The Rusty Nuts Garage

A Draggin' Wagon

2012-01-26T23:47:00.000-05:00

Spied this little beauty on that auction site, and I'm still drooling. Damn nice job on this 63 Belvedere wagon. Yeah - I approve! The listing said that the seller wasn't the builder and that it was never raced. With five days left in the auction I was prepared to settle in to see what it would bring when the owner ended the auction early. I'm thinking someone with deep pockets jumped the gun and talked the guy into selling it offline. Lucky bastard. I just hope that whoever got it, appreciates it.

The only flaw that I can see in the car is that it's not mine!

End Of The Line

2012-01-17T14:08:00.000-05:00

Even though it's 1963 you can still see traces of the old Forward Look era in these cars. The wrap in the front glass and the shape of the doors and vent windows are the most telling. Exner's career at Chrysler ended in 1961, but by then he'd already designed the '63 models and thankfully those designs were kept in place.

63 Newport - A Kool Missouri Moredoor

2012-01-10T12:11:00.000-05:00

These 63 Chryslers aren't exactly the kind of car you'll see very often at the local car show or cruise-in, for a variety of reasons that I won't bother to get into here. All I will say is that I like mine and I think the car has a lot of potential as a custom. With that said, when I see one done as nicely as this one, I've got to stand up and take notice!

This particular Newport was from Missouri and for sale back in '09...

Looking Back

2012-01-02T17:14:00.002-05:00

The Shell Factory, early 1960's

Fort Myers, Florida

(postcard from author's personal collection)

Looking Back

2011-12-26T11:19:00.000-05:00

Fort Myers, Florida, 1957

(postcard from author's personal collection)

Looking Back

2011-12-19T10:41:00.003-05:00

Old PEMCO gas station, late 50s post card...

Looking Back

2011-12-12T13:57:00.005-05:00

Royal Palm Motel, Ft. Myers Florida, early 1960s.

Looking Back

2011-12-04T23:49:00.001-05:00

... and not one damned SUV in sight!

Looking Back

2011-11-27T19:48:00.001-05:00

Lorain Road and Denison in Cleveland, Ohio sometime in the early 1950s - and not very far from where my Great Grandparents, John and Sophia had their furrier shop.

Looking Back

2011-11-20T19:47:00.001-05:00

Remember when a trip to McDonalds was a novelty and not a way of life!?!

How To Chop a 1947 Buick Sedanette in Two Minutes

2011-11-14T07:13:00.001-05:00

Hullabaloo 2011

2011-11-07T07:24:00.000-05:00

Finally went through the photos I took and got them posted. Was a great show. Thanks Kirby, already looking forward to 2012!

The Genius That Was Larry Watson

2011-10-16T22:07:00.000-04:00

A Late 40s Drive Around Downtown LA

2011-10-05T20:34:00.000-04:00

A short reel of "process plate" rear-projection footage of downtown Los Angeles, shot sometime around '48 or '49. A very cool look back in time, and a real piece of history that documents an old neighborhood lost years ago to redevelopment.

And keep your eyes open for the vintage hot rods!

Black Betty: Progress Report (tits & bits)

2011-10-02T18:17:00.001-04:00

Removed the rear door window trim and panels. Getting ready to shave the rear handles. Removed headlight trim and chrome trim around grill opening. The screws holding the remaining anodized trim will have to be ground off then I'll decide whether or not i'll re-use it with the new, custom grill. Will be ordering the new starter from Summit by the end of the week.

Some of my recently acquired stash:

four all metal Keystone center caps (very hard to find) for my torque-thrust wheels.

early 60's US made California Customs cast aluminum valve covers.
These should clean up and polish nicely.

Copperhead Road

2011-09-29T20:49:00.001-04:00

If this don't make you wanna take to the road, you must be dead.

Black Betty: Progress Report

2011-09-25T23:27:00.001-04:00

Spent some time in the shop this weekend tinkering with the ol' Newport. Pulled the valve covers and verified all the lifters were working and that nothing was stuck. Gonna need a new starter, old one's junk, cranks too slow and draws far too many amps. Ordered, and received an oil pump priming tool from Summit. Removed all the door and window handles, and got the front door panels off. ~~Plans are to salvage them for now by fashioning new bottoms to replace what's been damaged by moisture~~. Also removed the old heater controls from the dash, plan on blanking them out since I'm removing what's left of the heater ass'y any way.

