Of Couch Surfing, Joyous Noises and Flinging Sparks. And the last Thumbnail Freakout (for now)-!

                       Test driving Dr. Lockjaw's '32. It's so nice to be the Forrest Gump of hot rodding...

 COUCH SURFER

It was a fairly standard week in Scottyville. Some of it was spent gathering nuts and berries, but every day of it was fun. Thanks to my pals Richard and Sandy (and their beautiful house, stocked with adorably quirky dogs and cats), I got some good solid work done on the latest book project for CarTech. I even prevented a deadline panic for the latest Hot Rod Deluxe story, which made several people happy.

JOYOUS NOISE

But just like you and your Uncle Bob, I live for the weekend. Lately, my Saturdays have been devoted to recording the new Scotty Gosson Combo album at Medford's James Drive Studio, which may sound pretty swanky, but is actually my pal Rob's unfinished (and unheated) garage. We wouldn't have it any other way, as this place is the natural habitat for some good honest garage band thrashing. After a lifetime of writing/performing/recording acoustic music, mere words are inadequate to describe how cathartic it is to finally unleash the electricity within - but I can tell you it's akin to a 220 volt enema, if you can imagine that. This stuff will probably surprise a few people. We have the basic tracks recorded now, and are down to adding some incidentals, then the mixdown begins. I'm very stoked about this.

That's Rob James' garage (er, I mean, James Drive Studio), behind the Bi-Polar Bear (bearing a cache  of musical instruments, haphazardly homespun electronic devices, and half a bag of Purina Bachelor Chow). Rob's place looks like any other garage on this idyllic cul-de-sac - blissfully invisible to the untrained eye.

Inside his lair, we find Mr. Rob hisself, displaying obvious signs of sleep deprivation, over-caffeination, and borderline creative process adrenaline poisoning. This guy has been a Godsend to me, and to many other musical misfits around the valley. Rob "gets it".

Rob even knows what most of those buttons and switches do. Amazing. I thought he was downloading a mix to the computer here, but it turns out he was pricing used ignition coils on eBay. The mix came out pretty good though.

As of today, the Scotty Gosson Combo consists of Rob on skins and Scotty on strings. We're discreetly vetting bass and rhythm guitar players for some future live performances though (Shhh!).

       Don't turn your back on Rob for a second - he'll make you more famous than you care to be.

Ah, back on my trusty Fenton guitar. This shot is my own fault - I left my camera in the booth with Rob, foolishly assuming he was actually working.

FLINGING SPARKS

Sundays are reserved for some quality shop time at Dr. Lockjaw's Custom Metal facility, deep in the wilderness of Oregon's Applegate valley. It's a therapeutic forty minute drive from here, and I always arrive at the shop (and later, back home) with my battery recharged. Doc and I are both building Model A's as spare time projects - he, a J-2 Olds-powered coupe, and I, a 2.3 liter Ford-powered roadster thingy (it's "unusual" and "interesting", like most cars I've built for myself). The Bi-Polar Bear sucks gas so hard, I haven't been able to afford the trip for a couple of weeks, so it hit the spot extra solid this week. Beautiful weather didn't hurt, either. After an initial mock-up of my "Sport Touring", we now have the basic parameters sketched out, so we started building my frame rails this week. If I can get out there over the remaining winter Sundays, I should have a rolling chassis in time for T-shirt weather. This project may end up in a book, so I'm not going into much detail here.

Sneaking a peek out of the shop door, at Doc's house. In true  hardcore fabricator fashion, he built it (and the shop) himself, from scratch. Both are totally badass!

Doc's A-Bone chassis is looking good. His up-side-down rails are actually the same Model A pieces I originally planned for mine, 15 years ago. But Doc actually made them nice. Very nice! As always, Doc's car will be deemed a fully realized masterpiece, while mine will be considered more "folk art". We're both okay with those titles.

On my last visit, I delivered these 2" X 3" rectangular tubes and the little 1 1/4" round tubes, and left them on a frame jig, gathering shop dust. These will be the foundation of my new car. SFI-spec (blown Big Block Chevy) Willys coupe in background is a customer car.

After some last second head scratching, slicing, dicing, and inner boxing, Doc waves his magic welding tip over the tubing, and presto! Instant frame rails for a needle-nose Model A! Next week: Tapering the rails.

 THUMBNAIL FREAKOUT!

Once again, my online research has unearthed another weeks worth of cool imagery, too small to print. So I've decided to share it here, then delete it, saving myself the agony of clawing through mountains of thumbnails (eeew!) while trying to be productive on the clock. Enjoy.

