Table of contents for May - June 2024 in Rodding USA

It was perfect weather in Portland, Oregon, for the 68th running of the Portland Roadster Show. The show, one of the country's longestrunning car shows, has been an outstanding event for many years. The inaugural year was 1956. Dee Wescott, the ramrod behind starting the Multnomah Hot Rod Council, Bill Peterson, who ran the show for over twenty years, and his buddy, Bob Knowles, assembled the first Portland Roadster Show. Right out of the gate, that show was exhibited in the Armory in downtown Portland and included forty of the finest rods and customs anywhere. Their legacy truly lives on, and it did not disappoint in 2024. There was something for everyone. From T-Bucket roadsters to way-out street rods, beautiful customs, and rear-engine Mustangs, the quality and comradeship made the…

Not All Woodies Reside in California Orville and Louise Adair purchased a 1940 Ford Coupe that sat for many years at a filling station in their hometown of Tulsa, Oklahoma, in 1970. It was a $300.00 purchase, and it was rough. That was not a stumbling block for Orville since they owned a body shop, and rebuilding the car would be a fun project. He started by building a new chassis and fabricated his own disc brake kit using Volvo S122 brakes along with engine mounts, master cylinder mount, steering gear mount, and more. Then came the bodywork, paint, and interior. The car was running in 1971, and the Adairs drove it to the second NSRA Street Rod Nationals in Memphis with no interior. The only Nats they have missed…

As you walk into the meticulous shop that is home to Dennis Portka, you will know why. A two-time competitor for the prestigious Riddler award in Detroit, he is a master of metal. What you see here in this fantastic 1934 Ford are the results from the first outing in Detroit in 1985. Starting with a “Mint Body” that was already forty years old, he began the frame-up restoration, which would ultimately take nine years over nine thousand hours. That included building the frame from rectangular tubing. He then set up a 1965 Corvette IRS with AFC coil-over shocks and homebuilt control arms. Dennis re-engineered a 1966 Jaguar IFS front suspension to provide just the proper stance. He also re-engineered a supple and controllable ride and proper Ackermann geometry for…

In coverage of last years Spokane Speed and Custom Show, mention was made that in order to top the 2023 show, promotor Brian Anderson would have to pull a big white fluffy rabbit out of a hat. Well, he certainly didn't disappoint in doing so. This year's show saw 420 vehicles of differing categories from the western USA and Canada stuffed into 9 buildings at the show grounds. Friday is usually the slower day, however this year when the doors opened, people just kept coming and coming. It was more like last years Saturday and this years Saturday and Sunday were extremely busy as well. Some of the vehicles attracting people in were the 2024 Great Eight Ridler Contender Cougar Fastback, along with a handful of Westcoast contender cars. Other…

rodding event Chicago World of Wheels Although it was a relatively mild winter, the winters in Mid-America can seem quite long due to the lack of scheduled hot rod events. Of course, you can always put a few miles on your hot rod anytime you want, but it isn't the same when you are not with like-minded individuals. As I was beginning to think rod run season may never get here, Editor Paul Martinez called and asked me, “How far is it to Chicago for you?” Although I had never driven it, I suspected between four and five hours. Then he asked if I could cover the 61st Annual O'Reilly Auto Parts World of Wheels in Chicago over the weekend of March 8-10, 2024. I must admit that I jumped at…

Tires and wheels are an essential part of the hot rod recipe, as your car's appearance, stance, and performance rely heavily on rolling stock selection. Everyone has a vision for their project car, and the preferences vary wildly from early hot rods to contemporary Pro Touring builds, so finding the perfect look for your car can be a challenge. When it comes to performance on the highway, the parameters are a little more black-and-white, given the construction differences between bias ply and radial tires and some of the more modern advances in tire technology. Tires are always a hot topic because opinions differ greatly among hot rodders, but we consulted with Coker Tire to get the facts on the situation and help steer you in the right direction. Coker Tire…