Those Flashing Red Lights

2011-09-24T00:39:00.001-04:00

Junior Brown:

The Art Of Taping

2011-09-23T21:45:00.000-04:00

Dude has some real talent, the music is cool too. Can't wait to see how the paint turns out, but it's gonna be killer you can rest assured.

Ryan Ford from Fuel Tank TV on Vimeo.

The Purge

2011-09-11T16:48:00.000-04:00

I've gone back and deleted all old posts that related to the Belvedere. They are no more.

Time to move on.

Hullabaloo 2011 (aka The Great Deluge)

2011-09-05T13:57:00.000-04:00

So, um. Yeah. It rained. Of course.

Next year, I bring an ark.

1954 Plymouth Savoy

2011-09-01T23:53:00.000-04:00

Club Coupe. One owner, bought new locally, all original. Coming soon (as soon as I go dig her out).

The keys are still in the ignition (it ran when we parked it!)

And here's what I hope to do to her:

Checking In

2011-08-28T21:07:00.001-04:00

Nothing new to report on. I did get a new mig welder and a tank of gas (argon and carbon dioxide, mixed at 75%/25%) and a set of Oxy/Acetylene tanks and a torch outfit. Now I'm ready to start welding up the old trim holes on the Newport's body.

The street that my garage is on, Dillehay Street is going to be closed next Sunday, the 4th for a car show, hosted by the hot rod garage next door, Kirby's. It's called Hullabaloo, starts around 2pm and goes on 'till midnight. I plan on being there for the duration and will have the doors open (and plenty of cold beer in the fridge).

http://www.dillehaystreet.com/hullabaloo/

Black Betty: Progress Report (now less shiny)

2011-07-24T21:41:00.002-04:00

Belt line and rocker trim is gone. Of course what you can't see are the 96 holes I have to weld up and fill now. But, she's gonna look slick!

Black Betty: Progress Report

2011-07-17T22:19:00.000-04:00

The old vinyl dash pad is history. Check out that nice steel dashboard. Removed the last of the Chrysler badging off the fenders too. Belt line and rocker trim comes off next.

Black Betty: Progress Report

2011-07-10T23:33:00.000-04:00

Donned the trusty respirator today and got the nasty old headliner and insulation ripped down and disposed of. Damn field mice can really make a mess. And it's dangerous, you don't want to breath that stuff let me tell you. Yuck. Dash pad is next up on the "hit list".

Out In The Garage

2011-07-06T00:14:00.000-04:00

Not mine, but a cool video that I thought you'd enjoy.

Out in the Garage from Mitchell loper on Vimeo.

How I Spent My July 4th Holiday

2011-07-05T23:30:00.000-04:00

Finished moving into the new garage Saturday then spent the rest of the weekend organizing. Starting working on the Newport, got the seats and nasty carpeting out and the floorboards cleaned up. The largest rust hole in the floor is about the size of my fist and easily patchable, otherwise they're pretty solid, just a lot of surface rust.

And The Beat Goes On...

2011-06-18T23:53:00.000-04:00

Not much to look at yet, still carting stuff over from my old place, but this is more room than I've ever had. Should be wrapped up with most of it in the next week or so then I start working on getting the place whipped into shape, organized and cleaned up.

A welder and a larger compressor are on the short list too.

Fuzzy photos courtesy of my iPhone... Apple's camera is a real POS, I swear.

New Digs

2011-06-12T22:37:00.000-04:00

Still moving in...

Plenty of room now! Some nifty plans in the works for my new space too.

Mine, All Mine

2011-05-30T18:27:00.000-04:00

Title for the Newport arrived with Friday's mail... she's mine now, it's official.

Found this still stuck to the driver's door, dated January 1967. After four years she barely had 12,000 miles on her. Also found out she was a local car, bought new in Bardstown, KY - and probably never ventured far from home by the looks of things. Forty-two years later her odometer reads a shade over 56,000.

Got the trunk cleaned out Saturday, among other things. Only surface rust here, the trunk floor is nice and solid. And yeah, those are the original trunk cards still intact. The one not visible still has the jack instruction sheet glued to it.

