Mafia Secrets – February 2022
The separation occurred in 1994. That is when Charles “Oil Can” Hale’s dad sold this 1985 Peterbilt 359 that he bought new from Peterbilt of Nashville so many years ago. At the time he sold it, he had put 845,000 miles on it hauling fuel for Aaron Oil Co.
The truck has likely one of the most interesting stories of how it came to be. It was ordered by none other than Mr. Johnny Cash himself. Cash spec’d it with a 63-inch sleeper, 3408 Cat engine, 15-speed overdrive transmission, and 3.70 rears at 245-inch wheelbase. You may squawk at the notion of only 245-inch wheelbase, but for ’85 that was pretty outrageous. Most trucks of that era had 36-inch bunks and only 220- to 225-inch wheelbases. So, a 245-inch truck was out there.
The story goes that when the truck left the factory and arrived at the dealer in Nashville, Cash refused the truck because they had forgotten to install the Vari-Shield during assembly. For those who may not know, a Vari-Shield is a painted air dam that mounts on top of the sleeper. Cool thing was you could raise and lower it electronically from the cab.
Well, as luck goes, Charles’ dad was shopping for a new truck in about 1985. He was dead set on a 5 and 4, two-stick truck, but the dealer happened to have the truck you see in our photos available for purchase with no waiting since Mr. Cash had refused to buy it.
To add to its uniqueness, and certainly worth mentioning, Ring of Fire is believed to be the last Peterbilt that was equipped with the V8 Cat from the factory.
Charles (CB handle “Oil Can”) Hale and his family had lost track of the truck for many years following 1994. They figured it was the one that got away and likely it had been wrecked, parted out, or worse.
Now fast forward to 2018. Oil Can’s son, Ethan, was perusing through social media and ran across a guy wanting to sell a “Johnny Cash” truck. His first thought was, “no way – that surely can’t be Granddad’s old Pete.” But lo and behold, it was!
So Charles and Ethan hurriedly discussed the situation and quickly bought the very special and unique 359 and brought it back home to the Hale family.
They worked tediously throughout the restoration process with the goal of keeping the truck as original as possible. They even fought the urge to stretch the frame and left the 245-inch chassis unmolested. So much painstaking effort went into the build. They also kept the authentic El Dorado seats. Charles still has the original build sheet, ordered for the one-and-only Johnny Cash himself. Hale even has the original owner’s manual and Cat engine manual that came with the truck when it was new.
Charles says some of his favorite things about the truck are the original paint colors and stripe job, the 245-inch wheelbase, the El Dorado seats and the stainless full fenders.
Today, the truck has 1,061,000 actual miles. From 1994 to 2019, the Peterbilt was only driven a little more than 200,000 miles since Charles’ dad sold it way back when.
Ring of Fire’s working career is over.
Charles and Amber Hale intend to keep this wonderful family heirloom sheltered in Russell Springs, Ky., and show the truck off at events, parades and shows for years to come.
You can see Ring of Fire proudly featured on the Chrome Shop Mafia 2022 Outlaw Trucks calendar.
“Truck driving is still a great profession.” Hale said. “I would encourage any young person that enjoys trucks and the open road to go for it. If you have been bit by the driving bug and apply yourself, it will certainly make for a rewarding career.” LL