After reading @hrm2k's thread I linked to above I went and checked the albums on his profile page. Here is a scan of Wes' '55 in the April 1963 Speed and Custom.
Lil E, Hope you don't mind, I went back and pulled the following quotes from your introduction to this AWESOME thread. Just doing this as a friendly reminder to all of your intent for W.E.H.T. (note) it is what got me back on the HAMB. Thanks to (Jim), Stanlow69 who saw me at a car show and said "You gotta check out this cool thread on the HAMB"
Heck no Bill, I don't mind! Glad the thread helped bring you back. I hope it brings back more of the "old time" HAMBers. E I agree Sancho. That car sits higher than my daily driver. Is it bagged or juiced and is sitting up all the way? It does have ALOT of potential though. Lower it (if it isn't on an adjustable suspension), get rid of the re-pop reversed chromed artillery wheels and put on some steel wheels with some '57 Caddy caps, Lancers or some other caps with flippers. Get a chrome hoop for the Connie kit and a different filler without the skull and you'd be in business. Gotta love a chopped Bel Air! E
I'm always telling people about this thread. How can any kustom/custom fanatic not be excited about the stuff Ed posts here. I look forward to every Tuesday when the newest WEHT pops up. Sometimes another posts attempt to take it off course but the faithful keep it going in the right direction. THANK YOU ED FOR SUCH A GREAT THREAD. I really believe that there are maybe 3 threads in the Traditional Custom section that keep me coming back, but this is #1
I'll say it again, THANK YOU @OG lil E Since you started this thread I have had the opportunity to meet you, and @stanlow69 and am grateful for that. All stemming from THIS very thread. Looking forward to MANY more W.E.H.T.'s! Long live Kustoms!
When your 12 years old reading about customs and dreaming, you never realize later you get to meet these people who actually owned them(and get to see the cars) and meet the builders also. A cool experience. There must of been other people like me thinking the same thing. Maybe they discovered customs later in life but still have the passion. It`s neat to meet people who have the love of customs as well. I like to pick there brains and learn about cars that they are familiar with. I also like to share my knowledge as well. It doesn`t do any good if it ain`t told and shared. Keep up the great work Ed.
I didn't grow up in a hot rod/custom/car family. My dad loved Impalas but didn't have one as I was growing up because he was too busy struggling to take care of the family. So I was a little bit older before I got to start hitting car shows and such. What I'm trying to say is, I still remember the thrill of seeing a car that was featured in a magazine come into a small town car show I was at. As I got older and started traveling to bigger shows it became more common but it was still a thrill. Then I built up the nerve and started talking to the owners and the whole world changed. This thread brings all that back, plus reminds me of all the really cool cars I use to see and makes me wonder where they got to. Thanks to Ed, a few of those questions have been answered.
248 pages and going [emoji123] strong, I agree one of the most interesting threads, but really what I’ve come to know is how we don’t know much about each other, but, kind of walk similar paths when it came to our interest in these cars. We are from different parts of this great country but managed to arrive at the same destination here on the H.A.M.B. Thanks OG lil E. Sent from my iPad using H.A.M.B.
And speaking of making friends from this thread, I have been talking with Garrick through Instagram. He is Dick Druschel's grandson. I will relay the details he gave me. "Yes the car is still in the family. I am dicks grandson. Unfortunately the car is in horrible shape but in the process of restoration. Gina’s jewel is on her way back to shows. You will be seeing her shortly" I sent him a link to this thread and got this: "Very cool thread. To answer some questions I seen were asked. My grandpa Dick and Jim Noble were best friends. If you seen one. The other was not far away. They went everywhere together. James Dean. Turkey run. Lima show. Everywhere. Dick did have a big part in Jim’s Shboom. The car (Gina's Jewel) is still in our care. Still has the blue and white striped tuck and roll interior. All work on Gina’s jewel was done by Dick Druschel and the family. The car will never be for sale."
Here is more on Jim Noble from Garrick: "Now for shboom. Mr Jim Noble is no longer with us. He passed away about a year ago. He sold the original Shboom 1951 Ford to a man in Michigan who repainted it and put the hudcaps on it. Still has the original interior from Jim. Jim bought a 57 Ranchero after and named it Shboom as well. Blue in color. Sold it and bought a Econoline pickup red in color, put stacks with injectors and named it Shboom too. Sold it and him and Dick built a 94 Thunderbird to look just like the 51 Ford Shboom."
And then there was this regarding Dick: "But no I do not mind if you add those pictures. I will send more when I go over to my grandparents. Called my grandpa. And told him about the thread and made his day. He suffered a stroke and hasn’t been the same since. Slowly gettin back to working on cars. Grandma said she thinks it got his pistons firing again. I appreciate you reaching out to me. This car has been my family’s pride and joy for as long as I can remember. Been off the show circuit for years. Glad to see people still remember it"
I am going to see if I can find anything on Jim Noble's Ranchero, Econoline, and Thunderbird as he had asked. If anyone has/sees anything post it, you can send me the Thunderbird (OT) and I will pass it on. Don't mean to distract from the thread but this was too good not to share! Garrick has said he would send more photos of the Jewel. I will post them as he does. Glad to see this one still in the family, good job Dick!
