What was the Speed Shop that said it all for you?

Hawk Engine and Machine, north royalton ohio.---440-582-0900 .

 

Lowes Speed Shop, West Terre Haute, In.
Dick Lowe now deceased kept us all going
in the early days from Dragsters to Hot Rods.
"IF YOU WANT IT TO GO TAKE IT TO LOWE"

 

Dougs Racing Stables, Puyallup Wa, along the Puyallup river, before they moved to Tacoma.

 

Sorry for the big picture but there are some cool cars to look at on the cover. I never shopped there but always spent time at the DC armory show at their booth ogling the cool stuff where I got this catalog.

G&M automotive became a big deal east coast distributor after starting out in an old gas station. They'd sell you the part in the office and install it in the bays. They built a nice store in Hyattsville called Automotive Specialties and then built a huge warehouse distributing to lots of shops on the east coast.

 

Kowalski Speed Shop, 422 Exeter Pa. Big Ed was the man.........

 

Sorry for the big picture but there are some cool cars to look at on the cover. I never shopped there but always spent time at the DC armory show at their booth ogling the cool stuff where I got this catalog.

G&M automotive became a big deal east coast distributor after starting out in an old gas station. They'd sell you the part in the office and install it in the bays. They built a nice store in Hyattsville called Automotive Specialties and then built a huge warehouse distributing to lots of shops on the east coast.[/QUOTE]

Thanks Tommy, that catalog was just a little before my time but I recognize the "Automation" coupe and the Blood and Cavill altered. Ed Sloper always had a great display at the RamRods show. I helped him with setting up a few times. I'd bet he was one of the pioneers of the mail-order parts business. I knew of Gaines and Matino but never got over there. Man, those days were the best...

 

Right after it burned down we moved to Cerritos and I started going to the Service Center in Anaheim.....Don't know about the Bellflower store.....Those boats look wild...They make it sound totally safe!

 

Wanda, Thanks for posting the picture of the S&S Parts Co. in post # 135....The man you can see in the doorway is Chuck Stolze, to his left is yours truly, to my left is Dave Buschow now deceased, and behind the counter is Dave Busnell, long time counterman there and a great guy.....Fred

 

There were two for me. When I came back from Viet Nam I was in Santa Ana, Ca. Santa Ana Speed Center was pretty cool, run by Ed Roth and Rudy Martinez (Rudy was an L.A. Roadster member then....) I was a drag racer on weekends and a helicopter mech/crew chief during the day. Around the corner was Bob's Automotive run by Bob Warner. He had a Clayton Chassis Dyno and helped us Marines as much as he could, He later moved to San Diego and opened muffler shops....Saw him many years later and he was looking good in every respect.
Can't forget Service Center in Santa Ana, Butch (Caps?) opened the shop in late 1969, his wife Bo helped him, He was from the original Shop in Compton. He helped me a ton!

 

Thanks Tommy, that catalog was just a little before my time but I recognize the "Automation" coupe and the Blood and Cavill altered. Ed Sloper always had a great display at the RamRods show. I helped him with setting up a few times. I'd bet he was one of the pioneers of the mail-order parts business. I knew of Gaines and Matino but never got over there. Man, those days were the best...[/QUOTE]


Mike:

If notice on the picture The Automation coupe door is blacked out......... That car was sponsered by Custom Speed .............. the shop owner was Courtney Scott.

Jay

 

Mike:

If notice on the picture The Automation coupe door is blacked out......... That car was sponsered by Custom Speed .............. the shop owner was Courtney Scott.

Jay[/QUOTE]

I did notice that but "assumed" Ed must have had some kind of deal with Jim Davis? That is kinda' odd though. Geez, who knows? lol

 

Spent a ton at King Speed Shop in Lansing IL, VanSenus Auto in IN, ordered my share from Honest Charlie and -not ashamed to admit it- JC Whitney(Warshawski). We often went up to the Windy to walk in to the sales area of JC and if you knew what you were looking at in the catalog (very few brand names were used but you know a Holley 4 bl when you see one), you could get speed equipment pretty cheap. I remember having to bring a guy to watch the car while we were in there, unless you wanted to buy yer own parts back the next day. If only stuff was that cheap again.

 

Island Speed, Staten Island, NY in the 80's. Little shop that catered to a lot of the guys who raced over in Englishtown. Spent a lot of time in there fantasizing about all the parts I couldn't afford.

 

Sioux Falls, South Dakota, Corbett's on 12th street and prairie avenue. it was a 2 stall garage packed full of neat stuff!

 

Yep........... Here is a pic I got from Courtney

 

Are you kidding? Comp Sales still has two locations, one in Houston and one in Pasadena. Still a very big force in the Speed Shop business!

Larry Rowenhorst still owns and operates Santa Ana Speed. His family owns the property there and quite a bit around it. Rudy owns Modern Performance in Orange, CA - a Nova/Chevy II specialty shop that is right in front of my shop. I don't remember Roth working there???
Funny, but I don't remember a Service Center in Santa Ana - where was it?

 

Don,Thats good to know...Is Carl Schulte active or retired?...Comp Sales started by him and Wade Weiner
Carl was a postman and sold from his garage...1960s

 

The E.T. Shop when they were on belmont ave. in Chicago.

The Chevy Shop on cicero ave. also in Chicago.

 

Of course the old MAS in Mn, and a local one "Mr. Speed"

Skip......if you're reading this speak up! lol

 

When I was in High School there was a place in Reedsburg Wisconsin called Street Events. I did leave some drool on the floor of that place!!

 

Salem Speed Shop in Salem Oregon. Been open since 1952 with the same owner. Hot Rod did an article on it a few years ago. My Dad bought parts there in the '50's to build his Willys and I bought parts there from the '70's until we moved in '97. Still had a full old school machine shop and dyno in the back.

 

also used Ben Pilla in south Philly back in the early 70's and Bash Speed Shop in Norteast Philly those were the days didn't have to mail order anything. were great places to hang out and shot the bull . . . .

 

I used to go to the Motor Clinic when I was still in high school to dream about what I would build when I graduated and got some money.A few years later I actually got a job there and stayed for about 8 years. We had a great time setting up the local guys cars on the dyno.Dick had a reputation of being to get any part you wanted no matter how rare.It's been closed for many years now but this post brings back a lot of good memory's.

 

K&G had 2 locations the one on RT-73 just out side Philly closed 10 years ago - Mike there was the best counter guy ever was a world of knowledge

 

Carl Schultea is still active as president.

 

Gene's Speed Shop, Shrewsbury St., Worcester, Mass.

 

I have to mention Douglas Speed and Sport in Silver Spring Md. My old Man-a-Fre was purchased there by the original owner. I bought it used from him.

Speed Unlimited came along later but I believe it is still in business.

 

Junior's Auto Racing, Framingham Massachusetts. I used to ride my bicycle over there before I could drive and watch George Brown and John Searles build killer modified production Vettes and Vega's.

 

dang i gotta try to follow that pic...wow
first it was pat grays speed shop,then changed to ric's speed shop. both of those in huntsville al. but both also paled in comparisom to roccos and cheater in b'ham . man if that place could talk!!!!!