Bitchin'! This car represents the street-rod version of an idea that
more people need to
latch on to: use
circle-track parts to
create function and
character. The supply of
low-buck roundy-round
parts is nearly
limitless and can be
applied liberally for
endless twists on the
theme. You can build
your Camaro, Chevelle,
or G-body into a Street
Stocker with bolt-ons or
go deeper with a
fabricated-chassis car
like Robert's '35 Chevy
Master.
After having a number
of predictable street
rods, Robert realized he
owed a nod to the local
NASCAR heritage that
abounds nearby his
Boones Mill, Virginia,
home. It would have been
pretty tempting to go
with a straight 'shine
runner or even a retro
jalopy, but instead, an
old race-car steel body
was dropped off at (dig
this) Groundhog
Compton's Garage in
Martinsville, Virginia,
and once the pop-riveted
doors were freed up and
hammered out, it was
treated to a
contemporary-style dirt
Modified chassis that
Groundhog calls his
Featherweight. It
includes all the
standard circle-track
parts, such as the fully
adjustable,
late-model-style control
arms and Wilwood's
tandem master cylinder
and four-wheel disc
brakes. The rearend is
from an Olds Bravada,
which is essentially an
S-10 Blazer.
But of course the
hook is the endless
rubber dominating the
chopped-down '35
sheetmetal. Those are
Hoosier 29x18.50-15 Pro
Street radials mimicking
dirt-track rubber on
every corner, each
engulfing legit
circle-track Basset
15x14 steel wheels. Tell
us you've seen that
before. The theme
continues with stuff
like the extended S&S
headers and exhaust made
from Corvette side pipes
and the Afco aluminum
radiator behind a '35ish
grille fabbed by
Groundhog. The unchopped
roof reminds you of
jalopies piling into
turn one, and the stock
taillights and
Harley-Davidson
motorcycle-fender lights
as front turn signals
are nice tchotchke. Guys
in Bakersfield: good
luck with this one.
Robert wanted a nice
driver and must have
gotten it, since he's
stacked 5,000-plus miles
on the car since last
June. Contributing to
the comfort are power
rack-and-pinion steering
with a Heidt's
adjustable pressure
valve and concealed
Vintage Air climate
control (the condenser
is hidden under the
trunk so as not to
detract from the
bare-bones appeal). He
says, "My wife thinks
it's too loud, but it's
about the nicest-riding
rod I've had. It's like
a go-kart and just draws
a big crowd. People
always take your
picture."
Kind of no big
deal here: just
a 350 Chevy and
a TH350 trans
with a shifter
that's rigged to
look like a
stick. With the
Afco dual-pass
radiator, Robert
says the car is
the
coolest-running
rod he's ever
had. |
 |
True to race,
the interior
hasn't a stitch
of upholstery
outside of the
seats and the
mats. The switch
panels, gauges,
column, and
wheel are all
right out of
racing catalogs.
The rollcage and
Simpson belts
are for real,
too. |
