Cars, trucks, rat rods and hot rods

[Dan In MI]

Here’s another picture in which the brake is more easily seen.

Yes indeed; much like a horse-drawn wagon, only without horses to stop as well! The additional photo gives a good view of the flywheel, too.

Yes they did build Rolls Royce cars there...

From what I understand, that was the only place outside Britain that Rolls-Royces were built, and the venture was not a great success.

You have been fortunate to stripe some great vehicles! The fire truck is a Chevy; a GMC of that era has horizontal grill bars.

[Mumbleypeg]

Have never been to the Owl's Head Museum but I did stripe a vehicle that was donated to it many years ago.
The car is a 1913 Rolls-Royce touring car that was originally purchased as a closed car by one Alice Longfellow who was Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's daughter. Sometime in the 1920's it was sent to the factory in Springfield Massachusetts(yes they did build Rolls Royce cars there)to be re-bodied as a phaeton.
In the early 1930's it was purchased by Roger Bemis who regularly drove the car until it was caught in the flood of 1938 on Cape Cod Massachusetts. Roger then set about to completely overhaul the car. It was finished sometime in the 1980's and he thought he would like to have the body pinstriped. A mutual friend by the name of Malcolm Lee;a person I had striped several cars for contacted me about doing the job.
It was completed about 6 months before Mr. Bemis passed away from the complications of Parkinson's disease and his will stipulated that the car be donated to the museum.
The picture of the car is from a magazine article and the two lower pictures are of me striping the hood and Mr. Bemis and Malcolm looking on.

Ray, that’s fantastic! Here is the car as it was on display at the museum in Owls Head when I was there. If you click on the pictures you can clearly see your pinstripe work.

I took a lot of pictures the day we were there. I’ll post some of them later. It’s an amazing place, a must-see for anyone who likes cars, motorcycles, bicycles, and airplanes.

Ken

[knife7knut]

Ray, that’s fantastic! Here is the car as it was on display at the museum in Owls Head when I was there. If you click on the pictures you can clearly see your pinstripe work.

I took a lot of pictures the day we were there. I’ll post some of them later. It’s an amazing place, a must-see for anyone who likes cars, motorcycles, bicycles, and airplanes.

Ken

Thanks for posting that picture.I have a couple others around somewhere of that day. I don't know it if it is still on there but one of the things we decided to do was to put Mr. Bemis' initials on the driver's side door. After 50 years of owning it we thought he could rightfully call it HIS car!EDIT:It looks like the initials are still on there.They are just below and slightly in back of the bulb for the horn.They were done in red also.
I understand they host car shows there during the summer months.As I understand it the museum is one of the few that actually drives the vehicles on display around on occasion.

[knife7knut]

From what I understand, that was the only place outside Britain that Rolls-Royces were built, and the venture was not a great success.

Actually it was quite successful. They started building them there in 1921 and closed 10 years later only because of the Great Depression.There were over 2,000 cars built at the Springfield factory. I remember one in particular was a roadster that used to come in for service at the R/R dealership I worked at for several years.
The owner was a woman who lived in a nearby town and owned two Rolls-Royce cars:the roadster which I believe was a 1927 model and a 1948 Silver Wraith formal sedan.
She would call the dealership and ask them to send out,"Mister Wayne" who was our pickup and delivery driver to pick up tone of the cars for service. She would not allow anyone else to drive the car but him. When the service was finished on the car she would be notified and have the other one ready when Wayne delivered the car.
I found out that her father had bought the roadster for her 16th birthday and had her initials put on the driver's door. They were still very visible and the original paint was in incredible condition.
The ironic thing was her name was Doris BENZ! And she did not like Mercedes-Benz automobiles!

[Mumbleypeg]

Ray, that’s fantastic! Here is the car as it was on display at the museum in Owls Head when I was there. If you click on the pictures you can clearly see your pinstripe work.

I took a lot of pictures the day we were there. I’ll post some of them later. It’s an amazing place, a must-see for anyone who likes cars, motorcycles, bicycles, and airplanes.

