Tabla de contenidos para January/February 2020 en Rodding USA

Bernie Couch of Fullerton, California, spotted a 1932 Ford roadster in the used car lot of McCoy & Mills Ford in 1940. The price was $285.00. He was 16 and thanks to his brother cosigning with him, he purchased the Deuce, which included a chopped windshield and top. He was the fourth owner and would keep it for the next 79 years. He drove the ’32 for a couple of years but then decided to enlist in the U.S. Navy during World War II and was assigned to the USS Coral Sea aircraft carrier in the Pacific from 1943-45. Upon his return to Southern California, he retrieved the roadster from his parent’s garage and joined the California Roadsters car club. Soon after, the fenders were removed and many weekends would…

Many of us have used “peep mirrors” on our rods for years, and I think everyone would agree that your visibility is minimal. Hagan Street Rod Necessities line of “Fatties” super view mirrors multiply the view 600%, reduce night glare 80%, absorb vibrations and eliminate blind spots. Hagan offers an excellent selection of mirrors and arms in various configurations but if you already have peep mirrors, they also provide a retrofit for your arms to accept their wide-angle mirror heads. You have a choice of either 3 ½” or 4-inch round heads which are show-polished CNC machined aluminum with smooth action pivots. Now the key to this retrofit is their “Magic Bullet Adapter,” which allows you to bolt the Fatties head to your Peep or any other mirror arm, which…

To celebrate the Golden Anniversary of the Street Rod Nationals, a 30 x 100-foot display highlighting 50 years of the event was put together by StreetScene Editor Tom Vogele and wife Debra, along with many others who donated over 200 items and seven historic cars for the display. The two-year project was well received by those in attendance. Throughout the weekend, attendees strolled the area and watched the 80-minute video comprised of over 1,300 photos from all previous 49 years of the Nationals - a walk down memory lane for many!…

Steve Grubb of West Des Moines, Iowa, has been into custom cars since the age of 16 when he owned a 1950 Ford convertible with a souped-up flathead engine. While out cruising, he met up with John Cowlman and Terry Jennings, who mentioned that they were starting the RPM Car Club and asked him to join. From that meeting came a lifelong friendship with John. While in high school, he and his dad worked a deal, and Steve ended up with a ’57 Chevy which has always been one of his favorite cars. Soon after that life came into play and the cars took a back seat, but not for too long. His stable of cars now includes a Dearborn Deuce ’32 Ford roadster, a Speed 33 roadster, a ’57…

30-INCH ROADSTER COLUMN FLAMING River has made some interesting new improvements to our Nostalgic 30-inch Roadster Columns. With two new variations and matching wheel adapters, your roadster will stand out from the rest of them! These columns are 30-inches in length and manufactured from billet aluminum. The two new columns were bred from our standard 30” Nostalgia Roadster Columns and feature some amazing features. The first variant is our new Tapered Vintage Column and the second is our new Grooved Billet Aluminum Column! Both are 30-inch in length and are a true roadster column and do not come with any wiring, electronics or horn. We have optional wheel adapters for our three-bolt column to a 5/6 bolt steering wheel. Contact us about application specific and universal fit floor mounts along…

Everyone knows that hot rodding is not a poor man’s hobby and that some hot rods are labeled as “budget builds.” The fact is, however, that all hot rods are built within a budget…some of those budgets are more significant than others. Nothing is wrong with that, as guys and gals building hot rods help to keep the economy going. Not everyone fits into that category of being able to throw money in the right direction until you have the hot rod of your dreams. In some situations, being talented can make up for not being wealthy. Vince Baker fits into that category. He grew up in his late dad’s machine shop and spent a lot of time hanging out with St. Louis’ hot rodding elite, learning what looked good…

The Outriders car club is the oldest continuous running club in the U.S.A., which was established in 1932. For the last 38 years, they have held a club picnic which is not open to the public and entry is by “invitation only.” There are 1000 invites with each club member receiving 15 tickets to share with their car friends. The event was held at Oak Canyon Park in Irvine, California on September 15, 2019. Approximately 400 cars were on the field, and there are NO awards given out. 5,000 raffle tickets are sold in two hours at the beginning of the event with numerous prizes, including one cash prize of $3,500. This year’s menu included 54 gallons of beans and 300 pounds of tri-tip, and there were no left-overs at…