Plotting The Course (cont)

2011-05-15T12:21:00.004-04:00

A couple more tidbits for the Newport in the accompanying photos; my vintage JOMA mirror (found at the 127 Yard Sale last summer for $6 ) along with a pair of old Keystone Torq Thrust lookalikes that I picked up from a HAMBer over at the Jalopy Journal.

More to come.

The Course Has Been Plotted

2011-05-08T23:16:00.001-04:00

Scored a vintage (early 60s) Superior "500" steering wheel. Really cool red metallic vinyl rim, chromed spokes. This is gonna look badass on the Newport. More goodies on the way too.

Lessons Learned

2011-04-18T21:36:00.001-04:00

Yeah, she’s gone.

I struggled to even come up with a title for this post; the story isn’t an easy one to tell… frankly it’s embarrassing… but to make it short, after a couple years of on again, off again work I simply lost all interest in the Belvedere. To make matters worse I came to realize that I didn’t even like this car’s 4 door body style, the high roof line being my main sticking point. It seemed like I had fallen into a trap and had settled for something that wasn’t what I really wanted. Big freakin’ mistake. Then there were the economic considerations, with the extensive sheet metal work needed just to bring her up to my standards, even if she was going to be “just” a driver. Surface rust, patina – I can live with that. Hell, that’s what I want. But big gaping rusty wounds in body panels and key supports? Not for this guy. On top of that was the fact that every single piece of rubber, every window gasket and seal was going to have to be replaced, and the only source was growing more expensive and unreliable by the month. In the end I decided it simply wasn’t worth my time or money - for a car I didn’t want. Live and learn I guess, but it was an expensive lesson.

Over the winter I struggled with the matter of how I was going to get rid of her (and not lose ALL my money) while trying to decide on what I would get to replace her… a decision that was ultimately made easier by a local ad for a 1963 Newport that I stumbled across on Craigslist one March afternoon. Long story short - some phone calls were made, trips were taken and in the end a deal was struck that got me out of the rusty old Plymouth and put a solid old Chrysler in my garage.

A Peek Inside The Garage

2011-04-10T16:05:00.000-04:00

So, um... yeah. The Belvedere is gone.

Details soon.

Hot Rodding Terminology 101

2011-04-08T10:53:00.002-04:00

A fairly comprehensive glossary of hot rod terms:

Antique: 25 years old or older, in stock, unmodified, or restored to original condition.

Appletons: Fender-mounted spotlights, named for the manufacturer.

Baby Moons: Small chromed hubcaps that only cover the center of the wheel.

Balanced: Normally used to define balancing the rotating assembly (ie: crankshaft, connecting rods, pistons, wrist pins, bearings), but can also mean matching the weights of the pistons and rods.

Beltline: The line running around a car's body formed by the bottom edges of the side windows.

Binders: Brakes.

Blower: A belt driven air-to-fuel mixture compressor which increases atmospheric pressure in the engine, resulting in added horsepower.

Blown Gasser: A supercharged, gas burning engine.

Blueprinted: Ensuring the dimensions of the parts in the engine are more accurate and, therefore, closer to the original engine blueprint values. Can also mean the documented assembly tolerances of high precision engines (e.g. race engines).

Bullets: Chromed, bullet-shaped extensions used on bumpers, grilles, and wheels.

Business Coupe: A simple two-door coupe, without a rumble seat, built between the mid to late thirties through the fifties. Also referred to as a Businessman's Coupe.

Carson Top: A solid, removable roof that is covered with a soft material.

Channeled: Cutting the floor so the body rests around the frame rails rather than sitting on top of the frame. This gives an overall lowered appearance.

Chopped: A hard-top car that has had its roof lowered.

Classic: A fine or unusual motorcar built between 1925 and 1948. A classic is distinguished by its fine design, high engineering standards, and superior workmanship. Only certain important automotive brands are considered "true" classics.

Convertible: An open-top car with a folding roof and side windows.

Crate Engine: Factory built, ready to run engine. Can also mean a high performance, fully pre-assembled engine that is ready to be installed and run.

Custom: A car that is modified in visual appearance through imaginative and technical methods to create a distinctive vehicle.

Dago: A dropped front-end.

