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LONE STAR THROWDOWN 2020
TOP 10 FROM THE NATION’S LARGEST TRUCK SHOW
They say everything is bigger in Texas and in our experience the expression is very true. This especially goes for the truck scene, as there is a large number of stunning examples of them from this region of the country. With all these vehicles roaming around Texas, there was a need for a place to showcase them all. Quite a number of years back, Todd “Radar” Hendrex and Lonnie Thompson saw the need for a better show and came up with the idea of the Lone Star Throwdown (LST), which was first held in 2012 at the same place it is now, the Montgomery County Fairgrounds in Conroe, TX.
As of late, this show has dominated as many builders have made it “the place to debut a vehicle.” With a nice line of custom billet awards made by Philbuilt Designs, people flock from all over the country to get a piece of the action. Besides the few “Best of” trophies given out, only the top one hundred vehicles take home some bragging rights. With only 5% of 2,000 vehicles earning awards, you could say the competition is stiff. Here’s a look at our top picks the latest show, held on February 21st-23rd.
10. Daniel Brumett’s ‘85 Chevy C10
Though there were many C10s at this show, Daniel’s truck stood out from the rest. Laid out on a set of Raceline billet wheels, this truck looked clean on the pavement.
Its powered by a super clean LS engine that has old school small block valve covers for a vintage feel. Topping it off, the body was smoothed out and given a simple two-tone paintjob done by Scott Rupp.
9. Israel Espinoza’s Chevy C50
Looking absolutely bad ass was this large classic Chevy with utility bed. It features an airbagged chassis with large semi-truck wheels. Under the large hood is a LS engine to power it down the highway. This came really handy as it was driven from Agua Calientes, Mexico.
8. Graham Hancock’s ’07 Titan Dually
Many years back, Jimmy’s Rod N Customs had the wild idea of mating a Chevy dually bed behind this truck to create some that had never been offered by Nissan.
Until recently, it was left unfinished and Graham decided to purchase it and finish it out. The body tucks a set of 24-inch Diesel Wheels and Kal Koncepts gave it a spectacular paintjob with a set of unique graphics. Finishing it out, the interior was done up by California Upholstery.
7.Chuck Velazco’s ’55 “GMO” Chevy
Putting a unique twist on this classic ’55 Chevy, Chuck AKA “ChuckSee” attached a steel Fleetside bed from a ’58 Chevy, which makes Chuck consider it a genetically modified organism.
It also features an LS3 engine, custom 22-inch wheels and a GSI chassis. Topping off the beautiful patina body is a Volkswagen roof rack. Oh, and let’s not forget to mention that Chuck drove it out from Florida.
6. Randy Frank’s ’17 Ford F350 SuperDuty
Laying body and tucking 26-inch American Force wheels thanks to Phat Phabz, this beast rolls hard. Though the body is mostly stock, it does have modified rear fenders, a custom roll pan and a “Toner Red” paintjob by Downtown Auto Body in Shawnee, OK.
Amazingly enough it still has the original and massive 6.7L Power Stroke diesel engine. Inside the cab, all the pieces were made red and the seats were covered in Katzkin leather by Kurt’s Creations.
5. Frankie Hernandez’ ’91 Chevy 454 SS
These OBS (’88-’98) Chevys are on fire and with a simple glance at this truck, there’s no question about it. The Drop Shop gave it a super low ‘bagged stance with 24-inch Billet Specialties wheels from RG Customs.
Under the hood is a twin-turbo LSX 454 that was built by Ignite Motorsports and surrounded by a set of Slosh Tubz. Rounding it out is a red interior by Elevated Concepts.
4. Ignacio Morejon’s ’47 International KB6
Looking completely insane, this truck started life as a 10,000lb hauler. It was then given a custom ‘bagged chassis to lay out over a set of 22-inch semi-truck wheels.
Squeezed in between the fenders is a 5.9L Cummins turbo diesel engine. Our favorite part is the super unique interior. The truck was also driven from Florida, proving that Israel is a complete badass.
3. Tony Leal’s ’64 Dodge Sweptline
Making the trek out from California, it was good to see this familiar truck in the Lone Star State. With a full Porterbuilt chassis, this perfect patina truck tucks a set of 22” Avant Garde wheels. Keeping things in the same family, it has a modern Hemi engine under the hood. Though it has a rustic body, the interior was cleaned up by Ceballos Customs.
2. Bill Glud’s ’63 GMC Crew Cab Pickup
Super rare, these classic crew cab trucks were originally made for railroad workers. Far from Stock, the truck was gutted and cleaned up with a few additions like a Cadillac SRX sliding roof and suicide rear doors before getting painted in metallic blue by Alamo Customs.
The truck hit the pavement hard with an Acme chassis and large Intro billet wheels. Powering up this long hauler is a supercharged LSA engine.
1. Dan Smalley’s ’55 Chevy Apache Crew Cab
Having a vision of this truck and no one wanting to build it, Dan took things into his own hands. This truck started by him pulling together rare sheet metal and working some magic to make it a clean rig. Since the heavy truck had bulky front fenders, Dan widened a ’58 Chevy Fleetside bed to match the style in the rear.
Powering this big truck is an LBZ Duramax diesel engine with twin Garrett turbos and a C&R Racing radiator. Power is transferred via an Allison transmission and a Currie Turn 9 rearend.
Making for a solid foundation is a GSI Machine and Fab chassis that utilizes Ridetech airbags and an AccuAir management system. After getting lined with Vibro Solution dampening products, the inside of the cab was upgraded with a set of Snowden seats, a Restomod Air AC system, Ididit steering column and a Dakota Digital gauge cluster.
Giving this truck its final touches is the 22” and 24” Raceline C10 billet wheels and PPG paint that was laid down by Keith’s Paint Shop. Now in its completed form, this big and unique hauler is the flagship for Dan’s shop, Pure Metal Works. With all these details, there’s no question why this truck tops our list.