109 Reader Projects

1946 Chevy Pickup * Wayne Creel * Early, TX
The focus of Wayne Creel's build was the engine. The tech sheet he filled out for us was three quarters of a page devoted to engine specs on his 406 small-block Chevy, and a couple notes about everything else. Clearly, he's a horsepower man above all else, and that's fine by us. Wayne bought this car late in 2007, with almost none of the body parts you see on it in the photo. It had only one fender, no lights, no wiring, no interior, and no bed. He's since sourced the rest of the panels and dropped the engine in. There is still a lot of work ahead of him, but with this potent big-bore small-block, and a 150-shot of nitrous, this thing will surely scream.

1978 Trans Am * Larry Middleton * Landing, NJ
Different tastes draw people to different cars, and Larry Middleton liked them all. He grew up liking the late-'70s T/As, but also was intrigued by the handling of Germany's BMW M3. Larry writes: "While reading a copy of Special Interest Autos Classifieds, I saw an ad: `1978 Trans Am g-Machine. EFI 455, T-tops, Gold/Tan, many suspension mods, 200-mph speedo, one owner, etc...' Still wanting the M3, I let it pass. Four months later, I saw the same ad on an automobile forum with pictures. The gravity had increased, so it was time to pick up the phone." It's been a love-love relationship for Larry ever since then.

1968 Camaro * Rick Schnack * DeWitt, IA
Living in a house with all girls (his wife and two daughters), Rick Schnack needed an outlet. He's had a handful of Chevy rides, but has always dreamed of a first-gen Camaro. His friend has a finished one that really gave Rick the itch. He got what was supposed to be an SS model, but Rick is still doing the research to find out. The Camaro didn't have an engine when he got it, so he took a trip to the local auto wrecker. He scored a dirt-cheap LT1 and the attached 4L60E trans. When asked why an LT1, Rick answers, "because I was at the right place at the right time, and the price was, right."