The Gribble Book Build (Picture Heavy)

Along with working on my 34 and building another chopper this winter my cousin Jake and I are putting together a collection of our family machines from cycles to hotrods from throughout the years. We have over 150 images so far we plan to profile in a professional photobook for our family as a gift.

I would like to share my dad Randy's collection with you here. If anyone recognizes any of the cars I am very interested in where they are now....​

This 1st picture is one of my very favorite.

The location is the 134th Signal Company Army Camp somewhere in Louisana
days before Pearl Harbor. My Grandfather and his friend bought this knucklehead together and shipped it home to South Dakota shortly after this photo was taken. The bike unfortunately was stored in a garage that later burned down before they returned from the war....
​

 

Shame its a lovely Knucklehead, looking forward to this thread

 

The next photos

• his 1st bicycle he purchased out of the local coast to coast showroom window.
• the family gocart
• his 1st car was 1960 Chevy and his 1962 Chevy Pickup

 

This car was a legend in Watertown....1973-1974

The 64 Chevelle was fitted with a big block, a rock crusher, and 6.13 gear in the rear. Im told it was the fastest for a very long time in the Watertown area.

The Camaro was next and made several journeys to Thunder Valley Dragways in Marion, SD in its day.

Once he blew a clutch and since it was driven to the track it had to be left at the track and repaired the next weekend.

 

The vette was a 64 I believe. This car was bought wrecked and rebuilt then wrecked again before selling it.

Another Camaro...

The Chevy II was a L79 special order car with dealer installed headers and traction bars.

My parents got married in this car in 1978. I was probaly concieved in the back seat.

I was told by few that this car pissed off alot of big block guys on the street. This car is worth some money today.....

 

More to come!

 

The 1st picture I always like because I know my dad still has that Pete and Jakes Shirt....

Ol' Blue

The 1935 Chevy coupe was the 1st Street Rod in the Watertown area.

I'm proud to say I was brought home from the hospital in it after being born...

I also heard it took out a couple mean mopars on the street too....

He did a short stint in the local dirt track scene as well. It started life as a very nice 1955 Chevy 2 dr post belair

 

My dads Ironhead chopper....

The old man with his big trophy collection!!!!

My parents owned this little roadster and drove it everywhere together....

My dads T-Bucket.

The 55 Chevy was one of the 1st projects he built in his 1st shop.

 

Stay Tuned for more....

 

This was around 1982

If you look real close to the picture of the 3 cars the license plates Read Gribb1 Gribb2 and Gribb3

Gribb1-1933 Ford 5 window owned by my dad.
Gribb2-1940 Chevy Coupe owned by uncle kevin
Gribb3-1941 Willys Coupe owned by uncle todd

The Duece sedan was traded for the white coupe in 1982. It was originally "THE FLYIN FARMER" which was featured in Hotrod Magazine 1952-1953....

My dad pulled the fenders off and put the bigs and little tire combo on. I always like the car and it reminds me of the "Eastwood & Barakat" which was built around the same era. The car was green and later painted red.

The 1942 Willys Pickup had a heavy metal flake paint job and was fitted with a small block and 4 speed. My dad sold this in 1984 to purchase his new shop and the pickup is still in Watertown stuffed away in a shed. I'm told in later years he tried to by it back at double the original sale price but the owner wouldnt sell.

 

Thanks for sharing the pics... It's great to see some old cars from the upper midwest.
Eric

 

The current location of Gribble's was openend 1985. This picture was from the 1st open house. He specialized in Welding, Fabrication, Machining, and Hydraulics. Hotrods, Street Rods and Race Cars were always being built on the side.

Dont know much about the T-bucket. It was bought and sold very quickly...

The Shovelhead chopper is still owned by a good friend.

 

I remember that 32 c-dan. Bitchin car

 

Joe S. in St. Cloud owns that car now. My dad did a complete restoration on that car in the late 90's.

 

Now comes the PROSTREET ERA....

The Willys Coupe was the coupe once owned by my Uncle Todd and then my dad. The car was sold to Ted Moe in 1985 and finished in the new shop.

It was one of the 1st prostreet car around the South Dakota area.

