FAMILY AFFAIR

Building an ’86 Mazda B2000 and a Life Together

- LOGAN WADE

PATIENCE, HARD WORK AND A LITTLE BIT OF LUCK BROUGHT WILLIAM BAILEY AND HIS FAMILY TOGETHER TO BUILD THIS ONE-OF-A-KIND 1986 MAZDA B2000. About six years ago, Will and his wife, Erin, were attending Southeastern MiniTruckin Nationals in Maggie Valley, North Carolina, when she won a set of bags at the show. As soon as they found out what she had won, they both started joking that they would have to build a truck. A few weeks passed, and Will came across the Mazda for sale. He is now the second owner of the truck as the man who bought it originally purchased it brand new in 1986. Some would say it was luck, but Will and his family believe it was meant to be for them to build this truck. In fact, the truck was built the same year Will was born.

Once Will got the truck home to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, he immediately began working on it. The truck had over 300,000 miles on it, so Will knew he had his hands full with this build.

“The easiest part of the build was the frame and body drop,” Will says, and he was right!

Within a week, he had it bodied before it was even bagged. He shaved the full frame to make this truly a one-of-a-kind build. He was able to body the truck with a special cut to fit the factory carpet without there being a step. Once he had it bodied, Will and his family began planning exactly how they wanted this truck to turn out when it was completed. One thing was for sure: They wanted to bring back the old school traditional mini-truck vibe.