R&C Top Tin Picks
Believe it or not, going to the same car shows year after year can get to be a bit boring. You'd be surprised at how each one starts to look like the year before. This situation isn't helped when you see the same cars parked in their same spot over and over again.
One of the events that bucks this trend is always the Goodguys West Coast Nationals in Pleasanton. As I've said before, I enjoy it because it's only about 400 miles away from home so I don't have to pack all my gear and jump on a plane and go through the whole airport experience. I can take a hot rod and enjoy the trip. This year though I wasn't coming from home, as I grouped it into the tail end of R&C's Bonneville cruise. After I was done playing out on the salt, I jumped into my '50 Ford loaner car and took the most indirect route I could find that would leave me on two-lane roads almost the entire way.
I took my son with me this year as my navigator. This was his third trip to the Alameda Fairgrounds for the show and he hasn't been disappointed yet. As always we met up with some good friends, made some new ones, and admired lots of really well-done cars.
We're already looking into planning a trip for next year's show and have been talking with our buddy, Eric Peratt at Pinkee's, to see what we can both come up with for an interesting road trip.
Expanded Coverage at www.rodandcustommagazine.com
 |  Several issues back Tom Carver...  Several issues back Tom Carver showed you how he built his own bench seat for his '32 Ford pickup. Well he finally finished the truck, which sports a 4 1/2-inch chop and 6-inch channel. The chassis started with a set of American Stamping 'rails and now features custom crossmembers, a Chassis Engineering dropped axle with hairpins, and a Ford 9-inch with an owner-built four-bar. |  Anthony Abina is keeping his...  Anthony Abina is keeping his dad's memory alive by enjoying and showing his dad's '54 Chevy. The body has been treated to a few custom mods and the drivetrain still utilizes the straight-six. |
 Sixties-themed hot rods are...  Sixties-themed hot rods are coming on strong and Roscoe Bava's '30 Model A roadster nailed it. The roadster had been restored by Roscoe's grandfather and was parade-ready when Mike Smith started getting rid of the old and adding the dual-quad 409, Muncie four-speed, and Halibrand quick-change. Grandpa's restored interior still remains. |  Almost anyone can build a...  Almost anyone can build a replica of a Sixties gasser with enough patience to scout all the correct parts. Ken Hart took the easy route and found an actual gasser that ran in SoCal in the Sixties. Many of the original parts were still on the '51 Chevy when he found it and were restored and reused including the '57 Pontiac rearend, straight axle front suspension, and the headers and exhaust system. A new 600hp 383 small-block backed with a six-speed adds the modern touch. |  Almost anyone can build a...  Almost anyone can build a replica of a Sixties gasser with enough patience to scout all the correct parts. Ken Hart took the easy route and found an actual gasser that ran in SoCal in the Sixties. Many of the original parts were still on the '51 Chevy when he found it and were restored and reused including the '57 Pontiac rearend, straight axle front suspension, and the headers and exhaust system. A new 600hp 383 small-block backed with a six-speed adds the modern touch. |
 You wouldn't guess from looking...  You wouldn't guess from looking at George Stock's '33 Buick Victoria that it rides on '88 Corvette independent suspension front and back. A tuned-port-injected 350 resides under the long hood. George bought the Buick about four years ago and ended up redoing the paint, interior, and engine. |  The talent I run into at shows...  The talent I run into at shows always amazes me. James Lewallen took a beat-up and rusted '31 Model A Sport Coupe and reworked it into this beautiful and black coupe by building much of the body himself and chopping it 3 1/2 inches in the process. The coupe gets plenty of power from the 3x2-equipped '57 Chrysler 392 Hemi. |  Here's another hot rod that...  Here's another hot rod that has lots of family history. This '40 Ford pickup has been in Jim Nierhake's family since 1954. Jim drove it to high school in 1955 and transported his livestock to 4-H shows with it. The truck nows rides on a Total Cost Involved chassis with a 350/700-R4 combo for power. |
 Long-term projects are very...  Long-term projects are very familiar to lots of us and Dan Aguirre is no exception. He's been working on his '54 Ford Customline for 16 years but has finally seen the light at the end of the tunnel. An '89 Ford 400M V-8 is fed through an owner-built EFI intake and backed with a C-6 trans. A Camaro donated its front subframe for the project. |  |  Sweet, simple, and well-detailed...  Sweet, simple, and well-detailed is about the best description for Dave Welles' highboy '28 roadster pickup. Peeking out from under the two-piece hood top is a '54 Buick Nailhead shifted through a four-speed. |
 It may look traditional, but...  It may look traditional, but Rich Stapf's '32 roadster was assembled from a bunch of new parts supplied by our buddy Jim Aust at SoCal Speed Shop Los Angeles. The Brookville body sits on a SoCal chassis and is powered by a ZZ430 350 and a Tremec five-speed. Jim's eye for detail helped give the roadster the right look. |  It may look like it rolled...  It may look like it rolled in from the East Coast, but Gary Cedoline's channeled '32 five-window was a hometown favorite. The six-carbed 327 looked like it was show-and-go ready. |  Jack and Sue White brought...  Jack and Sue White brought their '36 five-window all the way down from Spokane, Washington, to enjoy the Pleasanton weather. The coupe is powered by a dual-quad Hemi backed with a 200-4R overdrive. |
 Skip Andrews came all the...  Skip Andrews came all the way from Florida to show off his historic '57 Ford custom. Back when Car Craft was a custom car mag it voted the Ford one of the Top 10 Best Customs of 1964 when it was owned by Ron Sweeney. |  Finding a full-fendered tall-T...  Finding a full-fendered tall-T these days seems to be a lot rarer than it was back in the Sixties and Seventies. This '26 coupe was bought new by one of Robert Borba's great-aunts and we're sure she'd be very pleased to see that he's taking such good care of it. |  Scott Karuza's '34 Ford pickup...  Scott Karuza's '34 Ford pickup is one of those hot rods that just draws you in the moment you set eyes on it. The stance and details are perfect. The 3x2-equipped 327 and four-speed is the perfect motivation, too. |
 Kevin Gallagher of Gallagher's...  Kevin Gallagher of Gallagher's Oil Farm Hot Rods & Customs in Napa, California, built this awesome '51 Ford Victoria, which features a dual-quad 500hp small-block Chevy (who said customs had to be slow). The most unique piece in the custom interior is the '46-48 Ford dash. |  Len Silvey wasn't real talkative...  Len Silvey wasn't real talkative when it came to giving the details of his '55 Buick, but we could still tell the dual-quad Nailhead-powered boat would be a great car out on the highway. |  I'm not sure why we don't...  I'm not sure why we don't see more of this era Chevys. Tony Dekellis has proved that his '48 can not only run with the best of them thanks to a small-block Chevy and Fatman IFS but can be just as good-looking. |
 If you've ever wondered what...  If you've ever wondered what Gray Baskerville's roadster would have looked like as a three-window, Steve Lemmons's coupe just might have the answer. It looks like it has been enjoyed just about as much judging by some of the well-earned battle scars. | | |