Hot Rods Before 1-800, catalogs & the Hamb (back in the dark ages)

I remember going on a road trip one summer with my Pops. He and my mother were divorced, not at all amicably, and there was always a weird tension for the first few hours of our visits. Mother and I moved a LOT, so my relationship with my dad was disjointed at best. The thought of me, age 10, tromping across the country with a man I didn't know very well was as exhilarating as it was terrifying.

We left his house in Iowa and drove in the general direction of Wisconsin, vowing not to turn around until we found a junk yard car worthy of building. Dad had grown up like many of you on the HAMB, building stuff and learning as he went. I can't remember how many days and how many junk yards we visited, but I remember it being thrilling. Hours on end driving through farm country; Dad preferred taking his time and hated big interstates. As time went on, the tension melted, the smiles and laughter came easier, and I felt like Dad's partner in crime.

We made our way through Wisconsin, visiting the Dells, and every other place that looked cool. We stayed in terrible motels, cooked dinner on his little charcoal grill and even got some fishing in along the way.

At long last, in Minnesota if memory serves, we found the rolling chassis and cab that would eventually become Dad's 35 Ford. I don't know much about the build, but I do know it included a ton of loaner car parts. Buying new was a last resort.

I'm happy to say that Dad and I have a wonderful relationship today. He has passed on his love of cars to me. Unfortunately, his mechanical inclination appears not to have been hereditary. None the less, I love picking up the phone and talking with him about our cars, my kids and whatever else comes up. We still talk about the "junk yard run" we made all those years ago.

Here is dad's 35 and my 53 Coronet (the same model my dad had as a teenager in the 60's).


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Another one who attended!!

you attended too!

 

No 1800 parts on my T.

 

I used to love scouring the junk yards for usable parts. The first hot rod I actually got running on the street was my 32 coupe. I bought a worn out 67 Mustang and used the engine, transmission, drive shaft, rearend, steering column, shifter in my 32 and the seats in a Model A I had. The 32 was once an old hot rod with leaded in cowl vent and top and at one time had an old Olds engine in it, what I was told. It still had 1939 brake setup in it so I kept those.
The day I brought it home about 1974:

About 1982:

 

Danny that's just how it was back in the day!
In 1971when I undertook the build of my first ever car build from the ground up
It was my C Cab. I dabbled in various other cars and rebuilding engines, suspension etc as I used to race and do hill climbs and sprints, but nothing in the scale of a full ground up from scratch build.
It was great then every weekend down to various scrap yards taking off the bits and bobs that you though you might need. You can't do that now, health and safety regulations and other various daft and ridiculous rules.
I'm glad and so are some of my Rodding friends are also glad that we had our time when we did.
We were the forefront of recycling
And this is what I and good friends of mine built.

 

I'm hearing a lot of disco music in this thread! haha

Great stories, thanks for sharing! Pics are extra kudos..

 

After a run of buying and selling daily drivers, sometimes 2 or 3 in a month and having pre-48 projects that never got finished, I found a 37 Chevy Coupe that I became determined to finish. It was in the early 70's, newly married, first house and thinking about creating a family. I had previously owned a 38 Coupe that I sold to my Brother when I came across the 37.
The car was very solid, had a 283 and powerglide. My Brother and I joined the Rochester Street Rods car club which will be celebrating 50 years in 2020. Here we met some new lifelong friends and began our journey to build our Chevy Coupes. We frequented the local salvage yards including one that in 1999 I became a part owner.
Back then everything was home made, salvaged from another vehicle, bought at a swap meet or copied from a friend. I think JC Whitney was the first catalog I bought something from.
As much as I loved the 37 Chevy, I wanted it to be a little different. I kept the drive train, 57 Chevy rearend and straight axle front end. I did ad 54 Chevy front hubs and drums and installed a truck stabilizer on the front axle. I then with some help converted the trunk into a rumble seat. I painted the car a two-tone tan and had the hinges, headlights, grille, bumpers, garnish moldings and other small parts chrome plated which back then cost me a whopping $395 for everything. Drove that car for several years and as we were expecting our second child, we moved on favoring 37 Chevy sedans, deliveries and even some 50's cars. While building the later cars I fell victim to the growing amount of aftermarket technology and parts that were available.
Like most of my favorite builds, I still have a model of that wonderful 37 Chevy Coupe.

 

Anymore cool old rides from back in the day? HRP