete a multi-year show quality restoration of a 1934 Ford two-door sedan. Dave has been a member of the Vancouver Chapter of the Vintage Car Club of Canada for the past 61 years. In 2023, son-in-law Gerry Waller got after him about that old pickup truck stored in the garage. So, the two men began disassembling the Model A down to the last nuts and bolts to begin the restoration process. They would spend two winters rebuilding the former movie prop truck from the ground up. They did everything themselves including the upholstery and the paint. The engine and transmission were inspected but needed no work as California licensing requirements stipulated the truck could only be used as a movie prop and not driven.

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“There were no major dents or any rust to repair. We used 85 per cent of the original parts, rebuilt old ones or ordered new ones. Dave had the foresight to order a new soft top kit and rear window 45 years ago. That was just to make sure it arrived in time,” Gerry says jokingly.

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He says his father-in-law was the mastermind, foreman and parts procurement officer, and he was the apprentice, the one that did all the crawling around under the truck while grinding off bolts and rivets. “I’m appreciative of every nut, bolt and working part of this entire vehicle and am now the purveyor of Dave’s vast knowledge of the Ford Model As,” he says.

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That’s a good thing because the truck will be transported to Gerry’s remote hunting and fishing lodge, originally built in 1894 on Tyaughton Lake, 100 kilometres west of Lillooet in west central British Columbia.

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“The plan is to put her to work doing light chores, some grouse and deer hunting and, most of all, making new memories,” he says.

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Alyn Edwards is a classic car enthusiast and a partner in a Vancouver-based public relations company. aedwards@peakco.com

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