New Zealand may only be a small couple of Islands down in the South Pacific, with a population of just five million people, but when it comes to car enthusiasts, the country punches above its weight. Case in point: when Magoo's Street Rods shop owner Lloyd Wilson put together a run to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the 1933/34 Ford Model 40s on March 8-10, 2024, over 100 cars from all around the country registered for the event. Arguably this made the convention the largest dedicated gathering of 1933/34 Fords anywhere in the world this year. The cross-section of vehicles was amazing and ranged from hi-tech rods, regular hot rods, restored vintage cars, and a couple of genuine “barn finds.” Except for the woodie and panel van, all of the…

Every rod begins with a theme, it might be a traditional hot rod, or you may want it to have the latest amenities with a classic look. From a safety standpoint, one item that is a must are turn signals. The manufacturer has incorporated the signals if you install a late model/ aftermarket column. If you have a stock or basic hot rod column, it probably does not have provisions for the signal switch. You have a couple of options to add signals. There are the manual clamp-on-to-the-column switches that we've all seen at swap meets and through various vendors. The drawback to them is that you have to manually move the lever back to the off position or drive around with your signal flashing until the next time you…

A few months ago, I received a telephone call from subscriber Steven Nagy, Jr. of Toledo, Ohio. He mentioned that he had attended the First Rod and Custom Street Rod Nationals in Peoria in 1970 and had an album of photos he had taken with his Kodak Instamatic camera. He said some of the photos were in color and others in black and white and wondered if I might be interested in using them in Rodding USA. It took all of about two seconds to say yes. A few days later, I received the package in the mail. The 3-1/2” x 3-1/2” prints came neatly packaged in a photo album made specifically for this size of photo. The plastic sleeves are double-sided, and it contain 60 photos. We'll run this…

Unique, incredible, and gorgeous do not come close to describing the results of this homebuilt street rod; Tim Fry of Lodi, California, found this project waiting to be brought back to life while looking at the sale ads on Hemmings Motor News in 1992. The car was discovered in Argentina and brought to the USA by a fellow in New York. A deal was stuck, and the car was on its way to California. Upon arriving from back east, Tim noted that when the car rolled out of the transporter, he saw a lot of rust, weathered paint, and a completely gone soft top. Nonetheless, Tim and his grandson Jack were determined to make this a beauty, and in the process, nicknamed the car “Tina.” While disassembling the body, Tim…

In the last issue of Rodding USA, we gave you a brief glimpse of the Sage Speed and Custom/American Rebel Manufacturing facility at their open house in Phoenix, AZ. We decided to go back to provide our readers with an in-depth look at what is involved in producing these magnificent wheels for your hot rods, street rods, street machines, trucks, and more. In March 2020, after 40-plus years in the wheel business (30 years at Wheel Smith), Chris Sage, his wife Stephanie, daughter Makenna and son Connor decided to venture out and manufacture their own line of custom billet wheels. In June 2022, American Rebel Mfg. was for sale, and Chris decided that the AR line of cast aluminum wheels would be the perfect addition to their billet wheels. Once…

Early March 2024, we were off to Lake Havasu City, Arizona, for the 9th Annual Deuce Show presented by Havasu Deuces. The event is open to custom cars and trucks through 1957, with an emphasis on the 1932 Ford. It's a fantastic event if you enjoy having something different to do daily and in different locations. The official event is three days, but many rodders show up on Wednesday to participate in the 45-mile morning cruise to Parker to enjoy breakfast at the Pirate's Den restaurant. Last year, the breakfast was rained out, but this year saw a record number of cars participating. Thursday's Street Show on McCulloch Boulevard was packed with hundreds of cars and thousands of spectators. The weather was perfect for the noon to 6 pm show.…

Dwayne Murray grew up during the muscle car era, spending time building car models and modifying his bicycles. He drove a modified 1968 Super Sport Camaro to class in high school and loved showing it at local car shows. It should be pretty apparent that the hot-rodding bug bit Dwayne pretty hard. After school, he became a journeyman mechanic. Over the years, he would own a 1969 Camaro, a 1951 Ford F-1, a 1937 Chevrolet Business Coupe, and a 1968 Chevrolet C10. With eight hot rods in the garage (some running, some not), Dwayne and his wife Holly wanted a roadster. Dwayne's requirements were an open-wheel and open-top car, so the iconic 1932 Ford roadster was at the top of his list. Holly's requirements were that it was done and…