Dave Janas' DDT

Dave's Delivery Truck was handbuilt after this drawing. The only steel on the car that was not hand-fabricated was the 1926 Ford Model-T cowl. Photo courtesy of Paul Janas.

Photo courtesy of Paul Janas.

A photo of the truck taken at an indoor car show.

An article from The Cinncinnati Enquirer 16 Feb 1970, Mon. Dave had attended he 10th annual Cavalcade of Custom in Cincinnati, taking home the "Best Rod" award.

A car data sheet that Dave filled out about the truck in 1970. Photo courtesy of Paul Janas.

Photo courtesy of Paul Janas.

Photo courtesy of Paul Janas.

Photo courtesy of Paul Janas.

Photo courtesy of Paul Janas.

A photo of the DDT taken at an indoor car show.

In 1973 the DDT appeared in the book Famous Custom & Show Cars by George Barris and Jack Scagnetti.

A later, red iteration of the truck shown as "Sir T." Photo courtesy of The Huff Report.

Dave's old delivery truck as it appeared in 2015. Shown as the "1924 High Top Insana T", the car was owned by Joe Pace of Pace's Body Shop in Kansas City, Missouri. Photo courtesy of Pace's Body Shop.

A photo of the Insana T taken at the Kansas City World of Wheels circa 2015. Photo courtesy of Pace's Body Shop.

The DDT (Dave's Delivery Truck) is a 1970s era show rod winner built by Dave Janas of Toledo, Ohio. The truck was handbuilt by Dave in his father Sig's garage. An artist friend, Harley Copic, helped Dave get his vision down on paper. "That began a journey," Dave's son Paul Janas told Sondre Kvipt of Kustomrama in 2020. "He started by laying out the frame on the garage floor. Then with a 1926 Ford Model T cowl in hand Dave hand-fabricated the body through the clever use of new sheet metal and appropriating body panels from some later model Fords since Dave worked at a Ford dealership at the time. So the scrap pile served as a beginning for the front nose. Fashioned from two 1953 Ford roof panels and the headlight contour was again from the ingenious recycling of the top of a fender from the scrap pile. The rod featured a full belly pan and gull-wing doors. Everything hammered and dollied, brazed, and bent to form the all-steel body of the DDT. Turning a two-dimensional inspiration into a three dimensional 70's show rod."

Drivetrain

Power came from a 1967 Chevrolet 283 engine that had been bored to 301 cubic inches. It ran Jahns pistons, P.C. rings, and a Crowler camshaft with a street grind. The heads were ported, and it ran a blower with a ram air scoop. The engine was hooked to a 1965 Chevrolet transmission with a Hurst shift kit. The frame was handbuilt and it featured a 95" wheelbase and a straight front axle with eclipse spring suspension. The rear end was borrowed from a 1957 Chevrolet. The hound rods, traction bars, and sway bars were all handmade. It ran aluminum Kens Wheels.

Asymmetrical design

In keeping with the drawing, the body incorporated one offset vertical headlight in a horizontal grille opening, and one offset taillight. The rear license plate was also asymmetrically placed. This was the 1970s remember and asymmetry was the custom styling cue of the era. The headlamp, tail light, and grill were fabricated by Dave in brass and then hand-polished.

Paint and interior

Once the bodywork was completed, Dave gave the truck a custom green paint job. He used the booth at B&H Collision in Toledo. The paint job featured green fogging, pinstriping, and lettering by John Cassaubon. Inside, it featured oversized twin-bucket seats and a green crushed velvet interior that Dave stitched himself. The interior was dressed up with rectangular white pleats with buttons, a white steering wheel, and Steart-Warner gauges. The ignition key was an IBM punch card, and it was functional. All chrome plating was performed by Warren Platers of Detroit.

$15,000 build cost

Total build cost was reportedly US $15,000, including the cost of a revamped UPS van to get from show to show and display kit.

15 shows - No losses

February 15, 1970 Dave and the DDT won the "Best Rod" award at the 10th annual Cavalcade of Customs show in Cinncinnati. By October of 1970, the truck had attended 15 shows. 15 shows. 15 wins. No losses.

Refresh

Since the car had won so many shows and people felt they had seen it before the car was updated toward the end of its show career. A new paint scheme was layered on featuring “Freak Drops” - a technique where you use an airbrush to pool a small amount of paint then hit it with a blast of air producing a “Freak Drop”. The engine was fitted with an over-the-top four four-barrel manifold, truth be told only two of the carbs worked, as four would have drowned the little small block.

Sir T

The truck lives on with a new owner, a new style and a new name - "Sir T."

The Insana T

In 2018 the old show rod was owned by Joe Pace of Pace's Body Shop in Kansas City, Missouri. It had gone through a lot of changes since it was built in the 1970s, and Joe showed it as the "1924 High Top Insana T."