The last Grasp Special '34 3 window build

So here I am still going through photos and the next album has the photo I was looking for.
It is at the same vintage speedway meet that the image yblock showed above. Still not sure of the year, but there are a few things about my coupe that I perhaps could pin-point a date, if I was to think long and hard about it.
In this shot there was a whole bunch of cars on the track waiting to take the drivers and riders around in our hot rods and customs. Sought of a parade lap. It was neat.



This next shot was taken at the Bairnsdale drags. This drag meet was mentioned a few pages back.

Geoff aka whodaky

 

No, Jeff. I can stripe, but not sign-write.
Although Chris ( Weir ), Wayne ( Mumford ) and myself ( Rea ) , did erect it out there at the turn-off into the lake.
Damn dragging up more memories.
I haven't used my scanner this much in a long time!

Geoff aka whodaky

 

Geoff, Is that the original sign at the lake or the replacement version ?

 

Memories are good....Just think not much has really changed,still doing what you love,Hotrods,customs and striping.....Jeff

 

Now that you mention it Simon. I think that is the replacement. The first one being stolen, I think within a year of it first being located at the tun off to the lake.
Geoff aka whodaky

 

Yeah you are right Jeff. I am still doing all that stuff. As I said in another post a while back, this stuff is my life.
I know these days I don't tend to think of the past much. But when I see images other people are posting and then I go looking for stuff here. One tends to remember. One of the ironies is, that one does have so much to be remembered and I think sharing those memories here is good for everyone.
So here I am going through another album and came across some other intereseting shots taken a long time ago. Looking on the back I even have a date '99.
Damn, more scanning.

Geoff aka whodaky

 

Who would have thought 14 years later they both would be stable mate 32 coupes

 

I showed this first shot many pages back. The date on the back says '97.
When I first showed it, I thought the roadster in the garage was one from Geelong. When Tony saw the image, he thought it may have been Robbie Warden's roadster.




I was just going through another album and found these 2 shots side by side. The shot below is of the roadster that I think is in the garage. Tony will know more about this roadster!

Geoff aka whodaky

 

It is amazing how things work out, Jeff.
Geoff aka whodaky

 

I may be wrong , but I seem to remember someone telling me that Iain Leitch may have had something to do with the signwriting ???

 

Geoff, really enjoying this thread! Not only is this thread about two guys building their car but the interaction with all your mates. Didn't realize how the hot rodding scene was so strong down under. Feels like I'm living part of your car world with everyone sharing stories. Keep the photos and stories coming.

One question; what is a Whodaky?

Served in Nam with a bunch of Aussies, what a great bunch of guys!

Keep the build and stories coming!

CJ a.k.a. 40zr1

 

Just the natural order of things Whodaky, Hot Rod evolution unfolding...

 

Geoff, I think you might be right about that roadster as I meet that guy when he came to our run, and he did come visiting a few times during that weekend. That roadster was channelled a long time ago and it was owned by Fergie a real good friend of mine,

 

Yblock, you may be right about at least about one of the D.L.R.A signs. Now that you mention it, I think Ian could handle a signwriting brush.
Geoff aka whodaky

 

Thankyou CJ. I think this thread has really evolved into something special. It does offer a great insight into Tony and myself. Along with a great insight into a part of hot rodding here in Australia in general. The recent history that many people posting here on this thread is being conveyed and documented. That very history is such a significant part of the overall history of hot rodding here in Australia as well as in the state of Victoria, where a lot of the people posting here, live.
Ok, more history. When I took up pinstriping, probably over 25 years ago. I needed a name to sign my work. For me the choice was easy. 'Whodaky'. How so, I hear everyone saying. At the time and for many years I was in the Slingshots Hot Rod club.
One of the founding members was Graeme Blaby. Over the years I became very good friends with Graeme and he was a big influence in what I see is a real hot rod. Anyhow Graeme at the time would always call pinstriped designs 'Whodakys', so I thought that would be the perfect signature. So over the years some people actually call me whodaky and many people who know me and my striping work, refer to pinstriping designs as 'whodakys'. Then you have Tom who twists the word 'whodaky' around into some very interesting forms, much like I do with my striping.
So I guess this reply is just begging for me to show some 'whodakys'.

Geoff aka whodaky



Many letter and packages have been striped over the years. I don't think they get thrown out.

 

So moving right along.
Last weekend I headed down to Port Fairy to spend 4 days at Rita and Tony's. I got away at my usual 4 a.m. departure time and pulled into the Cassar driveway at around 8.55 a.m.
After our usual catch up over coffee and breakfast and very late in the morning, Tony and I ventured out into the garage.
I had bought with me the Bell sytle 4 spoke wheel I had made for my 3W.



Tony thought the wheel was pretty neat.
I had also brought along a number of bits and pieces for Tony, to go into his stock of materials for making things.
After us talking about what we will do on our 3W. I said that first off I want to fit the new steering wheel to my 3W.

Geoff aka whodaky

 

Firstly I removed the '40 wheel.



