Classic Wheels: 1957 Chevy Handyman station wagon

Leon Stackhouse, of Pen Argyl, has owned this rare 1957 Chevy Handyman station wagon for about two years.

Stackhouse has wanted a Handyman ever since he saw one for sale at a Pen Argyl gas station while a senior at Bangor Area High School in 1970. He told a high school friend he was going to see about buying the Handyman to convert for the drag strip.

"Turns out his uncle ran the Gulf station near Weona Park. That's how he beat me to it," Stackhouse says. "He paid $250 for it. I bought a '58 Chevy convertible instead."

Described as the "workingman's Nomad" because of its popularity among carpenters, plumbers and other tradesmen, the Handyman came standard with a six-cylinder motor and three-speed manual transmission with column-mounted shift.

"Everybody thinks it's a Nomad," Stackhouse says. "At car shows Nomads are a dime a dozen, but you never see a Handyman."

Stackhouse has worked on cars for about 40 years. He wasted no time in upgrading the classic Handyman, dropping in a 305-cubic-inch Chevy V-8 from a 1988 Camaro and a Muncie four-speed transmission with floor-mounted shifter.

"The paint and chrome was already done," Stackhouse says. "I put in new windows, total interior, power steering and brakes. I pretty much disassembled it and put it back together."

The color is a two-tone 2001 Lincoln metallic tan and pearl that closely matches the colors of the day. The classic Cragar chrome wheels add to the car's 1960s ambience.

Stackhouse and his wife, Doris, are members of the Wanderers Car Club and can be seen with the Handyman at area car shows and cruises.

Stackhouse has owned and restored more than 20 classic cars over the years and is still going strong so much so that he recently installed a gas-station lift in his garage.

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Classic Wheels: 1957 Chevy Handyman station wagon