Online Hot Rod Magazine and Custom Car Pics

18,000 Mile 1955 Chevy Bel Air Classic To say Chevy's relaunch of the Bel Air in 1955 kick started an automotive revolution would be a understatement. As the first entry into what would become known throughout the world as the "shoebox Chevy", the 55 Bel Air became one of the most iconic Chevrolets in history, right up there with the Corvette and the Camaro. Highlights for the model year include the first year for a 12V electrical system and the timeless "eyebrows" over the front headlights. Designers extended the front fenders just over the headlights giving the remodeled Bel Airs what appears to be a raised eyebrow when viewed from the front. Features in films such as "Two-Lane Blacktop" and "American Graffiti" increased the mystique surrounding the 55 Bel Air ten-fold. And when Harrison Ford's character Bob Falfa staged his 55 Chevy against "The fastest  thing in the valley", Milner's coupe, you could easily argue the car helped launch his career. The 55 Bel Air's popularity stretches across the gamut of auto enthusiasts. Its sleek accents and generous use of chrome captured the attention of customizers just as the lightweight and easy acceptance of...

Nothing says nostalgia like a 1955 Chevy Gasser! When my friend Stan asked me to join him at the dragstrip to race his '55, I couldn't say no. As I arrived at his place, I expected to see a trailer. Not this time - because this Chevy dragster is street legal! Heads turn as we drive by and in no time we've arrived at Irwindale Speedway for Thursday Amateur Night. Arriving early meant no waiting in the tech inspection and almost no line to race!  Everything went so quickly, it was only a few moments before I was jumping out of the passenger seat so Stan could pull up to the waterbox. Waterbox? That's the area that they wet down so each car can burnout and warm up their tires just before they pull up to the line. Powering that beautiful metal down the line is this 454 Rat engine. Adding a little something extra is a Mercruiser blower. Behind it all, there's a Turbo 400 transmission with a Maxwell valve body. He calls it the "Lynwood Flash". Stan happens to be a SoCal guy through and through (those...

Flat Paint Job for my Ford Falcon Wagon Finally. I don't think I could have taken a longer path to get there, but at least it's done. My Falcon's wearing new paint and the flat sheen or "hot rod flat" I was going for came out great. Special thanks to T.C. at FinishMaster in Mesa, AZ for help with the paint and advice to make this happen. I also took advantage of advice from Kevin Tetz from "Trucks" TV show. Kevin helped me with 11 Tips for a Flat Paint Job and sorta held my hand on this project.   It's a long story how I got here, you can read it all at this link: Falcon Wagon Build. It started with bodywork lessons and primer from Squeeg's Kustoms then a paint job gone wrong. Back on track, here's how my buddy Joel and I laid on this flat gold paint. I think it came out great!   Before Paint Prep:     You can see here what my wagon looked like right before we started on Saturday morning. Over Labor Day, my sons and I scuffed the clearcoat...

1963 Ford Falcon Squire Wagon Images Courtesy of Daniel De Silva   In case you didn't know, Ford Falcons were made and sold in Australia while the "compact" Ford was selling in the USA too. The cool old Ford Falcons we enjoyed all through the 60's were replaced with some 70s Falcons that looked like... cars from the 70s. In a word, YUCK. But that's another story...     Daniel De Silva of Bandit Films has teamed up with Luke from Fuel Magazine to make Fueltank.tv. It's a collection of great hot rod and custom car videos all done in HD. I've watched a few, especially this trick Falcon wagon, and I'll be back!   Dig the groovy sounds and especially dig this gorgeous right hand drive Falcon. I want it!! Hopefully my 63 Falcon Wagon Project will turn out half as nice!   [vimeo]http://vimeo.com/20471414[/vimeo]   For more Falcon fun, check out Pikesan's project: 1963 Ford Falcon Wagon Build...

Tim Strange's Hot Rod Reality TV with at Taste of Arizona Saturday morning's got a new hot rod TV show and it's always fun watching since I know Tim and I've heard some of what's going on backstage at the show. One thing I know we're missing is the details of Tim's work. If they spun off that show and only showed the building parts, it'd still be a hit. I met Tim through Brian Stupski over at Problem Child Kustoms in Gilbert, AZ or just a few miles down the road from MyRideisMe.com headquarters. Brian's hot rod art was featured on the show helping out with a 1967 Ford Mustang. Take one look at the art and you'll know why this was no gimme for a friend... Brian's work is top notch. Here's Brian's take on the build and his part in Search and Restore: Having the good fortune to have made some incredible friends over the years is one of those things I'm thankful for every day. Nothing compares to being able to call one of the most skilled builders in the industry as a friend, or...

Flat Clear Coat Spray Paint from Kevin Tetz of "Trucks"   1963 Ford Falcon Wagon with a Flat Clear Coat Spray Paint Job. Every story I've written about this build can be found here: 1963 Ford Falcon Wagon Build   It's painted! In case you're just tuning in, I've been trying to put my 1963 Ford Falcon wagon back together for oh... 3 yeas now. It was supposed to be a quick-turn project that resulted in a cool daily driver. That didn't happen. We did have a great Overhaulin-style tear down party that left me with a shell of a Falcon.   After a total failure with my first paint job (a long boring story I won't revisit) I had to repaint my wagon, but this time, I wanted a flat paint job using flat clear. There's a bunch of forum-based info on painting with Hot Rod Flatz or using flat clear, but I wanted a trusted source with 30 years of painting experience. That's where Kevin Tetz from the Power Block show "Trucks" comes in. I met Kevin at SEMA a few years ago, and just like you'd suspect, he's...

