My first project car! Thats it on the left with me at the wheel. It's a 1925 Model T Ford. I built it when I was 13 years old. I found the car in a farmers field in Elo, Michigan. It had the up graded Model A Ford radiator and radiator shell on it when I bought it. However, from the dash back, it only had the drive train and a bare frame. The steering wheel was also missing. I paid five dollars for the car. My uncle gave me a steering wheel, along with the reduction gears that mount below it. The wheels and tires you see on it are from a 1928 Model A Ford. My father gave them to me. However, before you buy Model A Ford wheels for your Model T Ford I must warn you that the wheel bolt spacing is not the same. The bolt holes were close enough so I could mount the wheels with a 1/4 inch bolt in each of the five lug bolt holes.
I do not recommend anyone doing this. It is unsafe to say the least. My preflight check always included checking for loose wheel bolts and I drove the Model T very slowly. (Thats what I always told my mother) I built the seat and the box out of lumber we had on the farm. However, I did buy an ammeter for it which brought the total cost of my Model T Ford to $6.50. I sure had a lot of fun driving that Model T Ford around our neighborhood.
I sold the Model T Ford for fourteen dollars and bought a 1930 Buick four door sedan, for thirty dollars, which I drove during my Junior year of High School. The following summer I noticed a 1934 Plymouth coupe, on a farm in Elo, that was not being used. The owner told me that he was going to make a wagon out of it. It took me quite a few visits to convince him that my 1930 Buick four door sedan would make a much better wagon than the 1934 Plymouth coupe. I guess I wore him down because he finally agreed. It was an even trade. I loved that car. It even had overdrive! (They called it "Free wheeling" In the early 30's) The only thing I did to that car was paint the hood louvers yellow. Talk about class! I rode in style during my Senior year of High School.
I drove a 1950 Oldsmobile Eighty Eight two door sedan while I was going to College. Those were the days my friend, The Oldsmobile 88, with its Rocket V8 engine, and the Hudson Hornet ruled the streets. I thought they would never end.
The Hudson Hornet you say? On February 11, 1951 Marshall Teague shook up the Big Three by driving a Hudson Hornet to victory on the beach oval of the 160 mile Daytona Grand National at Daytona Beach, Florida. Marshall Teague charged through the four mile beach and road race course with an average speed of 82.39 MPH.
On February 22, 1959 Lee Petty won the first Daytona 500 with an Olds 88 at the brand new Daytona International Speedway.
My current project is a 1967 Camaro RS Convertible. The car has 61000 original miles on it. I am doing a complete modified restoration. The car is going to be my daily driver. I rebuilt its 327 cubic inch engine. It is now a 331 cubic inch engine with a Competition Cams 260 camshaft. I also had the 461 camel back heads reworked which included hardend valve seats, bronze valve guides, Manly stainless steel valves with a three way valve grind and Z28 valve springs. I have also installed a Corvette TH700R4 four speed automatic transmission with overdrive in the car. I also installed power brakes, along with disc brakes in front when I rebuilt the front suspension. For driving comfort I installed a Vintage Air underdash "Sure Fit" air conditioning system which includes defrost and heat. I also added cruise control, an alarm system, and a new sound system. I am going to leave the exterior of the car as close to original as I can. The only exterior changes will be a third brake light mounted on the center of the air foil on the trunk lid and 1968 center caps on its rally wheels. I am going to paint it Matador Red, which is a 1968 Camaro color. I hope to have the car on the road soon.