Decked: Chrome details and trim removed from the trunk and smoothed over.

Deuce: 1932 Ford.

Dropped: A significantly lowered vehicle.

Dual Quad: Two four barrel carburetors.

Duval Windshield: A split V-shaped raked chrome-plated windshield designed by George DuVall.

Dutchman Panel: The metal body piece between the rear window and the trunk.

Exotic: A high-priced, two passenger roadster, coupe, or convertible, usually from Europe. A few exceptions exist such as the Dodge Viper or the original Shelby Cobra.

Fade-Aways: Fenders that taper back into the body.

Fat Fendered: Fords built between 1935 and 1948 that were wide and rounded in appearance.

Fender Skirts: Body panels that cover the rear wheel wells.

Filled Roof: One that has a welded steel panel instead of the original wood-and-fabric insert.

Flamethrowers: Igniting unburnt exhaust and shooting flames out the tailpipes.

Flathead: An L-head or side-valve engine. The most popular flathead engine was built by Ford between 1932 and 1953.

Fordor: A four-door Ford sedan.

Frame-off Restoration: A restoration project in which the entire vehicle is completely disassembled with all parts cleaned or replaced as necessary, so that the restored car meets the original factory specifications as closely as possible.

Frame-Up Restoration: Not as detailed as a frame-off, but involves restoring the paint, chrome, interior, and mechanicals to original specifications without complete disassembly of the car.

Frenched: Recessed head or tail lights that are smoothed into the body panels.

Front Clip: Either the front end sheet metal or the section of frame in front of the firewall.

Glass-packs: Loud, aftermarket mufflers.

Goat: Pontiac GTO.

Headers: Fine-tuned exhaust manifold that is more efficient than stock. Usually chromed or coated.

Hemi: An engine that has hemispherical combustion chambers in its cylinder head. Popularized by Chrysler, starting around 1951.

Highboy: Customized Model A Ford that sits at stock height. Can also refer to a 50's era car with a modified, high leaf spring front suspension to account for the height difference of large diameter rear tires.

Hot Rod: Traditionally, an older vehicle with "low-buck" performance modifications.

Kit Car: A reproduction of an existing automotive design, sold in various stages of production to allow for completion and customization by the builder.

Lakepipes: Side-exit exhaust pipes located under the rocker panels. Also called Lakers.

Land Yacht: Large, luxury car, usually referring to the chromed, finned, oversized vehicles of the late fifties to early sixties.

Leadsled: A lowered, late-forties car with molded body seams, traditionally done with lead.

Lowboy: Customized Model A Ford that has been channeled.

Lowered: A vehicle that sits lower than stock height through suspension or frame modifications.

Lowrider: A vehicle that has been lowered by a hydraulic suspension system that can bring the ride height up in order to drive it.

Louvers: Vents or slots punched in body panels. The most commonly louvered body panel is the hood, done to increase ventilation.

Matching Numbers: A restored or original vehicle in which all serial numbers (VIN, engine, body, transmission, rear end) can be researched and identified as being 100% correct for that specific vehicle.

Molded: Body seams that have been filled in or otherwise smoothed out.

Moons: Full wheel covers that are chrome and convex-shaped.

Muscle Car: A North American intermediate or mid-sized car produced between 1964 and 1972 (with a few exceptions) with a large displacement V8 engine.

Nerf Bar: Tubular bumper.

NOS:New Old Stock. Parts purchased from the manufacturer that were made at the time of the original vehicle but never sold. Also an abbreviation for Nitrous Oxide System.

Nosed: Chrome details and trim removed from the hood and smoothed over.

OEM: Acronym for Original Equipment Manufacturer.

Original: Contains only parts originally installed on the car or NOS parts from the manufacturer with no substitute or after-market parts.

Pancaked: Hood modified to a lower profile.

Peaked: A molded accent seam on a hood.

Pinched: To narrow the front frame to match the grill shell.

Pink Slip: Before the days of automobile titles, the portion of a California car registration that conveyed ownership was colored pink. Hence the brag in the Beach Boys' "Little Deuce Coupe" about "I got the pink slip, daddy!"

Piped: Narrow, padded pleats used to trim the interior.

Post: The pillar located between the front and rear doors of a four-door sedan.

