Driving Line VOLUME V ISSUE 1 | WINTER 2019 | Page 34

A BUILD IN DISGUISE
Behind every unique masterpiece is a mad scientist
who harbors the creativity and resources to bring these
wild imaginations to life. Dave Mackey is the owner of
Blue Dog Garage, a hot rod shop dedicated to restoring
and fabricating the relics of yesteryear. In early 2017,
Dave brought home a ’55 DeSoto Firedome he found on
his local Craigslist, intending to salvage the Hemi V8 that
sat beneath the hood for another hot rod project. That is,
until his sister-in-law told him about the Gambler 500 Rally,
and suddenly, that old DeSoto shell took the shape of an
interesting opportunity.
The Gambler 500 is a rally series that takes place in
local chapters all over the country, bringing people from
all walks of life—from novice amateurs to professional
drivers—together in a self-described “impractical off-road
navigation adventure challenge.” The only real rule is that
you must be driving something of low monetary value, in
obscure mechanical shape, making the rally all the more
entertaining and challenging. When Dave found his local
Gambler 500 group in the Pacific Northwest, he knew just
what to do with that old DeSoto sitting at his shop.
MAJOR SURGERY
A friend of Dave’s told him about an old ’86 Ford F-250
4x4 for sale down the road from his shop, and the wheels
in Dave’s mind began turning. The DeSoto wouldn’t cost
him anything since he already had it sitting around. Without
hesitation, Dave brought the Ford truck home, putting him
a whopping $275 out of pocket. The big-block 460 V8 in
the truck suffered a carburetor fire, which is why Dave got
it for so cheap, but a new carburetor and some TLC got the
Ford running without issue. Next came the fun part: Figuring
out how to get the DeSoto body onto the F-250 chassis.
This called for some good, old-fashioned fabrication
work. With help from his wife and neighbor, Dave was able
to strip down the truck to its bare chassis, giving him a better
idea of how much modification the chassis needed to accept
the earlier DeSoto body. The F-250 was an extended-cab
longbed, which meant the frame needed to be shortened
30 inches to match the DeSoto’s wheelbase. Dave cut
out a 30-inch section just forward of the rear leaf-spring
hangers and extended the rear of the frame by 13 inches
to adequately mount the rear of the DeSoto body.
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