How it all got started....

Growing up, there was one constant in my life. The sound of tools, the smell of oil & gas, and my dad working in the garage he had built beside our home in Lewisburg, TN.
 

 

The shop was a single-car detached garage with a collection of tools and truck parts sitting all around, but to me, it was everything. It was where my love for vintage cars was born. The centerpiece of his shop was a stunning piece of history, a 1937 Dodge Pickup that my sister and I named “Ole Dumb”. She and I would always ask him “Are you working on that Old Dumb truck again?” and so the name was born.  It wasn’t much to look at when he first brought it home. He and I actually rode all the way back from Lawrenceburg, TN with nothing between us and the road but some rusted out non-existent floor pans. The truck was just a rusty shell with faded paint and some missing parts, but to my dad, it was a diamond in the rough. And soon, it became a member of our whole family.
 

 

I still remember the first time he asked me to help him. All those hours in the shop weren’t just about restoring a truck, they were about us. We’d talk about everything from his childhood to my dreams of playing baseball in the bigs. He'd bring up stories of all the vintage cars he use to work on and all the road trips he had been on. He would laugh every time as if he were reliving those moments all over again. By the time he finished "Ole Dumb", it wasn’t just an old truck anymore. It was a masterpiece full of memories built with laughter, frustration, lessons learned, and a whole lot of love.
 

 

Often we would take the truck to car shows. Dad believed in "driving" restored trucks not just looking at them or admiring them. We would pull into those shows and Ole Dumb’s engine would hum like new, it was a feeling like no other and I remember it like it was yesterday. Over the years, those car shows became something we did together. I loved hearing Dad talk shop with other enthusiasts, swapping stories and restoration tips with his friends. But what I loved most was just being with him, sharing the passion. Over the years, he and I restored my 1967 Chevy Chevelle and began meeting up at these car shows. We would park next to each other and sit proudly next to our projects in our lawn chairs. I loved it more than anything else.
 

 

As I grew older, I realized how much of who I am comes from those days in the shop with my Dad. My love for vintage cars isn’t just about the beauty of the machines or the thrill of seeing something old brought back to life, it’s about the connection it represents. It’s about the hours spent with him, learning not just about cars but about life itself. Something I hope to share one day with my son JD.
 

Now I own and operate Old Body Customs, and at the heart of our shop is "Ole Dumb", the 1937 Dodge Pickup my dad left me when he passed in 2017. It’s a constant reminder of where it all began. Our business tagline, “Bridging the worlds of timeless tradition and contemporary innovation,” reflects our mission to honor the classic beauty of vintage vehicles like my dad, while seamlessly integrating modern performance & technology that we’ve all come to love, appreciate and depend on.
 

I can’t help but smile knowing that my love for vintage cars will always be tied to the man who made it all possible. I know he's looking down on me proudly for keeping the tradition alive. Thank you dad, I love you and miss you every day.

 

Neill Jobe

Owner