Features T A I L D R A G G E R S..... again...

If the pencil exhaust tips are not wore 1/2 down it not a tail dragger yet… In the 50’s that was the true sign of one…

 

My 46 Tudor

 

Hello,
What a topic title. It is very descriptive and clear as day as to what is coming your way down the street. When we were growing up in the Westside of Long Beach we saw plenty of “taildraggers…” But, that moniker was not used then. The older local kids had friends and cousins living in Compton, Dominguez, Wilmington, all surrounding Long Beach to the North and West. They drove all kinds of cool looking cars. Most of them were lowered and barely able to go through an intersection that had drainage dips.

Yes, some of them did drag their tails… But, for a lowered custom car driven on the streets, on level streets, they were low, but rolling without too many mishaps. A flat tire was not the owner’s best friend. At the time in the late 50s-early 60s, those lowered cars were being stopped for unsafe modifications to their street legal cars.

What was the biggest worry? A low pressure tire allowing the gas tank becoming the lowest point of contact with the ground as the custom car was moving. Then as the metal heated, an explosion or sparks started, causing catastrophic results. The later versions of skid plates covering the gas tank area, thus creating their own “sparks show” anytime they wanted to show others.

Jnaki

So, the custom cars had a lowered stance all around. Then some got adjustable suspension, which led to automatic lowering either end of the custom car rolling down the street. At any time, rolling or standing still at a stoplight was a show in itself.

We used to see the tail dragging shows when a single car wanted to try and impress anyone, with the ability to drive straight with some sparks flying out of the tail end of the car(s).

Tail draggers? What was the purpose? We, little kids were impressed, but as time rolled on, what was the attraction? Bad riding, worse handling, uncomfortable when going over bumps and parking was a distance away from the damaging curbs… But, what a show it was, when the sparks flew… YRMV


1959 A real “Tail Dragger”… power in action.

 

My 1950 Fleetline.

 

Looks like l’m gonna be looking through 34 pages of taildraggers.

 

Ain't nothing wrong with that

 

View attachment 5526362

 

In the old neighbourhood..:


-Dave

 

A lot of great 41-48 FoMoCo in here. Can these be dropped like that without a chop?

 

Valley Customs sure did it successfully.

 

Here’s my contribution

 

Mine.

 

Yesssss!

 

My 39/40 tub 4Dr chopped carson topped taildragger

 

Great stance on the 40 std 2Dr

 

My pals 36 under construction.

 

I just noticed that this car had different hubcaps on the front and rear. Maybe it was supposed to look like this ...

 

Lyons on the back.

 

I'm thinking of flatting the rear springs a bit and some skirts to get it a little lower. I don't want it sitting in the weeds but have the arse end hanging a little lower....
What do you guys think

 

You've come to the right place for a yes!

 

Now that's what I'm talking about. Gorgeous

 

You've already made your decision, but if you need confirmation: YES, YES, YES....do it!

 

You twisted my arm

 

I plan to taildragger my Mercury 1947 coupe , is there a someone that have already built one out of a 46,47,48, Mercury? any technical help would be appreciated.

 

Tail dragging a Merc should be the same as tail dragging any other Ford from 41-47