My 1928 FORD AV8 Roadster

Posted on July 13, 2018January 30, 2020 by Steve Carpenter

13 Jul

Well, Hot Rods really are never finished, you just continue to wrench, change looks and idea’s etc and thats what I love about Hot Rodding, My 1928 Ford Roadster is no Show ride, it is no super high Dollar Performance machine, nor is it a trailer Queen either.

What it is, well- To me anyways, is a Nostalgic styled AV8 Hot Rod that you would of seen on the streets on Southern California back in the late 1940’s.

It is something I really have a passion for since I was a Teenager. lucky for me I had a Three Window Coupe in the UK but my Dream was a Roadster and to have one in California, so dreams do come true and wanted to share my little Model A machine with you.

This is a real Henry Ford Body and Chassis, and the stance I have as you see it here is right on the money, have a look at many Vintage pics and you may see a late 1940’s Roadster similar to mine, I wanted to keep the Side Aprons on, these are the step covers that your fenders bolt to. Below is Jack Mickleson’s Roadster in about 1942. I think it was the last dry lake run before World War 2 was underway, I believe Don Francisco owns it but have yet to see if this Roadster survived.

Back in the day, the Hot Rodders would drive to the Dry lakes such as Harpers, Muroc or the famous El Mirage and then strip the fenders and head lights off as well as the windshield and then see how fast they could run on them dried out lake beds.

This is how she is right now, still may change a few little things and then fine tune all the time, I am hoping to eventually Louvre the front hood and the rear Rumble Seat lid.

I used a Genuine 1932 Grill and Shell and fitted the Model A Hood to it with Old style belts, then used one of Limeworks Stainless Steel dropped headlight bars with stock Model A Lights.

Shorty shocks up the front soak up as much as possible, dropped I-Beam front axle sits this front end just how I want it , I then made a Spreader bar to complete the Nostalgia going.

Not as powerful as the locomotives behind me but eventually I shall build a Hopped up Flathead for this Jalopy, right now it has a 1939 24 stud mill with Edelbrock Heads.

I shall be shortening the exhaust pipes, I did have the original Bumpers on there when the exhaust set up was made, but shall cut them back and may make a Nerf Bar for the rear.

She is sat on a set of Kelsey Hayes wire Rims with Vintage style Firestone 16 inch tall tires and it is fun to drive, she tracks a little on the freeway but thats the feel I wanted.

I have a chopped Stainless Steel windshield, another common touch that was done in the day and of course sit lower now else my head would sit up too high. LOL

it is always fun to take out, this place isnt that far from me and wanted to try and take some decent pic’s, im no pro at this but I am really happy at how these came out.

She runs stock pistons but New and right now a stock cam, later I hop to build a little growler motor that has an Isky Cam, just to get me out of trouble if I need it.

Plenty of old freight train and shunting lines around where we live and whats great is to think about 70 Years ago, this was full of Dairies, fruit trees and Flathead Motors.

Sadly, more common than not, all you will see these days is Graffiti, personally not a fan of it at all, but as it was close to the color of the Roadster, I thought a photo Opportunity awaits.

One hauls freight and the other hauls Arse!!! LOL!

Sat patiently awaiting me to jump in and stamp the right pedal and head back home, so much Hot Rod History in and around where we live in La Mirada.

A great ride and more to do, I have a Columbia 2 speed rear end for it, but have to send it away to get Bullet Proofed, not cheap but that will give me a good overdrive.

Long way to go as I would like to have Oxblood Leather interior, but for now this old Naugahyde will suffice as leather is not cheap.

Hot Rods and Trains have always gone together like peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, Hot Rods use to try and race the train if there was a good straight away.

VHRA Vintage Hot Rod Association of which I joined in the 90’s back in the UK, huge part of my life to be honest and going so strong there today.

I shall always keep this Roadster, I drempt about one as a kid and here I am 5400 miles away and living that dream , totally amazes me sometimes and have to pinch myself.

I have always liked vintage stuff, be it Hot Rods, Motorcycles, Juke Boxes, Chris Craft Boats, Spitfires, Hurricanes, Thunderbolts to Dakota’s, Vintage is in my blood I guess.

Hope you like my little 1928 AV8 Roadster? I really have fun with this and enjoy the experience of feeling what a traditional Hot Rod feels like to drive and work on.

Maybe some of you can relate? As I have spoken to a few people that have Motorcycles and Hot Rods, it is a fun and to me, a therapeutic Hobby.

