the continuing saga of a boy and his HOT ROD (Bucket~Boy's low buck rod update-chop!)

what do you do when your laid off from work, have no money to screw around with and your compressor in the shop is broke down ??? you help the neighbor kid build a super cheap hot rod. yeah, thats the ticket!!

this thing is turning out so cool i fell like a total fuckin goober for not having a running rod of my own. i gotta quit being so picky and just build a low buck rod with nothin special parts like this. the fucker is gonna RULE and the kid only has $206 in it so far!!! and he's only 16!!!

quick recap: ripped the drivetrain from a running Ford Ranger pickup that was givin to him for FREE. pulled the rear axle out of a Camaro his dad had as a parts car, FREE. got a 40-47 Ford truck cab and passenger side door from a friend of mine, for FREE ("just get it out of my yard.")! picked up a driver side door for $25 at the bone yard. bought a bunch of 4x4 I-beam and various other pieces of metal from the scrap yard and built a frame (it'll be cut full of holes to lighten it). a stack of street signs from the scrap yard will make a neat floor.

to start things off we cut 4 1/2" off the bottom of the body for a "cheater" section. that pretty much got rid of all the rust too. then it was chaneled 4" over the new frame and a floor was framed in out of more scrap yard steel.

next came teh chop. 5 1/2" ought to do!! tell me that was'nt a pain in the ass and i'll kick you in the balls. things get REAL out of shape when you go that far, but thats ok cause it all worked out and it looks fuckin SICK!! (that a good thing, for you old timers ) it has that sinister look we were after with the top that low and the windshield laid back all that ways. the best part. it still has PLENTY of head room and enough leg room to not get uncomfortable on a road trip. even my 6'1" 240lb ass could drive it comfortably.

the following is a photo diary of the last few afternoon/evening/nights. still got the one rear corner to finish on the chop and then a little work on the door jamb area by the front pillars. the windshield is something like 8" tall now and Jake has'nt quite figured out how much he wants to take out of the rear window. prolly 2 1/2", in order to keep it from looking like a mail slot and to maintain at least SOME visability. i'm sure the doors will be their own little adventure when we get to them

enough chit chat. let me get these pics resized and posted for the boy. he keeps saying he can't figure it out. i think he can, he just does'nt want to. it's easier to have me do it for him. i'm such a SUCKER!

 

more pics...

 

hope i did'nt make em too small. what a PITA resizing pics. there has to be an easier way ...


man, you could'nt kick that smile off his face ...

 

thats pretty damn cool man. i wish i had someone to teach and help my when i was 16. that is gonna be one bad ass truck when its done.

 

I really like how the front glass looks almost oval, the front glass looks just like a 51-52 F-1 back glass! Lookin good!!

 

Looks good....glad you keep us posted....

I'll bet he'll do the same thing for a young kid, some day......when you're pushin' up lawn mower fodder....

 

come on now. i'm not THAT much older than him. only about 15 years.

 

ah, we're about the same age...you and I.......in my mind, I'm still his age, however.....time sure does fly......I'm serious

 

tell me about it. i'l be 31 saturday and i still think i'm 21 most of the time. most days i FEEL 61 though.

 

That's one lucky kid. Nice progress so far. Keep the updates coming.

 

Good on ya Mike, help that kid out. But, he WILL need to spend some coin before its over! Neat so far.

 

yeah, he's got his eye on a pair of Radir Bullet spokes and 8.20 slicks for the rear (whenever the cash comes available for the purchase) but i think Tony Bones is gonna hook him up with a sweet deal on a nice set of steelies for the time being. he'll still need to get some rubber and Tony has specified that no radial tires shall touch these rims . he'll have a little coin in rubber for sure, plus he'll want to go through the brakes to keep it safe. i realy don't think he'll have too much money wrapped up in it when it is finaly ready for the road. he has'nt set a spending limit on it but he is'nt getting carried away and spending money where he does'nt realy need to.

anyone know if an 8.20 (Radir) cheater slick is too wide for a 7" steel wheel???

 

That tire will look OK, nice "bulge" not to square.....whoa...that was very GMB!

 

that frame looks SICK!

Nice work, its comming on nicely.

 

And it sounds beautiful hahhahahaha

 

Thumbs way way up!! Keep us updated...I'm following this one for sure.

 

The chop looks great, sorry about you're being laid-off but it's one of the best things that ever happened to your neighbor. I'll never meet either one of you but thanks for helping the young man out. He's getting more out of this than he knows right now.
Stafford

 

Great proportions to the cab. Tell hime his doing a hell of a job.
Ain't it cool to be able to start another young one in this madness.
Sick??? You young punk's language is so confusing.
Good job!

 

that is awesome! you're a hell of a neighbor!

 

I'm really diggin' the floorboards......don't get pulled over.
"Son, where'd ya get them signs?"
"uh, I made 'em in prison, Sir."
"Outta the car, Junior!"

 

Thanks for the update!! Looks cool

 

They got them at the scrap metal yard.....
and low and behold there's now a "stop for pedestrian" sign hanging on the fence by the asshole's driveway that we're not allowed to cross

 

Shame on you for preying on such a fine young man and filling his fragile young mind with such satanic and evil ideas.....turning him into one of us!!!

Very cool truck......or is that sick?? I'm too old!!

 

the truck looks awesome.. really comming along...
the drilled i-beam frame and pedestrian 4 banger are really cool...

glad to see that the kids aren't all bad!! Hopefully that's a fast foward of my son in 15 years

And i agree - you are one hell of a neibor...

 

"most days i FEEL 61 though.[/QUOTE]"

Horseshit! I'm turning 61 Friday - and if you're in your early thirties - I GUARANTEE you don't have a clue what it feels like! (-:

Seriously though - you're doing something really worth while with your "time off". Somebody has to "pass the torch" to the younguns' and it's great to see you taking advantage of the opportunity to do so.

Believe me, the kid doesn't know how good he has it. Hell ...I wish you were helping ME with my RPU project! Everything looks great so far. Keep us updated.

 

LMAO. i told him to keep the reciept just in case that happens . you would'nt believe all the old street signs they had at the scrap yard. they even had a couple pallets stacked with ones that were cut out and never had anything printed on them. perfect for making that "Route 666" sign you've always wanted .

believe me i had other plans for my time off but with the compressor breaking down and me being broke that did'nt work out too well. i should be back up and runnin real soon (now that i'm going back to work Monday ) but there is a TON of stuff that Jake can finish without my help. he's very capable. you know. for a punk teenager ...

the guy he works for doing sandblasting has a 283 sitting on the engine stand that Jake might be able to get his hands on cheap. like working it off cheap. that and a 4 speed would get him into V8ville and get him into even MORE trouble . but for now we'll carry on the build with the banger and 5 speed. it'll look sweet with a pair of 1 barrel carbs and a lakes style header. there will always be room to add the V8 at a later date.

 

This is a really cool pick up and a cool build up too.
That frame has got to be one of the most bizzare frames I've ever seen...
Definately one off...
r

 

It looks great. He'll remember this forever.

BTW, Happy Birthday fucker! I'll be 36 on Sat.!!