Frequently Asked Question “Is This Your ’32?” You might think that I had an interest in classic cars when I was younger, but to be honest, I did not. I remember being no more than 12 years old, my mom and I decided to take my dad to the L.A. Roadster’s Show for Father’s Day. It was extremely humid that day, and the show was HUGE. We had just arrived, and after walking around for a little bit, I distinctly remember asking my parents when we could go home. It’s funny thinking back to that day and fast-forwarding to now, and how much has changed for me. It wasn’t until 2010 when my dad mentioned he wanted to find a used truck to do his errands in. I scoured through…

We all have our stories as to what enticed us into the world of street rods, and for some, it was growing up with them or seeing one at a car show or even seeing a particular yellow Deuce coupe or flamed ’34 Ford coupe in a movie. In 1988, Alan Ouve was having a house built in Hawaii, and he was talking to his plumber, who mentioned that he was going to go to the Street Rod Nationals in Saint Paul. He asked him what the Nationals was all about. After a short discussion about the Nats and street rods, he asked if he could go. Off he went to the Nats with Edward, and he was hooked. The two became friends and have attended events every year since.…

Eric Erdmann of Dripping Springs, Texas, purchased a United Pacific 5-window Deuce body and SoCal frame in November 2018 and is in the process of building the coupe in his home garage. He’s at the halfway point of what is projected to be a 2-year build and it’s looking good. Eric has a ’32 roadster in his garage and sold his Deuce sedan to finance the new coupe build. His deep red roadster is the one that I spotted at Northwest Deuce Days in 2016 and hooked me on the color for the Rodding USA roadster pickup. The roadster was built and painted by Ken Stephens (Issue 42 cover car builder) of Grass Valley, CA. We’ll look forward to a full feature sometime in the near future when this cool…

The entire premise of the street and hot rodding hobby is to individualize your car to your specifications whether it’s the body, power plant or interior. Watson’s StreetWorks has come up with interior switches which can be personalized with custom engraving, which will set your ride apart from the rest. Watson’s offers a variety of original design billet switches as well as illuminated push buttons. The billet switches are machined locally for the highest quality. They then can build you a custom one-off switch panel by laser engraving your stock or custom artwork onto each individual switch. The process is a simple matter of deciding what switches you need, the style and in what order you would like them arranged. The billet styles are all available in brushed, Raven Black,…

Scottsdale’s West World played host to the 23rd Annual Southwest Nationals, and it was a perfect weekend for a car show. Friday’s high temp was 83 degrees, followed by 79 and 85 on Saturday and Sunday. In turn, the spectators turned out in droves to see nearly 4,000 1972 and earlier rods and customs of every make, model, shape and color. As is customary at the last Goodguys show of the year, all major award winners from throughout the year were on display, and the National AutoCross winner was also crowned. The swap meet had a record number of vendors along with a vast array of vehicles in the “Cars 4 Sale Corral.” Malena and I staffed the Rodding USA vendor space, which featured our Project RPU along with our…

A few cars ago, my first car was a ’40 Ford many door. It arrived at my house on the hook from a salvage yard for a hundred bucks. Actually, it was in decent shape and took me through my second year of college. I had a buddy of mine take a photo vertically of me with the ’40, cropping out the back of the car. This was done so that in future times, I would not have to live up to the wisecracks of smart-alec friends. In the trunk, I found photos of a former owner of many years before, kissing his girlfriend in front of a Christmas tree. Around this time, I saw a ’40 coupe body sitting on the ground in the side yard of a local…

The SEMA Show is always huge, but this year’s convention of custom car manufacturers seemed to grow once again. There were times when the aisles were so clogged with attendee’s that you could not see the displays or cars. The industry-only event features every imaginable product to customize your car or truck. We hope you enjoy our brief glimpse of the 2,400 plus vendor displays and custom vehicles housed in the incredible Las Vegas Convention Center. THE DATES FOR THE 2020 SHOW ARE NOVMEBER 3-6.…

I had made plans to attend the California Hot Rod Reunion in Bakersfield, CA, and I was checking the internet to see if there were any other events I could take in during my visit to the U.S. from New Zealand. Quite by chance I happened upon The Bayou Roundup, which was held the weekend before the CHRR. I booked a flight and was able to attend two fantastic events. The Bayou Roundup was held October 18-20 in LaFayette, Louisiana, and is organized by The Kontinentals, an Austin, Texas-based group that also hosts the Lone Star Roundup. The venue was based around an indoor rodeo stadium initially built in the early ’50s with a roof added to it in the early ’60s. This venue was chosen because the stadium was…