I will still be working on this for many years but enjoying what i do, some things work and then sometimes they dont but, mechanical parts are great to work on.

I shall be selling Hot Rod parts and Apparel so will be revamping the website a little, stay tuned to the site if you want to see what I do to this Model A Roadster of mine.

Thanks for reading my Blog today, I enjoy doing it and people often email me to say that they like looking at what I am up to out here in La Mirada.

Let me know if you have a cool ride, love to see what you are creating and of course having fun in these days, I always have a smile on my face driving the Roadster, sometimes bugs too.

Have a great weekend and enjoy life to its fullest.

BONNEVILLE SALT FLATS SPEED WEEK

Posted on July 6, 2017January 30, 2020 by Steve Carpenter

06 Jul

Ever since I was a teenager, I was intrigued with the American Hot Rod, I loved the Country, the Lifestyle and the possibilities you could achieve with hard work and, determination.

Back in the UK I even had a Hot Rod, a 1932 Three Window Coupe, chopped and channeled, this Hot Rod was a Nostalgic style that reflected what I was into.

Then in 1997 I left the shores of the British Isles, jumping on a Big Silver Bird to the other side of the world and landed in Australia, another Hot Rod Country that really loves mechanical machines and anything that moves on 2 and four wheels.

I built a 58 Work truck and had a 29 Roadster that I was finishing, but things in life happen and had to sell both but sure was a cool look.

In Melbourne I worked for Norm Hardinge of Aussie desert Cooler, helping him with the manufacture of Radiators for many Hot Rod and Customs cars, this took me all over Victoria and NSW and never was there a sad time, they are big Hot Rodders and the only way of topping that was to move to the United States of America, the Land I dreamed of living in from Middle school.

Feb 2000 I arrived in Southern California and 17 years later here I am and love it, I now own a period style 1928 Model A Roadster, complete with a 1939 Flathead V8, just a little 221ci Mill thats fun for me and hope to add rare speed equipment later on.

Well, in 2000 I was lucky enough to head to Muroc Dry lakes with a bunch of Hot Rodding Buddies and was fortunate enough to drive Drew Pietsch’s ’28-’29 Dodge Roadster around this famous dry lake, where even the Space shuttle would land if it was too windy in Florida.

So, coming up in August is Speed Week at Bonneville Salt Flats, a place that I have only dreamed about going to and watching all sorts of Hot Rods and Motorcycles giving their all to try and acquire a record of speed over a timed area. And as it will be my 55th Birthday, My Girlfriend Jennifer Sun is taking us out there to experience the life, racing on the salt.

Obviously I am spectating but who knows, the bug may catch me and I will have a go on a bike or car if I can get enough sponsors, always a cool thing to try.

So, I am so looking forward to that and if ANY of you are attending and see a Sun Burnt Limey walking around with a Gorgeous Hawaiian Girlfriend, then that’s will be me, come and say hello.

on July 16th SUNDAY at: El Mirage Dry Lake 20471 Mountain View Rd Adelanto, CA

I will Also be at El Mirage next weekend and riding my Red Royal Enfield about ,if ya fancy a little blap on it let me know, so if ya around, just let me know as I will be there early in the morning on Sunday, until the evening about 5pm and will be heading home. it is a superb place to spectate and watch the racing, as well as being able to get close to the start line and watch them go, I love it, some speeds in excess of 200 MPH too.

Drop me a text on 714-598-8392 if ya gonna be up there, I shall have an easy up and generator and a couple of chairs as I like to park half track and watch the bikes and Hot Rods run, then jump on the Motorcycle and go to other parts of the track. So i can see the Start and the finish and see them flat out.

Here is a little bit of History for you, but I am sure that you are familiar with it. I hope you enjoy this little Blog I have created today.

– This was filmed in September, 1932 at the Bonneville Salt Flats. Ab Jenkins is testing the new, 1932 Pierce Arrow 462 cubic inch V-12 in a 24-hour endurance run. His average speed was 112.91 mph.

For years the Bonneville Salt Flats was the home to land speed record attempts but these were for elite drivers like Sir Malcolm Campbell. After World War Two, Hot Rodders wanted to test their metal on the salt but officials balked at allowing these people they saw as Juvenile Delinquents defile their Salt Flats.

Silent 8mm but great footage none the less.

Model A was fun to drive on the weekend

Posted on May 31, 2017January 30, 2020 by Steve Carpenter

31 May

Well, memorial weekend has come and gone by so fast, although in that time I caught a head cold that whooped my arse and have only just got back to a level playing field.