STREETERS:

Okay, streeters on the salt...

Here's your free Wally Parks screen saver.

A reminder from the AHRF that Ed Roth built more than just the Dali-esque Show Rods. Anyone remember Ed's hot rod '55 Chevy with the FE Ford in it?

Nirvana...

(My personal favorites) STREET/STRIPPERS:

When I worked at Mike DeVee's Mopar Resto-Mod shop, this is what we took to lunch every day (it was often the only car on the property without a Hemi). A surly blown smallblock Chevy with a 4-speed kept us engaged on the way to town and back. Mike has since sold it, and I believe this shot was posted online by the new owner, who hasn't changed a thing. I made some minor tweaks to this, and Dr. Lockjaw built the 'cage.

The Manilishi Falcon.

Saluting the El Monte Air Force!

Oh yeah! I'm a lifelong fiftysixer and this is one of my faves.

                          This Bowtie trio pretty much defines the street racer ethos, in my opinion.

Gotta love beaters... 

Speaking of which, Paul Zeilsdorf has the perfect swap meet-mobile!

Model A juxtaposition: Stock and Not.

Orphaned Racers:

Racers:

The Witchcraft streamliner was based on a Strother MacMinn concept. Where is it now?

Tony Nancy at the '70 March Meet. If you dig this stuff, go blow a few hours at the AHRF site, or their Facebook page.

A bunch that just grabbed me:

This series of shots depicting Gasser great Steve Woods test driving a friend's car is from the Fremont Raceway Facebook site. The rearend wasn't quite nailed down...

At Santa Pod, in England.

I heart early A/FXers. Stripped down to expose the very essence of racing.

Some Just Because racer shots:

PHUN PHOTO GRAB BAG:

Obviously, a lot of this stuff is from Facebook. Imagine my surprise when I discovered Hot Rod Deluxe has a Facebook page! I'm always the last to know anything. It's mostly behind-the-scenes stuff, posted by Taylor Le. But Mr. Ed has posted a few juicy tidbits on there, too.

CHOPS!:

The HAMB's Friday Night Art Show never ceases to amaze. Here's some samples from this week's show.

                                                                   ENOUGH ALREADY! 

                                                                    (Until next time...)

I WAS A TEENAGE THUMBNAIL!

Hi Kids! How you doin'? Hey listen, you kids like to have fun, don'tcha? Of course you do. I mean, who doesn't like to have fun, right? Well, this your lucky day! Come on in. Don't be ascared. All the cool kids hang out here...

Hey, remember when I posted all those thumbnails here a few weeks ago? That post garnered a big reaction from you guys. It felt great to clean them out of my computer, and your response hit the spot, too. When my girlfriend Shellski (The Great and Powerful) saw that post, she gently reminded me that I'd also downloaded some thumbs to her computer, during my visits. Shellski thought we all might enjoy that feel-good state again by cleaning my thumbprints off of her hard drive, while freeing up some much needed memory in the process. Genius!

But first, my apologies for the lack of fresh content on here lately. My life is "in a state of transition" at the moment and I've been unable to access the internet. Yes, posting other people's thumbnails is a chickenshit excuse for "fresh content", but it's all I can do today. I have faith that my situation will stabilize soon. Until then, this is just a way to let you know that I'm still around. I hope you'll check in often, as I'm considering using this blog to experiment with a new phase of my writing that others have been encouraging me to pursue - literally taking it to the next level. Stay tuned for that, once I find a place to plug-in my loyal sidekick Voltar, the incorrigible-but-lovable computer-with-an-attitude.

Now then, where were we? Oh yeah - let's party!!! The thumbnails are on the house! I was apparently in a "funny" mood when I downloaded these...

Yeah, I know - there's more to life than just drag cars. That's why I've included these gems for you.

And I couldn't resist a few more from the Steve Scott collection: Steve, tuning his Hilborns on the beach, working as a Petersen Publishing Co. cub reporter at Joe Mondello's Head Service (you're welcome, Oldsmodudes), and taking a short break from transporting Don Garlits around the March Meet, all with his Uncertain-T.

RAIDING THE FILE CABINET

From the Midnight Oil File:

This stuff no longer surprises me, yet never ceases to amaze me. In the course of researching for a recent book project, I stumbled across an iconic car that’s been missing for four decades, along with its builder, who’s been presumed dead during the same period of time.

