All I can say to that is "SWEET" !!!! Love the old magnesium rims too. Did your Dad race a car like that back in the day?
I have nothing against restorers, and I can definately appreciate a nicely restored or well preserved antique car. I have a few of my own that eventually will go the restoration route. Some collectors/restorers have an attitude against all hot rods, some just against the crudeness of some of the "rat" rods....just as some hot rodders have an attitude against restorers and would cut-up a good restorable car out of spite. The bottom line is that there are a lot of project cars that are finally getting turned into something worthy of enjoying. Many of them have been passed over for years because thewy were too rough for a quality restoration. Also, many of the parts removed from cars being restored (or even hot rodded with modern suspension/driveline) are perfectly suitable for old school type rods and customs or vintage race car bodies. The thing I find kind of "hypocritical" about the restorers that make comments like "you ruined a good car, etc.." is that when it comes time to sell their car, they will just as soon sell to a hot rodder as a restorer for the "right price". Funny how $$$$ changes their tune quite a bit. Here's my "stocker" 1964 Oldsmobile F-85:
I've used some absolutely horrible parts cars to keep my 1965 Oldsmobile F-85 Stock Car running for the past 16 years:
It's funny how most of the projects posted here have, or seem to be producing asthetically pleasing Rods. Some kinda link? Visionaries? Certainly neat 'Jobs'! Koops.....
I think, sometimes, it takes somebody with a decent amount of imagination to undertake a project that begins with such rough vintage material. People with active imaginations tend to build unique and nicely designed cars.
Wow, very inspirational. A lot of you guys have started with stuff worse than much of what I've drooled over in the local junkyard. -Dave
All I can say is WOW. Some of the parts for these Birds are getting hard to find. I had a hell of a time finding a rt front fender for a 56 that I repainted this spring. I ended up paying $900 for a rust free one that was hit right in the headlight bucket. My only other option was a NOS for $4500 and the customer was not willing to pay that (and I didn't blame them).
http://i159.photobucket.com/albums/t150/Tedkemp/yardart.jpg Some of us save them for a different use, Yard Art
John...are those '65's legit 442's???? I'd be building those..hehe My truck doesn't look so bad compared to alot of others here.....
John, I've owned a dozen or so horrible 65 F-85s Cutlass's and 442s. They mostly looked just like that. Most were white. They were deplorable yet responded well to a little LUV. They also tended to drift in a wonderful nuetral attitude through corners. I loved driving them. I love your racecar! Go Olds!
How awesome that you brought this up! I found this site just a few weeks ago: http://www.waterwinterwonderland.com/speed.asp?id=1609&type=9 My uncle used to race at Mt. Clemens (MI) Racetrack back in the 50's. My grnadma made him quit before his wedding. I guess he got messed up pretty bad one day. Because I found this site it reminded me to ask him about any old pictures he may have. I just got this one from him and I'm pretty proud of it
Imagine how hard it will be for us when the restorers have to resort to the stuff we use. I know a guy who is into Minervas. he pulled a car out of a farmers dam, half the motor has rusted away from being in 6 inches of mud for 40 years. He made a paturn, cast the missing part of the motor, welded it on, and then remachined it all himself. If restorers have little other option, they can do some great things. Now I just need to get him into rods. I bet he could build me a whole flatty.
for anyone interested I know a 1/4 mile dirt track in New Hampshire that would allow any of these car to actually race every week in compitition.it's a privately owned track.No membership fees small pay outs but circle track racing as it used to be !less than $20 for an evening at the races including food from the concession stand !Anyone here who is involved in old circle track cars how bout PMing me I'd like to know who else loves these things !
I've got two "off topic" dirt circle cars. I'd love to have a vintage dirt hot rod. It's on my to-do list.
If you were around the Orange County Fair Speedway in the mid-70's, yes. The Yellow coupe #20 was owned, and sometimes driven by Jerry Knoth. He had a yellow coach before that. Many times Rich Ricci drove the car too. The orange and white #65 is a collection of parts found from various cars. The body was the Knoth #20, the chassis was one that Freddie White #FL-1 was working on, the quickchange rear was in Bob Malzahn's #99, etc.. I painted this mural on the trunk lid in homage to the two cars that this one is made from (NVDMRC=Northeast Vintage Dirt Modified Racing Club):
Actually, no I haven't used up any 442 stuff on the track. In fact I've never even had any 442 stuff. I cheated a little bit....I couldn't find my pictures of the ratted-out Cutlass that we disected for parts, but the one I posted is a dead ringer for it except for the 442 side scoops. Anyway, you get the point. We've always used body parts on the race car that were not good enough for a street car. A little orange & white paint makes even the worst look nice on the speedway.
this is great . Most people dont realize what it takes to get something liike this back into shape. I cant find any pics of what I started with, but most people thought it wasnt even a parts car. jeff
Glad you guys like this topic....also glad to see so many people jumping in! Here's another of my Chevy:
This is "The Pines speedway "was called "Norway Pines"several years ago it's near the polar caves on I believe Rt.25 I have track rules here with more info but you can get them on the web .most of the cars posted in this thread are legal for their weekly modified racing in fact they were encouraging old coupes to run 5 or 6 years ago other than the street stock class you would have thought you stepped back into 1960.The origional owners of this track now own one farther south but I'm not sure which one they bought ,I know it has both a paved quarter and a dirt quarter on the same land though .I live and was raised 3 minutes from Thompson Speedway
Can't get my hands on a picture of my '57 Chevy 150 Handyman Wagon right now, let's just say they had to unload the scrap metal out of it before they could roll it off the trailer at my place because it was headed for the scrapper. One day a restorer (or even a tri5 purist, they're almost as bad) will accuse me of ruining a good car with a fiberglass, tilt front end, custom tail lights and rear bumper, and scratchbuilt floors. When that happens I'll slap him with a picture of what I started with. To do it "right" would cost more than the finished wagon would be worth, so why bother?
One thing that seems to be commented a lot is something to the effect of "boy they sure went through a lot of good old iron back in the old days. Wasted a lot of good, now desirable cars, building hot rods, dragsters and stock cars". On one hand it is true, but remember that at the time they were just old cars that would otherwise have ended up in the scrap heap. The rodders and racers just intervened and prolonged the life of those jalopies as modified cars. Whether it was the 50's when they cut-up most of the late 20's and early 30's cars, or the 60's when most stock cars were 37-40 Fords, or the 70's when it was common to see lots of 55-57 Chevies on the track....the alternative would have been to see those cars getting scrapped and crushed. Even in the 80's the stock car racers used up lots of Muscle cars like the Chevelle SS an Camaro Z-28's. Fastforward to the 90's and today....I myself have trashed quite a few 78-82 Chevy Malibus which will undoubtably be "sought after" cars in the future. But, it's not like the ones I sacrificed for racing would still be around awaiting retoration....they would have been scrapped shortly after I ran across them.
The Jalopy Journal