So wanted to throw some photos up I took of my 1928 Model A Roadster that I have and over that weekend I removed the fenders and bumpers to give it a more post war 1940’s look, and right now I am loving this little A-Bone.

I have always been into old vehicles and Motorcycles since I was a kid, back in the UK I had a 32 three window Coupe and, as I went to school on the East Anglian side of Great Britain, I was very close to the American Airbases and actually learned to ride a motorcycle on one of the WW2 Bomber Runways in Rougham . ( Suffolk )

This Model A of mine is a fun machine, not the fastest in the world but thats what I didnt want, what i wanted was a cool period Hot Rod that would of been around Southern California after the war and young serviceman and women had all these New engineering skills from working on aircraft, boats and tanks etc that they used their skills to hop up their Jalopys.

This Model A has a few cool parts now to make it quite a traditional ride.

Breakdown of parts:

16 inch Kelsey Wire wheels

1939 Flathead V8 Motor

1939 Three speed gearbox

1936 rear radius Rods

1940 Ford Juice (hydraulic) Brakes

32 style K member

40 ford pedals

1948 F1 steering Box

1940 Ford steering wheel ( Limeworks Speed Shop)

2 inch chopped stainless steel windshield.

Converted to 12 volt system

Edelbrock intake Manifold

Two Stromberg 97 Carburetors

I still have more to do like eventually I shall be removing the radiator and grill shell and replacing it with a Walker radiator and a genuine 1932 deuce grill shell and insert, popular back in the 1940’s.

Then I hope to make some exhaust headers that will run outside the Roadster up near the doors, using 2 old 1936 Ford Torque Tubes, another 40’s hop up that was very popular back then.

This was and always will be one of my Passions, I was simply Born in the wrong country as I have always loved the American way of life, the people, the country and of course, the invention of the Hot Rod.

This was built in Memory of My MUM that sadly passed 2 years ago and if it wasnt for her, I would not be here, Mum loved sitting in my old coupe, she even got her arm stuck in the window, chicken winging one day as i had a 4 inch chopped roof.

Plans are for the exhausts, the radiator, and some cool 1949 Kaiser Taillights that I fitted into 1948 Chevy Bezels and will fit them in the back under the rumble seat.

I shall also be getting a Canvass Top for her, as My hair grease melts in the Southern California Sun!

Hope you dig my Roadster as many people love the same stuff I am into, Motorcycles, Hot Rods, ww2 planes, boats etc, anything vintage.

I will keep you updated on other things I do to my AV8 Roadster.

Hot Rods in New Zealand

Posted on March 9, 2017January 30, 2020 by Steve Carpenter

09 Mar

I have been into Hot Rods for Many many years, I stopped counting after the 3rd decade and, being a Brit, I dreamed of living in the Great USA and having my Own Roadster and eventually take a drive on the Dry lake at El Mirage.

I grew up in London, then moved as part of the London Overspill to the East coast of Great britain, and from there, I got the American bug- we lived close to the American Air bases, IE, Mildenhall, Lakenheath, Bentwaters etc, the village that we lived in (Rougham) had an old WW2 Runway, complete with control tower and Nissan huts etc, this was where they originally had 3 runways and this is where the:

47th Bombardment Group (Light)

322nd Bombardment Group (Medium)

94th bombardment Group (Heavy)

All took off from on their dangerous missions and many never returning, I learned to ride a motorcycle on the 94th Bombardment runway and it is still there today.

We attended many Air shows over them years on the USAAF bases and I loved the whole Americanism that was there, it was a little part of the USA right where we lived, one of the Airman at the show gave me a magazine to read and it was a copy of Hot Rod.

It was a Black and White magazine from 1951 and the guy stood next to his Model A Roadster looked a little like me. That was it, I was hooked and loved Everything American.

I still have that magazine and now I am living my dream, I am here in Southern California, where Hot Rodding was Born and I now own a 1928 Model A Roadster complete with Flathead V8.

In the UK in the 1980’s I had a Right Hand drive, Chopped and channeled 1932 Three Window Couple and that was my own little piece of California everyday, even driving for the first year with no floor and having snow or ice pour into the coupe whilst driving to work was a fun experience for me.

I am not the Odd one out here, people all over the globe Love the Nostalgia that an old car gives you and you cannot get much further away than New Zealand, these guys know their stuff and have the bug like me, but this time, the Whole family are gear heads.

I love it, so- today i wanted to share a little into what makes us tick and this video pretty much sums it up.

Enjoy your day.

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