Pro-Street: A vehicle features large rear wheels and tires tucked deeply into the rear fender area.

Project Car: One that is in restorable condition. Also, any vehicle you wrench on.

Raked: The front end has been lowered more than the back. Can also refer to a slanted windshield.

Replicar: A completed reproduction of an existing automotive design, usually sold only as a turn-key, or 100% complete, car.

Resto Mod: An original looking car with a modified chassis or powerplant.

Roadster: A convertible without side windows.

Roll Pan: Smoothed out panel that replaces the bumper and rolls back under the vehicle.

Rolled: Bumper or gas tank removed and replaced with custom panel that "rolls" under.

Rolled & Pleated: Deluxe interior sewn with padded pleats.

Rumble Seat: An open, fold up rear seat located where the trunk would be.

Running Board: The metal strip running between the fenders and below the doors of early autos and trucks used as a step or to wipe one's feet before entering the vehicle.

Sectioned: Removing a horizontal section of bodywork to lower the overall height of the body.

Sedan Delivery: A two-door station wagon with solid body panels instead of windows on the sides at the back of the car.

Shaved: Door handles and body trim that have been removed and smoothed over.

Sidemount: A spare tire, recessed into the front fender.

Six-Pack: Three two-barrel carburetors. See also Triple Deuce.

Slammed: A significantly lowered vehicle - dropped as low as possible and still drivable.

Sleeper: A vehicle that doesn't look as fast as it is.

Split Window: Usually referring to the rear window - one that has two planes of glass with bodywork in between. Example: the 1963 Corvette.

Street Machine: A street-legal highly modified car or truck built in 1949 or later.

Street Rod: A street-legal highly modified car or truck built in 1948 or earlier.

Suicide Door: A door that hinges at the rear.

Supercharger: A crank driven air-to-fuel mixture compressor which increases atmospheric pressure in the engine, resulting in added horsepower.

T-Bucket: Fenderless, topless, highly-modified, Ford Model T. Most T-Buckets on the road today are kit cars or replicars.

Trailer Queen: A sometimes derogatory term referring to a car that is shown frequently yet rarely driven due to being pulled on a trailer.

Triple Deuce: Three two-barrel carburetors.

Tri-Power: An engine with three two barrel carburetors.

Tubbed: Having the rear frame and body modified to allow for extra-wide wheels and tires that do not protrude past the fenders.

Tudor: A two-door Ford sedan.

Tunneled: The same as frenched, only deeper.

Turn-Key Engine: Factory built, ready to run engine. Can also mean a high performance, fully pre-assembled engine that is ready to be installed and run. See Crate Engine.

VIN: Vehicle Identification Number. The vehicle serial number that is stamped onto the vehicle, usually under the windshield post, the driver's door post, or on the firewall.

Vintage:A vehicle built between 1915 and 1963 in stock or unmodified condition.

Wheelie Bars: Rods that extend from the back of a car and are connected to wheels that help keep the car from flipping backwards during sudden acceleration.

Woody: A vehicle that incorporates natural finished wood for structure of exposed body panels

Zoomies:Short, straight pipe exhaust headers that do not merge into a collector.

Zombie: A vintage car that is more or less complete and original, found and rescued from a wrecking yard, and requiring little work to bring back to life.

Essential Shop Tools

2011-04-05T20:34:00.003-04:00

The definitive list!

DRILL PRESS: a tall upright machine useful for suddenly snatching flat metal bar stock out of your hands so that it smacks you in the chest and flings your beer across the room, denting the freshly-painted project which you had carefully set in the corner where nothing could get to it.

WIRE WHEEL: cleans paint off bolts and then throws them somewhere under the workbench with the speed of light . Also removes fingerprints and hard-earned calluses from fingers in about the time it takes you to say, 'Oh shit!'

SKIL SAW: a portable cutting tool used to make studs too short.

PLIERS: used to round off bolt heads. Sometimes used in the creation of blood-blisters.

BELT SANDER: an electric sanding tool commonly used to convert minor touch-up jobs into major refinishing jobs.

HACKSAW: one of a family of cutting tools built on the Ouija board principle... It transforms human energy into a crooked, unpredictable motion, and the more you attempt to influence its course, the more dismal your future becomes.

