Hot Rodding is Dead!

An excellent commentary and some parallels to our Porsche world:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WXU3N9wT3u0

.

Very true Curt.

I can't wait until that door opens with the finished product, our final visions, are all completed...(wait, do we ever really compete them?).

The end credits claim all B&W footage was shot in 2005. If so, the filmmaker did a good job in making recent events seem like archival footage.

Sherwood

There's a group of old school hot rodders who disdain some of the new 'hot rod' stuff. Some of their get togethers are simply called 'Billetless', which says it all.

Nice discovery, Curt.

Street rods have a Chevy up front and a can of wax in the rear. Hot Rods have a flathead up front and a set of tools in the rear. Or, something like that.

I'm Old School

Jim

Oh, one more thing...I like the subject of Hot Rods; the genisis of the American automotive performance phenomenon, and there's lots of crossover to Porschedom:

Gary Emory's dad, Neil Emory, was an icon of California customization in the early days. That's where Gary cut his teeth and translated the vision into Porsches.

Alex F., of Paul Russell & Co. restored a Speedster and then drove it accross the continent for the 50th bash. He's now building a beautifully chopped '32 5-window with early Hemi power and Hilborn F.I.

The guy I bought my SWB from, has a flathead powered '29 Track Roadster which appeared in the 2nd National Roadster Show. Sympathetically restored by Gary Emory, it has a steering column drop from a 356 - very cool.

A pal from L.A. who has an early 911 Rally car & Carrera Speeedster owns a stash of early Hot Rod speed parts that could make a fellow hyperventilate.

Dan Gurney towed a Hot Rod to S.C.T.A. events before discovering his talents in a Porsche Speedster.

Etc, Etc....

Own at least one Hot Rod in your life.

Jim

Jim, I did have to learn a new steering method when driving your 'Offy' flathead - I think it's called the double cross-over technique ..... or something like like that. :D

If you haven't been to this site already, you'll love it. The HAMB (Hokey Ass Message Board). Lot's of interesting ideas and reading ....

http://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum/

This is a GREAT thread... thanks Curt

... The connections and history run pretty deep

In the early to mid 50's Ferrari and Porsche were having trouble with valve spring breakage.... In comes Luigi Chinetti, (European race winner and New York Ferrari Dealer) hearing about SoCal Hot Rodder Art Sparks of Forged True Pistons winding the STRONGEST hot rod valve springs in the world.... Canentti convinces Enzo to buy some springs (the old man bought only a couple of sets) and of course they didn't fail and Ferrari won... von Hanstein did the same and Porsches won as well... and the rest is history.

Lots of people know the story, it's in the racing lore for all times ...... but ..... How did Sparks know how to make the strongest racing springs in the world ????

I know Tony Hinkkle, an old employee of Art Sparks from the 50's, and the story goes that Art did his homework and went to the library and checked out a translated book by German weapons designer Hugo Schmeisser (P40 machine pistol) and copied some of the German's spring winding and tempering techniques....:)

So it came that an American hot rodder made and sold racing valve springs to the German racing team in the 50's ... that he learned to make from an old German inventor from the 30's ...;)

... and so it goes

Interesting story!

What I like about the hot rod scene is the total creative freedom - there aren't any rules. Many times that results in cars I don't particularly care for - but so be it. Other times, there's cars like this - the Sports Rod. For my tastes, this is one of the coolest hot rods ever. It supposedly was built originally 'back in the day' and has since been restored. I love the windscreens! Reminds me of an old Mercedes GP car.