Hot Rods How would have you built this car in 1962?

I'm building a 38 Chevy 5 window coupe. I want to build it as a hotrod and not a tail dragger. I've looked on the internet and found some of these hotrodded but they are all the 70's/80's billet barges. I'm trying to figure out what a guy in the early 60's would have done if he was bulding this car. I'm kind of thinking a nice rake, blackwalls with spidercaps, nerf bars instead of bumpers. I have a 283 and saginaw I am putting in it. I an planning on keeping the motor stock looking for now. Maybe adding a tripower if funds allow it later on.
I know their are some folks on here that were actually around in the early 60's. (I wasn't built till late 64) Can you please share from the "old days"
How it probably would have been built. Thank you for your time and inputs. Todd

 

How about as a street racer? Gassers were very popular so a wanna-be street racer might be of interest to you, even if you didn't jack the front real high or do a straight front thing. Here is a pix of a buddy's old car, Dave Ehrmann. It had a scratched Hilborn set-up on the I-6. He won Indy nats twice with it in the early 60s. This is the only photo I have of it. Gary

 

In the early to mid '60s (in my neck of the woods -Colorado) your car would have had steelies with a bit of rubber rake. Typically 670x15 front, 820x15 on the rear. In the mountains it would have to be lowered a bit because we had a lot of corners to go around. We usually ran a rear bumper, but no front.

 

High in front, big tires on the rear.Black or white steel wheels with blackwalls.
Did a 37 and a 40 Chev for a friend. Hope u don;t have a knee action front end.

 

yep, even the different years of the 60's had different trends-go with what you like-your car would have been Hot Rod or Gasser style-color would be a big part of look (Orange, Yellow, Black,etc)-small block/4 speed (with Hurst shifter)very correct-chrome only on engine (Chevy orange), unless Vette valve covers-exhaust cut outs or dump tube headers- raised in the front if anything, not lowered -spider caps, not likely unless a custom-no caps or small caps-no whitewalls-big'n'little tires-reversed rear rims-nerf bars OK-no front bumper and tube rear bumper (to fill with ballast) OK too-hood sides on or off-black or dark brown tuck'n'roll interior-Moon type hard steering wheel (not sponge)-AM/ 8 track stereo-ETC

 

Sounds like I am part way there. Motor is Chevy orange with script valve covers. Hurst shifter too. I am also planning cut outs but wanted to keep the rams horns .So your saying no rake? Just a small moon cap or cap and trim ring? Todd

 

The only one I know of in eastern CT was built very close to your town.

37 coupe, mostly weekend drag car but he did say it was on the street at some point. Built in late 50s, parked/last raced in 62.

A friend and I had most of his goodies a few years ago. It was early Olds powered, LaSalle trans, Olds rear. All of the money went into speed stuff. He had 3x2, 2x4, 6x6 setups, multiple cam grinds.

There were no fancy wheels in his stash, so it must have been steel wheels, one set of M&H drag slicks and he said "then he started really breaking parts" ..I think he said that's why he parked it.

Must have been straight axle raised up a bit, because there were homemade fenderwell headers with block off plates for street.

I forgot the tach brand but it was special to run with the Ducoil dist.

He still has the car but started to streetrod it a long time ago; sbc, IFS.

 

I'm thinking you would be spot on for the Northern part of Calif. maybe if you were high dollar Americans or Halibrands. if not Chromies or black steelies.

Not a lot of lifted cars running the streets in San francisco in '62. A lot of racked cars with black walls or white walls and cheaters or 9.00x15 bias plys on the rear. Some really progressive guys running 14s on the front and 15s on the rear. Nerf bars were king if you had a street brawler, dumos were also cool but not real common like in S Cal.

 

where i grew up. some brothers built a 39 chevy coupe with a 302 gmc punched to 320. olds rear borg-waner 4 sp. car sat stock hight. later about mid 60's it got a 327 with 4 2bl. carbs. it had painted wheels later chrome reverse.

a 38 was built with a 389 pontiac and 3 sp trans. stock hight.

 

Thanks for all the great inputs. Like I said I am going for a hotrod more than a gasser. I guess in the early 60's though thing must have taken a turn towards the gasser/street racer style. I just don't want it to look like something from the 80s. Thanks again, Todd

 

If I built it in '62 it would have been a 283 with the vette quads, Duntov cam, 3 or 4 speed with a Hurst, Heddman Hedders, cutouts, 55-57 4.11 posi, Traction Masters,stock height, with chrome reverse rims and Bucrons on the back. Probably would have been Honduras Maroon with a black and white interior.