Ken

Thanks for posting that picture.I have a couple others around somewhere of that day. I don't know it if it is still on there but one of the things we decided to do was to put Mr. Bemis' initials on the driver's side door. After 50 years of owning it we thought he could rightfully call it HIS car!EDIT:It looks like the initials are still on there.They are just below and slightly in back of the bulb for the horn.They were done in red also.
I understand they host car shows there during the summer months.As I understand it the museum is one of the few that actually drives the vehicles on display around on occasion.

The museum takes pride that every car, plane, motorcycle and engine in their collection actually runs except the mock-up replica of the plane the Wright Brothers flew at Kitty Hawk. The morning we were there they let the museum visitors pick what was to be taken to the shop and started. The old Benz was the choice so they pushed it out of its space and rolled it down the hall to the shop, followed by all of us visitors. The items on display have drip pans under them to catch any leaking fluids (the floors are so clean it looks like you could eat off them).

The museum has literally acres of space under roof, with hundreds of items on display at any given time, and hundreds more in storage which are periodically rotated to display. Here’s a sampling of what was on display the day we were there.

Ken

[Mumbleypeg]

More

Ken

[knife7knut]

Some "hot rod trucks" All of them are actual work trucks except for the one for Tecumseh Auto Body(it was used as a sign for the shop)and Robert's "Outlaw" rat rod truck.
#1 The Acme Hardware truck I had to postpone for awhile because it was being used in a movie and they didn't want any lettering on it. The owner uses it as his shop truck and also owns the milk truck I painted(among other vehicles).
#2 John Schumont's Hot Rod Louvers is a thriving business and he uses it all year round.
#3 JayBee's truck(my good friend John Brown)brought his truck to a national meet and it was sold before he even got a chance to park it!
#4 Jeremy's truck(with the flying eyeball on the door)is one of several trucks he owns.
#5 Johannsen's Hot Rod Garage is one of several vehicles he owns.
#6 Oliver's Collision was one of my best customers until the business was sold and it went downhill after that.
#7 Ron & Nancy Price's ice cream truck is used daily during the summer months.Ron is a retired police officer who has several vehicles I have painted.
#8 Tecumseh Trade Center is the flea market across from my house and Rafael has a new business that brokers specialty automobiles.One of his many Chevy trucks.
#9 Tecumseh Auto Body was using this as a sign outside their business until someone offered them crazy money for it.
#10 Robert Rojas' Outlaw is one of several vehicles he owns including a 1940's era Lincoln convertible he is currently redoing.

[knife7knut]

Wow! Some great pics of the museum!
There are several cars there that really,"trip my trigger"
That two-tone gray Packard near the beginning is just drop dead gorgeous!
The last pic of the Packard formal sedan struck a cord with me. I have a picture in my doc file I took in Michigan in 1968 of a very similar model.I wish I could remember who the body manufacturer was on that one.Here are a couple pics of it.
The Indian motorcycle looks like a speedway bike(no brakes)
That Hudson race car of Tim Flock's is very unusual;don't recall ever seeing a hardtop like that raced before.
Thanks for posting those pics;now if I can just get the droll off my keyboard............

[knife7knut]

Some more pics.Mostly race cars including one I did for my grandson Jake and an original GT-40 for the Indianapolis Motorsports Museum.

[Ripster]

Some more pics.Mostly race cars including one I did for my grandson Jake and an original GT-40 for the Indianapolis Motorsports Museum.

That has been some stuff you and Ken are posting. It’s so neat to see all this stuff,that wouldn’t see otherwise .Ray,you amaze me with your talent,very nice work,and some of the things you worked on look amazing when you’re done with your work
That Museum is on my bucket list .
Thanks Ray and Ken for the great pics and info.

[Ripster]

More

Ken

Ken ,Very nice pics,and info . Thanks for posting all those great pictures ,that Museum is a must see now,have it on my bucket list. Looks like you could spend a lot of time there. Again Thank you for the tour

[Mumbleypeg]

More

Ken

Ken ,Very nice pics,and info . Thanks for posting all those great pictures ,that Museum is a must see now,have it on my bucket list. Looks like you could spend a lot of time there. Again Thank you for the tour

I guarantee you’ll enjoy it. Finest collection I’ve ever seen, by far. The museum adjoins the local airport and has taxiways that extend to the museum’s aircraft restoration hanger and roll-up doors to the museum’s main building, allowing them to move aircraft into and out of the buildings, and to fly them. Although you can “see” most of it in a couple of hours, if you’re like me and like to read and learn about the items on display, I’d plan on a full day there.

