I've posted a few shots of the car in different threads adding what I could to those discussions. Figured I share a full thread of our own with our little T Bucket. It is rather lengthy but a good read I believe you'll find. Here's our little story of 'The Turnover T'. (That's the name of the car. See the bed side pics.) In the winter of 1968 Don Wilson, my Dad, and a good friend of his, Don Snyder, where having a few cold ones in the basement garage of Don S's house after working on a customers car. Don W. mentioned how he'd always wanted a really sweet show T roadster. So they discussed it and decoided to use the money they made working on peoples cars in the evenings and weekends to build it. So plans were drawn up and work began shortly after. Of coarse this was not going to be any ordinary T. Don W. was too much of a perfectionist for that. Don S. dug around and got a '64 Impala for the drive train while Don W. hit some swap meets diggin up the tunnel ram and dual quads. Don W. with welder and torch fashioned a custom 2"x 3" steel chassis along with all the radius roads and link mounts. A front axle was ordered from Califonia while front spindles and hub were from P.S.I. and the brakes Hurst Airheart. A 1964 Ford Fairlane donated the master cylinder and a full length set of chrmoe headers were gathered. Don W. figured a way of fitting a set of Harley Davidson motorcycle mufflers to quiet the headers down a bit. A T pickup body was ordered, manufacturer unknown now, equip with passenger door and it was given off to Bob Arnold of North Kansas City, MO for prep and paint. Don W. had this idea for a show stopping candy red fade mosaic over black background and told Bob to make it happen. A T replica fully brass radiator was ordered from Jim Babbs radiator shop in Southern California at a staggering price of $369.00 in 1970! Do the inflation math on that one! Once the engine/chassis was done everything was disassembled and carted to ACME Plating of Kansas City, MO for dipping in their chrome vats. Jim Huff was called on to put buffer and rouge to all the cast aluminum and brass to bring out a mirror finish. So, without delay the car came together in September/October of 1971 just in time for the Darryl Starbird's custom car show in Kansas City, MO. The car was entered and took 2nd place in it's class. Don W. protested once he saw the score sheet and how several catagories were not even judged. Don W. never enterd another Darryl Starbird car show becasue of the poor judging. For the next year and a half the car was shown in all the local events and also both the Detroit NSRA nationals in 1972 and then the Tulsa NSRA nationals in 1973 where the car was eventually sold. (I was conceived at that event.) A gentleman named Charles Bradley was lurking around the show when he saw the T for sale and agreed on the price with Dad. The car was delivered to Charles the following Monday after the show in Fort Smith, AR at Mr. Bradley's machining business. For the next thirty-five years I grew up seeing pictures of the old car, 110 film shots, pinned up on the garage shop wall along with other cars Dad had built or helped others work on. Dad never finished another car to show condition, but rather got them fully engineered and driveable and ready for paint and interior then sold them. The T was the only car he'd won his accolade with, while helping many others win theirs. Growing up I only saw those pictures and often wondered what had happened to the old car even asking Mom and Dad what they thought. In February of 2005 while poking around on the web looking at track Ts I found a website, www.carnut.com, that had two pictures of the T back in it's hay day. That got me wondering and I started looking for the Bradley family in Fort Smith. Until I found the scrapbook Mom kept on the car I was pretty much dead in the water. I spent a good three to four weeks emailing people in car clubs in Fort Smith and calling every Bradley in the phone book looking for Charles. When I got the scrapbook, fortunately Mom had kept a business card along with Charles pictures when he bought the car. I dialed up the number and it was disconneted. I called information and asked for Bradley Machine Company, Fort Smith, AR and the operator gave me a new number. I called it up and a lady answered, "Bradley Machine.?" "Is Charles in?" A pause...and then, "I'm sorry but he's been passed away for several years now." "Ohhhh...., I'm sorry. Is the business still in the family?" "Yes, his sone Steve now runs the business." "Is he in?" "No, is there anything I can help you with?" "Mamm, this call has nothing to do with your business, and this will sound like a stange question, but have you ever seen a black car with red diamonds on the sides, all open top, open engine, open wheels?" "Why yes actually I saw pictures of that car the other day." "Ok...I have the right place then. Please have Steve give me a call." The next day Steve called me and the conversation went something like this... "Bill?" "Yes. Steve, thank you for returning my call. This will sound strange, but did your Dad own a black fad T with red diamonds on the sides?" "Yes." "Do you still have the car?" "Yes." "Well, my Dad built that car!" "NO KIDDING!!! How'd you find me?" "Well it wasn't easy. Is the car changed at all, how original is it?" "Do you have an email address?" "Yes." "Let me send you a few pictures, I think you'll be suprised it hasn't changed a bit. Are you interested in buying it?" "Well...actually I really more than anything want to see it. See, I was born about nine months after Dad sold it to your Dad. And grew up wondering what happened to it. I'd really like to come see it." At that point Steve told me how he'd given the car to a close family friend who had been taking care of it for several years and he would have to get with him to arrange a time we could come down. Out of site out of mind I forgot about it when only on occasion thinking about going down. Fast forward three and a half years...Dad was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in the summer of last year (2008). Still fully functioning, but leaving us wondering how much longer it would be that way. So with him visiting here from Texas and staying in Carthage, MO at the RV