Hi I'm a 36 year old guy living in Norway in northern Europe. I'm building a steel '34 Ford Roadster. Started 3 years ago with a very bad object given up by several other guys before me. Here's my homepage with pictures of the progress: http://home.online.no/~staalgi/index.cfm (In Norwegian, I'm afraid. Because there aren't too many homepages with this subject here.) But I suppose the pictures says a lot too. Now to my question: I'm planning to build a Duval windshield. I know all the angles and sizes I'm going to need, but does anyone knows the story behind the Duval windshield? I've been searching the web but not been able to find anything about a Duval guy connected to hotrods or racingcars. Nowadays it's easy to read complete stories behind nearly every hotrod-part. Often invented by some creative guy named Edelbrock or something back in the fourties. But nothing about the Duval windshield. Does anybody here knows? It would have been fun to know a little more about this stylish and well known hotrod part, since I'm planning to build one myself.
Welcome to the HAMB. Great pics on your site. I plan on doing similar work to my coupe. I don't know any history on the Duval windshield, but I am sure some on here will. Good luck on your project, we like updates! Jay
Great picture! Do you, by the way, have the exact angle betwen the 2 halves? I have pictures enough to get it right, but the exact angle would have been very nice! And my homepage WILL be updated!. Next progress now will bee new, rebuildt hoodsides where the sweeping canal-design is straighten out. It's because the car will have highboy look at the front end. One of the hood sides are finished already.
Velcome to the HAMB! I got a kick out f your "hotrod Wiking" signature. Only because in English the sounds and obviously the use of the letters "V" and "W" get reversed from how Norse and I think most Gemanic languages use them.... The British (and Americans) have taken it upon themselves to call your ancestors "Vikings" instead of "Wikings" Why I'll never know. but I guess it's pretty common (and odd?) for countries with different languages to re-name other people's countries for them. So, in English this time; Welcome to the HAMB!!!! On the windshield...Since you are fabricating your own, make the angle of the glass the same as the angle of the rear edge of your hood and it will look right for your car, regardless of how any other's have been made. They origina; was made for a '36 Ford and was made to complement it's hood line. On the rake, the profile will look best if it follows the same angle as the door cut line and/or the back edge of the hood side. Oh, and thanks for the geography lesson. I accidently knew where Norway was because My Mom is from England, not far away but I'm sure there are a couple of people on this board who were drawing pictures of carsduring geography class instead of looking at the maps!
Morrn´ da! A Swede here... George DuVall did make the first one and used it on his California Plating Delivery Custom in 1936. Pick up Pat Ganahls wonderful book "The American Custom Car", there is a pic of it on page 8.
Here's the text of an article I wrote about George Du Vall for American Rodder in 1997. I'm including the picture captions but not the pictures; later today I'll put the complete pages of the magazine article on my StarPhoto site where you can retreive them at . . . http://photo.starblvd.net/AV8FORD?st=album&pg=5&pw=*655400DD0E0 So, here's the story . . . ____________________________________ GEORGE DU VALL A look at the work and creative genius of the man responsible for hot rodding's favorite windshield. For a couple of generations of hot rodders the name Du Vall calls to mind an image of a handsome, raked Vee windshield on what is almost invariably a Deuce highboy roadster. The design, so confident and refined, and so familiar as to be trademark-like, is the work of George Du Vall, Jr., created at an age when most young men have yet to discover what they want to be, never mind know what they are capable of doing. There's more to George Du Vall than just the windshield design that bears his name, however; he was a cutting-edge stylist and intuitive engineer capable of expertly fashioning all manner of things his wonderful mind could conceive. Born in Los Angeles in 1913, George already had a short but nevertheless successful career with Safeway Stores by the time he found his first true calling in automobile restyling and accessory design at age 18. Working for Leonard DeBell at Southern California Plating Co., beginning in 1931, George created an entire line of automotive accessories for the company--which had previously been just a plating shop--from design, through tooling, and on to manufacturing. Chrome plating was a relatively new process in the early '30s. Nickel plating, which had been the accepted medium for automotive bright work, would quickly tarnish, requiring a great deal of effort to keep it looking crisp and shiny. The application of a hard, chromium coat worked like magic to keep auto trim perpetually shiny. To car buffs, chrome plating with its characteristic blue cast and perpetual shine, was like catnip to kittens. To an enterprising fellow like Leonard DeBell, it was a golden--no, make that chrome-plated opportunity for success. The opportunity lay not just in replating old parts, although that was certainly a large component of the business, but in new applications and accessories as well, and this is where George Du Vall shined. In