A custom rig in progress got a little closer to its final form in recent weeks as West Virginia-based owner-operator Charles Timbrook put his 1999 “Black Out” Freightliner Classic in the VT Customs and Transportation shop in Waynesboro, Pa., adding full gangster fenders by Talladega in addition a load of work he’s put in himself with other local vendors around his Martinsburg, W.Va. home base.

Ultimately, the finale for the truck will follow with (likely) black powdercoated stacks from Lincoln Chrome, a fresh coat of paint and extensive airbrush work for the back of the sleeper and custom deckplate Timbrook’s lately installed. Stay tuned. He’s hopeful to finish up with the exterior by December, after which he’ll hit the regional truck shows in Spring as he moves to the interior customizations.

The goal: a final tribute to U.S. military veterans and in particular those who gave all they had in combat. It’s those individuals, in his words, who “are the real heroes” in American today. “I pledge this truck to them.”

Former small-fleet owner Timbrook got rid of his other trucks a few years ago and today runs this unit just 65 miles (furthest trip) from his home base three days a week while he pursued the “Black Out” project. “I’ve been driving for 29 years,” he says, 20 of those as an owner-operator, and “the truck’s paid for.”

As I’ve noted before Timbrook hauls quite a bit of van freight for QuadGraphics; he’s likewise “doing a lot from Maryland Paper” lately, too.

Find more photos at this link to see where the rig was in Spring 2014.

Any Reliable Carriers-leased car haulers in the audience, c’mon?

This wouldn’t be the first time the auto hauler, known around the nation for its orange rigs, many of them owner-operator trucks with big sleepers and plenty of class. One of those made a cameo back in 2008 hauling a prototype Chevy Volt on the PBS Frontline series, and the company issued a press release recently that led with its appearance hauling this year’s “10 best” autos named by Car & Driver magazine. I managed to find the cover image in question, from the magazine’s January 2014 issue:

Nice flattop. That yours?

“We’re honored to have been chosen to carry these amazing vehicles,” said Bob Sellers, Reliable’s general manager.