Hot Rods Hank Negley's "C" Class Deuce Roadster 123.79 in 1947 !

You are in luck!----I found the dash pix on pg. 41---Also threw in Joe Nitti's '32----Enjoy!-----Don

 

Thank you Don!!! Sorry to impose...

 

Cool stuff,.......

Thanks so much for all your input,.. It looks like Hank was continually involved in updating his Roadster... ( and what an awesome Deuce it was! not only "in the day",.. but a perfect example of high end traditional hot rodding even today ).

Any additional information that anyone knows for a fact,... please post to this thread.
Thanks guys,.... Awesome stuff !

 

NOW,----If I could only trace my '32 roadsters history!!---I have checked all the old lakes books & seen many pix that could be "possibles", but never a "sure thing".
When I bought my roadster in 1962 in pieces, the body had '39 tailights holes in rear panel with 4 small license plate holes, the cowl vent was filled in, along with side lights & door handles, & husky roll bar mounts welded to body floor, dash gutted out, leaving just a rim, floor cut out for large hydro or(?), no seat, radio antenna holes in drivers side quarter panel, no motor, no trans, no rear end,----$500.00
Lots of pix of similar looking lakes racers in the '40's!!
I'm positive one of them is mine, but which one?????????-----Don

 

I am totally smitten with this Roadster,.... The more I dig,.. the more interesting the car and its owner/builder gets,... Here are two never before seen pictures of a young Hank Negley,.... with the beginnings of a car he would remember fondly for the rest of his life.

It was so much a part of his life,.. He was planing a replication build of it right up to the time the Hot Rod world lost one of it's truly unsung hero's,...

Stay tuned,... More to come.



A very young and proud Henry,.. knowing in his head just how it would turn out......

 

Always dug the picture of him standing beside the car with his foot up on the front wheel hold a pipe. Not sure why that particular picture speaks to me so deeply, might just be the juxtoposistion of the "hot rodder bad boy" image and the "pipe smoking sophisticate" kinda thought. Neat though.

 

Sweet pic!

 

A lot of interesting details of the Hank Negley Roadster are turning up,... like this car was built before the the Joe Nitti Roadster,.... And Hank had a special deep purple paint mixed up for his car at least a year before the Nitti car began construction,...

And Hank Nagely did a number of jobs for Joe Nitti on his Roadster,..... It's starting to look like the Hank Nagely Roadster was the inspiration for the Nitti Deuce...

Hank also drove the wheels off his Roadster ! including a trip from California to Minnesota just after the war to propose to his sweetheart,... Hank also used a few different wheel & tire combinations over the years.

More to come stay tuned !

 

I'm guessing you have made contact with Paula?

I am looking forward to more pics and info.

Neal

 

Yes Neal,.. I was able to make contact with Paula,.. She is a truly delightful lady with a keen recollection of her Fathers Roadster that she grew up with... The more I find out about Mr. Negley The more I grow to appreciate and respect him. He sounds like a man I would have truly liked to meet and get to know,....

And the more I know about her Father,.. the more impressed I become,.. This is more than just about a very cool Hot Rod,.. It's about a very cool and passionate Hot Rodder,... A true Hot Rod pioneer that lived through, And was was deeply steeped in the "Olympian era of Hot Rodding",.. and the dawning of that era. IMHO

Additional pictures will be forthcoming,... But I have a good deal of research to do first... stay tuned,.. but be patient. More to come,... "Eventually"

 

Was out of town so didn't have a chance to look through my books, but looks like others have found them. I have all those books, just hard to keep track of what is in each in my head.

 

Hi everybody. I'm Hank Negley's daughter, Paula. I moved down to San Diego about three years ago, but am just now getting my things, including my old photographs, out of storage. The same week that I got my photos out of storage, I received a phone call from a very nice gentleman in Michigan, and one of the posters here on the H.A.M.B., looking for info on my dad's roadster. I sent him the photos of the roadster in street trim that I had found in storage. He said he would get them scanned, and then post them here. I know that I still have a few more to find of the roadster in race trim somewhere in the still unpacked boxes, and when I do I will also send them along. If anyone wants to email me, my email address is [email protected]. And I would just like to say that it would make my dad very proud that people still remember his really cool roadster.

