That rings a bell, I seem to recall a 'kit' type of thing to build one of those board-track roadsters based on the chevy rials and they had a 'U' shape bent to join the frame rails in the front. They were narrow, single seaters, but not all that much different from your Dads. Very nice and thanks for posting!
What a great dash layout and gauges. This was not thrown together. This is a very nice gauge set for 1948 and a nice dashboard. No telling what just the dash and gauges would be worth now.
1948 a lot of stuff was available for dirt cheap on the war surplus market. Aluminum sheet, chromoly tubing, aircraft grade hardware & fittings all manner of stuff. One caveat about using actual luminous dial gauges from the periods beginning from World War one vintage up to early World War 2: Many of the instruments during that time period had gauge faces and indicator needles that were painted with a luminous Radium based paint (radioactive paint). That's why the markings on the gauge faces would glow in the dark. There is a tragic history about the young women who worked in the factory(s) that produced these gauges and watch dials before the dangers were fully known or disclosed to the workers. Lawsuits in 1925 but damage already done. There have been numerous documentaries and a feature film about this. Not exactly sure when the radium paint process was completely stopped but maybe some time after 1942(?) in the U.S. after the Manhattan Project got started and most radioactive raw materials were diverted to that? Gauges from foreign countries from the same time periods? Who knows? Even though the face may not still glow in the dark does not mean it is not emitting alpha particles. Radium has a half-life of 1600 years. Just take proper precautions and get the stuff thoroughly checked out first if you are not 100% sure of its age or origins.
Bttt...A glorious part of the big picture...with the Hotrodder that piloted it still passionate about the Ole Hotrod and the good times he had with his late close friend Jim Culbert back in the late 40s and beyond...
Auburn 851/852 grill, boat "V" windshield, great look. What about that bent up 39 Ford steering wheel, maybe the car was rolled and rebodied?
John, in the original post it was mentioned the Hotrod was in a serious accident. There is a following post with a series of accident aftermath images on the including a .pdf file outlining in detail the how of the accident and the rollover details including the thankful fact that neither Ed nor his passenger nor the party in the other vehicle were seriously injured. It went on to say the Hotrod was never again roadworthy under Ed's ownership that being his own personal decision and it was sold as is and whether it saw the road again is unknown. I will add that both Ed Senior and Junior are both incredibly detailed in their painting this story we have been blessed with here at the Hamb. It is also notable that Ed Senior, the man that Piloted and Spirited this Hotrod is still with us at 97 years young... I'll take this moment to thank him for keeping such a thorough archive of this ride, the experience, for his service and also his son Ed Jr. for sharing it with us.... Quoted from pdf file below penned by Ed Jr. from a conversation with his Father...
Great story! I'd love to find that in it's post wreck condition hidden away in an old shed. It wouldn't be hard to resurrect it with all it's picture documentation...
Your dad really planned that roadster out well. Does not look thrown together. That rollover probably made your dad poop his pampers enough to want to sell it. He was brave not stupid.
After that dad was a Hardtop man. LOL For a while after the wreck in 1948 he was getting around in a 1939 Olds 6 cyl sedan. Then in 1950 he bought the Hot Sled of the day. Oldsmobile 98 Futuramic Sedan Deluxe with the Rocket V-8 He got the hood de-chromed for a cleaner look and put true duals on it. He took the clock out of the dash pod and put a Stewart- Warner vacuum gauge in it to help driving for better fuel economy. I still have that gauge in one of my other rides. LOL Beautiful emerald green metallic and had the interior custom carpeted in a grey nylon cut pile. Dark red upholstery. And those rude whitewalls. He even installed safety belts in it for all six passengers. We grew up in that car. We went everywhere in it. It was the family car until 1966
Carrell Speedway pics are up. History - CARRELL SPEEDWAY January,1949 | The H.A.M.B. (jalopyjournal.com)
In 2002'2003 when my son was in Afghanistan, we sent him the 1948 El Mirage photo of the T. He was in signal corps and had access to photo shop, so he created this graphic in his spare time. My daughter, a graphic artist, formatted the thing and printed it out on t-shirt transfers. We ended up making a limited run of hot press T-shirts for friends and family. That was 20 years ago., it's time to make some more shirts1
The Jalopy Journal
