The Jalopy Journal

**Ryan** · 05-14-2012, 08:38 AM

I love early purpose built race cars. Jack Kuehn's, as seen in the April, 1959 issue of Hot Rod Magazine, is one of my favorites and it always makes me wonder why we don't see more modern renditions on the same theme. These early cars were just so da...

To read the rest of this blog entry from The Jalopy Journal, click here.

sammamishsam · 05-14-2012, 09:24 AM

I've been reading Al Drake's Fifties Flashback this weekend. He was talking about the early track roadsters and how they initially were dual purpose cars, daily drivers and weekend warriors. It really only took a couple of seasons to evolve into full blown race cars. That suspension set up was not meant for creature comforts.

**hotrd32** · 05-14-2012, 09:33 AM

They are way cool.... but as you said RC....."What do you do with them?"..... the venues for run'n them are disappearing.

Brad54 · 05-14-2012, 09:50 AM

Interesting that the car has steering linkage on the right side.
And no mention of it at all in the article, though they do talk about the non-dropped axle, raised spring mount, and brakes.

-Brad

BigBlockBuck · 05-14-2012, 10:00 AM

Love em too!

There is no rule against playing with them on private land. I know a private air field in southern georgia that let me on for the afternoon to dial in my four link.

**RAZIN CAIN** · 05-14-2012, 11:08 AM

Cool article...

**Kevin Lee** · 05-14-2012, 11:51 AM

Funny. Just last night I was staring at the '29 I'm working on and a '40 hood leaning against the wall caught my eye. I thought to myself, "I wonder why you don't see old photos of roadsters with noses made from '40 hoods?... that treatment always seems to be on a coupe for some reason."

bowtiemyk · 05-14-2012, 01:40 PM

I like the initials welded into the front wishbones

Cubby · 05-14-2012, 07:59 PM

Seeing articles like this always makes me wonder what happened to the car that's featured. In a barn somewhere? Museum? Wrapped around a tree in some backwoods town?

hotcoupe · 05-14-2012, 08:25 PM

the hell with the car - i gotta get me one of those hats!

tb33anda3rd · 05-14-2012, 08:33 PM

when it comes to art/sculpture, never question why, what's it for, or what do you do with it... enjoy.

**Jimmy B** · 05-14-2012, 08:42 PM

At first I thought that was the one Babe posted in Help identifying this Vintage Lakester? Bepe's late father Don Canepa had this in storage

But it is not the same

**GARY?** · 05-14-2012, 09:07 PM

Rad !

**austinhunt** · 05-15-2012, 01:59 AM

Built for a purpose is something we need more of these days.

Drewfus · 05-15-2012, 06:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by austinhunt

Built for a purpose is something we need more of these days.

soul, direction, and with purpose, not a 'camel' in sight..

**gnichols** · 05-15-2012, 06:43 AM

The faster ya go, the stronger / safer you need to be. I suspect that pretty much leaves a lot of the vintage stuff behind the times. Nobody is racing in sanctioned events in blue jeans, T-shirts and a leather helmet these days. But I love the way race cars are built. No fluff. Last year on my first trip to B-ville, the folks I traveled with (Hot Rod Haven) were running a phantom Ford RPU they built that could be "upgraded" from street to race by removing stuff like the windshield and seat, and then adding a custom bolt-in cage and other required safety gear. It was built to the rule book but could be stripped for the street. Ha ha. Gary

flamingokid · 05-16-2012, 02:27 AM

Something new to catch my imagination....

Wildcycles · 05-16-2012, 04:51 PM

I have had the honor and pleasure of meeting and now continuing to get to know Jack Kuehn "Jack Be Quick" over the past year or so.

He is a great guy and a wealth of information. The original track nose from that car is hanging on the wall in his shop along with a ton of other priceless items and hundreds of vintage photos from our greatest period. He also located the original engine and was contemplating buying it back. The first time I went to his place, I spent about three hours studying the collection before landing on a photo of a neatly chopped 1929 Fordor sedan with flathead V-8, chev bumpers, etc. The photo was dated 1953 and a 17 year old Jack was standing proudly next to the car, having chopped it himself and hand-formed a solid roof from a flat sheet of metal!

He told me he would like to build another "open car", but he just can't get around like he used to, so he was contemplating the purchase of a more driveable car, like a '40 Ford tudor...

