Fresno Pan Draggers 1952...a look back

The oldest and still active club in Fresno CA. and I talk to some of the early members to this day and what great stories they have, I missed an awesome era but try to live it today. My hat is off to all the original guys around this Hot Rod world that has given us what we have today......anyone wants to add some cool story and or photos of some original clubs and or Hot Rodders themselves please do.

 

must be really cool to talk to guys that were there,,,,
the stories they must have,,,,,
i love talking to guys like that,,they are the true pioneers of the things we love so much,,
it means SO much when they tell you you are going in the right direction with your build,,
better than any trophy, etc........these guys TRULY know how it should be,,

 

Incredibly cool. Thanks for sharing, I can't get enough of that kinda stuff.

 

...

 

Very cool....have any pics of other cars from the club back then?

 

Thats really cool. There's nothing like talking to old hot rodders...

 

Very cool.
Now it is up to us to keep the history alive and create a little more to pass down to future hot rodders

 

Well, I'll try to recount a story my Dad told me. He was in the Newport Beach, CA "Timers" car club back in the mid 1950's. They all got together and built a 1938 Willy's Sedan drag car.....with a Hispano-Suiza V-12 airplane engine! He said it was mechanical fuel-injected, and they could never get it to run on all twelve cylinders as much as they tried to tune it. The engine was so big, they sat over the rear axle in the back of the car. No transmission, only a "dog-clutch" he called it. Also, the exhaust came straight out the sides of the car, they made a hole for each individual pipe.

I've seen a photo of their club plaque in a magazine one time, the Shifters have one on the wall in their clubhouse.

 

That would be a great photo.

 

i heared 1947 in fresno and 1972 east bayarea
but hear mars drive inn was the place!
on my space i have a pic of an original jacket but there is more than one
but i have know that they were the toughest in fresno
the car on the plate was the prez car 32 plymoth and its was called the tj taxi
if i can figure it out ill send pics and scrapbook

 

Awesome thread this is what i've been waiting for some history about central valley car clubs. Thanks for sharing

 

That was one of the coolest car clubs around.They wouldn`t talk to much to people that they didn`t know ,but if they new ya,man the story`s.Use to see a few guys at
the Turlock swap..................................

 

I wanna hear some more about this. Any other info?

 

I believe Skip Lewis was a "Pan Dragger", is he still around?

 

That name does not ring a bell. Ronnie White and Pepper Snow still have Snow White Speed Shop.....remember them?

 

I bought Ed Moradian's 50 Ford convertible from Pepper Snow. Sold it to Baskin.

 

In Baskin's Shop he has a very cool display of early local club memorabilia...the coolest plaque is the Crankers it looks 3D.

 

This one .....



Or this one .....



(328)

 

here me rappin with an og from fresno, then heres a pic of the 72 east bayarea jacket a group shot of the 72 pandraggers and the fresno jacket which is also in my album
m_a9994f844723728632150f1d7d17a111.jpg (7.0 KB)http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l96/Pandraggers/1Conley/Scan0009_0009-1.jpg?t=1228379412
Scan0009_0009-1.jpg picture by Pandraggershttp://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l96/Pandraggers/1Conley/Scan0010_0010-1.jpg?t=1228379551
Scan0010_0010-1.jpg picture by Pandraggers

 

l_970d14c66e43fcfc04b5592b4fc782e0.jpg (45.0 KB)m_9c2587b0c920ac9596bfc2b82ee9f17f.jpg (6.1 KB)theres some other pics of the east baya_12ee4256031e1abd436a30f6beae3419.jpg (20.8 KB)a_e02a85b3bc1be3a6b6b7f2c1636caf7e.jpg (26.5 KBm_98b280372e282c6153b511db8292f789.jpg (6.9 KB)m_7931c5a8eea947b9aeaaf52309d301f2.jpg (6.9 KB)and the humboldt crew

 

I was just talking to a freind of mine named Lynn Hammond about Skipp Lewis. He is still around and has offered to flag start our Eagle Field Drag Race when we make it happen. Rocky

 

Royal Shifter..Fresno use to have a body shop that had 2 guys from Cambodia working there, I think the owner was Joe something, the cambodian guys built a 33/34 roadster, on a tree stump that had a dip in the middle,they pounded out all the sheet metal for the car they even reversed the body reveal it was really trick, this was late 70's early 80's my question what ever happen to that car , any idea...it was a bad ass ride did it get finished?.............The Pan Draggers use to host the "HOW LOW CAN YOU GO" competition at the Mini Nats in Merced,Ca years ago and lived up to their name with that event by building some scrapers that were before the air bag craze.............

 

I grew up two blocks north of Mars drive-in in the 50's and 60's. During the day I watched the Divcos going in and out of the milk plant. At night I would go down to Mars and see the rods, customs, jags, vetts and occasional fights break out. I was just a kid but it made a big impression. One day I was sitting on the front porch watching the cars go by and asked "what kind of car is that daddy." (I knew all my cars models by the time I was 10). One day I asked "why do some cars have light grey paint spots on them daddy?" He said " those are morons son. They dont have any sense at all. They are just stupid people".

I got my first car (59 Ford) when I was 15, went to the auto parts store and bought a can of primer grey....

 

I've got a copy of an old Mars Driv-in menu hanging in my shop. Toymaker, ask Lynn Hammond if he ever drag raced his his pickup on the Millerton rd (Elm ave?) close to Sarkisians house.

 

They are still doing work....one for John Lawson. Porkshop here on the HAMB had one of them just recently do some metal work on his 32 and yes he banged out some sheetmetal on a railroad tie and a stump while setting on the floor.

 

I drove my chopped black 32 sedan to San Jose for the western nats in 1980, just my wife I and my 3 year old daughter. Neatest trip in a hot rod I've ever been on. Any way I pulled in to the parking lot and there was the baddest black 57 Buick I had ever seen. Black and on the ground with a pan draggers plaque on the front. I mean this thing was BAD! If I remember right I believe it belonged to Ronnie white. He will probably never know how much impact that had on my life. I came home and started my search for one immediately. Had a couple since then. If anyone knows him tell him he is the MAN.

 

Lynn says it was on Willow north of Herndon, he still has his Pickup and Skip and he are still Pan Draggers. Now he's wondering who I'm talking too Rocky

 

He probably still has his old 750 Honda chopper too.

 

The bikes long gone as I understand. I talk to Lynn today, says he hasn't seen you in a long time. He's recouperating from a back surgery I'll try to get him on the HAMB. Rocky

 

it would be awesome to have a HAMB get together in the valley with these old timers. sit down and share a beer and a cheeseburger and listen to the stories. i know i could learn a thing or two about a thing or two from them.