The Rainbow Connection – A 1960 Ford F100 with Panels of Every Color Built for Fun
A wave of reactions swirled around in our heads when we initially laid eyes on Derek Brechner’s 1960 Ford F100. Our first thought was of Johnny Cash’s famous 1976 song “One Piece at a Time.” It’s a little ditty that tells the story of an auto worker who smuggles parts out of the factory to build a car of his own. It’s one of Cash’s all-time greats and his last chart-topper.
Then we thought of Piet Mondrian, the Dutch painter who gained fame with his multi-hued, geometric art. If we squinted a bit, The Partridge Family’s funky old school bus came to mind, and even a ‘90s-era Volkswagen Polo with a factory Harlequin paint job.
While the distinctive truck may invoke many reactions, the backstory might be the most unique aspect of all. Derek combined the sheet metal from six trucks, plopped it on a custom frame, and stuffed a Buick Nailhead under the hood, no paint required. This isn’t another Camaro restomod build, folks. In fact, it was so unique, we selected it as the Fuel Curve Pick at the Speedway Motors Southwest Nationals.
Derek lives with his wife Kristie and their two kids Delanie and Reece in sunny Phoenix, Arizona. By day, Derek is an IT professional, but deep down inside, he is a seasoned car guy and was the emcee and builder of this truck.
“I wanted to do a patina build and was looking for a 1957-60 F100, but the pickins’ were slim,” Derek says. “I already had the Nailhead engine and just needed to locate a worthy candidate to receive the transplant. In my search I connected with a guy who had multiple old Ford trucks in various states of decay.
“I flew out to Colorado to meet him and looked over all the Blue Oval hay haulers he had scattered around the property. I found a 1960 Ford F100 cab on a frame with one door and a VIN, so that became the starting point. From there, I picked the best parts from the six trucks. I even cut out a big window frame from another cab and then swapped it over to mine during the build.”
We dug that Derek retained all livery, OEM and dealer badging, and of course the 2L84Wax license plate.
Every truck needs a sturdy foundation, and Derek filled us in on the details, “I custom ordered a No Limit Engineering chassis and ticked off many option boxes for my application. The front suspension is tubular upper and lower control arms, with a four-link setup in the rear. Then I specified Ridetech shocks and Viking coil-overs installed at all four corners.” Last but not least, big Wilwood four-piston brakes snuggle up nicely with 18-inch E.T. Indy wheels and Nitto NT555 rubber.
The truck was channeled four inches, the bed floor raised up, and the rear wheel tubs radiused to clear the running gear. All these body tweaks combined with the custom chassis resulted in a great static stance that hits the bullseye dead on.
Next up, let’s talk about that 401c.i. Buick mill. This puts an already cool build right over the top not only because it’s unusual, but because it looks so sanitary and natural under the hood.
“My dad Dave built the engine,” Derek says, “It had been sitting on a stand for years. We paired it with a Hughes 700R4 transmission and it’s putting out around 350hp. The mill is running a 2×4 FiTech fuel injection and is topped off with a rare chrome 425c.i. dual quad air cleaner and matching OEM valve covers.” A Centerville front accessory drive, Champion radiator, Sanderson headers, and MagnaFlow exhaust all play their part here and look great doing it.
The interior of Derek’s 1960 Ford F100 is a no-nonsense execution that nicely augments the patchwork exterior. The stock dash marries Dakota Digital gauges with a ’40 Ford steering wheel and an Ididit column. Procar vinyl bucket seats straddle a tall custom console fabricated by Derek. Be sure and check out the custom bead-rolled door panels and cool under-dash Vintage Air A/C system, too.
Derek says he wouldn’t change anything about the truck and says the patina exterior does not mean it was an easy build. “Just because there is no paint didn’t reduce wrench time,” he says, “and there were no shortcuts here. I loved working with my dad and my daughter Delanie who fetched tools and performed other duties that really helped me out. The highlights of the project were when we first fired up the engine and the first ride with my dad.”
On the next cruise, we say queue up “One Piece at a Time” and have Johnny Cash ride shotgun along with dad and Delanie in their one-of-a-kind 1960 Ford F100.
Photos: John Jackson, Damon Lee