Here’s a few more items of interest from the museum.

Ken

[Dan In MI]

Actually it was quite successful. They started building them there in 1921 and closed 10 years later only because of the Great Depression.There were over 2,000 cars built at the Springfield factory.

I've read and researched so much about old vehicles over the years that my wires were bound to get crossed eventually. Thanks for setting me straight on that one!

The old Studebaker pickup you striped is a nice old rig!

Here’s a few more items of interest from the museum.

The unknown is a Stout Scarab. A photo of it is shown on the appropriate Wikipedia page, too.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stout_Scarab

[Mumbleypeg]

The unknown is a Stout Scarab. A photo of it is shown on the appropriate Wikipedia page, too.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stout_Scarab

Thanks! I wasn’t sure what it was. On items I took pictures of I also photographed the information placards accompanying most of tthem, but that one was not actually out on display when we were there. It and many other vehicles were in storage in another area of the museum. The roll-up door to that area happened to be open so I peeked in and took a few pictures. The 1932 Chevy was sitting beside it but I recognized it. Had no idea what it’s ugly companion was. According to that Wikipedia article you linked, the Stout is now at a museum in Detroit. It was apparently on loan to Owls Head when we were there.

Ken

[knife7knut]

The old Studebaker pickup you striped is a nice old rig!

Here’s a few more items of interest from the museum.

The unknown is a Stout Scarab. A photo of it is shown on the appropriate Wikipedia page, too.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stout_Scarab

I love the scarab shaped grille on the Stout. Those two old fire trucks have some of the most beautiful gold leaf work on them that I have ever seen.Did you happen to notice if they put on the sign who was responsible for it? If it was done a long time ago it looks a bit like the work of Mickey Fearon from around the Dracut Massachusetts area. Mickey and his brother Don were a couple of the finest gilders I have ever seen. Sadly both are passed on now but Don Jr. is still pinstriping and lettering and carrying on the tradition.

[Mumbleypeg]

The old Studebaker pickup you striped is a nice old rig!

Here’s a few more items of interest from the museum.

The unknown is a Stout Scarab. A photo of it is shown on the appropriate Wikipedia page, too.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stout_Scarab

I love the scarab shaped grille on the Stout. Those two old fire trucks have some of the most beautiful gold leaf work on them that I have ever seen.Did you happen to notice if they put on the sign who was responsible for it? If it was done a long time ago it looks a bit like the work of Mickey Fearon from around the Dracut Massachusetts area. Mickey and his brother Don were a couple of the finest gilders I have ever seen. Sadly both are passed on now but Don Jr. is still pinstriping and lettering and carrying on the tradition.

Ray, all I have about it is it said it was restored by Firefly Restorations of Hope, ME.

Ken

[knife7knut]

Ray, all I have about it is it said it was restored by Firefly Restorations of Hope, ME.

Ken

I'm not familiar with that name but I will do some research on it. The leaf work is very intricate and there aren't many people still left around that are capable of doing that caliber of work. There was an older gentleman in Jackson Michigan who did work that looks very similar to that;maybe it was his work.

[knife7knut]

Ray, all I have about it is it said it was restored by Firefly Restorations of Hope, ME.

Ken

I'm not familiar with that name but I will do some research on it. The leaf work is very intricate and there aren't many people still left around that are capable of doing that caliber of work. There was an older gentleman in Jackson Michigan who did work that looks very similar to that;maybe it was his work.

Just Googled Firefly Restorations and got on their Facebook page. Came across a picture of some intricate gold leaf work on one of their current projects and the artist was Ken Soderbeck of Jackson Michigan!

