You Just Never Know!

THAT sums it up really well...but I'll still add my thoughts...

HOT RODDING was dead.
Muscle cars could run circles around most and were everywhere.
There was no sensible reason to build old cars to go fast when you could finance a Big block Camaro that was faster and at a used car price. The NEW byword for STREET RODS was "cl***".
You were nothing if you didn't have a totally stock appearing car with a late model engine and all the creature comforts in leather, Hartz cloth and gleaming stock stainless.

3 men (and I'm 100% SURE they weren't the only ones...just the ones that got most of the press!) had it in their heads to bring back Hot Rodding to the misguided Lemmings as it were...

This car (which has already BEEN changed!) should never be changed.
It's one of only a couple of dozen thru history that really made a difference in the hobby as a whole.
OK...the styling is mixed up....well...maybe more unfinished than mixed up....but it DID the intended job!

It opened eyes and helped sent the luggage racks and cowl lights back to the recesses of Americas garages and attics, where they've mouldered ever since.
Good riddance!

Today the car SEEMS dated as its being compared to Hot Rods that have the advantage of an aftermarket supply system that was unimaginable back during its own construction. An aftermarket that grew out of the open trunk of THIS very car and the trunks of its brothers...Pete and Jakes Hot Rod coupes.

That chisel nose split the wave of conformity that the hobby had fallen into just as efficiently as the fairing of any streamlined Hot Rod from Muroc to Bonneville ever split air!

In our new...enlightened state...ushered in partly by this very car, we can now become critical of its slightly odd styling... and theres no rule that we HAVE to like it;

But we sure as hell owe both the builder(s) and the car(s) a debt of gra***ude for guiding the hobby out of the fog it wallowed in at the time.

 

Here's a couple snapshots I took of it a few hours ago @ the GG West Coast Nats:



It was parked with two other Iconic Hot Rods:

 

If I had 3 nuts I'd give up one for each car.

 

Nicely summed up. Thank you

 

Thanks mucho for the new desktops......

 

What is the grille on Jakes 34?

 

Narrowed '37 Ford truck.
Jim's coupe has always been my favorite. After reading about its overheating with the BBC, SBC, I wonder why he couldn't add flush fitting, side mounted scoops that would open outwardat slow speed, then close up at speed, when cooling wasn't an issue ? That, and an air dam directly under the radiator ( hidden from sight ), and make it, as mentioned above, a more of a "draw through".
Car just yells "speed".
Mark

 

Thanks! I always wondered.

 

Now that's the one I like.



-Dave

 

Frank who owns the Superbell coupe called last night and mentioned this post.We both laughed about it especially the comment about the wheels looking better on a Mustang.
He knew Ewing and will never get rid of the coupe.It does look better with the moon discs but he would have to change the front brake kit to put those wheels back on and the parts are not available.
As for some of the ugly comments,there is a saying about people in gl*** houses!!

 

Seems like there's an article on it in a 70's HRM (Baskerville wrote it?) saying Ewing's coupe was built from a rusty old Bonneville car. Jim Jacobs supposedly "obtained" it from some unknown swap meet for like 50 bucks. Lol.[/QUOTE]

The coupe was purchased by Jim Ewing from George Wilson,s back yard in Temple city.It sat next to another 3-window that Shine,s dad has now.
It was painted Cal Trans orange because Jim was cheap and the paint was free.

 

people that knock someone elses cars,are like people who knock anything but harleys,they usely don't own one,but everybody is in***led to there 2 cents

 

Probably more crossed up wires in the memory bank, but I thought the car was originally painted with some military surplus paint that was used on target drones or some such. Maybe????

The Harley deal works both ways,.............and I'll agree neither is right.
Off to work,
Larry T

 

And my memory comes from a magazine article. We know they NEVER get the facts wrong or embellish a story either. So, take it for what it's worth (Not much).
Larry T

 

Everybody duck, here comes another opinion!

 

My opinion is that if a guy doesn't know how to re-post one of my images in a thread, he should not be allowed to express his opinion about any car

I'm sure I'm the only one, but I can't stand it when someone includes an image larger than 800x600 pixels in any post ... so the posting of the 2494x1871 version of one of my images (post #69) really irritates me.

Now back to your regularly scheduled program.

 

You know, I nearly resized it, but then I figured “Enh, what the hell.” After all, it’s not like it stretches out the text anymore. And since you haven’t said a single intellectually defensible thing about this car, I’m rather glad to hear it pissed you off.

The point of post #69 being that I like cars with a more ‘40s aesthetic and you like cars with a more late ‘70s aesthetic (and yeah, it may not be a resto rod, but that’s 100% a Disco Duck). My original at***ude was “to each their own” but since apparently most people who like the Super Bell Coupe are jack***es who like it because magazines have declared it immortal, screw ‘em. I’ll bet you still wear polyester leisure suits too.



