Rat Rod for sure

July 4th weekend 2009. Wow. I have had a lot going on in my life. Don't we all? It seems like it is one thing after another. If I can figure out a way to express it and still be true to everyone, I will blog about it. Until then, I am escaping into this particular submission.

The truck is moving along; finally got the front axel bolted back in, figured out how to install the new front disc brakes; I now have a better understanding as to why these cars are called 'Rat Rods'. I am learning how to fabricate parts and don't think twice about cutting something down or re-engineering the current design. When you buy a part from an after-market distributor and they say 'This should fit with no problem', what they really mean is that if you are one smart and crafty bastard, this should take you no more than 4 or 5 weekends if you call in every mechanical genius that you have ever met. This is total live-by-your-wits operation which I believe fits in nicely with the rat family.








I stopped keeping a ledger of all the costs associated with this venture. I frankly don't want to know how much it costs. The fact is... that I am hell-bent on getting this thing back on the road and realizing a dream for my dad. It is going to happen and it really doesn't matter how much it costs. I have discovered that even the parts I am removing have a value and can be bartered for other parts. I am new to this but I am rather starting to enjoy it. The stopping of the ledger reminds me of my friend Brian Walley's oft-quoted maxim of 'A fool and his money are soon parted'. I think that pretty much sums it up.



This old truck is still around today because my uncle, Jimmy Pratt, wanted to do something nice for my dad. My uncle was a painter by trade; houses, cars, anything really. So he spray-painted the truck, as it sat in the open air on the end of our driveway (I didn't say he was a perfectionist, I just said he was a painter). For years afterward there was a shadow of overspray on the driveway; kinda like the chalk outline of a homicide. My dad never said a word about it. That simple coat of paint staved off rust for another 30 years. Thanks Uncle Jimmy.








Well, the truck got a new set of sneakers this week. In fact, this may be the first set of new tires and wheels it has had since it was built 77 years ago. I am working trying to rebuild the hydraulic clutch and master cylinder. If I can get those kinks worked out, I will be ready to take it around the neighborhood. If you hear the A-ooo-gah horn, you'll know I got it running :)

P.S. Thanks Pat for spending July 4th in my garage. I appreciate it more than you know.