Golden-Era Hot-Rodding

[Bourne ID]

Cruisin around last friday, burned up the old starter, had to pop the clutch and head back to the shop. Threw in a new one monday and we're back in business. I took the fam up to the Syracuse Nationals on Sunday, very hot and kinda "Lean". I was expecting more....CARS, but instead I found tons of the big vendors. Gene Winfield was there, very cool to see him again! Henry Winkler was there, very very cool !!!
Adam West was supposed to be there but I never found him! Oh..Candy Clarke from American Grafitti was there too! I'm too youg to remember any of these actors from their heydays but I've saw plenty of Happy Days re-runs when I was a boy and American Grafitti's been a favorite forever!

 

[Taz-man]

I absolutely love old cars and hot rods. My father had a souped up 1949 Oldsmobile 98 and a 1953 Oldsmobile Super 88 that he modified the body. I wish that I could have had the cars today but he had them in the late 1950s.

 

[Story]

OHSA? ZOOM!

 

[Lincsong]

Hot Rodding is an art and talent. There's nothing more Golden Era than Hot Rodding.

 

[Stanley Doble]

Early dry lakes movie

Get a load of this, fantastic prewar 8mm home movie of a California dry lakes meet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5ENn_hxv64&feature=player_detailpage

 

[Rathdown]

Cool stuff... especially the Type 36 Bugatti.

 

[Stearmen]

At least some of this film had to be post war, there was a Belly Tank Car, which absolutely did no exist pre war! Still, real cool stuff.

 

[David Conwill]

At least some of this film had to be post war, there was a Belly Tank Car, which absolutely did no exist pre war! Still, real cool stuff.

Courtesy of Wikipedia:

On the date the United States entered World War II the 94th Pursuit Squadron was in El Paso, Texas, its 20 P-38s en route from Selfridge Field[, Michigan] to March Field, California. The 27th and 71st squadrons were immediately sent with an additional 12 P-38s and 24 P-43 fighters to March Field to provide the West Coast air defense against Japanese attack.

So, clearly what happened here is that a young lieutenant from SoCal absconded with an extra drop tank from his new fighter plane, dropped it over the chassis of his TV8, and attended the very last pre-war lakes meet with it.

Unfortunately, he was killed escorting bombers in 1943 and it was left to Bill Burke to rediscover the concept late in the war and popularize it afterward.

-Dave

 

[Talbot]

Get a load of this, fantastic prewar 8mm home movie of a California dry lakes meet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5ENn_hxv64&feature=player_detailpage

Thank you:eusa_clap:eusa_clap

 

[Stanley Doble]

The so called belly tank car is actually Bob Rufi's streamliner, completed in 1939 with an entirely hand formed body. He made 143.54 MPH with a hopped up 1924 Chevrolet 4 cylinder engine in 1940.

http://books.google.ca/books?id=pib...0CCUQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=rufi race car&f=false

There are other well known cars in the film like Stu Hilborn's streamliner, the first car to have Hilborn fuel injection. And Earl Bruce's cut down 1939 Ford coupe. The coupe was less than a year old when the film was taken, Bruce bought it new and began customizing it on the way home from the dealer. He still owns the car.

You can also see Ed Iskenderian's V8 Ford with Maxi F heads, Model T roadster body, Essex frame rails and Plymouth brakes. He wanted hydraulic brakes and when he was building the car in 1938, Ford didn't have hydraulics yet. He still owns the car, last plated in 1951.

 

[Stearmen]

The so called belly tank car is actually Bob Rufi's streamliner, completed in 1939 with an entirely hand formed body. He made 143.54 MPH with a hopped up 1924 Chevrolet 4 cylinder engine in 1940.

http://books.google.ca/books?id=pib...0CCUQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=rufi race car&f=false

There are other well known cars in the film like Stu Hilborn's streamliner, the first car to have Hilborn fuel injection. And Earl Bruce's cut down 1939 Ford coupe. The coupe was less than a year old when the film was taken, Bruce bought it new and began customizing it on the way home from the dealer. He still owns the car.

You can also see Ed Iskenderian's V8 Ford with Maxi F heads, Model T roadster body, Essex frame rails and Plymouth brakes. He wanted hydraulic brakes and when he was building the car in 1938, Ford didn't have hydraulics yet. He still owns the car, last plated in 1951.

Good catch!

 

[HOP UP]

Keepin the thread going gang - some pix of my latest ride : an all steel, pre WWII dry lakes 1932 Ford roadster !! She still has the mech Ford brakes and runs the 21 stud Flathead with a Thickstun PM7 intake

LOVE IT !!

HOP UP

 

[scottyrocks]

Outstanding!

 

[David Conwill]

I kind of hate you right now. In a good way.

Very cool.

-Dave

 

[HOP UP]

I kind of hate you right now. In a good way.

Very cool.

