Cheyenne, Wyoming-based Kenny Ziglar, owner of four-truck Ziglar Transport, pulls tankers hauling chemicals, oils, and both hazmat and non-hazmat products.
Kenny Ziglar
His decision to hang out his shingle was driven by a desire to “get out from under somebody else’s thumb,” he said, to "pretty much do my own thing."
During his 20 years behind the wheel of a truck, Ziglar has hauled cars, pulled flatbed freight and done tanker work -- much of that being oil-field work.
He started his business hauling crude and has since branched out to do other tanker work. Ziglar’s wife, Heather, runs the office, managing that side of the business. She also helps out on the road when she can, as was the case when her husband needed it most.
In 2021, Kenny Ziglar was down for the count with double pneumonia and on oxygen for a time when he got back to the road. At the time, he was pulling a conestoga flatbed and really having a hard time throwing straps and tightening things down. “She was out here with me throwing straps, tightening this stuff down,” he said. “We made it work.”
At the 2024 Stars, Stripes and White Lines Truck Show at Atlanta Motor Speedway last Fall, Ziglar showed off fleet’s flagship 2007 Peterbilt 379, which was the first truck he bought at the start of Ziglar Transport. He's since built it into a working show truck. Believe it or not, this pristine 379 boasts more than 1.8 million miles.
The 379 takes its "Scrapin' By" nickname from its origin in the operation at start-up for Ziglar's small fleet, when "we were literally scraping by. And here we are," Ziglar said. "So thankful for everybody that had a hand in this right here."
The unit is completely custom, with many parts made specifically for it. Ziglar bought the truck outfitted for car hauling with a rack over the cab. “We took the rack off and made it a standard truck,” he said. “Put it to work right away. ... The truck obviously didn’t look like this when I got it. She was pretty rough, but we got her fixed up pretty good.”
Originally Viper Red, Ziglar modified it with an even brighter red. “I wanted it bright; I wanted it flashy, so when people see it, they’re like ‘Dang, that’s red,’” he said. The paint work was done by Kiser Custom Collision in Martinsville, Virginia. Heather did the expert pinstriping on the deck plate you can see in the video up top.
Many of the custom parts were made by Beger Industries out of Roseisle, Manitoba, including the grille, mirror lights, mirror brackets, IFTA bracket with light and more.
Begar Industries made this custom IFTA bracket.
The Weld Shop in Leavenworth, Kansas, made the visor, window chops, panels and pieces specifically for the truck. A&A Stainless built the step bars, breather bars and tank straps.
On the back of the truck, the deck plate, fenders and T-bar are from Talladega Fiberglass.
The fuel tanks are sprayed with Line-X, dating back to his time in the oil fields to keep them from getting damaged.
While he doesn't need the protection as much as he used to on the tanks, he's kept them as they were "because that takes us back to the beginning where we started. And you don't see it much, it's unique," Ziglar said.
The truck’s front fenders used to be the same as the tanks, but he swapped them out for painted fenders when he stopped doing oil-field work.
The truck’s interior is mostly stock with some color matching of the exterior here and there, he said. It has a laminate wood floor, but otherwise the rest of the interior will be updated down the road.
"Scrapin' By" boasts a Cat engine tuned up to 900-hp by Elite Performance in Colorado, coupled with an 18-speed and 3.36 rears. The truck, at the time of the show in November, sat on a 265-inch wheelbase with plans to stretch it to 285 this Spring. Ziglar said he’d like to have it at 300 or more, but some of the refineries he's in can be tight, even with his current setup, he noted.
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Find plenty more views of the rig in the video up top, and for more videos and custom-equipment features delivered to your email inbox, subscribe to Overdrive's weekly Custom Rigs newsletter via this link.
Kenny Ziglar: Kenny Ziglar. We're out of Cheyenne, Wyoming. Ziglar Transport. We do tankers -- chemicals, oils, hazmat, non-hazmat, all that. I'm a third-generation trucker. So, you know, safe to say it runs in my blood. Can't get away from it. I tried. Here I am.
This one was the first one we bought. We got it, about four years ago. Started as a car hauler. We took the rack off, made it a you know, a standard truck. Put it to work right away. We started in the oil field hauling crude, and just worked up from there to where we're at now.
The truck obviously didn't look like this when I got it. She was pretty rough, but we got her fixed up pretty good. The truck was originally Viper Red, so we were trying to go back with Viper Red, but the paint shop where we painted it couldn't match it, so we ended up getting a custom, really red, which, that's what I wanted. I wanted it bright. I wanted it flashy. So people see it, they're like, "Dang, that's red."
Matt Cole: Did he do the pinstriping on the deck plate too?
Ziglar: My wife actually done that.
Everything on here is pretty much custom. Not something you're going to get from a regular chrome shop. A&A Stainless, they hooked me up on these right here. The step bars, the breather bars, the strapless kit.
We shaved the headlights ourself. The bumper, just a standard stainless bumper. The grille -- I have to think of the guy's name. He done the grille. He done the mirror lights. He done the mirror brackets. He done the IFTA light combo over here on the side. Bub's Fab Shop out of Leavenworth, Kansas, he done the visor, the chops, the panels, the boxes, the visor on the back. And everything was made for this truck.
Roadworks hooked me up with these right here. These are pretty cool. You don't see a lot of them.
It's got lights under under the panels. I wanted everything to look clean, but, you know, when you cut the lights on they're there.
The tank straps were done by A&A stainless. It's Line-X. Actually Line-X of Cheyenne done this right here. Mary Leavenworth, great people. She done this right here. Fuel tanks, air tanks match even though you can't see the air tanks. Just running out there in the oil field and dirt roads. That was the best option, because polished tanks was not going to happen. And we originally had the front fenders the same way, but once I got out of the oil field, tried to slick it up. But I still wanted to leave this right here because that takes us back to the beginning when we started. And, you don't see it much. It's unique.
Talladega fenders. Had a local local shop done the quilts on the fenders. He done the fifth wheel cover as well, so it would all match. The truck where it was a car hauler. It's got the low suspension front and rear, so it does ride pretty low.
I forgot the emblems. They were made by a guy, he bought one of the original molds from Peterbilt. And he's one of the few guys that has a patent, the approval from Peterbilt to make them. Those are all, you know, handmade. I mean, every piece on here was hand-picked.
Cole: The nickname is "Scraping By"?
Ziglar: "Scraping By." Yes, sir. When we got started, we were literally scraping by, and, you know, here we are. So thankful for everybody that had a hand in this right here. You know, got us to where we're at now. Means a lot.
