Walking through the SEMA Show in Las Vegas is an overwhelming experience. Each year, the show fills the Las Vegas Convention Center (and its outdoor parking lots) with thousands of custom cars, trucks, and motorcycles of every kind. Whether you're into modern muscle cars, meticulously-restored classics, lowriders, trucks, pro-touring resto-mod builds, or any other subset of the automotive culture, you'll find countless examples of vehicles that fit your favorite theme.

It’s every car enthusiast’s dream to participate in a barnfind. We fantasize about discovering a rare, original, and highly sought-after classic car that had been stowed away in a barn, garage, or yard for decades, preserved like a time capsule from the past. Unfortunately, the reality is that these barnfinds are still old cars. They've been sitting in the same spot without use or maintenance, often for decades. So, if you come across one of these vehicles, how should you examine, repair, and restore it?

Car enthusiasts tend to use a lot of complex terms that can be confusing to those with less experience. However, here at Classic Industries, we want to clear up the confusion, and make it easy for anyone to tackle their first restoration project. With this in mind, we'd like to talk about truck bed wood. After all, if you're new to restoring trucks, you might not know the difference between bed strips, angle strips, reinforcement strips, and cross sills, or how many of each your vehicle requires.

Many Chevrolet and GMC classic trucks were built with bed wood standard from the factory, while later models came standard with a metal bed floor and only offered wood as an option. Read on as we go over the basics of bed wood components and configurations.

The above photo of a 1948 Chevrolet 3100 is courtesy of Mecum Auctions.

Truck Bed Wood Components

There's no doubt the Chevrolet Camaro is a masterfully-designed piece of engineering. After all, this eye-catching appearance is one reason why it has stood the test of time, and captured the hearts of enthusiasts for more than half a century. But, have you ever wondered how each of the six iconic generation designs came to be? GM designers have given us a rare look behind the curtain, so we can better understand the design elements and Camaro history.

Back in the heyday of the muscle car, it took Dodge a while to catch up with the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, and Pontiac Firebird, but it's said that excellence takes time. Thanks to the efforts of product planners and designers who gave it progressive styling, tapered high-back bucket seats, powerful engines, and an all-out muscle car demeanor, the 1970 Challenger was the hottest automobile Chrysler Corporation had ever produced. Read on as we take a look back at 1970-1974 Dodge Challenger history.

There's no question about it — one of the most important parts of any classic car project is choosing the right set of wheels. First of all, you've got to pick the right style. Do you want vintage rallye wheels, classic mag five-spokes, or something more aggressive and modern? Then, you've got to select the right bolt pattern and size, and make sure the offset and backspacing are correct for your vehicle. However, there's one more crucial point to consider before making your decision — wheel weight. A set of lightweight wheels can noticeably improve your car's performance.