Just joined. I've lurked around this website for some time now, and what I have read brings back great memories. My first car was a 1948 F-1 with a Straight 6, I bought for $125, in 1974. A farmer used it to haul hay out to his cows, then parked it one day behind the shed and left it - it still had 1966 plates on it. I drained the old gas, put in fresh and a new battery, and started it up and drove it home. I named him (trucks are "him's, cars are "her"s) 'Sherman', cuz he was built like a tank. He only lived with us for a couple years, till I loaned him to a buddy(?) who ran him too hard on the Interstate and threw a rod through the side of the crankcase. Being a lowly Marine PFC at the time, making $149 a payday, I could not repair Sherman, so he was taken away by the Salvage Man, perhaps to be found and restored (and given a V-8!) by someone who could care better for him. Now, 38 years after, I feel the need to get a new Flathead Fix, a V-8 this time. My head is filled with the stories from my dad, who, after WWII lived in LA, and was a hot rodder and sometimes lake racer (El Mirage and Rosamond). He often lamented that Sherman didn't have a V-8, since he knew how to make it sing - learned from guys like Vic Edelbrock, Ed Iskendarian, and Karl Orr. Dad's gone nearly 30 years now, but hopefully I can glean enough from the CENTURIES of combined experience you have all contributed to these pages. I'm hunting for the elusive useable FH block now - located a '51 Merc that is calling me...$500, no return guarantee...
Welcome! Nice intro. You come by the addiction honestly; it's in your blood.. Let us know when you come up with a project.
I have been bitten by th in-line bug - looking ay streamline Chevys (Fleetline). Always a soft spot in my head for Flatheads, tho...
The Jalopy Journal