It was late at night and I was weary. On page 12 of a Google search, a website popped up in his name. I reacted with a sad resignation of the parasites weak and bold enough to live off someone else’s legacy. Depressed, I shut down the computer and went to bed. It was 1:45 AM. At 3:00 AM, I got up and clicked on the website’s “contact” button. I sent a message, inquiring if perhaps they knew of any actual family members of the hot rod hero they were exploiting who might be of help with my research. To my astonishment, I received an instant reply, stating that it was indeed the hero in question, and he was feeling chatty. After a few cautious hours on the phone and a few dozen revealing e-mails, I was 99% convinced it was really him. And I had an ace-in-the-hole deal clincher in the wings: My boss at Hot Rod Deluxe, Dave Wallace, who had once worked with many of the same people where Mr. Hero had made his name. Wallace grilled him over the phone and confirmed he was the real deal. Despite the warnings of some acknowledged experts, I took the leap of faith and dove in. It turns out that this legend and I have enough in common to base a friendship on.

Steve Scott was a fairly typical 1963 hot rod teenager, until he built the Uncertain-T and set the custom car world on its ear. Due to the feverish media crush around the Roth-meets-Dali styled car, Steve soon found himself on the payroll at Petersen Publishing Company – perfectly postured to promote the car to even greater fame. The ensuing ego party was rich and sweet, until it wasn’t anymore – 1967. That’s when Steve Scott vanished from sight, along with the Uncertain T. Rather than relay his twisty story to you here, I’ll refer you to Steve’s Facebook page, where he’s revealing answers to the questions thousands have been asking for decades. Meanwhile, Steve is building a website dedicated to the Uncertain- T, among many other projects (www.SteveScottsUncertainT.com). Yes, he’d be a natural for an SGE Interview, and that may happen, but for today, I sense that he has many other priorities. However, I can say with Certain-T that this needle-in-a-haystack story is the stuff of journalistic dreams and I count myself blessed to have realized yet another one. Again, I’m the luckiest guy in town…

Photos courtesy of Steve Scott

Did you know Steve Scott took all of his own photos (often employing a timer to place himself in the shots)? He is currently searching for many images that mysteriously disappeared from storage at his mother’s home in North Hollywood, California while he was serving his country. Please contact Steve if you come across any of these bootlegs.

I can’t wait to hear the story behind this intriguing image. That’s mid-sixties Steve, leaning on the tire.

Steve tells me he often passed through my area while road-tripping to shows around the country, as this billboard outside of Walla Walla, Washington attests.

Screaming down Famoso Raceway with Don Garlits riding shotgun!

Modern-day Steve, in his secret lair, where he’s finally savoring the success that drove him away so long ago. If only I had a modern-day photo of the Uncertain-T to go with this shot. Hopefully soon…

From behind the Behind the Scenes File:

A recent Behind the Scenes post eluded to a photo shoot with House of Mouse staff pilot Eily Stafford at October’s NHRA Hot Rod Reunion. I was initially disappointed when none of those images appeared in the March 2013 Hot Rod Deluxe event coverage. Then I discovered Paul Sadler’s uber-cool two-page “Invisible Man” photo of Eily in action on pages 10 & 11. Wow! Now I get it. And now I can share a tease of said photo shoot with you. I have the goods for a decent feature story on Eily and the Strange Brew crew, if desired (Editors, I know you guys are reading this).

This pose was Eily’s idea and I made no attempt to stop her. This could almost be an HRD cover shot. Maybe some day.

                              This has been posted here before, but I couldn’t resist an encore.

                                                  Eily warming up in the bull pin.

With the official House of Mouse back-up girl. It worked – Eily’s opponent was distracted to the point of parts breakage.

                          About one second before Paul Sadler snagged the Invisible Man shot.

                                                      After the run, towing back to…

                                                                     …Pit, sweet pit.

The end. This grease monkey mockup was installed many years ago. Eily updated it to suit the car’s new estrogen infusion.

Also in HRD’s coverage was a mention of meeting Richard Harmon. He’s still wheeling the Deuce roadster he built 60+ years ago. Not mentioned in the caption: As I interviewed Richard in the swap meet area, he reached into a vendor’s bin and pulled out the Oct. ’59 issue of Hot Rod Magazine featuring his car! Yet again, amazing, but not necessarily surprising.

Rare sighting of Mr. Richard Harmon out of his car, yet still in his natural habitat.

I just love this stuff…

 From the Going Nowhere Fast File (of which this is the World Premeir):

A special shout-out to my pals who are enjoying the Grand National Roadster Show without me this year. Finances dictated my absence. You guys will have to have my share of the fun. I’ve spotted several of you in online photos of the event and it appears that you’re doing just fine without me – the guy known for his disdain for car shows, until he walks into one. By the way, Steve Scott wishes he were there too and sends his regards.

