Swedes with a Need for SPEED!
Where do I start? Gregg’s cord of woody wagons, Dale’s nostalgia RPU or their dad Terry’s custom gauge panels? When you meet a family as nice as the Seaholm’s out of Tucson, AZ, their story needs to be told. Stories like this define My Ride is Me. My dad and I have been going to shows and swaps forever, so I know what it’s like to be there with family.
For kindling, here’s Gregg’s other woody… (click on any picture to make it bigger!)
I didn’t grab too many details on this one, but as you can see it’s got perfectly restored wood, a killer stance and Radir wheels with wide white walls. I dig the picture I got where it’s behind Gregg’s prize. This woody is one of my favorite rides from the entire show.
Dug out of a garage in Pasadena, CA, stored since 1964 by the 2nd owner, dig this 1940 Ford Woody. Can you believe, after all that time, in 2006, the guy’s wife said, “Get it outta here!” Gregg’s got a good friend in Wes Aplanalp over at Woodies USA in Cave Creek, AZ that knows Gregg’s passion for woodies. It was a perfect match and the deal was done quickly.
After bringing it home, it didn’t take long for Gregg to make and execute his plan for his new ride. Luckily, the Seaholm has hooked up with a reliable builder in Hi Speed also in Tucson, AZ. Tony Ribeau, part owner and wrench at Hi Speed was on hand enjoying the show with the family and soaking up compliments for his work.
When the woody arrived at Hi Speed, there were only 30 days left until the premier woody event, Wavecrest. This once a year show held outside San Diego in Encinitas, CA, is a must for the true woody fan.
Getting started, they found that the previous owner had put in oil and turned over the engine once a month for all those years. He also labeled all the parts and fasteners he’d removed! Genius! But, the original flathead would never have fired… the distributor caps were on backwards! (not genius…) After cleaning the tank, rebuilding the carbs and replacing tired fuel lines, she fired right up. 42 years of sleep and it purred like new. It should, having only driven 60,000 miles. Finally, all of the safety items were checked and repaired and new Drake wiring was installed cause the cloth sheathing was done-for. The mouse (there’s always a mouse!) made his final resting place in the glove box and left the original interior and top alone.
The rust free body was left alone except for paint restored using the original color on the firewall. They gave it a little patina to match the beautiful wood that originally caught my eye. This kind of patina can’t be man made. To protect it Hi Speed hit it with a little teak oil, then used clear Deft to seal it and walla. In person, it’s perfect. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
The first to let me know they were the “Swede’s with a Need for Speed” was brother Dale Seaholm. He drove his 29 Roadster pickup to the Scottsdale show.
Early Sunday morning, we drove it out away from everyone and grabbed these pictures. This 3 year project that also found help from Tony at Hi Speed sports some vintage speed goodies I’d never seen before and might never again. The center piece of it all was the Gotha brand intake and valve covers. I quickly searched around the web and couldn’t find any links to provide more info about the Gotha. Needless to say, they’re rare. They top the 324 Olds backed by a 37 Cadillac LaSalle 3 speed manual trans.
Looking inside, trick details abound. Don’t be fooled by those “bomber” seats. Those are original 1958 Bugeye Sprite seats with new cushions. The dash is from a 41 Willy’s and that’s a Hallock windshield.
Thanks for sharing this beauty!
Last but not least is the guy who started it all… Terry Seaholm, their father. Terry’s a gauge panel specialists. Terry was visiting from his home in Tacoma, WA. He had a few restored Stewart Warner gauges laid out on a towel when I talked to him.
He doesn’t restore or repair the gauges, he’s got good friends in Pat Swanson of Washington and Bruce Abbott of Abbott Instrument Restoration in Oregon. But if you want a top of the line gauge panel, you can’t do better than Terry. Ever heard of the Doane Spencer 2 1932 Roadster? To be trusted on a high profile Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance competitor (and winner!), you know he’s good!
Photo courtesy of http://auto.howstuffworks.com/doane-spencer-deuce-hot-rod.htm
With Terry’s kind heart and willingness to help, I can see where Gregg and Dale get it. Thanks to all the Seaholms for the courtesy and the beers. I’ll see you next year and hopefully down in Tucson when I see what else Hi Speed’s working on. Thanks again!
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Hi: It was nice to meet you at the Tucson GG show, and the shots of our families cars were super! Just a brief correction. The gauges in the pictured 32 roadster originally built by Doane Spencer and restored by SoCal Speed Shop for Bruce Meyer were not done by either me or Bruce Abbott. The gauges that Bruce and I provided were for the 32 roadster Doane was working on at his untimely death, and I was contacted by Kirk White to provide the gauges for the SoCal project for Kirk’s friend Dennis Higgenbottom. The Spencer2 roadster was a featured 32 roadster at this years Grand National Roadster show. and was also seen at the Los Angeles Roadster Show this past Fathers Day. Thank you for letting me clarify this matter. Terry Seaholm
Terry,
Thanks for the correction. By the time I talked to you to get the facts, I was plum worn out from 3 days of the show. I’m glad we could get the facts straight.