Art & Inspiration Before and after shots

My Model A,
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/frys-model-a-coupe-build-recap.1128346/

 

My 55, not as dramatic visually, but way more work into it than the Model A.
https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/threads/frys-fifty-five-build-thread.1215517/

 

& it lived happily ever after …..❤️ 5 generations it’s family after all

 

Beautiful stovebolt!^^

 

Dads 1937 Dodge the day it was purchased, and how it looks now.

 

Fall of 1957...
The happy day for my brother and his new 1958 Impala. Paid for by selling our Model A coupe and his first cruising car, the lowered rake 1951 Oldsmobile two door sedan. Now, for the next several years, the new 58 Impala took over our lives every Saturday morning to night activities.

Hello,

It was a teenage thing to do during those late 50s days. Modify what ever car one was driving as power is/was king. The local cherry avenue drags location in bixby knolls gave everyone a place to prove the power to the street activities late at night. It was a tradition to accelerate on cherry avenue late at night. Some felt it was exhilarating, while others felt the surge, but declined to do anything else on their teenage hot rod sedans.

The abundance of experience and information led us to the next level of drag racing, a supercharged SBC motor in a faster Willys Coupe. Then as things happen, our next adventure did not involve Lion’s Dragstrip, but now, coastal cruising in the Impala. Night time road trips to Newport Beach and Laguna Beach were done with friends and double dates. Those beaches were different than our local beach shoreline in Long Beach. So, a new direction was happening…

First inclination of a different mode for the 58 Impala.

My brother was in the drag racing rehabilitation mode and a year later, we tried a new direction. He felt good enough to go outside and start enjoying his teenage life and new lifestyle. So, we took out the back seat of the Impala and stuck in a couple of longboards for the direction of ocean style lifestyle as a means to mellow out and have fun at the same time.

A couple of teenagers in a hot rod Impala sedan arriving at the local hot surf spot with a rumbling 58 Impala was the start and for a few more road trips. The welcoming to the local hot surf spots was not the most appealing moment of our experiences. Who goes to the beach in a 58 Impala with two longboards sticking out of the rear trunk? Ha! But, our style of surfing and abilities soon made the comments disappear as we got better in all aspects of the surfing lifestyle and wave riding.

Jnaki

Soon, the different approach to the surf lifestyle changed and now my brother was starting his new direction of vans and complete installation of custom cabinets, sink, stove and refrigerator for longer stays in our favorite Baja Mexico surf camping spots. Then the builds led to our northern coastal camping spots during the winter months of swells for not just a weekend, but longer camp out vacations.

The surf adventures continued with several other cars, but the teenage years of high school cruising came to the forefront and the Impala was in its place to shine. It was well known in most local drive-in restaurant parking lot locations in So Cal that we attended. The food was always great and the cruising, plus other activities ruled the scene for a several teenage years.

Thanks @themoose for the memory…

With some saved up money, the final custom touches to the already modified motor Impala was installed for some fast cruising in a mild custom car. The intricate conversion of Chevy to Buick specs was new and no one else had that look for many years to follow.

At the time, of all cruising arenas, no one had a set of Buick Skylark Wire Wheels on a hot rod sedan. They were in the older Buick Skylark convertibles, but no one had made the transfer to a Chevy sedan at the time. YRMV

Note:
The last image and change was not the Buick Skylark Wire Wheel custom look. When I sold the Impala to go to college, this was the final look and change from the whitewall black rim Impala from the fall of 1957 to this:

A friend bought my Impala and this is how it was sold and drove away… “the after…”

 

this is kind of 'before and DURING"....

 

Before:

Today:

 

Still not done but well on the way...

 

Not gonna lie.... it is

 

The day I brought it home, 9 years ago.
2 owners, 1 paint job, 80K original miles, 348/Turboglide.



2 years later, the day it left.

 

That would have been a tough one to let go...

 

Yes, it was a really good car, but I didn't like the colors and I got a '58 Vette I'd chased for 25 years.

 

Before

After

 

Before:

After:

 

Here is one of my roadster. Frame picture was from 2014
Before

During, 2018

and after, last spring

 

My buddie Jim Siegmunds 32 Ford.

 

So here is after paint, upholstery is next.

 

Here’s a couple of my before & after pictures. The Model A was a major project, requiring lots of parts sourcing, fabrication, & sweat. The ‘33 was much simpler. I converted the car to Negative ground, 12 volt electric system, un-stuck the 59AB Flathead, swapped in a 5” dropped axle, changed out the original steering box in favor of one of Neal Jennings’ boxes, and changed the tires & wheels. Buffing out the 50+ year old Lacquer paint pretty much finished it up.

 

Some before and after pics.

 

From stocker



To Supercharged

 

I love this thread.