 

I bought my 41' Ford convert. in 62'. 14's in the front 15's in the rear, wide whites, no front bumper, built flathead w/ 39' 3 speed, candy apple red w/ black & white tuck and roll and scavenger pipes hanging out the rear. If they weren't flat on the bottom they weren't low enough! That was an early sixties hot rod.

 

I was still in diapers in 1962. But here's how another guy's Chevy coupe looked at the time.

 

Watch American Graffiti and check out all the cool cars. That will give you a idea of how to do your chevy. And remember that not everyone had the money to build a magazine car.

 

....as an early 70s version of an early 60s car!

 

Tried to find a picture of my dad's '32 Chevy sedan that he had in the early '60's, no luck yet. 2-tone metallic blue, reversed chromes with narrow whitewalls, maybe a little drop in the front, ran both bumpers and a 303 Olds with a Hydra-matic if I remember correctly. I remember him saying he traded it for the mythological "little old lady" owned '53 Merc hardtop, black roof over pale yellow. Get some pictures up, love those late '30's sedans!

 

'38 Chev hot rod in '62?

Rake, 5-spokes, GMC I-6 (I liked old timey even then)!

 

How did they do it back then with no S-10 frame swaps? Weird.....

I'll dig out pics. I did a 38 4 door years ago. 235, 4 speed, Denman wide whites on steelies and slightly lowered in front. It was a FUN beater. Except for the knee action.

 

yep, stock height, or slightly raised-straight axle cars with fenders were not lowered, unless customs-a tach with chrome housing-glass pack mufflers-ram horns-if running a alternator mount it low since they were still running generators-OK to have battery under hood-no Caddy air cleaner-14" front steel rims OK, but not wide ones-rear rims should not be wider than 8"-if must run electric fan put in front of radiator-Baby Moons OK, but not beauty rings-rims black, some ran white rims-chrome steel rims OK-most guys did not not have much money, so painted things like fire wall white just to look like magazine cars-diamond tuck upholstery OK-No electric windows/AC, etc-might want to upgrade to a later steering box for better handling-make sure brakes, etc in like new condition-keep it simple-check here, swap meets, craigslist, etc for deals on parts

 

George Lucas did the car scene as a teenager back in the early 60s and A.G. is based on those times he spent cruisin the main drag. So the movie is a good example of what the car scene was like back in the early 60s. So if I was to build a car, early 60s style, I would study the cars in the movie to get a idea of how it was.

 

AG is a reflection of what George Lucas remembered about the scene in Modesto in 1962. The mere fact that the Merc and the '32 5W are scorned by most serious traditionalists shows just how well George was paying attention.

No disrespect to George; he's a terrific filmmaker. He's no rod & custom historian.

 

Stock height, black steel wheels-maybe babay moons, a little wider on the back, 283 with solids, 2-4's ,4 spd,Generator, battery where it belongs, rams horns with cutouts,tach on the column--as some have said--later steering box and better brakes.

 

That was my first thought too. These Chevies were very popular at the drags and very successful.
Thank you for posting that photo Gary!

 

Buddy used to have one that was built in about that era - they put it on a Studebaker Lark frame. I think it was channeled a bit to give it some rake without messing with the suspension. When he had it, it didn't have fenders on the front but it came with a set painted in the same bright yellow, so it must have had them on at some point.

 

Here is after one of the MANY rebuilds of that car.

 

The hot '38 that ran around the syreets of Eugene in 1962 had a 302 GMC in it,steel painted wheels and Pontiac rearend....also a '40 Chevy coupe was grey primer,324 Olds,Cad Lasalle trans and Olds rearend,painted steel wheels and WW cheater slicks

 

I vote for the Gasser look being's it a 5 window coupe, all those old cars from the gasser wars era were great to look at.

 

The I-6's are still eating their way out at the strip. I see one from Oklahoma that when they show up they take the Trophies home. There is another up in Sturgis, SD that isn't a slouch either. I have one with some Clifford performance items on it and it stays with the big dogs on the highway. There is another here locally that shifts at 7,700 RPM and it is staying together too.
Normbc9

 

No problem, just trying to stir the bucket and offer some ideas. If you happen to have a copy of Gasser Wars, you can look him up. H/G is a minor deal, but he beat everyone in his class at Indy, twice just to make sure.

Some of the other suggestions sound interesting, like loosing the front bumper, a very slight nose high rake, bigs n littles but vintage slicks only for vintage drags or a car show. Gary

 

you should start gathering old rod and custom and hot rod magazines from the early 60's before you turn a wrench on it. Read them, study the pictures. Read the advertisements to see what was available in 62