addition to the accessories, George designed a series of delivery trucks for So Cal Plating that are some of the handsomest custom commercial vehicles of the '30s. The most famous of these, the '36 Ford-based beauty, spent so much time as a push car at Gilmore stadium, promoting the plating business on race nights that it's been often referred to as the "Gilmore Special." Not only was young George an excellent stylist, he was also an outstanding intuitive problem solver who could first envision the machinery required to manufacture something he had designed and then build the equipment and develop the processes for getting the job done. In short order, he turned what started as a sideline into a complete new business for So Cal Plating. Largely self taught, George attended UCLA as a pre-engineering student for two years early in his long association with So Cal Plating. But it was his innate abilities that served him best then and throughout his career which included styling and design work for Frank Kurtis, a several-decades-long association with the aerospace industry in engineering design, as well as several product-based businesses of his own. Retired now, George lives in Oklahoma. While declining health makes long interviews with George difficult at best, we were fortunate to be directed to George's son, Gregory Du Vall who has custody of a large part of his father's archives, along with some wonderful remembrances of growing up with his very interesting father--such things as taking his driving test in one of his father's two Porsche 550 Spyders. It all seemed so natural at the time, he says. It's clear that George was a gearhead all along, from the precise styling drawings done in his teens, to the custom commercial vehicles he designed and created, to his own daily drivers over the years--a massively restyled Ford roadster in the '30s, a new Lincoln Continental cabriolet in 1941, a fresh post-war Jeepster, a couple of 810 Cords, a Mercedes-Benz 190SL roadster, Porsche coupes, and the pair of Spyders. Like George himself, we choose now to become visual rather than verbal and let his work speak for him. What we share here is little more than a taste of the visual feast created by the multi-faceted genius of George Du Vall, Jr. ________________________________________ CAPTIONS DU-1 So Cal Plating's '36 Ford bumper-delivery truck showcased the company's chrome-plating services--along with George's considerable talent as a stylist. DU-2 Based on a Tudor sedan, the truck was lengthened 10 inches to accommodate freshly plated bumpers that were carried on racks behind the lift-up gate. DU-3 The first truck George restyled for So Cal Plating was this new '32 Ford roadster pickup, barely recognizable under its extensive facelift. DU-4 George's presentation sketch for DeBell illustrates how close the final job was to the concept--and how much control the young man was given. DU-5 An early sketch for the '36 truck, done in October 1935, has an interesting grille treatment and cats-whisker bumper that were eventually abandoned. DU-6 This sketch of a '36 Ford roadster restyling, done 10 days after the truck sketch, hints at the final grille design. DU-7 Du Vall windshield and monster whites transform this '31 Model A Ford phaeton into an expensive-looking piece. DU-8 George's personal roadster, based on a '29 Ford, is fitted with the style of grille he's holding in the photo of the early bumper truck, plus Vee windshield, padded top, deeply valanced fenders, airplane bumpers, wheel covers, and Wood lights. DU-9 The hood and headlight trim on this new '37 Ford are typical of the accessories George designed and manufactured at So Cal Plating. DU-10 New '41 Ford featured rocker moldings, gravel shields, and flipper wheel covers--all popular dress-up pieces by Du Vall. DU-11 Normally plain and homely '46 Kaiser actually looks okay with George's side moldings and windsplits on the hood and fender tops and large wheel trim rings. DU-12 Ripple discs were the hot set-up even as late as 1949, shown here on George's own car. DU-13 Possibly George's most famous logo design was done for friend Eddie Meyer. DU-14 This printer's mat of a Du Vall-designed logo included the second-color art below the primary drawing--rendered by hand rather than camera. DU-15 A quick sketch of a three-wheel car, probably from the early '50s, shows aircraft influence common in auto styling at the time. DU-16 George's "Half Porsche-on" quarter-midget size racecar succumbed to the go-kart craze before the project got very far. Twelve cars were produced. Sophisticated tub chassis sit on the rack at the left, and in the middle background is son Gregory's personal No. 7 racecar. DU-17 This concept sketch is typical of others in the Du Vall archives, prepared for potential clients. It's not clear what the base car was, although the three exhaust tubes hint at a Ford V8. The scallops on the fenders were to be chrome-plated overlays. DU-18 Styled in 1931 when George was 18 years old, this roadster appears to be Packard based. The door top and top side opening are particularly handsome. That opening would later show up on the '36 bumper truck. DU-19 Handsome Duesenberg study from 1931 has a mock hardtop convertible window treatment that was years away from reality on the '39 Mercury coupe. DU-20 This undated drawing from the early '30s is probably a Duesenberg study, in spite of the Pierce-Arrow style headlights. No matter, the car would have been a stunner with that windshield and top treatment.