James Owens - Featured Hot Rod Artist Everybody could use a little more creativity to fuel their lives – so we’re kicking off a new feature here at MyRideisMe! In our Artist Toolbox series, we’ll introduce you to a new hot rod inspired artist and bring you a tutorial from the artist themselves. So not only will you get the opportunity to learn about some fantastic, creative geniuses – but you might learn a thing or two as well! Some people out there hear the word “art” and think of fancy-schmancy galleries and a bunch of stuffed shirts. Others hear “low brow art” and assume it’s something the wife wouldn’t allow hanging in the house. No matter what you think of hot rod art, you’re in for a surprise! The artists we’ll spotlight in the Artist Toolbox series create high-class, fun, and hot-rod inspired pieces of beauty. They put the same sort of grit and heart into their works of art as we all put into our cars. This month’s feature artist is James Owens. Originally out of Detroit, James has single-handedly coined the phrase “car noir.” Art should...

Learn How To Paint Like Hot Rod Artist James Owens The Dame Wore Red is the first in MyRideisMe's new feature, Artist Toolbox. Read on for tips and secrets how James Owens makes his car noir art. _______________________________________________________________ The Dame Wore Red By James OwensShe sat there mocking me. Her blank stare made me feel like it was my first time. But I’ve been down this alley before and I learned something every time, usually the hard way. Her kind can strike terror into the hearts of grown men. Her milk-white skin was almost blinding, taunting, teasing me till I couldn’t think straight. She sat there on my easel thinking she had me right where she wanted me. A canvas is like a dame, you treat ‘em right and they’re a little bit of heaven right here on Earth. You treat ‘em wrong and brother you find yourself in a mess. I guess the big difference is, I’m usually trying to put something ON a canvas. My name is Owens, I paint pictures. It ain't rocket science. Any yegg can learn it. But not everyone is nutty enough to...

How to Change Sway Bar Links in a 2002 Ford Focus My friend had been experiencing a squeeking sound from her front suspension – mainly when she was making a turn. A mechanic she frequents suggested it was the sway bar linkages that were causing this squeek and quoted her a $47 per linkage plus whatever labor charges were incurred. Knowing I was out of work and could use a buck, she asked me if I could do the job for her instead. I looked up the linkage on a Ford Focus and saw that it was something I could handle – so to the garage I went! (I also had an exciting time finding the air filter, read about that here.) Checking up on Ford Focus Front Suspension Linkages online, I found them to cost anywhere between about $12 and $20 per part. I ended up getting the parts from Autozone, they cost me $12.99 a piece, and were in stock at the nearest store. Already, this saved my friend $68.02 in parts. Step-by-Step How To Change Sway Bar Linkages 1.  The first thing to do of course...

How to Change Air Filter in a 2002 Ford Focus A friend recently needed a couple simple things done to her 2002 Ford Focus. I’m a classic car girl, and so far have almost exclusively only worked on old cars – but I couldn’t turn away an opportunity for learning, so I told my friend I’d look into fixing her problems. What she needed was an air filter change, brake flush, and to replace the sway bar linkage. Having never looked under the hood of a Ford Focus before, I popped the latch and looked for the air filter. I saw a couple places where I thought it might be lurking beneth, but I wasn’t sure. So to try and make sure I went looking for some answers in her Ford Owner’s Manual. I was surprised to find they didn’t have this basic information! So then I turned to the internet. Again, I was surprised that there were plenty of threads on Ford Forums of people looking for the air filter – with one fellow stating that even the dealership tried to tell him there wasn’t one. Now…I think...

As it ends up, Pikesan's not the only one with a Falcon project on their hands. I'm ashamed to say it - but Davey, my 1960 Ford Falcon 2-door sedan, has been sitting on a side-yard gathering dust since I finished Studie's transmission over a year ago. The above picture was taken at the last event, and come to think of it the only event, Davey ever attended - the Mooneyes 2010 Summer Show. I had been depending on the Falcon to get me by while Studie was stranded with transmission issues. Falcon got me through, but just barely. Falcon had been giving me worries and semi-breaking down for a couple of weeks by the time Stude had gotten back on the road. The above picture was taken in October 2010 before I had a garage and had to find crafty ways to comfortably work! I was so happy to have my Stude back, and busy with a million other things in life, that Davey just sat... and sat some more. I intended to bring the Falcon over to my garage months ago, but it never seemed to happen. The...

NorCal Hot Rods and Custom Car Show Pictures- N/K The sun was far from coming up when I was standing on the corner of 10th St in Antioch waiting on Villainz car club member Scott Coppack to pick me up. The night before I told Scott I would love to help the guys set up around the House of Style booth which feature phenom pinstripers-slash-painters Kyle Martin and John Christensen. Come to find out Scott had already pulled in to the show and was setting up. If it wasn't for Villainz John Lemoine with his sweet burnt orange 49 and his keen eye for black sticker-mobbed camera cases I probably would have been out in front till they let the public in. Well... probably not, but you get the picture.   (All of Nick's pictures from Billetproof here in the MyRideisMe.com Hot Rods and Customs gallery)     Upon entering the show, we grab our swag bag, pay the reggie fee and head to our designated area, which I might say was quite perfect! Under shade trees, right across from pinstriping mad men Rich Luna and Mr.Wims booth and...