After a an intial fit of the Bell wheel, I found I needed to do a bit of filing on the woodruff key to get the new wheel mounted properly. So after some careful filing and a lot of fitting and refitting I was satisfied with the way the new wheel mounted. Although I eventually want to make another woodruff key! As well as make a centre cap for the new wheel.
Sitting behind the wheel, I was happy; it is so much more user friendly than the large diameter '40 wheel. So all in all it was time well spent!
Geoff aka whodaky

 

Having finished mounting the 'Bell' style wheel to my 3W, Tony and I turned our attention to our 3W. Firstly we rolled the '36 chassis out into the driveway. We then rolled the coupe away from the wall so we could get to the left side of the body. Whilst I was getting organised Tony removed the front sheet metal. As he would be working on the grille shell whilst I would be working on the drip rail area on the 'B' just behind the door.

Geoff aka whodaky

 

Other than getting our selves organised we didn't do anything more on our 3w that day.
However we did go for a drive in Tony's roadster. We stopped in the driveway of a house that is forsale and appeared to be vacant. So we I took a bunch of photos.

Geoff aka wohdaky

 

Gidday Geoff
I am enjoying the artwork & the Last Grasp Special jouney so far, keep it coming. YBlock is our local hot rod historian, if he does not know the answers we seek (very rare) he will research the subject until he comes up with the answer. Thinking about the Bendigo shot I believe it may have been 87-88. Al Murchison had his roadster there, was a great day-night. Remember the day Al picked us both up at Grovedale & we spent the afternoon back at his place, wow!!

Tony
I am still finding the odd old snap of Jake, great to see you are enjoying them. YBlock is the man when it comes to loading the snaps hey!! more to follow. Looks like it is all happening down by the seaside, nice work man.

Tom
Look forward to catching up some time soon my friend. YBlock has loaded the Nagambie 2014 flyer on Oz Rodders, hope you are able to come along. Good luck with joining the chop queue, nothing changes hey?, demand for these blokes craftsmanship is as usual still way high.

 

Looking at buying mate???

Did Tony get the running issue fixed on the roadster?

 

Hey Gary. It's good to see you, thanks for you contributions here.
Yup yblock knows his stuff alright
So much we all know. It is neat that this thread is providing a place for all this stuff to be shared. I know a few of the guys here don't know the ins and outs of image posting , so it is good that those of us that do, can be given photos and images that we can upload onto here and can be shared by all.
I also know that some amongst us aren't big on even writing stuff on here. To anyone, please feel free to post.
I find it relatively easy to post because I guess I can string a sentence together, that may make sense. But the biggest asset is being able to post and mess with images, they are what I think are the most important part of this thread.
OK enough of all that, I will continue with my series of threads from last weekend. I am not sure if I will get them all done today, as this afternoon I am going out to the other Gary's to work on the Austin drag car.

Geoff alka whodaky

 

So on returning it was late afternoon. Tony opened the boot of the roadster to show me the tool box he had painted up to live in the roadster's boot. Of course me being me. I said you know what this needs.
The purple he had painted the tool box was, I thought an unusal choice; but it definitely works with what I did. Maybe Tony had some sought of grand plan. Scary stuff!!!
It was now early evening and Rita called us in for dinner, I think we went in as soon as she called; for a change.
After dinner Tony and I watched a DVD I had brought down with me. It is a music documentary called Antone's Home Of The Blues. It is about Clfford Antone's life and his blues club in Austin Texas. If you are into the Blues it I a must see.

Geoff aka whodaky

PS Tony did the lettering

 

Hey Mitch.
No I am not that cashed up. Was a very interesting property though.
No the roadster is still popping with what is suspected to be a sticking valve.
Geoff aka whodaky

 

I do recall the DLRA informing members about a sign going missing mad and I do not know what is there now given it is so long since my last trip to the salt.

 

Sunday morning I had my usual walk on the beach. It was almost the perfect overcast morning. It was quite mild and condusive to walking ankle deep in the water. When I got up to the big car park, I sat and watched the surfers for a while. I have never surfed, but I could sit and watch the guys catching waves all day. There was one guy on a long board that was using the full length of that board. To watch him riding a wave on the very forward tip of his board was amazing.
On returning to the house Rita and Tony were now up and we all had breakfast. After breakfast Tony and I checked out the HAMB. Late in the morning Tony and I headed out into the garage.
I would start to markout and make filler pieces to realign the drip rail on the 'B' pillar just behind the left door.







All the while Tony was working on the grille shell.

Geoff aka whodaky

 

So I make the filler piece to go into the area I had just prepared. We get the MIG out and are ready to go, but we are out of gas. Damn, not good on a Sunday morning.
Tony gets on the phone and sends an SOS to Frank ( it's a good thing he still doesn't live in Altona, we would have had to wait a little while longer ). A while later Frank arrives with his bottle of Argo-shield.
It was a pretty neat delivery vehicle he came in.

Geoff aka whodaky

 

We are good to go, now that we have gas. I crank up the MIG and I get Tony to help me as I tack in the filler piece.

Geoff aka whodaky

 

Next I said to Tony, I will tackle the misalignment of the rear window opening. We decided that to get the most pleasing shape of the lower corners of this opening, we would cut the whole corner out and move it across to align with the upper section of the opening.

Geoff aka whodaky

 

With the pieces we had cut out, we then moved them across to align with the upper sections and then tacked them it. All the while Tony was hammering on the grille shell and coming over to assist me when I needed his help.
With these pieces fitted Frank went home. We said that we would come out later in the afternoon to visit.
Geoff aka whodaky