BILLY RAY'S FAVORITE RESTORATIONS sk Billy Ray III about his favorite restorations, and this normally shy guy of few words suddenly lights up and rattles off catalog-worthy descriptions that include specific details of even the smallest features. Billy Ray III's own words here: * 1972 DeTomasa Pantera. A very recent and completely custom restoration which was completed in 2020. It included a 427 CI LS7 custom built Thompson Motorsports of TEXAS engine, Mast Motorsports heads, GP Headers Inc. headers and custom dry sump oil system. Harrop Engineering intake manifold featuring eight individual throttle bodies actuated by throttle by wire. Gear selection handled by Numeric Racing shifter. Every inch of the car was custom-designed and fabricated. The car began as a personal project for our client; he is an engineer and had already handled much of the design and product selection. After many years and still not having a finished car, he decided to hand the project over to us. This was a unique project for us as it was a sharp departure from the work we are known for and allowed us to showcase the tremendous talent and range of ability of our restoration technicians. I think it proved that after over 80 years in business, we still provide true craftsmanship. It also helped us garner attention from a demographic that would not have otherwise known about us. * 1934 Mercedes Benz 500K. Owned by Bill Marriott of Marriott Hotels. This was an interesting restoration as it was done before the internet was available. The car was received as a " basket case. " My grandfather had to hire a translator and communicate via mail with people in Germany to get information and parts for the project. The restoration file holds copies of these letters-I stumbled upon it a few years ago when we were moving our files to a new storage facility. I spent hours enamored with the project, reading and looking through the various communications. * 1911 Robinson Fire Truck - " Jumbo. " This restored firetruck is owned by the Staunton Fire Dept and located at their facility in Staunton. Jumbo is/was the first motorized fire truck in Virginia. The sheer size of Jumbo made the restoration extremely challenging; the engine had to be lifted utilizing a local farmer's loader. -JD A 68 BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COMhttp://www.BLUERIDGECOUNTRY.COM