Aw shucks, you guys are making me blush! Seriously, thanks for the compliments. I thought long and hard before I started this thread, but I'm so glad I did. I had no idea it would go this long and have the response we've had. We have found many of these cars and have learned about their history and the owners. Sometimes it is sad news finding out that so many of the great KKOA pioneers have left us. Other times it is good news and the owner/builder is still at it. I have known some great custom people over the years. Thanks to the HAMB that number has grown. It all started back in 2000 at the 20th Spectacular in Wichita. I met @PasoJohn there and we have been great friends ever since. Over the years I've finally been able to put faces with names and met guys like Jim (@stanlow69), @Sancho, @Moriarity, Mick (@straykatkustoms) and @drdave just to name a few. It has been great to sit down and talk customs at the Spectacular and take it all in. I hope to meet many more of you in the future. I know the Spectacular has fallen out of favor with many people for one reason or another, but I continue to support it. It has given me many happy memories over the years, from reading about the first few gatherings in magazines when I was a young teen, to being able to attend the show in person as an adult. It would be nice to see people that have been away from the show for a while to go back before its all over. Titus is getting up in years, and there is no telling how much longer it will last. The KKOA name might be sold or the show taken over by another person or group. There is a very good chance the show will change even more if it changes hands. No more gathering of legends (many of whom we've lost in recent years), no more famous builders working on chopping tops or sectioning, and maybe no more customs. Now that would really be a shame. When that day comes (and I hope its a long time away) it will definitely be the end of an era. Its nice that Sancho reached out to the Druschel family, and I'm glad to hear that Dick is still with us, even though he has health challenges. How great would it be to see his car roll into the Leadsled with him driving or as a passenger? This is the type of thing that thrills me. I wish I could have been at the shows when Dick Crouthers was cruising around in his super low orange and gold scalloped Merc (W.E.H.T. #1), or to see the Beluscsak Merc in person (W.E.H.T. #2). How about sitting down with the late George West (W.E.H.T. #7), Neil Borella (W.E.H.T #81) or John "Shaggy Dog" Jordan (W.E.H.T #57 and #58) and listen to stories of customs and how they were created. Not all custom guys are big name legends, but they had (have) great stories to tell and they built some fantastic cars over the years. We have no way of telling if these guys will be at the show from one year to the next for whatever reason. This is what I'm trying to preserve with this thread. Let's not forget the little guys who go to the shows and sit next to the "big boys". The neat thing about these little guys is that they build their cars with a lot of home or friend supplied labor, and they show that a knockout custom can still be built at home. Sorry about he long post, but thanks for reading. I'll close with Sancho's great comment above, "Long live customs"! E
Ed said it. I read between the lines. A W E H T reunion in Salina Kansas for the 2018 Leadsleds. The reason it`s not in Indy is because Ed won`t be able to make it. So that`s why it`s in Salina. If you want to meet the people who contribute to this thread. BE THERE. Weather you have a car that`s been featured or not bring it. Start planning to be there now.
So glad to see all of this about my 2 Kustom Heros, these 2 cars and a purple 56 Ford from Zanesville owned by Kenny Jones. Are the reason I got into Kustom cars..
Ed, thanks for all your work on this thread. Amazing the info that has been discovered while its been going on. The pressure is on for me to make it to Salina this year, so hopefully I can get there for the WEHT meeting of the minds.
Ok. Here are pics of Jim Noble other rides. Did not find any of the Ranchero. But here is his Ford Truck (the last custom he had) the Bird in a box. And his Rupp trike which was the last vehicle he had. If I find pics of the others I will post. Also this is Richard Druschel II's arm tat Sent from my LGLS992 using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Moriarity told me about your thread, Ed. It's what brought me back after a several year abcense! Thanks Ed!! And all the contributors Sent from my SM-G935V using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
Be nice to see it come to the custom car revival in Indy in June, if not this year, next [emoji177] Sent from my SM-G935V using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
We only missed about 3 leadsleds in the early years after the one in DesMoines cant recall the year. As we would get closer to the destination my heart would race with the anxiety of seeing great customs and even greater custom friends, that are more like family. We made it to Ks in 2014, it was sure different. Bit did reunite with Hum and Gloria, Albers and Biil Moore, Gary Glasgo it was great and Doug Shoemaker. Unfortunately we cant make it back do to time restrictions. Thank goodness for CCR, sure wish Ed could make it. But looking forward to meeting those of you who will be in Indy!!! Sent from my SM-G935V using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
I've got pictures of the Bird In A Box that Jim had, but didn't post them here as they don't fit the parameters of the HAMB and I didn't wanna risk this thread over one picture. But here's a link for you Facebook users. Add me as a friend while you're there. https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?...0233000340252.478034.659250251&type=3&theater
The Jalopy Journal
