Projects Building My First Roadster in San Francisco

Right after I bought my Deuce frame, I called my friend Jack Fuller in Hampton, Virginia, to talk about potentially dropping me an axle. Jack's a longtime hot rodder and a master of his craft. I told his story in TRJ #83, and we showcased his survivor '32 three-window (best known as "Bullwinkle") alongside his "Built Dirt Cheap" '32 roadster. Jack's the real deal.

In addition to the double feature, TRJ #83 included a steb-by-step look at Jack's dropping process. I'd always loved the look of a '32 heavy, and I asked Jack to keep an eye out for one on the East Coast so that I could one day have a Fuller’s Frame & Axle dropped axle.

Less than 24 hours later, he calls back and mentions that he actually has one on hand. Not just any axle, but the one he dropped for the TRJ article. I still can't believe it, but that's the axle going under the nose of my roadster.

Feeling very grateful. Thank you, @jackandeuces! They don't call it a heavy axle for nothing.

 

I love that the TRJ axle is going under your car.

Good hangs at TROG buddy. Nice to see you again.

 

Right?! It was like seeing a four-wheeled celebrity. Cruise runs an impressive operation—no surprise that there are hot rodders in the mix.

One piece at a time!

Right? I've been slacking on posting, but there are more parts updates happening soon.

Hell yeah! Such amazing technology.

I'm sorry. I'll see if I can dig one up for you.

Thank you, Carp! We're all in this thing together, keeping this hot rodding flame alive. I hope we can hang out at Jalopyrama again sometime soon!

Ooh yeah, lots of content on the way.

I'm partial to Tagalongs...and Thin Mints, of course.

Me too! So good catching up. Thanks again for watching my camera gear out on the beach. Can't wait to see your roadster in action.

Thank you! There may or may not have been some discussion about that. Magazine car or not, it's most definitely a H.A.M.B. car and it wears its Alliance plaque with pride.

Damn, that's low! Thanks for the photo-chop. We'll see how it all works out with the '32 frame.

Yes! We're going to make it happen.

 

I'm back with a whole lot of updates. I'll try to work through them chronologically and we'll see how we do.

A couple months ago, I was an invited guest on The Classic Car Corner podcast (which is another name for a short radio program that you can access on your phone, computer or tablet). Although this wasn't my first time being interviewed, it was neat to hear that the questions were mainly geared towards this project. Hosted by Jason Paynter, John Lockhart and Eric Bensel, the show was extremely fun to record. These guys know their stuff! To read how all this came about, you can check out the backstory on The Jalopy Journal here.

To listen to the episode, click here.

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Next up, I received 44-pound package in the mail from my great friend Kerry Horan. Even before I owned my roadster, Kerry has helped me build my vintage magazine collection. As I'm sure you know, writing articles about hot rods takes a whole lot of research. Thanks to Kerry, my personal archive is better than ever.


Oh, and if Kerry's name sounds familiar, it's because he's responsible for bringing the Al Dal Porto lakester back to its Hop Up Magazine guise. I'm lucky to call him a friend.

So, what was in the box?

Brakes! Not just any brakes, but the rear juice drums and all the guts I need for my car. These are going to be fun to detail, assemble and put into play.

 

Last October, Charlie Hascall of North Palm Speed invited me to the Harvest Drags. I had never heard of the event but, after talking on the phone with Charlie from my cloffice for the better part of an hour, I knew he was the real deal. I made the solo 10-hour trip up to Dayton, Oregon, and shot the event in its entirety for Rodder's Journal #85.

Something special happened that day. Rather than just taking photos, Charlie and a handful of other local hot rodders let me race their cars. That's right. If you can recall, my roadster was just a rolling chassis with a shell of a body on it at that point. No doors, no decklid, no windshield—nothing. That didn't matter to these folks. They saw I was serious about my project and their projects too. I won some races, lost some races and swore I would be back in 2021 with my roadster.

Well, fast-forward to this fall. Once I had my schedule straightened out, I knew that I had to go. There simply wasn't a question. Soon after returning from T.R.O.G., I got to work.
To be honest, the "to-do" list wasn't all that long. I did, however, finally snag some vintage aircraft seatbelts to mount to the original belt anchors. Other prep work included adjusting the steering box, greasing the zerks, mounting the toolbox with Tank Traps, painting a few things, and draining the radiator and filling it with mild green antifreeze. I also put the quail on a leash.
And tested an old air cleaner that I felt would be slightly better in the rain if I happened to lose my hood.
This air cleaner was a gift from Paul Roy of Louisville. Paul is a master craftsman and all-around great guy. He's been building high-quality hot rods for years, and I thoroughly enjoyed checking out his shop during my visit to the Bluegrass state in August. Believe it or not, this was one of the air cleaners off of my favorite Louisville custom.
Back in the 1950s, it had a 2x2-fed flathead beneath the hood.
We'll have more on this car and Paul in a future Jalopy Journal feature.

Although I never doubted the authenticity of the air cleaners, you know I got a good laugh when I discovered the baking powder tin shims. Talk about era correct!

 

Sidebar 33: Off to Oregon

Per my research, it's 641 miles from my garage door to Portland, Oregon. If you would have asked me a year ago how I planned to get there, I would have said, "I'm driving my roadster." And that would be that. Well, now that I've driven the car a fair amount on the streets of San Francisco, I decided that I was going to rent a trailer and haul it up there. I have basically no towing experience, so I figured this would be a great chance to learn.