VISE-GRIPS: generally used after pliers to completely round off bolt heads. If nothing else is available, they can also be used to transfer intense welding heat to the palm of your hand.

OXYACETYLENE TORCH: used almost entirely for lighting various flammable objects in your shop on fire. Also handy for igniting the grease inside the wheel hub out of which you want to remove a bearing race.

TABLE SAW: a large stationary power tool commonly used to launch wood projectiles for testing wall integrity.

HYDRAULIC FLOOR JACK: used for lowering an automobile to the ground after you have installed your new brake shoes , trapping the jack handle firmly under the bumper.

BAND SAW: a large stationary power saw primarily used by most shops to cut good aluminum sheet into smaller pieces that more easily fit into the trash can after you cut on the inside of the line instead of the outside edge.

TWO-TON ENGINE HOIST: a tool for testing the maximum tensile strength of everything you forgot to disconnect.

PHILLIPS SCREWDRIVER: normally used to stab the vacuum seals under lids or for opening old-style paper-and-tin-foil oil cans and splashing oil on your shirt; but can also be used, as the name implies, to strip out Phillips screw heads.

STRAIGHT SCREWDRIVER: a tool for opening paint cans. Sometimes used to convert common slotted screws into non-removable screws and butchering your palms.

PRY BAR: a tool used to crumple the metal surrounding the clip or bracket you needed to remove in order to replace a 50 cent part.

HOSE CUTTER: a tool used to make hoses too short.

HAMMER: originally employed as a weapon of war, the hammer nowadays is used as a kind of divining rod to locate the most expensive parts adjacent to the object you are trying to hit.

UTILITY KNIFE: used to open and slice through the contents of cardboard cartons delivered to your front door; works particularly well on contents such as seats, vinyl records, liquids in plastic bottles, collector
magazines, refund checks, and rubber or plastic parts. Especially useful for slicing hands and work clothes, but only while wearing them.

MIG WELDER: easily transforms small pinholes in sheetmetal into larger gaping holes that require a patch then be welded in. Of course this then leads to use number two: Very effective in warping sheetmetal into wavy rippled surfaces that require hammering and body fill

SON-OF-A-BITCH TOOL: (a personal favorite!) Any handy tool that you grab and throw across the garage while yelling 'SON-OF-A-BITCH!' at the top of your lungs. It is also, most often, the next tool you will need.

Caption This Photo

2011-04-04T22:26:00.001-04:00

"I don't care how rough your day was Dick, we're not going anywhere until you hand over that paycheck".

Winds Of Change

2011-04-04T07:32:00.001-04:00

Details soon...

Looking Back

2011-03-27T15:29:00.004-04:00

Starke, Florida, 1961

(postcard from author's personal collection)

Whoa, Black Betty

2011-03-18T22:46:00.003-04:00

Bam-A-Lam

1963 Chrysler Newport, 383 2bbl / TorqueFlite, 99.9% original, black w/red interior, only thing missing is one stock wheel cover (and a busted taillight lens). Really nice shape for her age, minimal rust, rockers, floors and trunkpan solid. Local find.

Black Betty's so fine
Bam-A-Lam
And she's mine all mine

(with apologies to Ram Jam)

Channeling Rodney

2011-03-08T21:59:00.005-05:00

I don't get no respect! No respect at all.

In 1978, when I decided to rattlecan my then newly acquired '63 Belvedere wagon primer black, I was doing it because that was the only thing I could afford to do (the stock government green paint job had to go). Nonetheless, this 18 year old was rather proud of how it turned out (I had been careful and done a thorough job of prepping and masking the car)... and so I continued, blacking out the side rear windows by painting them from the inside. A poor man's panel wagon, it looked fairly cool I must admit.

By this time the wagon sported a clean 318 transplant, a 64 hemi scoop, max wedge wheels, dog dish hub caps, trim rings and an old Ford roof rack. The interior from the front bench back was already a solid deck of plywood since the car had been delivered as a rear seat delete for the Forest Service... so I carpeted it and added a few vintage "accessories". Replace the stock steering wheel with a chrome mini racing wheel and call her done.

In the end I was quite proud of my little wagon (and I had lots of fun with her) but few folks outside our small circle of friends ever gave her a second glance.

