carsandcameras.com » Cars

Hot Rod Flames – Great Paint Job!

admin — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 04:43:28 +0000

Hot Rod Paint Job - Detail Of Flames

Closeup detail of blue and yellow hot rod flames on bright red – one of my favorite images. I’d love to visit the hot rod shop that did this flame paint job and learn how to paint flames so classy.

Three days at the Louisville National Street Rod Show is NOT enough to get up close and personal and photograph every street rod paint job!

NSRA 2009 Roadster Suspension Detail

admin — Thu, 27 Jan 2011 04:06:05 +0000

Roadster Front-End Suspension

Classic Roadster – Just one of the 11,200+ hot rod beauties on display during the Street Rod Nationals, where I celebrated my birthday in August 2009. This was my second trip to the Louisville National Street Rod show, but not my last – will be getting my airline ticket for this coming August by the end of the week!

See why hot rods, cars and cameras are my passion?!

Goodby hotrods, hello photojournalism

admin — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 19:35:17 +0000

During our senior year at Cal Poly University, in California, I shared an apartment with my friend Reed, who built a ‘54 Mercury, bored and stroked. Fastest car in Pomona back in 1962. Reed was and is an automotive genius.

I gave up hot cars as a primary interest and hobby for awhile, pretty much missing the muscle car era while raising a family, make a living and all that during the 60s.

Nevertheless, photography and photojournalism brought me plenty of excitement from 1963 through the 80s, particularly as a photojournalist and publisher during the Vietnam war.

But that’s a whole other story.

My 1957 Chevrolet Del Ray

admin — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 05:51:55 +0000

After getting discharged from the U.S. Army in 1958, I took the couple hundred bucks I had saved up and bought a slightly used 1957 Chev Del Ray two door hardtop.

First thing to go was the turbomatic transmission, which I replaced with a 4-speed from an almost-new wrecked ‘59 Chevy Impala.

That wrecked Impala was a beauty, with a 348 ci that had powered my new 4 speed. I’ll never forget how beautiful she was, all bright red with fender skirts. I heard that the driver barely escaped with his life, after drag racing on Tustin Blvd., in Orange County California.

I’m sure I was much more careful … (drag racing, who me???)

First Car – 1940 Ford Coupe

admin — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 05:32:20 +0000

What about cars? I admire all kinds of cars, but particularly love hot rods. It may be another link to my youth, but my goal in the next couple of years is to buy or build the perfect rod to enjoy during my retirement years.

My first was a 1940 Ford Coupe with a Chrysler C300 and 39 Packard transmission. Had her diego’d. When I shifted into 2nd at 90mph I could smoke her tires.

In 1955 Chrysler dropped a dual-carbed 331ci Hemi –the most powerful production V-8 engine of its day — into a two door Chrysler Windsor. This was arguably the first American musclecar.

It was on the sands of Daytona Beach in 1955 that a C300 posted a 127.580 mph two way average in the flying mile, more than 7 mph faster than its nearest competitor.