While brainstorming the trip, I asked Yama if he wanted to come with. Being the great friend that he is, he immediately said yes. If that weren't enough, he planned to film the entire adventure for his Mazi Moto YouTube channel.

With that, we had a rough itinerary. Drive on Thursday/Friday, race all day Saturday in Dayton, Oregon, and then drive the car on a solo reliability run to Portland later that night. Sunday would be spent jamming around town and seeing the sights, and then it would be time to put the car to its final test on Monday as we returned to the Dayton/McMinnville area. What could possibly go wrong?

For those of you who have made this trek, you know the Hi-Lo Motel, which has been in business since 1951. We always make sure to stay here whenever possible.
The following morning, we stopped in at the cafe for brunch. I had the Mountain Burger, which hit the spot. Just like in the postcard, snow had already fallen on Mt. Shasta.

By Friday night, we had made it to Noah Norwood's shop, HRK Designs, in McMinnville, Oregon. Longtime readers will remember that Noah is the host of the Hot Rod Kid podcast. He's a talented meatalworker, knowledgable hot rodder and a great friend.

All tucked in for the night beneath the Norwood's "Double Trouble" '28 roadster. Moments before this photo was taken, I was ripping the green A down rural Oregon back roads, kicking up gravel and hoping not to slide off into the darkness. There's no doubt about it—that car has a serious 'banger. Highlights include a dual-plug head, hot cam, tube header and a single 94. Inspirational for sure.

We'll pick back up tomorrow.

 

Era correct fo sho!

Looks like I have some phone calls to make! I also have a line on a builder 8BA from a friend. If I can find the space, we can make it happen.

Sorry to hear about your friend. Let me know if you need any help ID'ing any motorcycle stuff. Yama and I want to come over and hang out with you!

 

Just like that, we're back.

Last Saturday, we woke up early, hopped in the roadster and drove from McMinnville to Dayton. The weather was San Francisco-esque—chilly, foggy and beautiful. The car felt right at home on Oregon's two-lane backroads. Like my brother says, "The quail points towards adventure!"

When we rolled up to North Palm Speed, I couldn't have been more excited. I met Charlie Hascall at the gate. He greeted me with a big handshake and a smile. From there, we made our way out onto the field.
I couldn't believe it. There, on the edge of the pumpkin patch, were 22 other early Ford hot rods. Model A's, Model T's, speedsters, belly tankers—they were all there. I could feel the goosebumps as I pulled my car into position. "I'm really here," I said to myself. Just like spotting an old friend in the cafeteria on the first day of school, I backed in next to @Aaron D.'s #24 Model A coupe.

It didn't take long for me to realize how many friends were there that day. We spent the morning catching up with folks from near and far as we waited for the fog to burn off and for the track to dry. I'll have a more detailed report in this Friday's Jalopy Journal column, so stay tuned for that.

 

Thanks, Timm! I appreciate it. Back in the day, I hosted my fair share of Facebook Live/Instagram Live feeds for The Rodder's Journal. It was really fun and gave me the opportunity to do a different kind of journalism.

 

So what's this video Timm's referencing? Well, my friends, that would be the full-length feature about our Oregon adventure.



I know they say a picture is worth 1,000 words, but I'm not sure how many words a video counts as. I'll tell you this—Yama nailed it. This video captures so many of the highs, lows and laughs from our time on the road.

I don't want to spoil anything, but the car's back in San Francisco safe and sound. It did so friggin' well at the races, on the back roads, on the city streets and even in tow. It's come a long, long way since last summer. And you know what? I'm proud of that little car.

Now that I'm home again, I can't help but feel nostalgic about it all. Earlier this week, I jotted down my thoughts about the past year, and I figured I would share them here.

Last weekend’s Harvest Drags marked the end of a big summer. I’ve spent the better part of the past four months on the road, shooting events, writing stories, hanging out with friends, and soaking up everything this year has to offer. From Born Free to the Street Rod Nationals, RPM to TROG, I’ve gotten to catch up with so many people I don’t get to see often enough.

This summer, I got to walk the same streets as my grandfather when he moved to this country from Czechoslovakia in the 1920s. I rode old motorcycles on winding Midwestern roads one month and down the California coast the next. I slept on floors, lost in pool, closed down bars, shot film, sent postcards and learned to appreciate olives.

And, through it all, I’ve been working on this car. Sometimes it was in the foreground and other times it was shuffled somewhere in the back of my mind. Racing it out in that field—with chunks of mud and pumpkin flying off all four wheels—is something I’ll never forget. Taking it for an extra 150-mile, weekend-long reliability run to (and through) the tree-lined streets of Portland was the perfect way to wind it all down.

What a season. Special thanks to Yama for coming along for the ride, and thank you to everyone who hosted me this year. You’re all the best. Seriously.

 

Now, for a selection of photos from here and there. Have I mentioned that I love the Pacific Northwest?

My inner Michigander loves the fall colors.

Darn hooligans.

Cruising the streets of Portland with Lindsey and Stella was definitely a highlight. People got a kick out of seeing Stella riding shotgun. She was a natural!

Shasta in all its glory.

Look who we found on the way home!
It was very special to see these two cars together. If it weren't for David's roadster, I wouldn't be building a 1930 Model A.

The following day, I even got a free car wash. Driving this thing out on the city streets in a downpour is quite the experience. I'm thinking I have a windshield wiper in my future.

Believe it or not, we have some updates on both versions of the car. It's getting late, so I'll try to pick up where we left off sooner rather than later.