He will be proud to know that the readers here have acknowldged his spread in the 1959 Hot Rod.

**Jimmy B** · 05-16-2012, 05:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wildcycles

I have had the honor and pleasure of meeting and now continuing to get to know Jack Kuehn "Jack Be Quick" over the past year or so.

He is a great guy and a wealth of information. The original track nose from that car is hanging on the wall in his shop along with a ton of other priceless items and hundreds of vintage photos from our greatest period. He also located the original engine and was contemplating buying it back. The first time I went to his place, I spent about three hours studying the collection before landing on a photo of a neatly chopped 1929 Fordor sedan with flathead V-8, chev bumpers, etc. The photo was dated 1953 and a 17 year old Jack was standing proudly next to the car, having chopped it himself and hand-formed a solid roof from a flat sheet of metal!

He told me he would like to build another "open car", but he just can't get around like he used to, so he was contemplating the purchase of a more driveable car, like a '40 Ford tudor...

He will be proud to know that the readers here have acknowldged his spread in the 1959 Hot Rod.

That is Fantastic, good to hear Jack is still with us. Can you ask Jack about the T ask about the finer details that weren't shown in the feature & when he sold the T and can you ask if you can take pics of the nose and his wall of photos. Taht would really complete this thread.

Wildcycles · 05-17-2012, 12:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jimmy B

That is Fantastic, good to hear Jack is still with us. Can you ask Jack about the T ask about the finer details that weren't shown in the feature & when he sold the T and can you ask if you can take pics of the nose and his wall of photos. Taht would really complete this thread.

Yes,

Lucky for us, Jack is a very detailed guy. His entire collection is labeled with information on where and who it came from, etc. In addition, he has numerous binders full of photos starting from the early post-war period that are a wealth of information. I may have a chance to see him later today..

Will post additional information/photos soon.

05-14-2012, 08:38 AM	#1
Ryan Administrator Join Date: Jan 1995 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 13,623	Purpose Built I love early purpose built race cars. Jack Kuehn's, as seen in the April, 1959 issue of Hot Rod Magazine, is one of my favorites and it always makes me wonder why we don't see more modern renditions on the same theme. These early cars were just so da... To read the rest of this blog entry from The Jalopy Journal, click here.

05-14-2012, 09:24 AM	#2
sammamishsam Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Location: Sammamish WA Posts: 472	Re: Purpose Built I've been reading Al Drake's Fifties Flashback this weekend. He was talking about the early track roadsters and how they initially were dual purpose cars, daily drivers and weekend warriors. It really only took a couple of seasons to evolve into full blown race cars. That suspension set up was not meant for creature comforts. __________________ Steve Life was easier when it was just in primer! Last edited by sammamishsam; 05-14-2012 at 09:52 AM.

05-14-2012, 09:33 AM	#3
hotrd32 Alliance Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: WA Posts: 2,640	Re: Purpose Built They are way cool.... but as you said RC....."What do you do with them?"..... the venues for run'n them are disappearing. __________________ "Life ain't no dress rehearsal"

05-14-2012, 09:50 AM	#4
Brad54 Old School HAMBer Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Atl Ga Posts: 5,665	Re: Purpose Built Interesting that the car has steering linkage on the right side. And no mention of it at all in the article, though they do talk about the non-dropped axle, raised spring mount, and brakes. -Brad __________________ Take your hot rod out and beat it at the Gear Jam! www.gearjamdrags.com

05-14-2012, 10:00 AM	#5
BigBlockBuck Newbie Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: Jacksonville, FL Posts: 64	Re: Purpose Built Love em too! There is no rule against playing with them on private land. I know a private air field in southern georgia that let me on for the afternoon to dial in my four link.

05-14-2012, 11:08 AM	#6
RAZIN CAIN Alliance Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Lexington,Kentucky Posts: 710	Re: Purpose Built Cool article... __________________ Shelby you are in my heart an I love you son! Cain Motorsports *Lexington , Kentucky* *SHELBY Engineered Racing Engines R.I.P* *ROD KINGS C.C.*

05-14-2012, 11:51 AM	#7
Kevin Lee Super Moderator Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: KC,MO - The cradle of hot rodding Posts: 7,090	Funny. Just last night I was staring at the '29 I'm working on and a '40 hood leaning against the wall caught my eye. I thought to myself, "I wonder why you don't see old photos of roadsters with noses made from '40 hoods?... that treatment always seems to be on a coupe for some reason." Attached Thumbnails __________________ – Learning the hard way since '72 –

05-14-2012, 01:40 PM	#8
bowtiemyk Grenade Inspector Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Hell's Bend, Arizona Posts: 174	Re: Purpose Built I like the initials welded into the front wishbones __________________ Told my girl I just had to forget her. I'd rather buy me a new carburator. So she made tracks sayin' this is the end now. Cars don't talk back they're just four wheeled friends now!