[jmh58]

Heading to Columbus, O next week for the Good Guys Nationals. Did this for 11yr 06/16. They get any where 4000/6000 cars. Lots of pics maybe??
John 🏎

[knife7knut]

Heading to Columbus, O next week for the Good Guys Nationals. Did this for 11yr 06/16. They get any where 4000/6000 cars. Lots of pics maybe??
John 🏎

Please do post the pics and have a safe trip there. I was at a wedding in Dayton one year and decided to drive over to Columbus on that Sunday. Must have passed at least 5000 cars on I-70 headed home from Columbus.Got to the fairgrounds and there was still a ton of cars there. Talked to someone there and they supposedly had nearly 14,000 cars that weekend!

[knife7knut]

Here are some,"two wheeled hot rods". The Hayabusa had about 350-400hp! Guy bought it and it was a beautiful Candy Blue.He had it painted flat black and brought it down and said,I want it striped 1950's style;will a grand cover it?" Can't turn down an offer like that. He had to bring a special stand to hold it up as my jack wouldn't work under the bike(frame is fully enclosed in a belly pan).Couldn't believe how heavy the bike was(sticker on the frame said 943 lbs.!).
The idiot riding around on the pocket bike is "yours truly". I bought it in the late 1970's from a friend and used to keep it in my car as an emergency vehicle. Actually had to use it once;rode 5 miles to a telephone when my car broke down in the middle of nowhere. I still have it sitting in my shop but haven't been able to ride it for several years now.
The pic on the front page of the paper happened when I was painting at a Gold Wing rally in Tiffin Ohio.I had the bike in the back of my Safari wagon and someone asked if it actually ran. I said yes and very well .He asked how fast and I told him about 40 mph. He didn't believe me so when I was finished striping the bike I was doing I got it out and ran it across the fairgrounds with a bike behind clocking me. I got it up to 37 mph and didn't realize it but there was a photographer from the local paper taking pictures and the next day I was on the front page!

[knife7knut]

Forgot one!

[jmh58]

Ray. Thank You for sharing your pics!! And it goes without saying. Excellent work!! 🏎
John

[knife7knut]

This was Friday's project:striping the newly made hood panels for my friend Dave's 37 Dodge pickup. I had originally striped it in 2001 just after Dave's nephew Rod had finished repairing it. The truck had been involved in a fire(possibly due to a cracked fuel line)that had done some serious damage to it.(see pictures).
Dave drove it for awhile and then when family time took precedence it was put away in his garage. He dug it out a few months back and had Rod re-do the front of the truck(refinish the hood and front fenders and manufacture new custom hood panels).
They had left the stripe flames I had done on the doors and cowl so he basically just wanted me to create some new flames on the hood panels and blend them into the flames that were already there.
Friday was an ideal painting day;in the low 70's;low humidity and just a hint of a breeze.Rod had left the truck on his lift in case I needed to raise it to paint the lower areas(I did). With the hood panels in place,I roughed in the flame design with a marking pencil to make sure they aligned with the design already on there. Then we pulled them off and laid them on a padded rack to stripe.
The flames were done originally in 1-Shot Maroon with purple tips. My first problem was when I realized I had no maroon paint. No problem I thought;I'll just mix some up to match.I usually have no trouble matching paint colors when repairing stripes but this day was different. I must have worked for nearly an hour trying to get the color right! What looked good in the mixing cup looked nothing like what was on the truck.
I finally gave up and went to the local paint store to get some maroon paint. Luckily they had one can left.
The flames went down nicely on the new panels and when I finished we bolted them back on to finish blending them in. I started on the left side only to find that the lower stripes could not be accessed with my brush. I could only come in on an angle which forced the brush to make too wide a line.
After several attempts I switched over to a long handled quill and had no better luck. I then got the brilliant idea to make a bend in the metal ferrule so the brush hairs would hit the surface at 90 degrees and they would flair out and make the line too wide. worked perfectly and after I had finished carefully bent it back to a normal position.
As an aside;red pigmented colors usually have a tendency to fade over time and I have to make color corrections to the new paint.For some reason the maroon had not faded one bit in over 20 years and the color match was perfect.
Anyway that is what my Friday consisted of.Hope you enjoyed the pics and the story.

[jmh58]

Well done Ray.. KOOL truck..
John