 

Alright guys,....

I am going over to a friends house later this week that has a really top end scanner to get a really good scan of these wonderful pictures. This is just a picture of one of the pictures,... Must be really early, It has the right headlights and stands,.. but it has 16" Wires and the beautyfully peaked Radiator shell has not been done yet,... also it still has the stock hood sides,....... More to come...

(On behalf of the entire traditional Hot Rod community,.. Thank you Paula !)

 

did you ever find out what became of hanks roadster ????? very cool car...

 

Quit flirting with her Jeff,.... I met her first !

I'm trying to put the pieces of that puzzle together now,.... but theirs a lot of ground to cover,... Hang in there guys, I'm working on it,.. but this might take a while.

 

I love this place....GREAT STUFF!....and yes welcome Paula!........Can't wait to see the pics!

 

The pleasure is truly mine in sharing photos of my dad's great roadster. As soon as I find the rest of them, I will pass them along. And thank you all again for your interest in traditional hot rods, and the people who first loved them, and raced them, such as my dad. The people in my dad's car club, The Gear Grinders, as some of the most wonderful people I have ever met, and the best friends a person could ever have.

 

Paula - I know we had tried to get together before you moved south and it seems we could never get our schedules worked out. I'm glad to see you back here 5 years later and have your dad's pictures and history finally shared.

Keep digging out those pics, you dad's car was a huge influence on my '32 project.

Thanks,

Neal Jennings

 

Well it would seem that luckily, Hank Nagley was quite a shutter bug as well as a Dancer, Hot Rodder and Merchant Marine during WWII,... I will be posting up pictures that Paula wants to share with the Traditional Hot Rod community,... However to save the integrity and exclusivity of the original pictures as Paula's personal property,... I have altered them slightly when I scanned them.

This week my friend will be scanning them on a professional scanner (with me present), for the best quality that can be achieved. Here are a few to start out with,... Enjoy guys,.... More to come.

I am honored to present to you some of Hank Negley's personal pictures of His Deuce Roadster he put so much of himself into.....

 

Most interesting thread in months, good work, Subscribed.

 

Agreed.....lookin forward to more pics.....!

 

Did not see the original thread so really glad it is back, and that Paula is reconnected here...yes, the Hank Negley roadster was one of the real classics of its time and these pictures are very welcome by all of us who admired both Hank and the roadster...

 

Another early picture of this wonderful old Hot Rod at the dry lakes,... Apparently,.. Construction of this car started in the later 30's and was on the road as a Hot Rod before the War,...

 

Wow. Very inspiring thread. Welcome Paula! Keep it coming Harms Way.

 

Apparently,.. the police liked Hanks Roadster too....

 

As mentioned,.. Hank Drove the wheels off of his outstanding Deuce Roadster,... I really dig this picture, This is how a proud Roadster owner earns his stripes,.. No fear of dirt, rain, mud or the elements,.. just get in it and let the miles disappear under your wheels,........ This was Hanks only transportation for years,.. And partly responsible for him meeting his wife.

How many of us can drive our car to the dry lakes,.. spank it hard in race trim, get back in it, drive it home in street trim, and depend on it to get us back and forth to work, the grocery store and every family errand everyday in between ? ..... For me this defines the phrase "Totally Awesome !"

 

Welcome Paula thanks for sharing the wonderful pictures. Thank you Harms Way for the research and making us aware of such a great car and owner. I hope more history of this car is uncovered.

 

And for those that say it's not period correct for late 40's to run extreme big'n'little tire combos like 5.50 front, 7.50 rear...see this as a prime example.

I love this shot...

 

This picture was taken in 1946 !!!

And those look like 8.20's to me.