hudsonjoe49, you found the holy grail. IMO, save as much as you can. Don't change a thing (unless its obviously dangerous). I found a 55 T-Bird back in 2019 that is a rough survivor. Fought the urge to change everything. Somebody started my car in the late 1960s, but never finished it. They installed a 57 Olds 9.3, radiused the rear quarters, and added a home built set of ladder bars that got destroyed when we were moving the car (I wish I still had them). The car sat for the next sixty years in a Texas field. I'm going to save everything I can and finish the car. In my case, the originality of the car is why I bought it. If this sounds like you, save as much as you can or else you'll grow to hate this car once all of the originality is gone.
Bttt...Anyone remember this Hotrod from the California Drag scene late 50s early 60s?...history search in work... Slang reference Updated...
hudsonjoe49, You might ask Pete Eastwood about this ride. The Ross steering box is probably from a Willys. Great find!
Nobody seems willing to add some harsh reality, but the search for info seems to have more zoot here than the car itself. A couple of you need fedoras and overcoats doing your best Sam Spade impressions. Frankly I dig that the most too. The car itself showing all of it's pre-build and final life is ok but it's a little bit off the mark. As I stare at things it's last owner didn't have as much fondness for it as it's previous ones. Or maybe it was the same guy and he lost all of his "give a shit" and it got stuffed aside. The wins now are the search, the story, the preipherals. And it is of course very kool raw material but far from the level of icon. Sadly most are like this but the search becomes the juice. Kool find. I too would take a shot at running the plates if that hasn't been done yet.
I think approximately zero people think this car is iconic or has some huge mega fancy provenance. so the “harsh reality” seems a little overboard? it’s obviously an old hot rod that’s been a hot rod a long ass time. Given elements and the location it’s realistic that some history would pop up and that’s all he’s trying to find?
Not too worried about the history. The evidence is there that it is a real Hotrod. Just curious to see if there may be pics out there. I’ll make it right.
This is a very cool find. Whether or not it has any history, I would try to put it back together pretty much as it was but clean up a few items in the name of safety and style. It'll be a great car once it's back on the road.
“Cali” is an abbreviation of “California” that only non-Californians use. Nearly every other U.S. state calls California “Cali,” but Californians hate this. Avoid using “Cali” if you want to seem like a native Californian." https://ali.usc.edu/blog/the-slang-and-sayings-of-californians/ ...Quoted from an article at the link above... ...I guess I'm not alone eh...it was not my intention to offend the populace of California, NorCal, SoCal or any of the other acceptable shortened references that makes the cut... Being a site that reaches to the far ends of the globe one should understand not everyone lives by the dialog of one state.
Maybe I was too...wait for it...harsh? We've all seen some decrepit old hot rod dragged outta some tomb and all of a sudden some members will drop to their knees (figuratively speaking) heaping praise and sanctimony in spite of cobble-fuck engineering, booger welds, mismatch lighting, etc, etc, etc. So was I a little harsh? Nah... Hey Joe, bitchin...
I agree that finding the history on old rods & customs totally enhances the car. I try to obtain as much history as possible when I get a new addition to the fleet. If your roadster could talk it would likely yammer on about it's younger days of glory. Car shows, races, pretty girls riding shot gun, that night the car somehow managed to get it's over served owner home un-scathed. The modifications done by this caretaker, the changing hands and refinements... possibly the betrayal of an owner somewhere down the line who either sold his old hot rod because of the lusting for a new muscle car or raising a family. Then the falling into the hands of some schmuck who didn't have the skills or taste to continue the golden heritage this car once experienced... abandonment... (whoa... talk about yammering!) Any-how, now that you found this amazing vehicle and obviously care about what it once was, it's your turn to bring back the glory. The "what should I do with it" train of thought coupled with the "listen to the car, it'll tell you what it wants" attitude should produce a truly bitchin' lil' rod. I'm looking forward to watching it happen!
Hudsonjoe49 what ever this car is historically may never be proven or found but what is apparent is it is a neat old hotrod. Keep posting.
It's a very cool find. I think everyone on here would be quite pleased to have it in their garage. Congrats, please post progress along the journey.
