Projects Play Free Bird!

Well "free" not so much in reference to the price but more to the fact that the little bird was liberated from its solitary confinement of 47 years.

I had posted some pictures on Ryan's baby bird thread about a car I was introduced to locally. The car has sat since 1971, had a 71 Oregon title/plates and a fairly complete body. No drive train though. I knew it wasn't a car for me, it would be like shaq trying to cram his foot into an Italian loafer.

Pretty straight and clean little bird, original black car, not an option to be found on her. As rough as the frame is the new owner is planning on a fatman chassis and late model running gear as a build for his wife.

Of course, if I had kept it, I was imagining a straight axle, towel city slicks, Halibrands, a flat black paint job and "free bird" lettered down the side. My wife is thankful I found a buyer before it flew home.

While I was there looking for parts for the bird like the front bumper and grille which we found I came across a 330 S23 motor. It was disassembled and hadn't been touched in a long, long time. Anyway, I loaded it up in the bed of my truck. A tanked, magnafluxed, machined block, rebuilt heads with valves and springs installed, 8 cleaned pistons, main caps, bolts, spark plug tubes valve covers, oil pan, fresh timing set, new cam, crank polished and placed in a sealed bag, new oil pump, felpro gasket set, new rings, bearings, even spark plugs. No fly wheel but the starter plate was there. Come to think of it there was a auto trans lying there with a torque converter and probably a flex plate off this little Desoto hemi. Should I go back and get it? All of the parts were neatly stored inside a metal cabinet with paper towels wrapping them, no rust or signs of deterioration.

Anyway, the bird is sold, now what to do with the little hemi. I need another motor like a hole in the head. Build the long block and sell it? Sell it as is? Build it as sit on it for another project? Is there a market for them?

 

Dang-it - when I saw the headline - I thought it was some good ol Southern Rock _ Lynard Skynyrd - One of me favorite songs - not this - Bummer!

 

Baby birds were on my short list of potential race cars. The mods would piss off purists and probably quite a few here, but I have this problem with big motors in short wheelbases. Just as well I didn't see this before the '32 found me.
The 330? Build it and let it wait for the next project (you know you'll find it soon)

 

The wife and I have officially settled on a '55-'57 T-bird as our next fun car. That one would have been a perfect start but she would kill me if I brought home another project. Dang.
Check out the '60 Dodge tail lights! Looks like they were starting to do a mild street custom.
If you're overstocked with hot rod engines I'd put it in the HAMB classifieds and see that it gets a good HAMB home.

 

I knew those weren't correct but did not know what they were from. Funny.

 

"dirty" Bird freed to fly again - cute but, real cozy sitting behind steering wheel with stock seat

 

You're OBVIOUSLY not a musician. I'm so sick of people yelling this out at shows. Just last week, we had 2 requests for Sweet Home Alabama within 5 minutes of each other. Wanna make me smile? Request some Ernest Tubb.

 

p.s. - If you were that much of a fan, you could spell the name of the band correctly.

 

Back in the day, I enjoyed playing "Free Your Bird".

 

Thanks for posting what I now don't have to. I've got your back when the clods start flying. Next time you're forced to play it, try it as a waltz for the first half and then go into 7/8. And of course, there's always the Hungarian Gypsy minor key to explore while you're at it. Maybe put the drummer on guitar, the bass player on keyboards and you on saxophone. We used to do this kind of shit on occasion, always the best part of a gig. Pick an easy one like "Smoke On The Water" and you'll be legends in no time flat.

 

"....a party ain't a party............"

 

Before the days of taped radio shows, playing the album version meant the DJ had to take a crap. That god awful In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida song meant the next shift DJ was running a few hours late.....at least it seemed that long.

 

You'll put your eye out

 

That's been the running joke with us, we need to learn it as a polka! That'll teach 'em.

 

^^ THAT'S AWESOME!!! ^^

 

Man that would have been cool with no hood, a healthy 430 Lincoln.

 

It could be worse, you could be asked to play Brown Eye Girl, or Mustang Sally!

 

That sucks. HRP

 

^^^ Yeah, as a Skynyrd fan, it's just wrong.

 

Last St. Pattys day there was a bag pipe and drum marching band doing all the downtown bars. I couldn't help myself after a couple of Jameson Balck Barrel shots. Play Free Brid! They did, and I wasn't all that bad. Still makes me laugh thinking about it.

 

I got a text from the new owner of the bird last night and I'm sorry to say that he has decided to subframe it and coyote motor the car. I wont be able to share the build but ill show you car when it is done.

 

Back in the garage band days Brown Eyed Girl & Mustang Sally were staples for our band.

Brenda has brown eyes,guess it's the Cherokee Indian in her genes and she has it as her ringtone. HRP

 

i'm not a big southern rock fan, but that is just wrong. they had songs i liked a lot better then free bird as well.

 

At breakfast this morning, my 17 year old Grand Daughter told me she was going to a 5 band concert this week-end, but she was only going to see Lynard-Skynard. I said "What's a Lynard-Skynard"? Her reply - "Gran'Pa, It's an OLD (as in me) Southern Rock Band - don't U know?" Guess I was too busy in SE Asia ('65-'66 & '71-'72) to follow them. I told her I know songs I like by sound, not necessarily by who's playing/singing! Didn't think today's teens were interested in OLD bands, but then again; as an up & coming teen, I enjoyed the big bands & soloist of Basie, Goodman, Miller, Dorsey, Ellington, Sinatra, Mel Torme. Ella, Cris Conner, Peggy Lee, Sara Vaughan, George Shearing, Errol Garner & of course Chuck Berry, Bo Diddley, et al. Thanks to XM/SIRIUS I can still enjoy them on the road.

 

The 2 most requested songs in history, and I've played them many, many times. I play just the blues these days, so these aren't requested much, that's nice. But if the request comes with a sizable tip I'll still play them.

 

Skynard wasn't hugely popular till after that, I think 73 or 74 was the first time I heard of them, and they weren't a big name at all yet, in So Cal anyway. The live record that made Freebird famous came out in 76.

 

My fav skynard song is " the hunt"
I could listen to that one till my ears bleed

 

I missed that one.