05-14-2012, 07:59 PM	#9
Cubby Grenade Inspector Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Ozark, Missouri Posts: 244	Re: Purpose Built Seeing articles like this always makes me wonder what happened to the car that's featured. In a barn somewhere? Museum? Wrapped around a tree in some backwoods town? __________________ Me & Gramps' '51 GMC 5 Window A good landing is one you walk away from. A great landing is one where you can use the helicopter again.

05-14-2012, 08:25 PM	#10
hotcoupe Grenade Inspector Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: st.louis,mo Posts: 293	Re: Purpose Built the hell with the car - i gotta get me one of those hats!

05-14-2012, 08:33 PM	#11
tb33anda3rd Old School HAMBer Join Date: Oct 2010 Location: Connecticut Posts: 4,828	Re: Purpose Built when it comes to art/sculpture, never question why, what's it for, or what do you do with it... enjoy. __________________ my favorite color is rust!

05-14-2012, 08:42 PM	#12
Jimmy B Alliance Member Join Date: May 2004 Location: Tweed Valley, NSW, Australia Posts: 4,091	Re: Purpose Built At first I thought that was the one Babe posted in Help identifying this Vintage Lakester? Bepe's late father Don Canepa had this in storage But it is not the same __________________ I don't paint by numbers. Hot Rods of the Dry Lakes Era jimmy

05-14-2012, 09:07 PM	#13
GARY? Alliance Member Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Portland, OR Posts: 1,681	Re: Purpose Built Rad !

05-15-2012, 01:59 AM	#14
austinhunt Alliance Member Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Fairbanks, AK Posts: 441	Re: Purpose Built Built for a purpose is something we need more of these days.

05-15-2012, 06:43 AM	#16
gnichols Alliance Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Tampa, FL Posts: 6,214	Re: Purpose Built The faster ya go, the stronger / safer you need to be. I suspect that pretty much leaves a lot of the vintage stuff behind the times. Nobody is racing in sanctioned events in blue jeans, T-shirts and a leather helmet these days. But I love the way race cars are built. No fluff. Last year on my first trip to B-ville, the folks I traveled with (Hot Rod Haven) were running a phantom Ford RPU they built that could be "upgraded" from street to race by removing stuff like the windshield and seat, and then adding a custom bolt-in cage and other required safety gear. It was built to the rule book but could be stripped for the street. Ha ha. Gary Attached Thumbnails __________________ Nostalgia isn't what it used to be. Change is inevitable, except from a vending machine. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/a...p?albumid=2874 http://public.fotki.com/kitbashr/

05-16-2012, 02:27 AM	#17
flamingokid Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Olathe,Kansas Posts: 1,052	Re: Purpose Built Something new to catch my imagination....

05-16-2012, 04:51 PM	#18
Wildcycles Grenade Inspector Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Arlington, WA Posts: 240	Re: Purpose Built I have had the honor and pleasure of meeting and now continuing to get to know Jack Kuehn "Jack Be Quick" over the past year or so. He is a great guy and a wealth of information. The original track nose from that car is hanging on the wall in his shop along with a ton of other priceless items and hundreds of vintage photos from our greatest period. He also located the original engine and was contemplating buying it back. The first time I went to his place, I spent about three hours studying the collection before landing on a photo of a neatly chopped 1929 Fordor sedan with flathead V-8, chev bumpers, etc. The photo was dated 1953 and a 17 year old Jack was standing proudly next to the car, having chopped it himself and hand-formed a solid roof from a flat sheet of metal! He told me he would like to build another "open car", but he just can't get around like he used to, so he was contemplating the purchase of a more driveable car, like a '40 Ford tudor... He will be proud to know that the readers here have acknowldged his spread in the 1959 Hot Rod.

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