Building a fancy show truck doesn’t have to be expensive. By using a little creativity and doing the labor yourself, you can build a cool ride on a budget. Case in point – Randy Victory and his “Nut Buster” Peterbilt 359. When Randy Victory was 12 years old, he started hauling corn and beans out of the field, and by the time he was 15 he was hauling grain, cottonseed, and other agricultural products from the co-ops out of Jonesboro and Marked Tree, AR to Memphis, TN. At 16 he was able to get his Chauffeur’s License, and then he and his brother started running west as a team, hauling produce.
Serving in the Navy, Randy’s dad Billy Victory started trucking after he was honorably discharged. Thank you for your service! He built up a company of 14 trucks in the fall when the harvest began. Randy and his brothers only got to play in about the first four games of the football season before it was time for them to start hauling cotton. In 1994 Randy bought his first truck – a 1991 Peterbilt 362 cabover that he still owns today, along with 12 other trucks. Two of his older trucks were his dad’s rigs, including a 1970 Peterbilt 359 and a 1979 Freightliner FLC.
We met Randy and his wife Missy in Rantoul, IL when they were showing their 1999 Peterbilt 379 called “Wild Child” there. This is a beautiful black truck with orange flames that he totally customized himself out in the driveway. Talking to Randy and Missy, John asked, “How did you meet?” On New Year’s Eve 2008 they met and ended up exchanging phone numbers. They had their first date on New Year’s Day 2009. They started dating and talked on the phone a lot, and by June of that year, they moved in together. Randy proposed to Missy in Rantoul, IL during the Top Gun Large Car Shootout truck show in 2015 while they were doing a photo shoot by the airplanes on display there.
In 2016, while at a family reunion with Missy’s family, Randy knew they were getting married, but Missy kept all the details from him until that day (June 25). The “Cross of the Crossroads” overlooks I-57 and I-70 in Effingham, IL. This famous landmark was the backdrop for Missy and Randy’s wedding, held on Darrell and Lisa Best’s old fire truck that had been converted into a little wedding chapel on wheels on the show “Trick My Truck” in 2009. After being ordained Darrell was looking for a way to have a mobile ministry to help people get married. They call the truck “The Best Man” and Darrell is the driver of the world’s fastest wedding chapel.
With plans to restore many of the trucks he has as “lawn ornaments” right now, Randy recently finished a cool blue Peterbilt 359 that he calls “Nut Buster”. How did he come up with that name? Missy got supper done one night and then she told Randy to come in and eat. Putting some cab mounts in at the time, he replied, “Let me bust this nut loose.” To that she said, “You ain’t nothing but a nut anyway!” Thus, the name “Nut Buster” was born.
This rig is not – as Randy says – “a store bought truck.” He is proud of how it’s a combination of a lot of used parts put together. Looking at some over the top builds out there today, Randy has put this truck together for between $6,000 to $7,000! It sounds nearly impossible the way things are today, but Randy was happy to share how it is true – and how he did it. The truck is a 1986 Peterbilt 359 that started out its life as a Werner truck. Randy swapped Davis Brothers in Owensville, IN two 3406E CAT motors for this rusted out old truck.
Paying attention to all the little details, it took about three years for the transformation to happen, and Randy did it all himself. With the labor costs out of the equation, that was a huge chunk of savings right there. His pride and joy, his granddaughter Kaylee Jo, helped with the build, along with his two sons, Joe Harrison who drives a dump truck and Tyler Victory who is a diesel mechanic, along with his daughter Tara Victory, who cheered them all on. Their nephew Brandon Victory also helped with the build, and he also goes to shows to help get her prepped and show her off.
Purchasing a 377 Pete for $1,500, Randy cut off the frame and axles, grabbed other parts he needed, and then sold what was left for $10,000. He gave $150 for a 1974 Pete 359 crawl-through sleeper. He wanted suicide doors on the bunk, so he turned it around when he mounted it to the truck, and then used the crawl-through space for the window in the back – and viola, suicide doors on the sleeper. Truck salvage yards are Randy’s friend, as he makes good use of old parts that might no longer be available, and then puts them back to work.
The Peterbilt was stripped down to just the cab, and then Randy painted it himself. Sherwin-Williams supplied the paint. His “Wild Child” truck had been on a calendar for the Sherwin-Williams store in Jonesboro, AR, and because of that, they gave him the paint needed for this 1986 Peterbilt project.
A priceless part on this build is the deck plate. The late Troy Huddleston and Randy became friends after Randy beat him in Louisville his first time there. Teasingly, Randy told Troy, “What beat you was that mine’s a Pete and yours is a Freightliner!” To all of you who knew Troy, you would know no offense was taken. They swapped parts over the years, and Troy ended up giving Randy that deck plate, which came off an old RoadWorks show truck. To those of you who knew Troy, who we lost a couple years ago, you know the true “value” of this simple truck accessory now.
The twisted shift lever he got on eBay for $125, and the second lever is actually a splitter he got off an old Freightliner. Randy tied the stick to two pieces of angle iron and then bolted it to the floor. The air ride bases for the seats came from a garbage truck – they are lower and raise from 2 inches to 4.5 inches. The gauges are all original and Randy wrapped the dash and rewired the entire truck himself. His interior has upholstery wrapped over pegboard that was cut to fit. The floor is customized plexiglass, and the “359” in front of the driver’s seat and the “86” in front of the passenger seat light up. The steering column was made out of a piece of old stainless steel exhaust piping.
The beautiful swan on the hood is off his dad’s old 1974 Chevy truck. The motor under that hood was overhauled with help from his granddaughter Kaylee Jo, and lot of help from his son Joe. The hood was rusted and needed new panels, but he was able to make the grill shroud from a 379 that he had work. There is ingenuity everywhere you look at this truck. Those hood panels and the visor are the only new parts on the truck.
Equipped with 3.90 rear ends and a 10-speed Eaton transmission, the truck sits on a 284-inch wheelbase. There are over 600 lights on the truck, including the interior. Randy has no sponsors and purchased a lot of the lights right off Amazon. He got the stereo system from a pawn shop, and it boasts (8) 6x5s, (2) 10s, and (3) 12-inch speakers. Trust us, this system will definitely rock you!
Missy says she is Randy’s personal assistant, but he will tell you she does 75% of the polishing and cleaning for a show because, “I talk too much, and she wants to get the truck done!” The truck works occasionally pulling loads on nice days. She’s not a get out in the field kind of girl. There is a blanket that Missy had done with a picture of Kaylee Jo that adorns the bunk every day. And she will tell you, flat out, “This is my truck!”
Congratulations go out to Randy for accomplishing such a beautiful build on a budget. He built his entire truck for the price some pay just for the paint (maybe even less). And this truck is no slouch, as she can hold her own with the best of them. We are looking forward to seeing the next truck you bring back to life and are sure that you will be “doing it yourself” like all your other builds, because it just makes sense!
EDITOR’S NOTE: Big thanks to Dan Linss, Stephanie Haas, Cheri Kimbal, Jacob Gunderson, and Randy Victory for providing most of the photos for this feature.
