My simple "old hawler", you holler, it'll hawler. Gonna swap in an A833 od trans, I do have 3.23 gears, but am thinking of going to 3.73 with an OD A833.
Just had a co-worker ask me if I drove my car to back to the fifties. Of course, there really isn't that much that much that can go wrong with an old hot-rod, that can't be fixed once you get the initial bugs worked out. Even last year when it broke two rockers it got me home ok. Image lifted without permission from Craig Cochran
While I agree with you on many, many, levels that the simplicity of early ford stuff is great, the reality of my life is my surroundings. I'm in a big city that's damned congested, surface streets that run at 50 mph and freeways that are marked at 65 but seldom traveled at less than 80, or instantly stopped. To be compatible with that it doesn't take much to "update"... A T-5, Bendix type brakes, etc. As much as I like shifting early Ford toploaders, that and a pair of 3:54s relegate you to the far right lane where you still are going to have people running up on you at far greater speeds. That T-5 fixes that pretty quick. And easy to hide. I guess what I am saying is yes, absolute tradition is awesome, but don't look down your nose at those that have to stray a little to fit their surroundings.
next time your in Mn come drive my coupe, its never in the right lane and has a 40 trans and 354 gears and 750 stones on the back!
Yeah man. Most reliable thing I ever owned was my 64 C20. 292 & 3 speed. Ran all day, every day, around town and over the road, hauling groceries or hauling a load. Broke 2 trannys and fixed me both right where they broke. I miss that rusty old rattle trap.
I certainly will Titus! And ya, I get what you are saying, but traffic in the Twin Cities is still pretty tame. The other end is if you leave Phoenix and go to L.A., there is no "back road" to get there where you comfortably run 60-65. It's all I-10, and traffic is running a hell of a lot closer to 100 out there. Most anywhere you go out west it's the same. We never had a bunch of roads, and getting there faster and faster is the key. I'm not saying that traditional cars suck, matter of fact, I love 'em! But they just aren't practical everywhere.
Even the article is simple! Great advice and encouragement to anyone who may be tempted over to 'The Dark Side'.
Simple is good !! I am gathering parts for my 31 sedan jalopy flathead 39 box . No bling here just some good old Ford parts in Good old Ride.
Nice to hear that there are still people out there that build , fix, drive, fix, modify, drive on a real persons budget. Not saying that I wouldn't mind driving some of the amazing vehicles i see at car shows, just that I sorta like making something outta nothing.: Shoebox 8BA 3/4 race to T5 to Maverick rear end. Bonneville this year, California in the Fall anywhere else that looks good. One day it'll get an interior too. Just another cheap fun ride in a long line of cheap recycled tin. Don't really like the Rat Rod term thats indiscriminately used, tho Jalopy has a nice ring to it. Second hand bling tastes better.
Being a New Zealander I love the fact that HOGAN heads were used. I knew the late Ron Hogan and know his son Garth pretty well down here in NZ.
Yeah, I've definitely learned that lesson the last few years - due to the old 32 that I bought that was bone stock, except for a 59AB in it. It now has a hot flathead in it (but reliable) and a 39 box . . . everything else, stock. Example - Brakes: I decided to just rebuild the old mechanical brakes (to as good as new) - just to see if the dumb things worked? (I'd always ripped them right out when I was a kid). Guess what - they work just fine . . . especially on the back roads and when the highways aren't crowded. Honestly, they are just fine for anything other than high-speed, highly congested freeways -- as they won't stop the car well at 55+ MPH and if the lanes are packed with cars, my options get slim. So - I'm going to put a set of hydraulic bendix brakes on it . . . kind of a shame in my eyes, but I'm keeping ALL the stock stuff in careful order - somebody might want to put it back on in the future. Then there was the "6 volt versus 12 volt" mental discussion . . . decided to stick with 6 volts and run the wiring EXACTLY as Henry did. I bought all new cloth-covered harnesses and rewired the complete car in about 3 hours (even using the stock headlight harness that attaches to the 'bulb" at the bottom of the steering box - also stock). Try that shit with a "modern universal wiring harness"! Everything works - even the damn old bulbs that have been in the car for 60+ years. There is something about simplicity, about the timeless way things were produced . . . about good old forged parts, suspensions that were designed for shitty roads . . . cars that the average guy could work on - and did. Yeah - the KISS idea does work now doesn't it . . . sure worked for Henry . . .
This is a good one.........I for one love simple, but I like "need louvers" in-put also and have to agree with him some what.
The Jalopy Journal