               Rik Hoving reuniting Jack Stewart with the '41 Ford custom he built in 1947, at the GNRS! Rik wrote a book about the car's adventures ("The Bob Stewart 1941 Ford"), which I contributed to in a tiny way. Wish I were there for this once-in-a-lifetime moment.

MILESTONES

   

                The big news has me all sideways. Almost as sideways as my stoopid compooter.

We’re celebrating a couple of little milestones here at SGE World Headquarters this week. I just got word that my Rat Rods book (written for Cartech Inc.) is going into its second printing. This is a first for me and quite a surprise. But the rat rods’ popularity (driven by controversy and affordability) is for real. If you haven’t read the book, here’s Tim Bernsau’s Foreword, to give you an idea of how the subject was approached. Love ‘em or hate ‘em, rat rods have earned their declaration as The People’s Hot Rods – a milestone in itself that we can all learn from.

                                    RAT IS IN THE EYE OF THE BEHOLDER

A number of years ago, somebody (nobody knows who) coined a term for stripped down, hopped up traditional American iron – homebuilt and homely cars, rough but tough, built with more attention to performance than to style or creature comforts. The term used to describe them was reviled by many of the guys who built and drove those cars, but it caught on fast and never went away. The term is ‘hot rod’.

An editorial in a 1947 issue of the SCTA Racing News insisted, “We’re not hot rods” and discouraged the use of the ignoble term. A few months later, Racing News editor Wally Parks helped establish a new magazine actually called Hot Rod.  A few years after that, Parks founded the National Hot Rod Association. Today, many enthusiasts insist on being called hot rodders and have directed their scorn toward a newer term. That term is ‘rat rod’.

What is a rat rod, anyway? I get different answers from everybody I ask, but most of the answers run along the lines of, “I know one when I see one”. A poorly built, rust devoured hulk with a 4” windshield, no top, no floor, no paint and an overturned wire milk crate for a seat seems to fit most people’s definition of a rat rod, but I’ve heard the term used to describe well built, traditionally styled cars, too. One knowledgeable friend of mine applied the term to the Eastwood & Barakat ’32 sedan – the homebuilt-in-a-hurry budget bomber from 1982, honored a few years ago as one of the “75 Most Significant ’32 Fords of All Time”. A prominent magazine used the phrase “rat rod proportions” when describing an immaculate, six-years-in-the-making Model A roadster pickup that was an America’s Most Beautiful Roadster contender in 2009. Is there anything “rat” about either of these cars? The answer is no... or yes. It depends on who you ask.

Some rodders hate the term. Tell a guy who worked hard to replicate the authentic look of a pre-WWII dry lakes racer that he drives a rat rod and you might get a finger in your chest and an ear full of choice words to tell you, “We’re not rat rods”. Other rodders embrace the rat rod label, even promoting it with rodent themed graphics and accessories, not to mention mechanical and style modifications made in an effort to out-rat the next guy.

Like ‘em or not, rat rods caught on fast and show no sign of disappearing – which raises some questions. If the goal is to look ratty, is there such a thing as a well-done rat rod? As the aftermarket embraces them, could we see a rat rod built entirely from aftermarket parts? Will a rat rod ever win America’s Most Beautiful Roadster?  We’ll find out, I guess. For now, I’m going back to my original question: What is a rat rod, anyway? I’m looking forward to learning how Scotty Gosson answers that one.

- Tim Bernsau

Tim's Foreword is followed by my Introduction in the book, where I answered his questions as best I could. Alas, that file was sacrificed to the computer gods. You'll have to read the book to learn how that played out.

In other news, I’ve just returned from a week on the road, shooting tech stories for Hot Rod Deluxe. While I can’t reveal the subjects yet, I can share some funky snapshots of the adventure with you. Can you guess where these pix were snapped? While you’re snooping, find Waldo…

Behind-the-scenes peek at my portable McGeyver photo studio in action. We do what we gotta do...

With photos in the bag, I headed back home in the Bi-Polar Bear wagon. Road conditions were just interesting enough to keep me awake at the wheel. Love going, love getting back. Win/win.

Oh yeah, I said ‘Milestones’, as in plural, didn’t I? The other one is recording my first solo album since 1991. We’re only about halfway into recording the tracks in a buddy’s garage right now, but it’s going well. Once we mix the songs down, I might post a teaser on here (if I can figure out how – I’m digitally challenged). This music and the way it’s marketed might surprise you.

We're recording in my pal Rob's garage. There's no heat in there and it's been unusually cold lately. Only the music protects us from frostbite.