[ QUOTE ] Velcome to the HAMB! I got a kick out f your "hotrod Wiking" signature. Only because in English the sounds and obviously the use of the letters "V" and "W" get reversed from how Norse and I think most Gemanic languages use them.... The British (and Americans) have taken it upon themselves to call your ancestors "Vikings" instead of "Wikings" Why I'll never know. but I guess it's pretty common (and odd?) for countries with different languages to re-name other people's countries for them. So, in English this time; Welcome to the HAMB!!!! On the windshield...Since you are fabricating your own, make the angle of the glass the same as the angle of the rear edge of your hood and it will look right for your car, regardless of how any other's have been made. They origina; was made for a '36 Ford and was made to complement it's hood line. On the rake, the profile will look best if it follows the same angle as the door cut line and/or the back edge of the hood side. Oh, and thanks for the geography lesson. I accidently knew where Norway was because My Mom is from England, not far away but I'm sure there are a couple of people on this board who were drawing pictures of carsduring geography class instead of looking at the maps! [/ QUOTE ] Elmo: Thanks for the mail! Very nice! Drj: Sorry about my poor english-spelling. Since a real hotrod-mind always searching for being better, I've corrected thet signature. I guess did car drawings in the english lessons at school...
steleg -- I've parked most of the pictures for for the Du Vall article here . . . http://photo.starblvd.net/AV8FORD?st=album&pg=4 I hope this helps answers your questions. Check out what George did to his own '29 Ford roadster . . .
[ QUOTE ] I think most Gemanic languages use them.... The British (and Americans) have taken it upon themselves to call your ancestors "Vikings" instead of "Wikings" [/ QUOTE ] Being in a pedantic mood, English is a Germanic language.
Hi, new to the board. I am also looking for a Duval for my 29 roadster. Anyone know where or if one is available? I found this car for sale at a dealer with one and it is beautiful. Just what I am looking for, but I have been unable to source the frame. Any ideas? Thanks,
Ewwwwww I thought the SAME thing when I read DrJ's reply. Give a biscuit to the Limey. Guess he didn't take his Brit Lit class.....come on DrJ, come sit on my lap and I'll school you. Maybe Whodaky will pipe up....he has a REALLY nice Duvall that he keeps taunting me with a pattern of! xxx
Speedway automotive bought the rites to the remade Duval originally reproduced by Pastek in the Vancouver, BC, Canada area. Cam Grant and Gary Lang were responsible for reproducing them. I think Cam still does the work for Speedway as I heard their patterns got lost on the way to China or something to that effect. Anyone know if that is true? At any rate it is in Speedway's catalogue. Not cheap, but definitely a classy windshield. Pat.
I used to be the windshield frame maker at Speedway for years, even got to work on the Duvall frames when they first started making them over. I remember seeing a lot of the old patterns and stuff, but we had to remake everything (gotta do what 'ole Bill says, I guess.) Not sure who we got the castings from, tried many places and alloys, but I could of sworn we ended up getting them from a place in Canada. God, I don't miss making those frames! They start out as 5 separate bronze castings, all clamped in place and brazed together on jigs made out of cowls (I always wanted to bring the 32 roadster cowl home!) Those things took forever to come out nice, sometimes my boss and I would work on a single one for days! I guess that explains the price, though!
Staleg, are you anywhere near kristiansand, I went there two summers ago and might go back this Summer? Very Cool car by the way, You've put a lot of work into it.
It seems the HAMB is becoming the best archive for hotrod history ever known to man. Last week it was Harms way letting us see original pictures of the Frank Mack T and now this. Thankyou Mr. Bishop for lending us your journalistic talent and your willingness to share, Merry Christmas
Howdy, wanted to let you know that Wescott Auto Restyling has been building Duval style windshields for years. Cast out of silicone bronze. Very nice quality I think they make one for 33/34 fords , phone number is 503-658-3183. Dee Wescott is well known for his high quality casting. And I aslo use to work for him and have seen alot of his work. I think they run $1200.00 less glass Cody
The thread is back, but I wonder what ever happened to staleg. chidsey, there was a thread not long ago with a link to a guy on epay selling flat and vee'd hot rod windshields pretty cheap.
I found an inexpensive "Duvall type winshield", but the guy claims that he lost his foundry???? I could sell a ton of them at the price too, but no luck yet.
Wow! So you're the guy that's actually made some of the windshields floating around today. Very impressive! I own a 54 Kurtis 500S. Have you ever made one for it? Or do you know which model of the Speedway or WesCott 2 pcs windshields work on a Kurtis?
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