There are a variety of aftermarket fiberglass one piece front fenders/hood/grills for cars and trucks , hence “picking your nose” . Was this availability in the 1960’s or even the ‘50’s or was this a ‘70’s thing? Any history lesson when fiberglass when front ends became available?
I first became aware of fiberglass fenders ,body's and grille shell when a gentleman by the name of Boyce Snipes start making them in the early 60 when he was employed by the Fiberglass plant here in Anderson, it was more of a hobby for him but he made me a pair of fenders for my model A. HRP
In the 50's and even into the 60's, fiberglass hoods and fenders were a pretty big deal. Racers had them once in a while, but you hardly ever saw them on the street. Until the 1953 Corvette appeared, a fiberglass car was really non-existant. I have an old Almquist speed parts catalogue that advertised a '23 T-bucket body for $129 in 1962!!
Earliest I knew was in the early 70’s, went to the speed shop with my dad and they had a glass front clip for a tri5 Chevy on the floor. I thought “Wow, how cool “
I bought fiberglass fenders for my 32 Ford from AI fiberglass I think it was 1975 give or take a year or two. A guy I know once told me that" You can pick your friends and you can pick your nose but you can't pick your relatives..."
Willys Coupes had glass hoods, fenders, doors and trunk lids available around 62-64 onward that i know of. JW
So it’s fits in the timeline here . I like learning the history of hot rodding. Like HRP’s story , those are tid bits of the past that could get lost , but are important to acknowledge.
My ‘48 “Effie” the engine is way down in there and I was the around the idea that a tilt front end would make it a lot easier getting to things instead of bumping your chin on the air cleaner .
I also have a problem keeping my pants up to , so if I was on the side of the road oncoming traffic would get a show Maybe I could keep some dignity with a tilt . Just a plumbers show hanging the breeze as cars go flying by .
In Detroit in 1968 I bought a '55 chevy that had fiberglass fenders and a steel hood with a fiberglass bubble glassed in. They were not uncommon. Sorry to say, no pics. It had cheater slicks with cut out rounded and flared rear wheel wheels. I drove it about 10 miles home with the front fenders flapping up and down like wings. Traded it for a cool little Harley "45". I do remember seeing 1 piece front ends at the drag strips at that time on many cars. I have a set of glass rear Model A fenders that came off a coupe. They were on a barn find that was tucked away in 1962.
My dad told me that my avatar was missing the rear fenders because they were fiberglass that were destroyed by the gravel roads in Hudson South Dakota. They were missing since the late fifties until I went fenders this year. The fronts and running boards are original to the car
Having worked at AI fiberglass, I can tell you fiberglass hotrod body parts began being fabricated during the late 60's. Before Rich Venza became Dave Anderson's partner, Dave and his dad were building glass parts in an old wooden WW2 Army building before the move to the bigger shop in Elkridge, Md. during that time period. AI was one of the first companies and grew with the renewed interest in building hot rods after the fading of the muscle car era. We also built lots of drag race stuff including many pieces for Bod Glidden (sp.? sorry). Also did sports car stuff too. It was a wild time working there, so many crazy guys came and went. Not the safest place to work, the air was filled with fiberglass particles all day long. I did the gelcoat for a while before I moved into the office. One day we were all out front having lunch during the summer and it gelcoat room caught on fire spontainously. I ran to the telephone to call the fire department and Dave Anderson took the receiver away and said hang it up! We put the fire out and got a lecture about not letting the "authorities" ever look in side the building, it was not a very safe place to work! Also Steve Coonan used to stop by to see what we were up to once in a while. This was before he moved to California and began his journalist callings. If I remember correctly, I encouraged him to get the hell out of Balitmore and follow his dreams. It was a fun time in my life working there................
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