Rodding USA

WHERE ARE WE? I shared a photo in the last issue and asked “Where Are We?” We were at the Minnehaha Falls, which is in the Minnehaha Regional Park in Minneapolis, MN. The 53-foot falls is located ¾ of a mile from where Minnehaha Creek empties into the Mississippi River. RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY As mentioned in the Back to the 50s coverage (page 38), the weather reports for the weekend were bleak, with chances of rain at 90% for each day of the show. Fortunately, the only day it rained hard during the show hours was Saturday at about 2 pm. As you'll notice from this photo, it was very wet, but the folks in Minnesota are a hardy bunch and weren't going to let some water from the…

It has been said that if you remember the 60s, you weren't doing it right. Many of you may remember the British invasion having to do with the Beatles, Rolling Stones, and other musical groups of the 60's. However, we are rodding people, and we know about the British vehicle invasion as well. I'm not referring to the sporty car stuff but rather the sedans, panels, pickups, and wagons included in our rodding and racing scene for decades. Most of the popular cars and trucks that turned into Hot Rods from the UK turned out to be Ford. Allow me to explain. FORD MODEL Y — BECAUSE Although not as well-known as its later model cousin, the Anglia, the first of the British cars to catch rodders attention was the…

I first met Pat Stilger while attending the NSRA Street Rod Nationals in 2014. The Louisville resident attended the show in his chopped 1934 Ford 3/ Window Coupe, which he had recently completed. I photographed it that weekend and it ended up as a feature vehicle and on the cover of Issue 12. In 2016, he purchased the chassis and body of this ‘37 Ford Coupe to begin a new project. He had a vision of what the car would look like when completed but no specific deadline as to when it would be done. Pat retired at the end of 2021, but the project stalled due to a previous battle with cancer, making a return with a vengeance. Pat says, “With the help of great friends and an incredible…

New Oxford Dragway - Maine Over the years, well-liked vintage hot rod drags have slowly been closing, with some being very historical. The Tornados CC decided to create one last year based nearby in Maine at the New Oxford Dragway, which also is part of New England's racing history. The event is held Memorial Weekend to accommodate anybody from out of state, given the interest in participants for a few extra days. The drag strip is located right next to the speedway, allowing plenty of parking, vendor, and pit area, yet everything so close could feel the energy and hot rod culture! While just over two hours from nearby major city Boston, most take the well-known scenic routes leading to the 1/8-mile tarmac, providing an excellent atmosphere from the day-to-day…

DAKOTA DIGITAL UNVEILS THEIR RETROTECH SERIES OF INSTRUMENTATION FITTING EARLY FORD CAR MODELS. The RTX series is the latest from Dakota Digital, focused on retaining that stock look without sacrificing the late-model features you love. Every effort has been made to incorporate OEM design elements regarding the layout, face styling, and indicators. A casual glance may dismiss these gauges as original equipment, but once you hit the switch and the LED backlighting comes on in your favorite color scheme, all doubts will be removed. When opening the vehicle's door, the vintage-looking rolling odometer provides a stock appearance. Turning on the ignition, the TFT message center can be fully configured to display just about any piece of information needed, from the complementary home screen layout to the user-configurable data group screens!…

After looking for the right car to hot rod for several months, Joe Lanni was exhausting his search to find that perfect stock running car. The hotrod had to be a ‘30 or ‘31 Model A since ‘32s were way out of his price range at the time. Some of these were parade cars with the little red flags to which Joe couldn't bring himself to hot rod. Eventually he stumbled across one that was stock, right down to the spare tire cover and factory wood floor that was in running condition via Craigslist in Maine. Joe was told the ‘30 Ford Coupe was suspected of having been “poorly restored” in the eighties but was a perfect hot rod candidate with over-spray on windows and chipping paint! Joe wanted to…