History is always important to cars like this. Even if the history isn't to some well regarded builder or owner. If the plan is to keep the car as close to as found, then that plan will be better if the current owner can find out any or all history of it when it was parked, or built. If the plan was to just make it his own, and do it up to his standard, then it really doesn't matter what the history was. I agree that we all get excited about a discovery of an old rod that's sat for this long, and most here want to keep it as it is, and just fix things not done well. But if the history can never be found, it's still there to see, and worth preserving if that's the direction the current owner wants to take.
https://www.motortrend.com/features/first-nhra-nationals-1955/ ...still looking, yes there's no guarantee but this one got me going...things like trunk hinges, tailights could be slapped on but later...the search goes on...
Very cool roadster no matter the history. But, it would be cool to find some out if possible. The stories these old hot rods could tell are about as interesting to me as the cars themselves. I have found that a big part of why I like this old junk is the stories that are made surrounding them with friends and family.
Yes, lots of the early drags were far from pretty but lots of these gas axed Jalopies still had plenty of Hotrod ambience to go around...
I often think about the dividing line when Jalopy engineering was evolving into the Shinier finessed fussed about getting the look as it's often referenced Hotrods and Racers... The early drags were closely aligned to Jalopy Hotrod aka Roaring Roadsters and the evolving Roundy Rounder movement in many ways it seems... This is not to say there wasn't the Higher bar element in every part of Street/Race/Show, there was...but Drag and Track racing especially Track was a rockem, sockem, patch it up kind of Sport...when compared to the Indy crowd... Then there's the chance these were grabbed up as $25 discarded field cars after their former glory...and as is always said every garage had its different set of tools and those that were using them...
The license plate beginning with UFR would have been issued later than 1963; probably closer to 1967-68.
There is a pretty distinct 63 stamped into the top right sticker corner. Wouldn't that indicate the first year issue with a 64 sticker following. So your saying there were so many plates made in 63 they were issuing them in 67 with a sticker bearing the current year...but it was never applied? This is IF that 63 on the top right corner has any bearing at all to a reference of year.
This is such a cool find - authentic build and still era correct, vs something that's been modified over time. Agree the history is important. More from an interest level than monetary. Who built it, was it on the road long, was it a cruiser or racer. If it turns out there's some special association that's just a bonus. If youre able to assemble and run it the way that would be outstanding. Change what's needed to be safe, but run it in ragged form if you can. You'll get twice the attention than a new finished car and don't need to worry about rock chips. Wear out a set of tires and see where it goes from there.
https://www.ebay.ca/itm/324009905680 ...this set seems to be a auto plate bearing a 64 sticker and is said to be verified by the I suspect DMV...I did notice they repop those year stickers...that's hard to believe, they repop the plates too, original dies without the 63 in the corner...but that's not the point here... If these are legit it's showing that the High Letters were being issued in 64... So perhaps they truly are 63 issue...would 63 have had no stickers if they are legit...and you are correct that they ran these plates into the later 60s... Man are they expensive...
@hudsonjoe49, I suspect you have saw a sizable amount of vintage Hotrods, even just vintage 30s project cars...to me this Hotrod was licensed last in 63 in California... I note much of it looks pretty dry which I usually worship from the rust belt I live in, but towards the back things get a little crustier...I know much of California is on a saltwater coast so perhaps it's actually quite typical to have what I see and how it sat all play into the equation... With your experience does this Hotrod look to have been a California car all along or does it have rust to suggest it may have migrated from a more northern locale?... Up this way we can request a publicly available package that lists a cars last 4 or 5 previous areas of registration...is may narrow the search... Can you name any period to 63 local drag strips in the La Habra region...were there that many? I have searched through several Hamb Drag related Threads already and am always eyeing anything that could yield fruit as find content that makes the cut here... Just trying to hone targeting...
The 32 chassis is probably the nicest I’ve seen in a long time. The only rust is at the back of the car due to a leaking container. It’s definitely a California hotrod. No lower subrail rot. It’s a solid car.
Yes hammered drop heavy 32 front axle, 32 split bones mounted inboard at k-member, chrome drag link and pitman arm. Steering box was blue metallic. And look for 30-31 Roadsters with 1946 Pontiac gauge/speedo cluster and the dash was covered with padded vinyl or possibly tucknroll
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