park, only half way from Fort Smith I decided it was time to go see the car with Dad. I called Steve only to find he was gone for the next two weeks but then was able to get in touch with the family friend, Jerry Hart, to make arrangements to come see the car at his house. So, September 13th we, my son Caleb and I drove and picked up Dad in Carthage and traveled to Fort Smith to visit the car. Jerry told us how he remebered when Charles bought it and cruised down the street a few times before storing it on the show room of his business. See, Charles told Dad that he wasn't going to drive it but rather keep it in climate controlled storage for the rest of it's life. When Charles died suddenly in a plane crash in 1985 the business was liquidated and the car was willed into Steve's name. Steve then only 19 stored the car in a shed under cover and on jack stands. Several years and lots of race car building in the old shed dumped loads of dust and dirt on the car cover eventually deteriorating and collapsing down into every crevice on the car. Jerry offered to do something with the car and Steve agreed. That was 1990. Jerry spent an entire year disassembling it, cleaning it and putting it back together getting it running and driveable again. It remained so until 1997 when Jerry sold his house and had to store the car once again. Then in 2001 he brought it back out to his new house where it sat on jack stands again waiting for us to come see it. An enormous amount of credit must be given to Jerry as he did not change anything on the car. After that visit I told Jerry what I would pay for it as it sat. He relayed that to Steve, when he returned from vactiaon, who agreed he would take it. They both knew the car was worth way more money but thought so much of us finding it and the memories it brought back for Dad that we should have it back in our family. On Friday after Thanksgiving, exactly 38-years to the weekend of it's first show we drove to Fort Smith again to pick up the car. I spent the next three months, along with family and several friends getting it ready to roll into the World of Wheels car show in Kansas City. We entered the car and Dad came up from Texas to be there. What a great weekend we had. Just in the last month I've gotten it running for the first time in 13-years and now ready to take to some cruises. There's more details to the story but that's the gist of it. Here are a few pics from along this cars cool journey. A few original hay days pics from 36-38 years ago, to when we brought it home, to cleaning it up and then the World of Wheels. I hope you enjoyed our little story of 'The Turnover T'. BTW it got it's name because Dad was going to put it on a rotisserie since it sits so close to the ground the judges couldn't or didn't want to get down and look underneath to judge it. Regards, Bill Wilson
Man that was a great story with a happy ending.Hope you can enjoy it many more years with your dad and son,and pass it on to him one day.Take care. Stony
Thanks to all. We got it going again tonight after a flattened cam problem. Seems no one decided to put billboards up letting people with old cars know they decided to change the flipping motor oil making it like water as far as lubricating a flat tappet cam. Oh well it's going again now. Anybody good with dual quads? Regards, Bill Wilson 'The Turnover T'
Nice story. Any close up pics of the front suspension? I think I see a method I've never seen before.
The best read on here in awhile. Good for you getting it back where it belongs. I know I don't need to say this but will anyway. DON'T CHANGE A THING !! Frank
See if these are what your looking for. If not let me know and I'll see if I can take a few more. Most of these were when I went ot look at it for the first time and before it was cleaned up. Regards, Bill Wilson Lee's Summit, MO 'The Turnover T'
Thanks for posting Bill. That's one awesome T. I dying to find an old T with some history like that. Take car of that one!
Cool story and some real craftsmanship in the front suspension. Glad you were able to locate it and return it to the family.
Finally after a year I got the "New" tires and wheels on this past week and took it for a real drive. Been driving on the "original" set since we got the car back and let me tell you those fronts are like black licorice and wanting to come apart. But no worries now we've got NOS 'drivers' on the back now and re-popped dirt trackers up front. It's smoother than before and doesn't track like the old tires (I thought it would be worse). Hope the locals can make it out to Pete & Jakes this Saturday May 15th for their Open House and benefit for the Slover families, if it doesn't rain. (Sorry hard core guys not going to drive it in the rain). Hope you all enjoy the pics. Regards, Bill Wilson Lee's Summit, MO 'The Turnover T'
Gonna bring this back from the dead, thanks to your tunnel ram thread. Man, polished slots, Firestone indys, tunnel ram and a chrome rear-end on coils. THATS a T-bucket! Circa 1970 Period perfect!
Well gentlemen our father passed away this past December 4th. We had a great funeral service for him that included a lot of his life's passions for cars including this T. I have now owned the car for longer than my dad did. And I can see why he wanted to sell it when he did. Our family is considering selling the car to move on as it were. It is fun to drive and be looked at but at the end of the day it's a really expensive toy that does nothing but cost us money. Given the rarity of many of the parts and what it would take to reproduce the car what do you all think I should be asking? I know what many individual items cost like the fuel pump, the guages, the wheels/tires. The chrome alone is high dollar to reproduce I'm sure. We aren't positive we will sell but I always said I wouldn't sell until dad passed and now that time is. Your kind thoughts? Regards, Bill Wilson Lee's Summit, MO 'The Turnover T'
I would check prices around the country. Here's an example of what people are asking. http://www.hotrodhotline.com/classifieds/classifieds.php?a=5&b=172
Just saw your for sale listing. I wish you could find a way to keep it for the family but understand. That car is perfect.
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