The Tale of “Tater”

I think every active hot rodder comes across at least one special find in his lifetime (I won’t call it a “barn find”, as that term has been heavily used as of late). It can be a car with real history, personal significance, or just a great score. It started innocently enough. Just surfing the internet for a cheap 60’s compact rag top for the wife. All I did was type in the keyword “convertible�? and a top price, and there it was. The add title read “28 Ford Model�?, no “A�?, no nothing. The text didn’t tell me much more: “28 Ford Convertible. 32 front and rear end. Needs lots of work.�? No photos or phone number- Just an e-mail address. What the heck, it could be a roadster, right? The owner sent me poor, cropped images that told all that I needed to know. It was a genuine 29 Model A Roadster (door handles gave that one away) with a chopped and slanted windshield and some unusual front fenders. Could this be a real Gow from the glory days?

After seeing the lil’ A in person, picking my jaw off the floor, and giving the guy my money, all in the blink of an eye, she was trailered up and headed home. What you see before you now is exactly what I bought that day; Untouched, pure jalopy built by some unknown sole in a central valley town of Northern California. The details of this car spoke for the original owner just fine: 33 or 34 B motor, 40 juice brakes, spring behind banjo rear, 35 wire wheels & taillights, and yes, those formed-in-steel model A custom fenders made from two front halves welded back to back. There were little details all over this car that just kept showing up, and revealing just how cool Tater really was. A snapshot of some fellows pride and joy 60 or so years ago.

After realizing I couldn’t justify keeping two 29 A roadster’s (my existing car and Tater), I knew it was time to let it go, and Cris from the HAMB was the right guy to get the car- He appreciated the history and period details, and was willing to get her back on the road with as little modification as possible. (Hopefully he’ll put some updated pictures on this post!)