Hot Rods What are 5 of your favorite TRADITIONAL hotrods of all time?

Yes Stogy, it´s ready for a test drive once you show up here!
My problem is, I´ll have to change a few things to get it street legal over here. Like fenders and so... I´ll figure something out.

 

@Baumi...you're Living the Dream......thank you for such an enticing offer...I extend the same to you next time you visit your Uncle...A big maple leaf hello to You, Dani and Friends...

Perhaps you may consider a Bobbed rear fender and a cycle front...Traditional as Apple Pie

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Jim Busby started with the Hart & McCandless deuce, seen here at Santa Ana...blown Chrysler...

 

These would be on my top 5 list.

 

The early Indy racers were largely home-built hot rods, just gorgeous machines.

 

Love hearing from the guys who were there back in the day:

Shadoff Special is one of a few iconic streamliners from back in the day. And this from one of the HAMB's great archivists @HEMI32:

 

Sadly the Benham and Aicher dragster was lost in the Malibu fire a few years ago.

 

WHAT ARE 5 OF YOUR FAVORITE TRADITIONAL HOTRODS OF ALL TIME?


Hello,

This is a hard choice as there are plenty of hot rods that deserve a selection. But for me as a photographer/hot rod/drag race builder/owner/driver, there are only a few that really stick out in my mind. When I think about all of the hot rods I have seen over the years, it is difficult. All of my choices are from So Cal. I would constantly see one or the other at various pancake breakfasts, rod runs, and hot rod picnics, as well as a few car shows. But, it was the way the hot rods struck me (and my wife) that kept them close to the heart. (although, that first ride in our friend's black 34 5 window Ford Coupe was pretty outstanding)

Jnaki

Jack Stewart of the L.A. Roadsters took me under his wing and showed me various aspects of early hot rods. I had my first open roadster ride in his immaculate red 1932 roadster. It was not a curvy mountain road alongside of a lake, but in a residential neighborhood with few cars. It was the feeling I got from this roadster and the way it felt going over the So Cal roads. The old “wind in your hair…” scene played on and on for many blocks.

Yes, Jack is now gone and he did get older as we all are doing so gracefully as possible. But, this is how I remember him and his 1932 roadster. Thanks, Jack…


Sheldon Bardin, Early Times Club Long Beach

I met Sheldon Bardin when we were in our 20s. He had already built up a great reputation of being a top notch hot rod builder. The hot rod I saw was the outstanding, 1926 Model T two door sedan. Since we both graduated from Long Beach high schools around the same time, there was some kind of bond. He also showed me around and introduced me to some impressive hot rod builders and owners. Some of them remained friends until they all moved on to hot rod heaven. Thanks Sheldon…


Atts Ono Long Beach, CA

Atts Ono was one of my very early friends from the Westside of Long Beach. We played basketball on the same team. I was the center and he was the playmaking guard and captain. He had the skills to be a fabulous high school player and was considered a Division One candidate. But, he chose drag racing over sports. He was instrumental in helping us with his superior knowledge on builds, custom machinery and general all-around knowledge about hot rods. He was on our Willys Coupe pit crew team and I will never forget the support he gave us in our trying times, back then.

When he was in the building/machining stage of his own immaculate 1940 Willys Coupe, we helped as much as we could. But his skills as a machinist and knowledgeable builder were far beyond our skills. If someone ever finds this red 1940 Willys Coupe in some Midwest barn or fancy garage/museum, take a good look at the quality in that build. My brother also was a good friend with Atts Ono. He mentioned that anytime Atts spoke about a different way to do something on our Willys Coupe build, he listened. Later, my brother did utilize those ideas as he was also impressed with the knowledge and skills of our friend.

THANKS, ATTS
Lee Bright’s 28 Ford Sedan Delivery

My wife and I met Lee at a car show, then he invited us to attend one of The Prowlers of San Diego picnics by the lake one summer. It was the beginning of a great friendship and additional hot rod knowledge. When we saw the chopped 28 Ford Sedan Delivery, we both looked at each other and said… almost in unison… “WOW!” she has always been a hot rod/old car enthusiast, but when we both saw this chopped sedan delivery, to us, it was the epitome of hot rods as we see them in magazines and movies.

Lee Bright 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery

After the accolades from the chopped sedan delivery, it met an unfortunate accident and a new build was started. The next build was a 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery that was one of the best ones to be built. It had everything a cruising couple would want in a build. My wife had made room in our small two car garage so we could have this sedan delivery if Lee Bright would sell it to us. She like the whole build and would have been proud to drive it to see friends and relatives during those family get-togethers during the holidays. Double thanks, Lee…

 

Unbelievable. Eight pages and not one pick, (even in a top five?), for the top one in my list of top five? Sacrilege, I say, just down right Sacrilege!!

Oh so bad, just to upset to show my other four picks now.

I found a shot that worked for me. I'd give most anything I have if this were sitting out in my shop right now. BTW the moniker "Monogram's Lil Coffin
is just plain bull shit, it was always and always will be Dave Stucky's Lil Coffin. Which brings up a sore point with me. Lil Coffin DOSE NOT fit this masterpiece of craftsmanship in the slightest IMO. No name at all would have been better than that. I have no idea what so ever it might be called, maybe I should get opinions from the "master race rodders " here on HAMB ??? (not a sarcastic question meant here). And one other thing, that stupid Skelton always needed to shit canned as far as I am and was concerned.

