Hot Rods First drive down the street...always a thrill...will I make it home?

Anxiety, nervousness, apprehension, excitement, and finally elation..confirms to you, all of the time, work, dollars invested, were warranted.
Good job.

 

I get to do it this week and I've been putting it off. My trailer is hooked up to the truck, my cell phone is handy, and the missus is already giving me a ration of shit.

Great looking little truck, by the way. I'm glad it worked out so well.

 

That's just BITCHIN!

 

Congrats! Seems that range of blues always look different in every photo

 

Really, really nice, simple, elegant and very pleasing to look at! Job well done!

 

I love that truck!

 

Absolutely gorgeous truck! Wow! Great job!

 

Thats a good looking pick up! First rides are exciting and fun. Congratulations!

 

Did you loop Elizabeth Park Yet?


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I call them the Breakdown cruise.
That's a nice pickup. Glad it went well.

 

when the weather breaks...I'll do a couple laps...Small car show every Thursday evening by the hot dog stand...

 

Very nice.

 

If you have good roadside service(Hagerty) let them worry about getting you home. That has always been my back home plan. Enjoy your drives...………….

 

Great lookin ride, now drive the sh#t outta it

 

No not since 2018. I am coming back in May 19 and doing a few things including the Custom Car Revival in Indianapolis. Traveling with Kurt McCormick in his 41 Cadillac convertible. Also the NSRA Mid America Nats in Springfield. Maybe you saw that post on Facebook where someone put up a picture of the car at Santa Maria 2018 and I commented and said 2019.

 

My April of 2016 maiden voyage was 6 months prior to my near-demise heart attack. My Ford, the clutch was marginally releasing, the timing was out of whack, the front springs were too short... all sorts of bad things lining up. I had lights and signals. I told my buddy where I was going, the exact route. If I'm not back in 5 minutes, come and get me. The gas pedal seemed to be all or nothing due to the timing and up-shifting was a chore, like driving a 1937 2-ton farm truck you were not familiar with. Of course the maiden voyage is best done under the cover of dark...

 

That must have been it.
Boogie just painted this custom 88 for Bob Fry. Should be a stunner with the right wheels/tires

 

I was going to say the same thing. Love this truck

 

Great build. I like it.
My wife knows the first name of every tow truck driver in this two county area.

 

so nice - enjoy

 

Did the '35 hood with the '36 grille give you much extra engine compartment length?

I really like the filler panel you made for in front of the rear wheels.

Kinda looks like you extended the depth and shortened the '36 grille, maybe that just cause the lower chin is cut apart and changed to get rid of the parts where it mates up the front fenders.

 

Took my 57 out on it first run with a big block without bolting the hood to the hinges just using the safety latch in front. When I started picking up speed the rear of the hood started to come up, cowl induction.

 

Thanks, I cut a wooden buck to make the filler panels and welded rod to make the body line. Used dimple dies for the holes. The frame was really exposed here so I needed to do something...wanted something different from the rectangles repopped.
I bought the cab from a guy in Col. It had the grill inside the cab...wanted the 35 hood sides...love the louvers. The grill shell was in really bad shape. I cut it into 6 pieces to cut it down to size of the chopped/channeled cab/frame. I bent up 32 grill bars and welded the new ones in with a crossbar. I do not like the thickness of a 36 grill but it was what I had and could afford. I had plans of sectioning a 2" to 0" taper out of it but fan and short water pump located the grill and radiator. Used a chopped 32 radiator..

 

That's a nice looking truck, start with a small circle, then they keep getting bigger as you gain confidence in your machine, fun isn't it.

 

Hello,

The first time anyone puts the key in the ignition, it is always a thrill. Whether it was a memory of an earlier hot rod or not, the mystery of the car starting has always been in everyone’s mind. If it is rainy, foggy, snowy or parked in any kind of weather, the key in the ignition and the pre-starting tension is amplified 10x.

The first time I got into my Flathead powered 1940 Ford Sedan Delivery, it was my own car. I had driven it home from the previous owner’s house. But, after several times of the sedan delivery not starting, the worry factor crept in to the scene. Can’t be late for school, a date, or a job, so what to do if it does not start?
1959
I knew that when the 1958 Impala started every single time, it was a totally reliable car. But, when in the staging area lines at Lions, the wait was multiplied as the worry crept in place. The cars in front of the line started and moved forward. Your car did not start, panic sets in and increases the anxiety. The one time I was in the second round of eliminations, this was the scene. I rolled up to the staging area and the starter told everyone to shut down their motors. Something had to be cleared off of the track.

Well, I knew and did not want to be caught with a dead motor, so I kept the motor running, while everyone else had shut down. I had the window rolled up and played innocent to the command to shut down. Finally, the starter came over and told me to shut down as it would be several minutes. But, when I told him about not starting, he allowed me to continue idling. When it was all clear, I cleared out the idle and the motor was already warm for the next round. I won that round… so all was good.

For some reason, that was the only non-starting incident for the 1958 Impala. But, since that time, a year later, I got a C&O Stick Hydro installed. When I returned to the C&O Garage to pick up my finished Impala, the worry was, would it start and get me home? Of course it did and the Impala never stalled or had the starting problem, again.

Jnaki

Now, move up to 1960 and we just put together our 283 SBC with 6 Strombergs, Isky cam and kit, 3 speed LaSalle and a Chevy 4:11 Positraction rear with Traction Master bars. It was ready to fire up and take it for a ride down the street. The idle was a little high, so 6 screws were adjusted and now, it was ready. I backed up the Willys coupe, all the way out to the street. The Moon Tank inside was filled with gas (2 gal)

This was our first build and we were proud of the results. My brother was going to drive around and I was going to be the gas gauge, looking into the Moon Tank to see how far we are going to go. It was so exciting backing up the Willys, while the motor was idling and sounding rather powerful. When my brother got ready to go, he said, “Hang on.” He started to go, and after a short roll, he floored it and we both flew back in our seats.

That was one powerful motor and set up. It was much more than the 3 carb 348 in the Impala. We drove around for about 5 miles before we had to get some gas. The attendants were all over each other to fill the gas tank...but the tank was not for gas. HA! the joke was on them. But, for the time inside the Willys, it was pretty close to Nirvana, despite the “not finished” look. Our idea was to get the Willys SBC running well, then start the finish detailing look.

 

Well done.

 

Cool deal, nuthin like that first ride in a new rod. The truck looks awesome, Washington Blue, sweet choice. Enjoy the cool ride.

 

nice truck, like the stance, color looks great.

 

Nailed it. Very nice.

 

Nothing is quite like the feeling you get on a maiden voyage, congratulations...