Now it's a whole different story. Wagon's are suddenly cool; restorable bodies are in demand, fetching healthy prices. By comparison I paid $75 for mine back in '78, and I know that if I still had her she'd look right at home at any rat rod or vintage car show. Go figure eh? I guess I was just ahead of my time. Hell, I was probably among the first ones to do it.

Now, does anyone have a '63 Plymouth wagon body they want to part with?!?
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The "Bullit" Car Chase (jazz nerd mix)

2011-03-05T19:50:00.015-05:00

Dig this mix of Mahavishnu Orchestra's early-1970s jazz fusion and the all too memorable Bullitt chase (note the vintage cars in the background of this 10 minute long scene - they're especially drool worthy today).

Looking Back

2011-02-27T16:44:00.005-05:00

Griffin, Georgia, 1960

(postcard from author's personal collection)

The Changing Of The Guard

2011-02-21T16:29:00.005-05:00

The new daily driver; a local 2 owner, 128K, fully optioned 2001 Monte Carlo SS. The first Chevy I've owned.

edit 10:39pm: documentation that came with the car included the original window sticker...

Some Old Ford

2011-02-19T11:10:00.005-05:00

"...even though I don't get to play with it much, it's fun to have".

This just reeks of nostalgia, and it's dead on cool. Just watch it.

Some Old Ford from Ben Pender-Cudlip on Vimeo.

Forward Look Boneyard

2010-10-18T00:29:00.002-04:00

If you like these cars, this will be hard to watch but even so this is probably the coolest collection of FL junkyard photos you'd hope to find.

Forward Look Boneyard

Slideshow

2010-03-12T22:14:00.001-05:00

Some photos I've taken over the last couple of years.

The 2010 Detroit Autorama

2010-03-10T16:14:00.003-05:00

857 photos worth of awesome American heavy metal taken at the legendary Cobo Hall. I'm still going through them myself, trying not to drool on my desk too much.

Check it out, at Bang Shift of course.

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The 2010 Grand National Roadster Show

2010-01-30T16:37:00.002-05:00

570 awesome photos taken Thursday and Friday at the 2010 Grand National Roadster Show in Pomona, California, with more to come. The show was enormous this year, with every hall filled at the Los Angeles County Fairgrounds. Some serious, drool worthy eye candy.

Check it out at Bang Shift
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One of None

2010-01-27T00:28:00.007-05:00

Introducing the never built 1971 Plymouth Road Runner Superbird. With a Six Pack Hemi! The car is based on Chrysler internal documents that showed wind-tunnel performance testing of a 3/8-scale model of a 1971 Plymouth B-body aero car. What a truly awesome design!

You know, I've always had a special place in my heart for these B body MoPars, even owned several back when they were affordable but they've never really gotten the respect they deserve (just sit down and watch a B~J auction on Speed some evening and see for yourself).

Anyway, check out the full article for the juicy details (and more photos) at Bang Shift or the builder's web site at 71wingcars.com

San Francisco in 1906

2010-01-21T14:26:00.003-05:00

Probably the coolest YouTube video I've seen yet, a seven minute long cable car ride down San Francisco's Market Street, a mere four days before the big earthquake would strike the city.

Amazing footage, cool music. And cars too! It's one wild ride.

Thanks "JohnR" for the linkage. :)

Wise Garage Advice

2009-11-08T13:24:00.004-05:00

"Don't ever set anything on your car. Then it will be a shelf." -Larry57Savoy, ICC member

Too True!!!

63 Plymouth Wagons

2009-08-24T15:02:00.002-04:00

Some old photos snatched off the internets, the subject of my attention more than obvious here. Man, I'll never get tired of seeing these old 63's.

And check out the old Burger King!

Bulgarian Mopars

2009-07-17T13:33:00.003-04:00

Recently stumbled across this Bulgarian classic Mopar web site. Spied a couple of odd cars that really got my attention.

http://classiccars.zonebg.com/Bulgarien/Konkretno/amgalch.html

Hemi Ford

2009-06-23T20:04:00.006-04:00

Almost makes coming to work worthwhile to see this, though rat rods really aren't my thing. This motor though, it seriously needs to go into a real car. Something with big ole' Virgil Exner fins on it I'm thinking.

He could always replace it with a 225 Slant Six.