 

Good choice Larry, although I suspect most HAMBers prefer the Stuckey original. Still, quite a machine.

 

Just a bump to put Stucky and the Coffin edit I did back in view near the top. Could not stand to think that such a great thread was being viewed without the Lil Coffin in full view of our crowd as all are so many other great rides from the years.

 

Sorry, the 'Lil Coffin' isn't in my top 5. Not even in my top 500.
Outrageous, artistic, beautiful workmanship, but not my idea of a traditional Hot Rod.

 

I remember seeing this car in person a couple of times but it was green

Sent from my moto z4 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app

 

Oh Junji, this is fantastic! What a great list from a Southern California hot rodder from back in the day, thanks.

What a great story about you and your brother's Willys from 1960, and Atts Ono, this is rich:

https://wediditforlove.com/The End.html

An excerpt from the link above, written by @jnaki :

We moved the car onto a trailer and towed it back to Atts Ono's house. My parents would have gone berserk at the sight of the smashed in, burned out Willys. So, we spent the next several days disassembling the Willys at his house as much as was possible. Most of the driveline was salvageable as was the 671 SBC and transmission. We took all of the parts off and trailered the burned out hulk to a scrap yard near Lions for disposal. There were other items we could have saved, but being weary about keeping such destruction for later use bothered us.

The car parts we (Atts Ono and I) salvaged that next day, sat idle in our backyard garage room for a long time. But, within the next 6 months, we sold everything from a Drag News Ad. The 671 SBC motor went to a racer from the Midwest somewhere and the rest of the stuff was sold to local racers. (see ad below) So, this ended our involvement in drag racing, as my brother had a difficult time getting back into his favorite activity. In the 1.5 years of rehabilitation, he turned his interests back into surfing and was looking into racing motorcycles in the desert Hare and Hound races for the next motorsport activity.

One good thing came out of this tragic accident, the Lions Safety Committee made it mandatory that all Aluminum Moon Fuel Tanks be immediately moved out of the cab of all vehicles within two weeks. Atts Ono moved his Moon tank out of the cab and installed it in front of the radiator in his new 40 Willys build.

 

Hey BH,

That is one of the nicest things said in a long time. Thank you for those comments. It was happiness on the starting line for that last race. My brother took a huge lead, like he was doing all day, against several other opponents. Then, the final elimination race was for the trophy late at night. What we thought was near the finish line, a fireball shot below the Willys and out of both windows.

It was not the best thing one wants to see. Atts Ono and I were in my Impala racing to the burning Willys Coupe wedged into the fence. By that time, my brother was being loaded into the Pontiac Ambulance near the finish line.

But, the recovery was tough and my brother lived through it as well as he could.

Jnaki

Again, thank you for those nice words. That was a memory that I will not forget. It will be forever ingrained in my old brain.

 

The Prufer 33 Ford and one other. The Maxwell Coupe

 

All those, spot on.

 

I've gone through this thread a couple of times before and the funny thing to me is that the majority of the cars that got posted were not "traditional builds" when they were built, they were hot lick of the day or in several cases trend setting builds that are firmly set in the time frame they were built in. "Traditional builds "would only be newer builds that respect the builds of the older cars and stay true to a specific time frame in pre 1964 and maybe earlier build styles.

 

certainly true but....entertaining!

 

I have not posted to this thread in four years, damn. Thanks to all who have posted.
I pretty much lost my enthusiasm for this thread due to its general lack of interest, although I have been able to learn about some great hot rods that I was unfamiliar with (my original intent).

 

Brizio's First Project.....

 

Gray Baskerville's old 1932 Ford has got to be one of my favorites.



Dean Lowes roadster is the hot rod that made a huge impression on a certain 12 year old.



Eastwood & Barakat 32 Highboy sedan.

 

Great thread from the past! Here are few of mine all in one place.

 

Well it looks like you are in the HAMB minority there. At least two HAMB cornerstones disagree with you, @Royalshifter and . . .

But that is not a put-down, it simply shows how wide the playing field is.

 

Became a big Beach Boys fan as a ten year old in 1963 and this was the first "traditional hot rod" to light my fire. Great choice!

 

Jim Busby's Cadillac powered coupe, California Kid, Little John Buttera's Brown T sedan, Green Hornet (Grasshopper) T roadster, Eddie Dye roadster

 

Thank you, this is exactly why I started this thread. I did not know this hot rod. Beautiful one-off, and home built!
This from macsmotorcity.com:

Known to hot rodders everywhere for its distinctive, flamboyant grille, the 1933 Ford five-window coupe of Oliver Hine is one of Michigan’s pioneer hot rods. Built over a four-year period between 1951 and 1955, the unique rod was built from bits and pieces from dozens of makes and models, hence the nickname “Hine’s 25 varieties.” The engine is a 1950 Cadillac overhead-valve V8, the sweeping front fenders are 1937 Chevrolet, and the fabulous heart-shaped radiator shell is a rare piece from a coachbuilt 1930s Brewster town car.

The channeled ’33 custom was displayed at the 1955 Ford Rotunda hot rod show, and also won Best in Show awards at the 1955, 1956, and 1957 Detroit Autorama shows. Magazine features included a cover story in the April 1959 issue of Rodding and Re-Styling and a spread in the 1959 Hot Rod Annual. Although Oliver Hine passed away in 1985, the car has remained with only two families since it was built, and it was a familiar sight on the Michigan street rod and show car scene for decades.