-Dave

Hey Dave, its taken me over a year to find the right car. Whilst Ive built other hot rods inc a 32 3W, what I was searching for was a pre WWII Dry Lakes Deuce roadster. The kinda car that some young guy would have souped up and ran it at the Lakes as well as on the street BEFORE Pearl Harbor and before he was drafted.

The 21 stud flathead is correct, as are the speed parts on this car, right down to the mech brakes.

Juice brakes would'nt have really hit the Boneyards in huge numbers by 1940/41 for gearheads to get their hands on., however after the war way more hot rodders had adapted the juice binders from boneyard cars as can be seen by many photos on the lakes.

This car had to be one that I had to find rather than build as atm I just don't have the time to build another project but I'm happy with my decision and the original 70+ yo builder was a "believer" as well and knows the car is going to someone who "gets it"

Bill, you've done an outstanding job on this car and rest assured it's in good hands !!

HOP UP

 

[Wise Guy]

HOP UP is a good buddy of mine we share a similar interest is cars, music and style and in particular pre WWII style Hot Rods.
Something a young kid would have built before 1942. I've had some Rods before but the latest one illustrates the golden era of
Hot Rodding in Southern California. It a stripped down 29 Ford roadster running a hopped up '32 model 4 banger with original
Winfield speed equipment from the early 30's.

http://i1080.photobucket.com/albums...14831997_1605503821_32464647_1876036889_n.jpg

http://i1080.photobucket.com/albums..._o1929_ford_model_a28_model_b_four_banger.jpg

http://i1080.photobucket.com/albums/j331/especialle/1012sr_25_oford_model_a_roadster.jpg

http://i1080.photobucket.com/albums/j331/especialle/1012sr_29_oford_model_a_roadster.jpg

http://i1080.photobucket.com/albums/j331/especialle/1012sr_28_oford_model_a_roadster.jpg

 

[David Conwill]

Gorgeous, just gorgeous.

-Dave

 

[Wise Guy]

Meet “Le Nain Bordeaux”, my concept for a personalized 1926 Ford:

I have a ‘26 roadster frame that I intend to build into a period vehicle. I don’t want a restored, stock Flivver, though. I’ve been evolving my plan, which started out as a ‘23-‘25 roadster built in the Multy Aldrich style.

My plan is to use a Model A engine (with period hop ups yet to be determined), front axle, and wheels; and a Model T “Ruckstell” 2-speed rear axle (the A trans and T torque tube can be mated with a special U-joint). My intent is to use no parts of a newer design or style than 1932.

What do you think? I intend for Le Nain Bordeaux to sit a bit lower than this (with reversed spring eyes), but the color scheme and the raked windshield were what I was testing out with this Photoshop (courtesy of HAMBster “Russian”).

-Dave

Fantastic Dave I'd love an update on your Hopped Up T. Those bangers certainly respond well to a little tweaking and sound real nasty uncorked!

 

[David Conwill]

Well, it’s been a while since I posted that. My parts pile has grown larger and taken me in a slightly different direction; although all-‘32-and-earlier remains the rule. No two pieces are bolted together, however:

I’m also in regular contact with Clayton Paddison, whose pre-war-style T roadster you may remember seeing in the R&C “little book” annual last year. Clayton has been a great contact and influence on this project.

I now take my inspiration from the Spurgin & Giovanine ‘25 Chevrolet in its 1942 guise:

Instead of a Whippet radiator shell, however, I have acquired a ‘29 Chevrolet shell I intend to cut down to work with the ‘26 Ford cowl (I have a ‘25 Ford dash for mockup, as the body will represent the biggest expense and I’m putting it off). I’m also leaning toward 19-inch ‘29 Chevrolet wire wheels, as the six-lug pattern has the same spacing as the bolts on a T wood-wheel hub. Front suspension will be inspired by John Gerber’s dirt-track car:

Instead of the Model A banger, power will come from a ‘28 Chevrolet four-cylinder I picked up very inexpensively:

I’m still planning to mate the Chevrolet engine to a Model A trans and a Ruckstell rear axle (the Ruckstell will probably also be a later addition).

People aren’t real happy about the number of GM parts incorporated into a Model T, but Chevy 490 roadster don’t exactly grow on trees, and the Ford chassis is sturdy, adaptable, and handsome. The GM pieces are partially a matter of convenience, but are also a tribute to my maternal grandfather, born in 1912, who was a young man in Saginaw, Michigan when these cars were being built. Saginaw happens to have been a big supplier of GM parts, and I like to think that had I been in his situation, building a gow, that I’d have largely been fishing GM pieces out of the town dump.

-Dave

 

[Wise Guy]

Dave, sounds like a well thought out plan. Keeping the drive train all early Ford would have been much easier but I can understand the convenience of using what you have available. In essence that's Hot Rodding!
Keeping it all pre '32 will be a challenge and delay the build date while you chase the parts you need, it will certainly be worth all your efforts in the end. Please keep us in the loop, this project of yours I'll be following with great interest. It's great to find a true believer in amungst a sea of CNC'd billet street rodders.

Chris.