-Dave

 

You just said exactly what i was thinking.. you're not alone my friend..

 

This is my favorite '33-'34 coupe. I know the nose is off beat, but I have been in love with it since I was a kid. The first time I saw it I remember looking at the same picture for hours. I've read all the articles about the different engine combo's and how it ran hot with anything but a V6... I don't care it's still #1 in my book. Here's a few pics I had saved of it.

Kevin
Ooltewah Speed Shop

 

Dave (Bigcheese327) ... OK, I'll bite ...

So you're saying that I'm a "polyester leisure suit wearing jack***" ... who like cars with "a more late '70s aesthetic" ... and am incapable of making "a single intellectually defensible" comment about the car ??? ... Wow! ... why all the name-calling? ... and what Kool-Aid are you drinking?

You'll notice that no where in this thread have I stated whether or not I even like the "Super Bell Coupe" ... I've never offered my opinion on it because I don't believe that was the intent of this particular thread ... i.e., Frank Morawski (who has owned the car since '83) didn't ask for anyone's opinion ... instead, I chose to just post some (very recent) pics that I had taken of the car.

Of course we could send this thread down the "Trad Police" route and argue that the "Super Bell Coupe" is really irrelevant on a message board dedicated to Traditional Hot Rods & Customs (Heck, even with my pea-brain, I would be able to make cogent & intellectually defensible arguments for both sides of that debate) ... but one could easily make the same case for your '61 Falcon ... or for my '32 5wd Coupe.

Don't get me wrong, I've done my fair share of bashing "Trash Rods" (and other vehicles that aren't to my liking) ... and I've been known to go against the grain here on the HAMB (click HERE & HERE) ... I'll even admit that I'm probably the #1 fan of (KIRK!'s alter-ego) The Fonz's posts ... but my favorite HAMB threads tend to be the ones that serve to teach / inform others about our hobby (History threads, Build threads, Tech threads, etc.) ... i.e., stuff that can be p***ed onto future rodders and keep (dare I say) "Traditional" Hot Rodding alive.

So as to my opinion of the "Super Bell Coupe": I have always liked it (even before it got any ink in any magazine) ... it's hard for me to give a totally unbiased opinion about the car since Jim Ewing was a friend of my fathers ... but after seeing it again in person this last weekend, I can honestly say the car is still a very cool Hot Rod ... and I can truly appreciate its place in the history of our hobby.

I also realize it's not everyone's "cup of tea" ... but that's okay, becuase it would be a very boring world if everyone drove chopped & channeled HEMI powered Deuce 5wd coupes ... or '61 Ford Falcon Futuras!

 

Hackerbilt - Thanks for articulating a bit better what I was trying to get across.
Hemi32 - right on man! It would be a pretty boring world if we all drove the same damn stuff,(kinda like the late seventies like I stated in my last post)! I'm glad to see your dad's '32 still out and about in the world, I remember the ROD & CUSTOM article on that car soon after your dad's p***ing.
Bigcheese327 - ERRR.... Where do I start.... The point of this post was not criticism of the car in question - it's cool whether you like it or not. For the record I prefer a forties type of build, and know and understand what that entails. I do not own a leisure suit of any type. I spent the entire summer of 1979 silk screening "DISCO ****S" t-shirts. My disagreement with you comes with your treatment of others that don't share your opinion. You don't get it - thats fine, you probably never will, that's fine too. What alarms me is, here I am on what is the ultimate traditional hot rod board, and your so p***ionately bashing one of the five or six cars that are responsible for the whole "traditional hot rod" movement. Sets a mind to wondering!

 

Hemi32 - thanks for finally stepping up and articulating your position like that, and I wasn't singling you out with that comment, the discussion of this car was pretty one dimensional: "It's ugly" versus "You don't get it" (See NeedLouvers? above). I just wanted a bit more "discussion" in my discussion, and you provided it. Thank you. I'm sorry I had to call you a leisure-suit wearing jack*** to get there, but hey, I was accused of living in my mom's ba*****t and not being able to post pics on the Internet, and everyone knows it's one or the other. Most guys who live in their mom's ba*****ts can do things with the Internet that you or I could only dream of.

And for the record, I like the way your coupe looks, and I appreciate the place in history the Super Bell Coupe has, I just don't like the way it looks. And I won't be told I'm not en***led to my opinion just because I wasn't around when it was first built.

For the record, I never would have clicked this post to begin with if it had said anything about its subject matter in the ***le or body.

-Dave

 

Personally,,I think it ****s!

My reasoning is,,, I DON"T OWN IT!