No Explanation Necessary

2009-04-22T01:21:00.002-04:00

More 6.1L Hemi pictures

2009-01-09T23:04:00.006-05:00

I have been playing around with Picasa and wanted to share the photo album I made of the the pictures I took of the 6.1L Hemi.

Hemi Rat Rod

2009-01-08T20:01:00.004-05:00

This is one sweet Rat Rod. I found it surfing YouTube videos. When the 6 (yes 6) strombergs come to life, your hair will stand on end. Enjoy!

6.1L Hemi Head

2009-01-07T19:51:00.003-05:00

Pictures of the 6.1L Hemi head. I am in the process of obtaining the pictures of the engine when my grandfather obtained it. Enjoy!

Trailer Queen

2008-11-27T19:10:00.002-05:00

Definition: A classic car that, for some reason, can't or shouldn't be driven but is instead towed to car shows. The most common trailer queen can be driven but the owner is usually so tied up in the status and appearance of his car that he has forgotten the joy of driving it and now hauls it around in a trailer to avoid dirt or possible damage. These cars are often painfully shiny with very expensive, detailed paint jobs and blinding chrome.

I am NOT building one of those.

Found this shirt on eBay and just had to get it...

Yeah, It's got a HEMI!!

2008-08-02T18:50:00.003-04:00

Hello all. I am Steve Griffith, I am excited to be given the chance to share the love I have with MoPar products along with my general excitement with everything automotive related. My family is full of MoPar fanatics, starting with my grandfather, Larry Griffith, when he raced factory sponsored Plymouth's in the early 60's. The picture above is him racing a Demon in ~1971, not the famed "Triple Crown Dart" that I previously stated. More stories and interesting facts to come...

63 Wagons

2008-07-06T13:52:00.007-04:00

For some stupid reason I never thought to take any good pictures of my 63 wagon when she was in her prime. Here are some I've found online. I still like these cars.

edit 7/12/09 - new photos

Sometimes You CAN Go Back

2008-05-11T21:05:00.005-04:00

I can't tell you what triggered it, but last week I started thinking, again, about the fate of those drive-ins in Cleveland that I used to haunt when I was younger. Like the drive-in in Brookpark where I used to spend my Saturdays. Some searching led me to its actual name, the Auto Drive-In. That in turn led to a bit of hunting utilizing Google Maps and Microsoft's Virtual Earth.

This, unfortunately is what I found. :(

A damn sad sight. I don't know what would have been worse. Discovering it in this condition, with our concession stand falling in, or seeing that it had been paved over. Someone has gone through the trouble of planting a sh!tload of trees on the property (is it a nursery now?) so I suppose it's not all bad for the old Auto Drive-In of Brookpark.

The Memphis Drive-In

The other drive-in I used to frequent was the old Memphis Triple as we called it (for its three screens). Built in '54 it was the largest around. Probably the largest in the county. Sadly, it too has met a sad end, in 2006, with the property having been sold to American Greetings, to be turned into a parking lot. The Memphis was Cuyahoga County's last surviving drive-in theatre btw. :(

Which leads me to the point of this post!

Here's a shot of the newly restored marquee of the Twin Hills drive-in theatre in Harrodsburg, Kentucky - which reopened in 2005 after being "dark" for twenty years.

The missus and I spent Saturday evening there, our first trip to the Twin, and only our second visit to a drive-in since we relocated here in 1988. We're planning on returning next Saturday, to take in Speed Racer.

Yeah. It was fun. Just like it used to be.

Do it yourself damnit!

2008-05-06T08:35:00.007-04:00

Anyone with some money can buy a classic car. Hell, they're all over eBay now. Doesn't take any skill to do that.

It does take skill, patience, time and common sense to restore one yourself. Especially one that's been sitting out in a field for a better part of her life. But half the fun is doing it yourself, bringing her back, watching that gradual transformation from heap to honey. Because nothing beats the feeling you'll get when you finally sit behind the wheel, as you and her take that first cruise. When you can say, at last - "Yeah. I did this myself".

Welcome!

2008-02-17T23:20:00.000-05:00

Please excuse the mess while I get my blog set up here. I will be posting regularly as things develop so stay tuned. In the meantime please feel free to post a comment or question, regarding either the site or my graphics.

-Dave