Not long ago, I had a very interesting conversation with a friend who spent most of his career on the Ranger assembly line. He really enjoyed his work. After he retired, he spent his time restoring and selling Gen IIs. He's got a three car garage with a second floor, most of it packed with Ranger parts.
He said that there are three different schools of thought for Ranger owners. The first is the most common. That a truck is just another tool: hauls sod, works on the farm, carries lumber every day. These are worked hard, very hard: seldom washed, never waxed, repaired the cheapest fastest way, never with a second thought. I'll never forget the Rangers that work at a local Upull. Resurrected from junk, they are not much to look at, badly rusting out. One is made from a number of different color body panels which might even be taped or wired on. Say whatever you want, there is a certain beauty here. These trucks are survivors, not at all pampered. They still turn in a good day's work. I bought a cheap old rusty-but-trusty and drove it for many years.
The second school is a rarer breed. These are men and women who implicitly understand that they are driving what has been (or will be) declared an antique. They are into restoration and preservation. They buy OEM, New Old Stock whenever they can, or scour the bone yards looking for a still pristine, but dated, old part. They tend to be purests. My friend from the assembly line wasn't at all impressed when one day, I showed up with new aftermarket wheels and oversize tires. Then there was another occasion when I put on fender flares. "They should never go on a step side." he told me. If this is you, then watch the Sarah-n-Tune series on You Tube. You will love it, even find some inspiration there.
Rarer yet are those who ignore the purists, totally make theirs over, just because its fun. They see theirs as a blank canvas, a beginning point to cut and weld with no regard for looks in order to race the big Baja race. Maybe too they lift them up impossibly high, bolt on big bumpers, roll bars, and the biggest winch they can afford. Or maybe they go in the opposite direction, do a
truxarosa build. This is definitely not me. I don't have the talent, the time, or the money.
Personally I love all three schools of thought. They each have a special place in the great big Ranger dream, a dream we have all dreamed at one time or another. One way or the other, we make our trucks over as they age. Working men patch them up like a two bit prize fighter, and keep them working hard, even if just for another year or week. Or we dress them up,live the grand homecoming dream of the very first day, that special day when they rolled off the dealer's lot. Or maybe, just maybe, we get creative and crazy, the more outrageous the better, just because we can.
Which school of thought are you?
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