The Mechanic and The Red Head

From the 60's building drag race engines to restoring a 1932 Ford Coupe Hot Rod, may I present someone who is not only an amazing auto mechanic but is also a wonderful Father.

This man has been a wealth of mechanical information when it comes to cars. He is one of those rare mechanics that not only knows how to fix the problem you brought to him he honestly will. He will tell you what is wrong and is always be fair when it came to the price of the fix. My Dad is an amazing mechanic because he is honest. This is a valuable trait in a mechanic.

I would also like you to meet his pride and joy - The Red Head.

Classic Hot Rod Roadster

Restoring this classic hot rod roadster, a 1932 Ford Five Window Coupe took my Father 18 years of labor and tedious searching over the southwest for parts. He didn't have the advantage of Ebay Motors back then and had to go to bone yards (car junk yards). Some of the frame pieces and engine parts had to be tooled by hand and it is a grand result!

This roadster has an all steel body on it and that is something my Dad is very proud of. This classic Hot Rod is truly a work of art.

My Mother calls it the *Other Woman* or affectionately *The Red-Head*. She loves to cruise around town in it and enters it in car shows around our area.

It is NOT for sale. Not even for a million bucks. It has become (and car enthusiasts know this) a part of the family.

Watching it come together has been like watching a child grow up. It has been a fixture in our family garage as long as I can remember. The efforts my Father put into this car were incredible. If he could not find a part for it he would make it or seek out an expert and order this special modification.

It helps to have a general idea of what to look for when you are restoring a classic car like this 32 Ford Coupe. There are many books on the market that can give you some clues for the parts to gather and where you might have to get machine work done. It is necessary to treat the frame and body parts to a sand blasting so they can be taken down to the bare metal. This removes the corrosion and rust so they can be primed and painted or properly sealed later.

A manual on a car like this can give you a check list of parts to collect and even offer full schematics on where to assemble chassis parts, how to attach the body to the frame, and so on. They can even suggest what alternative pieces to use if there will be difficulty finding replacements.

Study the advice of the experts. The application of their helpful experience can save you a lot of headaches and a long wait. You want to make sure that all of the pieces are lined up exactly. There is nothing like getting what you think is the whole door or rear end assembly only to find out you needed a special bolt or frame piece to make it work or set it correctly.

If you are going to start from scratch you will need to know everything from what chassis and frame to use to restoring the wiring harness and dashboard to having the upholstery recovered. There is a lot of work that goes into one of these projects. You need to know it all from the roof to tires, bumper to bumper.

Often they can take about 5 to 10 years to complete.

Meet *The Dad*

This is a recent picture of The Dad. He announces himself as *The Dad* when he calls sometimes. It's always neat to talk to him. Going to car shows with him is a treat. We love wandering the rows of shiny cars.

He is such a wealth of knowledge about automobiles that he can tell you the difference between a '32 and a '33 Ford just by looking at the grill. There were so many things he pointed out when we would browse through these shows.

I wish I had taken better notes.

Enjoying conversations with him will always lead to a crazy garage story. There are the times he would tell you about the pranks that would happen in the shop with other mechanics or just dumb stuff that took place when he was a young adult.

In one of his stories he shared about a car he owned that had the gas cap under one of the taillights. He said he went to a full service filling station and the attendant was having fits trying to figure out where the nozzle was supposed to go. Dad let him circle around the car for a few minutes then popped the button and opened it for him. Even though he's generally a very polite individual likes to get in his giggles.

He likes to "heckle" new mechanics at the shop by asking them to get him a left handed screwdriver or wrenches or some other imaginary tool.

To truly fit the motif for this classic car, we need to dress the part. The clothing? Rock-A-Billy Style! That look is Greaser Guys and Poodle Skirt Gals doing what teenagers love to do best in the 50's - Cruisin' & Twistin'! This was a very fun era in time and it is celebrated today in the Rock-A-Billy culture. Leather Jackets & Blue Jeans for the guys, poodle skirts or Capri pants and little white blouses for the girls. Hit the sock hop in your Rock-A-Billy Duds and Twist the night away! The classic leather jacket and roll cuff blue jeans are the popular mark of a greaser. Slide some gel through your comb and slick back your hair for the full effect.

American Graffiti starred a hot rod like this 1932 Ford in the film. It is a similar car to our Red Head. The engine sound chatters really pretty and it is such a fun ride. If you take the time to watch this video you will catch an incredible burn out at the end. This is one of the reasons these Hot Rods are so much fun. They sound nasty, they look great, and they will rattle your cage if they are built right!

Ahhhh, the sound of hot rods and smell of burning rubber!

This old Ford has made its mark as one of the treasured cars of the restoration mechanics. In the process of building one of these hot rods every detail must be as close to original as possible. These cars are an investment of time and money. They need to be done right. When completed these are a mechanical masterpiece and often they are entered in shows and featured in movies as props.

1986 350 Chevrolet Engine

This classic hot rod's engine is a 1986 350 Chevrolet. It has aluminum heads and Competition cam shaft. Under the hood (if it had one) is an Edelbrock Manifold and a Holly Carburetor. This car rattles like a fine music piece!

Vah-rooooOOOOOM!!! Tat tat tat tat tat...

It gets attention everywhere it goes and we have a lot of fun riding around in it. One of the family's favorite activities is pulling into a burger joint and having lunch. Like moths to a flame we are bombarded with questions and ooh's and ahh's about this mechanical masterpiece .

Hot Rod Momma

These are my parents in a photograph from 1966. They are still together today and are to be celebrating 50+ years of marriage. Even though my Dad hasn't been able to get around as well as he used to he is still a great resource for mechanical knowledge and we frequently ask him questions. He is always ready to answer them.

He is truly an amazing mechanic and a wonderful Father!

The Red-Head is our first favorite but there are two more in the shop. There is a 1936 Ford Sedan in the works and a 1957 Chevy Mom bought to use as a tow vehicle.

What are your favorite cars?