TRJ Issue #18

Stayin’ Alive
A lot of guys wish they still owned their high school hot rod. After 48 years, Bill Couch still has his chopped and sectioned ’34 Ford. But before Couch purchased the coupe in 1953, it was constructed in San Diego by Joaquin Arnett of “Bean Bandits” fame and was brought to the Midwest by none other than Andy Granatelli.

Tales from the Salt
At Bonneville 2001, a host of traditional-styled hot rods showed up to run the salt and Peter Vincent so ably photographed them. Vern Tardel, Sam Samson, Ron Jolliffe and Russ Meeks all made the trek in their fruitless quests for a cure for salt fever.

Reshaping History
We shot Steve Frediani’s ’51 Ford in baremetal in the studio. We asked the question is Frediani’s convertible a modern classic or of the classic modern ilk? The answer is yes.

Postcards from the Edge: The Joe Barnett Story Part Two
More photos from the elusive Joe Barnett. If anything, we believe that our second look at the photography of Joe Barnett may surpass what was presented in Part 1 of “Post Cards from the Edge”.

The Last Aluminum Flathead, or is it?
Jay Fitzhugh chronicles the ultra-rare and perhaps the last of Ford’s aluminum blocked flathead V8s. This particular engine first piqued rodders’ interest when it appeared on the cover of the October 1952 issue of Hot Rod Magazine.

The Carriage House Collection
What do Jeff Beck’s accolades as the consummate guitar player and his quest for traditional hot rodding have in common? Perhaps it is his affinity for all things stemming from post-war American popular culture. We take a look at the mindset and the motorcars that make “The Carriage House Collection”.

From Mansfield to Mesa
Squeeg Jerger had long planned to build a taildragger-style custom out of the ’41 Ford convert that sitting behind his shop. Sometime in the early ‘90s, Squeeg divulged his intent to his old friend and illustrator the late Dave Bell. Expectantly, Squeeg received some drawings a few weeks later and the project was off to an inauspicious start. After tacking them to the wall Squeeg accidentally set them on fire with his torch. And that’s just the beginning of the story.

Classical Gas
Long-time Phoenix, Arizona resident and hot rodder has owned his ’56 Chevy 210 since 1967. We photographed it back in 2002 just as the modern Street Gasser movement was starting to take hold. But Rex has always been into that type of car. He jacked up the stock front suspension shortly after taking possession back in ’67, added the straight axle in 1970, and in the mid seventies ditched the solid-lifter 327 for a 427-inch big block. Polished magnesium Halibrands and spindle-mount Americans finish the look.