Mag. - How to build 1934-35 chevy st rodshp1514: step-by-step assembly instructions for a 1934 chevy replica

Table of Contents

ROD & RESTORATION GROUP

Doug Evans

Tom Vogele

Tim Foss

Brian Brennan

Kris Hancock

Jay Storer Brian Brennan

Brian Brennan Ryan Manson Jay Storer

Angela Brevidoro

Kelly Lee David Wiggs

Janeen Webb

Jerry Dixey Impact Printing
15150 Sierra Bonita Ln.
Chino, CA 91710
(909) 614-1678

Chapter 1

For the past decade, STREET RODDER has presented an annual project in which a state-of-the-art street rod is assembled and driven some 25,000 miles in one fast-paced summer of street rod events all over America. These Road Tour projects have been enormously successful at showing what can be done with readily available components produced by aftermarket companies, and how much fun one can have with the resultant vehicle, all with the reliability, performance, and other attributes you expect from a modern car fresh off the showroom floor.

There was a time when street rods were hand-built by weekend mechanics from mostly junkyard parts because nothing else was available for the budget-conscious, and, of course, results varied in safety, appearance, and effectiveness. Today, street rodders span a wide spectrum. There are still those who home-build, as well as those who assemble a car at home with mostly brand-new components (sometimes called a 1-800 rod because of the ease of buying through catalogs and the Internet), and those rodding enthusiasts fortunate enough to have a professional rod shop build the car of their dreams. All of us have different tastes and budgets, but we are generally united in our love of unique performance vehicles in vintage guise, whether they be built from a salvaged original tin body and components with modern running gear added, or a completely new car like our 1934 Chevrolet coupe. Our Road Tour car for this year is beautiful, fast, comfortable, and doesnt have a single part made in 34, or even any used parts at all! If youre new to street rodding and ask, How? then stick with us as we build this Road Tour 2006 car from the ground up, inside and out, bottom to top.

Most of street rodding is based on early Ford vehicles. It was Henry Fords everymans car, the Model T, the later Model A, and 32-and-later flathead Ford V-8s that really established hot rodding and the racing and performance industry in America. Much of what we do in street rodding today follows the traditional paths of the early 30s to the 60s in terms of the car styles we build. There are some exceptions, of course, with some very modern designs with smooth, hand-fabricated metal bodies that may have some interpretation of a vintage body.

As a result of the majority interest in Ford-based street rods, the Road Tour cars built for the magazine in the last 10 years have mostly been Fords. This years car is an exciting departure in a number of ways. Aftermarket reproduction parts or newly built body/chassis components used to be solely available for Fords. The restoration market for Chevrolets has mounted more slowly, but were glad to say that today there are lots of options for Chevrolet fans, and this car is proof of that, as youll see throughout this book.

If youre really new to all of this, were glad you picked up this book, and youll be glad too as youre introduced to a pastime that will give you years of pleasure. Well start by defining some terms. Stripped-down performance cars put together by young men from the 30s on were eventually all referred to as hot rods. This term became less than desirable as hot rodders were depicted as reckless and dangerous by sensationalist newspapers and B-movies. When organized drag racing developed in the 50s as an alternative to errant street racing, those who still cruised the streets in chopped and channeled roadsters and coupes sought a better image. By the 60s, these cars were driven by family men and werent as fast or loud as their predecessors, and the term street rod emerged to put a more acceptable spin on this rapidly growing hobby.

Today, most of the cars covered in STREET RODDER have a vintage body or a modern duplicate of one sitting on a modern chassis with disc brakes, air-conditioning, a stereo, plush seating, and a late-model engine and transmission that perform very well in a comparatively light car. This is todays mainstream street rod. If you hear the term hot rod being applied to a car today, it generally means the car under discussion is either a restored hot rod from the 50s, a car built to look like a hot rod of the past, or a modern rod that happens to have an aggressive style and an emphasis on very high performance, such as an exposed, big-block engine with a supercharger on top. Not everyone is a stickler for terms, but most enthusiasts have their own internal definitions based on their personal likes/dislikes. Street rodding is more ecumenical than this might imply, though, and everyone who shares the common bond of interest is accepted. There are dozens of large-scale regional and national events nationwide, with perhaps hundreds of smaller events and countless local cruise nights and car gatherings. A street rodder can enjoy the driving and camaraderie of events like these, or he can drive his street rod simply for the pure pleasure of being at the wheel in a personalized vehicle that offers true driving fun. Take your rod out and play with it!