I will stand up an proclaim I am another Leasure suit wearing jack***,that has liked ,,,No loved that car since the first time I saw it up close and personal,,I believe it was in Winston-Salem North Carolina in the late 70's.

It grabbed my attention with it's non resto rod look,,it's low smooth salty sleekness and those moon disc,,

During that era seeing Pete & Jakes cars and Jim Ewings car all together going down the interstate so far from their California base was truly inspiring to to me,,,but if I had to choose just one,,,give me the ugly one,,,the Superbell coupe! HRP

 

FRANK,.... Glad you had a good time in Calif with your Coupe..... You better damned well hope you remembered to bring me a back a T-Shirt or something?..... To those who condemn this car,.... If not for this 34 and its brothers the CALIF Kid, Pete & Jakes car etc...., You would not be having fun with your hunk of **** your trailer-ing around today!..... You should BOW, KNEEL & PRAY to the HOT ROD GODS in praise of this Superbell 34 COUPE & its Late Builder Jim & Current Owner Frank M. who takes very good care of this car!...... Jim drove the piss out of it now Frank Drives it to the car hang-outs, to the 7-11 for coffee or anywhere else he wants to go.... WHY, Because he can.... It was built to drive and not live on a trailer like a lot of you Pus_ys who are bad mouthing this Iconic Car!.. I know who some of you are & don't you forget it!!!...... For those who don't like the way this car looks, ARE YOUR REALLY THAT STUPID?...... ARE YOU KIDDING ME?....... HAVEN'T YOU LEARNED ANYTHING BEING IN THIS HOBBY OF HOT RODS?.......THE CHIPS IN THE PAINT FROM STONES ON THE ROAD ARE WORTH MORE THEN YOUR CAR Ever Will BE!!!..... Just because you pretend to read Hemmings or JC Whitney or hang out in your Man Cave to watch your recorded episodes of American Hot-Rod does not make you Smart!...... Your the guy who writes letters to the Speed Channel TV Show "Car Crazy" in hopes Barry will read your letter!..... Its one thing to not like the looks of a car, but to Run Off At The Lips As If You Really Know Something Is Plain Stupid!......Are you really kidding me?...... Your the guy who never misses an episode of American Chopper and think they build real cool Choppers.... you laugh at Mikey because you think hes funny.....right?.... come-on, you know who you are!!!!..... You subscribe to Car Craft Because The Cars are faster then the cars in the street rod magazines...... yup, you know who you are!.... I bet your mother isn't pretty either but you know her true value and goodness!,,,,, Yup, now I know why this is called the Hokey *** Message Board.... What A Bunch Of Brain Dead Hokey Stupid People In Here....Scheech!..... Are You Really Kidding Me?....... I bet those Big Mouthed Pu_sies putting this car down are the goofs at car shows with those little stuffed crying child dolls leaning on their cars... We all know the type, those guys with the cheapest wheels that Pep Boys or Summit sells trying to pawn them off as Codding Wheels, spend the whole afternoon drumming up votes from their buddies so they can win that $12 dollar trophy at the car show,. then complain the loudest when their car gets beat at a show because SOMEBODY ELSE HAD MORE FRIENDS AT THE CAR SHOW!..... You know who you are!!! and We know who you are!!!.... Those who talk bad about ICON CARS need to first, look up the word ICON in the dictionary before running off at the mouth...... Imagine, if you only had a clue?..... Im sorry if posted in the wrong place?

 

Wow, you most certainly have THAT part right....You ARE en***led to your own opinion. It's just wrong, that's all. hahahaha

My favorite hot rods are the few and far between from the 70's and, gasp, dare I say, even the early 80's that capitalized on the 50's and 60's vibe.....hmmmm P&J's cars, Prufer, Tanaka, Vinther, Jack Robinson, etc.,etc.....(oh yeah, that Ewing guy)

Mmmmmmm Candy and Lace along with bright solid toners, MAG(nesium) wheels, a good Rake and some Louvers. The occasional Dzus tab and lunchbox latches with schnitzle und noodles, these are few of my favorite things......

 

Before this gets closed, I think we just need to appreciate that someone took the time to give us something really interesting to look at........
Here's what his opening line was....

"What a treat it was to see the the iconic Super Bell '32 pull up. You just never know."

He's absolutely right, man what a buzz it would be to stumble upon an instantly recognisable piece of machinery, I can only imagine how cool that would be.

Thanks teddisnoke!

 

Yup

 

Wow. What a lot of strong opinions. I can only say that it ran 190 degrees when it was 107 degrees across the desert last Friday. It has an L angled custom radiator and does pull air from below and through the opening. One of the neatest hot rod rides and days of my life, with P&J along with us.

Jay Fitzhugh

 

I'm so glad Chips got some new friends to argue with!