Speed and Chrome Illustrated

I sat down with my buddy Matt and he gave me a very detailed breakdown of his model A coupe build. We also took it cruising around Modesto and even made it out to Paradise Road. The real one from American Graffiti. That film has greatly influenced both of our lives growing up around Modesto and having a profound car addiction. Come along for a great story about cars, and family and just getting your hands dirty. #hotrod #cars #family

1965 Buick Skylark I picked up a few years ago. It needed some mechanical and some cosmetic work. I go into what I look for in a car I buy with the intention of flipping and making a few dollars. When it was all done, it was a great little cruiser with a V8, Automatic, Power Steering, Power Disc Brakes and aftermarket wheels. Welcome to the first flipping cars 101 feature.

Today with visit with Kevin Terpstra of Terpstra Motorsports to discuss the restoration and racing of this historic 1970 Boss 302 Mustang.

Pearl Craft restores and customizes the steering wheel for our '53 DeSoto custom car project. The oldest project we have going on at Speed & Chrome. Our two door hardtop Hemi powered custom car has had a ton of upgrades and updates. This steering wheel is the latest.

We sat down with Howard Gribble and talked to him about his incredible '64 Impala Lowrider that he built.

Rich Stuck has had a relationship with Fords all his life and the Battlebird is a direct result of this relationship. Rich grew up in the late 1950s with a 1957 Ford country sedan station wagon as his family's main mode of transportation as a kid Rich thought the best part of this car was it's 312 cubic inch Thunderbird special V8 engine, and the fact that his dad didn't mind showing off it's power every now and then. This car and its Y-block Ford 312 started Rich on a long and meaningful love affair for all things Ford and for Y-block powered cars in particular. In 1965 at age 14, a 1957 Ford custom two door was acquired for Rich's eventual use. The former moonshine hauler was sitting engineless in a shed when they found it and sold for the princely sum of one hundred and fifty dollars. Overtime it got a rebuilt three-twelve Ford engine custom 300 trim and a flamed paint job. That car was discovered to be a f-code factory supercharged vehicle and was eventually restored back to stock some years later, but ultimately it was a 1955 Thunderbird Rich had owned many years that became the catalyst for the Battlebird build. In his teenage years while searching magazines and catalogs for Thunderbird parts which were harder to find back then, Rich came across a photo of a 1957 Daytona Thunderbird that became known as the Battlebird, and that photo stuck with him. About five years ago Rich discovered that the original car was put up for auction but the price quickly rose above his means. Almost simultaneously he found a Battlebird clone that was for sale in Florida. Built by Tom Kitchen, the body held a fair resemblance to the original, but underneath the car was a very tired and worn out stock '57 T-bird. After purchasing the car Rich set about building a very accurate recreation of the Battlebird.

Ron Wards first car he ever owned, purchased when he was 15 and a half years old. Sitting after 37 years the truck was brought back to life and put back on the road. '55 Corvette engine with dual quads. Listen as Ron tells the story of his first car.

Joe's project, which came to be known as the Mailman Special, was built in his garage starting with a 1931 Chevy Cabriolet body mounted on a 1932 Ford frame. Using a hacksaw, Sprigato chopped the top two inches, channeled the body three, and added fenders from a 1947 Harley Davidson. Power for the Mailman Special is supplied by a 327 cubic inch Chevy from a split window Corvette, backed by a three-speed transmission out of a 1950 Mercury. Power is put to the ground via twelve bolt posi-traction rear end. The front axel was dropped and drilled by hand with all the work being done in the Sprigato household . When it came to paint, no fancy paint shop was called upon. Instead Sprigato opted to paint the car himself. Ordering up a case of paint from the fine folks of JC Whitney, Joe sprayed and hand rubbed the paint to perfection. The paint job was soon followed by black pinstriping also applied by Joe. The car was finished off with Cal custom chrome accessories to really make it pop and stand out that much more.

The FlatCad story begins like all good stories, with an idea. Buddy Walker had an idea, he shared it with a few friends, shared it on the HAMB and soon a group of like minded people came together to build an amazing car. We talk with Don Binkley who walks us through the build of a very unique car, a one of a kind blown flathead Cadillac powered Chevy coupe. Land speed racing is something like no other. Bonneville is an experience all on its own, add in some amazing cars and it really gets into your blood. All car guys should go at least once.

The Canned Monster is a 1956 Ford Customline gasser project and features a custom built high compression Y-Block engine built by the Y-Block Guy. The car has a top loader four speed and a 8.75" Mopar rear with spool and 4:11 gears. The rear has been moved forward nine inches making in an altered wheel base race car. The car was built to run at Eagle Field in Dos Palos, California. The car is a nod to the 1960's drag cars and was heavily influenced by the Two Lane Blacktop '55 Chevy which was also the same '55 Chevy used in American Graffiti.

A great little home built roadster using a Speedway chassis and a Datsun engine. Build to drive and thats what they do. Listen to Rob and Michelle Kropp as they tell the story of the Liberty Flyer.

Our Royal Victoria feature has become one of the most famous modern builds of a traditional Kustom car. Mark Skipper along with his wife Kelly, take us on the journey from concept art to how he acquired the car to the finished cruising masterpiece that it has become. What a beauty!

The Brown Trout, a traditional mid ‘60s street/strip gasser. Who doesn’t love a blown big block Chevy in a mid 50’s shoebox? Flip spent a few years collecting/compiling parts to get this bad boy together. He tells the story and we get to go for a ride, literally. Three pedals, supercharged and neck snapping torque is a great way to roll. The 55 Chevy is likely the most celebrated of the mid 60s gassers, and this one is a prime example of everything done right.

Going through my photos I found this footage that was shot back in 2004 from my first trip to the Bonneville Salt Flats and Speedweek. www.speednchrome.com

1925 Dodge Brother Four Door Sedan, or it used to be. It's more of a coupe these days. A wacky little car, let's dive in for a little tour and cruise through the country. Follow us! Facebook https://www.facebook.com/speedandchrome/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/speednchrome/ Twitter https://twitter.com/SpeednChrome #ratrod #hotrod #dodge