The 34 3-window was finished in 86-87 and debut at Fremont Raceway Park. We took a family trip out to Cali to see Disneyland but all I remember is watching Mindy Fry, Cole Cuttler and the Fat Jack crash...

The Racing Picture is the Willys and the 3-window grudge racing at Brainerd around 87-88

The last picture is what the car looked like last we seen it. Still putting on show this was also in Brainerd in the 90's

 

Hey didnt LeRoy Anderson wind up with that T bucket in post 12?

 

I think you may be right on the T bucket going to LeRoy. The 27 roadster in post 8 was built by Terry K with a nova 4 banger in it . I think it still had the banger when Randy got it, and put the small block in it. I owned it for a while after Randy, but I can't remember who owned it when I bought it. Seems like Kevin or Todd owned it then. I traded it to Rick Moe after the nats in Oklahoma City, I think in 84, when I got Ricks 34 after the semi rolled into it on the way down.
Last I knew of the 27 Rick sold or traded it to someone, he may remember who if you ask him. Jim

 

can I contribute photos?

 

Picaboo does a great job on book...I have used them quite often.

they quite often have specials, as well.

http://www.picaboo.com/

 

Thanks for sharing.

 

I remember a road trip to Watertown sometime in the early eighties with a bunch of fellow club members from Eau Claire. (River City Street Rods) One of the stops was at a Gribble shop. A Quonset type building if I recall, loaded with old iron. For the next couple of years some of the guys from Watertown came to our little get-togethers.

Tell them all hey from here.

 

Hell Yes!

 

The red 34 Roadster was fresh when we drove it to the last NSRA Nationals in Twin Cities.

It went to California on transport that Sunday along with many more Rods destine for Japan was the rumor. We heard the owner may have kept this one but we have never seen it since.

It had a 327 and a muncie. It was a fun car the one time I road in it....

The last picture in my Cousin Jake and I enjoying a little rumble seat action...

 

Great shots, thanks!

 

The willys pickup was setup as full race with tube chassis. This project was never finished and sold to my dads hired hand at the time who still has it today fitted with a Blown Big Block Chevy from a monster truck.

The orange dragster was our 1st exploration into rail jobs. We ran local tracks mostly running bracket classes. The car was later sold to my uncle Todd in AZ and he had the car stretched and ran Jr fuel and then Nostalgia I and II classes in the Southwest.

The chevy pickup was my dads 1st ever brand new vehicle he bought. A week after purchase it was slammed with all the bellteck goodies...thats how we roll.

The black duece was purchased in Indiana by a family friend in Watertown. We took a family trip out to the 1st ever Goodguys in Indy to pick the car up. I remember riding in the rumble seat around the speedway about 80-90mph. I remember the car got lots of attention due to the excessive amount of chrome on the car and brown leather interior.
My dad bought the car shortly after returning home from Indy.

 

The Merc was one of those cars that was owned by many. It was nicknamed "Dumbo" My dad did some work on it in its early stages then owned and sold it before it looked like this.

The funny car I wish I had better pics of but this is all I have on hand. Its a 70 1/2 Camaro Body with a Original Keith Black 426. My dad knew of this car for years and I have a picture of it on display at a local VICA show same show my dad had his car in on post 7 with all the show winners standing around it but I dont have it on file. My dad says he always kinda had a hint what car it was but never got the history on the car until after we sold it. We ran the fiat body on the car a few times and it was a fuckn riot! The car spent more time in the weeds than on the track!!!

It turns out this car was once red and owned by Jungle Jim Liebermann. It gets a little shady on how it came to be lost and how it ended up in SD.

The Harley is a 70 FL.

 

The 39 Ford is one my most favorite car my dad owned. I helped alot with that project and hoped someday it would be mine. I would like to find this car....

 

The yellow dragster was rumored to be a late Tony Nancy car but could never be proven. We ran this car at the local tracks in as bracket car and later put a blower on it for fun. The 1st picture is from Indy at the Goodguys event. We ran with OFTA bunch from MN.

The last picture is with the Hemi installed. I dont believed we ever ran it with this motor.

 

More to come!

 

Just nosing around the joint and ran across this - very cool! I might possibly have a few more photos I can contribute...

Terry