This story starts in 1952 when Don Edinborough purchased a 1932 Ford 5window with the intentions of going drag racing. He installed a GMC 6 moved the axle and went racing at CDR raceway . In 1957 Don decided to rebuild his car with an attention to detail and speed. He added a 57 Corvette motor dtailed the chassis and painted the car Blue, The "Little Blue Duece" was born... Don was very successful showing the car, winning "most Outstanding Car at the Pikes Peak Timing Assoc. annual Rod and Custom Show, in 1960. He also continued to race the car In 1962 Don decided to replace the engine with a new Corvette 327 with Dual 4bbl Carbs and a 4 speed Trans. This is when things turned. After spending months assembling the 11.0:1 Clay Smith Cammed 327, after spending every dime with the plater and the speed shop, he decided the engine needed to be primed, so they drug the car up and down the street in gear to prime the motor, however they had'nt installed the distributor which didnt allow the duece to get any oil throughout the motor and it siezed. Thats when the "Little Blue Duece. went back in the garage and has'nt seen the light of day in 50 years!!!. Don would gather a few parts over the years like a brand new set of tires and MotorWheel Flys, I believe in the mid to late 60's. and a different 4 speed trans in 1969. Don is now going on 86 years old, he has lost is sight. My father in law Gene Musick has been caring for his old friend Don for nearly 10 years, taking him groceries, giving him a shave to clean him up, writing out his bills etc... Gene's intention was never to "get " anything from Don, Gene just wanted to help out a lifelong friend. Over the years Don has thinned his herd of cars , the 40 Merc coupe he was building in the late 80's went to a new home, his 56 Ford pickup etc. But that Old Duece was his identity. A few weeks ago Don decided to Sell not Give the Duece to Gene. He is honored to have such a piece of history , and our intention is to get the old coupe back to its former glory. Here are the pictures after getting the car home and rinsing off the years of dust. ENJOY
Here is the link to the original post a couple years ago, with pictures of car while still in hibernation http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/showthread.php?t=453921 and a couple interior pics from yeaterday
Great story to go with the car!! It looks like its in great shape. That'll be fun to drive!! Hope you get it on the road soon and start enjoying it.
What a great story! I'm sure you will go to great lengths to not disturb too much of the car's wonderful history. What a treasure!
Awesome car. Corvette steering wheel, probably came from the same 57 Corvette that donated the engine.
Nice! But, why would a siezed engine take the fire out of a guy who obviously loved his car? I like old cars and always wonder what stories they have to tell.
You are correct they are Spyders, He has at least 40 more of these wheels, that are used. we will be selling them off.
We will put the steel wheels and caps back on, He had these wheels and tires in the corner covered with a sheet since the sixties...
This is very cool indeed! Man I keep looking for a five window but have had zero luck. Congrats to you.
Those are Airhart disc brakes. The rear rotor covers are homemade I believe. They are copper plated along with the valve covers. Posted from the TJJ App for iPhone & iPad
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